For the past 6 months, we have been meeting on Wednesday nights to read Scripture together. We call this scripting because our hope and desire is that the Bible functions for us [communally and individually] as does a script for an actress. It shapes us into characters of the kingdom of God as we meditate, dialogue, pray and interpret what this word is saying to us. Our focus has been big picture—conceptual and thematic. It was largely been a time of offering new perspectives on evangelical themes: the gospel, salvation, biblical authority, the cross and personal faith. Deconstruction can be jading, even frustrating, groaning to put Humpty-Dumpty back together again. Our reading has turned to philosophical and deep theological questioning. In light of this, our application, perhaps, has suffered. To be scripted—instead of finding timeless truths and principles mined out of Scripture to have one-to-one correlation with our lives—is tougher, more nuanced work. It is a complex practice. These 6 months have been an invitation into social exile.
Most of the Christians that we know are not interested in asking these same questions. Some are. And many non-religious folks that we talk to long for a faith that is more humble, loving and thought-provoking. Evangelical Christians, in our experiences, are—by and large—content with the neat and organized categories that have been handed to them. The gospel is simple [and will never change]: eternity in heaven is secure for those who have pledged allegiance to Jesus as personal Lord and Savior. The Bible’s authority comes from it’s error-free, Spirit-inspired qualities. The cross was the place where God blotted out all of our sin in order to have a relationship with him.
Instead, our questions strive towards a more holistic understanding of what God has done and continues to do in history. Our salvation is not only spiritual and future—it is the path of resistance and repentance, a turning from the counterfeit ways of being in this world. The gospel—God’s message in Christ—is about what God has done and continues to do to remake the world according to his design and how humanity can join up with his underground movement. The cross of Jesus unveils the illusion and lies of the powers/systems of our world and it is a paradigm for the obedience/faithfulness for God’s people. In addition, it is a sacrifice [scapegoat] that ends all need for violent solutions and a psychological symbol for death to self and the systems of this world. Seeking truth in the Bible is hard work. We cannot naively assume that God has made this text simple to read and absolutely true according to our definition of truth. Truth is a life-long journey of humble interpretation and committed practice. We seek truth best when we do it together. Lastly, faith in Christ is a pledge of allegiance to practices that are a sign and foretaste of God’s reign. We anticipate Christ’s return by radically reflecting his subversive habits: prayer, generosity, simplicity, enemy love, forgiveness, empathetic listening and service to others.
The implications of this theological shift are vast. We haven’t had an opportunity to really work through how our lives may change as a result of thinking differently about these concepts. How do we view God differently than we did 6 months ago? How does this relate to us individually, remaking our identity and vocation in Christ [healing our wounds, weaknesses and destructive habits]? How will this lead to a transformation of our lifestyles [socially, financially, economically, religiously]?
Our next phase needs to offer space/time to pursue these types of application questions. We will not forsake the overall task of constructing theology, but it must be practical. It must connect to our actual lives. We’ve been quite top-heavy, with the constructive outweighing the practical.
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