How do I approach the Bible, especially with an aim to apply it in the shaping of my life, my community, my family, my church, and my ministry? Here is a guiding sentence I am building to work within:
The Bible sufficiently reveals God’s character and purposes, offering precise application in areas God desires His purposes precisely applied, and allowing for broad application where precise application is lacking or unclear.
Such precise application is a gift and should be carefully and eagerly applied; carefully because there is no need to apply precise instruction more broadly than it’s required, and eagerly because God’s purpose has been clearly revealed and can be clearly applied.
Further clarifications:
It is not a textbook: Importantly, the Bible is not a reference work and should never be read as such. Each verse has contextualized meaning within chapters, books, and the entire work of inerrant Scripture. This contextualized meaning needs to be understood according to good hermeneutic practices and interpreted within its own culture, genre, purpose and form. There is much more to be said about this, for later posts.
It is sufficient: Jesus talks about the completeness and sufficiency of the law in Matthew 5:17-20, and in the context of the Sermon on the Mount, we can’t underestimate these verses. The Psalmist cries out in 119:160 that “The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.” The Bible contains all that we need to fully understand God and His Will, to the extent that He desires we understand. We require no additional revelation, though I believe God can offer additional revelation according to His will. But the Bible is sufficient to produce communities and Christ followers who are fully faithful, and no more is needed before the return of Christ (and perhaps even thereafter).
It is not exhaustive: While entirely sufficient, there is so much the Bible doesn’t contain. Certainly about nature and science and mathematics and so many other good realms of human exploration, but also morality and even God’s character. To assume that an infinite God could be fully revealed in a finite book would be silly; the Bible is not exhaustive but it is sufficient. This means there may be unanswered questions about God’s nature or character, and there may be unanswered or unclear answers for questions that are immediately important in the life of a believer. Simply because Scripture is sufficient does not mean we should expect it to explicitly answer every situation we face. We should never squeeze a passage to fit a situation, assuming that Scripture would address everything. Instead, we should respond wisely.
It provides and produces wisdom: In places where we need answers to unanswered questions, Scripture maintains its sufficiency by producing wisdom. Psalm 119, that great love song to the law, speaks over and over again that God’s Law gives clarity and precise commands (vs 5-6 – “Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your states! Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments.” v 93 – “I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.”). But it also says that a knowledge of God’s Word produces something else – wisdom. vs 97-98 “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me.” v 130 “The unfolding of your words gives light, it imparts understanding to the simple.” There is a principle here that knowing, meditating on, and soaking in Scripture will form our actions and attitudes to an extent that we are able to respond Christianly even in situations where there is not explicit stated Christian response – because we are wise. Those responses in turn are not inspired, nor are they right for all people and across all time. Rather, by God’s grace and faithfulness, they are wise for that situation, time, and person.
It is helpful: 2 Timothy 3:16, perhaps one of the more poignant passages on Scripture itself, says that it is “all Scripture is… profitable.” It is helpful. It has a purpose. That is not to say it is all equally weighty – there are more important and less important verses, chapters, and books in the Bible. But there are no unimportant verses, chapters, or books in the Bible.
It is accurate: This is clearly taught in Scripture, whether from Jesus’ words, his vast use of Scriptural quotation, or his statement to the Father in John 17 that, “your Word is truth.” 2 Timothy 3 states that “all Scripture is breathed out by God.” It is implied by Scripture’s use of Scripture. Inerrancy is a good word here, but I like accuracy and coherence as well. More could be said.
It is complex: I have a particular love for Peter’s words in 2 Peter 3:15-16, in which he comments on Paul’s writings by saying, “there are some things in them that are hard to understand.” Such a testimony, from such a close source – and a first rate theologian at that! The words of Scripture are complex, and should not be taken lightly or flippantly. Adding to the primary complexity, we operate with 2,000 year old translations, attempting to navigate a language we don’t precisely understand and interpreting through a cultural lens that is often too vague or removed. To understate the complexity of Scripture is foolish; that complexity should keep us humble, teachable, curious, and dependent on God’s leading as we read any passage of Scripture. We should pray with the Psalmist, “Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love, and teach me your statutes. I am your servant; give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies!” (Psalm 119:124-125).
There is a lot more that can be said – that will be said – about Scripture. I’ll continue to refine my initial statement, and seek to apply it as I work through next questions.
Questions and Follow-up:
Content for future posts:
How does external sources and context affect interpretation? How do we maintain the primacy of Scripture when the meaning is affected by ostensibly non-inspired external sources?
How should culturally coded passages be interpreted? How do we determine when a passage is culturally coded, and how do we understand those passages in light of the above list? (ie “kiss of peace”)
How do I talk about and think about canonization?
How broadly applicable to the whole of the Bible (as understood by the modern protestant canon) are different statements in Scripture about parts of the Bible – such as “the law,” “Moses and the prophets,” “God’s Word,” etc? Many of the passages listed above are pointing towards segments of Scripture – is it fair to extrapolate their meaning across all inspired Scripture when that was not necessarily the intention of the human author?
What are the implications of God’s self-revelation as story, rather than merely law, list, or exposition? What can we learn about God, following God, and being His people when we consider the nature of Scripture as a whole?
How does I express the state of revelation? The canon is closed – what is the nature of ongoing revelation?