Knowable Word - Bible study help

Follow Your Heart: Is it in the Bible?

October 18, 2023 By Peter Krol

Yes, it is.

Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.
Ecclesiastes 11:9

Mitch Chase wonders what this could mean, in light of all that Jesus, Moses, the prophets, and sages of Israel had to say about not following one’s own heart.

Chase makes excellent use of correlation with other wisdom texts as well as the context of the argument within the book of Ecclesiastes to answer the question. And he arrives at a great place.

The writer, in Ecclesiastes 11:9, is not advocating reckless living but Godward living, decisions made overflowing from a heart that fears and follows the Lord.

The only thing I might add to Chase’s conclusion is that, in light of the joy granted as a gift of God, all throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, “the ways of your heart” here are not only the commands of God that have been written on the heart—but also the personal affections and delights God implants when he shapes a person in his image. In other words, when one fears God, not only their Godward morality—but also their Godward hobbies, vocation, and delights—are unlocked to enjoy to the fullest.

As long, of course, as one never forgets that the Lord remains the judge of our hearts’ delights, such that we might walk in the fear of him.

So go swing a baseball bat, plant a rose garden, or audition for a play—to the glory of your creator. Such things are nothing but vanity in themselves. But the gift of God to those with whom he is pleased is the ability to enjoy such vain things to his glory.

Check it out!

Share or follow:

Jesus is the Best Thing for Your Conscience

October 13, 2023 By Peter Krol

A person’s conscience is a funny thing.

‌My earliest memory of what I would consider my “conscience” involves a little orange newt I found when I was 6 or 7 years old. I picked it up and thought it would be fun to throw it as hard as I could into a brick wall at point blank range.

‌Far from being fun, it made me feel sick to my stomach.

‌A little voice in my head informed me that I was a poor excuse for a human being. And that voice was right.

‌I tried to cover my tracks, so nobody would know of my dark deeds. But I still just couldn’t stand the time spent waiting for others to return to my location, and potentially catch me red-handed.

eastern newt on ground — Photo by Connor McManus on Pexels.com

‌What about you? What sort of run-ins have you had with your conscience? And what is it like to wait for the eventual return of King Jesus?

‌Does your conscience inject your waiting with anxiety at what he will find, or with eagerness for his justice?

‌Maybe your conscience still accuses you of things you have done. Maybe it reminds you of your past, or of the secret desires you don’t wish to speak about openly. Maybe your conscience gives you a clean bill of health … for now.

‌Regardless, Hebrews 9 has some really good news for you: Jesus is the best thing for your conscience.

The chapter divides into two main sections. The first section (Heb 9:1-14) describes the “regulations for worship and an earthly place of holiness” (Heb 9:1), culminating in the assurance of eternal redemption (Heb 9:12) through the eternal Spirit (Heb 9:14). The second section (Heb 9:15-28) elaborates on Jesus’ new covenant mediation, which provides an eternal inheritance (Heb 9:15).

‌So Jesus is the best thing for your conscience — for those two reasons. He provides an eternal redemption, and he promises an eternal inheritance.

‌If Jesus is your priest, nobody can take these things away. Your redemption. Your inheritance. And these two things will have a profoundly cleansing effect on your conscience.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll take a closer look at each section of this glorious chapter.

Share or follow:

How Can a Human Book be Divine?

October 11, 2023 By Peter Krol

Lewis Varley addresses a matter commonly raised by both Muslims and secularists against the Christian doctrine of special revelation: How can a book produced by humans be inspired by God or accurately communicate divine speech and intentions? Isn’t God—according to the Christian conception—so far above us that human speech and human writing is utterly unable to adequately communicate his will?

Varley offers a number of helpful responses:

The Divine-Human Scriptures Point to God’s Power
What Form Should a Book of Direct Revelations Take?
God Has Shown His Kindness to Us in the Accommodation of Scripture
The Divine-Human Scriptures Are Made Possible Because of Our Identity as God’s Image Bearers
The Literary Forms of Scripture Resonate with Our Lives

Here is a taste:

It comes as no surprise that our friends who deny that God could inhabit a human body would also deny that God’s words could also be human words. To deny the character of Scripture as a divine-human book is, by extension, to deny that God could ever come into our world, our times, our lives, but must inevitably be detached from us. To affirm the divine-human word is to affirm God’s immanent involvement in our everyday, often ordinary, lives.

