A Thought

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” John 1:1-2

There are the many, mainly those who turn their noses up at the Church and the Bible, who insist there are too many conflicts within the Bible for it to be taken seriously. They fail to remember, as do many Christians, that (1) Jesus is not a “new” God but is in fact the very Word of God, (2) Jesus states very clearly that “the Father and I are one”, (3) Jesus also states that “a house divided against itself cannot stand”, and (4) the New Testament does not in any way disavow the Old.

There are troublesome passages and books, to be sure, but this only means we must be more forthright and intentional in our engagement in Bible study. It is probably the most important lesson I took from the Benedictines when I visited the monastery in Subiaco last week: don’t just read the words on the page; engage the Word – that is, Christ the Lord. St. Jerome said it very clearly in the early Church: “If you do not know Scripture, you do not know Christ.” Which is to say, if we do not know the Christ of the Scripture, we are in danger of creating for ourselves a “god” in our own image based only on what sounds good to us at a particular time. THAT “god” we create in our own personal image will surely die when we do.

The Word was “with God” from the very beginning. This is the Eternal Life we are offered in Him … and Him alone.