So what?

It has been a great four weeks going through and looking at the Authenticity and Authority of God's Word.  But, on this last week, we address the real heart of the issue which is "Why is the Bible important to me?".  We can talk all we want about the whole of mankind or even all of Christendom, but what does the Bible mean to us individually?  Or better yet, does it mean anything to us?

On the surface, this seems like a no-brainer.  I asked the kids if they thought the vast majority of people who claim to be "Christian" would answer that the Bible is important to them.  It was unanimous across the board: "YES!"  And I asked them if they thought it was important to them, to which they again gave me a solid "yes".  Then we took a step back and looked at the average week for them during the school year.  Sleep, school, homework, eating, grooming, cleaning, sports and a few other minor things were listed out along with the approximate amount of time those things take.  They are some busy kiddos.  What's left is "free time" that they choose to invest things like TV, video games, reading, playing with friends and so on.

So the question then became how much of that "free time" do you spend in God's Word?  They shuffled and thought and mumbled but one kid pretty much summed it up with, "Not very much".  A good, honest answer.  So the question became, "If something is important to you, do you spend time doing it?" to which they all replied "yes".  And then the light began to click on...

We spent the evening in Psalm 119, though only in part and not the whole as it is a big one.  Specifically we were in verses 33-40, 65-68, and 97-105.  The psalmist spends a ton of time telling God how much he loves His Word and His Law.  He talks about all the great stuff that the Bible provides and what a joy it is to follow It.  We really focused a lot of time talking about verses 97-105 and the amount of time that the psalmist says that he spent thinking about God's Word and what It does for him.

If something is important to us, we spend time doing it.  If it is something we love or something we enjoy, we spend time thinking about it.  I related to them that when I was their age, my parents could not tell me when we were doing something fun ahead of time.  For example, usually at least once a year, they would wake me up on a Saturday morning and tell me to get dressed.  We would get in the car and begin driving.  I would ask where we were going and they wouldn't say.  Once we finally got on the edge of Arlington and we could see the observation tower and rides on the horizon, they would announce we were going to Six Flags.  They didn't do all of this because of the joy of the surprise it created for me and my sister or the fun of being a parent and messing with their kids.  They did it because if we knew ahead of time, it would consume us and thus annoy them.  You should have seen us around Christmas...

Even now, I still get that way.  My wife hates when I get on my "latest thing" because I don't stop talking about it, researching it, spending money, time, energy and effort pouring into it.  When something becomes important to me, even if just for a short amount of time, it becomes the primary focus of my time and thoughts.  And while I might have tendencies toward the extreme, I think most people tend to be that way.

The psalmist in Psalm 119 uses that same kind of language to talk about God's Word.  And because it is important to him, he seeks it out and dwells on it.  It isn't something he just says is important to him or knows is important, but something that his actions actually prove.  We spent the last part of class talking about how actions speak louder than words and that if we say something is important, then our actions should be a reflection of those words.  

Obviously being part of Surge and going to worship and Bible study on the weekend is a part of that action and we talked about how we choose to be a part of those things.  But we also talked about how we should be in God's Word outside of the walls of the church.  And while reading and knowing what the Bible says is great, an even bigger part of showing how important we think It is relates to doing what It says.  We shouldn't just "listen to the Word, and so deceive ourselves" but rather "do what It says".  The devil knows the Bible backwards and forwards, and yet his actions demonstrate how unimportant he finds It.  If It is important to us, we'll not only spend time in It but we'll actually apply what It says to our life.

This is a hard lesson to teach because I am convicted of how little time I spend actually in the Word, even though I have to touch It a lot because of my vocation.  It is easy to think that proximity to the Bible is the same thing as being in It.  It's also easy to fool myself into thinking that because I retain historical knowledge of the events in the Bible because I have been exposed to It for all of my life, that I am doing everything I know It says.  And truthfully, for these kids, spending time in the Bible probably looks more like a chore than a joy because there is still so much that they can't quite grasp and the Bible is just not near as fun as a video game.  It's hard to argue against that.  But the habits they are developing now are going to be vital to how they respond to the Bible when they are able to grasp more and video games are less exciting.

