Measuring Up - Letter From Pastor Evan

How do you measure up? What a loaded question! If we’re honest with ourselves, we spend most of our lives trying to measure up to some kind of standard. We can often feel pressure throughout life to measure up academically, physically, athletically, relationally, professionally, and the list goes on and on. And the problem, more often than not, is that the measuring sticks that we use to measure up against are so arbitrary that it never fails to leave us feeling defeated!

In theology, we talk about the canon (yes, only one “n.” One more would be explosive) of Scripture. The word “canon” means “measuring stick” and refers to the individual books of the Bible that have been accepted as God’s Word. In order for a book to be part of the “canon,” it “must be inspired by God, written by an apostle or prophet, contain the divine mysteries in Hebrew and Greek, enjoy the recognition of the early church and have been in use in the ancient, apostolic church,” (Steven P. Mueller, Called to Believe, Teach, and Confess, p. 47-48). Throughout history, God led His people all over the ancient world, independent from one another, to acknowledge certain books or letters as being Scriptural. In other words, God has worked through His people (the church) to authenticate and preserve His words to us in the Bible. These books have been measured up and found to be God’s word, indeed!

Because God has given us His word, the canon of Scripture tells the story about how we measure up spiritually. It teaches us about His holiness, yet it teaches us about our sin. In this, we don’t measure up to God and His requirements for perfection. But the Word also declares to us that Jesus died in place of our sin, taking a punishment that should have been ours and declares instead that we are righteous in His sight through Jesus’ finished work on the cross! In other words, because of Christ, the Father declares that we do measure up! In His sight, we are perfect and holy as Jesus Himself is holy!

The canon of Scripture is God’s unwavering, objective measuring stick. It is not biased or skewed and it doesn’t change from person to person. It always measures accurately. But more than that, the canon of Scripture also victoriously declares that Christ has measured up for us so that we might find peace and rest in Him! In Christ, you measure up!

In Christ,
Pastor Evan