A Pursuit Of Truth

Test

Keith — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 17:54:02 +0000

Test

Saturday Night

Keith — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 05:15:26 +0000

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It’s late on Saturday night so this will be brief. I am going to make myself start writing just fort the exercise because I keep putting this off. We went to Revolution tonight (a church we sometimes go to on Saturday night) and the message was on the Kingdom of God. What an awesome topic. I am just exploring this but I am excited by the thought that our bible is about more than just a contract with God to get into heaven. This bible we read is a story about God bringing his Kingdom to this world!

Well I must go but this is my start to blogging on a much more regular basis.

Questions

Keith — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 23:47:26 +0000

Welcome, I embark on this journey with friends and family and I am unsure where I will end up, or if I even want to go there, but I feel this journey can‘t be avoided.

I start with the story of my life, not all of it, but I begin with a time a few years ago when I was handed small white book.

I was handed this book by my good friend Mike. It was Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith, by Rob Bell. I, like many others, was burnt out on the “faith.” Tired of tradition with no heart, tired of people not reaching out or not willing to touch the world around them. Burnt by the people who act like their lives are all together and was struggling to fix myself. It was in this dreary state of mind that I read Velvet Elvis the first time. Refreshing I thought was this man’s view of following Jesus (if you haven’t read it you should). Even though I found it interesting I was struggling with my own demons and with a powerful addiction that almost destroyed everything I hold dear and so the book had no lasting impact on me. The next few years of my story were of pain and struggle but I was brought to a place of desperation, the lowest place in my life I have ever been. I longed for change, I longed for the love of a creator that I was sure I wasn’t interested in me. Out of my longing I picked up 2 books that changed my life forever, True Faced (probably number 1 or 2 on my favorite book list) and Velvet Elvis.

Rob Bell’s book (Velvet Elvis) was so incredibly encouraging to me that I found him on-line and started to listen to him (I had seen his church’s website before but not paid much attention). Amazing; probably the only word I would use to describe it. He was funny, a great story teller, in touch with modern America, and had a talented way of looking at our Bible from the eyes of the ancient Jewish culture Jesus lived in. I had never heard anything like this before and I grew up in the church! I started to have this conversation with friends and I realized something: I realized change is in the air! There seems to be a major shift happening, at least in America’s youth, and this shift is all over the map. To some it’s a search for “your own truth.” To others it’s a desire to shake off religion and remember what it’s like to passionately serve God. I am here now at this shift and I get excited. I wonder, “what will happen? Do I actually get to be a part of a new movement? What kind of church am I preparing for my son?” I honestly find myself so enthralled about the possibility of being part of something new. Not just change for changes sake, but a part of the church that the Spirit of our living God is using to reach the world! I wonder, “what new is going to happen?” I hear murmurs of the ancient spiritual disciplines re-appearing. How awesome would it be to be a part of a church that acknowledges and respects God in such a deep way!

This story of my life, of seeking in my desperation, is the one I am using to start the question I am writing about today. I am ready to be a part of a movement but I must hold on to truth. Is truth relative?

So here are the questions I am going to pose.

Is the Bible literally, historically true? Is the Chicago statement on biblical inerrancy true?

This question, I think, is at the core of some of the changes going on in the circles I am hearing. I find much positive in the church as it is changing, but I will stand and say it must be based on a truth that we must subject ourselves to.

I am no theologian and any discussion here is of a lay person but I pray it is deep and I look forward to how it will challenge me.

Keith K

Where I Start

Keith — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 23:44:29 +0000

I am faced with questions that make my mind hurt and cause my head to spin. Right now I feel as if everything I value is being attacked: Evangelical Christianity, my great nation, conservatism, morals, truth and more. So I, in a desperate desire to understand the critique of my values, am analyzing my beliefs. Am I wrong to believe the Bible is inerrant truth? Should I let go of my “old school” conservative views? The Post Modern thinkers would say I should give up my “excessive confidence” because, these thinkers claim, it has been a key problem in recent history. They also claim that many issues, from wars to poverty, can be blamed on it. I am told I should give this up for an understanding – that I could never really know the truth and this humbleness should bring me to a place of understanding or what some might call relativity.

This tension in the world right now has brought me to a challenging place. A place where I am looking back at history and wondering, “why are we just getting it now?”

As I am challenged I walk down this road of questions humbly because I want to know and understand the premise of my thoughts and beliefs. I wonder, where is God leading the church, me, and the world (understanding that God might not be the one leading the world)?

I am wrestling with God over where I should hold my ground. At what point should I take a stand? I am inspired to join this conversation and I am excited to understand it. I am also excited to take a stand, ever so humbly, because I must stand up and voice what I believe. I feel as if I am in the map room before a great voyage or at a king’s table before a war. If I am going to stake my whole life over something then I must explore every inch, chew up every thought. I realize that I will not conquer and understand everything, and that there is a great mystery to the faith, but I want to find and be able to explain the truth that I am living for. I think for this exploration to be as deep as possible I must be willing to let go — let go of everything and trust that God will keep me on his foundation in my heart.

I am off! This is me letting go. This is me looking for an answer to every question, not knowing where I will end up but trusting God will take me there. I will begin to ask questions and hopefully spark a conversation about everything down to the foundation of my beliefs. I start with the Bible. Is it true? Are these beautiful stories historically true? Or just spiritually?

This is the start of another part of life’s journey. I hope you will take part of the conversation, the questions.

Keith K