Between now and Christmas we're going to be looking at a range of issues/topics/questions on Sunday mornings that people have raised and expressed an interest in. Some of these issues come out of our Bible reading - such as The End Times; others come out of our daily lives - such as Work or Relationships (two separate topics - not a choice that has to be made!)
Because we are going to be tackling these questions from a Christian perspective we are going to be using the Bible - but that raises a whole range of other questions.
It is not simply a case of reading the Bible and doing what it says. Because there are some things in the Bible that we do obey - such as the command not to lie or steal in Leviticus 19. But there are other things that we are largely agreed on no longer apply - such as the command not to wear clothes made of two different types of material, which is also in Leviticus 19. But who gets to say what things apply and what things don't? When do we allow growing trends within society to challenge an 'out-of-date' teaching - such as slavery or the role of women in the church?
And how/what do we think about the Bible? What kind of book is it? What do we mean when we say that the Bible has authority?
I don't think we read the Bible in order to find verses to give easy answers to the questions we wrestle with. Rather we immerse ourselves in the story about God, in order that we encounter God in the story, and through engaging with that story, we learn how to live in the present - in a way that is innovative and yet consistent with what we find there.
Our first topic, for next week, is Decision Making and the Will of God.