Check it out!

Share or follow:

The Prodigal Son in Isaiah

October 9, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

Why are some of Jesus’s parables more popular than others? The story of the prodigal son, for example—why do we hear so much about it? The return of a wayward child strikes a deep chord. We all know friends, siblings, or church members who have turned away from God. We long for the joyful return described in Luke 15.

Isaiah 30 presents an Old Testament precursor to this story. This chapter describes the despicable idolatry of Judah and the lavish love of God the Father.

laura.bell (2009), Creative Commons License

First, a bit of history: Isaiah prophesied to the kingdom of Judah from 740 BC until at least 681 BC. Assyria was the major political and military power of the time and the nations around Assyria lived in fear. These countries often negotiated alliances among themselves for protection. Judah, despite being commanded to the contrary, was not immune to this temptation.

Judah’s Alliance with Egypt

In Is 30:1–5, Isaiah lays out God’s displeasure with Judah. They are “stubborn children” (Is 30:1) who “set out to go down to Egypt without asking for my direction” (Is 30:2). They do this in order to “take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh” (Is 30:3).

Catch the irony—the dominant Old Testament story of deliverance (the exodus) is powerful because of how ruthless, bloodthirsty, and oppressive Pharaoh was toward God’s people. In the history of Israel, Egypt is a place of death! So how can Judah now seek life there?!

Isaiah tells us that Judah’s alliance with Egypt won’t even be successful. Notice the words “shame” and “humiliation” in Is 30:3 and Is 30:5. Why will they be ashamed? Because Egypt is “a people that cannot profit them” (Is 30:5).

The worthlessness of Egypt’s help reappears in Isaiah’s poem (Is 30:6–7). Notice especially in Is 30:7 where God says that “Egypt’s help is worthless and empty” and he refers to Egypt (“Rahab”) as a “Do-Nothing” (Is 30:7 NIV). There is more sad irony in this poem: God once led Israel out of Egypt full of treasure plundered from the Egyptians (Ex 12:35–36), but now Judah carries treasure back to Egypt (Is 30:6) as payment for protection.

A Rebellious People

Isaiah presented the basic accusation against Judah in Is 30:1–2; he now presents a deeper charge in Is 30:8–11. The children of God are not behaving like true children (Is 30:9), because they are “unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord.” In this refusal, they don’t silence the prophets, they merely limit their speech. They don’t want to hear “what is right.” They only want to hear “pleasant words” and “illusions” (Is 30:10 NASB). And in a very revealing way, they want to hear “no more about the Holy One of Israel” (Is 30:11).

Note the clear connection between rejecting God and rejecting his word. The people realize that hearing a true prophetic word would mean being confronted with the Holy One, and they want no part of that. Since this Holy One is their father, they are acting like “lying children” indeed (Is 30:9).

A Word From God

As much as Judah didn’t want to hear from the “Holy One” (Is 30:11), they will hear from the Holy One (Is 30:12,15)! After summarizing Judah’s sin in Is 30:12, God details the consequences. Of the two violent metaphors used in Is 30:13 and Is 30:14, I found the smashing of the pottery particularly vivid. The jar will be shattered so completely that no useful piece will remain (Is 30:14).

Isaiah describes Judah’s refusal of God’s word and the corresponding punishment in general terms in Is 30:12–14, but he is quite specific in Is 30:15–17. In Is 30:15 we see the posture God requires for salvation. This is the word Judah rejected—God’s people had put their trust in the wrong place.

It is striking to read (Is 30:16–17) how God will punish Judah for their sin: He gives them what they want! They want to flee on horses, and God says they shall flee; Judah wants to ride swiftly, so God says their pursuers will be swift indeed. This is an astounding aspect of the way God punishes idolatry—idolatry is so terrible that receiving what we sought is an awful punishment.

