Light in the Darkness

There is a story recorded in John Chapter 8 that is widely known and used for sermon material.  As a race we love the underdog story and Jesus is our champion in this story as he rescues a poor woman from the religious zealots who want her killed for her sin of adultery.  Oh, that feeling of pride we get when He somehow mystically rebukes them and they drop their stones and wander off, defeated again by the power of God in Christ.  Its a feel good story with redemption, and a twinge of justice.  Most church attendees have had to sit under a few brow beatings about sin and wickedness and possibly even a message of redemption distilled from these verses.  Modern religious ideas even use them to champion whatever cause they are trying to defend.  But are we missing the point of the story entirely or even in great part?

It is a common issue that I have trumpeted, perhaps to the point of ad nauseam for some, that we "cherry pick" what we want the bible to say in order to make our point.  Most don't believe they are doing that until it is shown to them and then many still deny.  The context of the verses determine the interpretation and pulling them apart to use certain verses is most dangerous and completely out of the nature of sacred writings in general.  So, again I ask, are we missing the point?

Lets examine the text for a moment and see what is happening.  A woman caught in the very act of adultery was brought before Jesus in order to try and use her as leverage against Him, most of us know that.  Jesus does not answer them verbally but kneels and writes something in the sand.  He then offers that the one who has no sin in his life cast the first stone at the woman.  One by one they drop their stones and walk away, apparently silent.  Justice wins, we all celebrate.  Jesus asks her where are her accusers, is there no one to condemn her?  She responds with a, "No one, Lord."  True to His very nature He responds with, "Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more."  Celebrations continue and many now see Jesus affirming her and giving her a pat on the back to go back to her lifestyle.  Those nasty zealots are now dealt with and she has no worries.

I find it interesting that He did not say to her that she was fine, God loved her just like she was, whatever her truth was is OK.  To the contrary He, Himself, said that what she was doing was sin.  He did not deny this, it was written in their law.  No law vs. grace discussion, no covenental theology class, only an acknowledgement that she knew it was wrong and an encouragement not to continue in it.  I believe the next verse is the key to this passage.   

It begins with "Then" which indicates that something was done "then."  The next recorded words He spoke were these:  "I am the light of the world.  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."  A profound statement in this context.  This passage began with the argument that Jesus could not be a prophet as He was from Galilee and no prophet ever came from there. There was division among the religious leaders about who He was and what authority He actually could have.  Bringing the woman before Him and trying to use her to trip Him up in matters of the law so as to discredit Him was their intention.  Jesus then uses the event to open the discussion He needed to have about who He really was.  

He answers their query with "I am the light of the world" and then proceeds to show what that means.  I have encountered this woman who was clearly in sin.  She is not condemned nor is she affirmed in her sin.  She has met truth and been made free.  Now she is encouraged to go and not continue in her sin.  There was no mention of her rights or her genetic disposition.  The truth makes you free.  He is truth.  He is light.  Those who walk with Him will have the light of life and will not walk in darkness.  Encountering Truth will do this for you.  Truth did not come to justify our lifestyles and choices.  He came to set us free so that we no longer walked in the darkness of feeling we are separate from Him which leads us to destruction.  Walking out of those lifestyle choices is evidence of the Love of God which has the power to change us, not to reinforce our issues.  The beauty of His light is that He walks with us as we walk this thing out in our individual lives, always leading us to abandon darkness and embrace light.

The Bible says...

 

“The Bible clearly says...” I cringe every time I hear this now. Years of experience have conditioned me to expect, and rarely am I spared it, that the next words I hear are going to be someone’s narrow and limited view or understanding of what they think the bible says. It rarely fails, an emphatic statement that is put forth in such a way as to openly declare, “This is truth and there is no debate or question. I have declared it so.” I know this all too well as I have been this person many times.

 

As I examine the mindset behind such an action it quickly stands out that someone has decided that they are the possessor of truth and are rightly able to judge a matter. On the surface this doesn’t seem to be so bad but when I look deeper it is actually frightening. Making such statements puts us in the position of considering ourselves an authority on the subject in question. This is a dangerous place to stand and one to be avoided.

 

Several years ago the Lord spoke to me that anywhere I place an absolute, an “I know this,” I had cut myself off from further revelation. If I held these things in tension and left space for the Lord then he promised there were millions of layers of depth that he could reveal about any subject. My thinking that ‘I knew’ was a stronghold against the mind of Christ He wanted me to have.

