Scripture: Encountering God through Lectio Divina

What is Scripture?

1250–1300; Middle English  < Latin scrīptūra  writing.

1. Scriptures, Holy Scripture. The sacred writings of the Old or New Testaments or both together.

2. any writing or book, especially when of a sacred or religious nature.

3. a particular passage from the Bible; text.

For our purposes today, we are referring to the sacred writings of the Old and New Testaments, which together we call “the Bible.”

Hebrews 4:12 (NLT) – “For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.”

This verse occurs in a passage about “the promised rest for God’s people” – just 5 verses earlier, a psalm is quoted in which God had spoken, “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts.” God wants us to hear His voice. He wants us to receive what He’s saying with soft hearts, in order to allow His word to do its work, cutting and exposing, in order to enable us to enter into the intimate relationship with God for which He created us!

Discussion question: What does Scripture mean to you? (please keep your answers honest and brief)

Many different approaches to Scripture:

• Textbook
• Compilation of great literature
• Tool for developing systematic theologies
• Sociology text that illustrates various facets of the human condition
• Ancient languages study guide
• Tool to help others

All these approaches are good, but they have this in common – a common trap is to use Scripture as a tool to accomplish good but utilitarian purposes rather than experiencing them primarily as a place of intimacy with God for the sake of our souls.

If we approach Scripture ONLY as a way to get information, a way to help us help others, something we have to do or should do, a way to get the right answers, then inevitably, perhaps over a long period of time, we will grow tired. This may offend you, this may upset you, this may puzzle you. I love Scripture! But God gave us Scripture not solely so that these good purposes mentioned already could be accomplished. His greater purpose has always been and will always continue to be so that we can live in intimate relationship with Him – Scripture allows our own hearts and souls to be penetrated by an intimate word from God. It is possible and unfortunately common especially in our information-saturated world where the mind is exalted for our minds to be fully engaged while our hearts and souls drift far away.

Let’s consider how we approach various forms of writing:

• Newspaper . . . brainstorm – how do we read the paper (or internet news)? [facts, guarded approach, aware of bias, pick and choose, scan-read, brace self for bad news, authorship unimportant, low anticipation of deep emotional experience]
• Textbook . . . brainstorm – how do we read textbooks (think back to high school or college days)? [cramming, no emotional connection with author or content, sometimes enjoyable, sometimes utilitarian, something to check off list of things to do, help us prove a point or write a report, set aside as soon as test or assignment or course was finished]
• Love letter . . . brainstorm – how do we read love letters? [sense of anticipation, pleasure in reading someone else’s feelings for you, savored in a private place, pondered, emotional connection, letters kept over time]

How do we typically approach Scripture? Why?

In Western culture we typically use an informational reading process that establishes the reader as the master of the text. As readers, we use certain techniques that allow us to use the text to advance our own purposes. The intention is to cover as much ground as possible as quickly as possible. We aim for mastery, to control the text for our own purposes, to gather information, interpret, or apply the information so that we can prove our point, solve a problem, or use the information for some other purpose. This analytical and time-critical approach is well-suited for students in academic environments the way they are in most institutions. But this approach also makes it really hard to hear anything new. When we approach Scripture in this way, we can easily miss the thing our hearts long for – to hear a word from God that is personal, intimate, and takes us deeper into the love our souls crave. Gathering information can be thrilling for a while, but doesn’t satisfy the deeper longing in our souls that know there must be something more.

I want to suggest to you today that instead of reading Scripture primarily for information, we engage Scripture primarily for transformation. Transformation will result in our mind being engaged, as well as our heart, emotion, body, curiosity, imagination, and will. It’s opening ourselves up to a deeper level of understanding and insight that grows out of and leads us deeper into our personal relationship with the One who is behind the text. It’s in this context of relational intimacy that real life change takes place.

At the core, it’s a completely different way of approaching Scripture. Reading informationally, we seek to learn more about God cognitively. We may have a reading or study assignment and feel compelled to move on in order to complete it. We may ask questions like “what does the text say?”, “what does this passage mean?”, and “how do I apply this to my life?” These are not bad things in and of themselves, but if we stop there, we’re missing the most important thing. Engaging Scripture transformationally, we seek to listen to God relationally, being driven by the longing of a lover, reading slowly, savoring every word and letting them sink in. We stay in the place where God is speaking to us, contemplating its meaning for our life and for our relationship with Him. We receive it as it is given, wanting only to hear the heart of this One we love. Like Samuel, our hearts cry, “Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.” The analogy of falling in love fits – when we fall in love with someone, we want to know everything about them, every detail, every relationship, every event. But we also start asking all kinds of other questions that involve greater risk, like, “how do I feel about what is being said?”, “why do I feel this way?”, “what do my reactions tell me about myself, my attitudes, my relating patterns, my perspectives, my behavior?”, “am I willing to look at these things in God’s presence?” This can be really threatening if we are either suspicious about or out of touch with our feelings and internal dynamics. I want to remind us that Jesus told us to love the Lord our God with all our minds, yes, but before that He also said to love the Lord our God with all our hearts and souls, too!

