The purpose of this blog is to put expositional teaching of Scripture on the internet for those who would like to read and comment. Currently there is exposition being posted on this blog from the books of 1 Timothy and Proverbs. These are from my personal studies. At church we are going through Acts on Sundays and 1 Peter during our mid-week meeting. As we finish these books and begin new ones (1 Corinthians on Sundays, Hewrews on Thursdays) comments from those books will find their way into this blog.You may find it surprising that I am commending this blog to you, featuring it in a post, tracking back and suggesting you read the writing of someone who I likely agree with on absolutely NO point of social or public policy.
Well, I am many things; indeed, my name may not literally be Legion - but it's certainly Cohert. "I" am a functional Multiple Personality; a fact of my life that has distinctly influenced our faith and our understanding of reality in general.
Many of us are Christian - as disturbing as that may be for people who may think of a multiple personality as being "possessed by demons." Indeed, one of us who self-identifies as being originally a "demon' in the sense most Christans would think of it, wryly observes that most demonic posession is much like a dinasaur "possessing" a tar-pit, or an ant "possessing" a kitchen.
We-all manage to get along. One of the means by which we do is treating each other "as we would be treated ourselves." While we often deny being Christian, it is not to deny the word of the Bible, it is to deny the things "everybody knows" it says, but does not.
The rigorous and faithful study of Scripture - and by that, I mean any scripture you can get your paws upon, not JUST the Bible - is profitable and worthwhile. But it does tend to be disturbing to the doctrines one learned in Sunday School or your local Madrass.
Off hand, I cannot think of a single, legitimate, recognised Prophet who would fail to approve of such biblicaly-inspired apostacy.
To give you an example of a troubling doctrine that should have better Scriptural support, one that has at times been literal death to question aloud, and certainly will get you shunned at Coffee Hour; the Divinity of Christ.
I was raised Episcopailian. It's in the Creed. One does not question it. But Christ himself was decidedly slippery on the subject.
Finally, in a moment of confusion, I just decided to ask. (To me, the word "prayer" implies you really don't expect a literal answer in words you can understand.)
The answer came in the form of a short vision, in which he asked - Jew that he Is - "would knowing for sure, one way or another, change in ANY the truth of a single word of mine?" Close as I can recall.
I thought about it, and had to say that it wouldn't. The words of Christ in the Bible have a ring of self-evidence to them, and better yet, when you ACT upon them, they prove their worth.
And THEN I was reminded of this: "In the beginning there was the Word. And the word was with God, and the word WAS God.
Then we had a little "chalk talk." Suppose you believe in the LITERAL divinity of Christ. Well, then, you let His words pass by without examination, you just nod your head and follow blindly.
Well, that's one of the things he was continually beating his Apostles over the head with - their lust for simple answers. But he always made them think.
And what if he's provably just some guy from Galalee, a member of the poorest laboring class? Why should I bother to take his word for anything?
But if I'm not sure, I have to listen, consider and evaluate His words for myself!
The doubt is deliberate!
It's not about the divinity of Jesus, or of you or of me. Indeed, to the extent that our words ring true, we speak God. And when we do not speak truly - no matter how "holy" the "sacred cause" we are speaking for something else entirely. Discernment between the two - indeed, "the knowledge of good and evil" goes to the very root of the faith of the Peoples of the Book.
The purpose of Graphictruth is to speak the truth, as best as I can, on issues of the day, from a perspective most people are fortunate enough to lack. Being on the autistic spectrum and being a Multiple gives me advantages for this task, which is fortunate as it's about all I'm capable of doing well.
And it stunned me that that determination was, in fact, precisely the sort of thing Jesus was doing. Indeed, He said many of the same things I have. I say many other things - I have the advantage of not having to pay dearly for the written word. I can afford verbosity and I can afford to not worry so much about boiling things down into memorable parables.
Oh, and to the best of MY knowleged, my conception was as maculate as they come. Not that I care about that nonsense about the virgin birth; given the above, it resides in the great land of "so what?"
I'm not saying it's untrue, either literally or in some metaphorical sense. I'm saying that it literally doesn't matter to my faith. Indeed, the historical existance of Christ Himself does not matter. It's about the words. Read the words in red for yourself - and then write your own commentary.
Indeed, once you have read those words, you should look around you and speak, as best you may, something that you know to be undeniably true. Pick a cause. Pick a topic. It needen't be contraversial, nor timeless. It's enough that it's true, right here and right now, as well as you can say it. Maybe others will run across it, and recognising the truth, state it better. Or maybe a larger truth will emerge in a subsequent discussion. But first you must do the work of panning the stream of reality for the little shiny flakes that have yet to be noticed and brought into a larger conciousness.
And Truth Will Out.
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