Today we move to Brian Blount on "The Last Word on Biblical Authority."
Many people treat biblical words (like a person who has to have the "last word"), believing that those words, all of them, must always be the last words standing. Now in matters of faith - in matters of understanding our human relationship before God and God's move to nurture, develop, restructure, and refine that relationship through the prophetic and incarnate Word - most of Christendom, I think, agrees that those inspired words are lasting words. But in matters of the proper way to appropriate those words of faith ethically, there is and has always been considerable discussion and debate.
What a wonderful contrast - last word....lasting word. Just saying this is enough to make all of us stop and look again at the word that is being offered for our prayerful contemplation as we read the biblical words. It is my bias that as we attempt to use more and more words as the "last word" we are often left with less and less words to address the situations of the day. But this word we share is one that is lasting. It takes into consideration the day in which we live and it attempts to engage us in a dialogue with times past and times present and the way our God...lasts into all the ages and all of our lives. We probably all have those biblical words that we would consider the last word. I think that is fine. But, it is necessary to keep asking what is last about it...and how is it to be last...and why!?! And if it is considered the last word, can last words become more full for us...can they expand in time to say more or less as we continue to faithfully question and discuss and be shaped by those words?
Connection: Be ready to take another listen...another look...re-view what is last and attempt to see it as first word addressed to this day by the God who calls us beloved.
Come, O Word of Life, and bend our ears so that we will listen again to how you call us anew in each day and offer us an adventure that we may have never expected. Amen.
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