Knowing Brazil

Have I told you about my trip to Brazil?

Let's have coffee sometime so I can tell you all about it. I'll tell you about the cities I visited, the food, the people I encountered, and the sites of Rio de Janeiro. And when we're done, you'll understand Brazil the way I do, and it'll save you a trip. It will be just as if you were with me.

Except that you won't understand Brazil the way I do, just as I don't understand Brazil the way someone who was raised there does. Being told about something is a far cry from experiencing it. That's obvious. So why do we teach the Bible this way?

It happens on two levels. One is when we, as teachers, study and digest the material so thoroughly in our preparation that we spoon-feed kids the "main point" or the "lesson" of every story. The other is when we teach at the level of story - focusing too much on details about the characters (such as that Lydia of Acts 16 sold purple cloth) or the setting (the temple was overlaid with gold) - and never raise things to the level of God, which is to say the consistency of his will and his character.

We like knowing that kids "got it", and that's why quizzing is so common in ministry to kids. But the Bible doesn't work like that. A friend from Georgia recently observed (at our conference in Brazil) that we read for two reasons: to be informed, or to be entertained. But the Bible stands alone in that its purpose is neither to inform, nor to entertain, but to lead us into relationship with God. Big difference. God is the main character in the Bible - not humans. So to reduce every Bible passage to a "lesson" (and ignore those that don't easily fit our teaching scheme) about what we should do - the fundamental essence of character education - cheapens the Bible and minimizes God.

Instead, the Bible is like rich, healthy food, and its truths are the nutrients. You and I can each consume an apple, but how the apple is digested and how it works to nourish and strengthen either of us is a bit different. You and I would benefit from eating that apple. But would the benefit look exactly the same? No.

When we teach the Bible in an overly academic way, we sacrifice the real prize for something less. And it's easy to fall into that trap: Kids are learning the Bible. Well, yes - and no. What if the product of good Bible teaching isn't a large store of knowledge, but a healthy attitude towards the Bible, a curiosity and a willingness to know more? Maybe we'd tell less and invite kids to experience God more.

So while you might want to hear about my trip to Brazil, and I'd like to tell you, my real hope is that you would someday see it for yourself. Any account of my trip that encourages you to do that is worthwhile; any account that bores you or that shares so much it diminishes your drive to go there is counterproductive.