Elemental Season 1 - Day 17
"Inspired"
I was in a songwriting seminar with Rich Mullins, and he made an interesting comment. He asked if any of us had been in a talent show or had seen one where someone said: “God woke me up and gave me this song. . .”
We all raised our hands, as this was a pretty common thing that is said in Christian music circles. He told us that we had to be careful with this kind of language because if a song had been verbally inspired by God, or given to this person then it should be made Canon or part of scripture.
He also mentioned that he was often surprised that God was such a bad songwriter as inevitably, these songs that were “given” to these people by God were usually pretty awful!
We laughed about this, but it made a good deal of sense. If something comes directly from God, we should hold it as sacred, canon, and perfect. Why wouldn’t we? We should have an understanding that what is handed down from God to us in its perfection cannot be questioned or altered in any way. But is that what scripture was and is?
According to our denominational understanding and belief system, God partnered with people to inspire their thoughts by revealing who God is and allowing them to interpret this and write it down. That means that the words on the page are as perfect as the understanding and interpretation of those who wrote them. While this may seem less than ideal, we also have the incredible power of the Holy Spirit who is helping everyone interpret, understand, and be blessed by the words that were written.
Since this is the case, we don’t have to worry about the history being 100% accurate, the science being true, and every bit of grammar being perfect. We understand how good God is at work through our imperfections in order to help us understand God even better than we had before. Scripture is a complicated story of a God and a people struggling to understand one another. It was written in a different time, in a different language, to a different culture, and even scientific and philosophical understanding.
Perhaps the question is less about accuracy and more about the effectiveness of which it teaches us about God. After all, scripture is less about us and more about God, and the more I read it the more I am convinced that when I try to find myself in it, I am drawn more and more to an understanding of God!
We all raised our hands, as this was a pretty common thing that is said in Christian music circles. He told us that we had to be careful with this kind of language because if a song had been verbally inspired by God, or given to this person then it should be made Canon or part of scripture.
He also mentioned that he was often surprised that God was such a bad songwriter as inevitably, these songs that were “given” to these people by God were usually pretty awful!
We laughed about this, but it made a good deal of sense. If something comes directly from God, we should hold it as sacred, canon, and perfect. Why wouldn’t we? We should have an understanding that what is handed down from God to us in its perfection cannot be questioned or altered in any way. But is that what scripture was and is?
According to our denominational understanding and belief system, God partnered with people to inspire their thoughts by revealing who God is and allowing them to interpret this and write it down. That means that the words on the page are as perfect as the understanding and interpretation of those who wrote them. While this may seem less than ideal, we also have the incredible power of the Holy Spirit who is helping everyone interpret, understand, and be blessed by the words that were written.
Since this is the case, we don’t have to worry about the history being 100% accurate, the science being true, and every bit of grammar being perfect. We understand how good God is at work through our imperfections in order to help us understand God even better than we had before. Scripture is a complicated story of a God and a people struggling to understand one another. It was written in a different time, in a different language, to a different culture, and even scientific and philosophical understanding.
Perhaps the question is less about accuracy and more about the effectiveness of which it teaches us about God. After all, scripture is less about us and more about God, and the more I read it the more I am convinced that when I try to find myself in it, I am drawn more and more to an understanding of God!
- How do you think the Scriptures came about?
- Are they useful in understanding who God is?
- Do you think that this kind of understanding takes away from what you thought about scripture and inspiration and revelation?
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