The Bible is described in a variety of different ways. Outside of Christianity, it has been called many things from outdated and irrelevant to dangerous. This is to be expected since it is designed to be read with the Holy Spirit. The Bible itself describes these interpretations in 1 Corinthians 1:18 and 2:14. The descriptions below focus on the well-meaning definitions heard inside the Christian community. Each of these descriptions have portions of truth, but I believe there is a deeper purpose for the Bible best described as God’s words to us. If you haven’t read it, please start with the full description here: What is the Bible? – Part 1: A Note to Christians – Growing In the Spirit
Instruction Manual – The Bible has many instructions in it, but it is hard to say that we follow the Bible as a literal instruction manual for life. If the Bible was purely an instruction manual, we should do everything in it. 1 Corinthians 11, says that women should cover their heads. In Joshua 6, when the walls of Jericho came down, God commanded the Israelites to kill every living thing inside: men, women, children and livestock. We explain some of these things away as not being relevant to our lives today, but that just reinforces that the Bible’s purpose cannot primarily be an instruction manual for our lives.
History Book – The Bible contains lots of history, and we are continually finding evidence that events in the Bible occurred in real parts of our history. There is a fundamental problem with believing that the Bible is primarily a history book. History books tell us about what happened in the past. They do not tell us what to do today, or what is to come in the future. Treating it as a history book opens it up to unnecessary scrutiny that weakens its purpose. A well-intentioned friend once told me, “How can you believe that a book written so long ago doesn’t need to be updated to be relevant today?” The answer is that it written under the direction of the timeless Holy Spirit, and the same Holy Spirit keeps it relevant by directing us to the verses we need to see.
Something to believe in – I regularly hear in Christian circles “I believe in the Bible,” or “We are a Bible believing church.” This sounds nice, but there is something very concerning with it. By saying this, we are treating the book itself as Holy, rather than God the author. We replace God with an idol that God gave us. I believe the Bible is accurate and complete, but it is not truth in itself. The danger in saying the Bible itself is truth is that we risk carrying it around, keeping the gold edges pretty and trusting in the Bible’s power (nothing in the paper) rather than God’s power. Jesus specifically warned us about this danger.
”You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,“
– Jesus, John 5:39
God’s Word (Word of God) – This expression is technically accurate, but it can easily give the Bible a master/slave feeling. You must obey what is in the Bible because it is the Word of God. It portrays that it is a commandment that must be done out of compulsion.
Inaccurate – There are two main ways the Bible could be described as inaccurate. First, for those that believe that the Bible was written by flawed men that liked God, it would be reasonable for people to think the Bible had errors. The Bible was written at the hands of people under the direction of the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16). This ensures that the written words were true and interconnected across the many writers. Second, the original words have been translated to many languages and versions by men. While I trust that God does guide the translators, it is easy for personal opinion to sneak into the translations. By definition, some translations are sentence by sentence or thought by thought. These versions add the translator’s belief into the words of the translation and can be filled with errors. I recommend a translation that stays as word for word as possible. This ensures that you can see and hear God’s actual words rather than having them clouded behind another person’s interpretation.
I encourage you to get more comfortable being confused by God’s actual words than to be misled by the interpretation of confident men.
Only Partially Relevant – Many Christian circles dismiss the Old Testament as outdated and fully replaced by the New Testament. While Jesus did come to fulfill the prophecies in the Old Testament, God is the author of both the Old and New. When you read the Old Testament listening for what God wants to say, you will find brilliance in the lessons of the past. You will hear God’s desire for all people to know Him, and you will see an incredible picture of the Israelites describing as a nation the relationship that God spiritually wants to have with us today.
