Receive it as the Word of God
The Right approach to Scripture was perfectly illustrated by the Thessalonians, who were commended by the Apostle Paul with the words,
“For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God which effectually worketh also in you that believe” (1 Thess. 2:13).
Their approach to the Word arose from their estimation of it. Similarly for us, belief that the Word of God has power in itself to work the will of God in us underlies our whole doctrinal position, and sets us apart from both the higher critics, who believe that the Scriptures are first and foremost the words of men, and evangelicals, who believe the Scriptures are powerless to convert unless supplemented by the inner light of the Holy Spirit.
The approach that the Thessalonians showed was exactly in accord with the Scripture’s own estimate of the gospel: “so shall My word be . . . it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isa. 55:11). The phrase “so shall My word be”, in the context of Isaiah 55, equates the preaching of the gospel with the rain and snow which cause the earth to be fruitful. A similar comparison is made in Psalm 147: ” . . . Who covereth the heaven with clouds, Who prepareth rain for the earth . . . He sendeth forth His commandment upon earth . . . He casteth forth His ice like morsels . . . He sendeth out His word, and melteth them . . . He sheweth His word unto Jacob, His statutes and His judgments unto Israel. He hath not dealt so with any nation” (vv. 8-20). The association of the awesome power of the Creator with His counsel to Israel is also clear in Psalm 33:
“By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth. . . Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spake, and it was done . . . The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Ps. 33:612).
In these passages no distinction is made between the command of God to create the natural world and the spiritual commands to Israel which were to make up their Scriptures. The Word of God in both cases was equally powerful to perform His will, although for the creation of the spiritual man the willing cooperation of the person was required. But it was the recognition of the power of God’s Word which was the necessary factor in producing the right approach to that Word.
This point becomes clear when we follow the references in both Psalm 147 and Psalm 33 to the privilege of Israel in hearing the Word of the Creator. These references are to Deuteronomy 4:32,33:
“For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it? Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?”.
On that occasion the Israelites were awed by the power of God revealed in fire and earthquake, and particularly when they heard the voice of God speaking to them. Their humble response was exactly what God required; and He answered:
“O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear Me, and keep all My commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!” (Deut. 5:29).
The demonstration of power accompanying the voice of God led Israel to ask Moses to intercede for them: “Go thou near, and hear all that the Lord our God shall say: and speak thou unto us all that the Lord our God shall speak unto thee; and we will hear it, and do it” (v. 27). This was the response God had intended should follow. He had said to Moses just before:
“Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever” (Ex. 19:9).
The point is that the Lord wanted Israel to show the same reverence and awe and obedience to the words which Moses spoke on behalf of God that they showed to the very voice of the Creator which they heard on Sinai accompanied by power and glory. This is the measure of the awe we should have for the written Word of God. It is the voice of the living God speaking to us.
“Before honour is humility”
The principle expounded to Israel at Sinai by the revelation of God’s power is summed up in the proverb: “The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility” ( Prov. 15:33). At Sinai the sight was so terrible that Moses said: “I exceedingly fear and quake” (Heb. 12:21), and the people bowed in humility before the Word of God. The connection of thought in Proverbs 15:33 is expressly that of Deuteronomy 4. Speaking of the words of the law, Moses says: “Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom .. . Only take heed . . . specially the day . . . when the Lord said unto me, Gather Me the people together, and I will make them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days that they shall live upon the earth” (Deut. 4:6-10).
Throughout the history of Israel the approach of the people to the Word of God was indicative of their spiritual condition. In Hosea’s day the Lord’s denunciation of Israel was the following: “I have written to him the great things of My law, but they were counted as a strange thing” (Hos. 8:12). The law could not be dismissed as ‘Moses’s law’. It was God’s law, but Israel found it alien to their own ways. There were, however, notable exceptions, including Josiah, who revealed the true response to the Word of God when Hilkiah the priest “found a book of the law of the Lord given by (the hand of) Moses” (2 Chron. 34:14). When Josiah heard the words he sought to understand their application, saying to his servants: “Go, enquire of the Lord for me, and for them that are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that is found” (v. 21). The reply was a commendation for a right approach to the Word:
“Thus saith the Lord God of Israel concerning the words which thou hast heard; Because thine heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God, when thou heardest His words . . . I have even heard thee also, saith the Lord” (vv. 26,27).
When the written Word is accepted as the voice of the living God the only appropriate response is to approach it in humility.
Humility to the words of the Creator is illustrated positively and negatively in Samuel and Saul. The narrative sets the scene: “the word of the Lord was precious in those days; there was no open vision” ( 1 Sam. 3:1); and the reason was the corruption of the priesthood. The light of Israel’s witness had almost gone out, which is the spiritual significance of the statement that “ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the Lord . . . the Lord called Samuel” (3:3,4). The child’s answer was typical of the right approach: “Speak; for Thy servant heareth” (3:10). In contrast, Saul in his later years refused the exhortation to “hearken . . . unto the voice of the words of the Lord” ( 1 Sam. 15:1). The Lord’s verdict was this: “Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from being king” (15:23). Saul’s attitude was strikingly different from that which he had exhibited when he was first called by God, as Samuel said: “When thou wast little in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the tribes of Israel . . . ?” (15:17).
