Every now and then one calls in to question the things he has been taught, sometimes deliberately or reactively. But every now and then, as is the case here, these questions are seemingly raised by pure accident.
Today’s question: The Holiness of the Bible.
Traditional Evangelicals have revered the Bible as God’s Holy Word. A statement held so firmly that many Bibles even print it on the cover: Holy Bible. My question is what makes it Holy? Is it innately Holy? Is the Bible the Word (Logos) made paper? Should we revere the Bible as we do God?
My opinion: Not exactly.
My central postulate is this: Nothing is Holy but God. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are alone Holy. However, God has chosen to reveal Himself in many ways, and whenever He does so, the objects/people/places in question become Holy. They are Holy simply because of the Holy God they reveal.
There was nothing special about the ground around the burning bush, but God told Moses to remove his sandals. The place where he was standing was Holy ground because it was where God chose to reveal Himself.
The tabernacle was Holy because it was the meeting place of God. Each step closer to the center (where God most fully revealed himself) became incrementally more Holy and Sacred.
The Bible is itself Holy simply because it reveals a Holy God.
Some will say that many other Christian works throughout the centuries have also revealed God to us. Works by such individuals as Calvin, Luther, Lewis, Augustine, Edwards, Piper, etc have all revealed God to us. Are they then equal to Scripture?
No. Jesus, Himself, held the Scriptures to be the Word of God. He did not equate them with other works and nor should we. The Bible is the unique work of God penned as the only infallible account of the revelation of God. God’s divine hand orchestrated the writing of these 66 books to be the only perfect expression of God’s revelation to man.
Many other works have been written that enable us to clearly see our God; however, none but the Bible is inerrant.
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Thank you to Josh and Greg who both helped spark my thinking in this area. Though these may not be your thoughts or conclusions, you helped jumpstart this train of thought.
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Secondary Conclusion: If the basic postulate is true: “Something is Holy inasmuch as it is the revelation of God” then the same is true for us. God has removed our sin and made us Holy. Which means we now exist to broadcast the nature of God both as a body and as individuals. We are only Holy inasmuch as we are the revelation of God.
Monday, January 7, 2008
The Word Made Flesh
Posted by Josh at 10:54 AM
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2 comments:
I agree that we should not hold the Bible as a physical book as essentially holy. This is what Sikhs do. They make their holy scriptures into an idol; they revere the book, not the god behind the book.
Your secondary conclusion is interesting, because if it is true, what does that imply for experience and tradition? For if God reveals Himself to us through our experiences, and the Church is his bride and part of his redemptive plan, then they, too, are holy. You say above that the scriptures are the only infallible witness to God (of course, one might argue that Jesus was only speaking of the OT) . In what other ways might you defend this idea? You assert it as true, and I agree, but why is it true? It seems that this is an integral part of your argument.
Also, a remark on grammar: The word "none" takes its verb in the singular. None is inerrant, not, none are inerrant. I know that I can mention this to you, because I am still indebted to you for teaching me the difference between "less" and "fewer"!
Jon,
Thanks for your comment and for expanding my thinking to include tradition and experiences. I think those can definately be holy when the reveal a holy God. I know I have had my share of "holy moments" where God was more real to me than before.
To answer your question regarding the supiriority of the Scriptures, I will have to give that more thought.
I have heard the arguments regarding the internal and external evidence of the Bible and the unity of the Old and New Testaments, but I think there is much more to be said on that subject than will fit in this reply.
I supremely valid question. One which must be answered in the life of every believer. This believer is still wading through it. (While still unswervingly attesting to it's truth.) :)
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