Is Yours A God-Centered Church?
In nearly 20 years as a pastor, I have traveled around to many churches and one of the most common declarations I will hear or see about that church is that they are a “Bible Believing” church. They will say something like that they believe that the Scripture is the “inspired” or “inerrant” Word of God. They will add that it is the final authority on all matters.
That is a great view to take. We should put our faith and our beliefs far above our own, trusting God above all things. As Paul writes, “Let God be true though everyone were a liar.” (Romans 3:4)
It is great that Believers see an authority that is above themselves. Something that they acknowledge not only is the source of truth, but is also something that binds us all together. Truth be told, if you are a Believer, the Bible teaches you that your local church or denomination is part of something much bigger.
Challenging God’s Supremacy
A Bible believing church is a great thing, however, it is important for Believers to recognize that there is an authority much bigger than the Scripture – God, Himself.
About a year ago, I was reading a book on this very subject (My apologies for not remembering the name of the book or the author. If I do remember later, I will update this post to reflect that). The author explained that when we are reviewing the Scriptures, they have incredible authority. However, God is still above our Bible. He is the ultimate authority in all things.
For many, you will read this and think that there is no theological dispute here. They recognize God as sovereign and accept that the Bible is the written Word of God, but far too many are questioning the authority of both.
John begins his Gospel with the statement that Jesus is the Word, the logos (John 1:1). This is an extremely important description for a number of reasons. It starts in Judaism, which often referred to the Messiah as the Memra, the Word of God.
The Messiah was not God. He was an anointed one. A holy priest. A man who was a descendant from the line of David. He was one who came to save the Jewish people (James H. Charlesworth. The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha and the New Testament). The important part of that is that he was not God. He was and is to be the deliverer of a message from God.
The memra thus became the Word of God. The Jewish Encyclopedia describes this as “’The Word,’ in the sense of the creative or directive word or speech of God manifesting His power in the world of matter or mind.” This book goes on to point out that in the Targum, it became synonymous for “the Lord.” Thus, in Deuteronomy 1:32 it is changed from “You have not believed in the Lord” to “You have not believed in the word of the Lord.”
This may seem inconsequential, but it is incredibly important. In the minds of many Believers, there is a big difference between “thus saith the Lord” and “the Bible says.” Many discount the authority of the Bible, especially in the last four hundred years. It is antiquated, it is written by men, it contradicts itself, some parts of it are wrong. You have probably heard many of these before, you may even believe some of them yourself.
This has allowed people to choose to follow some parts, but ignore others. After all, if you can question the authority of the Bible, why not be able to change it?
Then you have the other problem. Many denominations have argued that their leader has the authority to ignore or change teachings in the Bible. The pope is one such example, but is not the only. While there are literally millions of Catholics who honor and love God, this faith has openly usurped the authority of God.
Take, for example, Mary. No doubt she was a godly woman, but she was also a woman who had doubts about Jesus and His mission, despite the fact that she had been impregnated by the Holy Spirit. At one point, we are even told that she wondered if He was crazy (Mark 3:21). Yet, the church has made her co-mediatrix between God and mankind.
Jesus declared that there is only one way to the Father (John 14:6). Paul goes even further by stating that there is one mediator between God and man – Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5). There is none other but Him. Yet, the Catholic Church has declared her as co-mediatrix. Even during the Second Vatican Council, Pope Paul VI upheld her titles as advocate, helper, and mediatrix.
Why do they do this? Because they have done what rabbis did for centuries before Jesus came along. They separated God from the message. God is supreme, but His message is left to interpretation, even alteration. New “revelation” may lead to a whole new way of thinking, but that is ok, because God “revealed” this to men and women throughout the centuries, they will argue.
God Is Supreme
We live in a very challenging time because many are trying to figure out how to make their faith work in an ever-changing society. In the Western world, so many self-centered and “progressive” ideas are being espoused that Believers are often presented as ignorant or hateful because they fail to accept the new ways.
What has happened in Western culture is that people have moved from an idea that there is something bigger than themselves. Now, they are the center of all things. This is a sad message that even Pope Francis is embracing. He is facing a lot of push back from cardinals within his church for his espousing of the “new humanism.” This puts people above God, an idea that the pope is embracing because it brings all people together, even those of other faiths.
This may sound totally unbiblical, and it is, but understand that this type of thinking is permeating other denominations and local churches as well. There are many who want to disregard the Word, deciding that the beliefs of society are far better and more important to follow than God’s commandments.
This is why this verse in John is so essential. John is not just saying there is a message from God. He is saying that Jesus is that very message. This is important because John is ensuring that there is no separation between the two. God is the very Gospel message itself, lived out though Jesus.
For us as Believers, we must go a step further. This is great if you attend a Bible believing church, but what is most important to understand is that there is still an authority above the Bible – God, Himself.
Take away the Scriptures. Remove theology and doctrine. Take away prophecy and revelation. You still have God in charge. God is supreme. He is the ultimate authority. Nothing tops Him.
When we as Believers or in our local church bodies start pondering what God says about certain things, we need to start and end our discussion with the fact that God is always above any decision we make. He is the ultimate authority and, if we are choosing to do something, it better fall in line with what He has said.
Applying the Bible in Light of God’s Supremacy
God has blessed us by providing a set of Scriptures that answer many of life’s most important questions. It is not the answer to everything to be honest. There is not a magic Scripture reference that answers all science related questions or explains every challenge you may have, and that is ok. There is a lot you can glean from it for almost any personal challenge you may face, however.
What is important to grasp is that when you turn to the Bible to answer questions or to provide teaching, you are reading the very message that God had someone write down. That is the way God thinks and feels about the subject you are studying. If you are a Believer, that means this is how you should think as well.
As we go along on this journey to answer what the Gospel is all about, we will encounter subjects that are uncomfortable for us. We may even have serious disagreement with what the Bible teaches. If this happens, buckle up. The reality is that God is above all things, and we need to recognize that. It is time to be much more than a Bible believing Christian. It is time to be a God-centered one.