The Bible can be tough to dive into. Where should a student of scripture begin? Most Christians want to understand Jesus and the letters that his followers wrote, but they can be tough to figure out.

When we ask questions such as, “Why did Jesus say that?” or “Why did Paul write this?” we will encounter a great deal of complexity and mystery. If we can’t answer these first questions, then it will be even more difficult to discern what they mean for us today. This application to everyday life is the real pay-off for Christians.

Studying the Bible well takes some time and effort, but just about any Christian can learn how to study it effectively with a little direction. After investing time into the study of scripture you’ll soon find it easier to read. Certain themes and connections will emerge, and you’ll not only arrive at a better understanding, but a better ability to apply it to your life.

Each day next week we’ll take a look at some simple steps toward effective study of the New Testament.

What makes me think I’m any different?

While I’m fasting from the internet in the evenings and on the weekends, I’ve also been trying to set aside twenty minutes each morning for worship. It usually involves some worship music to help me stay focused and to direct my thoughts toward God.

This has not been easy.

Purity of worship is one of the most important goals in scripture. Israel fell apart because the people failed to worship God and chose to worship and imitate idols instead. If we aren’t worshipping God and giving our devotion to him, then we’ll surely end up worshipping something or someone, whether it’s money, a goal, or even ourselves.

When we fail to worship God our thoughts are clouded by the priorities of this life and may even dehumanize us since we become like what we worship. This came up in the Old Testament when the Israelites became hardened against God and others much like their idols who lacked the ability to hear or care.

I’m reminded by this struggle to work on stopping more often during Lent to worship God and to work on sitting in his presence. This is tough to do. In fact, it’s tougher than I think it should be, which means I’m probably in greater need of more time to worship God than I could guess.

Claiborn hails from Tennessee, began serving among the poor in Philly, ministered with Mother Theresa, worked as an intern at Willow Creek Community Church, and then returned to Philadelphia in order to become poor himself and to continue serving in Philadelphia. I am continually struck by Claiborn’s job description for himself: Lover.

His identity is wrapped up in the two greatest commands: to love God and to love others. Rather than defining himself as a radical missionary, truly authentic follower of Jesus, or adopting some other title within his group of like-minded Christ-followers, Claiborn has chosen to define himself according to God’s terms.

He’s a lover who is here for the purpose of loving others. The freedom that results makes my head spin.

When we run into rejection it’s easy to let the rejection define us. We can easily make the mistake of wrapping up our identity in our work, a personal quality, or a carefully cultivated image of ourselves.

Rejection strips us of these protective layers. We thought we were successful, hard workers. We thought we were smart, relevant, and insightful. We thought we were beautiful, attractive, or whatever else you want to insert here. Rejection unravels all of that and leaves us feeling exposed.

When we adopt God’s terms for our lives and take our place as his beloved people, we can start moving away from the earth-shattering consequences of rejection for anything tied to our work and even our personal qualities. We are the beloved of God, and we are created to be lovers.

“Success” in life is tied to receiving and then sharing this love of God. Living under the care of God in his Kingdom comes first. Rejection may shake us, but those who build their lives on the acceptance and love of God are built upon a rock that this world cannot upend.

Before we begin… This past Monday I opened my meditations document on the Gospel of Mark and found a blank page for Mark 11. Mark 12-16 was all typed out and edited. So I opened my written journal and found two pages of questions related to Mark 11, but I didn’t find any conclusions or thoughts for my meditations.

Mark 11 is a tough passage. I won’t hit everything of significance here, but I think I have a few things to consider based on a few days of struggling with this chapter. On to the meditation:

As Jesus approached Jerusalem with the certainty that death awaited him (Mark 10:33-34), he adopted a symbolic action to declare his role as Messiah while still challenging the expectations of the people without riding in to Jerusalem to take over. He simply borrowed a donkey, rode in to the praises of the people, looked around a bit, and then left.

I wonder how deflated his disciples felt that day?

Whatever their expectations, Jesus took action the next day with real God-given authority by driving out the merchants from the table. While he challenged the authority of the religious leaders, whose authority in this chapter clearly relied on popular support, Jesus didn’t want to take over their roles. He attacked their authority, but refused to worship God on their terms.

Framing this clearing of the temple is a little visual lesson of sorts about prayer involving a fig tree. While the fig tree may also represent the coming fall of Jerusalem about forty years from the time of Jesus, in the immediate context Jesus was also teaching his disciples about prayer.

At a time when Jesus and his disciples waited for the prediction of Jesus’ death to come true, Jesus encouraged them to pray with boldness and to trust that God could answer their prayers. Though Jesus could not find a way to avoid his road to the cross, he still believed completely in the ability of God to answer prayer, and he used the fig tree as an example.

