What can you imagine?
How big can you think?
God thinks bigger…
Do you want to ask Him for something?
Ask big because you’re dealing with a big God.
Ephesians 3:20 from the Discoveries Bible
I want to tell you about the Discoveries Bible project.
I am concerned – and have been for decades – about something I see happening in the church. When certain words are heard or read, the listener (or reader) goes into “religious neutral” – the words have been used so often that they have been deprived of any real meaning. The rich meaning that was intended is lost because we “zone out.”
A couple years ago I heard about a court case that demonstrates this reality. A separation of church and state advocate was suing a governmental agency because a prayer was said during that agency’s proceedings. The court upheld the right of the agency to include the prayer because the words used in the prayer had lost any real meaning and therefore could not be construed to have religious significance. (Amazing, isn’t it?)
Consider these biblical words and phrases: salvation, holy, worship, truth, praise, love, fear of the Lord, redemption, faith, sacrifice, blessed and so on. These words permeate the scriptures, but as Christians, most of us have heard them so often that they now carry little real meaning any more. Please understand what I’m saying: These are incredibly important realities that are being conveyed by words that don’t work as well as they used to.
So do we need another Bible translation or paraphrase? No, not exactly. But I do think we need to see the Bible that we have with new eyes.
More tomorrow …
Be encouraged!
Dwight
To find out more about Dwight Clough, his books, his ministry, or to receive this devotional via email visit DwightClough.com. Dwight and his wife Kim are active members of Lake City Church in Madison.