The text is not God. But it is summoned by God. And it keeps coming at us whether we request it or not. Sometimes, I think I have tamed it, like Lewis’s men thought they had tamed the grizzly. Then it keeps charging at me and I am unable to escape. Sometimes I think I can charge back, but like ocean waves it repeatedly reminds me of my place in the story. The text offers numerous difficulties that are not easy to navigate, yet I continue to be drawn into it.
The adventure that the text takes us on is not an easy one. We know this is true because even preachers of this text do not always believe its words. If they did they would not so often explain away its mystery. Or attempt to make it into something that seems more relevant for this century. The fact is, though we claim that we are serious about this adventure of the text, we seem uneasy with allowing it to speak for itself.
The text is more than a journey from Genesis to Revelation. It takes our soul on an adventure with prophets, poets, and evangelists as our guides. The context is creation. Everything we see and do occurs here. In the opening scene, creation takes shape. In the final scene, creation sings a song of praise. The text calls us to engage with other participants as we live out creation realities.
Living by a text is nothing if not a story of adventure. It is a story about surviving and testing one’s wit in this place. Our text gathers us and asks us to look inside to explore issues of identity. It strips us down to our bare bones in order to find out what lies underneath the surface. It asks who we are when there are no props of modern convenience. It alerts us to danger and beauty and an abundance of gifts. It motivates us to continue a life of gratitude. It orients us in the ways of God and gives us a ticket close to the action.
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