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For those of us who have heard and read the Bible ever since we can remember, it can be hard for us to identify with people who have not had this experience.

So, I have an exercise for anyone who is up to it... I'm calling it…
Learning to Read the Bible as a Seeker

Over the next 8 days I will be writing a series of posts with the goal of helping us understand what it must be like to be a seeker who is reading and studying the scriptures for the first time.

Please do not post anything on this thread until after Christmas. Then you can discuss to your heart's content!

Have you ever been reading along in scripture and wondered, "I wonder why I never saw that before?" or "I wonder why I never heard a sermon on this?" or “I wonder why we don’t practice this?” I have. Sometimes I notice something on my own. At other times, it is someone else who points the verse out to me. Sometimes such revelations have very little practical implication. Other times there are huge implications.

Here is a verse that we often read with unchurched folks who attend our Bible studies.

Mark 16:16 – “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”

Can you imagine growing up in a non-Christian home and reading this verse?

Can you imagine living in a country where being baptized will mean persecution for the rest of your life?

We often study the Bible with people like this who come to State College, PA to study or work. When these seekers get to a verse like the one in Mark, it has huge implications for their life! Being baptized means their family will reject them. They may lose their job. Following Jesus will completely turn their social world upside down. They may not be able to return to their home country or they may be murdered. In other countries, they may never be permitted to leave their country the rest of their life. In some countries, the government may pressure their relatives to get the Christian to recant. The government may pressure their employer to fire them unless they give up their faith. The government may pressure their landlord to evict them if they will not give up their beliefs. Whenever they leave home in their country, they will always need to be glancing around to see if anyone is following them. They will need to avoid any areas where someone might try to harass them or arrest them. Our family visited a limited access Asian country a number of years ago and we stayed with some Christian workers for a few days. We got to experience this level of suspense while living with them. Imagine living with this kind of suspense for the rest of your life!

For those of us who grew up in Christian homes here in America, it is typically easier to get baptized than to not get baptized (at least beyond a certain age.) If a young person does not get baptized, they may face considerable social pressure from relatives, friends, and others in the church to get baptized.

But this verse has HUGE implications for the person from many places in Asia or the Mid-east, or even here in North America, who will experience rejection and maybe even severe persecution for choosing to follow Jesus.

Do not Divorce and Remarry? Really?

A few years ago, we were reading through the book of Matthew with a man who had very little Scriptural understanding and we got to this verse….
“Furthermore, it has been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except for the cause of fornication, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery”. – Matthew 5:31-32
The man who was reading finished the paragraph and said, “I don’t think I agree with this. This was for people 2000 years ago, correct?” I assured him that, no, we believe the New Testament is applicable in all eras and in all parts of the world. In the course of conversation, he told me about his unscriptural marriage situation. If he took this verse seriously at face value, it would have HUGE implications. It would turn his social world upside down.

Love Your Enemies? Really?

Sometimes people who have been devout believers all their life and read the Bible every day, will read a verse for the 20th or the 50th time and can’t believe they read this verse so many times without ever thinking about its fuller implications.

Consider this verse… “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” – Matthew 5:44

This verse can be mind-blowing to a person who did not grow up in a Christian home. “What sort of philosophy is this?”

Interestingly, I find that when I explain Jesus’s philosophy about non-resistance and returning good for evil to unbelievers, and after I picture what this actually looks like in real life, they find the concept quite attractive. But still, the idea of not resorting to self-defense on a personal or national level is almost unfathomable.

Many Christians have read this verse from Matthew 5 quite often, but never thought about it applying to war or self-defense until suddenly one day the truth of these verses really jumps out at them. They can’t believe that they never saw it before. For some, this teaching has HUGE implications. Those with “God and Country” beliefs or nationalistic fervor need to completely tear down their old belief system and rebuild on the teachings and example of Christ. Some need to find new jobs. Some may need to face time in prison. Family members who are patriotic may disown them or shun them.

For those of us who grew up being taught the truths of these verses, the pressure on us is to obey and follow Jesus. It can be hard for us to identify with someone who is really struggling to embrace the truth of a verse like this one in Matthew.

Cover My Head? Really?
For several years we studied the Bible regularly with a young American lady who grew up in a nominal Christian home. She soaked up everything she read, and she was aligning her thinking and her actions with the truth of God’s Word. She was looking forward to being baptized. But then one evening we read the verses about women keeping silent in the churches, and we also read from the following passage...

“Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the teachings of the past as I delivered them to you. But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, but every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaved. If a woman will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a woman to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head. For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man.” – I Corinthians 11:2-7

We said nothing other than read the scriptures together, but it wasn’t long until she was in tears. These scriptures triggered something negative in her. This young lady had been the recipient of racism at school and male chauvinism in the work place, and to her, this teaching felt WRONG! She believed strongly in “equality” and these verses seemed to be saying the opposite. To embrace the teaching of these verses would have HUGE implications for her life decisions!

Up until the last couple centuries, most Christians who read this scriptural passage would have understood immediately what was being taught, since most Christian women practiced head-covering. As recently as 150 years ago, the majority of Christian women covered their heads in deference to this scriptural teaching. But then theologians and pastors began teaching that this practice was no longer necessary today, and so now those who practice head-covering are in the minority.