God Waits to be Gracious

As we consider Isaiah 30:18–26, we transition from looking at the faithlessness of Judah to the faithfulness of God. God always relates to Israel/Judah as a loving father relates to his children.

Notice the way that God “longs” and “waits” to be gracious to Judah (Is 30:18 NASB). God is eager, on the edge of his seat to show compassion. But this is not separate from his character as the “God of justice.” In fact, he would be unjust if he let his children sin without consequence; he wants them once again to “long for him” (Is 30:18 NASB). Can you recognize the father of the prodigal son (Luke 15:20)?

When the people turn back to God and he answers their cry—this is a glorious reunion! “He will surely be gracious” to Judah (Is 30:19). “He will no longer hide himself” but Judah will behold their God (Is 30:20 NASB). Notice how great a reward God himself is in this passage! When Judah returns to God, they will see him (Is 30:20) and hear him (Is 30:19,21); he will offer corrective advice so they can walk in the way again (Is 30:21). Another dramatic result of this reunion is the destruction of their idols (Is 30:22). How could an imitation ever hold a candle to the one true God they have now beheld?

What follows in Is 30:23–26 is a picture of a renewed creation. As creation was cursed at the fall (Gen 3:17–18), so it longs for renewal when the sons of God are revealed (Rom 8:18–21). Notice in these verses the increasingly supernatural quality given to the descriptions of the creation: rich and plenteous yield from crops (Is 30:23), especially fine food for the helping beasts (Is 30:24), flowing streams on every hill and mountain (Is 30:25), a blindingly bright moon and sun (Is 30:26). God makes explicit the connection between creation renewal and the salvation of his people in a wonderful description at the end of Is 30:26—how better to describe the Lord’s salvation through loving discipline than to say he “heals the wounds inflicted by his blow”?

God Against the Enemies

In the final section of this chapter (Is 30:27–33), we see God turn his anger toward the nations (Is 30:28) in general and Assyria (Is 30:31) in particular. Isaiah speaks of the indignation and judgment of God, that his voice alone is like a consuming fire (Is 30:27,30). God will strike Assyria with the rod (Is 30:31–32) and the funeral pyre will be prepared and used for the king of Assyria (Is 30:33).

But in the middle of this discourse, Isaiah writes that Judah “will have a song” like in festival time and there will be “gladness of heart” (Is 30:29). The musical references to “songs,” “the flute,” and “tambourines and lyres” appear in both Is 30:29 and Is 30:32. With all of the judgment God is doling out, what is the cause for Judah’s great rejoicing?

Isaiah says that God will deliver Judah in a very practical way. God himself will fight the battle against Assyria (Is 30:32)! God’s compassion toward his people is always practical. How gracious would God be if his compassion were only a sentiment?

Conclusion

What does this chapter teach us? When rebellious children ignore God’s word and seek safety elsewhere, God will bring severe discipline through their idols. But God is eager to be gracious to his children; they need only cry to him and he will bless them richly and destroy their enemies.

Don’t miss Jesus in this passage. On our behalf, he is the one who never sought protection apart from God. He never ignored God’s word; he brought us God’s word. Jesus makes God’s gracious disposition toward his children possible; we have peace with God because Jesus was smashed to bits by God’s fury at our idolatry.

Do you find yourself seeking protection and safety apart from God? Does your wealth, or your family, or your health, or your morality offer you a more attractive refuge than God? Are you suffering God’s discipline because you have pursued an idol? Perhaps this is the call you need to turn back to him. He longs to hear you cry out to him and he is eager to be gracious to you.

Share or follow:

The Shocking Secret to Jesus’ Ministry Success

October 6, 2023 By Peter Krol

There can be no dispute: The main point of the middle section of Hebrews (roughly chapters 3-10) is that, in Jesus, we have a great high priest:

Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man.
Hebrews 8:1-2

Here is one of the rare places in the Bible where the author tells us straight out what is his main point. We don’t have to guess, read between the lines, or check an expositor’s work. Make sure to savor this moment.

