Reading the Bible as a Village

Devotional Reflection, Thursday, January 24, 2024

The week of the third Sunday after Epiphany

The Rev. David W. Perkins, Th.D.

Key phrases for reflection from today’s reading:

39‘You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. 40Yet you refuse to come to me to have life. . . . 46If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. 47But if you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?’

You will find the full text of today’s Gospel at the end of this reflection.

Daily Office Lectionary Readings (BCP, 945)

AM Psalm 50; PM Psalm [59, 60] or 8, 84

Gen. 16:15-17:14; Heb. 10:1-10; John 5:30-47

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Conversion of the Apostle Paul. (See below.)

David’s Reflections

"Meeting the author is one of life's most reliably disappointing experiences."  So said Billy Collins, while poet laureate of the Library of Congress, in a radio interview in 2001.  When he said that, he was relating how people who read his poetry expressed excitement at the prospect of meeting him.  Yet, from his perspective, meeting him would only shrink his image in their eyes.

In verse 39 of this Gospel, Jesus remonstrated with the religious leaders for their preoccupation with the written words of Scripture.  They were searching their Bible, the Hebrew Scriptures, in a vain quest for life.  Yet, when God’s personal Word, Jesus, came to them they refused his witness.  When they heard the voice of one in intimate relationship with the God to whom that Bible bears witness, they responded with incredulity.  In a sense, they had met the “author” and were disappointed.

Conflict among people of faith over issues like human sexuality and gender equality have brought us hard up against the reality that the Bible may be only as good as its reader.  Why are we going to the Bible?  Is it to listen?  Is it to deepen our relationship with the One to whom the Bible bears witness?  Is it to hear the living voice of God through the words of texts prompted by God’s presence and activity in the lives of those who preserved the stories and who wrote the documents?

Or, are we looking for the solution to a theological or ethical riddle?  Are we looking for a few “Bible bytes” to buttress a viewpoint that we have held dear?  Are we driven to the text by ideology or by a hunger for the One who lurks beneath its sentences?  Are we looking for some rules to guide us in a way of life?

Obviously, our theology depends ultimately on the witness of Scripture.  But, that theology does not take shape like one makes a quilt, snipping a Bible verse from here and there and stitching them all together.  Rather, our theology resembles more a weaving, like a lovely tapestry, woven from deep listening to the whole of Scripture, listening that ferrets out the most resilient and recurring themes and subordinates all else to those, listening done in community with other believers, done with deep humility and an ever-attentive ear for the corrective voices of the community and the Holy Spirit.  As someone in our church put it during a small group Bible study, “It takes a village to read the Bible.”

(Note: If you want to experience the refreshing, mature reflections of a New Testament scholar about his life-long love for the Bible and his ways of approaching it, I would recommend this essay in the Harvard Divinity Bulletin by Krister Stendahl, Swedish Lutheran Bishop and New Testament scholar.  https://bulletin.hds.harvard.edu/why-i-love-the-bible/)

Collect of the Day, The Third Sunday after Epiphany

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good News of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (BCP, 215)

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Conversion of the Apostle Paul. http://www.satucket.com/lectionary/Conversion_Paul.htm

Collect of the Feast of the Apostle Paul

O God, who by the preaching of your apostle Paul has caused the light of the Gospel to shine throughout the world: Grant, we pray, that we, having his wonderful conversion in remembrance, may show ourselves thankful to you by following his holy teaching; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

A Collect for Guidance

O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people;  Grant that when we hear his voice we may know him who calls us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (BCP 100)

A Prayer of Self-Dedication

Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to you, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly yours, utterly dedicated to you; and then use us, we pray thee, as you will, and always to your glory and the welfare of your people; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.   (BCP, 832-33)

A Prayer for Light

Lighten our darkness, we beseech you, O Lord;  and by your great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night;  for the love of your only Son, Jesus Christ,  Amen.  (BCP, 111)

A Collect for Mission

O God and Father of all, whom the whole heavens adore: Let the whole earth also worship you, all nations obey you, all tongues confess and bless you, and men and women everywhere love you and serve you in peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (BCP, 124)

Daily Office Gospel, John 5:30-47

30‘I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I seek to do not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

31 ‘If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. 32There is another who testifies on my behalf, and I know that his testimony to me is true. 33You sent messengers to John, and he testified to the truth. 34Not that I accept such human testimony, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. 36But I have a testimony greater than John’s. The works that the Father has given me to complete, the very works that I am doing, testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me. 37And the Father who sent me has himself testified on my behalf. You have never heard his voice or seen his form, 38and you do not have his word abiding in you, because you do not believe him whom he has sent. 39‘You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. 40Yet you refuse to come to me to have life. 41I do not accept glory from human beings. 42But I know that you do not have the love of God in you. 43I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; if another comes in his own name, you will accept him. 44How can you believe when you accept glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the one who alone is God? 45Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; your accuser is Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. 47But if you do not believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?’

Daily Offices in The Book of Common Prayer

Morning Prayer, Rite 2, page 75, The Book of Common Prayer

Noonday Prayer, page 103, Book of Common Prayer

Order of Worship for Evening (Vespers), p 109, Book of Common Prayer

Evening Prayer, Rite 2, page 115, Book of Common Prayer

Compline (Night Prayer), page 127, Book of Common Prayer

Daily Devotionals, page 136, Book of Common Prayer