Knowing The Bible Or Living The Teachings
The phrase the Word of God was always used to refer to Jesus Christ, in the same vein as was used by the writers of the Gospel of John, e.g., the Living Word. The use of the phrase the Word of God as a description of the Bible did not come into play until well after the Protestant Reformation (in the1500s). Neither Martin Luther nor John Calvin, the two pillars of Protestant theology, referred to the Scriptures as the Word of God. That was a phrase reserved only as a description of Jesus. When viewed within the timeframe of the last 2,000 years, the phenomenon of referring to the Bible as the Word of God occurred rather recently.
Coming from a Reformed Protestant theological background, my perspective is admittedly “tinted.” Traditional reformed theology has declared that the only final authority for faith is not the Bible but the Holy Spirit making the love of God in Christ come alive in a person. To attribute the term, the Word of God, to the Bible has been a relatively recent phenomenon.
In our contemporary society, the Word of God means one of two things:
• If the Scriptures are regarded as literally inerrant, then the writers or sources are but transparent beings through which God himself wrote the Bible. In this manner the Scriptures have become the “final authority” in matters of faith and practice. The Scriptures are the Word of God.
• If the Holy Spirit aids us in exercising discriminatory judgment when reading the Scriptures, then the ability to think of the biblical sources as real people becomes absolutely critical in the process of making their faith, belief, and practices our own. The Bible, then, tells the story of God’s revealing activity in and through men and women, which enables God’s spirit to reveal his activity in and through you.
I believe the historical and literary evidence supports the second viewpoint.
Finally I understood how idiotic I was being. After eating many, many slices of humble pie I relaxed and found myself enjoying simply being one of the herd – growing, morphing, changing, becoming transformed from the inside out.
Blessings, Don
March 14, 2024
Is there a difference between knowing, understanding, and living the Bible?
Studies show the number of people consuming the Bible while recognizing the difference between a literal translation and a symbolic translation is growing.
Knowing the Bible means having a deep understanding of the teachings and stories found within its pages. It means having a familiarity with the Bible’s characters, stories, and teachings, and being able to apply them to our own lives. Understanding the Bible has several aspects, one of which is relating to it, understanding how its teachings are relevant in today’s world, and being able to draw on its wisdom to make decisions.
Living the Bible becomes a way of life based on imbibing the teachings nurtured with your individual faith. For many people, this is exemplified in living according to the moral principles found in the Bible, such as loving others, being honest, and treating everyone with respect.
Living the teachings in the Bible also means being open to God’s will and guidance. This means seeking God’s will in all actions and making decisions based on what is right and good rather than what is convenient or popular. It also means putting God first in all areas of life, such as finances, relationships, and work.
In my book, I talk about the importance of recognizing that characters in the Bible are worthy of integrating with our cognizant awareness in an effort to personalize our faith.
Donald L. O'Dell
August 31, 2023
Finally I understood how idiotic I was being. After eating many, many slices of humble pie I relaxed and found myself enjoying simply being one of the herd – growing, morphing, changing, becoming transformed from the inside out.
Blessings, Don
March 14, 2024
