A Norvell Note: This Message Has No Content

This Message Has No Content

I received a strange email on my iPhone. There was no name. There was no subject. There was a date and a time. But there was no message. In fact, the mail system on my phone informed me, "This message has no content." A bit puzzled I went to my computer to see if perhaps the message was too long to show up on my phone. Again: "This message has no content." Then, I wondered, "Is there a message in this message that has no content?"

I thought about all the messages I send in a single day, a week, a month, in a year. Of all those messages how many of them could have, or should carried a label: "This message has no content." I send dozens of emails every day, numerous text messages, and who knows how many verbal conversations. Are there people on the receiving end of these messages saying, "I have a message from Tom, but there is no content?"

At the conclusion of this article when I click the "send" button on my computer I will have sent 575 "A Norvell Notes." I wonder how many of those could have carried the same title as today: "This message has no content." (If you have been keeping count you don't have to tell me. I really don't want to know.)

I have taught hundreds of Bible classes, preached hundreds of sermons, and delivered of messages to thousands of people on a variety of Bible-related topics. I shutter to think how many people left those gatherings thinking "The message had no content." (Again, no response
is needed.)

Some are possibly on the verge of asking, "Tom, is this one of those messages that has no content?" Hang on. I'm not finished.

On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., spoke these words in Washington D. C., "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." Now there was a message that had content.

When the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, spoke of the coming Messiah with these words he delivered a message with content:

"For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor,

Mighty God,

Everlasting Father,

Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end.

He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.

The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this." (Isaiah 9:6-7)

When Jesus stood in synagogue and spoke these words He delivered a message with content:

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, ?

because he has anointed me ?

to preach good news to the poor. ?

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners ?

and recovery of sight for the blind, ?

to release the oppressed, ?

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Luke 4:18-19)

When Peter stood before the people on the Day of Penetcost and uttered these words he delivered a message with content: "Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ." (Acts 2:36)

When Paul stood before the people in Athens and proclaimed is faith in the only true God, he delivered a message with content:

"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'" (Acts 17:24-28)

In another place Paul said, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." (Ephesians 4:29) Paul is reminding us that the messages we deliver should be messages that have content.

If we share words of life, if we speak words of hope, if we speak words that build up, if we speak words that express our love, if we speak words that enlighten and encourage, we will share a message that has content.

"We can!"

Mercy me- I can only imagine

Shout to the Lord

The B-I-B-L-E #4 - Mike Cope

A fourth shocking discovery was this: the Bible didn’t come rolling off the presses as a single volume.

When we walk into Barnes and Noble, there are scores of Bibles. You just have to figure out which one to buy. It’s easy to assume that it’s always been that way.

So it’s a bit of a jolt when you first realize the obvious: that the Bible is a collection of “books,” and someone had to organize that collection. When you begin digging, you realize that there isn’t a formal recognition of the 27 books of the NT (these 27 and no others) until the fourth century. It was the church that was deciding which gospels and letters should be included in the canon and which ones shouldn’t.

Some of the books we cherish — Hebrews, James, 2 Peter, Revelation, for instance — had a hard time finding their place. As an example of why this happened, the early church struggled with not knowing who even wrote Hebrews. Also, a few other books were accepted by some but rejected by others and did not finally make it into the Christian canon.

(For an account of the forming of our biblical canon, you can begin at Wikipedia. To go indepth, a book like Bruce Metzger’s The Canon of the New Testament. I’d also recommend that you get ahold of the wonderful book God’s Holy Fire, written by Ken Cukrowski, Mark Hamilton, and James Thompson, all biblical scholars teaching at ACU.)

For many years, the gospel message was passed on orally. People told the story of Jesus and of the early church as they had witnessed it or as they had heard it from witnesses. There were likely three decades between the death/resurrection of Jesus and the appearance of the first gospel.

As the gospels and letters were written, they were eventually shared between churches. (Keep in mind there were no printing presses, and you couldn’t just cut, paste, and forward!)

Then, our brothers and sisters had to decide which gospels and letters had the ring of authority about them. Which actually came from the apostles? Which ones had spoken with an authoritative voice?

Some people would prefer not to think about this. It’s so much easier to just imagine that all 39 books of the OT came together, followed centuries later by the 27 books of the NT. Then you’d feel more justified with all of the cross-referencing and proof-texting.

So what do we do with this?

Here’s, again, where my statement of faith comes. I obviously can’t force anyone to believe this. But I have trust in the working of the Spirit of God through the people of God. I have confidence that God was working among the churches as they debated, prayed, and sought to discern which gospels/letters were “in” and which were “out.”

