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What Downton Abbey Taught Me about Bible Study

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Highclere_CastleThis show is dark. Last week’s episode had me crying harder than I can remember since Scar dropped Mufasa into the wildebeest stampede.

I have a friend whose wife wants him to watch it with her. He got a few episodes in and couldn’t handle any more. He enjoys watching TV for fun (even British period drama), but, as he explained to me, Downton Abbey wasn’t fun. It was hard work. The darkness was so depressing that it kept him on edge, and he couldn’t relax enough to enjoy it.

Yet the show has over a million Likes on Facebook. In the United States, Season 2 set the record for the most-watched mini-series ever to air on PBS’s Masterpiece Classic. Season 3 demolished the record, as almost 8 million Americans saw the season première. Our English friends seem a bit amused by the show’s unprecedented popularity here across the ocean, but you can’t deny it strikes a chord.

Downton shows how broken we are. Class doesn’t matter. Wealth doesn’t matter. Gender, sexual orientation, marital status, ethnicity – none of it makes a difference. We are all broken people.

Ocean liners sink. People get sick. Some die horrifically. Siblings are incredibly nasty toward each other. Innocents are condemned, and the guilty escape. Investments fall apart. Fulfilment is elusive. War ravages a generation. Destitution breeds prostitution, which breeds desperation. Reputations fall. Obnoxious pride demeans people and destroys relationships. The unlovely stay perpetually unloved. Dishonesty ruins good things. Condescension, irritation, disrespect, and grudges abound. People are broken. Situations are broken. Conventions and institutions and expectations are broken. Everything is broken.

Yet, the occasional ray of light ignites hope.

The lump in a woman’s breast turns out not to be cancerous. True love is possible. More money shows up. Technology advances. Life improves. Friends and lovers reconcile. The Dowager Countess delights us with her unique perspectives on life.

I’ll be honest: Downton doesn’t offer much hope, but the hope is still there. And that, I think, is why people keep watching.

What Downton Abbey has to say is really not much different from the Bible.

There’s a reason there’s so much that is dark in this world. There’s a reason we suffer as we do. There’s a reason people and institutions are so broken. Adam made his fateful choice so long ago in that quiet garden (Rom 5:12-14). He wanted to decide for himself what was right or wrong, true or false, valuable or worthless. You and I would have made the same choice if it had been us.

And yet there’s hope. Not the hope of women’s liberation, or true love, or producing an heir, or affording a certain lifestyle. But the hope of true life. The hope of finding the delight and fulfilment and acceptance we’ve always longed for. The hope of being united to our Creator and becoming more and more like him and living up to our full potential in him.

When you read the Bible, don’t shy away from the darkness. Realize it. Understand it. Let it resonate with your experience. Don’t paint a smile on your face and pretend everything’s just alright. If you don’t trust Christ for your life, however, you’re stuck here.

By all means, please make sure you find the hope. The real hope of Jesus Christ, in his death and resurrection. If you trust in Jesus and your Bible reading leaves you feeling guilty or discouraged or anxious for the future, you’ve undoubtedly missed something important.

What the Hobbit Taught Me about Bible Study

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Warner Bros.

Note: In honor of the second installment of Peter Jackson’s Hobbit trilogy opening at midnight tonight, I’m reposting this article from last year.

At midnight tonight, Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hits theaters. Although I won’t lose any sleep over it tonight, I am yet among those who eagerly anticipate it.

I’ve read the book to my children over the last few months (coincidentally, we finished it just this week), with much delight all around. I’m particularly struck by the smallness of the heroes.

There’s one hobbit and 13 dwarves. One wizard travels with them for a time, but he’s glaringly absent from the most dangerous episodes (at least in the book’s version of the story). In the main company, you’ll find no humans or elves, although both races come into play later in the story.

Tolkien highlights the surprisingly noble smallness of the main hero when Bilbo confronts the evil dragon Smaug with a bit of riddled autobiography:

I come from under the hill, and under the hills and over the hills my paths led. And through the air. I am he that walks unseen…I am the clue-finder, the web-cutter, the stinging fly. I was chosen for the lucky number…I am he that buries his friends alive and drowns them and draws them alive again from the water. I came from the end of a bag, but no bag went over me…I am the friend of bears and the guest of eagles. I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am Barrel-rider.

