An "Out-of-the-Box" God?

I am so thankful to know an "out-of-the-box" God these days. However, growing up I only knew an "in-the-box" God. But I still did my best. I loved God. I sought to serve God, I read my Bible, memorized Scripture, graduated from a Christian College, worked in the church both in paid positions and volunteer positions,. I served on boards and councils, and lead Bible studies, and workshops. I can honestly say, I lived in a constant hunger and thirst for God....and I still do. Jesus's words from his Sermon on the Mount included these: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled." And I have found that in my hungering and thirsting for God, my heart is filled...and then my heart expands to be able to contain more....and then that is filled...and then the capacity of my heart expands more.....and that is filled again......you get the picture, right? It never ends.
In this video I share a story found in the book of Luke in the New Testament. I can relate to the man in the story who comes to Jesus and says, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" The man was known as a religious person. He was actually a, "Teacher of the Law" (meaning the Torah). He knew the Scripture, the religious Law. He could teach it. He memorized it and could quote it easily. But here is the question Jesus asked him about that Scripture that the man was an "expert" in; Jesus asked him: "How do you read it?" He didn't ask him "IF" he read it, but "how" he read it.
This tells me that there must be various ways that one reads Scripture? And for some reason Jesus wanted the man to be aware of what that lens was for him.
It has caused me to ask myself, "How do I read Scripture?" Do I read it through a specific doctrinal lens? Do I read it through a skeptical lens? Do I read it through a lens of confirmation bias - meaning I am looking for it to say what I "want" it to say to make me more comfortable? Do I read it through a literal lens, or a metaphorical lens, or a poetic lens, or a historical, lens, or a symbolic lens? Do I read it through a lens of self-righteousness, in that I believe I understand it and know it more truly that anyone else? Do I read it through the lens of how others have told me to read it? Do I read it through a specific political lens whether it be liberal, conservative, etc. Do I read it through a certain theological lens? There are many lenses through which we read Scripture, and often we are not even aware of what that lens is….until Jesus asks us.
To be honest, I have read it all those ways listed above. Our ego is constantly telling us "our way is the right way." And I have to believe that when ego is the lens through which I read and understand Scripture, it is going to end up being a very limited understanding. That doesn't mean everything about it is wrong....but it is 'limited'. The religious expert in this story didn't have everything wrong. Jesus even told him, "You have answered correctly," when the man quoted the Law of Love and said that it was the most important. Jesus seems to agreeing by saying, "You have answered correctly." It is easy to quote Scripture or any other inspirational quote. But in this story quoted Scripture isn't enough; so Jesus responds in a way that invite the man to expands the lens through which he read it. Jesus simply says: "No do this and you shall live." This abundant life in Chris is so more than head knowledge.
When I sit down to read the sacred Scripture, I hear the Spirit ask me, "How are you reading it, Vicki?" And I have to stop and reflect on where my heart is, and where my mind is because those determine the lens through which I will read it. Thus, my heartfelt prayer is: ‘Lord may Your Love always be the lens through which I read. Not the lens of my own understanding about love because that understanding is so limited.
And God is faithful to that prayer. The Spirit awakens my soul and opens the eyes of my heart to see and behold a Love beyond measure in every word that I read....when I am willing to see. When I am willing to let the “box” containing the God of my own understanding to be blown wide open so much more Light can pour in, and so much more Love can flow out. .
May I always be willing.