20 Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm – Proverbs 13:20
On the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month, I hang out with a ragtag group of twenty-somethings. As the facilitator, I hope that I am able to teach them something about life and grace, but the truth is, I have been more of the benefactor of such wisdom. Oftentimes we simply read a few verses of Scripture and simply ask “what do you see?” Yes, my overall method is not groundbreaking. Yes, it is painfully simple. But I have learned the hard way not to cloud theological matters with unnecessary planning and structure. There is something beautifully simple about the matters of Christ. Anywhere that people wish to discover Him more richly, His Spirit dwells to direct hearts towards Himself.
In order for this style to work, one has to be comfortable with heresy. We foster a community that feels no question, comment, or hypothesis is out of bounds. We look to thoughtfully consider ever word, angle, and argument. If we are to know who Christ is, it is just as important for us to answer who He is not. As a leader, there is an innate drive to control, to plot, and to study in a way that makes me look intriguingly intelligent. Of course I am not alone. Every faith community and church has this. Leaders want to be revered for their knowledge. We work for hours trying to craft the perfect sentence or illustration. While not all of this is bad, the generation below us is ready for something different. Something real.
Any time I prepare a message or discussion, I dream about what it would look like to replace my notes with a simple reading of the Bible. What if instead of taking a few passages from different places, we simply read His words for the duration, letting His Spirit teach us?
Crazy right?
We are blessed with many (maybe too many) study tools. Internet, podcasts, commentaries, etc. run rampant. The average American household possesses multiple copies of the Bible. It is now the role of the Spiritual director to simply stir up the affections and even questions and doubts of the listener. When we see this as our prime duty, then we are free to step out of the way.
Perhaps we get in our own way when it comes to understanding. Maybe it is us who, through insecurities and reliance on the way it’s always been done, make things more difficult than then have to be. Maybe we just simply ask “what do you see?”
Matt simon blog 