Why can't Christians agree on what the Bible says?
I think this is a pretty popular question, and it is a stumbling block for both Christians and non-Christians because the implication is that if Christians can't agree on what the Bible even says, then we can't use the Bible as an authority: if anyone claims the Bible says one thing, how can we know it's not just their opinion? After all, can't someone else just claim the Bible says the opposite?
I want to suggest that it is indeed possible to read and understand what the Bible says for yourself, and therefore anyone who is willing is able to engage in discussion with others about what the Bible says. I am suggesting that it does not come down, in the end, to baseless claims that the Bible supports a personal opinion, nor does it require a central authority to govern the correct interpretation. Instead, reading the Bible for what it is means that many people will come to the same conclusions about particular topics like who Jesus is and what he came to do, and perhaps on other topics there may be room for differing opinions.
Over the next few posts, I hope to explain how I think a fair, common understanding of the Bible is possible. I'll start with what the Bible is, then discuss some common mistakes, and then try to explain an approach to reading the Bible which I think does it justice.
I felt very challenged last week as I started reading Malcom Gladwell's book, Blink. He writes very well and has a way of weaving together different stories and scientific studies in a very coherent manner. One example early on especially hit close to home.
Gladwell talks about some research done by John Gottman on divorce. Gottman's approach was to have married couples come in and talk about something they disagreed on - such as a dog one liked but the other didn't - while everything from sweat glands to heart rates to body movement were measured. Of course, the entire thing was videotaped. The thing is, from a seemingly inconsequential discussion between a husband and wife lasting fifteen minutes, Gottman could predict to 90 percent accuracy if the marriage would end in divorce within fifteen years.
Gottman had big data. He would analyse the videotape second by second for emotional content, and combined this with the continuous physiological feedback his sensors measured. In some ways, the fact that he could make accurate predictions this way is almost expected. On the other hand, this sort of accuracy is staggering when you consider that he only saw each couple for fifteen minutes, and they were not even discussing their marriage or each other, at least on the face of it. What is more, the basis of his predictions turns out not to be a complex unintelligible formula, but fairly understandable principles.
One factor is that in order for a marriage to survive, there must be much more "positive" emotion than "negative" emotion in any interaction - in fact, five times as much positive emotion as negative. Defensiveness is a warning sign. So is stonewalling. As is criticism. The most dangerous factor according to Gottman is contempt - assuming or acting in a position of superiority. Have you ever rolled your eyes at a friend? That's contempt.
Reading a list like this makes me feel guilty because I see all the warning signs in myself. I am at times negative, being defensive and stonewalling. I have done my fair share of criticism. I am guilty of acting in contempt towards the people I loved most. It especially hurts because I feel like I try harder than most to make sure I do not do any of these things. My problem is partly that I have a very high level of "relationship failure anxiety" that others do not seem to have. Perhaps everyone else just hides it as I do.
Anyway, here's an excerpt from the book to think about (pp29-30):
"People are in one of two states in a relationship," Gottman went on. "The first is what I call positive sentiment override, where positive emotion overrides irritability. It's like a buffer. Their spouse will do something bad, and they'll say, 'Oh, he's just in a crummy mood.' Or they can be in negative sentiment override, so that even a relatively neutral thing that a partner says gets perceived as negative. In the negative sentiment override state, people draw lasting conclusions about each other. If their spouse does something positive, it's a selfish person doing a positive thing. It's really hard to change those states, and those states determine whether when one party tries to repair things, the other party sees that as repair or hostile manipulation. For example, I'm talking with my wife, and she says, 'Will you shut up and let me finish?' In positive sentiment override, I say, 'Sorry, go ahead.' I'm not very happy, but I recognize the repair. In negative sentiment override, I say, 'To hell with you, I'm not getting a chance to finish either. You're such a bitch, you remind me of your mother.'"
You alone are great, and your glory fills the heavens. You hold the stars and the sun in their place, and you guide the course of the earth.
Who has your authority, and whose majesty compares to yours? Who has ever achieved the righteousness of God?
Look upon your servant with compassion, O Lord, for there is none like you, gracious and abounding in love.
For I am ensnared by guilt and ridden with shame before you, because of my evil desires.
I have made a woman more important than my God, a maiden more praiseworthy than the Lord of heaven and earth. I have longed for what was not rightfully mine, and rejected him who required my whole heart.
When she ceased to love me I became angry; when she no longer looked at me I turned to despair; when she befriended others I became jealous.
