On Bones and Textualism

It feels wonderful to be home for a few days. I have always considered myself to be one to adapt well to new things, but there are certain comforts intrinsic to my "home" home that I cannot deny. The most noteworthy: being back at EBC for Sunday--to be involved in drawing others to a place of worship and to be in communion with friends and family whom I care so deeply for means so much to me. I have been missing this at my summer home even though I have met many people who have been so gracious, accommodating, and accepting toward me.

The topic of today's message was "the person and work of the Holy Spirit." So much of what was shared today resonated with me.

I was with the Lord last night before I fell asleep and I was just thinking about how amazing it is that I can be with the Lord. And that He is the Lord to me and yet He is more than Lord to me: dwelling closer than my skin and loving my soul in a fierce and everlasting way. I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit.

I was reading in Ezekiel last night as well. Chapter 37 is titled The Valley of Dry Bones and I think I have only actually read it for myself once before last night. Here's what happens: Ezekiel (E) is led by the Spirit of the Lord to a valley that happens to be full of old, dead, dry bones. The spirit asks E if he thinks the bones can live. E is a wise prophet so he answers that the Lord alone can know whether the bones are capable of living.

The spirit then uses E to prophesy to the bones. He speaks through E, saying: "Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord."

And it was as the spirit said. The spirit goes on to explain to E that the dry bones are an image of the nation of Israel. (Even though E is probably one of the wisest prophets out there he needs the spirit to reveal His purposes in order to understand). Just as it was with the dry bones, the Lord says he will restore his people. "I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it."

The surrounding text is also full of restorative language, for example: "I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." (36:25-27)

A few things stood out to me from this:

(1) It is the Spirit that gives life and breathes life. There is so much meaning in the passage in 2 Timothy that says, "All scripture is God breathed...". The Spirit does more than simply inspire Scripture; the Spirit lives and breathes Scripture. That is, the Spirit expires as well as  inspires. Furthermore, the Spirit is breathing and is bringing life in the present tense.

(2) To understand the Spirit, we must have the Spirit revealed to us. "The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man‘s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us." (1 Cor 2:10-11)

(3) The Spirit has brought life to my life. I cannot explain how wonderful it is to know this. Last night my eyes welled up with tears as I came to understand this truth again. The spirit has moved and is moving in me and I cannot help but feel, well...moved. I even allowed some of the tears to spill and trace tiny streams down my face. The most amazing part of having the spirit to me is that my physical body, my mind, and my abilities become a vector for the Spirit to carry out the will of God. That changes everything for me: how I dress, how I speak, how I think, and how I choose to act. Not that I am doing everything right...but I am learning how to be real and how to be a suitable spirit-vehicle.

(4) It is the Spirit behind the text, not the text itself that brings life. This is a subtle but significant difference. A religion based on intellectual understanding of text will likely be disenchanting and empty. The essence of textualism is a faith that mentally "knows" but understands nothing of God because it knows nothing of Spirit. The Spirit is absolutely critical to the comprehension and implementation of the will of the Lord.

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On another note, this month has been full of so many happy things for me. I feel like I am soaring. I feel like I am on the edge of more good things. I am ready to put some toppings on my vanilla pudding.

Hope all is well,

E.