We also see in this passage some hints that Jesus derived his authority from God and may have been rather poor. He had to borrow a donkey for his big entrance and he sought figs from the tree because he was hungry in the morning. Why didn’t his hosts provide breakfast?

This is a bit of speculation here, but for readers in an American context where money equals God’s blessing, Jesus may have entered Jerusalem with hardly anything to his name. However, he still exercised his God-given authority among the religious leaders who had significant resources.

It could very well be the case that Jesus ministered out of poverty, if not a very limited budget. However, he didn’t let his earthly position influence God’s mission. In fact, his lack of earthly qualifications almost seemed to be an asset by the time the religious leaders challenged his authority at the end of the chapter.

Jesus drew his identity, authority, and power from God. His borrowed donkey, humble procession, and empty stomach did not deter him from the work God set for him. His confidence rested solely in the power of God and the possibilities of prayer.

It’s possible to search for the cure without seeking out the source of the remedy. It’s possible to crave something good while missing the one way to receive it.

I used to read the following passage as a lesson in loving the Bible more than God, but there’s something deeper going on. Have a look:

You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. John 5:39-40

Jesus told the Jewish leaders that they were not only fixated on the Bible, but on finding life in the Bible. While their devotion to the Bible instead of God was problematic, there’s something even more problematic. They searched the scriptures seeking everlasting life without seeking Jesus, the source of that life.

They had a good goal, but they failed to pursue the correct means. They could study the scriptures, but their quest for eternal life would fall short unless the scriptures pointed them to Jesus.

It is a good thing to seek eternal life, whether that’s freedom from sin today or the hope of an eternity with God. However, by seeking eternal life, personal holiness, or studying scripture in and of itself, we will fall short.

It’s not good to crave holiness or eternal life without craving to be with Jesus above either goal. Even these good goals can cloud our relationship with him.

In seeking Jesus first we will find the life of holiness and the relationship with God that we desire. Seeking life in the scriptures will not give us what we crave. The scriptures point us to Jesus, and until we desire Jesus above everything else, we’ll never know the fullness of the life he gives.

Bonnie over at Faith Barista has some great thoughts from the past week about where trouble fits into God’s plans. It’s quite a controversial topic, especially when folks start to tie personal tragedies and other crises with the plans of God for their lives. It’s tempting to think that God throws trouble at us

Bonnie wrapped up her post, which you should read in full, with the following statement:

“I don’t totally think that God puts trouble into our plans.
I think God does His work in spite of the trouble.”

I wrote the following in the comments:

“While I agree completely with the thought that God would not bring affliction to us, I think he does ask us to make difficult choices and to pass through hard times as a result of them. I don’t know how that all works out exactly, but Paul, for instance, was told point blank that he would be arrested in Jerusalem, but he also knew he had to go. In other words, God asks us to pass through hard times even if he’s not necessarily the source of the hard times, and he will not abandon us.”

Bonnie appreciated the comment and asked me to elaborate on this a bit more, which I’m happy to do.

There are two kinds of difficulties we need to discuss here: Trouble and the difficulties that come from discipleship. Let’s take a brief look at both of them.

Trouble and the Problem of Evil in the World

This is a tough topic, but in brief, I would say that evil springs from the sin in our world and in people in particular. God does not tempt us or smite people, at least in light of the New Testament we see a God who no longer sends hail and such from heaven.

I know there’s a whole bunch of troubling OT passages that make this a tough topic, but I think we can agree on a few things:

1. God desires all people to be saved and warns people about the consequences of their actions.
2. We’ll never completely understand things such as the flood or the conquest of Canaan. We can take cracks at explaining these events, but we’ll never be fully satisfied with the mystery of these passages. It’s hard to figure out just how involved God was in these events.
3. Jesus reveals God’s commitment to self-sacrifice and reconciliation.
4. The future that God pictures for us is one free from suffering and characterized by peace.

In other words, when something bad happens to us, it’s most likely not a good thing to blame God for “bringing” it to us. There are any number of reasons why bad things happen. Sometimes we place ourselves in bad situations, other times we are the victims of someone else’s sin, and still other times we suffer because we live in an imperfect world that is tainted by sin and cries out for the restoring touch of the creator.

The Difficulties that Come from Discipleship

While God does not send calamity or terrible things to us, he does push us toward the path he himself traveled: that of costly discipleship where we count the cost and take up our crosses. God may send us to calamity—what we could call the cross. God is not vengeful and angry, but he does ask us to give up our lives for the sake of knowing him more deeply and in order to tell others about his good news.

As we let go of what is fading we can posses what lasts forever. However, choosing the path of discipleship may be uncomfortable and may even lead us into uncomfortable or hard situations.