She would not care for me, yet I care for her; she will not love me, yet my desire is for her; she is imperfect, yet I hope for her.
Please forgive me, O my God, for I have spurned you.
Wash me in the blood of your sacrifice and cleanse me. Pour out your abundant mercy still proceeding from the cross of your salvation. Count not my sins but the righteousness of your Son. Listen not to the imperfections in my prayers but to your Spirit who mediates.
See my misguided heart - direct it; know my innermost desires - correct them; take hold of my spirit and guide me, or else I am lost to the world.
I will hope in the God who is Love, who gave himself for me.
I visited a library today, and spent a few hours reading. There was a book that had caught my eye in a bookshop, and I wanted to see if the library had the same book; unfortunately, the library's copy was on loan so I couldn't get my hands on it, but I decided to browse around anyway. I ended up taking two books off the shelf out of a collection of books on leadership. Anyway, I thought I'd share my thoughts about those two books with you.
Cover image from Amazon
The first book was Women Leading by Sue Hayward (2004). This book doesn't teach you how to lead; it just describes the personal observations and discoveries of the author. Hayward has a background in journalism, and it seems that the idea behind the book was basically to interview many women in different leadership positions to discover how they got there, how they lead, how it affects their family and personal relationships, and so on. These stories are presented as part of a bigger picture, and the author's commentary includes reflections on personal experiences too.
The underlying value presented in the book is that it is a good thing to have women in leadership, and while it might never be the case that women outnumber men in particular positions currently dominated by men (e.g. executive positions), equality is something that modern nations should strive towards.
One of the reasons why we should strive for gender equality in leadership positions is the observation that, while there are exceptions both ways, men tend to excel in one set of skills while women tend to excel in a different set of skills (like managing many tasks at once, showing care and empathy). The argument is that businesses today need leaders with both kinds of skills, and there are many women who have the skills to lead in their own way. That is, women need not "flirt" their way to the top, nor do they need to act like stereotypical men in order to be good leaders.
Hayward covers a wide range of topics, and includes the impact of the rise of women leading on men who have traditionally dominated the leading roles. Some will find it hard to adapt to a different style of leadership; others may embrace the change of culture but find it difficult, for example, to try to be a stay-at-home father.
Hayward stresses multiple times that she is not trying to present a "feminist" view that neglects the role of men. She also understands that it is hard for a woman to "have it all" in the sense of having a full and productive career as well as being a mother of a family. Some women make it work by hiring a nanny; for many this isn't an option that makes financial sense.
I thought that Women Leading was an interesting read, but I wasn't sure what to really take away from it. It didn't seem to be promoting a particular line of argument or method of leadership - instead, it was a lot like watching a documentary. There were lots of stories, with some commentary, and in the end I felt a bit better educated but without any particular message stuck in my head.
Cover image from Google Books
The second book I didn't so much read as skim, since I had already been at the library a couple of hours and the library would close shortly. This book was Inspiring Tomorrow's Leaders Today: Breaking Down Generational Barriers at Work by Avril Henry (2007). Inspiring Tomorrow's Leaders... seems to be one of a series of books which are in the traditional category of management/self-help, presenting ideas in a very structured format and focussed on helping managers to be better leaders in the workplace.
This particular book in the series is focussed on understanding the differences between generations in their cultures, expectations, and responses to leadership. It looks mainly at three generations: Boomers, X, and Y, and to a lesser extent, Veterans. It looks at different aspects of leadership, such as the question of how each group of people defines leadership. In the case of older generations, leadership means having authority and respect - but for younger generations, leadership means showing mutual respect and leading by example. On the one hand, Boomers look for job security; on the other, Generations X and Y do not put their trust in a single job and expect to move around. Generation Y is motivated by lots of positive feedback; Generation X rails against micro-management; and so on.
Inspiring Tomorrow's Leaders... offers insights about each generation with the underlying premise that effective leadership requires you to understand those you are leading. People of different generations have different cultural expectations of work, relationships, motivations, and expressions of respect - and a key part of leading is presumably to understand what is true or false about the stereotypes and communicate effectively with people across generations.
At the end of the day, I think leading and caring go hand in hand. A good leader is someone who understands others, cares about them, and is able to get alongside them and inspire them towards a common goal. I think that's why it's a good idea to try to understand cultural differences between generations. The ability to care for those they lead is also argued to be a reason why many women have proven to be exceptional leaders - though I wonder if a good female leader should really be different to a good male leader. I don't want to start ranting, so I'll just leave it at that!
