By Tim Chester
It’s easy for us to think of the Bible as an old book.
In one sense that’s obviously true. The early parts of it were written over three thousand years ago. But that doesn’t mean the Bible is out of date. Indeed, in some ways it’s ever new, always speaking with new relevance to each new generation.
So the New Testament writers spoke of the Old Testament Scriptures as written “for us,” even though the readers of the New Testament weren’t the original intended audience:
“But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?” (Matthew 22:31-32)
[Moses] was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to pass on to us. (Acts 7:38)
For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. (Romans 15:4)
These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. (1 Corinthians 10:11)
If we think of the Bible as an old book, then we’ll assume it’s our job to make it relevant. We’ll think we need to take a message belonging to another age and translate it to our age. We’ll try to pick out the enduring principles, brush off the dust of the ages, and then rework them for our day.
Sometimes people ask for what they call “practical” preaching. They want to know how to be better parents or more successful workers.
There’s not necessarily anything wrong with this if the answers connect us to the central plot line of the Bible. The Bible does speak to the issues of the modern world.
But sometimes what is offered is the latest pop psychology or management speak dressed up with a few prooftexts. All we hear is an echo of the world around us.
It might feel relevant, but it doesn’t really equip us to face the ups and downs of life. It all too easily becomes a legalistic “six steps” to a better life. It’s not the gospel and so it’s not good news.
But it’s also unnecessary. We don’t need to “apply” the Bible if by that we mean take the truth and transfer it over to our world.
Don’t get me wrong. Nothing is more important than putting the Bible into practice—it is the word of God.
But the point I’m making is this: we don’t need to “make” the Bible relevant because it’s already relevant. Our job is merely to show how it’s relevant and follow the connections that are already there. The Bible is a contemporary word.
One reason why it’s always contemporary is that the fundamental truths about life, the world, and people don’t change. It’s true we have mobile phones, longer lives, liberal democracies; so in many ways our lives are very different from our forebears. But we’re still people made in God’s image.
We’re still made to know God and find our identity in him. We’re still rebels against his rule who face his judgment. We still long for the world to be made new. We’re still in need of a Savior. And Jesus is still the only Savior of humanity.
The Bible speaks to all these issues like no other book. It still contains the true, ultimate, and only hope for the world.
Writing to the church in Ephesus in the first century, the risen Christ says, “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Revelation 2:7).
Although his words are addressed to one particular church at one particular time, we’re to hear what the Spirit says (present tense again) to all the churches (plural).
The other reason why the Bible is always contemporary is that it’s a living word. It never grows old and it never dies. It lives because it’s enlivened by the Spirit of life!
You may think I’m being a bit picky. But this matters. If we try to “make” the Bible relevant, we open ourselves up to two dangers.
First, we might misapply it. We make the Bible say something contemporary. But when you “make” the Bible say something, the chances are you’re communicating your thoughts rather than God’s thoughts.
The second danger is even more significant. If we think the Bible isn’t a contemporary word, then we’ll be tempted to update it. We’ll select from the Bible or reinterpret it to make it fit our culture. The issue of sexuality is a current example of this.
What the Bible says is out of step with our culture. As a result, the Bible feels old-fashioned. If we think our job is to make it relevant, then our tendency will be to reinterpret it so it fits better in our world.
We might talk about “trajectories” that lead to an acceptance of gay practice or emphasize love over truth. In the end you make the Bible say the opposite of what it actually says.
But if we start by assuming that the Bible is a contemporary word, then we discover that its teaching on sexuality has never been more relevant.
Instead of confirming our current culture, it challenges it head on. We’re to make our assumptions fit with the Bible, not the other way round.
TIM CHESTER (@timchestercouk) is a pastor of Grace Church in Boroughbridge, North Yorkshire and author of several books, including Bible Matters: Making Sense of Scriptures.
Taken from Bible Matters by Tim Chester. ©2018 by Tim Chester. Used by permission of InterVarsity Press, P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove IL 60515-1426. www.ivpress.com
