Reading scripture

[pastorlenny]

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” -Matthew 5:5

The purpose of this post is to highlight two problematic ways of reading scripture to which, in my experience, many of us are vulnerable - and to offer what I believe is a doctrinally more appropriate approach.

Legalism. Like it or not, this is an approach that many of us

Comments

[meus_ovatio]

Good post sir. It sort of tangentially crosses something I've been mulling for a little bit. I've noticed how people act in an expected manner or in a desired way, ie: there is a conflict, someone saddles up to the dispute, sighs, and plays the wise mediator. What struck me during this particular exchange was how utterly transparent, rhetorical and fake it was, but he was supposed to get "points" for playing the part.

It occurred to me how much of our lives are spent playing the part, and how empty it is.

Needless to say, all I could do was blurt out, "Look I'm not here to play a part! You can win that all day long! I'm talking about the truth here!"

[meus_ovatio]

But also, about being commanded to be meek:
People find me off-putting because I don't even pretend when it comes to certain, ah... virtues or characteristics. You can't just pretend your way into the beatitudes. So how I see it, as far as being something, on the list of good things, you either have it or you don't, mostly. It's either in there, naturally, and you just are that way (where I am not). Or, you're just not there yet. Or, Jesus hasn't fixed that part yet. But I see no value in rhetorically pretending the virtues. My attitude is like, "We'll get to that later!"

It seems a lot of folk just think they can like, decide to be something on the spot, and then they get all the praise and rewards cuz they, like, rhetorically committed to the idea or something.

[pastorlenny]

It's either in there, naturally, and you just are that way (where I am not). Or, you're just not there yet. Or, Jesus hasn't fixed that part yet.

Exactly. That's why it says "blessed are." There are certain ways in which some of us have not yet been blessed. To pretend to be blessed in a way that one is not seems to me to be not entirely dissimilar to idolatry, false prophecy and/or bad doctrine.