Tolkien was on to something. He knew that God designed the world such that the weak would overcome the strong and the least would outshine the greatest. This is, in fact, the message of the cross which we preach (1 Cor 1:18-2:5).

This message permeates the Bible and ought to influence our study. Such paradoxes exhibit the glory of God.

  • younger brothers inherit over older brothers
  • old, frail people out-class youthful, strong people
  • shrimps out-fight giants
  • uneducated people outperform intellectuals
  • sinful people end up closer to God than religious experts
  • humble people gain more favor than proud people

Jesus calls the sick, not the healthy. He makes the seeing blind. He seeks and saves the lost. He shames the strong.

We’re always tempted to hope in ourselves and our performance. As you read the Bible, remember that God doesn’t need your strength; he wants to give you his. He doesn’t want your best; he wants to make you his. He doesn’t need you, but he wants you to need him. Look for this theme as you read.

And delight in it as you watch Jackson’s movie.

What Catching Fire (Hunger Games #2) Taught Me About Bible Study

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In honor of the second “Hunger Games” movie opening this weekend, I’m updating and reposting this article (originally published June 4, 2012) about the novel Catching Fire.

I just finished reading Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins, part 2 of the Hunger Games series (see here for my thoughts on the first book).  The plot pacing and literary devices were similar to the first book, but a few new things struck me in this volume that help with Bible study.

1.  Structure is Your Friend

The Hunger Games is divided into three parts; each part had nine chapters.  Not bad.  It helped me to remember the flow of the story: the Tributes, the Games, the Victor.

Catching Fire has the same structure: three parts with nine chapters each.  A nice, memorable flow: the Spark, the Quell, the Enemy.

I must admit, I looked ahead to the third book.  Guess what?  Three parts, nine chapters each.  Fantastic. That means the entire series is made up of nine parts with nine chapters in each part.  Beautiful symmetry!

It can’t be an accident.  In fact, most chapters (and some of the parts) don’t really end with a scene change the way most books do.  Collins clearly set things up to have the right number of chapter and part divisions.

How does this help with Bible study?  Biblical authors employ the same tactic.  They consciously structure their books so readers can easily remember and assimilate the material.  Here are some examples.

  • The Plagues on Egypt (Exodus 7:14-10:29), organized as three sets of three plagues each.  Notice how the first plague of each set begins with something like “Go to Pharaoh in the morning…” (Ex 7:14, 8:20, 9:13).  The tight organization contrasts with the utter chaos resulting from the plagues, and it helps us appreciate the power and majesty of the Lord.
  • Jesus’ Sermons in Matthew (Matthew 5-7, 10, 13, 18, 23-25), dividing the Gospel into five sections.  Each section highlights a particular aspect of what it means to be Jesus’ disciple.  The book climaxes with the Great Commission to go out and make disciples (Matt 28:16-20).

Pay attention to structure, as authors use it to couch their main points in a memorable way.  For more help, I highly recommend The Literary Structure of the Old Testament by David Dorsey.Catching Fire Movie

2.  Plot Twists Have Always been in Style

Catching Fire has lots of plot twists.  Some are clearly foreshadowed; others caught me by surprise.  Modern stories seem boring if they’re too predictable, but Collins delivers engagingly.

Plot twists are not a modern invention; the Bible showed us how to do it long ago.

Readers of the Old Testament expected the Messiah to deliver Israel (Acts 1:6), but who would have guessed that God himself would become a man, be born of a virgin, live in poverty, and die in great shame?  If the rulers of this age had known it, they would not have crucified Jesus (1 Cor 2:7-8).  Many today still read the Bible but miss Jesus, the main point (2 Cor 3:12-16).

Now that we know the end of the story, however, we can go back and get the point.

P.S.  For a fantastic review of the content and ethics of The Hunger Games, see N.D. Wilson’s article posted by Trevin Wax at The Gospel Coalition. And for a keen but scathing review of the popular response to the Hunger Games franchise, see Scott Mendelson’s review at Forbes.

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What Ender’s Game Taught Me about Bible Study

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Ender's_Game_posterI’ve been waiting for this weekend for 13 years.

I first read Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card in 2000, when a friend gave it to me as a spontaneous gift. “This book is so good,” he said, “that I couldn’t wait until a holiday to give it to you.” He commissioned me to read it pronto, because that’s what friends do. This book is that good.

