There is something
going on in Christianity today that is very troubling. Biblical illiteracy is
rampant in spite of an unparalleled proliferation of biblical data in human
history. My pastor was speaking on this matter of biblical illiteracy recently when
he related a story about when he attended a conference where one of the keynote
speakers was a famous Bible educator who was asked the most concerning thing in
Christianity today. He answered without hesitation, biblical illiteracy. He
claimed that a person today can go through the system and earn a Ph.D. and learn
nothing of God. It reveals how far our country has strayed from its
Judeo-Christian roots. My concern is with Christianity going carnal, secular,
humanistic, and apostate.
According to Billy
Graham, 95% of all our troubles are the result of a lack of Bible study and
reading. If this is even close to being accurate, this means the bulk of our
issues in life are brought on by us! Are
we stupid or what?! The ways in which we
treat the Bible nowadays may be indicative of that very thing; we’re stupid! The
Bible is being treated like the classics. You know the definition of a classic,
right? Everybody has heard about it, but very few have read it. And many of
those reading the Bible are failing to appropriate its life principles in their
daily walk. This is so self-evident that there is no need for judging; it’s
fact. Now here is the kicker; the Bible still remains the number one bestseller of all time! Go figure!
I have been dwelling
on this very subject over the past couple of years to the point I must sound like a broken vinyl record on a
record player; you know, one of those devices of antiquities, the phonograph? Something
is driving biblical illiteracy in our culture. It didn’t happen overnight, but
it is progressing along with the birthrate. This prevailing biblical ignorance of
Christianity in America is a symptom of a deeper problem rooted within the
heart.
Do we really expect
those outside of Christ to read the Bible? A lost man is not going to
acknowledge and comply with the principles of the Bible as the source of authority
in all matters of faith and practice anyway. That’s a given; and he or she cannot
for the very simple theological reason that unregenerate mankind does not possess
the Holy Spirit within the heart (Jude 1:19;1 Cor 2:14; Jn 15:5). The value a believer once placed upon the importance and need of the
teaching of Scripture in the daily routine of life is eroding away, slowly but surely. If he or she sees little
urgency in understanding and applying the truth of God’s Word, that attitude or example will be passed on to the children at least passively.
We got a situation on our hands,
folks! If the church as a collective body of believers is under attack as being
irrelevant; the belief of the individual believer is under siege as well, and we know that
the Bible is constantly being challenged as to its veracity and validity under
the scrutiny of everyday life. Humanism sees no need of it, and as strange as this may sound, many believers
are in some sense nothing more than practical atheist living out life as if God does not exist; there is little to no awareness or acknowledgement of His presence in the world and with His children.The
natural offshoot of this lifestyle is the marginalizing of His Word, out of
sight (God) out of mind (His Word).
Rebellious believers
cannot obey what they refuse to know, and nobody needs to tell us that ignorance of the law
is no excuse; we've heard that mantra all of our lives, but even that has fallen upon deaf ears. Such reluctance to know and obey the Scripture as I indicated earlier is a problem of the heart. According to
Jesus there is a love connection, an expression of love toward God in keeping His Word
(Cf. Jn 14:15). So allow me to categorically state that I believe Bible illiteracy among believers to be a love problem, generally
speaking, and a violation of command one (Mt 22:37, 38) which is reflected in
command two (Mt 22:39, 40). Let’s face it; we are all ignorant to some extent
of the Scriptures, but that is not the same as those who only crack open the
Book in times of crisis or special occasions, or attend church once per
quarter, and Christmas, Easter, weddings, or funerals.
The religious leaders
of Jesus’ day were guilty of making the commandments of God null and void
through their traditions (Mk 7:9, 13; Titus 1:14). We, on the other hand, are ignoring the reading, studying, and appropriating of biblical truth along
with considering God’s commands as optional; in a similar vein we, too, are guilty of making the Word of God of none effect or useless. God’s Word is taking a backseat to other
agendas. For the Jews it was their traditions, for us, it is the things of the world.
