Just over six months ago I finished my study of Exodus. At the time, I said I was going to share some essays and small thoughts. I estimated this would go for a couple weeks, which was clearly a great underestimation! I think part of why I spent so much longer exploring other topics is the rapid and dramatic changes that have been happening world, prompting me to delve into the spiritual questions I saw attached to those changes.
Now, though, I do want to get back to my scripture study. As before, I intend to cover a small batch of verses at a time, going chapter-by-chapter through the entire book of Leviticus. I’m sure that I will periodically do one-off studies in between chapters as well, whenever a particular question or thought is weighing on me.
You can go back to read my full summary of Exodus, but I’ll take just a moment here to re-establish context.
Genesis was dedicated to laying the core patterns of the world, distilling eternal truths in legendary and dramatic manifestations. Exodus was the bridge from the supernatural world to the natural, bringing those core patterns to everyday existence.
Of course, Exodus still had its fair share of miracles and supernatural wonders, but it also made the way that people related to the Lord ritualistic and common. We followed an everyday people who passed through relatable phases of tragedy, rebellion, and repentance. The book concluded with them finally being ready to enter covenant with the Lord, and to receive Him in their midst via the tabernacle and regular, daily ritual. That tabernacle and all of its instruments were made at the end of the book, and the Lord accepted it all.
Now, in Leviticus, we will hear in greater detail all the laws and rituals of that tabernacle. We will hear all the different sacrifices to be made, and when they need to be done, and in what way. This book is therefore a narrower slice of the word of God, a sort of instruction manual for priests. We, of course, will look for the symbolism in every instruction and ritual, to see how it points to each of us in our daily lives.
In my last post I stated that the question of whether it is reasonable to abide by God’s commandments rest on three fundamental pillars. It is not the point of this study to try and prove each of these pillars, only to establish that they are the core issues that must be wrestled with when deciding whether to follow the traditional Christian principles or not. It is left to the reader to discover what answer he or she has to every point.
The first of these core pillars has to do with the reality of the Judeo-Christian God. Is there a supreme creator of the universe, one who calls Himself our Father, who seeks our eternal salvation? There are many different possible representations of who or what that God would be, whether personified or disembodied, whether dwelling in the heavens above or emerging from within the human heart, but for the purpose of this study all that matters is the question of whether a benevolent and all-powerful creator exists. This requirement is itself divided into three parts. As taught in the Judeo-Christian tradition, God must be:
Real
Good and Benevolent
All-powerful
If God were not good and benevolent, then His laws would not necessarily be for our benefit. They might not be given to us out of love, designed to bring about our greatest happiness, and so adherence to them might be counterproductive to our nature. If God is not all-powerful, then He may not be able to secure for us the promised blessings that obedience to His law is supposed to provide. We would have no assurance that following His law would give the peace, joy, serenity, and wholeness that has been foretold of. And if God is simply not real at all, then obviously both of the above failings apply.
And so, it is up to the sincere seeker of truth to determine: do you believe that God is real? Do you believe that He loves you, and only provides laws that are meant to secure your ultimate happiness? Do you believe He has the power to deliver that happiness as promised?
If the answer to any of those is “no,” do you wish it was otherwise? Is there some experience or barrier in your life that prevents you from believing in such a God? Would you be willing to live as if such a God did exist, if only to see whether He manifests Himself to you in time?
Or, if the answer to all of those is “yes,” then one knows that God’s commandments to us are motivated by love, and that they are empowered to bring us the peace and serenity we need. Following such law would be a privilege, and it would be the great desire of the true believer to find out exactly what are the details of that law. And that brings us to our second point, are the commandments taught in traditional Christianity the true law of this true God? We will discuss that matter in the next post.
There was a time when the morals of traditional Christianity were more or less in harmony with the Western world as a whole. Even those that didn’t consider themselves religious had essentially the same ethical code, with a shared understanding for what behavior was acceptable and what behavior was not. Times have changed, though, and principles that once needed no explanation are not only debated, but outright rejected by millions.