Now, after years of empty threats, Hollywood has finally produced the tale for the big screen. It’s now playing in a theater near you.

I plan to see it tomorrow, so I can’t yet comment on the film. I’m sure it will not meet my expectations. But it’s exciting nonetheless, and I can tell you how it has improved my study of the Bible.

Ender’s Game taught me that children are usually smarter than we expect. Young children can handle much more than we think they can, so we should begin teaching them to study the Bible early. I’ve already written on this topic, so I’ll leave it there for now.

Ender’s Game also taught me that different people can have wildly different perspectives on the same set of facts. Duh. You probably learned that lesson long before I did.

Though Ender’s Game tells the story through the perspective of Andrew “Ender” Wiggin, Card wrote a parallel novel called Ender’s Shadow which tells the same story through the eyes of a different character. Despite knowing the climax and resolution of Ender’s Game, I find myself on the edge of my seat when I read Ender’s Shadow. The change in perspective makes the story fresh and suspenseful. According to comments from the author in 2010, the screenplay fuses both perspectives from these two books for a richly unraveled story.

What does this have to do with Bible study?

It shows me the need for studying the Bible with other people. My perspective may be quite good (at least I usually think so), but I also need others’ perspectives to fully understand the Scripture.

“Other people” might include people in my church of any maturity level. They might include skilled interpreters who wrote books or commentaries to help. They might include saints from the past who wrestled with the text long before I did.

Though we should fight to understand the main point of a passage, we should always hold our summary of that point loosely unless the biblical author stated it explicitly. For example, the main point of John’s Gospel is non-negotiable: “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31, ESV). But my main point for Luke 2—God sent Jesus to be born so he might save the lowly and rule them graciously; this brings him highest glory—is negotiable. If you have a better idea, driven by the text, I’d like to hear it.

I need your perspective, and you need mine. Let’s help each other.

I’m not saying that everyone’s perspective is equally true or valid. I’m not suggesting that truth is relative. I’m proposing that “the body does not consist of one member but of many” (1 Cor 12:14). Within the church we need diversity of not only functions but also personalities and perspectives.

Vern Poythress has written at length on the value of multiple perspectives in theology. For more information, check out his book.

And if you don’t have time to read Poythress’s book, then go to see “Ender’s Game” this weekend. I commend it highly.

Question: how have you found multiple perspectives helpful in your Bible study?

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One-to-One Bible Reading

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One-to-One Bible Reading-2When we talk about “Bible study,” we usually refer to one of these two things: small group discussion or personal time with God. People study the Bible alone, or they study it in gaggles. But David Helm, in his short but wonderful book One-to-One Bible Reading, offers another option–that of studying the Bible with someone one-on-one.

It only makes sense. One-on-one meetings are more common, more personal, more interactive, and more individually tailored than any other type of meeting. One-on-one meetings can produce intimate friendship and vigorous dialogue. Most people are used to them and take part in them regularly with friends, neighbors, and coworkers. But many people don’t think of reading the Bible in such settings.

As the book states, “The Bible really is a book you can read and understand–including in a one-to-one context. You don’t need someone else to tell you what the Bible is saying. You can simply sit down with a friend and read it together, and hear God speak.”

In the US, we’re used to saying “one-on-one” rather than “one-to-one,” but don’t let that difference turn you off to this book. I highly recommend it.

Helm references a survey conducted by Ed Stetzer where people were asked whether they would be willing to study the Bible if a friend asked them to. For respondents age 30 and above, 42% said yes. Among 20-somethings, 61% said yes. Among these younger generations, people show greater interest in reading and discussing the Scriptures with people they know. This fact provides a great opportunity.

Is there someone you’ve been reaching, whom you’d love to introduce to Christ? Have you tried inviting them to church, but they haven’t been interested? Perhaps you could ask this person to meet over coffee for a few weeks to read and discuss the book of Romans.

Do you know a new believer in your congregation who hasn’t made many friends yet? Would she benefit from a low-pressure situation where she can discuss the Bible and learn to understand it better?

Maybe you serve in a particular role in your church. Can you think of someone you could train to help out or take over? If so, could you pass on the biblical principles that drive you in your decisions? Can you train the person not only to do the job but also to think biblically about it?

