Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Initial thoughts...
You might wonder about the name of this blog. According to dictionary.com, exposition is defined primarily as “a setting forth of meaning or intent” or “a statement or rhetorical discourse intended to give information about or an explanation of difficult material.” But exposition also has musical and theatrical significance as well. Students of music history will know that an exposition is the opening section of either a fugue or sonata which introduces the themes of the composition. And I learned today that exposition is “the part of a play that provides the background information needed to understand the characters and the action.” Besides Trivial Pursuit preparation, you might wonder what practical significance there is in discussing the definition of this usually academic term. Well, first of all, exposition is something that I’ve thought a lot about lately in terms of preaching. I’ve grown increasingly impatient (for better or worse) with sermons based on 3 or 5 thought-up points that sometimes, if done especially creatively, form an acrostic. Scripture is meant to be read and thought about and talked about and challenged and accepted and proclaimed as it’s written, and if the people of God don’t embrace this challenge, who will? (I want to write more about this at another time)
But beyond Sunday services, I’m realizing that, in many ways, I want my life to be about exposition – exposition of truth, that is. Not in a final or permanent sense. More like learning truth exposition as a process, or journey. I want to learn what it means to live in a way that shows the meaning and intent of truth, however difficult it may be. What do I mean by “truth”? A lot…it may be best to first say what truth is NOT. Truth is not limited by language, as in “telling the truth”. Truth is not limited by human minds, as in “understanding the truth”. Ultimately, I think it boils down to how God reveals Himself to humans. But this can be debated, and I hope it will. Truth displays reality – not just what we see and feel, but that which explains everything. And then some – truth is something infinitely big that always allows for deeper and deeper discovery. I also like the idea of living as musical exposition, introducing truth “themes” that are hopefully meaningful to those I know. And theatrical exposition is cool, too…it’s important to live knowing where you’ve been, and how those who have already lived influence you now, no matter what walk of life you’re on. Anyway, I’m just realizing that this expository living thing is a much bigger subject than I realized when I started writing tonight. But I’m really excited to think about this more. And if you’ve read this far, I hope you are, too.
But beyond Sunday services, I’m realizing that, in many ways, I want my life to be about exposition – exposition of truth, that is. Not in a final or permanent sense. More like learning truth exposition as a process, or journey. I want to learn what it means to live in a way that shows the meaning and intent of truth, however difficult it may be. What do I mean by “truth”? A lot…it may be best to first say what truth is NOT. Truth is not limited by language, as in “telling the truth”. Truth is not limited by human minds, as in “understanding the truth”. Ultimately, I think it boils down to how God reveals Himself to humans. But this can be debated, and I hope it will. Truth displays reality – not just what we see and feel, but that which explains everything. And then some – truth is something infinitely big that always allows for deeper and deeper discovery. I also like the idea of living as musical exposition, introducing truth “themes” that are hopefully meaningful to those I know. And theatrical exposition is cool, too…it’s important to live knowing where you’ve been, and how those who have already lived influence you now, no matter what walk of life you’re on. Anyway, I’m just realizing that this expository living thing is a much bigger subject than I realized when I started writing tonight. But I’m really excited to think about this more. And if you’ve read this far, I hope you are, too.
# posted by G-rant @ 6:10 PM 
Comments:
<< Home
Well Justin, let me tell you my little 5-point "method" for preaching I like to call RIGHT...
R - You gotta "R"ead "R"ick Warren books to make you "R"elevant
I - You gotta be "I"nteresting
G - You gotta have "G"oals
H - You gotta have great "H"air
T - You gotta have straight "T"eeth
Hope you're inspired...
Post a Comment
R - You gotta "R"ead "R"ick Warren books to make you "R"elevant
I - You gotta be "I"nteresting
G - You gotta have "G"oals
H - You gotta have great "H"air
T - You gotta have straight "T"eeth
Hope you're inspired...
<< Home
