Recently, The Christian Century magazine asked dozens of writers to respond to the question, “What is the Bible for?”. They could only use seven words or less to respond. The responses were very interesting and thought-provoking. I thought I would share some of them along with the writer’s name. (The whole list can be found at https://www.christiancentury.org/blog/what-bible.)
“Encountering God’s grace”- M. Craig Barnes
“A rip-roaring library to inspire ongoing conversation”- Brain D. McLaren
“Connecting God’s people across millennia through story” – Celeste Kennel-Shank
“The Bible is for play, seriously” – Kathleen Norris
“Helping us ask the right questions” – Amy-Jill Levine
“Stirring us to believe in costly love” – Peter W. Marty
“Providing wisdom about God, life, and love” -Jon Mathieu
“Encountering the Diving through story and thought” – Dawn Araujo-Hawkings
“Showing us God’s ways in people’s words” – Peter Choi
“An invitation to live as God’s love” – Isaac S. Villegas
“Gathering around stories of enter with God” – Amy Frykholm
“A library of human encounters with divinity” -Barbara Brown Taylor
“Showing us our foolishness and God’s wisdom” – Stephanie Perdew
I’ve spent nearly my entire life reading, studying, and learning from the Bible. I find it puzzling, inspiring, engaging, confusing, and, in some places, even rather boring. But the Bible continues to speak to me and every community of faith in ways that engage and enlarge us. The Bible opens up ways that we might encounter the living, breathing Word of God. All in all, it’s a pretty good book.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Steve