For us this week, and really for us in Surge, the bottom line is that if the Bible is truly important to us, then we should actively be reading it, studying it, memorizing it, sharing it, praying over it, using it and following it.  While it is easy to speak the words "God's Word is important", it is only when we prove it by our actions that we really say anything.

Not your average Book

As we continued on our topic of  the Authority of the Bible last night, we talked through how the Bible is different from other books.  Obviously there are some similarities - as they have pages, chapters and words - but the Bible is unique as far as books are concerned.  But why?  And why did God use written word to communicate such an important message?  Why not wait until DVDs were available or show up Himself and just share it first-hand with mankind?

We sure ask a lot of questions in Surge that we can't really answer.

However, we can read this amazing Book and see what God has to say.  The first thing we looked at was John chapter 20, verses 30 and 31.  Here we see John explaining that only a portion of what Jesus did is recorded in the Bible.  Which poses the question of "why".  I mean, we get a glimpse of his birth, revisit for another glimpse at age 12 and then we hear nothing about him until he is roughly 30.  And then when he begins his ministry, we only see small windows of his life over the course of 3 1/2 years.  Why isn't there more?  Why not write down all the miracles?  Why not include all of his teachings?  Again, all great questions with no real answer.  However, John does give us at least a part of the explanation.  He tells us in verse 31 that all of what was written down was done so for one primary reason: to act as proof of Jesus being the Messiah so that through faith we can believe and be saved.

This was an important part of the discussion.  While Jesus performed miracles, gave us some amazing lessons on living a godly life and lived a sinless life as an example for us, those weren't the reasons that he came to earth as a man.  Rather, those things were the proof that he was who he claimed to be.  The reason he was sent to earth was to die as a substitute for our sins. So only some of his miraculous deeds needed to be recorded as there is only a need for so much proof.  Honestly, how many people does he have to raise from the dead or heal before he proves the fact that he is the Christ?  And as John says, the ones that are written down were done as proof so that we would believe and be saved.

So the Bible exists, from "In the beginning" to "Amen", as a means of telling us a story that will, through faith, allow us to believe in something that offers us redemption for our sins by grace.  It is most unique in It's purpose.  We then moved to Romans 1:16-17.  Here we see Paul telling the church in Rome about, not only the joy of the gospel, but that it is universal in nature.  The Bible is for all people.  Jesus died once for all.  The grace part of the equation is taken care of with his death on the cross.  But again, we see the lynch-pin of the idea being faith.  It is only through our faith, in that grace that exists for all, that allows anyone to be saved.  And as Paul says, the Bible's purpose is to show everyone how God makes people right with Himself.  And that the process of being right with God is dependant on faith.

Lastly, we read Psalm 19:7-11.  Read all of the wonderful things that the Bible does in the NIrV version:
The law of the Lord is perfect.
      It gives us new strength.
The laws of the Lord can be trusted.
      They make childish people wise.
The rules of the Lord are right.
      They give joy to our hearts.
The commands of the Lord shine brightly.
      They give light to our minds.
The law that brings respect for the Lord is pure.
      It lasts forever.
The directions the Lord gives are true.
      All of them are completely right.
They are more priceless than gold.
      They have greater value than huge amounts of pure gold.
They are sweeter than honey
      that is taken from the honeycomb.
I am warned by them.
      When I obey them, I am greatly rewarded.

No other book, Christian or secular, fiction or non-fiction, can do all of that.  Some books might hit an item or two, but none do it all.  We know the Bible is true.  We know it comes directly from God.  And we know that it exists to bring people, by grace through faith, to be right with God.

