Jesus Cropped from the Picture

EPIC or SLIM?

I assumed the highest calling was to have answers to all the skeptics’ challenges on any number of scientific, philosophical, or political issues. While having such scholarship is helpful for giving the believer confidence in the gospel, it can sometimes lead to a distorted way of viewing the Scriptures. For example, I found myself reading the Bible to prove its historic and scientific accuracy, not so much to find out the point of his Story. This is what Webber called defensive Bible reading . 51 I read the Genesis creation story in a defensive way; as an account that would prove the veracity of the Bible and God’s existence. The beauty of God’s liturgy and vision for the world was lost on me. I was so distracted by the “when and how of creation” that I cropped the Holy Spirit from his creation picture. My defensive style caused me to lose the heart and soul of the Bible’s message, which made the Scriptures lifeless and dry. Instead of defensive Bible reading, believers need to be grounded in the Story of the Kingdom , which even young children can understand and articulate. There is no oppressive burden to be professionally educated for the purpose of convincing others, using Rationalistic arguments. Christians are free to simply present the Story clearly. The apostles were not highly educated, but they boldly reported what they had seen . They were eyewitnesses and ambassadors (1 John 1.1-3). Christians can do the same, releasing them from fear and defensive Bible reading.

The State of the World A SLIM approach can also result in anxiety about the state of current affairs, while an EPIC approach concentrates on the certainty of the

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