 

If I make such a declaration as emphatically as I mentioned earlier, then one thing is at work in me, pride. How proud does it seem to make such statements when most of us are not Greek scholars, not students of ancient language at all. What man alive today could begin to declare he knows the subtle nuances and the cultural use of language from two millennia past. A lifetime of diligent study by the greatest minds only brings them to a place of understanding that the interwoven threads that run through the scriptures are staggering in number and beyond human intellect.

 

Imagine declaring before others that I know some deep and ancient mystery while having no understanding of the 66 compilations and books that make up the tapestry of the written word of God and how the strands of prophetic utterance, the artistry and poetry, and the inferred and implied understanding of the original audience affecting the interpretation. Imagine feeling that I could read a few verses in an English translation and decide I can judge and interpret scripture when 2000 years of church history has produced tens of thousands of great scholars and devout men and women who spent their lives searching the scriptures only to come to a few conclusions, one of which is that they know almost nothing of Him in His vastness. How arrogant to feel I know more than they know or that I understand fully the things they held in tension for lifetimes.

 

We need the Holy Spirit above everything else to reveal His word to us so that our human minds can get a glimpse of the truth. He can only speak to us in such measure as our frail minds can receive. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by Rhema. If we do not have Rhema, the word revealed, then we have nothing. When we do have revelation we should hold that as a precious gem with which we have been entrusted. Understanding that this fragment of truth must fit in the entire tapestry of truth that IS Him is a key to beginning to walk in great humility and revelation.

 

Instead of declaring the great truth that I think I have, I now prefer to say, “My current understanding is... The truth I’m now holding in tension as it is revealed in a greater way is...              I’m leaving the declarations to the Holy Spirit and His guidance. Perhaps we would speak more truthfully if we did not declare what we think the bible says and speak more about what Holy Spirit is revealing to us in light of the greater tapestry of scripture.

 

Insecurity

I've come to realize that a primary issue affecting the majority of people is our failure to deal with insecurity.  From corporate CEO's to blue collar workers to stay at home moms, insecurity dictates our thought process and therefore our responses and actions.  It controls, or at least influences, how we relate to others and even how we perceive others.  So much of our relational lives are adversely affected by this influence and we are missing incredible opportunities that are trying to present themselves to us.  In the realm of relationships we are losing out on so many good and positive people and experiences, choosing to hide behind our wall of insecurity.  While I will not address the broad topic of dealing with insecurities here I do want to speak to one key factor that I feel is so incredibly vital while yet incredibly simple.

It's a theological matter.  So many times I have heard those who are quite insecure in their theological understanding belittle the whole concept of devoting yourself to the study of theology.  It is how we deal with these areas of our lives, attack the thing that we fear most.  If we are insecure in an area we tend to attack anyone around us that we perceive as "better" in that area.  A good offense is the best defense.  This is played out in so many lives every day in the arena of self worth and millions are crushed under the weight of not being enough.

It is my opinion, and I think the opinion of many of the fathers of the church, that a fundamental flaw in our theology has propagated this problem.  It is quite simply a lack of knowing who the Father, Son, and Spirit really are in their perichoresis.  To put a definition to this Greek word, lets simply say it is the way that two or more entities make space for one another in complete unity without losing the distinctness of themselves.  As many are now saying it, it is a self giving, other centered love.  It is the most incredibly beautiful thing imaginable and the very foundation of creation itself.  It is the vision John is trying to give us in the first verse of his gospel account, the Word (Christ) face to face with the Father, in the Spirit.  It was total unity and oneness, other centered love without limits flowing freely.  It was the foundation of creation, an overflow of the other centered love of the Trinity. 

"Let Us make man in our image..."  This very statement should tell us all we need to know.  Once we understand that there is no division in the Godhead (It was a formal heresy to try and divide the character of Father, Son, and Spirit in the early church as they are of the exact same substance), that the outflow of who They are by Their very nature produces all of 'creation' to participate in that Kenotic, other centered love.  It was the most natural thing that could happen based on Who They (the Trinity) are.  A love so overflowing something had to be created to experience it.  Something so incredibly loved that it issues out of the Lord Himself in His very image.

Yes, you and I are the outflow of the love of a triune God, made in His divine image, fearfully and wonderfully made.  We are made to carry His love and to experience the depths and fullness of it.  There has never been a time that you were not loved completely and you cannot do one thing to change that.  God would have to change His very nature and substance in order to not love you and He does not change.  You and I cannot escape His love expressed towards us even if we make our bed in Hades.  Even the Holy angels look at us and marvel in great wonder.

Now I ask you this one simple question:  What is it that you are insecure concerning and is it not covered by the very nature of your creation in the likeness and image of God and His complete and overwhelming love for you before you could do one thing to please Him?

My hope is that in this revelation we find ourselves secure and grounded in the one whose love manifested us.