March 23, 2009 Bible Sound Bytes

We’re used to sound bytes: Just do it. Have it your way. It takes a village to raise a child. Sound bytes don’t always sum up important truths very well, but God saw fit to include a few in the Bible.

Because love is the fulfillment of the Law, God might have just told Moses to tell the children of Israel “Love one another”—which would have taken 4 seconds instead of 40 days. Jesus did tell his disciples that the greatest commandment was to love the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love their neighbors as themselves…a statement that covers a lot of ground. It’s the ultimate “take-away” statement. If we get that, and get it into our hearts so that we begin to live it out on a daily basis, we’ve gotten it all.

There are a few other all-encompassing passages:
Micah 6:8 He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you… To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
What is good? What does God require? He tells us, plain and simple. Act with justice. Show mercy. Walk in humility.
Ecclesiastes 12:13 Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
Why are you on the earth? What is your purpose, your duty? An entire industry has been created surrounding the 40 Days of Purpose teaching, and here it is in a scriptural nutshell: fear God and obey him.

Mark Twain is credited with saying, “It ain't the parts of the Bible that I can't understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.” People argue about the finer points of theology, eschatology, philosophy, the jots and tittles of every word, get their academic knickers in a twist over obscure passages and possible interpretations. But most of the Bible is quite clear. Painfully clear, I would say. And we have no excuse for not putting it into practice. Reasons…there are always reasons…but no excuse.

We might prefer a more specific Bible with a complete index to look up the appropriate response to, say, a co-worker who asks for our views on the rapture or the best particular procedure for disciplining a five-year-old who clogs the toilet with Star Wars figures. Why do I feel this way today? How can I make that person forgive me? We want quick fixes, but life as a follower of Jesus is a process, not a single point in time.

Ever wonder why children enjoy cartoons so much? Cartoons show and tell the story without getting bogged down in details. In a way, the Bible does the same thing, in a way. We aren’t told every detail about life, but we’re given the story of what God wants. Be loving. Be just. Be humble.
Just do it.