Helm shows how one-on-one Bible study works with both Christians and non-Christians, of any maturity. And he goes on to explain how to do it. He walks through meeting dynamics and sample discussion questions. He does it all in 75 pages and a few appendices.

It won’t take long to read, but this book will increase your confidence that you can teach God’s word to others. Check it out!

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What Saving Private Ryan Taught Me about Bible Study

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Saving Private RyanIn Steven Spielberg’s World War II film Saving Private Ryan, a team of soldiers receives orders to penetrate Nazi lines, find an American paratrooper (Private James Ryan), and bring him out.  The team’s commander selects six men from his own company, and one from another company, for the mission.

The outsider is Corporal Upham, a clerk fluent in both French and German, who will help the team with communication along the way.  Upham initially resists the call because he has worked behind a desk for the entirety of the war.  He hasn’t fired a weapon since basic training.  He is not free to choose, however; he must join the team.

For skirmish after skirmish, Upham cowers behind boulders and trees until the fighting wanes.  He interacts freely with French civilians and Nazi prisoners of war, but he refuses to fight.  Fear crushes action, and despair dislodges duty.

Near the film’s climax, Upham comes face-to-face with a German warrior.  Ammunition belts hang from Upham’s shoulders like a priest’s vestments.  His loaded rifle is in hand.  His knife sits strapped to his hip.

Yet he falls to the ground in quailing terror.  He doesn’t even pull the trigger.

The German saunters past Upham, smirking, after killing Upham’s comrades.  The enemy proceeds, threatening, but leaves Upham to bathe in his filthy cowardice.

Caution: this clip has gruesome violence.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx25WHe_KcE

While not necessarily sharing Upham’s spinelessness, many Christians share his inaction when it comes to firing their weapon.

The sword of the Spirit – the Word of God, the Bible – pierces hearts and slays sinners (Eph 6:17, Heb 4:12-13).  This divine scalpel cuts away cancerous thoughts and beliefs and transplants them with healthy ones (Rom 12:1-2).  This heavenly blowgun discharges profitable projectiles that not only penetrate but also persuade their victims to perform good works with complete competence (2 Tim 3:16-17).

This bloodstained blade strikes down nations and promotes the benevolent yet unyielding sovereignty of the one who is himself the Word of God (Rev 19:11-16).  His fury is unquenchable, but his salvation is unstoppable (Rom 1:16-17).

Fire your weapon, soldier.

The average American household has 4.4 Bibles within its walls.  More English translations exist than ever before.  The Internet and mobile devices make God’s Word far more accessible than a permit to carry a concealed weapon used to be.

Learn to use your Bible.  Learn to wield it with skill.  Don’t hang it around your neck.  Don’t mount it on the wall.  Don’t waste valuable space on your bookshelf with it.

Remember, workbooks or Bible study guides are like training wheels, helping you practice the basic mechanics.  But the time comes when you have to pop them off and let loose and just keep pedaling.  Are you ready?

Question: What prevents you from studying your Bible as much as you’d like?

Book Review: The Most Misused Verses in the Bible

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inigo-montoyaHas someone ever encouraged you to ask for something in Jesus’ name because He’s promised to give it to you (according to John 14:14) ? Or perhaps you yourself have wondered what Jesus meant when He said in Matthew 18:20, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them.” (Isn’t Jesus always with us, according to Matthew 28:20?) Or it may be that you’ve heard a motivational speaker emphasize the importance of vision-casting leadership by quoting Proverbs 29:18 in the King James Version: “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

If you have experienced these or similar scenarios, you’ve probably scratched your head and wondered what you were missing. Does the Bible really say those things?

The answer is often yes and no – yes, the Bible [sorta] says those things, but no, it doesn’t mean what you think it means.

misused

I recently finished reading a very helpful book that addresses some of the most misused verses in the Bible, appropriately entitled, The Most Misused Verses in the Bible. Author Eric J Bargerhuff does a masterful job of graciously explaining the importance of placing all Bible verses in their proper context – and he works through this by dedicating one chapter to each of these “misused verses”.

The chapters are short, clear and filled with helpful explanations that don’t require a theology degree to understand. Bargerhuff also humbly offers examples from his own life that give the book a warm and approachable tone.

