The Blah-se Bible?
Apr 24th, 2006 by admin
I know biblical literacy is at an all-time low, but maybe it is at an all-time low in the pulpit as well. Toward a Godward Passion blog recounts this story:
The pastor of a church we once visited on vacation was reading a portion of Scripture during his message. (That’s good.) He got to one of “the good parts” of the passage, which he read with great enthusiasm. He then began to read the following verses that were apparently not as good, for he read a few words from one verse and then said, “and blah, blah, blah” and then hurried on to another good verse further down in the passage. Blah, blah, blah? Yep, that’s what he said. My family looked at me to see my response. I hung my head, embarrassed to have put my family into such a situation. I was saddened that a pastor who no doubt claims to believe in inspiration and inerrancy would treat God’s Word with such disrespect. Blah, blah, blah?
A sad commentary, really…To read more on this, click here.
- Matthew Henry’s Commentary
- The Preacher or the Plaigerer?
- Recommended Commentaries
- D’Oh! I Need Some Theology
- Have You Read All of These Books?
I think I would walk out. That is a situation where there is no reverence for Scripture and no fear of God (re: your post last week on Psalm 31).
Actually Sam, thankfully I can’t imagine that! Your evident love for God’s Word and your fervent exhortations to the body to take it in preclude such a fiction!
hey sam…i love your blogsite!!! why didn’t i find this sooner? you are so right that a love for the Word is a crucial, often taken-for-granted, value for pastors and laity alike. sorry i will have to spank u this week in FBB…i am thinking of taking a cali trip at the beginning of october this year so stick around pleez!!!
Hey Sam, my pastor mentioned this in his sermon yesterday … heh heh
Yes, it made sense. An additional part of the problem is the cheapening or lessening of meaning. We have discussed this elsewhere in relation to the loss of effect of words like “Christian” or “evangelical”. Another word that has been degraded is the word “awesome” (on Sunday you said “awe”). Look up how awesome is used in the Psalms … and then hear how it is used in daily life. Everything is awesome: a cup of Starbucks, the NFL draft, a day without rain, an easy commute, etc etc. When “awesome” is applied so easily to the mundane and trivial, it loses it’s oomph when applied to the majestic and holy.