While God does not afflict us, our comfort is not his primary concern. He wants us to know him intimately, to depend on him, and to let go of the useless things we trust in. Guiding us to that goal is often messy and hard.

Jesus didn’t spare his disciples from difficulties. In fact, he predicted that they would suffer because of their allegiance to him. That isn’t to say that God brought trouble to their lives directly, but that God sent them out to complete his work and there’s no doubt that God’s mission is hazardous and difficult.

That’s the cost of discipleship.

I have now passed the second week of my Lenten fast from internet use in the evening and on Sundays. I can use my computer, but cannot go online for  e-mail, social networking, and general browsing. While my first week was both joyful and easy, the second week required a bit more will-power.

Part of the problem has been a nasty cold that has only lifted completely until today. It’s really tempting to sit and kill time on the internet when you don’t feel able to form a coherent thought. Have I mentioned that my wife is very, very glad that I’m feeling better and am now able to communicate?

I didn’t do as good a job with my time management this past week because I’ve felt so awful. This meant that sometimes I’d forgotten to take care of something important online during the day. When 6 PM came and I hadn’t finished up my online work, I had to stop. It was really tough to tell myself that I couldn’t check my e-mail or follow up on a few things.

Though the process was a bit unpleasant, I had to answer a rather basic question. Did I trust God with my day? Did I really need to send that e-mail, or could it wait until tomorrow, leaving the outcome with God?

Surprise, surprise, nothing terrible happened when I couldn’t send my e-mails or browse online for what I needed. In fact, roughly half of the times I check the internet there really isn’t anything of great consequence there, at least, nothing that couldn’t wait a few hours.

I think part of the drawback of the immediacy that comes with online tools is the sense of control we have. We can respond to things immediately, taking action, and keeping busy without waiting. Everything becomes important because it can be addressed now, and therefore we heighten our sense of control and coordination but at the same time fall to the tyranny of the urgent.

I’m still a rather fragmented person, but in seeking out some quiet time away from the internet I continue to cultivate a more wholesome approach to life, to write a lot more, and to read a bit more as well. Provided that I’m not laid out on the couch with a head cold, I’m generally able to chat with my wife. Not bad for week two.

After saying that the last will come first and issuing a call to costly discipleship, Jesus reminded his astonished disciples of his impending death while the surrounding crowds remained fearful of what would happen in Jerusalem. The details are precise, showing that Jesus embraced God’s calling and cost while those around him remained uncertain. After speaking of the last coming first and importance of following him, Jesus reminded his disciples where he was going.

It was one thing to follow Jesus when he seemed to be restoring the rule of God over Israel but the path to the cross wasn’t where the rich tended to follow, nor those who wanted to advance their stations in life. However, even while Jesus spoke of his death, James and John could not give up their dreams of power and influence in God’s Kingdom.

Perhaps James and John wanted an assurance of their position before Jesus was killed, but however we examine this story, they come across as unlike children and the least likely to be last. They had left much behind but expected something more than persecution and eternal life for their trouble.

Instead of approaching Jesus with open hands to accept what he had to give, they placed an unrealistic request that not only alienated them from Jesus but their fellow disciples. Jesus showed them incredible mercy and gentleness, listening to their request and then gracefully denying it.

On one hand, their request was reckless, asking for things they did not understand. Sometimes an unanswered prayer may result from such an oversight. Perhaps a denial of a prayer request is an act of mercy from God.

All that Jesus could guarantee them was suffering, not a position at the top of the Kingdom. While they would not have recognized this, he was telling them how to be first in the Kingdom—following his path to the cross. The only guarantee of any position in the Kingdom was through faithfulness.

It’s hard to say whether the top places in the Kingdom of God were prepared for specific people or were simply unknown until the disciples proved themselves faithful in following the way of Jesus. However, blessings and rewards are not given out in the ways James and John expected—a kind of favor among friends. While the disciples could do nothing on their own to merit a place in the Kingdom, entering the Kingdom required embracing the calling of Jesus and remaining faithful to it.

The cross, resurrection, and the resulting eternal life were only possible because Jesus lead the way down that lonely road to Jerusalem. The only way to pass into that eternal life, that we could never merit or earn, is by following Jesus to the cross and into eternal life. It is hard to enter a Kingdom that gives life to the least of these when we are committed to the values of a completely different kingdom and way of living.

Bartimaeus creates an interesting contrast to James and John. While he too wanted to receive something from Jesus, he immediately used his new-found vision to join Jesus. We can suspect that James and John wanted a prominent position for the use of ruling, not serving in the way of Jesus. Jesus continued to serve anyone from a beggar to a couple of selfish disciples, and in the case of Bartimaeus he gained another disciple willing to count the cost and follow him.