Two quotes to whet your appetite:

[Referencing the temptation of Jesus in Luke 4] What’s interesting here is that Satan not only knows and uses the Word of God, but this time (unlike in the garden), he chooses to quote it correctly.  In other words, it is not a misquote or an incorrect citation of the verse, but it is a misuse of it.

We have no right to hold God hostage to a promise that we have misunderstood.

If you’ve enjoyed reading Knowable Word, you’ll likely also appreciate reading The Most Misused Verses in the Bible. Check it out!

What Les Miserables Taught Me about Bible Study

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Tomorrow, Tom Hooper’s film adaptation of Schoenberg & Boublil’s Les Miserables opens in theaters. If you haven’t yet made plans to see it, do so now. It will spread sweet icing on your Christmas season.

A poster for “Les Miserables.” / Universal Pictures

Les Miserables, the musical, is based on Victor Hugo’s classic novel of the same title and successfully retains its key themes.

The main theme is the conflict of law versus grace, and the show’s two primary male characters represent the two sides. Javert, a policeman/investigator, always plays by the rules, and he expects everyone else to do so as well. Valjean, a convict-turned-entrepreneur, dedicates his life to serving others as he has been served. The two forces conflict throughout the tale.

Javert identifies how the two cannot peacefully coexist:

Damned if I’ll live in the debt of a thief,
Damned if I’ll yield at the end of the chase.
I am the law, and the law is not mocked.
I’ll spit his pity right back in his face.
There is nothing on earth that we share.
It is either Valjean or Javert!

This tension between law and grace marks human existence and is not foreign to the Bible.

The Law of God is holy and righteous and good (Rom 7:12) in that it shows us how life works best. The problem is that sinful people can’t keep it perfectly; the Law exposes their need for rescue (Rom 3:20-21).

However, if we refuse to acknowledge our need for rescue, we’ll do one of two things: Either we’ll lower God’s standard just enough so we can (pretend to) keep it, or we’ll lower God’s standard all the way and pretend there is no standard. The first approach is called legalism; the second is called license. Legalism and License are not opposites but cousins. In either case, we use the Law for something it was never meant to do. We attempt to gain God’s favor through it. This approach will never work (Gal 2:16).

God holds us to a standard of perfection (Matt 5:48). When we fail, he rescues. Jesus came for this very purpose (Acts 4:11-12). We use the term “Grace” to label God’s great favor given through Christ to those who deserve his curse. Such grace cannot coexist with a faulty “law” approach.

So Javert and Valjean will conflict. One, being transformed by grace, will lavish grace on others. The other… Well, just go see the movie.

Don’t read the Bible because you have to. Read it because you get to. And when you read it, notice how often God directs people away from their performance and toward his mercy. Will you trust in his rescue?

What the Presidential Debate Taught Me About Bible Study

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It must be terribly inconvenient to run for President of the United States.

The debate last night must have required tremendous preparation.  Not only do President Obama and Governor Romney have to prepare to present their own positions, each must prepare to make his opponent’s position seem foolish.  Each must also prepare to respond to whatever accusations the other might bring to the floor.

And then there are all the social dynamics: moderator, attendees, cameras.  Personal lives get exposed; mistakes in judgment get exploited; everything is scrutinized.

And all for one purpose: to get my vote.

But what difference will it make if one candidate wins my vote?  How can I make a difference?

Here’s the beauty of how it works.  By winning one person at a time, vote after vote after vote, an aspiring leader does something magical.  Many individuals make up this thing we call “the people.”  And when the people elect a leader, stuff changes.  Policies take effect.  Administrations administrate.  The glorious future begins to spill into the dreary present.

What did last night’s debate teach me about Bible study?  That it’s all worth it. 

It’s terribly inconvenient to study the Bible.  It’s not easy.  It requires discipline and practice.  I might not get it at first.

But, as I do it, I get better at handling the Word (2 Tim 2:15).  The better I handle the Word, the better equipped I am at passing it on (2 Tim 3:16-17).  The better I am at passing it on, the more likely I am to make a significant difference for God’s Kingdom.

So keep going to church, week after week.  Keep reading your Bible.  Keep learning how to communicate it effectively.

It will feel mundane.  It will feel like hard work.  But it’s how God changes the world.

“You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim 2:1-2).

Do you think it’s worth it to study the Bible?  What encourages you to keep doing it when it’s inconvenient or difficult?