The Authority of the Bible

Hey there, blog friends. I’ve been asked to blog some regarding my thoughts on some of the Baptist Distinctives. These are my opinions and are no way representative of the group as a whole. They are, however, a place for discussion to begin. So I’ll hopefully write a series of posts on each of these distinctives over the next several days.

First up: the authority of the Bible. In some ways, this doesn’t seem to be that “distinctive” at all. Doesn’t every Christian denomination or group attribute some sort of significance and importance to the Bible? And wasn’t it people like Martin Luther and John Calvin making the cry of sola Scriptura before the Baptist movement really took root? How can the authority of the Bible really be claimed as something distinctive to Baptists?

I want to suggest that the authority of the Bible for Baptists is different (distinct, if you will) from the way that other Christian groups read the Bible in at least two ways and then suggest some possible issues for those of us that are Baptists and read the Bible as a guide:

1. Baptists (and Anabaptists) have historically emphasized Bible study to a higher degree than other Christian denominations. I don’t want to turn this into a name-calling match. And I’m certainly not wanting this to be a “we’re better than you” sort of section, either. I’m simply stating as fact of practice that the Baptist denominations, particularly Southern Baptists, have emphasized personal Bible study for years, beginning with their part in the Sunday School movement during the frontier days of America. Prior to that, of course, Anabaptist groups, particularly the Moravians, went to great lengths to insist that each day should begin with prayer and study of the Scriptures, encouraging their members to practice focused meditation on a verse each day. (This practice was carried on by other Anabaptist groups and so impressed the Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer that he decided to incorporate it into his underground seminary in WWII Germany.) Clearly there is plenty of room for improvement among Baptists and their biblical literacy, but compared with other denominations, particularly mainline denominations, Baptists have a higher level of biblical knowledge and reading frequency. That has been part of the group’s DNA from the beginning.

2. Baptists have read the Bible as having immediate and practical implications on their contemporary context. Rather than attempting to explain away difficult passages, Baptists have looked to apply even the most stringent portions of Scripture at times. This, of course, has not always worked out well. The more recent movement toward fundamentalism with Baptist life began because of what some conservatives saw as a simple rejection of Scriptural application. Despite this flaw, however, Baptists have read the Bible as Jim McClendon notes, with a “this is that” and “then is now” mentality. Thus Baptists read Acts 2 and see “this” (our church) is “that” (their early church). And, consequently, “then” (the apostles’ day) has application “now” (in our contemporary context). While this seems basic to a life-long Baptist, it really is shocking to someone outside the fold, particularly those who are not Christians. To allow an ancient text to speak so directly on matters as various as politics, dress, money, sex, and family is foreign to our culture.

These two original ways of reading the Scripture, however, have not been without troubles. I want to suggest two modifications of the way that Baptists read the Bible in order to be more effective practitioners of the Scripture:

1. Keeping in mind priesthood of the believer/soul competency, I want to suggest that while individual Bible study is extremely important, Baptists would do well to foster reading and study within community. Clearly Sunday School/small groups are a key part of this strategy, but I want to further suggest that our interpretation of the Bible is better when we ask others to help us understand what it means. In other words, a dialogical approach to the Bible is superior to a solo reading because it allows the Holy Spirit to work through many voices and perspectives rather than one.

2. Baptists should read the Bible with Jesus as the interpretive lens. When some argue for allowing “Scripture to interpret Scripture,” I want to suggest that Jesus is the interpretive “trump card” for our understanding of the rest of the Bible. In other words, Levitical law cannot, nor should not, be read in the same manner as the Sermon on the Mount. If we theologically uphold that Jesus is the most complete revelation of God through His Incarnation, then we must uphold that his teachings stand above any part of Scripture that seem to contradict him. Consequently, the story of Jesus stands as the centerpiece of the story of Scripture and should be read as such. These are just some thoughts to get us talking. So…let’s hear from you!

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Tags: Baptist Distinctives, Bible, Scripture

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