Two years after writing Coffeehouse Theology I can see that I made a few mistakes, but as I read other books on theology and culture, I find that I’m still very satisfied with what I wrote. In fact, for the most part I still agree with myself, if you’ll permit me to speak in such silly terms.

I’d like to reflect a little more about what I wrote two years, and why I still hold to the core issues in my book.

How to Approach Theology and Culture

Much ink has been spilled over the fusing of theology and culture, but I don’t think we can hit either extreme of fusing them together or ignoring culture in favor of scripture alone.

Culture cannot set the terms for how we understand God because that is reserved for God alone through his revelation. However, when we ignore culture we run the real risk of missing the lens of our culture and considering it normative for ourselves, for others, and even for God. In other words, finite humans with limited perspectives think more of their limited views than warranted.

Christians need to maintain a relevant and prophetic tension in relation to culture. We can’t ignore culture, but rather in understanding culture we aim to work within it in relevant ways, much like the writers of the Bible did (but that’s for another post), while maintaining a prophetic stance that is guided ultimately by God.

My Theology Diagram

Each chapter of Coffeehouse Theology is tied in with a diagram of theology and culture that locates all of theology within God’s mission to save us—a mission that has now become our own. That mission sends us into culture, which means that theology serves both our relationship with God and our calling to make him known to others.

What will we make known to others and how will we do it? that’s determined by the leading of God’s Spirit and the revelation of scripture. We also learn from our traditions and Christians both local and global, which brings us to my last point. 

The Sources of Theology

Theology is located in mission and culture, but the sources where we derive our theology include: God as source and guide, scripture as a normative guide, tradition, and Christians both local and global. While God and scripture are at the center of theology, possibly fused together or overlapping a bit, traditions and other believers are not quite as authoritative.

I see our traditions and other Christians providing two key functions. First of all, they help us determine the core of Christianity, what we could call orthodoxy, the rule of faith, mere Christianity, or the essential dogmas. Secondly, they help us overcome the limits of our context by showing how Christians in different contexts read the scripture and are led by the Spirit.

The Feedback I’ve Received

While I think I may have overwhelmed some readers with the breadth of information I cover, I have received plenty of positive notes saying that I helped clarify theology and culture for them, providing a way forward for them. I am absolutely convinced that Christianity can thrive today because our faith has passed through numerous cultures and conflicts and yet God’s Spirit continues to help us meet the challenges of each time and place.

Our hope is ultimately in the power of God and the leading of his Spirit. It has been my prayer throughout that this book would be a blessing to readers, helping them move closer to God.

The rich man who kneeled before Jesus provides a stark contrast to the ideal children Jesus used as an example of those who eagerly enter the Kingdom. In fact, this man illustrated how those who refused to become like children could easily miss out on the Kingdom.

He displayed a mix of sincerity in his devotion to Jesus and devotion to his possessions—the things that commanded his ultimate allegiance.

Though the disciples had a hard time understanding Jesus or giving up their dreams of power in his Kingdom, they had at least given up their material wealth to follow. The rich man wanted to be validated by Jesus, to find out that he had done things right. He didn’t come to Jesus like an open child, willing to receive whatever Jesus offered or asked him to do. He had a lifestyle or religious observance that he wanted Jesus to stamp with approval rather than challenge.

In his eyes he had kept the commandments and didn’t see what more should be done. Jesus shocked him by challenging him to sell his possessions, to give to the poor, and to follow him. He preferred to keep his current level of religious devotion rather than accepting the challenge given by Jesus.

For all of their failings, the disciples of Jesus learned that they had not only done the right thing in leaving their possessions behind in order to follow Jesus, but they also learned that that their sacrifices would be rewarded with blessings, persecutions, and eternal life. On the face of it, Jesus was asking the prosperous to give up what they had in order to receive both persecutions and life.

There would be a steep cost that came with a high reward. However, in order to come first they had to sacrifice and take last place.

In this passage we see the degrees of devotion in following Jesus. While children are the ideal, the disciples can see that they have part of the Kingdom correct by leaving their former lives behind for the sake of Jesus. The rich man is an example of another step away from the Kingdom since he had many possessions.

At least those without much to their name could hear what Jesus had to say, even if they sometimes sought a higher position and failed to imitate Jesus or come to him as children. Mistaken though they were at times, the disciples had a much easier time of eventually entering the Kingdom as children because of their devotion to Jesus. They didn’t have the same limitations as the rich man.

There is something to be said for leaving behind all that hinders in order to follow and to enter God’s Kingdom. The disciples took yet another step in that direction.