Tomorrow at Central we start a brand new series we’re calling The Story of God. For six weeks we’re going to immerse ourselves in the Bible as a sweeping, epic story. We are moving as a church away from viewing the Bible primarily as a collection of God’s laws and commands and toward seeing the Scriptures as a narrative about our God and what he’s doing in the world. The Bible is a story. And we believe it should be read, interpreted, and applied as a story. Now, that’s not to say there aren’t any commands or laws in the Bible — there certainly are. But we believe those rules and laws are best understood by their place in the story.
So, we’re diving in. Our Bible classes, worship assemblies, small groups, covenant groups, and daily emails will all be centered on this view of Scripture as a dramatic story in six acts.
Now, a disclaimer: making this shift is not going to suddenly give us easy answers to all our issues. We’re going to find there are fewer rules, the lines are not as black and white, it’ll lead to more questions, more reflection, more wrestling. It’s not a system. It’s more art than science. It’s like finger painting — it’s kind of messy. Most of us don’t want to live with it. I mean, finger painting is great fun with the kids and maybe we’ll keep one piece of the finger painting and hang it on the fridge. But you don’t want to finger paint every wall in your house!
What if the value or worth of seeing the Bible as a story isn’t in the questions that get answered or the issues that get settled? What if it’s just the process itself? What if the value of this is in becoming a more faithful Christian? A more faithful Christian community? What if reading and experiencing the Bible this way more frequently and more consistently moves me to surrender to God? What if it fosters a bigger faith and a bolder trust in God?
We believe it will.
Peace,
Allan
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