radical conservative

i have been reading john stott's through the Bible, through the year. some days seem mundane, other days i am rocked by the new reality that he sheds onto scripture. this was one of those days and, despite the resent blog mania, i feel inclined to share.

mr. stott examined John 4, the story of Jesus's encounter with the samaritan woman at the well. i won't review the story, sadly assuming that everyone who reads this blog is familiar with the story. stott says that Jesus defied tradition multiple times during this encounter, but never defied scripture. in fact, Jesus was probably more in line with scripture by reaching out to this woman. mr stott's point was that Jesus was very conservative in terms of His adherence and belief in scripture, but radically different (possibly defiant?) when it came to tradition. now when i pray to be like Jesus, not only will i assume that this includes suffering for the name of the Almighty God, but it means being a radical conservative.

i have also already blogged about my conservative nature in regards to scripture. i still hold to this. i am reformed almost to the core, learning to value scripture more and have it permeate into every aspect of my life. when it comes to tradition, i have a bit of work to do. my current church in riverside has begun to stretch me in this aspect and i am very grateful for it. i pray that i will be more radical in terms of what is tradition, man's words, and more fiercely adhering to the Word of Light.


SIDE NOTE: i don't write these things to be arrogant, but rather to share what God is teaching me, knowing that it can encourage others if God wills. that is all.