God’s words to you—the Bible

About forty men wrote the Bible over a period of approximately 1,500 years. Yet the Bible has one great theme and central figure—Jesus Christ. All of this would be impossible unless the Bible had one Author—God Himself.

When I read my Bible I have every confidence that I’m reading the words God moved men through His Spirit to put on the page.

Here is the primary verse that gives me this confidence:

2 Timothy 3:16 says all the words are breathed by God Himself.

Read 2 Timothy 3:16 very carefully: Every Scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness.

Inspiredcomes from a Greek word meaning “God-breathed.” This tells us that God breathed out words and they became Scripture.

Second Timothy 3:117 teaches that the entire Bible, every word in the original writing, came from God in order to show us how to live.

Though human authors wrote the texts, the Bible originated as an action of God who literally “breathed” it out.

There are three popular views of how much of the Bible is inspired by God. According to 2 Timothy 3:16, which is correct?

1. Some of the Bible is inspired by God.
2. All of it is inspired by God.
3. Only parts that speak to you in a personal way are inspired by God.

Question: Why do you think it’s important that Christians view the words on the page of their Bible as inspired by God? (Hint, read the next verse–2 Timothy 3:17!)

If you’ve read this blog for long, know me, or are one of the dozens who have bought my books, you know that I’m a little driven.

Okay, I’m a lot driven.

Recently I was in a Tampa hotel all by myself with everything I needed as a pastor and author to get a LOT OF WORK DONE!

Internet? Check! Free wireless and my trusty MacBook Pro.

Privacy? Check! I didn’t know anyone within a hundred miles. And to make it even better, I had left my cell phone charger at home, so I had to turn it off.

Great ideas? Check! Or at least I think they’re good. I’m working on my first fiction book, another Christian book, about five blogs, doing some editing for some author/publishing friends, and have about a thousand things to do as a pastor of a healthy faith community.

Energy? Focus? Attitude?

NOT CHECK!

I was exhausted.

So, I set my alarm and went to bed…at about 5:30 PM my time!

The next day, I knew that Jesus was saying, “Way to go, Ed. Way to trust Me with your life, your time, and your passion. Now, let’s get to it!”

If Jesus seems distant to you and you’re a hard charger like me, maybe you don’t need to get another assignment done or tell someone about Jesus or even pray.

Maybe what you need to do is trust Him enough to say, “Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul (life) to keep.”

I’m asked that question a lot. Whether it’s a student at a Bible college, a young pastor I’m discipling, a brand new Christian, or a wounded lifetime church-goer, most people want to know, “Which translation of the Bible is best?”

I have a simple answer to that question, but it’s important to give you the background to the answer. There are three primary types of translations of the Bible:

1) Formal Translations (Word-for-Word).

These are the translations dedicated to giving the reader the “exact words” from the Old Testament Hebrew and the New Testament Greek texts. This is the type of translation I prefer for serious study. Formal translations attempt to translate the words from one language to another—word-for-word or formal equivalence. Their strength is that they are the least interpretive not only in vocabulary but also in form. The formal translators are concerned with both meaning and grammatical form. Their weakness is that they are sometimes hard to understand since they keep the historical distance from the modern reader intact, making them more difficult to read. Since the reader must interpret the word, the “literal translation” offers what it cannot deliver

The New American Standard is the most literal, but it’s so literal that it sometimes makes it hard to read in. The New King James Version, the ESV and the NET Bible are also formal. You can’t go wrong with any of these translations. My favorite is the NET Bible.

2) Dynamic Equivalence (Idea-for-Idea).

More dynamic translations strive to offer the reader an accurate representation of the ideas of the text rather than the literal wording. These attempt to capture the original text in precise modern equivalents—phrase-for-phrase. Their strength is the balance they strike between interpretation and accuracy. Since these translators are concerned primarily with meaning their sentences and paragraphs are more readable to the English reader. The corresponding weakness is that they can be highly interpretive because of choices concerning form and language. They too offer what they cannot deliver because accuracy is necessarily compromised.

The NIV is the most popular dynamic translation in the world today. I prefer the New Living Translation.

2) Paraphrase (Story-for-Story).

