February 20, 2025
Practicing the Way: Scripture
In a recent sermon, we explored together Psalm 19 and how the writer of this poem compares scripture to the life-giving power of the sun. I told you all how I sometimes am the recipient of a relative’s Bible after they have passed away. One of the Bibles I have is my Great Grandpa Henry’s Bible. He passed away when I was only two, but he holds a legendary role in our family’s lore (he is the namesake of my son Henry). When his wife, my Great Grandma Grace, passed away, I received his Bible.
When I first got Great Grandpa Henry’s Bible, I started flipping through it and discovered that he often made little notes in the margins. When he got to the story of Noah departing from the Ark, he had underlined a verse and wrote a note. The verse he underlined was:
Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you, and just as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything. (Genesis 9:3)
In the margins, Henry had written: “I can eat meat!” I laughed imagining my Great Grandpa Henry (who lived across the street from a hog farm) breathing a sigh of relief at the knowledge that can keep enjoying his cheeseburgers.
Many of us read the Bible looking for wisdom on how to live. Sometimes the Bible gets treated as an arsenal, a cache of weapons that we use to fight battles (or to bludgeon other people). Other times the Bible is treated like a well-stocked medicine cabinet and we pull out whatever is needed for each specific moment; “Feeling depressed? Take two psalms and call me in the morning.”
Instead of either of those approaches, we need to recognize that the Bible is ultimately a story. It is the story of God’s ever-expanding love and ever-deepening mercy, and we are invited into this story. But, for many of us, we are still a post-Enlightenment-minded people who tend to turn to the Bible to deepen our cognitive knowledge, rather than allowing God’s Word to shape our souls.
I want to invite you to see reading scripture as a spiritual practice. Beginning on Sunday, March 16, I will be leading a four-week study called Practicing the Way: Scripture. Each week, we will meet together to have a conversation about the Bible’s role in our lives, we will watch a teaching from the author John Mark Comer, we will crack open scripture together, and then we will be empowered to practice our faith throughout the next week.
Scripture can connect us to God and change who we are, but distraction, hurry, and confusion can hinder our experience with these ancient texts. Rediscover how to engage Scripture as an apprentice to Jesus.
The cost is $20/person or couple for the materials (but we will take care of the money portion later). We will meet, beginning on March 16, at 4:00 PM for four weeks. You can sign up by clicking here: Practicing the Way: Scripture Sign-Up. And if you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at ttankersley@ardmorebaptist.org.
