Authoritative source???

Just had an interesting exchange with a reader of my blog. Got me thinking.
Here's something to consider.

The other day I was with a small group of guys. We're reading a book called 'The Shack'. It's an interesting read. Helpful, I think. It's easy to get caught up into the story. You find yourself saying, "Well, according to the Shack ...". In one easy to say phrase we take a piece of fiction and elevate it to an authoritative place.

Sometimes I get e-mails from people. In it, they quote the Constitution or the Bill of Rights. They hold these documents very close and very dear. So do I. However, they're not my ultimate authoritative source.

I've had people quote lyrics from songs, get misty eyed, and tell me that they're living their life by the truth of those words. Oops.

Have you ever had someone say ...??

According to C.S. Lewis ...

John Piper said....

I was listening to Christian radio and Tony Evans...

Went to conference and I heard Andy Stanley ..

Anne Graham Lotz told us ...

I heard Margaret Feinberg say ...

Erwin McManus's take is...

The latest Nooma raises this point ...

I listened to a conversation on Midday Connection (I know, I know …a shameless plug for my wife’s show)

Charles Colson says…

All of the above have influenced me and my guess will continue to influence me in some important ways. And I do use the 'arguments and insights' of thoughtful people. But I don't want thoughtful people to do all my thinking for me. I want them to inform me, to help me, to raise great questions, to offer interesting interpretations and to inspire me when I am down. But I don't want them to become more than they would ever want to be. Bottom line is that I have to do some of the heavy lifting myself.

So, what's your authoritative source? The guiding light by which you lead your life? A lot of my friends say it's the Bible. Yet, they don't know it really well, if at all. In fact, when push comes to shove they really have a spiritual guru who interprets truth for them. That guru is a famous author, preacher, or commentator. They live life according that person's interpretation of scripture.

Truth is we do a lot of hitchhiking off of other people's ideas. We let others do the work for us. And when push comes to shove we take a book like 'The Shack' and elevate it to a higher plane than we should, we confuse being a good American with being a Christ follower, and we only listen to people who we agree with. And then we quite growing and learning.

Maybe we should take a break from letting others think for us. For sure, keep reading, keep listening ...but do it with some discernment. Read 'The Shack' but have your Bible open as you read it, develop a healthy skepticism and don't be afraid to ask discernment questions no matter who you’re listening to. Even the best and most thoughtful speaker can be wrong, have blind spots or be deeply opinionated about something that really doesn't matter.

We really have to be careful. Where's the line between being a patriot and being a follower of Christ? Does an emotional lyric in a song contain any kind of guiding truth and if it does where's the soil that allowed it to grow? Where does my political opinion end and God's guidance and truth take over? What does it say about me if I only listen to certain interpretations of important issues? How important is it for me to read Scripture through something more than just an American middle-class value system?