Come and See: The Journey of Knowing God through Scripture
Commending a new book written by Jonathan Pennington
Jonathan Pennington is a professor of New Testament interpretation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, as well as a pastor of spiritual formation at Sojourn East in Louisville. And he has a new book I want you to know about.
In Come and See: The Journey of Knowing God through Scripture, published by Crossway, Pennington wants you to join him on a road trip. This journey is important because it involves growing in our knowledge of God through Scripture.
But we’re not in the car alone. There are three voices for the journey: Ingrid, Tom, and Taylor. These three people each represent kinds of “reading.” Ingrid is interested in informational reading, Tom is interested in theological reading, and Taylor is interested in transformational reading.
In our discipleship, we may find ourselves tending more toward one of these ways of “reading.” Are you more information-oriented, asking questions and looking for answers? Are you more theologically bent, preferring things like the history of interpretation and the role of Christian creeds? Are you mainly interested in the application of Scripture to daily life?
Well, you need all three voices, all three ways of reading. Pennington writes, “Our reading in each of these three ways—for information, for theology, for transformation—exist in a circular, mutually informing and mutually symbiotic relationship.”1
These ways of reading—informational, theological, and transformational—are crucial for the Christian life. The journey of knowing God through Scripture is enriched by each of these three ways. Importantly, however, the transformational reading of Scripture is discussed right before the book’s conclusion, since personal transformation is the goal of knowing God through his Word.
Pennington’s book would be so useful for classes and small groups. Are you looking for material to study as a group for several weeks? Consider this book. Are you mentoring someone? Take them through this book. Are you wanting to grow in your own reading of Scripture, to be a more faithful interpreter? Then get a copy of Come and See. Pennington is an engaging writer, and what he shares in his book will edify and encourage you.
Here are some quotes I especially liked:
“When reading epistles we should think in terms of paragraphs not verses or sentences. Epistles communicate their messages through sustained discourse, not in proverb-sized, disconnected nuggets. So read each epistle as a whole.”2
“Apocalyptic literature is not a secret code to be cracked but a memorable vision meant to build up hope by reminding us that God is in control of history and is actively at work bringing about his beautiful redemption.”3
“The Bible is a historical book, but it is more than that. Since the Bible is divine revelation, we need theological skills to read it well.”4
“The biblical canon is not a collection of inspired but random spiritual perspectives. Rather, the canon presents a unified story that is spiritual and historical—God is acting in history to do good to the world and to the people he has made. Thus, whenever reading any part of the Bible, we ought to ask where this particular text fits into the overall story that runs from creation to new creation.”5
“The creeds are not in competition with the Bible.”6
“Augustine pulls it all together by stating the obvious consequence: we haven’t really understood the Bible if this understanding doesn’t work itself out in love in our lives.”7
“Receiving the Bible as more than a mere human book—as God speaking truth into our lives—is an essential part of what it means to be a Christian.”8
“If Scripture is God speaking to us, then when we are reading the Bible we are not seeking to master the text but to be mastered by it, not merely to understand the text but to stand under it. We are seeking to find our lives through entering into the life of God revealed in Scripture.”9
You can find a copy of Come and See here and here.
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