God only exhibits his thunder and lightning at intervals, and so they always command attention. These are God's adjectives. You thunder and lightning too much; the reader ceases to get under the bed, by and by (Mark Twain, Letter to Orion Clemens, March 1878). The majority of theologians these days regards the creation story of Genesis 1 as a hymn, rather than an historical account. A handful suggest--having read, "with the Lord one day is like a thousand years" (2 Peter 3:18)--that the creation week might have lasted seven millennia. (And you think your Monday will never end.) The assumption being, the Creator couldn't possibly have spoken the worlds into existence in a mere seven days; but, given seven thousand years, well, then just maybe. I'd suggest that one of the reasons critics doubt the veracity of the creation story is less the brevity of the week, and more the succinctness of the account.
If a man had invented the creation story, he would have purged the story of its mystery and wonder; he would have filled the report with "thunder and lightning"--superlatives and adjectives; he would have answered every anticipated objection. He would have written a tome. Or two.
In contrast, understatement is a distinctive literary device of the Spirit of God--the author of scripture. The Spirit routinely teases us with wonder, kindles our curiosity, leaving us longing to know more. I want to know more of Enoch, who walked steadily with God. And then one day he was simply gone: God took him (Genesis 5:24 TM). I want details. Was he awake, or asleep? What of his family? Was he able to say good-bye? � I want to know more of Moses and the leaders of Israel, who saw the God of Israel standing on a pavement of something like sapphires--pure, clear, sky-blue. They saw God; and they ate and drank with him (Exodus 24:9-11 TM). Imagine, Moses dined at God's table before he climbed the mountain to receive the tables of stone! What was served? What was said? � I want to know more of the small group Bible study Jesus shared with the two men on the road to Emmaus. I want to read a transcript of his talk, when he started at the beginning, with the Books of Moses, and went on through all the Prophets, pointing out everything in the Scriptures that referred to him (Luke 24:25-27 TM). What was it like to hear Jesus thread his story into God's redemptive narrative? What one thing from Jesus' story would I have found surprising? � I want to know more about the moment Jesus died. That moment when the Temple curtain was ripped in two, top to bottom. The earth shook; rocks were split; tombs were opened, and many bodies of believers asleep in their graves were raised. After Jesus' resurrection, they left the tombs, entered the holy city, and appeared to many (Matthew 27:51-53 TM). What did they do for three days, awake, but in their tombs? Did they eventually die? Again? Did they ascend to the Father with Jesus? Did their families have to return the insurance money? I want to know more. About so much more. But then again, the very tendency of the Spirit toward understatement testifies that scripture was not authored by man with his tendency toward verbosity, but by God, who enjoys keeping the mystery in our relationship and thereby fills our minds and hearts with wonder.
How might you transform your questions into curiosity, your "Wonder?" into "Wonder!"
Where are your places of wonder in scripture?
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