The Authority and Power of the Bible (Part 3)

Today’s reading is a continuation of Section 2 of the Lausanne Covenant - The Authority and Power of the Bible. Read Here.

The message of the Bible is addressed to all men and women. For God’s revelation in Christ and in Scripture is unchangeable. Through it the Holy Spirit still speaks today. He illumines the minds of God’s people in every culture to perceive its truth freshly through their own eyes and thus discloses to the whole Church ever more of the many-colored wisdom of God.

The Interpretation of the Bible

A paradox is presented here. On one hand, the message of the Bible is the same for all people, in all places, at all times. God’s revelation in Christ and in Scripture never changes. It ‘cannot be broken’ (John 10:35, compare Mathew 5:17-18). It has been given to us ‘once for all’ and cannot be altered (Jude 3). And because it is God’s truth, it has a universal message for all people everywhere.

On the other hand, this truth does not have lifeless or colourless uniformity. Just as the Holy Spirit used the personality and culture of the biblical writers to communicate God’s Word in ways that were fresh and appropriate, he also opens the minds of believers in every generation and culture to understand its truth anew. It is the Spirit who opens the eyes of our hearts (Ephesians 1:17-18), and these eyes and hearts belong to young and old, Latin and Anglo-Saxon, African, Asian and American, male and female, poetic and practical thinkers alike.

The Holy Spirit uses this diversity of humanity to reveal from Scripture ever more of the many coloured wisdom of God (a literal translation of Ephesians 3:10). This means that the whole church is needed to receive the whole revelation of God in all its beauty and richness (‘with all the saints’ Ephesians 3:18). Because of this, each culture and nation must be willing to share with the broader church the insights and gifts God has given them.

Reflection:

How can you value both the unchanging truth of Scripture and the diverse insights of God’s global church?

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, open my heart to your Word and teach me through the wisdom that comes through your global church.