The question naturally arises: do the commandments really matter? What are the underlying principles that have to be considered when determining whether one should pursue every selfish appetite or not? Is it reasonable to think that living outside of traditional Christian ethics is evil, or is it not?
As I’ve considered these questions, I find that the answer rests on three essential premises. In order to excuse oneself in violating the commandments taught in tradition Christianity, they must overcome at least one of these three pillars upon which the Judeo-Christian commandments stand:
Is the Judeo-Christian God real?
Are the words of scripture His real commandments?
Are His real commandments essential for happiness in life?
If God isn’t real, then who cares what His pastors say? If He is real, but the words of scripture are not actually His, then why would we follow them? If He is real, and the words of scripture contain His actual commandments, but one can disobey that law without any consequences, then why not take advantage of that situation?
With the rest of this series I will explore these three points in greater detail. I will leave it to the reader to search his or her own heart, and determine whether the answer to all three points is “yes,” and if it is, whether there can remain any justifiable reason to disobey the traditional Christian moral code.
Four months ago, I concluded my verse-by-verse study of the book of Genesis. At that time, I decided I wanted to share more of my personal story and how I have found healing through the gospel of Jesus Christ. I have since related a good deal about my addictions and path to recovery, as well as the principles that helped me along the way. I also shifted into my earlier format of picking a single gospel principle and studying it from every angle.
It has been a fruitful four months, and a much-needed change of perspective, but at this point I feel ready to shift back to other forms of study. To start things off, I have had ten little thoughts and mantras that occurred to me over the course of my most recent studies, and I’d like to share them with you, one each weekday for the next two weeks. After that, I would like to go back to my verse-by-verse Bible study. I will pick up where I left off, ready to begin the book of Exodus. The first of these verse-by-verse studies I expect to post on February 20th.
I’m sure that periodically I will have a spiritual experience that I feel is worth sharing here, at which point I will certainly interrupt my verse-by-verse study to relate it. In general, though, I’m excited to get back to examining the small details tucked away in the scriptures. I hope you’ll be able to find it fruitful as well!
And then, just like that, I’m two years into writing this blog! This has certainly been a tumultuous year in the world, and it has been a dramatic year in my personal life as well. Many good things have happened for me and my family: changing jobs, moving to a new house, and getting used to having a new baby in the home, but each of these good things have also disrupted my regular routines, leaving me longing for a sense of consistency.
And during all of that disruption this spiritual study has been one of those pillars of consistency that I have come to rely on. Tethering myself to the regular practice of spiritual devotion has helped me fight the tide of distraction, to push against the temptation to give up my self-care and balance until things are more “normal.” I haven’t been perfect at maintaining my course, but I have definitely been better if I didn’t have these practices to anchor my soul.
My great hope is that the third year of this spiritual study will see me putting roots deep once more and moving from a state of survival to flourishing.
Statistics)
Throughout this year I added 275 entries to this blog, bringing my total up to 565. Those made up 18 new essays, bringing that total up to 51, and 12 monthly updates on how I am trying to make the gospel be more alive in my life. This blog has been picked up in 12 new countries during the last year, resulting in a worldwide spread of 55 countries in all.
Moving Forward)
Each of these anniversaries provides me an excellent opportunity to examine what is working well in my spiritual journey and what could be improved. I have spent some time thinking it over this last week and I have decided that it will be best for me to make a few changes to this blog.
Daily Study)
I have been researching specific topics for two years now, putting together a collection of scriptures and life lessons that convey a single, focused message. I like this style of scripture study and I will surely return to it from time-to-time. Lately, though, I have felt a need to shift from hunting out scriptures to fit into a predetermined category, and to instead let them speak for themselves. I want to take some time to just read them in their own context, allowing them to convey just the messages that they want to convey.
To that end I will discontinue the topical studies for a time and instead shift to a more sequential study. I will read through the scriptures chapter-by-chapter, verse-by-verse, making commentary on the lessons that stand out to me from them. I will not force myself to provide commentary where I have none. I expect that some passages of scripture will be very dense in the impressions that they make on me while others will be sparse. That is alright.
