the problem of biblical illiteracy

The "just love Jesus and don't worry your pretty little head about doctrine" mentality - which is all too common among us today - has led to a virtual famine of biblical understanding in the modern world. We no longer know what the Bible says, and we no longer care.

We are becoming a biblically illiterate culture; and that at a time when we are patting ourselves on the back for our rediscovery of spirituality.

We live in very dangerous times. As I watch Christian culture, read its books and magazines, and listen to its sermons, I am dismayed. The established Christian culture in the world today is becoming shameless in its worldliness; it is becoming silly - to the point of idiotic - in its foolishness; it is becoming openly hostile to what is true; it is becoming proud of its pseudo-virtues - anti-intellectualism, opposition to doctrinal purity, and theological relativism; and it is becoming unreachable in its blindness. Modern Christian culture has lost its way.

I do not believe it is an exaggeration to say that modern Christian culture has completely cut itself off from the faith of the New Testament and has fashioned for itself an entirely different faith -- one the apostles would not recognize. Consequently, life is becoming spiritually treacherous. There are fewer and fewer support structures for those who want to believe and hope in the truth of the gospel as taught in the Bible. It will be manifestly miraculous if any of us persevere in a straightforward, uncompromised belief in the biblical gospel in the days that lie ahead.

From a human perspective, the only way any of us is going to survive is by grounding ourselves in the truth; the best way we can become grounded in the truth is by becoming grounded in the teaching of the Bible; and the only way we can become grounded in the teaching of the Bible is by making its study a priority. And I do mean its study.

To a quick and casual glance, the text of the Bible is utterly opaque. A surface look at the text only shows me the reflection of my own prejudices, preconceptions, doctrines, and beliefs bouncing back at me off the seemingly impenetrable surface of the text's incomprehensible language. But to understand the Bible's actual message, I must work hard to see past the seemingly impenetrable surface to the text's intended meaning and the Bible's intended message. I know that it is difficult. I know that it takes time - a lifetime is not time enough. I know that it is painful and arduous and tedious and scary--it is all of that. But the reward could not be greater. It is worth the effort, and we desperately need to make the effort.

the decision to pursue truth - and serious bible study

We live in a culture that values a fit and trim body so highly that we will exert great effort and devote a tremendous amount of time and energy to whipping our bodies into shape. But relatively few of us will exert an equal amount of effort and devote an equal amount of time to whipping our souls into shape. We are not compelled to study the Bible and assimilate its truth into our souls. We devote more energy to the maintenance and adornment of our houses doomed to be gone tomorrow than we do to our souls which will last forever.

Christian leaders today emphasize spiritual disciplines and worship. These same leaders are largely silent about the importance of Bible study. If they mention the Bible at all, it is as a prop for their spiritual disciplines; it is not the centerpiece of their strategy for promoting spirituality. That is a huge mistake.

"Worship" and "spiritual disciplines" are false shortcuts to a pseudo-spirituality. They are hip and trendy. But they are worthless as real solutions to what spiritually ails us.

An encounter with God in worship is not going to save my soul; a receptive response to the truth of the gospel will save my soul.

A deeper consciousness of the eternal is not going to impart wisdom to me; a thorough grasp of the divine understanding of reality revealed in the Scriptures will impart wisdom.

Beating and starving my body will not feed my soul; reflecting on the truth of the gospel in the midst of the sorrow and suffering of everyday life will feed my soul.

A fresh and dramatic vision of the transcendent face of God is not going to cleanse my soul of impurity; rather, the hard, existential decision to make righteousness the defining essence of my life will cleanse my soul.

The lack of spirituality in our culture is really a very simple problem. We are a people who stubbornly refuse to confront the truth and do business with it; we are a people who refuse to acknowledge the truth as truth and embrace it with all our soul. The solution, therefore, is simple: we must repent! We must change our minds and make a different choice. We must decide to pursue truth (and the best and most direct way to do that is by pursuing an understanding of the Bible), and we must decide to embrace it with our whole being and to live our lives in the light of that truth. Nothing more-and nothing less-is needed. May God help us all to make that very choice for ourselves.

page 4

by date
by topic