Quote from the book (p. 52-53) – “If . . . I am seeking to engage the Scriptures for spiritual transformation, I may . . . set aside some time to read a shorter passage (six to eight verses perhaps) that I feel drawn to. I savor the words and wonder what is on God’s heart for me today. I have no other agenda except listening and deepening my intimacy with God, so I can take time to notice that when I read a verse about loving my enemies I feel a bit resistant. It’s pretty subtle at first, but I stop and give myself a little space to notice that feeling and wonder about it. Lo and behold, it proves to be more than a vague feeling of discomfort. There is a fist rising up from my gut that says, ‘I don’t think so!’ And I am caught completely off guard, because I had been feeling pretty spiritual when I began my Bible reading for the day. But rather than judging myself (which I am prone to do), I wonder what aspect of myself or my life is being touched by this verse. As I sit with my resistance, I realize that underneath all my piety, there is a part of me that is not feeling very loving at all today. In fact, I am harboring real anger toward someone who has hurt me. I thought I had put it to rest, but on this day, in response to this verse, I realize that the anger is still alive and well. I can see the perpetrator in my mind’s eye, the details are crystal clear along with the injustice of it all, and I feel the anger all over again. No wonder there is something in me that rises up and fights or resists. If ‘that’ is the person I am supposed to love, then ‘I don’t think so!’ Now if I choose to, I can reflect more deeply on what my reactions tell me about myself. How am I doing with the issue of love in my life – really? What does this particular awareness on this day tell me about where I am not like Christ? Am I being transformed into a more loving person – even in the most challenging of situations – or am I harboring places of bitterness where my spirit is closed? What does this tell me about my spiritual condition? Am I willing to look at that in God’s presence? Now God and I are having a conversation that has some substance to it! This is the level at which intimacy unfolds in a way that has the potential to change me in the deepest places of my being.”

In the 3^rd to 4^th centuries, a group arose within the body of Christ that are known collectively as “the Desert Fathers (and Desert Mothers)” – hermits, ascetics, and monks who lived mainly in the Scetes desert of Egypt. They spoke of contact with Scripture as “contact with fire that burns, disturbs, calls violently to conversion.” Abba Pambo was one of the desert fathers. The first Scripture his teacher gave him was Psalm 39, “I said I will be watchful of my ways for fear I should sin with my tongue.” Abba Pambo responded, “that will do for today,” and he went off to think about it. Six months later he returned ready to continue his lesson. Years later, a disciple came to him and asked him to teach him a psalm. Pambo began to teach him Psalm 39, starting with the first verse as his teacher had done. Upon hearing this, the brother said he did not wish to hear anymore. He told Pambo, “This verse is enough for me; please God may I have the strength to learn it and put it into practice.” Nineteen years later he was still trying.

Today we’re going to put into practice an approach to Scripture that sets us up to listen for the word of God spoken to us in the present moment. By the grace of God I have been a disciple of Christ for about 38 years, but only in recent years have I come to the realization that God desires for me to be fully present in the present in the presence of God. We can glance at the past and glance at the future, but He wants us to dwell, to abide, with Him in the present moment. That’s the gift He’s given to us, and it’s the most precious gift we can give to Him and to others, the gift of being present with Him and with others in the present.

Lectio Divina, which means “sacred reading” is a practice that dates back to the early mothers and fathers of the Christian faith. This practice is rooted in the belief that through the presence of the Holy Spirit, the Scriptures are indeed alive and active as we engage them for spiritual transformation. As we make ourselves open and available to God through this practice, the Scriptures will penetrate to our very depths, showing us those things about ourselves that we are incapable of knowing on our own due to our well-developed defense structures. In this context, God will invite us into our next steps with him or touch us with His healing grace. Invariably He communicates His love for us in ways that we can hear and experience beyond cognitive knowledge. This approach is powerful because it involves a balance of silence and word, both of which are present in the most intimate communications. Periods of silence help us quiet our inner chaos so that we are prepared to listen, and attend to God when He does speak, creating space for noticing our inner dynamics and exploring them in God’s presence.

Lectio includes slow, reflective reading of Scripture that helps us to be open to God’s initiative and not just human agendas. It also makes room for the prayer of response and the prayer of rest, in which we rest in God’s love and sovereignty in our lives.

Let’s do it! First, we choose a passage (say, six to eight verses in length) – who has a passage?

• Silencio (preparation) – come fully into the present, close eyes, let body relax, allow yourself to become consciously aware of God’s presence with you – “Come, Lord Jesus”, “Here I am”, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening”

• Lectio (read) – we will read slowly with pauses, be content to listen simply and openly without judging or analyzing, listen for the word or phrase that strikes us, write it down if that helps, silence

• Meditatio (reflect) – read, reflect on the way our life is touched by this word, write if that’s helpful, silence

• Oratio (respond) – read, what is my response to God based on what I have read and encountered? Listen for your deepest and truest response – allow your prayer to flow spontaneously from your heart as fully and as truly as you can – love, joy, sorrow, anger, repentance, desire, need, conviction, consecration. You may find it helpful to write it down.

• Contemplatio (rest in God) – read, release and return to a place of rest in God, like a weaned child who leans against its mother, a posture of total yieldedness and abandon to the great Lover of your soul.

• Incarnatio (resolve) – resolve to carry this Word out in our daily life, continue to listen to it throughout the day as we are led deeper and deeper into its meaning and it begins to live in us – you will enflesh this word to the world in which you live. You may want to choose an image, a picture or a symbol that you can carry to remind you of it.