Either way, the Lord does not have preeminence in our lives (cf. Col 1:18), and His Word
is being treated as irrelevant giving rise to biblical ignorance. I am not talking about “scholarly” knowledge, but knowing how to work the Word in a
way pleasing to the Lord (cf. Rom 12:2; 2 Tim 2:15, KJV; 2 Tim 3:17; 2 Pet
3:18).
Treating the Bible as
irrelevant doesn’t make it so (cf. Lk 21:33). According to Scripture there is nothing to
compare to it (Psa 19:9-11; 119:72, 127; Prov 8:11; 16:16). But that is not
how most Christians value the Good Book. For many, it is nothing more than a bunch of rules and
restrictions! Nothing could be further from the truth.
Have you ever wondered why
carnality thrives in a culture where everything is relative? It is because the
Bible is considered just another part of “everything.” It is just another "self-help" book on how to
live, but it is not seriously considered the authority in all matters of
faith and practice. Taking what you like
and disregarding the rest is the general approach today. This is why cafeteria-styled Christianity thrives in
such a secular culture. It is so philosophically convenient, and people want
more and more options available to them as churches clamor to occupy the seats.
Believers simply pick and choose what to observe and what to ignore or reject
without any accountability.
Doing that which is right in our own eyes is
exactly what got the Israelites in trouble during the period of the Judges (cf.
Jdg 21:25), a deliberate shifting from objective truth to subjective truth,
idolatry in particular. Perhaps we could put a label on this revival of the spirit of man
during the dark period of Israel’s history today by calling it ecclesiastical existentialism, a religion that embraces humanism and apostasy; both go hand in hand.
What is ironic is
that most sensible people never claim to be an authority in matters that is not
in the area of their expertise, but have you ever noticed that everyone seems
to be an authority on the Bible and ethics and morality in a nation where
biblical illiteracy is widespread. And their opinion carries the weight of
their own self-importance. This is exactly the spiritual plight of our nation,
a nation comprised of a large majority who believe truth is
relative (including the Bible) but not absolute. They believe this so earnestly
that they are absolutely sure of it! That
is their expert opinion on the matter.
What is considered right
today is how the individual perceives and shapes truth into his or her own
reality (truth is a personal construct). Truth–shifters can read “I am the truth”
(Jn 14:6) and accept the idea that Jesus is claiming to be His own standard of
truth which is nothing abnormal today; everybody is thinking that way! It is fine as long as Jesus’ teachings do
not infringe upon other people’s conceptions of personal truth and values.
Judging or determining what is right or wrong enters a neutral zone. There are
in effect as many standards of perceived “truth” as there are people. It gets
ridiculously convoluted, confusing, fickle, and hazardous for all because the
objective truth from the Creator has been replaced with a subjective truth from
the creature. The Hindu religion, for instance, has over 33 million gods! We
know there are at least 33 million demons out there running around; don’t we!
Inevitably, this relativity
business leads to a ludicrous runaround (like a dog chasing its tail) in
ascertaining the truth of a matter with no accountability in sight (the dog
never having its tail caught). We see this very thing going on in our own different
levels of government as we speak – “What is the truth?” There can be no “yes”
or “no” answers that border on absolute statements. Better is it to answer
all interrogatives with “I don’t know.”
This is the byproduct of
humanism – no absolutes, everything is relative (neo-Pilatism, Jn 18:38), and the end justifies the means. Speaking of Pontius Pilate, recall his words at the Bema when he
washed his hands of the disposition of a man he determined to be "just," Jesus (Mt 27:24)? The wheels of politics are greased by relativity in shaping the perception of the truth. For Pilate, it was politically convenient to allow the Jews to condemn to death a just man and permit a criminal, by the name of Barabbas, to be set free. This was not justice. Pilate was more interested in maintaining the Pax Romana (Roman peace) which was his job. By feeding Jesus to the hungry mob, he avoided the hot seat (Jn 19:12) under Emperor Tiberius (14 A.D. to 37 A.D.), and
appeased his wife (Mt 27:19).
