The Bible in Perspective
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The Bible is probably one of the most controversial books of all time. Its contents have been hotly debated for centuries on all fronts - historically, archeologically, philosophically, and theologically. It has been used to inspire great acts of compassion and love, as well as to justify unspeakable acts of hate and violence. It has brought people together in unity and brotherhood and it’s caused deep division and discord.
Some see the Bible as the divinely dictated, perfect word of God and therefore, they believe it must be taken literally and followed to the letter. Others believe it is the imagined ramblings of an unenlightened, ancient people searching for answers to explain their world and therefore, they think it has no relevance in our time.
But must we only interpret the Bible in these black and white terms? Is it possible to view the relevance of the Bible from a different perspective? Jesus said the scriptures; the Hebrew Bible; our Old Testament, pointed to Him (John 5:39, John 5:46, Luke 24:27). Jesus valued the scriptures because He said they speak about Him and tell the story of what God has been up to in the world from the beginning. He also said that until He came, humanity had been living in darkness - unable to see or hear clearly or understand fully - and that He had come as a Light so that humanity would not have to stay in darkness (John 12:46).
Perhaps, Jesus was saying that our Creator God has been reaching toward humanity from the beginning; wanting to be near us, attempting to communicate with us, longing to restore His creation and our relationship with Him; but before Jesus came to open our eyes, ears, and minds, people had not always been able to fully understand God’s message. It was as if we were seeing through a clouded lens. Humanity had been listening and recording their interpretations of God and what He was doing, within their understanding of their world; their “wineskins” so to speak.
Scholars tell us that the Bible we read today, is actually a compilation of different writings; poems, stories, letters, etc., written by different authors for different purposes at different times; inspired by God but written, compiled, interpreted, and translated over time, by brilliant, Spirit-led, yet imperfect people, living within the context of their own cultural worldview.
Given all of that, it isn’t unreasonable to assume that the Bible might contain some human misconceptions, misinterpretations and incomplete understandings about who God is, and the story He has been telling about what He is up to in this world. If we take Jesus at His word, that scripture has been pointing to Him all along, then instead of throwing the whole thing out because we found some inconsistencies or misinterpretations, we are compelled to dig deeper into the story, to really engage with it and meditate on it, to discover what Jesus means. We are invited to “think bigger” about what we read in the Old Testament, so that we can uncover the signs and symbols that have been leading us to Jesus and His message from the beginning. If God is the storyteller, then He can choose to tell the story through flawed humanity and still get His message across.
The gospel writers were convinced that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Old Testament story and that one of the reasons Jesus came, was to reveal the truth of what God had been trying to communicate to us all along – to actually BE the Word of God to humanity (John 1:1). If that’s the case, then the message of Jesus, His words and His ways, become the lens through which we must read everything else. We need to read it, “in the Light” so to speak, to see and understand the overarching story of God’s love for us and what He wants humanity to know.
If Jesus is the way to bring some clarity to our reading of the Bible, then the biographies of His life, the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, are of paramount importance to our understanding of everything else. Scholars say the gospels are the most reliable narrative account we have of what Jesus revealed through His words and actions as He walked among us.
Some have debated the reliability of the gospel accounts and the letters written by Jesus’ earliest followers. Others have made a case for the inclusion of other writings as well.
We can leave that debate to the professors, theologians, and historians who are far more well-versed in biblical scholarship. Many of them have interesting and challenging books, videos, and podcasts if you want to investigate the subject further. There’s a listing of a few of these on the SING website: singlovelouder.com if you’re interested.
It really comes down to this, if we’re committed to listening to the message of Jesus, then we’ll need to stand on the assumption that the New Testament gives us a credible picture of what Jesus said and did in the first century as well as what His followers continued to say and do.
If we’ll believe the gospel writers, that Jesus is the Word of God to humanity, then reading the Bible in His Light should help us gain a better understanding of the story God has been trying to tell us all along. It will also help us to sort out the misinterpretations and the misconceptions that were written before and after “The Light” came into the world.
Now, I realize that some may see this as “cherry picking” - only accepting the parts of the Bible that say what we want to hear. The thing is, if you’re picking fruit, you’d better have a clear idea of what “good fruit” looks like. Those who follow Jesus believe He is the model of “good fruit”. We hold His words higher than all others and evaluate all of what we read and see by His model. That means we can’t be afraid to set aside or reinterpret the “fruit” that doesn’t measure up, even if it’s “biblical”. We won’t allow “words written in the dark” to outweigh “The Word spoken by The Light”.
You may have strong feelings about the Bible, especially if you’ve been subjected to the old song of religious judgement. It may have been used to cause pain or condemnation in your life or the lives of those you love. If that’s the case, perhaps, seeing it through a different lens may change the way you view it. It might give you a fresh perspective; a new “wineskin”. Allowing Jesus to interpret it in His Light can make all the difference.