To build on that, I like these words from N. T. Wright (in the brilliant new book The Last Word: Beyond the Bible Wars to a New Understanding of the Authority of Scripture): “But canonization was never simply a matter of a choice of particular books on a ‘who’s in, who’s out’ basis. It was a matter of setting out the larger story, the narrative framework, which makes sense of and brings order to God’s world and God’s people. . . . It was the canonical scriptures that sustained the early church in its energetic mission and its commitment, startling to the watching pagan world, to a radical holiness.”

More in this little series later, but I want to end today with this prayer that Wright says has been prayed in his church for centuries:

Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning, grant that we may in such wise hear them, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of thy holy Word we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life which thou hast given us in thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Here I am to Worship

Lakewood Church - Cover The Earth

The B-I-B-L-E #3 - Mike Cope

A third shocking discovery of my early life was this: the Bible wasn’t written to me.

It did not come as an 1141-page book (if you have the right copy) addressed to me.

It was written, instead, to the Israelites, to the Corinthians, to the Christians in Matthew’s community, to Titus, to Timothy, to Christ-followers in the seven churches of Asia Minor. And those “books” or “letters” were later handed on to others who handed them on to others and so forth. And eventually they were handed on to me.

So in one sense, I’m reading someone else’s mail.

In the first piece in this series, I wrote about the shock of learning that the Bible has to be interpreted. I was focusing on what the Bible meant. But today I’m talking about what the Bible means.

To me, even more disconcerting than learning that the Bible requires translation and interpretation to try to figure out what it meant was the discovery that once you do that you have to attempt to figure out how it still speaks today.

For example . . .

Here are a few passages from Paul’s first letter to Timothy. Tell me which of these only applied to Timothy and his church and which ones also apply to us.

Stay in Ephesus.

I urge you . . . that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone–for kings and all those in authority . . . .”

I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands . . . .”

I want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elagorate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds . . . .”

I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be quiet.

An overseer is to be . . . apt to teach . . . .”

Women who are deacons are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.

Devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.

Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you.

No widow may be put on the list of widows unless she is over sixty . . . .

Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses.

Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.

Isn’t it obvious that women should not take any leadership roles in an assembly? Well, isn’t it also obvious that they shouldn’t wear clothes from Neiman Marcus (or Dillards . . . or K-Mart — depending on what your personal definition of “expensive clothes” is)? And isn’t it quite clear that we should never give financial assistance to a widow who’s only 59?

The church not only has to seek–in community through the leading of the Spirit–to discern what the text MEANT; it also has to try to figure out what it MEANS today. Why don’t we wash feet? Why don’t we greet one another with a holy kiss? Why do we think it’s all right to help a widow in need, even if she’s just 35?

Because we have struggled to discern what in scripture was “cultural” (in the sense that it applied only to that situation — because in another sense it’s all cultural) and what was intended as permanent.

Scripture wasn’t written for me.

And yet . . . in another sense, it IS written for me. It speaks afresh.

In one of his brief homilies based on OT texts, the writer of Hebrews begins by quoting Psalm 95 (Hebrews 3:7-11). It’s an old hymn of Israel that speaks about something that had happened hundreds of years before–the testing at Meribah and Massah in the desert. When the psalmist referred to those old events recorded in the history of Israel, he thought they spoke a new word to his people: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as YOU did in the rebellion.”

To be technical, THEY hadn’t rebelled. Their ancestors had. But he was thinking of the people as a community that cuts across the decades.

When the writer of Hebrews quotes it, he thinks it’s as current as the morning news. “See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘today.’”

The actual event happened about 1300 years before Christ (give or take, depending on how you date the exodus). Psalm 95 was written hundreds of years later. The Hebrews writer applied the word in the first century. And his words and the words he quoted are still relevant and insightful in 2006.

No wonder he ended this homily by reflecting on scripture: “The word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the toughts and attitudes of the heart.”

So is the Bible written for me?

No. It came initially to others in real live situations. So anything I apply must come by application as discerned by the community of faith.

But yes. It comes as a guiding document for the church, seeking to lead me to Jesus.

Scripture is old/new, ancient/current, used/fresh.

Kirk Franklin - Imagine Me

The B-I-B-L-E #2 - Mike Cope

Another shocking discovery of my early life was this: people wrote the Bible.

Real, live people. People who did not have perfect lives or perfect insight into the mind of God. People who wrote in their language, using their own vocabulary and style. Luke’s writing is polished; John’s is more like someone who was trying to connect with the middle schoolers (simpler syntax and vocab).

Now, again, doesn’t this fall into the category of no-brainer? In one sense, yes.