The future will reveal that all those who washed their hands of Jesus in their lives will regret it for eternity. The self-determined religious/political
leadership of Israel (as long as they kept the Roman peace) wanted Jesus out of
the way because He represented a theology that conflicted with their values and
objectives that were in reality corrupted by a leadership more interested in
control and its personal agendas than the spiritual welfare of its people (Mt
23:13, 15). Ultimately, Pilate allowed this to happen. The Truth was sacrificed for peace...
Whenever truth is held
to be relative; there is a perceived path that emerges and dominates the
landscape by a secular subjective standard by which other known values and
beliefs are evaluated, managed, diminished, or destroyed for Christian and
non-Christian alike! Intolerance of opposing viewpoints of those in power is a
dead giveaway of a brand of ideology, political or religious, becoming less
relative and more the basis for all truth to be gauged! Such a system will show
its openness to other values, but its dominance and willingness to exercise
power to manipulate all other beliefs reveal a false truth parading to be
“true truth" with a look and feel of being absolute for after all it is
arrogantly believed to be the standard of all standards. All proponents of this
new self-ascribed prerogative believe they know what is best for the populace.
Such a truth becomes the “new standard.” to usher in a new era, a new way of
looking at things, and a new way of doing things. It’s just another expression of
tyranny: same old lies, different clothing.
Opposition to the
status quo is viewed as a threat to the implementation of its values. Jesus attempted to bring the Jewish leadership back in line
with biblical truth but was rejected by the religious rulers. They had trouble swallowing
that He was the Messiah and easily dismissed the miracles supporting such a claim! Intolerance
of dissenting values and non-conformity to the truth of Scripture are the
benchmarks of this same growing menace today, a spirit of anti-Christ (2 Tim
3:13). The outcome is readily becoming apparent, particularly for those who
choose to live a godly life in the fear of the Lord (cf. 2 Tim 3:12) under this
sinister mindset.
Knowing and keeping the Word according to the truth is not only relevant but vital to our spiritual
health and future. Is there a biblical mandate here? Indeed, there is, and the
only thing irrelevant is the circumstances! Let me for sake of brevity select
one passage; read Paul’s words to Timothy below.
“But you must continue in the
things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have
learned them” (2 Tim 3”14).
“You must continue” is an emphatic contrast to
the previous verse (2 Tim 3:13) and in light of persecution for living a godly
life (2 Tim 3:12). This clause is in the present active imperative, meaning
that the verb is a steady abiding in the things learned and assured of (known
to be true and reliable) from the Scripture (2 Tim 3:15, 16, 17) and
remembering those whose who taught us spiritual truth having witnessed the
reality and credibility of their faith. This is not just good spiritual advice;
it’s commanded by the Holy Spirit through Paul under the inspiration of Scripture
to Timothy and to us. Keep on keeping on in the things of God regardless of the
circumstances. Persecution in Timothy’s case could be ours in the near future.
More than ever, we need to return to the grassroots of
Christianity: a people submitted and committed to the truth of Scripture, growing in
grace and expressing faith in Christ. The Bible is and has always been the
authority in all matters of faith and practice. It is a unique Book among all
the books of the world for it came from God Himself (2 Tim 3:16), God-breathed.
We must learn the Word, love the Word, and live the Word in order to know and
to do the will of God (cf. Josh 1:8).
If we relentlessly pursue knowing and obeying the Lord, we
will be successful in accomplishing God’s work on earth. Personally, I would
rather be reading the writings of Scripture and obeying the commands of God than
reading the writing on the wall someday because of willful disobedience. Willful ignorance is disobedience which is far more troubling for true believers than obedience to the commands of God in
peace or persecution. Biblical illiteracy
is truly troubling. <><
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