The Bible Says

NFL legend Mike Ditka once gave a news conference after being fired as the coach of the Chicago Bears. He had only won five games the previous season, yet held his head high as he turned to the Bible for inspiration. “Scripture tells us that all things shall pass,” he said. “This, too, shall pass.” The only problem was that he was not, in fact, quoting the Bible. That phrase does not appear anywhere in scripture.

Unfortunately, this is an all-too-common problem, even among groups who should know better. The Pew Forum conducted a survey of Biblical knowledge in 2010 that revealed a startling degree of ignorance in every major religious group in the United States. In a series of 32 questions on basic religious concepts, the average professed Christian was correct on only half. Latter-Day Saints were found to be the most knowledgeable respondents, correctly answering around 70% of religious questions

Two writers assert that this problem likely comes from the way many churches today have essentially changed their function. “Some churches try to fill pews with people who are simply seeking a spiritual experience to fill the God-shaped void in their lives. But this is not the function of the church. The Great Commission commands us to make disciples of others, who then go out and spread their faith to others. Evangelism is the function of the individual believer, while the function of the church is to feed believers and equip them to go out. How can this occur when many denominations have capitulated, compromised and don’t even accept Genesis as real history? Church becomes merely a club or something that someone does on the weekend to make one feel good about oneself. That is certainly the case when one considers the intellectual vacuum left by the seeker-sensitive and emergent church ‘isms’—as even some of the seeker-sensitive church leaders have now realized” (“Pew Survey Reveals Basic Ignorance of Christian Belief”, Bates and Cosner, 2 Nov. 2010, www.creation.com).

The above writers make a great point when they go back to the Christian’s first duty, namely, obeying Christ’s command in Matthew 28:18-20. “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and makes disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and, lo, I am with you always even to the end of the age.” If we are ignorant of Christ’s teachings, how can we ever fulfill the commission set before us? “And when people don’t know about their faith, this means that they don’t share their faith, and they are much less confident when it comes to defending it. Can a person even properly be called a believer if there is this much ignorance about what the content of that belief is supposed to be? A person is much more likely to compromise if they are ignorant of important information about their faith. Conversely, when one is confident about what one believes, then one is more likely to be motivated to share it with others” (Bates and Cosner).

Phantom Bible Quotes

Let us be careful not to pick on NFL coaches too much, since many of us have been guilty of phantom Bible quotes. It is so easy to just assume that because something sounds “Bible-y”, or because we have heard it used so many times before, that it must be a Bible verse. Some common phrases include:

• “God helps those who help themselves” – Actually a quote from Benjamin Franklin, this pithy saying is popular because it reflects the cherished American value of self-reliance. The problem is that it is a narrow take on God’s view of those who are indigent. We conveniently sweep aside Biblical precedent (Leviticus 19:9-10, Deuteronomy 15:7, the duality of Galatians 6:2 and 6:5) by assuming that someone is poor or needy because they will not help themselves (Job’s three friends probably thought along these lines [Job 22:21ff])  – in fact, many people cannot help themselves (James 1:27).
• “God works in mysterious ways” – This is a paraphrase of a 19^th century hymn by the English poet William Cowper. In full, the saying is “God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform.” While there is much to be said of God’s mysterious movements (Job 38-41) we need to balance our understanding of divine force with the truth that much of what God does is very obvious. The mystery of grace, for example, has been completely revealed (Ephesians 3:1-7). Baptism is also an equally obvious way that God works in our lives (Mark 16:16). Other verses testify that God’s work is as plain as daylight (John 5:17, Ephesians 1:19ff, Hebrews 13:20-21). Be careful not to ignore God’s obvious directions because you are preoccupied with hints, signs, and mysteries.
• “Cleanliness is next to godliness” – Supposedly, John Wesley, the 18^th century evangelist and founder of Methodism, first coined this phrase. Contrary to this personal favorite of mine, Jesus states that physical cleanliness amounts to nothing, and godliness is a quality of the heart (Matthew 15:19-20).

 Handle It Accurately

Paul emphasized accuracy in his letters to the young man Timothy. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things; for as you do this you will insure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you” (1 Timothy 4:16). It is imperative that we know what we are talking about when it comes to Bible matters. After all, how we handle the Bible can go a long way toward influencing those who hear our message, for good or bad (1 Peter 3:15).

• Avoid saying phrases like “The Bible says…” Give a scripture, not an idea. Often, our paraphrase of a verse simply does not do it justice – or worse, we misquote it altogether.
• Keep some kind of written log of important verses. This can be as organized as you need it, depending on how you recall information best. Either keep a journal handy, to write down verses on particular subjects, or make notations on the pages of your Bible. God intended for His book to be used, so avoid the misconception that your Bible is too sacred to scribble in.
• When dealing with somebody who is mishandling the Bible, force them to provide quotations. “Where is that written in the Bible?” or “When did Jesus actually say that?” It is amazing how easily we let people “off the hook” when they are trying to argue that Jesus would have approved of various false doctrines. When Jesus debated His opponents, He forced them to confront their erroneous thinking (Matthew 21:23ff, Matthew 22:15ff).
• Look for the totality of a teaching in the Bible, not just an isolated passage. Mishandling the message of Jesus Christ is very easy when you fail to look at everything He and His apostles said on a subject. For example, Matthew 7:1 ought to be considered along with John 7:24, 1 Peter 4:7, 1 Corinthians 6:3, in addition to its own context. Understanding salvation also requires us to consult several different passages (Romans 10:9-10, Acts 2:38, Mark 16:16, Acts 22:16).
• Watch out for mishandling Greek and Hebrew. There are many great tools out there for helping us dig deeper into the original languages of our Bible, but sometimes ignorance coupled with a powerful tool makes a dangerous combination.
• Handling the Bible accurately means accepting what it says once you have thoroughly studied a subject. It is imperative that we mold our thinking after the message of God rather than manhandle the scriptures to fit what we want to believe. “People prefer knowing biblical passages that reinforce their pre-existing beliefs, a Bible professor says. ‘Most people who profess a deep love of the Bible have never actually read the book,’ says Rabbi Rami Shapiro, who once had to persuade a student in his Bible class at Middle Tennessee State University that the saying ‘this dog won’t hunt’ doesn’t appear in the Book of Proverbs. ‘They have memorized parts of texts that they can string together to prove the biblical basis for whatever it is they believe in,’ he says, ‘but they ignore the vast majority of the text’” (“Actually, That’s Not In The Bible”, John Blake, CNN.com).

Carry The Banner

“Christians, first and foremost, need to learn the foundational truths about their faith. This includes a basic knowledge of the contents of the Bible…We also need a greater emphasis on the Bible as something worth learning about—people aren’t motivated to study something that is increasingly viewed as a religious alternative to Grimm’s Fairy Tales. While not the only factor, increasingly downplaying the function and status of Scripture as the Word of God logically means that fewer people will be interested in studying it” (Bates and Cosner). Sometimes we act like we are ashamed to be Bible-believing people, when that book is our timeless guide to salvation. “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation” (Romans 1:16).

We must show that we are different from the hypocrites and charlatans of the world. We must prove that the Bible is still God’s message, “inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). We must carry sound doctrine as a banner, never shying away from its penetrating truths. We are exhorted by God to “stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and you shall find rest for your souls” (Jeremiah 6:16). There is no security in anything but the will of God, for it does not bend in the face of any storm. Matthew 24:35 “Heaven and Earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away.”