Monday, June 8, 2009

LIVING BIBLICALLY

LIVING BIBLICALLY

A couple of years ago A. J. Jacobs set a commendable goal: he was going to dedicate an entire year to live biblically.

A. J. is Jewish and was raised as a secular Jew. So, he didn’t know many of the stories, the deep principles or the ethics of the Bible. He was going to study them and live them as best he could for a year.

Trying to following biblical custom A. J. wore white clothes and didn’t cut his beard. His appearance garnered quite a bit of attention.

His experiment required some significant behavioral changes for him. A. J. said he was particularly susceptible to gossip, lying and coveting, so addressing these issues in his life was a challenge.

Forgiveness was a big issue, too. In an interview with Leadership (Winter, 2008, p.17) magazine A. J. said, "Paul says that love does not keep score. I disobeyed this literally because, before my year, I had been keeping score of my wife’s arguments with me. Any time I would win an argument or she would make a mistake, I’d always jot those down ... in a little file so that I could remember them. The Bible taught me to get rid of that. I showed my wife the list, and she just laughed at me. Her response was amusement mixed with pity that I would even need to keep such a list."

A. J. was a workaholic, so the biblical teaching on Sabbath rest was a challenge for him, too. "The Sabbath is a great thing," he said, "because the Bible is saying you can’t work. You can’t check e-mail. You have to spend the day with your family. It’s a real smell-the-roses type of day. I found it to be a day for joy, for just really reconnecting with my life and realizing that work is not everything. I loved it, but it was a huge struggle."

A big lesson A. J. learned with his experiment is how much he sinned. He said, "That was a little disturbing, but once you start to pay attention to the amount that you lie and gossip and covet and even steal - I was taken aback and that was a real eye-opener. I don’t steal cars, but even something like taking three straws at Starbucks when you only need one, that could be considered stealing. I became very aware of taking other people’s things without asking."

This man’s story impressed me. He was not religious before undertaking this experiment. In fact, he says he started out as an agnostic, and still isn’t totally convinced of the existence of God. But, he had periods when he believed, and still holds value in the idea of the sacred. Here is what he said, "I believe there is something very important about the idea of sacredness: prayer can be sacred, the Sabbath can be sacred, family is sacred, rituals are sacred. That was a huge change in perspective for me." Sounds like A. J. is moving toward belief.

He hasn’t converted to Christianity yet, but A. J. did say, "I never did make the leap of faith to accept Jesus as my Savior. As I read the New Testament, I more tried to live by his ethical teachings, which did change my life."

I am impressed that this man who grew up in a secular environment and was an agnostic dedicated a year to living consciously, purposely and intensely as a man of God. He disciplined his thoughts, he managed his mouth, and he scrutinized his intentions in accord with the Bible. If it pricked his conscience to take more than one straw because it didn’t seem totally honest, he would only take one. And he said the experience changed his life.

For those of us who do profess Christ, would it change our lives to live consciously, purposely and intensely as the people of God in every aspect of our lives?

Warren Baldwin

7 comments:

  1. Great thoughts! We all need to take stock of ourselves!
    God bless,
    Steve
    Luke 18:1

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  2. How inspired I am! A.J actually sounds like my husband, who is a Jesus admirer rather than Jesus Follower. Tony said recently in an interview at the Christian school we just registered our boys into, "I try to live my life by the teachings of Christ. I may not be one, but I think I live like a Christian" And he is right. But oh how I ache when I see that the final step of faith has not yet been taken!

    Thank you for telling me about this interesting man.

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  3. Steve - Thanks. This post and your comments fit with the them of your recent post about weight lifting in front of a mirror. Coincidence!?

    twofinches - Jesus followers often start out as Jesus admirers. What is holding him back? You can email me if you care to. wb

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  4. I've heard about this book. The author writes very entertaining. I borrowed it once from the library and never read it. Just skimmed it.

    I believe this man who come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. I hope I am around to hear about it.

    Living consciously is huge. I am often aware of the fact that people are searching for something. I hope and pray I shine a little candle light of Christ as I walk out ordinary living. It's a battle for truth and souls always!

    Great post!

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  5. The one thing I used to do but haven't in a while is make sure what I am saying about a person would be ok if they were there to hear it. I've really gotten away from that. If an agnostic can do this it should be a conviction for us followers of Christ to get our butts in gear and live like we really mean it.

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  6. Very interesting. I read several of the other posts on this blog and they are excellent. Keep up the good work.

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  7. Hopefully someday this man will turn his life over to Jesus Christ and become born-again :).

    Great post, something to think about

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