But somehow I’d always thought (based on a misinterpretation of a couple passages and perhaps also on my wild imagination) that the Bible was dropped from heaven. Maybe delivered by the Holy Spirit dressed like a dove.

Several OT writers quoted bits of information they had looked up. Luke said he did his homework before sitting down at the computer. And, almost certainly, Matthew and Luke peeked at Mark’s gospel while writing their own. Jude peeked at 2 Peter. Or vice versa. Or maybe they shared a common source.

Paul wrote to the Corinthians that he had baptized only Crispus and Gaius. Then he remembered that he’d also baptized the household of Stephanas, so he added that as kind of a footnote. He also told them that on one matter he had no instruction from the Lord, but he gave his own judgment (7:25).

Frankly, not everything in the Bible is quite as smooth as I used to imagine. There are jars and clashes. Was Jesus’ Nazareth sermon early in his ministry (Luke) or much later (Matthew, Mark)? Was Jairus’s daughter dead (Matthew) or nearly dead (Mark — maybe this falls into the Princess Bride’s category of “mostly dead”) when Jairus found Jesus? Did the cursing of the fig tree happen before (Mark) or after (Matthew) Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem? Was it one demon-possessed man (Mark, Luke) or two (Matthew)? And was it at Gerasenes, Gergesenes, or Gadarenes — or are those the same place? For a while I tried forcing explanations so that there were no problems, but I eventually had to admit (with some encouragement from my professors) that this was disingenuous.

And this is just the beginning. Clashes and jars. When we labor under our Western assumptions of HOW THE BIBLE OUGHT TO BE, that’s extremely problematic.

But what if scripture isn’t bound by our assumptions of what it ought to be?

So, were the writers of the Bible guided by God? That’s what I believe by faith. Instructed in some sense by the Holy Spirit? That’s my conviction. Producing authoritative documents that are able to guide the church in teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16)? Yup.

Do I still have confidence in scripture? I’ll let my years of preaching, teaching, and writing stand as an answer to that question. I have more appreciation for scripture than I used to. More desire to live under its guidance rather than to attempt to conquer it with perfect comprehension. More eagerness to catch what it intends to do: point us to Jesus.

The ultimate goal isn’t to defend the Bible, memorize the Bible, or understand the Bible. The goal is to let scripture point us to Jesus, committing ourselves to him and jumping into the journey of discipleship.

Acappella - Lift Every Voice

The B-I-B-L-E #1- By Mike Cope

Here is one of the most shocking discoveries of my early life: the Bible has to be interpreted.

I know that’s a no-brainer. But I grew up thinking that what set us apart from all other religious groups is that we just believed the Bible. God said it. We believed it. That settled it.

Other people had creeds. Others twisted it because they liked musical instruments or didn’t like baptism. They put their trust in commentaries–the words of mere humans. But we just read the Bible.

It helps to live an insular life if you want to hold onto that belief. Because when you begin engaging Christ-followers from other groups, you quickly realize that many of them think about the same thing.

But the Bible has to be interpreted. In a sense, that happens even in the earliest stages of translation. Those translating the Bible from Hebrew (and a bit of Aramaic) in the OT and Greek in the NT have to make choices. How do they translate a passage when it’s ambiguous? How do they express in English a word that seems to have a wide range of meanings?

Several times I’ve heard people jealous because I can read the Greek New Testament. Hey, seven years of Greek and you’d be there, too! They wish they could just read what the text says.

Guess what? It’s a blessing to be able to do that and it’s helpful to know what the original text said (as best we could piece it together from manuscripts–since we don’t have any original copies of the NT books), BUT . . . you still have to interpret. Reading Greek rarely makes things more obvious. Otherwise, all the Greek-readers would be unified.

We are not unique because be follow the Bible. Or because we’re nervous of creeds. Or because we like the “plain meaning of the text.”

As I’ve led discussions about the ministry of women, I’ve often heard people say, “We shouldn’t make the Bible say what we want it to say.” I agree. Absolutely. But let’s also be honest about this: none of us comes to scripture completely objective and unbiased. All of us are having to use tools of interpretation.

I don’t want to twist scripture. I want to live under its authority. But I also have to humbly admit that this is harder than I might have imagined.

This recognition demands two things from us:

First, it demands community. We need to read scripture together–with other Christians we know and with believers from other times, places, and denominations. As people seeking to follow Jesus, we need to rely on the insights of the larger community of faith.

Second, it demands humility. Before I write off other people who disagree with me, I’d better realize how very challenging this whole task of biblical interpretation has been. And it wouldn’t hurt me to remember that so many wars in the world have come because everyone has their own holy book that they believe they have the inside track on how to interpret.