A paraphrase is the most readable because it doesn’t claim or strive to be accurate in the details. It’s the most interpretive and the most readable. My personal favorite is TheMessage.

So, which translation is best?

I think it’s important to use all three for Bible study. But as you read through the Bible with us over the next two years in our bible.cod series, the best translation is…

The one you’ll read!

Questions: What is your favorite translation and why? 

“We revere the Bible, but we don’t read it.”

This quote comes from George Gallup, who should know.

Tyndale House Publisher’s survey showed that 64% of Americans said they did not read the Bible because they’re too busy. 80% feel that the Scriptures are just too confusing and when they read the Bible, they don’t understand it. (The Baptist Standard, December 4, 2000)

There are many reasons why Christians today feel they’re too busy and that the Bible is too confusing to understand, but there are two that I feel the church is responsible for:

1) We’ve developed a consumer mentality in our churches.

I’m all for relevant Bible teaching. I think it’s a crime to bore people with the Word of God. And I’m all for seeker-sensitive cultures. I came to Christ during the Jesus Movement that was the ultimate seeker-sensitive revival.

But my concern is that in trying to make the church relevant and seeker-sensitive we’re listening to the wrong seekers. One of my first reactions when I attend a so-called “seeker” church is, “Show me the seeker!” Often we’re trying to please immature Christians with Sunday show-times that are more exciting than the “seeker” church down the road so that we can swell our numbers and our giving.

The last time I checked, discipleship was costly. And I’m a grace guy. I believe that eternal life is a gift freely given, but once we belong to Christ, He makes costly demands. And one of those demands is that we study His Word.

2) An overreaction to the postmodern generation.

What an arrogant lot we pastors and theologians are. We’ve decided for an entire generation that they’re too shallow, too ADD, and too Sesame-Street to sit still and actually study the Word of God.

Again, I’m all for doing whatever we need to reach the next generation. I’m a Jesus Movement rocker who was part of the generation that refused to dress up for Jesus and listen to religious elevator music.

But I’m in touch with many young and hip pastors who are filling up their churches with 20-Something’s hungry for the Word of God. My friend Britt Merrick leads one of the fastest growing movements in the world right now—Reality Churches. He teaches through the Bible, verse by verse, for 50 minutes every Sunday.

Could it be that some of the reason Americans feel they’re too busy to read the Word of God and that the Word of God is so confusing is because the pastors of America have ignored Paul’s command to Timothy to “Preach the Word”? (2 Timothy 4:2)

Questions: Do you think I’m overreacting? Would you rather have a shallow and fun church or a deep and challenging worship experience? 

I love the Beatles! But it bothers me that a survey of 1000 Americans reported that most of us can name the four Beatles, but few of us can recall even one of the Ten Commandments! (Kelton Research survey, 2007).

“Oh come on, Ed. You’re overreacting. That may be true of everyday Americans, but Christians in America know their Bible better than the Beatles.”

Really? Consider the findings of Gary Brudge, professor of New Testament studies at Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois. Wheaton is one of the most prestigious evangelical colleges in America. In an article published in Christianity Today in 1999, Burge exposes the depth of the problem of Biblical illiteracy among American youth with these statistics from a survey of incoming freshmen:

• 1/3 of the students could not put the following Biblical events in their proper order: Abraham, the Old Testament prophets, the death of Christ, and Pentecost.
• Half of them couldn’t remember who came first, Moses, Isaac, and Saul.
• 1/3 were unable to name the book of Acts as the book containing Paul’s missionary travels.
• 1/3 could not identify Matthew as an apostle from a random list of names.

These students represent the most churched and most committed demographic in America!

Paul, John, George and Ringo made some great music. Every song they ever wrote is on my iTunes. I’ve been listening to them for over forty years.

But it’s the writings of another Paul, Luke, Peter, and another John that have changed my life.

I hope you’ll join me as we journey through all 66 books of the Bible in 2012-13. Let’s do our part to improve the Biblical literacy of God’s people!

Questions: Honestly, how do you think you would have done on a test of your Biblical literacy? 

No You Don’t!

“I just want to know what God wants me to do,” the man said to me.

His eyes filled with rage at my answer: “No you don’t!”

“What do you mean?” he protested. “I do too; I want to know God’s will!”

