Dec 18 2007
Knowable Truth
The Pyromaniacs are talking about the emerging church, John MacArthur’s new book, and women’s authority. It is an interesting discussion, don’t get me wrong, but I wanted to reflect for a second on what the subject of their discussion said, and what that spurs my mind to.
Kristen Bell is the wife of the pastor of Mars Hill Church, in Michigan. Here, she is quoted in Christianity Today reflecting on how her perception of the Bible has changed.
“I grew up thinking that we’ve figured out the Bible,” Kristen says, “that we knew what it means. Now I have no idea what most of it means. And yet I feel like life is big again—like life used to be black and white, and now it’s in color.” [Andy Crouch, "The Emergent Mystique," Christianity Today (November 2004).]
I want to know who “we” are. Are they her family? Are they her and her husband? Previous to this comment they describe their journey as church “worked” for them, then it didn’t.
Church doesn’t “work for you”. The idea that it could just stop “working” is ludicrous. I don’t even know how to explain more on that right now. But combine this with the arrogance to think that she had figured out the Bible? No wonder she was forced to rethink herself!
It really is unfathomable to me how anyone could get to a point where they felt they had “figured the Bible out”. I can’t say I am the most diligent student of the Bible, but I do know that if I was able to spend the amount of time I would like on it, I couldn’t get to the bottom of it. Unlike pretty much any other book ever written, every page, every word has meaning and depth to it. Every sentence teaches you more about who the omniscient one is, how omnipotent he is, and how great his love is for all of humankind. The ancient monks memorized the entire text, and they did not yet reach its depths. How dare anyone assume they have it figured out?
Lest I sound like I am in agreement with her, I am not. While I agree she needed to do some serious thinking and was right to do so, her conclusions - that the Bible cannot be known and is one giant mystery, are very sad. God did not cause a text of bizarre formulae to descend from on high. He meant for us to know him, and learn from him. This was why he used the Bible, written by men using forms familiar to their language and culture, to make himself known. Some of it is readable at face value - commandments and such. Others may take a little homework, to understand what is being said and how the culture and the speaker phrased the text to be understood in their situation. Once understood at its time, one can then compare it to our day and be confident that its meaning is clear.
Very very little in the Bible is that controversial, and for teachers and leaders in a church to suggest it is not understandable, well we might as well do away with the entire reformation. The Bible isn’t a magic book. It works for everyone in every time and place but it works because it is truth and conveys knowable truth. And that’s why it’s a treasure to me.