Most churches in the West teach that head-covering for women is no longer necessary, and many are even fine with men leading public prayer with their heads covered. So, imagine you are a woman who is seeking the will of God for your life, and you attend one of the afore-mentioned churches and one day you read I Corinthians 11, and you think, Wait a minute. How come I never saw this before? I’ve read this many times but this is the first time it jumped out at me. Why aren’t the women in our church covering their heads. I always knew there was a principle involved, but what if God wants me to take this very literally? I could never do this. Everybody would laugh at me. I would look silly. People would tell me that I am being legalistic. There is no way I could do this!

Recently I was at a seekers’ gathering, and I asked for a raise of hands to see how many of them had an experience similar to what I just described. Many raised their hands. And there are many more thousands of Christians across the globe who have had a very similar experience when they read this passage in the Bible. For many years, my wife and I have benefitted from and participated in a support group for thousands of such ladies who are often the only one in their church practicing head-covering.
For you ladies who grew up in churches that have continued this ancient scriptural practice, starting to cover your head as a young girl or lady might have been a bit strange or unusual, but in many ways, it was the easy thing to do. Everyone expected you to follow God in this way once you reached a certain age.
But for most seekers and unchurched women, this is a big deal. It has HUGE social implications. All their friends and relatives will to look at them strangely. Some are going to try to talk them out of it or ask them not to bring disgrace on the family. Some are going to be mocked and scorned for it. Often times, the worst rejection and persecution from this issue does not come from non-believers but from professing Christian relatives and friends. Following Jesus in this way is a HUGE step for such seekers and it completely turns their social world upside down.

Do not invite Relatives and Rich Neighbors? Really?

“Jesus said also to the man who had invited him, ‘When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.’” (Luke 14:12-14)

Really? Did Jesus actually expect this man never to invite his family, his relatives, and his rich neighbors to his house for a meal again? Maybe this is a poor translation. Let’s read a different one…

“Jesus also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, ‘When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or wealthy neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment. But when you give a banquet or a reception, invite the poor, the disabled, the lame, and the blind, and you will be blessed because they cannot repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.’” (Luke 14:12-14, AMP)

That didn’t help much to use a different translation. This translation even includes luncheons and receptions. This is a really hard saying!

Chances are that many of you have read across these verses and assumed that Jesus certainly didn’t mean that we shouldn’t invite relatives and friends to our house for a meal, did He? Or that we should be inviting those who can’t repay us instead? That was me also for many years…

Perhaps you have read these verses and subconsciously thought, Well, that certainly doesn’t apply to me. Jesus was talking to a certain Pharisee.

Or maybe you thought that Jesus is just teaching a principle. Well, yes, there is definitely a principle to follow. But is there more than a principle included here? Is there a direct application that Jesus wants us to follow?

I have concluded that there is more than a principle. It is easy for us to “principle away a teaching” if we don’t like the direct application; whether that be baptism, loving one’s enemies, covering one’s head, or changing who we invite to meals.

The Hard Sayings of Jesus…

Did you know that it is hard to be a serious Christian in the twenty-first century? Did you know that it is hard for all Christians, including Anabaptists, to practice “the all things of the Bible”?

Some of us like to think of ourselves as teaching “the all things of the Bible” but did you ever hear a sermon on Luke 14:12-14? I did, when I was about thirty years old. If it was not for that sermon, I maybe wouldn’t even care about this topic.

Did you ever see a motto in an Anabaptist home based on these verses? If not, why not? What makes us choose the mottoes that we select?
What thoughts or reasonings might be coming to your mind right now?

Have you been having any thoughts like this?
• Certainly Jesus doesn’t mind if we invite relatives, well-to-do people, and people who can invite us to their house for dinner.
• Jesus certainly doesn’t expect us to take these verses at face value.
• Maybe this was just for that time period or for that Pharisee.
• Maybe this applies to feasts and not ordinary meals.
• There is no way this is to be taken literally.
• If I took this literally, we couldn’t have our normal Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
• Didn’t Jesus eat with his friends?
• I don't enjoy cooking for strangers.
• I actually don't enjoy cooking, period.
• My house isn’t big enough to host dinners or feasts so this probably doesn’t apply to me.
• I'm a man and I don't cook.

If you had any thoughts similar to this, welcome to the crowd.

And… you’ve just experienced what “seekers” experience when they study the New Testament and seek to obey its teachings. These are the kinds of thoughts that go through their mind when they read a “hard saying” of Jesus.

When an unchurched person or a nominal Christian reads something about forsaking the world and getting baptized it has HUGE implications for their life.

When a “God and Country” Christian realizes that Jesus is calling His followers to put away their swords and refrain from self-defense, and return good for evil to all people, they are faced with a complete reorientation of their life and values.

There are HUGE social changes for those Christians who, after being told that literal obedience to the teaching in I Corinthians 11:2-16 was only for the first century, begin questioning whether there is more than a principle behind this and conclude that there is a literal application for Christians today.
There are men who would have liked to join a more scriptural church, but their wives declared they would not be caught dead covering their heads. The social implications are just too great. And they are probably correct… It is likely that their “Christian” friends and relatives will make snide or disparaging comments if they ever take up this practice.

And when Anabaptists or other Christians decide to begin inviting people outside of their close-knit social circle to their homes for meals, there will be HUGE social implications.

I shared this exercise as part of a message at a large Mennonite church several years ago. After church one brother greeted another brother and asked him what his plans were for the afternoon. The second brother replied, “Well... we were invited away for lunch at a church family's home, but after that message, I'm not sure whether we are still invited there or not.”