It’s often said that the Bible is not a book, but a library. As much as we see in it a unified message of God’s love for creation, this message is communicated in a variety of different voices: it’s a complex symphony, not a simple melody. As such, when we read a given passage, we … Continue reading Big Questions: What else do the Scriptures say about this?
I remember once hearing that one of the problems with the use of power in society is that the only people who really want power are those who want to abuse it — to “lord it over” others, as Jesus put it (Matthew 20:25). But as Jesus continues in that passage, things are supposed to … Continue reading Worthy: A Reflection on Revelation 5.11-14
In the most recent post in this series on the ‘big questions’ that can help us read the Bible better we looked at the importance of understanding historical and cultural context. Today’s big question is also about the context of a given text, but is about the text in its immediate surroundings: What is the … Continue reading Big Questions: What is the Literary Context?
In the first three posts in this series re-introducing my Integral Hermeneutic method by exploring the ‘big questions’ it’s important for us to ask in our attempt to read the Bible better, we have looked at the questions that fall under the first two steps of that process, Experience and Encounter. Today we’ll move on … Continue reading Big Questions: What is the Historical and Cultural Context?
We’re in the midst of a series of posts about the big questions I feel are important to ask so we can get the most out of our Scripture reading. The first two were components of the ‘Experience’ step of the Integral Hermeneutic method through which we’re working. Today’s post moves on to the simplest, … Continue reading Big Questions: Who Am I Meeting?
Matthew Root 