Thursday, September 17, 2009

The Bible returning void, evangelizing Woody Allen, and something bigger than Jesus

Since I am preaching to the choir in these parts of the Internet, I probably don't have to remind you that many (most? all?) the references in the NT to "The Word" that we have been told are 'obviously' referring to the Bible, are in the clear opinion of the early church and fathers referring to Jesus:


  • "Preach the Word, in season and out of season"
  • "The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two edged sword."

etc

Even:
  • "Rightly dividing the Word of Truth"

Russ Willingham did a great session on this, including references to early writers,offering clear evidence....I need his notes.

Of course the Word/Logos usually refers to something even "bigger and wider" than Scripture..maybe even bigger than Jesus: God's overall influence and power, and any means of his speaking/communicating.

It seems most of these NT references are commentary on the John 1 or Rev: 19:13 traditions. And in the days the NT was being written, there was no developed sense of Scripture as The Word.

Of course there are OT references to the Word (Hebrew davar), such as the classic prooftext, of Is 55:11...which obviously can't refer directly to Jesus, and do refer to the OT Scriptures...but also so much more..
in context it's "what comes out of [God's] mouth," not (just) The Scriptures. It sometimes takes a discussion about something unrelated (?) to help us back into focus....Something like a chat about Woody Allen:

WORLD: If you were sitting next to Woody Allen on a plane, what would you say to him?

METAXAS: I have to somehow figure out how to connect with him. . . . If you come across as morally superior, that's unbiblical, that's wrong, it's a lie, so you're confused. But also you'll push the person away. You've got to find a point of connection, otherwise they won't hear you. If you walk around New York you might see someone, semi-homeless, almost always from out of town, with a hat and a Bible "preaching the word" on the street. Nine times out of 10 they are not preaching the Word any more than Satan was when he was quoting the Bible to Jesus in the wilderness. The words are not magic. Some people will respond, "The word of God will not return void," and yes, the capital-w Word of God, the Logos, will not return void—but the words of the Bible can certainly return void unless they're anointed by the Holy Spirit. Many people think that if they just spew out Scripture or something that people are hearing them, but it's not true. Jesus never did that. He always connected with everyone around him.
link




See also this video:

Two Great Theologians: Woody Allen/Billy Graham

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