Stories of Life and Faith
When was the last time you were so immersed in a book or film that you felt you were being carried along by the characters, the plot, the visual or mental images? When we reach the end of a story that grips us like that there is often a sense of sadness and loss. It was so engrossing and enthralling that we didn’t want it to end, but at the same time we were compelled to keep reading or watching every nuance and plot turn, embracing the development of the characters. What was that book or film for you most recently?
Often, we are enthralled because we see aspects of ourselves as we are or maybe as we desire to be in the story and unfolding characters. For many of us, myself included at times, that is not our experience with the Bible. Yet, this is not because the characters aren’t engaging, because the plots are boring and without intrigue or because it is impossible to see ourselves in the characters, either as we are or as we hope to be. For many of us it is our approach to the stories found in the scriptures that inhibits our deeper engagement and prevents us from embracing the characters.
For most of us raised in the church’s Western culture, particularly in the reformed tradition, scripture is viewed from an intellectual lens. Rather than seeing ourselves in the pages through the lives found there we attempt to parse out specific doctrines to be followed in order to appease God and possibly attempt to placate our fellow Christians. Yet, the scripture is rarely about doctrine, or rules as though the Bible was a map to follow when we are lost. The people found in the scriptures are just like us. They are experiencing genuine life with all the questions, doubts, challenges, joys, sorrows, exultations, and losses that encompasses life for everyone, even those who live in the present world.
Reading scripture as a set of doctrines to be maintained or as a guidebook to be followed reduces the people within its pages to caricatures, individuals separated from the reality of life as we know it. But the scriptures are the actual stories of God’s people from all walks of life who are blundering, searching, questioning, wondering, and wandering as they discern how to live out the way of faithfulness to God in the midst of the messiness of life. That is why this book has resonated with people for millennia.
Our sacred scriptures are a story—a story where we are invited to be carried away, to be immersed within and captivated by not only the plot occurring on the pages before us, but also by the way God is using this story to transform us and our lives. As we are transformed so are the lives of those around us as they witness and experience for themselves the life found in this most amazing book.
Ultimately, this is why it is vital for us to prioritize connecting with people in our communities whose experience of life and God are very different from our own. Once we are in their presence, we need to be intentional about spending most of our time listening rather than speaking. There is nothing wrong with our Western Christian tradition. In fact, it has often been a powerful force for good in the world. Yet, it is incomplete and represents only part of God’s story with humanity.
As we learn of the blundering, searching, questioning, wondering, and wandering faith life of others and humbly share our own, the scriptures come to life as we are drawn into community as God intended—diverse and multifaceted. Let us all be intentional about seeking to sit and listen to the faith stories and Biblical interpretation of those from outside our own Western faith traditions. If we do, then be ready to be gripped by the Bible stories in a completely new way. Fortunately, this is not a book that we will ever complete. It will continue to enthrall as long as we remain immersed in the stories.
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As RPC’s Associate Pastor for Mission Outreach, Rev. Dr. Dan Kreiss, has a heart for service and a diverse array of experiences in the mission field. Be sure to subscribe to the Mission Outreach Blog to read and follow along as he documents his personal journey and shares his vision for RPC’s mission outreach commitment. Along with providing meaningful resources, this blog will help jumpstart the important conversations our church community must be having about missional living.
Rev. Dr. Dan Kreiss
Rev. Dr. Dan Kreiss is the Associate Pastor for Mission Outreach at RPC. Dan is particularly passionate about encouraging the church to reflect the diversity found in its surrounding community in regard to age, gender, ethnicity, education and economic status.