The Ministry They Copy

Having savored that moment, we ought to notice that this high priest, who serves the Father in heaven, rules all things. His ministry is more effective than any other. He’s been tremendously successful at what he does.

And don’t fail to observe the precise wording of Heb 8:1 — that priest is the one we have. As long as we rely on him to get us through (Heb 4:14).

He is not like all those other priests on earth, who are merely copycat priests serving God in a copycat place (Heb 8:3-6). Those Jewish priests under the old covenant were crucial components of God’s revelation of himself and his relationship with his people. But that’s primarily because they were copying the priesthood of Jesus.

And now that the bona fide original has appeared, there’s no further need for copycats.

Imagine if your church started a ministry of Elvis impersonation. You could dress in bright sequined leather, wearing bushy wigs and sunglasses. You could help children memorize Bible verses to the tune of “Love Me Tender,” and really connect with older generations as well.

But now imagine that Elvis himself presented himself alive and showed up at your ministry of impersonation. Would you let him join the troupe?

Of course you wouldn’t! First off, he’d show everyone up. And second: it would turn the whole thing into a mockery. The point of impersonation is that you’re trying to be like someone or something else. It would ruin the whole point of it if you’ve got the original present. You can’t impersonate yourself.

That’s what Hebrews 8:4-6 is saying. The tabernacle built by Moses was only a copy of the heavenly tent. But because Jesus’ ministry in heaven is the real deal, in the real temple, his ministry is more excellent (Heb 8:6). Doing the real thing in the real place for it is more excellent than doing a copy of it in a copycat place.

But what makes the “real” ministry of Jesus so excellent? Why is the original better than any copy ever could be?

Because its covenant is enacted on better promises (Heb 8:6b). And … what are those promises?

The People He Has

The first covenant, you see, had faults (Heb 8:7). But the problem wasn’t actually with the covenant. It was with the people (Heb 8:8): “For he finds fault with them when he says…”

Now there’s a manuscript discrepancy there, such that some ancient manuscripts do in fact say that “he finds fault with it when he says.” So I can’t base an entire argument on a single disputed pronoun.

But that’s okay, because the following quotation from Jeremiah 31 fully supports the “them” pronoun in Heb 8:8. When God led the people from Egypt, “they did not continue in my covenant” (Heb 8:9). These are the same people who fell in the wilderness due to hearing but not believing God’s promises (Heb 3-4). Generations later, they persisted in unbelief and were exiled to Babylon.

So the problem with the old covenant was not primarily with the covenant but with the covenant’s people. They were sinners who kept on sinning. They had ways to deal with their sin, but only in copies and shadows. Never the real deal.

In short, God made promises to and about these people in the old covenant. But one thing he never promised was to produce any true knowledge of himself within them.

How are the promises of the new covenant any better? Well, in addition to having a means for true (and not merely foreshadowed) forgiveness (Heb 8:12), God actually promised to make his new people into the sort of people he requires them to be (Heb 8:10-11).

So do you see what is the shocking secret to Jesus’ ministry success? His ministry is better because his covenant is better. And his covenant is better because its promises are better. Its promises are better because they promise to make the people better.

Isn’t that crazy? It’s not that the new people sin less than the old people did. It’s not that the new people are innately good and righteous in a way the old people weren’t.

No, the difference between God’s old people and his new people is simply that he promises to make his new people into the kind of people he expects them to be. That promise was never in place in the old covenant. And that’s why this new covenant is enacted on better promises.

The shocking secret to Jesus’ ministry success is his people. And if you are his, don’t ever forget: You are not pleasing to God because you are spiritually mature. You are spiritually mature because you are pleasing to God. Do not get this backwards.

This is great news for those who draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith (Heb 10:22). But it’s also very, very bad news for those who remain in unbelief (Heb 10:26-27).

