For those of you who don't know it, I referee high school soccer. I love it.
Last night, I was on the sideline over near the stands with a loud pack of parents behind me. I realized that the most annoying thing in the world as a referee who understands the game is the constant talk of parents who don't.
They thought every time their players were breathed on by the other team that it was a foul. It was constant. They knew just enough about the game to be dangerous, and they had no objectivity whatsoever. The viewed the game through the lens that their team was perfect, that the other team was the enemy, and every move was interpreted through that lens.
The sheer idiocy of the comments amazed even me- and I've been around this game for 35 years. The lack of their being able to live in reality, to see the game as it truly was, made me think that it was a bunch of kindergarteners (with no disrespect to kindergarteners intended) rather than adults.
Then I realized that this is how God must feel when I approach His Holy Scriptures with my preconceived bias, with my mind already made up, with my theology in place and my doctrine already determined. He must think it is incredibly annoying when we agree with certain parts of Scripture, disagree with other parts, live out certain parts, fail to live out other parts- simply because we see the Scripture through the same lens that those parents were viewing the game.
And it must be as annoying to God as it was for me as a referee.
One of the constant struggles for me as a Christian is to read the Bible for what it truly is- God's word. His word must be supreme over my preconceived notions. His word must be supreme over my theology or beliefs or agenda. I must approach His word as a student, not as a teacher, because a teachable spirit and arrogance are mutually exclusive.
I believe Francis Chan said it best: We must approach Scripture as if we lived on a desert island all alone for our entire lives, with only the Bible to read- never having been to church, never having heard another Christian talk, never having heard a political debate over a Biblical issue. Would we believe what we believe if all we had was the Bible?
Those parents behind me missed a great game, simply because they couldn't see past their predetermined bias of how they thought the game should go. I wonder how many Christians will miss a great and amazing God because of their predetermined bias of how they thought God should be, or act, or do.
Last night, I was on the sideline over near the stands with a loud pack of parents behind me. I realized that the most annoying thing in the world as a referee who understands the game is the constant talk of parents who don't.
They thought every time their players were breathed on by the other team that it was a foul. It was constant. They knew just enough about the game to be dangerous, and they had no objectivity whatsoever. The viewed the game through the lens that their team was perfect, that the other team was the enemy, and every move was interpreted through that lens.
The sheer idiocy of the comments amazed even me- and I've been around this game for 35 years. The lack of their being able to live in reality, to see the game as it truly was, made me think that it was a bunch of kindergarteners (with no disrespect to kindergarteners intended) rather than adults.
Then I realized that this is how God must feel when I approach His Holy Scriptures with my preconceived bias, with my mind already made up, with my theology in place and my doctrine already determined. He must think it is incredibly annoying when we agree with certain parts of Scripture, disagree with other parts, live out certain parts, fail to live out other parts- simply because we see the Scripture through the same lens that those parents were viewing the game.
And it must be as annoying to God as it was for me as a referee.
One of the constant struggles for me as a Christian is to read the Bible for what it truly is- God's word. His word must be supreme over my preconceived notions. His word must be supreme over my theology or beliefs or agenda. I must approach His word as a student, not as a teacher, because a teachable spirit and arrogance are mutually exclusive.
I believe Francis Chan said it best: We must approach Scripture as if we lived on a desert island all alone for our entire lives, with only the Bible to read- never having been to church, never having heard another Christian talk, never having heard a political debate over a Biblical issue. Would we believe what we believe if all we had was the Bible?
Those parents behind me missed a great game, simply because they couldn't see past their predetermined bias of how they thought the game should go. I wonder how many Christians will miss a great and amazing God because of their predetermined bias of how they thought God should be, or act, or do.
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