Stan Grenz tells the story of Charlie Brown sitting comfortably in his easy chair when he hears a noise in the kitchen. Checking it out, he catches Snoopy raiding the refrigerator. “Hey, what are you doing?” he asks. Then he pulled out his Bible and read aloud from Exodus, “Thou shall not steal!”
Snoopy, being knowledgeable in the scriptures replied, “Deuteronomy says thou shall not muzzle the ox while he treads out the grain.” He then slipped away with an arm load of food and resumed a comfortable position on his doghouse. Charlie Brown opened his Bible and reread the verse Snoopy quoted. Realizing what happened he hollered, “You are not trampling out the grain!” Snoopy replied with a mouth full of food, “I know but it got me out the back door!” (The Moral Quest, page 95)
Like Snoopy many have used (misused) the Bible to justify their action. Most of us would agree that Christian ethics rests upon the traditions of the Bible and yet how do we keep from using it to “let ourselves out the back door” ethically/morally? I propose we focus on the life and teachings of Jesus. I believe that one way we can shut the back door to the ethical misuse of scripture is to allow the words in red to “upstage” other passages.
What say you? Do you think this would suffice in leveling the ethical playing field among Christians? Could the behavior and words of Jesus serve as the sole ethical articles for church leaders to follow? I would like to hear your thoughts…
Thanks for stopping by!
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Adrian
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I have spent some time cinsidering how the writtings of Paul in particular are sited as inflamitory, devisive, and irrelevant. Where as I have had quite a few monents of Godly relation in reading his letters, and anticipate that the Lord will continue to use his works to reveal Himself to me (in His time and at His decretion), I have found that the words of Jesus is where I find the greatest passion within me. The words of Jesus seem much less 'culturally sensitive' and much more 'universal' in nature. I agree that the 'red words' are the best basis for Love.
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