Phillips: the whole Gospels

Tuesday, November 9, 2010
    Commemoration of Margery Kempe, Mystic, after 1433
Meditation:
    Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
    —Ephesians 6:17 (NIV)
Quotation:
    This astonishing sense of spiritual attack which, it seems to me, must inevitably follow the continual reading of the four Gospels, without preconception but with an alert mind, is not the sole privilege of the translator. It can happen to anyone who is prepared to abandon proof-texts and a closed attitude of mind, and allow not merely the stories but the quality of the Figure Who exists behind the stories to meet him afresh. Neat snippets of a few verses are of course useful in their way, but the overall sweep and much of the significance of the Gospel narratives are lost to us unless we are prepared to read the Gospels through, not once but several times.
    ... J. B. Phillips (1906-1982), New Testament Christianity, London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1956, chapt. i, p. 11 (see the book)
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, Your word is my strength. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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