The lesson to Israel to esteem the Scriptures as the voice of the living God and to listen to it with awe was also taught to the disciples of Christ, “one greater than Moses”. The miracles and wonders performed by Christ were evidence enough of his authority; but on the mount of transfiguration, amidst the glory and power of his kingdom, the voice of God was heard from heaven: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him” (Mt. 17:5). The reference to the Father being “well pleased” echoes the prophecy of Isaiah 42 (see Mt. 12:18, “Behold My servant. . . in whom My soul is well pleased”), where the Servant is spoken of as teaching and preaching with gentleness and meekness: “He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street” (v. 2).
Here the disciples were being told by God Himself that they were to heed the words of His Son as of the Creator, even though those words were often spoken gently and meekly and without the overt power which would make for popular appeal. The voice of Jesus in Scripture is often quiet, and we must silence our own noisy thoughts in order to hear it. See how many cannot hear the teaching of the Gospel record of John! A Trinitarian, filled with his own ideas of what Jesus ought to have been saying, will go to John 8:58 to prove that Jesus pre-existed. But the verse does not say, “Before Abraham was, I was”. It does say, “Before Abraham was, I am“, and those willing to humble themselves before the Word of God will listen closely and hear the voice of God-manifestation: “He who shall be”, manifest in Jesus.
The Berean approach
The commendation Paul gave to the Thessalonians cited at the beginning of this article was a deliberate contrast to the response of the non-believing Jews in the city, who had incited a riot to silence him. It is also relevant to the response that Paul received at Berea, the next town on his journey. The Bereans displayed three crucial aspects of the right approach to God’s Word. Directly related to 1 Thessalonians 2 is the estimation which they had for the word of the Old Testament Scriptures. It was their authority in matters of truth: they “searched the scriptures daily” to see if what Paul said was true (Acts 17:11). The new Word preached by Paul had to be consistent with their Old Testament. The word “searched” or “examined” is used throughout Acts of a judicial enquiry, a weighing of the evidence.’ A reasoned approach before accepting the gospel is therefore commended by God. Yet in spite of this there is a fashion with some to look down on such an approach. It is a posture supposedly appealing to simplicity; yet it only apes humility.
The second point to be derived from the Bereans is their motivation for Bible study to find out “whether those things were so”. A desire to learn the ways of God is the only sound motive for Bible study. It requires that at all times we have the humility to accept the correction of deep-rooted and cherished ideas. It would be entirely wrong to study the Scriptures just so that we can be speakers and teach others. The correct order was shown by Ezra: “For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach in Israel statutes and judgments” (Ezra 7:10). Every teacher knows how much more difficult it is first to do the things we ask of others.
Ezra, preparing his heart to seek the law, brings us back to the third lesson to be learned from the Bereans: they were “more noble” in that they received the word with “readiness of mind”. The word “noble” (Gk. eugena) means literally “high born”, and is only used on three occasions in the Scriptures. In Luke 19:12 and 1 Corinthians 1:26 it is clearly referring to family pedigree, and the idea that in Acts 17 it means ‘noble in mind’ can only be derived indirectly. The sense it carries can be found from the same chapter. The Bereans are being contrasted with the Thessalonian Jews who, “moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd (wicked) fellows of the baser sort . . . and set all the city on an uproar” (v. 5). The “baser sort” were, literally, ‘the frequenters of the market’ (Gk. agoraios first-century layabouts, probably low-born, and certainly not in the same social class as the “honourable” Berean ladies (v. 12).
But Acts is not preaching eugenics. The point is that the market mob were not at all interested in judging the apostle for themselves. They could not care what he said. The contrasting response of the more civilized Bereans was to listen first to what Paul had to say, an approach no doubt inculcated by class culture. This is not to say that the Greek culture was to be applauded; but the readiness to listen was. After all, it was a related inquisitiveness which allowed Paul to preach on Mars Hill (Acts 17:18-20). But the Jewish Bereans, whilst showing the same willingness to listen, did not fall into the trap of treating the gospel as entertainment as did the Greeks of verse 21, most of whom were not interested in pursuing the evidence (v. 32).
The term “readiness of mind” (Gk. prothumia), or ‘willingness of mind’, is the word used in 2 Corinthians 8, where Paul refers to the willingness of the Corinthians to give to the Jerusalem fund (vv. 11,12). Unless there is a willingness to learn there will be no progress. This applies at all levels of knowledge, so that a non-believer will only learn the gospel if he has a mind willing to find the Truth, and a brother or sister will only develop in wisdom and understanding if there is the same willingness to progress. It is the lack of willingness of mind rather than a lack of natural ability which is the main reason for the low and falling standard of Scriptural understanding amongst us. The proverb asks the vital question, “How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?” (Prov. 1:22).
