IN RESPONSE to Peter Laurie’s article Rethinking God in the Sunday Sun of August 15: I agree that since God is eternal/infinite, His revelation of Himself, and our understanding of Him, must be ongoing.
On the other hand, we humans are finite, fallen, and hampered by time, space, and other factors such as culture and linguistic expression.
Inevitably, God’s revelation of Himself through the Bible has been impacted by these limitations. However, it is not stuck in any particular time or culture.
It has been ongoing through the centuries, so that in the First Century A.D. an inspired writer said, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by [his] Son. . . Who (is) the brightness of [his] glory, and the express image of his person.” Hebrews 1:1-3.
And today, over 19 centuries since its last verse was penned, the Bible is still enhancing our understanding of God and His will for us.
As evidence of this ongoing revelation I recommend Dr Elliot Douglin’s book God’s Character – The Best News In The Universe.
The problem is not with the Bible, but with people’s failure to be properly informed about it. The principles of the Bible provide the best foundation for ethics.
Indeed, most thoughtful people today should easily find “respecting the Creator and his creation, being honest, fair, compassionate, and so on” in the Ten Commandments.
These laws encapsulate the “love” that God requires of us (Romans 13:8-10). They represent timeless principles for the well being of individuals, families and societies.
And they address every aspect of moral activity (1 Timothy 1:9, 10) – Jesus shows that they even judge our thoughts (Isaiah 42:21).
Whatever the cultural values through which it has been filtered, the Bible extols the sanctity of life, the value of every human, and the rights of individuals, including the right of women to be treated with respect.
The Bible also shows that we can learn about God through nature (Psalm 19:1-6; Romans 1:20); thus, “true” scientific study should definitely lead to a belief in His existence.
Still, the primary task of the theologian, as a well-taught scribe, is to bring forth from the Bible things “new and old” (Matthew 13:52), “rightly dividing the word of truth”, as a “light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.” (2 Timothy 2:15; Proverbs 4:18).
OSWALD NEWTON
