You Can't Help but Read through your Point of View!

"Point of View" cartoon by nakedpastor David Hayward OWN THIS CARTOON Some years ago when I was still a Vineyard pastor I attended a Vineyard sponsored workshop on hermeneutics. Along with 6 other students, there was a theologian whose mission was to persuade us that a deconstructionist approach to scripture was wrong. We were assigned such texts as VanHoozer's, Is There Meaning in This Text? We were taken through all the many theories of hermeneutics as well as many philosophers, including Derrida who developed the Deconstruction school. The results? I left that weekend a convert to deconstructionism and, although I've arrived at a slightly different place, I still highly value that analysis of texts and reality itself. Oh well! This too contributed to my eventual departure from the ministry and the church. To be honest, I'm very thankful for that pivotal weekend. Just yesterday I got a message from someone: "You sir are a heretic of the highest degree. Glorifying what God has called an abomination. Do you just choose to ignore that part of the Bible? Maybe you prefer to translate it to suit your carnel (sic) man." The thing is, he's reading the Bible through his lens as I am mine. The trick is simply realizing that we filter everything through our point of view (POV). We must always start there. (Are you experiencing a major shift in your view of the Bible? There are ways I can help you!)