There are 5 words that when used together in a single sentence make a lot pastors cringe.
“It says in the bible …”
Not too long ago I was talking to someone who brought up those very words; it says in the bible. In this case they were talking about two hot button topics in our country right now; same sex marriage and illegal immigration.
I am going to spell out to you my beliefs and they are mine and mine alone. I do not and will not force them on anyone because as a United Methodist pastor, I am bound by the current Book of Discipline as well as Wesley’s Three Simple Rules (FIRST, do no harm, do all the good you can, and stay in love with God) and influenced by the Wesleyan Quadrilateral (emphasizing scripture, tradition, reason, and experience as sources for understanding Christian faith). To reinforce my covenant to those principles, it has been determined by the United Methodist Judicial Council (kind of like the Supreme Court of the UMC) that as the pastor of this congregation, I and I alone determine if a same sex marriage happens here or not. So taking ALL of that into account, by UMC “law”, I am allowed to do that. BUT this is where the three rules and Wesleyan Quadrilateral come in – would I be harming this congregation or community ‘if I did’?
So while I believe (and you will see this showing up as we proceed) in things that are allowed for by the UMC, my first responsibility is to those I serve. Likewise, if someone does something the bible says is wrong and tries to gloss over it or make one thing more important than the other, I will defend my faith and the God to which I serve and the book to which we turn to.
The Christian bible says a lot of things; It tells a lot of stories; It keeps a lot of lists; And, overall, makes a lot of sense. The problem with those five words is that when people use them in that sentence, people are trying to use the bible – and more often, distort the bible – to make a point. And there are a lot of times, the point they are trying to make has nothing to do with the scripture they are quoting or they are taking it out of context and discounting parts or sections that do not agree with what they are trying to express.
The most common instance for someone to invoke those words revolves around sexuality. People like to throw out bible verses that say that homosexuality is a sin and follow that up with scripture like:
- Leviticus 20:13 – If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads. –
But they forget that just a few verses before it says …
- Leviticus 20:9 – Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death. Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head.
Then people go into the New Testament and whip out something like …
- 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 – Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral …
And that’s as far as people go! See, it says it right there “sexually immoral”. But people don’t keep reading because it also includes “…nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
So that also means that if one strays from thoe one he or she loves for any reason? There is no forgiveness.
So if you have been divorced, you very well may go to hell. What about if you ever have too much to drink or heaven forbid, use a (legal in Indiana) CBD product and feel the effects? Express lane to hades. Ever get extra change you didn’t return? Take more of anything that you could have done without? Said something bad about someone? Done anything instead of attending worship? Satan has a place for you.
And here comes the biggest part of it all that people like to leave out! Jesus changed EVERYTHING! Verse 11 says it right there … “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
As I have said when I preach, it is important to know, especially with the Old Testament, that the reader knows what is going on and who is being addressed when the passage was written. In the case of Leviticus, it was after the Hebrew people escaped from Egypt and were beginning the 40 year trek to the promised land. During that time, as the mass moved through the desert, issues came up that required guidance as well as regulation to benefit all of them. These regulations to benefit the Hebrew tribes to help them not only remain pure in a Spiritual sense, but in a health sense, became what is known as Mosiac (Moses) or Levitical (the Levites) law. These laws, all 613 of them, were answers to things like what to eat and not to eat; how to dress; how to live with each other; and how to maintain and grow the members of the community so that they would not fade to obscurity and go away. All of these 613 laws were distilled from the 10 Commandments God gave to Moses on Sinai.
But, as I said before, Jesus changed everything. In fact, who knew that Jesus would take all 613 Mosaic/Levitical laws and the 10 Commandments and further reduce them to only 2?
When being quizzed by the Pharisees Jesus was asked … Matthew 22:35-40 – One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
That was Jesus’ answer, but God was not done yet. The early, early, early church – right after Jesus ascended into Heaven – was still having trouble understanding just how much things had changed. That’s when Peter got a message from God. There was a centurion named Cornelius in Caesarea who was told to have Peter brought back to his home. While Peter was there he had a dream …
Acts 10:11-15 – He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.” “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.” The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”
Now lets take what Jesus said to the Pharisees concerning relationships;
- love God first of all and love each other.
Now lets add a little to that concerning being sinless. First of all, in Genesis we see that God made everything and pronounced in Genesis 1:31 that it was good. But in the Mosaic and Levitical laws, some things were banned so they contradicted God. So when Jesus came, things were straightened out again and it included more than just the food that came from the sky in Acts. Because, if you pull that out, even those who are today labeled as sinners are made pure because:
- In Genesis we were made by God and called good, every one of us;
- In Matthew we are told by Jesus to love each other, no questions asked
- In Acts we are told that even the sinners, not just the food, are made clean again
Finally, when this person who calls themselves Christian, keeps going on about mass deportations and is quoting Mosaic and Levitical law, completely forgets not only in Matthew it says to love our neighbor, but forgets that right in that same Mosaic and Levitical law it clearly says: When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. Leviticus 19:33-34
The bottom line here is that if you want to claim to be a Christian, please try to look to the book that really is more about being a love story than a hard bound rule book leading to salvation. In the end, I personally would like to stand before God and Jesus and apologize for loving too much; caring too much; and giving too much … than answer why I did none of those things.
Read the bible. Learn the why something was written. Learn about who it was written to. Listen for the Holy Spirit’s voice as you read it and ponder it in your heart.
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