Back to Sermons Index

Authoritative Witness: God’s Word
2 Timothy 3: 14 – 17

Spencer C. Lawrence, Church of the Cross, Hoffman Estates, IL, January 7, 2007

There’s an old joke that goes something like this:  A young man was facing an important decision in his life and he sought for guidance in the Bible. Not knowing exactly what to do with the Bible he decided to open it at random, place his finger on a verse and then read it. He would take whatever verse his finger landed on as a word from God. So he took his Bible, offered a brief prayer, closed his eyes, opened the Bible and put his finger on a page. When he opened his eyes he discovered to his dismay that his finger had come to rest on Matthew 27: 5: “Throwing down the pieces of silver in the temple, [Judas] departed; and he went and hanged himself.” Not exactly liking what he read, the young man decided to try a different verse. So he closed his eyes again, asked for God’s guidance and then began flipping through the Bible until he found another place. This time his finger landed on Luke 10: 37 in which Jesus says: “Go and do likewise.”

Over the years the Bible has been used, misused and abused in countless ways. Even though it has been and can still be misunderstood, Scripture continues to loom large in the eyes of the church. It is a book unlike any other. The second question we pose to Ministers of Word and Sacrament and to Elders and Deacons at their ordination is “Do you accept the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be, by the Holy Spirit, the unique and authoritative witness to Jesus Christ in the Church universal, and God's Word to you?” For those of us already ordained and to those of you who will be ordained today, Scripture may never quite be the same. Whereas before you may have seen it as one book among many, from now on you will understand it to possess unique authority.

It is an authority that has been recognized by the church as coming from the Holy Spirit. In ways we do not fully understand, we believe that Scripture – Old and New Testaments – has been inspired by the Spirit of God. Paul, writing to Timothy, states that Scripture is “God-breathed.” The breath or Spirit of God came upon the writers of Scripture and inspired them to write what God wanted them to write. Not that the writers were mere stenographers taking down verbatim what God spoke. They all wrote in their own styles and in their own words. But they were so guided by God’s Spirit that they wrote what God wanted, and because of that Scripture bears the stamp of God’s voice.

But what is it authoritative for? About what can we expect the Bible to speak authoritatively? In the past, people have used the Bible for lots of things. I remember when I was a teenager reading how one of the Minor Prophets – Nahum, I think - was supposed to have prophesied the development of the automobile. Not very likely. Or today some people treat the Bible as a way to predict the future. So they look for code words or come up with imaginative ways of interpreting the symbolic language. The number 666 from the Revelation to St. John has been interpreted throughout church history as referring to the Roman Emperor Nero down to Hitler, Stalin and even John F. Kennedy. The truth is that the Bible simply does not intend to give a clear reading of the future.  Nor can we treat the Bible as a scientific textbook. In the middle ages it was commonly accepted that the earth was the center of the universe and the sun and planets revolved around our world. Scientific discoveries have caused us to revise our interpretation of that point of view.

The Bible was not given to tell us everything about the future. Nor was it given to explain all scientific phenomena. Holy Scripture is primarily a book about God and God’s dealings with humankind. The purpose of Scripture is to help us find God or, better, to help us let God find us.

That brings us to the first thing we ask officers to affirm about Scripture – that it is “the unique and authoritative witness to Jesus Christ in the church universal.” It is similar to what Paul wrote to Timothy that the “sacred writings . . . are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.” Scripture is unique. It is Scripture not the Gnostic writings, not the Gospel of Judas, not the Gospel of Mary Magdalene that points us to Jesus. Scripture does not point to itself and say, “Worship me.” Scripture points away from itself to the living Word of God, Jesus Christ, and says, “Worship him.” A person can know the Bible from front to back, can have memorized great portions of Holy writ, can be able to best anyone in an argument, but still miss the point of the Bible – i.e. to instruct us for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. In short, we don’t read the Bible to accumulate information. We read the Bible with the goal of making contact with the living God revealed in Jesus Christ.

More than that, we who are ordained affirm that we believe Scripture to be “God’s Word” to us. Not only is it the way we discover salvation through faith in Christ, Scripture is the primary way God teaches us how to live. It is “God’s Word” to us. That’s what Paul was saying when he wrote to Timothy about how Scripture is “useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness.” Scripture is useful – indeed authoritative - in teaching us how to live in the world, how to live in our relationships. That’s not to say that we will obey perfectly in every instance. It is to say that God is merciful and along with God’s mercy stand God’s standards for holy living. We can’t just make up what we want to and call it God’s Word. God’s Word is present to us in Holy Scripture.

Some of you may be thinking: “I have tried to read the Bible, but it’s so confusing. I can’t make heads or tails out of it.” In the fall I read a book on the brain. It was called Descartes’ Error. I think I understood about one-third of it. In December I read another book on the brain. It was entitled The Emotional Brain. I understood a little more. I have another book on the brain. I hope to read it before summer. What I have discovered is that the more I read about the brain, the more I understand. I don’t understand it all yet – not by any means. But I understand a little more than I did. So it is with reading the Bible. It takes a lifetime. You need to be patient with yourselves, but also not give up. Learning anything takes time.

The important thing is that, if you haven’t started already, you can begin now. The first thing to do is find a Bible you can understand. We use the New Revised Standard Version here. The New International Version is the most popular Bible sold. It is good as well. Some people, I know, have found purchasing a study Bible – e.g. The Life Application Bible – very helpful. Joining a small group Bible study is one thing many have found encouraging. If that’s not your style then begin with reading the gospels. I recommend beginning with Mark’s Gospel. Read chapter a day and keep a little notebook handy to write down questions that may come up or to jot down new insights. Once you finish Mark’s Gospel go on to Matthew, then to Luke and then to John and so through the New Testament. However you do it, read with the goal of listening to God.

Back to Sermons Index

Church of the Cross
475 Higgins Road
Hoffman Estates, Illinois 60169
 (847)885-1199