Share or follow:

Subverting Abraham’s Bad Rap

October 4, 2023 By Peter Krol

I am grateful to T.M. Suffield for his courage to take on (and take down) our widespread presumption that Abraham was a cowardly liar. Suffield takes us deep into the argument of Genesis and the overall message of the book.

What I am suggesting is that we should read these texts looking at the warp and woof of the Bible, the texture of the whole story, and considering why these stories are in Genesis at the point that they are. We’ll notice that they have more to do with the grand narrative and with Jesus than we might just think; this isn’t just by contrast either. Jesus does treat his wife differently in the presence of evil kings to Abraham. The point isn’t that he doesn’t disown us, because Abraham doesn’t and Jesus is our brother, but that he can protect us from snake-like kings. Some of them might even turn to God because of the church’s beauty.

And I think Suffield is exactly right. My co-blogger Ryan has written a wonderful piece on how we love to give gold stars to Bible characters. And that tendency too often leads us to draw all the wrong conclusions, sometimes missing the explicit assessment of Bible characters given in the text itself.

For example: Here is my not-at-all-controversial list of things I’ve found people typically get wrong:

Noah’s drinking wasn’t the issue; Ham’s rebellion was (Gen 9:24-25).
Abraham’s description of his wife as his sister wasn’t the issue; the evil king’s oppression was (Gen 12:17, 20:6-7, 20:18).
Jacob wasn’t as much a wicked trickster as he was a courageous fighter for the promises of God (Gen 25:34b, 32:28).
Moses: an out-of-control hothead and murderer? Try again: He was an attempted—albeit rejected—deliverer (Acts 7:24-25).

I can’t say whether Suffield would agree with all the items on my list here. But his piece on Abraham and Sarah is well-argued and worth your consideration.

Check it out!

Share or follow:

God’s Big Promises Bible Storybook: One Big Story

September 29, 2023 By Peter Krol

Among the wide variety of children’s storybook Bibles available to us today, I’m thrilled to tell you about Carl Laferton’s God’s Big Promises Bible Storybook. This is a resource that knows what it’s trying to do and accomplishes its mission with great success.

When I requested a review copy from the publisher, I saw that it weighs in at just over 400 pages. I was curious to see how overwhelming that might appear to a very young audience. What I didn’t realize until the book arrived is that the book’s actual dimensions put it closer to a pocket handbook than a typical (oversized) storybook Bible. The effect of the small size makes the hundreds of pages fly past in a very satisfying way.

The book’s general premise is that the Bible tells one big story from beginning to end. That wonderful truth has — wonderfully — become conventional wisdom these days, and it’s delightful to see the trend continue in children’s resources. Yet the unique strength of Laferton’s work is the mechanism by which he ties the entire Bible together into a single story: God’s big promises.

Laferton grabs five major promises that summarize the work of God for his people: the promises to rescue, to raise a people, to provide a good land, to bring joy and happiness, and to install a king. For each of the five promises, he marks places where the promise is made, and places where the promise is kept.

The Bible stories that contain one or more of the promises (either made or kept) are then tagged with stand-out icons in order to remind the reader of that story’s connection to the overarching story. In addition, the table of contents provides charts for the “Promise Paths,” listing which stories should be read if you want to follow a single one of the promises from beginning to end.

While I’m no art critic, I find the illustrations by Jennifer Davison to be drawn from typical perspectives, though the colors are more vibrant and appealing than I’m used to. Some terrific choices are made, such as giving the serpent legs and feet like a dragon (p.31), chain links exploding off a distant Gerasene demoniac (p.273), and a strong yet reasonable diversity of complexion and skin tone all throughout.

Regarding the text: Each of the 92 chapters is unceremoniously brief and can be read out loud in less than two minutes. Despite their brevity, the stories cover quite a bit of ground, and Laferton responsibly avoids the temptation to elaborate on the Bible’s stories for the sake of color. To give one example: You won’t find any speculation here about Moses’ childhood relationship with the Pharaoh he would later oppose. Here is a sample of the first 30 pages.