A Life Given

1 Corinthians 1:26-29
26Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised thingsand the things that are notto nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast before him.

I want each of us to spend a few moments in personal reflection. Think of where you were before you were called to Christ, by that I mean where were you mentally, in the natural vs. the spiritual.
How are you now? Are you where you want to be? Are you growing in your spiritual journey?
How did you previously deal with persistent sins...the daily sins, the every day sin... anger, negativity, desire, deceit?
How are you dealing with persistent or daily sins now?

Today, I want to challenge you to take up your calling.
Today, I want to challenge you to step out and make a difference to those who are lost. I want you to go out and make a difference that others may see He is the way, He is the way to our peace, and He is the way to our happiness.
With some practice, we can make a difference. We can make a difference with just a smile.
We can make a difference with a word of encouragement.
We can make a difference with prayer.

Today, I challenge you to accept this cost of Christ, Give of yourself, that others may see Him in you.
Give of yourself that you may see Him in you
Do something extra at home or work, before your asked.
Try to give a little bit more than you expect to receive.
Do something for an elderly neighbor.
Give of yourself, that others may see Him in you.
Today, I challenge you to find the value of Christ.
Give of yourself that you may see the value of following Christ.

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect ... -- 1 Peter 3:15

My prayer today is that you take another step closer to God.
My prayer today is that you take another moment in your day to Glorify God, to worship our gracious Lord.
My prayer today is that you spend another moment in prayer, giving thanks to your Heavenly Father for all that you have.

Where are you at in your spiritual growth? Do we realize the blessings that we have?
That you woke up... how many thousands of people did not?
That you have a roof over your head... as opposed to how many millions that do not?
That you will eat today... when millions will not.
That you have a place to worship God... when millions do not.
That is what we are talking about today, accepting this cost of Christ, give of yourself...then find and understand the value of Christ. You, yes you, can make a difference in the lives of those around you. Make yourself a blessing to others, and thus grow spiritually.

Where are you at in your spiritual growth? Do you think an hour or two of church a week, with little else attention paid to God is going to get it? I am here to tell you the more time you spend with God, the more time he spends with you. The more you serve, or help others, the closer you become to God. The more you give of yourself, the more you will grow spiritually.

If you truly want inner peace, inner strength, true joy, you have to work for it. It is just like anything else, musicianship does not just happen, athleticism does not just happen, good grades, or promotions at work do not just happen; you have to work for them. The same goes for your relationship with Christ. Will you be sinless? Of course not. Will you be perfect? Of course not. Nevertheless, are you working towards that end? Are you in fact striving to sin less, to pray more, to devout yourself more, to serve more, to help more? Are you trying to move closer to God? Come on now, can I get an Amen?

It is not about a life without any problems, it is not about a life without challenges. It is about humbling yourself before our God. It is about a life of giving, it is about a life of service, it is about a life of humility; it is about a life given for a life received. It is about this old life given for a new life received in Christ.

Do we realize what it means to be on this mission? That this mission, our mission, is important to God. We are a part of His plan. We are important to God, because He uses us to reach others. Grinding out what was a tough day for you, may have been great encouragement to someone else to keep on keeping on.
In fact, if we are having problems and struggles right now, that means we are needed even more. Because how we handle those problems and struggles gives hope to others. How we persevere, how we overcome shows others they too can make it.
Our perseverance will give others hope.

Somewhere along the way we have gotten the wrong idea that the best, most powerful Christians are the ones who seemingly have no problems. But in reality, everybody has problems...all the problems they can handle. I have problems, and you have problems. I don't want yours and you darn sure don't want mine. So those people with their seemingly "perfect" lives only perpetuate a myth that, in the long run, isn't as helpful as the "survivor," the folks who just won't quit no matter what happens to them.

You see we are all on this mission, His mission and everybody gets to play. Deeper struggle makes deeper reward. Deeper struggle only makes surviving that much more crucial and rewarding. This is not about you, it's about His mission. We are not only talking about you making it. We are talking about the mission that you will have, making that journey, showing others the path. Showing others the pathway to peace goes through the valley of struggle.

Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort others. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. (2 Corinthians 1:6)

Do you remember where you were at when you were called? Where are you right now? Jesus Christ is the rock, He is the foundation from which to take your stand, He is the base from which you fight and overcome your struggles. Others see you fighting the good fight, and your perseverance blesses them, as it blesses you. Hang in there, don't quit, with Jesus Christ as our Savior, we have already won the war, and the reward for following Christ is the reward, and it just doesn't get any better than that. Where are you at in your spiritual growth? My prayer is that on your spiritual journey you are growing everyday!

irvine