So why a book?  Why not just show up as God and demand the worship He deserves.  Why not wait until there were photographs or video before sending the Messiah so that there would be undeniable proof?  Again, I have no clue.  But even if all the proof existed and we could watch it on YouTube or see him face-to-face, would it change much?  Experience didn't seem to do much from the complaining Israelites that witnessed the plagues and crossed the Red Sea.  Evidence didn't seem to sway the Sadducees and Pharisees who knew the check-list by heart and saw the miracles first-hand.  And proof didn't even keep one of the beloved from betraying God's son for the small jingle of silver.  Some will reject no matter what they see or hear.  And if faith is key to salvation, which the Bible says is true, then God knew exactly what He was doing by giving us this unique Book.  Imagine that...

Truth or Lies

As we continue to unpack the Authenticity of God's Word, we're forced to ask the question of whether or not the Bible is true, or rather, if the accounts recorded in the Bible are true. After all, there are some pretty unbelievable stories in there. Seas being divided and crossed, plagues coming from nowhere, people living to be almost a thousand years old, people walking on water, turning water to wine and all that raising people from the dead. And don't even get me started on getting those kangaroos back and forth from Australia for their year-long boat ride on the flooded planet. The Bible is loaded with story after story of tales that rival the Brothers Grimm or Mark Twain, and yet we're supposed to accept them as fact while similar stories from other cultures and religions are written off as allegorical explanation or mythical fancy. Why do we believe that the Bible is true?

This is a tough question to talk through as the entirety of our faith rests in our ability to accept the whole of God's Word as being true, even the tricky parts. If any part of it ceases to be true, then the whole of it becomes questionable, including salvation by grace through faith. So how can we be sure? We started by looking in 2 Peter 1:16-19. In it we see Peter addressing the reasoning behind his written testimony. As an eye-witness to the Messiah, he provided something essential to the rest of the world, both then and for all future generations: the credibility of experience. Most of the New Testament was written long after Jesus had been crucified and risen. As he ascended into heaven, he promised he would be back. Those who heard him believed him. And they waited. There was no need to record the account of the gospel or to communicate for future generations because they assumed that his return was going to be quick. As they began to get old, they realized that not only was Jesus not coming back as soon as they had imagined, but that they had the most vital job left to do before they died. As witnessed to the life, words and actions of the Christ, they needed to tell about what they had seen, heard and experienced.

The thing that makes the Bible historically viable is it reliance on eye-witnesses to the son of God. Peter's claim here is that not only did they see the majesty of Jesus with their eyes, but they actually heard the sound of the Lord from heaven as He affirmed that Jesus was His son and that He was pleased with him. Can you imagine the honor of being one of the only humans in recorded history to experience something as important as the Transfiguration or to directly hear the voice of God confirming the identity of His son? And Peter's first hand account of that experience stands as a testimony to all mankind of that event.

In Hebrews 4:12-13 we read that not only is God's Word written down for us, but that it is living and active. Unlike other books that are finite in the story they tell, the Bible is still able to move and change as the Spirit guides the reader through the words. And it is the great separator. God isn't fooled by the masks men wear for other men to see. God sees all and the motivation behind it. And the Bible is able to separate those things because it isn't an ancient history book of rules, but God's living Word.

Lastly, we see how important the Bible is for man to use to discern Truth. In Matthew 4, we see the Spirit lead Jesus in the wilderness where the devil is allowed to test him. As the devil attacks his humanity, spirituality and loyalty, we see Jesus quoting scripture as a way of battling temptation. And when the devil even spouts scripture back to Jesus, it is the knowledge of truth that allows Jesus to discern the scheme and see the trap for what it is. Because the Word is true, it illuminates truth. And for Jesus to know it and use it like this, reaffirms its authority as God's Truth.