As we sat across the table in my office, I reminded him that he had asked me to help him determine God’s will in his finances three times before, over a period of about six years. Each time I brought him to the same conclusion from God’s Word: “God’s will is clear—give to His work. You cannot look past His clear teaching that connects all of His financial promises to your faith in Him. You must trust Him enough to give before you can expect His guidance and blessing concerning your money situation.”

But here we were, going around the same block, considering his same questions, and reviewing God’s same answer.

Don’t Ask If You’re Not Willing

It’s dangerous to ask God for directions unless you are willing to follow them! When the wicked idolaters who had fled to Moab and Edom as the Babylonians poured into Jerusalem returned to try to wrest power from the puppet king, they asked Jeremiah to inquire of the Lord for them. When Jeremiah told them that the Lord wanted them to stay in Jerusalem, stop their idolatry, and submit to the Babylonians, they accused him of lying, took him prisoner, and forced him to flee to Egypt with them where they worshiped their “Goddess of Heaven.” (Jeremiah 41-44)

The Father tires of those who are simply curious about his will or come to him only in a crisis to see if he offers a pleasant option for deliverance. This is the state of so many Christians. In the merry-go-round of their lives, they just repeat the same mistakes and live under the same pathology year after year. They sometimes ask God what to do, especially when these pathologies cost or hurt them. Then, they decide once again not to do what God says and to return to their idols of career, materialism, and recreation.

How sad, but the Lord wants better for His children…for you!

When He directs, follow. I believe that too many refusals just cause the Father to know that we are not really serious about doing His will. So He stops speaking, as He did to the unbelieving generations of Israel and Judah.

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Promises, Promises

I vividly remember riding my bike home after an adolescent sinfest and promising God I would never do it again, if He just wouldn’t send me to hell.

Of course I didn’t keep my promise. A few years and about a million broken promises later I figured, “What the heck? I mean if I’m going to hell anyway, the best plan is to have as much fun as possible along the way!”

But the guilt and shame just got worse.

Then I met Jesus in the Jesus Movement of the 60s and 70s. As I grew in my awareness of His perfect work on the Cross and His love, mercy, and grace, my self-esteem grew. Not because I had made myself better, but because He had remade me into a better person.

Authentic self-esteem doesn’t come from within. It comes from Someone else.

His name is Jesus.

And when He tells you He loves you so much that He died for you, that He delights in you, and that you are not who you used to be, you know that you have been delivered from the religious mythologies that tell you to “get your life together for God.”

Question: Are you tired of trying to keep your life together for God?

Gotta Have A Plan!

I’ve found that if I don’t have a plan, I’ll sit down in my big comfortable chair left of my big mug of extra bold K-cup coffee and mentally swim around the pool of journaling until I just decide to get out of the pool and say, “Maybe tomorrow.”

I bet you’re the same way.

We need a routine, don’t we?

You’ll have to figure out what’s best for you, but this is what works best for me:

I’m already committed to journaling.

I’ve already settled on my time and space.

My Routine

1) Something easy and motivating. For me that’s the 3X10 prayer: 3 sins to confess from the last 24 hours, 10 works of God in the last 24 hours to praise Him for.

Some of my friends begin with a favorite hymn or praise song on their ipod. Others like to read something light from a Christian biography or favorite blog.

2) Review yesterday’s journal entry. You’ll be surprised at how much you forgot from yesterday!

3) Read the Bible! I think the Bible comes next because the Word of God is our Father’s most effective way to talk to us. In an upcoming blog I’ll give you some of the books that have helped me focus on the Word of God every morning.

4) Wait. Oh, this is the toughest part of the routine for me. Probably will be for you too. You’re itching to write something. Don’t. Wait, and listen to God.

5) Write. Fill up your page with whatever is on your heart that day.

• What are you apprehensive about? Let the Father know.
• What did you learn from His Word? Tell Him.
• What do you want to remember never to forget? Record it.
• What breaks your heart? Put it down.
• Whatever you feel like writing, write it. Nobody’s going to read it anyway until you’re in heaven. And you won’t care then!

6) Pray. I have five or six life prayers at the front of my journal that I pray every morning. After that, I spend some time with God talking about my life. It’s a morning conversation that His Spirit brings to mind all day long.

