“Do you guys take the Bible literally?”
That is a question that I am sometimes asked about our church. I give the answer (which is “Yes”) with hesitation, not because I doubt that a consistent literally interpretation of the Bible is the only meaningful, logical way to do it, but because I am rarely given the opportunity to truly understand what they mean by “literally,” and to clearly explain what I mean by the word. One takes the Bible literally in the same way one takes a stop sign literally–there are no hidden messages in that red, octagon sign on the post–it simply means what it says, “Stop.” But I also read the Lord of the Rings in a literal fashion, as high-quality fantasy-fiction, with many examples of bravery, cowardice, good, evil, hope, and despair (though all of these are fictional). The Lord of the Rings is fiction–you can’t travel to Tom Bombadil’s for a chat, and then have lunch at the Prancing Pony. You’d have to search for a long, long time to find those places…and if you did, you’d probably be able to buy a T-shirt and refrigerator magnet to commemorate your visit! In the same way, I take the morning newspaper (here, The Oregonian) literally, too. Its front page is usually objective, propositional truth (although the fact of daily retractions for prior issues leads me to take even the front page with a grain of salt!), I take the sports section pretty literally, especially the bare facts of numbers (scores, hits, runs, averages, etc.). But the “living” section–now that part isn’t so propositional or objective, nor does it claim to be. It’s where I find movies reviews, television programming guides, advice columns. I read this section literally by knowing that it is not claiming to be the end-all truth for my life–it’s just trying to get me to go to a certain movie, or try a new recipe for garden tomatoes.
Taking the Bible literally involves a reasoned approach similar to the above applications I’ve laid out. It means assessing and valuing each particular type of literature in it that I am reading, and interpreting it accordingly. Well, the whole reason I’ve written all this today is to refer you to another site if you are interested in reading and excellent piece of writing on how to interpret the Bible. I am impressed with the ministry and writing of Dr. James Emery White, Senior Pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Please give this site a read, and let me know what you think! http://www.serioustimes.com/
Blessings,
Ken
downtownpastor