Verse Of The Day

I have two Bible apps and get a Scripture of the day on each. Over time I have begun to notice that the same verses begin to appear over and over again, especially around the major holidays. Is this to keep the calendar cyclical, a reminder of the time and the seasons and their relation in time to things higher? Perhaps.

But it is starting to feel akin to Top 40 radio (mind you, it's been 25 years or more since I've listened to Top 40 radio) when you would hear the same song cycle over and over again, often with in the same day. The same Scriptures, the Top 40 if you will, repeats on each app (though I've never seen the same Scripture on both apps at the same time).

It's sort of the softball version and probably isn't the place to go deeper. But after a while they start to 'feel' like a pop song. Catchy melody, soft lyrics, light and airy. I suppose that's the point, those little moments of encouragement, those little reminders. 

But what about some of these verses? Wouldn't these throw us for a loop and really cause us to pause?

“He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.”

"Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me."

Or these?

"Behold, here is my daughter a maiden, and his concubine; them I will bring out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you: but unto this man do not so vile a thing."

"Therefore kill all that are of the male sex, even of the children: and put to death the women, that have carnally known men. [18] But the girls, and all the women that are virgins save for yourselves."

Do I Believe It?

It dawned on me during corporate worship Sunday that I'm not fully sure why, or what, I am worshiping. This isn't to say I don't understand just that I'm not sure, when listening to the lyrics, what it is I am, or supposed to be, so excited about. Is it me seeking emotional release or is the event itself meant to inspire or invoke a heightened emotional response? So I become ambivalent and allow my thoughts to wander as worship, in this context, seems to be, dare I say, a ritual. 

So I type 'what's the big deal about Jesus' into a search engine and get a link to a Billy Graham web page where I read:

But what took place that day was truly good, because it was the most important event in human history (along with Jesus’ resurrection). The reason is because by His death Jesus paid the price for our sins. He was without sin, but on the cross all our sins were placed on Him, and He died in our place. As the Bible says, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins” (Ephesians 1:7).

I don't know why but it seems to me that at a certain point we need to move beyond this. This is like the Cliff Notes version where far too many of us (or is it just me?) stay. Is the point to recruit and bring others into the fold on this selling point like a giant pyramid scheme or is the point to develop our personal relationship with God?

'Paid the price' and 'died in our place' have almost become cliches and as of late trouble me. There has to be more. Right? Either I am forgetting from whence I came and am puffed up or, perhaps, something is drawing me deeper. Sin? The Spirit? Am I just trying to get out of something that makes me uncomfortable?

It just feels, and I may be off here, that we are living at the cross. Our 'joy' comes from remembering the cross but what of the resurrection? It feels like a sidebar. Rather than striving toward a glorious day to be with Christ we look forward to the Rapture and all its entertainment value theatrics embedded in its various theologies. Trib, post-trib, pre-trib? Who cares?

The danger in living at the cross with the air of the Rapture overhead is the polarity of such an approach whereby it become a 'me' centered focus. I am grateful for what God has done for me. I am saved. Not denying these things but it bears a striking parallel to the celebration of sobriety. I understand that it is significant, I understand that it is a life changing moment and a life changing commitment and that we wish to tell our story to everyone, but is that the point? If we continue to call ourselves 'alcoholics' sober for X# of years the alcohol tag is still our root. Is our root the cross? 'A hell deserving sinner saved by grace' is my identity? I'm saved now I tell everyone so they too can be saved? 

If we are not careful, the focus on Jesus makes him little more than a superhuman, one of us but better, with 'Son of God' tossed around without context. This is where I am when listening to most songs. Who is this 'God' being sung about? Is Jesus this God? Do we sign to Jesus only? What of the Father and the Spirit? Where do they fit in? Or are we just getting to a point where we are so in the moment, so enraptured, that we speak in tongues? Is the goal of worship an experience? 

It feels as if we are chucking the Trinity or losing focus on the 'after' of the cross that led to this as the theological bedrock of the Church. This is what 'allows' for such recent doctrines as Oneness along with all the other theologies - Arian, Nestorian, etc. - that has been with us for thousands of years.

Or are multiple theologies ok as long as they all preach Jesus and the cross?

Is it really Jesus and Jesus only, the Trinity an addendum to an otherwise simple faith? Jesus is God, pray to Jesus, the name of God is Jesus? Sounds simple, no? Should the Church just chuck the Trinity and stop focusing so much on doctrine and theology? Is 'Jesus only' with the 'experience' of the Spirit all we need?

Forgive me, not sure where this is going, just trying to flesh out (hint: it ends in Orthodoxy).