So where does that leave us with these crazy stories of walls falling down and people in furnaces not being burnt up? Beats me. The mystery of God's Word is that He didn't tell us everything. Part of it is a secret. But why would God keep information from us that could easily reveal Himself to everyone in the most undeniable ways? What a great question! The only answer I have is that if God told us everything, there would be no need for faith. And without faith, well... things would be a lot different. And so we have faith that a big God can do big things without having to make sense or even fall within the boundaries that He set in place. So a blind man, who has never seen and whose brain has never made the neurological connections that modern science understands is essential to sight, can instantly receive his vision with a little spit-mud. And the sun, which isn't actually moving through the sky, can stop and hold still for hours without the earth ceasing to spin and messing up that whole gravity thing, because some random guy's prayer was heard by a God great enough to make it happen. So we believe and by faith we know it is true. If you need proof, you might be missing the point.

God's Pen

With the New Year, Surge kicked off with a bang last night beginning a 4-week discussion of the Authenticity of God's Word.  And what better way to start the conversation than asking if God really wrote the Bible.  A pretty straight forward question with a less than simple answer.

Before we even started thinking about that, I did a little "pop" quiz about pop music.  I listed the names of some pretty well known songs and gave the kids a multiple choice selection of people to choose from.  I then asked them to select which person wrote the song.  As we went through the 3 songs, the kids picked out the artists known for singing the songs fairly easy, but that isn't what we were looking for.  Afterward, I revealed the names of the songwriters, of which none of them had ever heard of a single person listed.  After all, we tend to accredit a song to the performer, rather than the person who creates the lyrics.  But no matter how passionate the singer sings or how well they hit the notes, the words are the songwriter's.

In much the same way, God used many "singers" to communicate His Word.  They were authors from all sorts of walks of life.  And whether the person who penned the words was Moses, Paul or any of the other 40 writers, we know that there was only one Author.  But how does that work?  How does a man write down God's word, especially when God isn't sitting there telling him the words to write?

We started in 2 Peter 1 and looked at verses 19-21.  In it we are told that none of the prophets who told of what was going to happen did so within their own understanding.  It was not their words or their ability to see what was coming.  Omniscience is one of the characteristics completely reserved for God that makes Him God.  Even Jesus limited his own ability when he was on Earth because he didn't find equality with God something to be grasped.  Rather, it was the Holy Spirit revealing to those men the words that God wanted them to say.  The Spirit was their guide.  And so, the words are written down on paper by man but directed by God.

We don't know why God chose to do it this way.  It is certainly within God's ability to write down the words Himself or even to speak a fully-canonized, perfectly-translated, leather-bound Bible into existence, complete with footnotes and cross-referencing.  However, He choose to use men - regular, sinful, fallen men - to communicate the most important words ever written down.  Men from all walks of life, over the course of thousands of years and all over the Mediterranean world.

And why did He go through all of that?  What was the purpose behind giving us His written word?  We flipped back a few books to 2 Timothy and looked at verses 14-17 in chapter 3.  In it, we see God's point in giving us His written Word.  It was to guide us, to help us fix our mistakes, to reveal truth and ultimately to offer us a solution to the problem of sin by the grace of God through faith in His son.  And we are told that all scripture is God-breathed.  From Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21, all of the words are God's and He gave them to us to help us.

While David, Solomon, Micah, James, John and dozens of other had the privilege of being the instruments of communicating God's story, we can be confident that the Word is completely His and exists to draw us closer to Him and bring glory to His name.

Angel Tree 2011

I know I'm getting this up a little late, but I lost track of things as Christmas approached.  However, I didn't want to miss out on posting some pictures of some of our Surge kids volunteering at our Angel Tree gift distribution this year.  We had a great time being blessed with serving others as they picked up the gifts for their children by offering Christmas cookies, hot chocolate, opening doors, smiling and wishing them a Merry Christmas.  The gratitude that was shown by the families picking up their gifts was only topped by the joy the kids received in being a part of touching their lives, if only for a second.  Here are some pictures of them hard at work.  Enjoy!