Just Journal!

There’s no right or wrong way to journal.

This is the routine that I use.

How about you? What journaling habits do you have that might encourage others?

CRAZY BUSY!

My life is crazy busy and it always has been.

There’s never been a time in my adult life that a lot of pressures weren’t competing for the time I need to devote to my relationship with the Lord Jesus. I’ve been a fireman, university student, Army officer, seminary student, pastor, Bible teacher, and author. All extremely demanding.

And then there’s family, friends, community…

You know the drill.

My Time and Space for Jesus

This is why I’m so committed to journaling. No other spiritual discipline has kept Jesus at the center of my life more than journaling. If focuses my mind, my thoughts, and my prayers like no other spiritual exercise.

But I’ve found that just saying, “I’m going to start journaling” doesn’t work for me.

I must have a special time and a special place to meet Jesus with my Mead Notebook, my Bible, my pen, and my heart.

For me it has to be early morning before our home wakes up, and in my special chair left of the table in our den so that I can accommodate my caffeine habit left-handed. I keep all my journaling stuff right there, never move it, and never vary from that place and that time unless I’m on the road. (And that’s the topic of another blog!)

Your Time and Space for Jesus?

If you’re crazy busy, journaling is a great discipline to create time and space for Jesus.

I can’t know what your best time and space will be. But I do know that if you’re serious about keeping the Lord Jesus at the center of your life, He’ll show it to you.

Oh, and another thing: NO LAPTOP, MOBILE PHONE, OR OTHER DISTRACTING INSTRUMENTS ALLOWED.

That’s what works for me. I’d love to hear about your special time and space where you meet the Lord to journal.

I’m a journaling freak.

The reason is extremely personal.. My journal is where I meet the Lord Jesus every morning, how we carry on our most intimate conversations, and where I record my prayers, hopes, dreams, discouragements, fears, sins (yes sins), and successes.

I’ve been journaling for years and challenge every man I’ve ever discipled, every couple we’ve ever helped, every group I’ve ever led, every friend and loved on, and every congregation I’ve shepherded to journal.

The challenge gets a little “preachy” when people are thinking about New Year’s Resolutions because it’s the time to begin anew.

One question seems to be on the mind of all prospective journalers:

How do I get started?

Five Steps:

1) Make it simple!

We Christians tend to complicate the heck out of everything. We’re so hard on ourselves. Don’t wait until you find the perfect journal, perfect pen, get the perfect idea, and are ready to write perfect sentences. Just start journaling. I use a cheap Mead® Square Deal® Black Marble Journal Composition Book. It’s durable and each page is just about right for my personal wordiness. I’ve baptized mine in a high mountain stream, spilled about six gallons of coffee on every year’s edition, run over them in my pickup, and pulled them from the clinging hands of two-year-olds. They’re tough. They dry out and I just keep writing.

2) Make it you

This is between you and Jesus, not you and me. I tend to write out my prayers to begin each day’s journal. Sometimes I journal about what I’m reading from the Bible. Other times I journal thoughts from a Christian book I’ve read. Phil Yancey and NT Wright have filled up many pages of my journals.

3) Ask For Help

The best way to make journaling meaningful is to journal. Why not ask the Lord to give you the discipline to journal say three times a week for a month. See how that goes, and then ask Him again for the next month. Before you know it, you’re journaling.

4) Do a page

This has been important to me. I tell the Lord that I’m not going to get up from the chair that I journal from early in the morning until He gives me a page full of prayers, praises, questions, insights, tears, sorrows, joys, perspectives…I just start writing and keep writing until I’m done.

5) Prime the Pump! 3X10 and High Test Coffee

I prime my journaling pump with lots of caffeine from my beloved Keurig–bold, bold, bold K-cup–and as I’m waiting for that first taste of God’s gift of the coffee bean, I confess and praise. I prepare for my journaling time by asking God the Holy Spirit to bring to mind three specific things from the day before I need to confess as sin and ten specific praises from the day before. He’s never failed to tell me what He thinks and it gets me going.

It’s not that profound, but it’s what works for me. Hope it helps.

How about you? You have any journaling insights for the beginning journaler?