The thing that amazes me most about the Reformation period of the 1500s is the passion and knowledge that nearly every European had about their faith. Conversation about theology and doctrine was not remanded to the intellectual elite, but as the Bible was printed in the native languages of the people, it truly laid the groundwork for the “priesthood of all believers,” a concept that was no more true than it was then.
I have been discouraged as how little people in our churches know about their faith. It would be easy to chalk it up to efforts to be relevant, seeker-sensitive and the like. Yet there are many well-intentioned people who have become distracted from the core truths of God and in doing so neglect the point, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. What follows is my story and how those good intentions, one of which was thoroughly educating me on the stories of the Bible, nearly killed my faith.
The Book of (Bible) Virtues
I grew up in church. I learned all the stories from the Bible when I was a small child. I was that kid that would raise his hand when a question was asked and then told, “Aaron, let other children have a chance to answer.” The stories were taught like Aesop’s fables, but with the twist that these were true. Otherwise, they were historical stories that were intended to teach me how to stand up to my giants, pray bold prayers, and do the right thing.
I can honestly say that at a certain point I gave up; why bother learning more if I didn’t even get to apply my knowledge by giving correct answers? I was a good kid (my mother may beg to differ in reference to my earliest years) and thought that I was morally upright. Why, then, do I need these moral stories week in and week out?
Dead Pastor's Society 