Jeremiah showed the willing approach when the law was discovered in the reign of Josiah: “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart” (Jer. 15:16). Similarly Psalm 119 is full of expressions of a willing heart to learn God’s way: “O how love I Thy law! it is my meditation all the day” (v. 97); and: “How sweet are Thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (v. 103). In these passages the willingness comes from a true appreciation of the inestimable privilege of having access to the Word of God: “For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them. . . ? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law. . . ?” (Deut 4:7,8).
Appreciation of the wealth in God’s Word brings a willing approach to listen and learn, even though this will mean giving considerable effort and time to it. The Lord Jesus taught that “the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field” (Mt. 13:44).
The root of the parable is in Proverbs 2: “My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God” (vv. 1-5).
The words “incline”, “apply”, “criest”, “liftest”, “seekest” and “searchest” all emphasise an intensity of effort resulting from a deep desire to find wisdom. Without a true estimation of the treasure there will not be sufficient willingness and effort, and consequently no treasure found. And lest any should fear that focusing on personal effort and application is tending towards self-confidence, we should always remember that even when the treasure is found it is because the Lord has provided it for us, as Proverbs goes on immediately to say:
“For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous” (vv. 6,7).
The principles of the right approach so far expounded may be summarised as follows: first, a recognition that the Scriptures are the words of the Creator of heaven and earth and are able to accomplish His purpose; secondly, a standing in awe of the Word so that we humble ourselves and become teachable; thirdly, that we recognise the worth of the Word of God, and therefore approach it with a willing mind; and fourthly, that we approach it to learn what the Lord requires of us, and not for other motives. These principles are put into sharp relief when we see the contrary approach of the scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees.
The Pharisaical approach
We may think that the religious rulers of Jesus’s day did believe in the authority of the Scriptures but were preoccupied with the letter of the law at the expense of the spirit. But this is not a wholly accurate appraisal. The truth about the Sadducees is that they rejected parts of the Old Testament. As Jesus said: “ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God” (Mk. 12:24). As for the Pharisees, they may have given lip service to the authority of the Scriptures, but in fact their authority was based on the interpretation of the Scriptures found in their own traditions. Their condemnation by Jesus (quoted from Isaiah) was:
“Howbeit in vain do they worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mk. 7:7); and the Lord adds: “For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men . . . And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition . . . making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye” (vv. 8-13). “For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?” (Jno. 5:46,47).
Whereas the Sadducees may be likened to first-century higher critics (albeit conservative ones), the Pharisees are the orthodox churchmen, inheriting doctrines not expressed in Scripture but held more dearly than Scripture itself. These rulers also contradicted the principle of humility before God’s Word. They were not teachable. They listened to Jesus only to catch him out. Scripture was used as a means of trying to trap him: “Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying. . . ” (Mt. 22:35).
Behind this proud and unteachable approach was the lack of a willing mind. At the root of their waywardness was the refusal to listen to the voice of God and to walk in His way. Their distaste of God’s way prevented them from objectively considering the teaching of Jesus: “for this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see. . . and hear. . . and should understand . . . and should be converted, and I should heal them” (Mt. 13:15).
Berean or Pharisee?
A true estimation of the Scriptures will affect all aspects of our Bible study and the use we make of Scripture. Since the Author is God, no word of it is without purpose. Repetition of words and phrases in different parts of Scripture (i.e. quotations) must have a purpose. We will handle the Word with respect, so that we will not quote verses out of context We will want to know above all what the voice of God says, and so we will use concordances, lexicons, etc. to check the accuracy of translation rather than picking translations for their immediate subjective appeal.
We will search the Scriptures for guidance on personal and ecclesial decisions even when the conclusions which we might reach may be painful to implement. Bible study will be a joy, not a chore, and therefore we will spend as much time as possible in listening to the Voice of God. We will not use Scripture in order to catch one another out or to gain pre-eminence, or to attract the praise of our brethren and sisters. For we are not of those who handle the Word of God deceitfully. And in all things we are encouraged by the Voice of the living God; for, “Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool. . . but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word” (Isa. 66:1,2).
References
1. The Greek word for “searched” here (anakrin) implies repeated and critical examination: this was Bible study par excellence. And they carried it out “daily” (Gk. kath hemeran—` according to each day’). Would it be too fanciful to see in this expression a suggestion of the systematic study of some ‘daily portions’? Certainly there is in their example an exhortation to every faithful Christadelphian to make the regular following of the Bible Companion reading tables (or any other systematic Bible reading plan) a minimum essential of everyday life in the Truth. The beneficial spiritual results for the Bereans are heavily underlined in Acts 17:12: “Therefore (i.e. because they examined the Scriptures daily) many of them believed”. (R. P. C., Editor, Special Issue)
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One