When Laferton editorializes or interprets a story, he is careful to do so the same way the Scriptures themselves do. For example, with the Good Samaritan, Laferton doesn’t get too specific or use guilt to motivate. He concludes with a simple: “The Jesus asked, ‘Which of those men was truly loving others? You go and be kind like him. People who truly love God will show it by truly loving others.'” If a parent were to doubt whether that is the proper way to conclude the story, they need only look to Luke 10:36-37 to see how closely Laferton sticks to Luke’s narrative.

As a resource that claims to present the Bible’s full storyline through the framework of God’s five big promises, God’s Big Promises Bible Storybook is a smashing success. I am happy to commend it to you. It’s best use is to read aloud to preschoolers, or to give to young elementary students to read themselves.

You can find it at Amazon, Westminster, or directly from the Good Book Company.

Disclaimers: The Good Book Company sent me a free review copy in exchange for an honest review. Amazon and Westminster links are affiliate links. Clicking them will likely provide a small commission to this blog at no extra cost to yourself. We promise, even though our promises aren’t as good as God’s.

Share or follow:

5 Good Reasons to Mark Up your Bible

September 27, 2023 By Peter Krol

Kevin Halloran wants you to mark up your Bible. Don’t be shy. We agree that it’s a worthwhile practice.

Halloran gives 5 good reasons:

Marking up my Bible helps engage me in more careful study.
Marking up my Bible helps with future reading of the Bible.
Marking up my Bible helps remember past experiences.
Marking up my Bible helps me to encourage other saints who see my marked-up pages.
Marking up my Bible is visible evidence that I treasure God’s revealed Word.

Halloran also suggests what exactly to mark when you study your Bible. For more information, check out our reasons for getting a markup Bible. If you’d like ideas for a new markup Bible, see our post comparing the options.

Check it out!

Share or follow:

Jesus is the Christ

September 25, 2023 By Ryan Higginbottom

The Anointing of David – Veronese 1555, Creative Commons

All authors employ names and titles to convey meaning in their work. The biblical writers are no exception.

I’m nearing the end of a project examining the use of titles and names for Jesus in the Gospels. My first article laid out my methodology and looked at the top 10 titles of Jesus in the Gospels. I have written about the titles of Jesus in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I will wrap up this project by looking closely at three titles of Jesus that were used frequently in the Gospels; today we’ll examine what it means for Jesus to be called “Christ.”

Not a Last Name

“Christ” is used so often to refer to Jesus in the modern church that it may be his title with which we’re most familiar. We use and hear the phrase “Jesus Christ” so frequently that we may think “Christ” is Jesus’s surname. (I’m fairly certain I thought this when I was young!)

“Christ” is the transliteration of the Greek word Christos, which means “the anointed one” or “the chosen one” (source). This is closely tied to the Hebrew word “Messiah,” and in the Gospel of John we see those terms identified (John 1:41, 4:25).

There are scenes in the Gospels where it is clear that the Jewish people were waiting for the Messiah—the Christ—to appear (John 10:24). It seems there was much debate over the lineage of the Christ and where he would originate (John 7:40–44).

The Old Testament Background

Anointing happens in the Old Testament when specific people are set apart for specific tasks. Aaron and his sons were anointed to be priests (Exodus 30:30). Isaiah and Elisha were both anointed to be prophets (Isaiah 61:1, 1 Kings 19:16). And both Saul and David were anointed to be kings over Israel (1 Samuel 10:1, 16:13).

In the Old Testament, God gave many promises to Israel of a Savior to come. The expectation of this coming Redeemer, and the understanding of the need for this person to be sent and designated by God for a special purpose, produced the anticipation for The Anointed One. This notion of Messiah was carried into the New Testament.

Usage in the Gospels

Matthew and Mark both open their Gospels by referring to Jesus as the Christ (Matthew 1:1, Mark 1:1). Luke writes that an angel appeared to the shepherds when Jesus was born, telling them of a “Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). John uses “Christ” not only as a title near the beginning of his Gospel but also when disclosing the purpose of his work (John 1:17, 20:31). All four Gospel writers are eager to introduce Jesus as the Messiah.

