Where, exactly, does God end—and where does human interpretation of God begin? This starts with a simple question about what God’s first creation was, the answer to which I found not in Genesis but in Proverbs 8 . The answer is Hagia Sophia, the Holy Wisdom of God (Prov. 8:22 –30). To confirm my findings, I cross-referenced the King James Bible, the Greek Septuagint (the Holy Orthodox Bible), the Catholic Bible, and many other texts. The Bible and all of the other texts describe Hagia Sophia not only as first to be brought forth but also as a separate entity, referred to in a female gender, eternal and omniscient, yet at the same time as an inseparable part of God. In Proverbs 8:35 –36, she spoke of herself in the same words that Jesus used of himself in John 14:21 . I understand that this topic is rooted in the history of early Christianity, which did not have a monolithic theology, as well as in the decisions of the Councils of Nicaea; thus, the answers I have found so far have been only human interpretations. With that in mind, how can I reconcile the infallibility of the Bible with the exclusion of Hagia Sophia from the doctrine as a permanent female part of God? This brings me back to the question of where exactly God ends and where human interpretation of God begins.

Lake Avenue Church and Fellowship Church

I smiled one day when Pastor Tracy Trautman and others from our children's ministry team began talking to me about leading our LAC children through what they call "The Big God Story." They wanted to convince me of how important it was to help our children understand that the Bible is not a random or haphazard compilation of stories, moral lessons, and the like. Instead, it is a unified and coherent revelation from God with all of its complex parts pointing to the hope of salvation and new life made possible by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Tracy wanted me to be as thrilled as she was about how a grasp of the big God story would enable our children to have a framework for understanding and dealing with all of the big issues they would face in their lives.

Do you think it is necessary to read the Bible with a commentary? Someone told me I was studying wrong by only reading the Bible. It just didn't settle right in my spirit.

"All beginnings are hard."

With this thought-provoking statement, author Chaim Potok opens his novel, In the Beginning. In the book, young Torah scholar David Lurie discovers how difficult it is to move into areas of study and inquiry usually deemed off-bounds in his Hasidic community. Potok's lesson in the story seems to be that as hard as they are, "beginnings" are necessary if new discoveries will be attained and new initiatives launched. That which is "begun," usually in the face of limited resources and opposition by the status quo, often is like a seed planted that years later produces an entire vineyard and marvelous fruit.

Ephesians 5:15-21

What would happen in your personal life if, beginning today, churches went out of existence. What would change if there would be no church family that you could be a part of? I know some would say that you find the teaching in church about how to live for God, or the support to live for God in your church family gatherings, or the encouragement you receive from singing and praying together are very important to you. But, I think many American church goers would have to admit, "I think little would change."

Exodus 14:23-15:21

There are "lightning rod issues" in the life of any church. There always have been and always will be. Human beings seem to have the ability to get into a dispute over almost anything. This doesn't change easily once we become followers of Jesus. Some of the New Testament books exist because there was a dispute in the church: Can non-Jewish people lead or should only Jewish (Rome)? Should men or women wear head coverings in church – both, neither...(Corinth)? Should we quite serving, working, etc. and simply go off and wait for the return of Jesus(Thessalonica)? You all know I could go on and on.

But one issue that seems to have a remarkable resiliency in inspiring us to disagree is the issue of our worship together within the church family – particularly the style and volume and length of the music. Can you believe that after only four months at Lake Avenue Church, I am going to have the courage (foolhardiness?) to talk about this? Well, I believe God is at work in our hearts. I think we're ready.

“They took down the bodies…and went to Jabesh, where they burned them” 1 Samuel 31:12

Christians disagree about whether cremation is an appropriate way to deal with a body after death. The Bible, however, nowhere answers the question specifically as to the method of disposal. Some people have raised moral and religious questions about whether Christians should “destroy” a body through cremation of the remains. Occasionally, even the procedure of autopsy has been challenged on religious bases when the cause of death required further investigation. These questions, ultimately, can only be answered in an individual’s or family’s conscience. The Bible does not require one technique over others.

When I was a boy, I used to spend a few weeks each summer with an uncle who was an agriculturist. Sometimes, he would take me with him to see the different ponds under his supervision. On one particular day, he first took me to a pond that had no outlet. It had only water coming into it, but no place for the water to escape. Later, he took me to a newer pond that had both an inlet and an outlet. The first pond became polluted. The second pond, however, was obviously fresh and was alive with fish. My uncle showed me that it had been built not only with sufficient capability of inflow – but also for the outflow of water.

"Where does the Bible stand on getting a tattoo?..."

"...I was told that there is a verse in the Book of Leviticus that teaches it is wrong. But, what if the tattoo is a verse from the Bible? Mostly, what if the big problem is that my father disapproves even though I am over 30. I want to show him respect but wonder if I have freedom in spite of his viewpoint. My wife loves the idea."

I had a Jewish friend tell me his religion is more intellectually and historically sound than Christianity. His main point was that Jewish oral tradition is the source that gives insight into interpreting the Scriptures accurately and that, since Jewish oral tradition contradicts Christian interpretations, then the Christian faith must be wrong. I had never heard anything like this so I’ve been somewhat shaken by it. Where is a Christian to start when faced with this kind of daunting search for truth?

All through my doctoral studies at Marquette and Cambridge, I was confronted with challenges to my thinking – and that included challenges to the very source of my understanding of God, i.e., the Bible. Sometimes, I would think, "Well, my faith must not be true..." (And then in the next breath) "But it is real!" Then, "But, what about...?" On and on it goes while we live by faith and not yet by sight.

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you” Matthew 7:7

Since coming to Lake Avenue Church, people ask me questions that I myself have wondered about before. But, just as often, here in Southern CA I’ve found that some of the questions are about matters I had never really considered. Tattoos? Ancestor boxes? Cremation? Following Jesus without dishonoring parents when turning to Jesus from Buddhism??? These are just a few of the issues the people at LAC write me about. So, I look at God’s Word and seek to provide some guidance and direction. I have wondered whether others have questions about related matters – though they have never asked. Finally, my Executive Assistant convinced me to post parts of my responses via this blogging medium.