Scheming swindlers

Quote that my colleague Lowell loves, and so do I. It meant something a little different when I worked for the seminary, but it still has a point, meaning I feel the prick when I consider it:

"The matter is quite simple. The Bible is very easy to understand. But we Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know very well that the minute we understand we are obliged to act accordingly. Take any words in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. My God, you will say, if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I ever get on in the world? Herein lies the real place of Christian scholarship. Christian scholarship is the Church's prodigious invention to defend itself against the Bible, to ensure that we can continue to be good Christians without the Bible coming too close. Oh, priceless scholarship, what would we do without you? Dreadful it is to fall into the hands of the living God. Yes, it is even dreadful to be alone with the New Testament."

-Soren Kierkegaard

I think we could substitute lots of alternatives of "religious" pursuit for "scholarship." Think of all the "prodigious invention[s]" that serve as a protection from the gospel. The church itself. Busyness. Good works. Religious practice. Doctrine. Name the ones for you.

The point is not that any one of these disciplines or activities is inherently wrong or anti-biblical. What I hear Kierkegaard warning against, though, is the trap of these things taking the place of the biblical mandate, the Word itself.

It is far from easy to be a biblical people. Just ask us brethren. When asked what's at the core of our faith we often start with peace, or simplicity, or service. These are all important elements of biblical faith, but if we were to be true to our founders it is really the bible and the Jesus of the bible that are at the core of our faith and our practice. In order to be connected to that core, we are required to purge our defenses and live like the gospel: radically.

Being biblical is far from simple, and certainly not easy. My own life is challenged by nearly every step. I fail miserably stride after stride, and I know it. But I try to be aware of the defenses that I erect between me and the bible, and pray that God will treat them like the walls of Jericho. Then we might be free for scholarship, service, faithful practice, and full lives of activity as people of the Word, rather than as a bunch of scheming swindlers!