Now from time-to-time I would expect that a category of the gospel will weigh heavily upon me, and when that occurs I will pause my sequential study, get on my soap box, and conduct a topical study on that matter. After that it will be back to the regular, sequential study, at least until I feel the need to change my processes again.
Monthly Check-ins)
Last year I began a practice of checking my pulse spiritually and deciding where I needed to improve my daily practices. I do see great value in this self-analysis, and I do intend to continue it privately, but I will not continue to publicly post the results of those introspections.
It is not that I am opposed to sharing parts of one’s personal journey. I believe that vulnerability is an essential part of shining our light to the world. But I also believe that we typically don’t know which are the truly significant moments of our lives until after the fact, when we look back at all the events as a whole. I feel like taking time to chronicle all the little ebbs and flows of life is actually distracting me from the broader, more significant strokes of my development.
So for the time being I will limit the publicizing of my life lessons to the times that they specifically relate to the topic of my regular, daily scripture study.
Thank You)
Thank you once again for being a part of this journey. Each of us has a very personal, very individual path to walk which no one else can walk for us, but that doesn’t mean that we cannot have accompaniment along the way. You may not be able to take my steps for me, but you can be beside me as I take them.
I thank you for that accompaniment, and I hope that in some way my words convey my companionship with you on your private walk as well. God bless you.
It was one year ago today that I decided to start this blog. At the time I had already been writing a story blog for a year, but felt that it just wasn’t covering the full spectrum of all I wanted to say. I wanted a better platform to directly explore my spiritual thoughts and feelings.
Also, I wanted a way to keep myself honest with my spiritual studies. I have always reviewed the scriptures on a frequent basis, but not on a regular one. I needed something that was more systematic, a dependable daily ritual. I also wanted to try a study approach that was different from my usual “read Genesis Chapter 1, now read Genesis Chapter 2, etc.”
This blog has met all of those needs perfectly. I have been far more reliable in my studies, I have found great value in choosing a topic and following wherever it may lead, and I feel far more aware of where my spirit is healthy, and where it has need to improve.
I have called this out before, but by far the lesson that has stood out most is my need to be a doer of the word, and not a hearer only. This study has helped make me a better hearer, but in the hearing comes the pricking of the conscience to now go and do.
To be sure, I am living a more Christian life now than I was a year ago, and I attribute much of that growth to how this blog has stirred (and at times agitated!) my soul. But I also see that I can do more, and I am very excited to see how I grow this next year when I take my studies deeper.
Statistics)
Before we get to those changes, though, I’d like to reflect on the numbers that make up the previous year. I have made 290 entries for this blog, resulting in 33 essays and 1 poem. My blog has been read in 43 different countries, and I have been pleasantly surprised at the diversity in where it has been picked up. For example, there have been readers from Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. This blog’s posts have had “likes” from readers that profess all manner of different religious beliefs, even of atheism. The process of writing this blog has made me feel a powerful kinship to all others, even those with vastly different beliefs. It seems that much of the internet is focused on sowing discord, but this blog has opened me up to the realization that there are still streams of unity out there.
Moving Forward)
I am very grateful for all that this blog has provided to me, but particularly for the two lessons I have just detailed: that I need to act on the religious principles I study, and that I need to form bonds with all other sincere seekers of truth. I will be taking actions to try and incorporate those lessons into my blog moving forward. In the first place, at the start of each month I am going to share which way my heart is pushing me to live my discipleship more. I will lay out my commitments for how I will answer my conscience, and then give an account for how things progressed with my next entry one month later. In the second place, I am going to extend an invitation to all of my readers. I would like you to let me support or help you in any way that I can. In order for this request to not be lost in a wall of text, I will extend this offer in detail through its own post, which I will also publish tomorrow.
Thank You)
I find it very surreal that I live in a world where I can explore my own spirituality, and people all around the globe can participate in the journey. To be honest, my motivations in writing this blog have been largely self-centered. I wanted to understand the scriptures better for my own betterment, I want to answer the questions of my soul, I want to uncover what messages God was saying to me. But intermingled with those intentions has been the hope that others might derive some benefit from being a witness to my journey. If any of these posts have meant anything to you, thank you.
Spiritual Wanderings 