I have a love / hate relationship with theology. I have spent much of my life studying theology. I teach theology in my sermons and other venues at my church. I know that the study of theology has helped me in many ways. But it also gets in the way … or at least it CAN get in the way. It can become a distraction.

I remember reading somewhere that some Christians are like people who go to a restaurant, and read the menu about all the great food available. They get really excited by what they read … and then they just EAT THE MENU!

In this analogy, the menu is the Bible, and all the ideas, principles, and teachings in it. All those are good, and of course knowing them is good … but they point us to something beyond the words and concepts. They point us to an encounter with God. 

We love and study Bible, while understanding that its value is that it points us to something else. Something bigger. Something more life-giving than words and concepts. It's a menu ... that's all it is. 

Listen to how pastor and author Brian Zahnd puts it:

Here’s my point: academic theology can be like the bars of the lion’s cage—it keeps our experience of God objective, prosaic, safe, undemanding. I say this as a person who deeply appreciates academic theology. I’ve read hundreds of academic theological works, and, occasionally, I give theological lectures in academic settings. I view these as valuable endeavors.

But none of it is to be confused with the experience of encountering God subjectively. Subjective experience with the divine is a phenomenon that occurs within a heart that is open to God: ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God’ (Mt 5:8).

The intellect can be employed as the steel bars that keep us a safe distance from the lion. . . . If you honestly want to encounter Jesus, here’s what I recommend: read the Gospels on your knees for six months, asking Jesus before each chapter to reveal himself to you. 

Seriously, try it. Don’t be surprised if you eventually find yourself inside the cage face-to-face with the Lion of Judah.

Then you’ll have to decide what to do with your life now that you’ve gone through the wardrobe, entered Narnia, and encountered the real Aslan.” 

(* And if you have bad knees, it also works if you just sit in a chair.)

A RESOURCE TO HELP YOU HAVE THIS ENCOUNTER

I recently gave a message at our church, where I invited people to begin a 90 Day Spiritual Journey ... committing time each day to connect to God in Bible reading, prayer, and meditation. You can access this 40 minute video here. Be aware that in the "notes" section below the video you'll find free downloadable resources you can use to guide you in this journey.

A FINAL THOUGHT

Finally, I want to add one of my favorite lines from the poet Rumi. Some people might misunderstand, or be annoyed by, the following words, but they are meaningful to me, and describe my experience. 

To understand the quote, his analogy works like this: The "pitcher" -- the container of water -- is our church, our theology, our concepts and ideas about God. The water is God ... and our direct encounter / experience with God. He encourages the reader to:

Learn to love the pitcher less

and the water more.

NEXT ACTION:

Today's action step is to give some consideration to this practice recommended by Zahnd. If you already have a good plan in place, and structure of Bible intake that is working for you, by all means, keep going with it. But if not, what if you would give this idea a try: read the Gospels each day for the next 6 months, asking Jesus before each chapter to reveal Himself to you through it. If you don't already have a plan in place to do this, take a look at the "90 Day Spiritual Journal" here.