Authorship and Authority

There is an anime I like called “Bleach”; in it the characters have special spirit powers. They use these powers to send souls to soul society (heaven) and hollows (demons) to hell. Their weapon of choice is a sword called a soul slayer. I think that this is a good allegory for the Christian life. As Christians we have special spirit power, some heal, some teach, some prophesy, and the rest( 1 Cor. 12:7-10). We fight against the powers of hell, and win souls to Christ (Eph 6:12, Mat. 28:19-20). And the final point that are weapon is a sword called the word of God that we use to slay souls (make them dead to sin)(Eph 6:17,Romans 6:1-8). While this is a good thought I sincerely doubt that this is what the author had intended. So, who is right? Am I the one with the final say, since I’m the final user of it before it enters my brain? Or does the one who wrote it have the final say since he made it? who has the right to say what something means? As you can tell by the title of this post, I think that the author of the work has the sole authority. So, my way of looking at Bleach is most likely wrong. The only way I can find what the meaning of the anime, is to ask the author.

Many people today, seem to take opposite view, especially in the area of religion. They want to say that they make their own reality. That they to say that, since I’m the end user, I’m the final authority on what is true in my life. This is post modernism and for a long time now it has invaded the church, in the form of the emergent movement. The thing is they can no more change truth, morality, or God by the way they think, than I can change the meaning of Bleach by the way I think. God is the creator, the author of all things so to find absolute truth or morality we need to ask God what he means by all this. And he will answer us thru prayer and meditating on his word. As in all things it always comes back to his word. Read it, study it, meditate on it, and believe it. Sola scripture

Meaning?

What does this poem mean to you?
When you read this thru and thru,
Does it warm your heart or make you blue?
What does this poem mean to you?

What do you see in the stars?
When you gaze at them afar,
Do you see a big bang or God’s pow’r?
What do you see in the stars?

What does this poem mean to me?
That’s what the question should be,
Since I’m the Author it’s authority.
What does this poem mean to me?

What does this world mean to God?
That question shouldn't seem odd.
since the world he made un-flawed.
What does this world mean to God?

the poem "meaning?" is copyrighted by Chris Carey 2008

PS if you want to read more and better arguments about post modernism of the emergent church go to the pyromaniacs blog (click here) team pyro is the only blog I read on a daily basis. Also listen to some of the archives of “let my people think” (click here) radio broadcast in particular “Absolute Truth in Relative Terms” is a very good place to start