A person also wants to know, Is the vision beautiful and satisfying and fulfilling? Can I live with it? This is not a bad question. Commending Biblical truth involves more than saying, "Do it because the Bible says so." That sort of commendation may result in a kind of obedience that is so begrudging and so empty of delight and hearty affirmation that the Lord is not pleased with it at all.And and shortly thereafter but in the same vein (and this was what I originally thought to post):
Not only must there be thorough exegesis, there must also be a portrayal of the vision that satisfies the heart as well as the head. Or to put it another way: we must commend the beauty as well as the truth of the vision. We must know that something is not only right but also good. It is not only valid but also valuable, not only accurate but also admirable.
referenced from this book
5 comments:
Yeah, this is a problem I've had for a long time - seeing the Biblical message that way. It always seems to me that a better Biblical vision correlates with unorthodox thinking. Like I've told you, I find McDonald's understanding of how the afterlife relates to the real world to be the most compelling. However, this is partially because he doesn't believe in a final, traditional hell. I also like CS Lewis' idea that saving belief in Christ can be implicit, but that also doesn't seem supported by traditional Christianity. So, I get frustrated. I wish I could understand the Bible in the way that makes people happy.
Amen and Amen. Thanks for sharing this reminder, Luke. It is a difficult balance to keep - the good exegesis, but allowing ones soul to delight in what one finds there.
Unfortunately, I think sometimes our heart is deceived, or when it has been involved in sin, it won't always be happy with what it finds in Scripture. And that's where I wonder sometimes if you have to be careful about how much weight you give to the heart's desires. Much prayer and purity of life and heart must be maintained in order for the heart to truly be satisifed with Scriptural truths.
well as a reaction (i.e. not very well thought out) i guess I could say that those things which we take as un-beautiful but are strongly evident as true through the scripture, these things should be examined for what exactly IS beautiful about it, maybe in the way it integrates into the whole. that's sort of what Torrey is about with different virtues and things being beautiful as they are more true. ? eh. it doesn't answer the core difference of resonance with ones heart though, which I think is what you're addressing.
my post was in relation to eric's, not to cynthe's as she posted her comment as i was writing my own.
Yeah, resonance with one's heart is the thing. I can manufacture emotions and tell myself that I believe something, but I don't think I can directly change what I naturally and truly like and believe. I also suspect messages that tell us it's essentially about discipline and will power - since Christ puts the primary emphasis on the heart. If it was all about cognitively believing correctly then Christ would have placed the primary emphasis on the head. But, people who live out of their heads don't seem real.
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