I've been thinking a bit lately about sharing the gospel. After all, if I think that knowing and trusting Jesus is the best and most important decision for me, why wouldn't I want others to also know and trust him? Anyway, since I still sometimes lose sight of Jesus' compassion for the lost, I thought I'd write a song that could get stuck in my head to give me courage and joy to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with others.
The theme for the chorus is based on Jesus' words in Matthew 9:35-38, which says:
Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
Here's the song lyrics, to be sung to a happy tune. Let me know what you think! This is a first-draft effort, so I'd appreciate any suggestions you might have!
It's time for the harvest The fields are ripe The night is nearly over And the day is showing light Ask the Lord for workers In the plentiful supply We need men and women working 'Cause it's harvest time!
God chose a man To take him to a land To make from him a people And guide them by his hand To bless all other nations That they might know his name So that they might be called Children of Abraham.
It's time for the harvest The fields are ripe The night is nearly over And the day is showing light Ask the Lord for workers In the plentiful supply We need men and women working 'Cause it's harvest time!
God chose a man To preach and pave the way To point to someone greater Who would take our sins away The Son of David came To seek and save the lost To give his life for many Lifted on the cross.
It's time for the harvest The fields are ripe The night is nearly over And the day is showing light Ask the Lord for workers In the plentiful supply We need men and women working 'Cause it's harvest time!
God chose to save His people on the earth But sheep without a shepherd Are helpless facing death Go out to all the nations With loving hearts speak truth How beautiful the feet Of those who bring good news!
It's time for the harvest The fields are ripe The night is nearly over And the day is showing light Ask the Lord for workers In the plentiful supply We need men and women working 'Cause it's harvest time!
Sometimes it is a futile exercise to try to be in complete control. I want life to be predictable, but unexpected things happen every week. I put my trust in friends, but they sometimes forget our appointments. I wish that everyone were self-controlled, patient, and kind, but one person will snap at the smallest thing that irritates her and another will raise his voice too quickly.
I know your tendency is to try to regain control, by teaching others how to deal with their irritations, by reminding your friends of upcoming dates, by creating a schedule that covers every possibility by even including "flexi-time".
Perhaps, on the other hand, it would be appropriate to spend more time taking the log out of your own eye. For you yourself have forgotten your fair share of appointments and more; you have grown impatient and ill-mannered with those close to you; and your mood, to any outsider, is as unpredictable as the direction the wind is blowing.
The truth is that we are not all perfect, but we are all under the sovereign love of God. Your friends will make wrong decisions, and you may not be able to stop them. You can only speak as much truth and love as you are able, and then you must entrust them to God and pray that they see differently. You may have a genuine heart for someone else, but currently lack the ears to hear their need. Confess it to God, continue to learn empathy, and trust him to transform you in his love. In the case of others, it is the attitude of your heart that needs prayer for transformation.
In your struggle against sin you must resist to the end, but also remember that sustained growth can take a long time, both in yourself and in others. Let it spur you on in humility and prayer.
Today I just wanted to offer you some encouragement by saying I think the way you have been listening to others has, by God's grace, been a great blessing to them.
It really is helpful when someone listens with a genuine ear of concern, with eyes of understanding, with a heart of empathy, and a mind that is slow to give advice. I know I find that helpful when others listen to me, and I am sure that I do not express enough appreciation to those who are good at listening.
So, keep on! Be encouraged and continue to encourage and love others both in your hearing and in your speaking. Let the Spirit continue to grow in you a humble and abundant heart for others.
From my observation, you have been experiencing a minor personal disaster, on average, about once a month.
As an aerospace engineer, I require you to prepare yourself with a factor of safety of at least 1.5. That is, you must be prepared to continue facing turmoil and hardship of greater force and severity than you have been in the past, with the same or greater frequency.
You must also take care to protect others from your catastrophes. If anyone is to join you, they must be similarly prepared to forgive a total cataclysm every twenty days. Please be warned that there are not many people with such strength, but I trust that some wisdom will come to you.
Lots of people love you. You have loads of friends. And some of them care about you. They care about you a lot. They care when you're upset and unhappy, when you're excited and bubbling, when you're tired and grumpy, and when you're calm and melancholy. They notice when your mood changes and they're there to talk to when you need them.
So don't be all sad and mopey. No more of feeling self-pity, and no thinking, "I have no friends". Don't tell yourself that and insult your friends. Don't be all lonesome, hoping someone gentle or pretty will notice and come by your side. You can do better than that.
You know that God loves you. You have a bunch of friends. You're not helpless, so don't act that way.