Further, Peter’s confession of Jesus—his response to the question, “But who do you say that I am?”—rests on this title. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (See Matthew 16:16, Mark 8:29, and Luke 9:20.) John also records Jesus referring to himself as “Christ” toward the beginning of his high priestly prayer, (John 17:3).

We also read of the connection between Jesus and the Messianic figure of the Old Testament. In Luke 4:16–21, Jesus read from Isaiah 61:1–2 and told those who were listening, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” This Old Testament passage describes a prophet “anointed” by God and sent with his Spirit. And while it is not in a Gospel, Peter and John identify Jesus as the Anointed One of Psalm 2 in Acts 4:26.

Conclusion

In the first century, the Jewish people were waiting for a Messiah. They knew that the Anointed One they sought would be sent and prepared by God for great things.

The title “Christ” is used for Jesus 35 times in the Gospels. These authors use this title to connect Jesus to all of the promises of God he fulfilled.

Share or follow:

Can You Focus on the Bible Too Much?

September 22, 2023 By Peter Krol

In a recent conversation, a respectable gentleman accused me of coming dangerously close to “bibliolatry.” Bibliolatry means “worshiping the book,” and the term usually refers to the practice of revering the Bible too highly. According to Wikipedia (that never-ending fount of contemporary insight), the term may characterize “either extreme devotion to the Bible or the doctrine of biblical inerrancy.”

I’ve heard such comments before, particularly from young people who want to follow God but who don’t want to study the Bible. The thinking goes like this: “The Bible is good, but you shouldn’t focus on it too much.”

Now the argument isn’t always sophomoric. Some time ago, the evangelical philosopher J.P. Moreland delivered a paper to the Evangelical Theological Society, arguing against “the idea that the Bible is the sole source of knowledge of God, morality, and a host of related important items.” He’s concerned with Christians who take the Bible to be “the sole source of authority for faith and practice. Applied to inerrancy, the notion is that the Bible is the sole source of such knowledge and authority.” Moreland clearly believes the Bible to be both inerrant and final in its authority. But, he says, if Christians consider it to be the only authority for faith and practice—that is, for the Christian life—they are “over-committed” to it.

So is it possible (and unhelpful) to focus too much on the Bible?

The Easy Answer

Of course it’s possible.

Jesus often clashed with other teachers who focused too much on the Bible. In one noteworthy example, he staked the following claim:

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.
John 5:39-40

In one sense, Jesus hoped they’d focus more on him than on the Scriptures.

The Difficult Answer

But in another sense, Jesus clearly drew attention to himself by drawing more attention to the Scriptures. Notice the immediately preceding verses:

And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent.
John 5:37-38

Jesus accused the Bible-focusers of not hearing God’s voice. They didn’t see his form. He had already borne witness to the Messiah in his word, but that word hadn’t landed in their hearts. They read the Bible. They studied it and memorized it. But they didn’t believe in Jesus, its principal subject.

Jesus goes on to say, “I do not receive glory from people…How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God” (John 5:41-44)? They loved the Bible because it gave them glory. They could win at Bible Trivia. People spoke highly of their knowledge and authority in spiritual matters. They had earned titles of honor and respect, and, as a result, the general public revered them

Jesus wanted them to seek glory, just not their own. They should seek the glory that comes from the only God. That is, they should seek Jesus, the one who came from God (John 5:37) and revealed his glory (John 1:14). And how would they do this? Not by abandoning the Scriptures but by reading them more—more clearly, more frequently, more passionately. “For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me” (John 5:46).

In other words, the solution for “over-commitment” to the Bible is not to reduce your commitment to the Bible. The solution is to take your commitment to the Bible in a different direction: toward Jesus.

In that sense, it’s not possible to focus too much on the Bible. Not unless it’s possible to focus too much on Jesus.

Thanks for visiting Knowable Word! If you like this article, you might be interested in receiving regular updates from us. You can sign up for our email list (enter your address in the box on the upper right of this page), follow us on Facebook or Twitter, or subscribe to our RSS feed.

Share or follow:

« Previous Page