Four Masks of God
God stands behind the Bible just
as an actor stands behind a mask
• How did God speak with our biblical ancestors?
• In biblical Israel, was it only kings & prophets who could hear the word of God?
• And are there ways in which God continues speaking with us today?
Our biblical ancestors "heard" things in ways we no longer do. They sincerely believed that they could discern the words of God.
But how are we today to understand what the Bible means when we read that "God said …" or "God commanded …"? Obviously, our ancestors were too sophisticated to imagine God as a superhuman possessing vocal chords, yet the Bible intimates that they were nevertheless in direct contact with God. How did they discern God speaking to them? Does the Bible contain concrete clues to this mystery?
Amazingly, the clues embedded in the Bible are universal. We find evidence of them in preliterate and literate societies throughout the world. With these clues in hand (and, perhaps, in heart) you can personally encounter God’s words in a new and striking way.
Are you intrigued by the idea that God could speak to human beings in ancient times? Rest assured that you can not only comprehend the processes, but also find them in the text of the Bible itself.
It is even possible that there may have been more than four "masks" of God that were originally operational. And, in fact, at least some of the ancient ways of "hearing" God’s words are as valid for us today as they were for our ancestors.
Rossel brings the focus to the time of Israel’s beginnings as a nation, to its first king and to the hints that we get from the strangest story in the Bible — the atypical and anomalous tale of the witch of Endor. You may walk away from this text study saying, "Great Samuel’s Ghost!"
Available formats
• seminar • scholar-in-residence weekend • lecture or series of lectures • individual workshop segments
As a weekend seminar
This topic begins with a sermon as introduction, followed by four more "segments" or workshop discussions.
As a residence week
This topic is outstanding for its many colorful multimedia presentations and as many as 12 hours of sessions.
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