smerickson.com the personal website of steven m. erickson

The last few weeks I have been thinking, reading and dialoging a lot about the Bible. As one who is a Christian that should not be anything of surprise and yet I have been very saddened by the lack of emphasis on God’s word that I have witnessed. I have been very saddened by the disagreements I have with some over what it means that the Bible is “God breathed”. I have been disappointed by the lack of Scriptural emphasis in discussions about the Trinity. No one will ever understand the importance of the doctrine of the Trinity apart from its Scriptural support. I have been saddened by some research done by the Barna group revealing the large number of people who would call themselves Christians but lack a Biblical worldview; that is those who would believe in Christ, but do not seek to orient all aspects of their lives around what God has revealed to us in his word. Finally, I have been deeply saddened by the presence of a new book claiming to be a Bible translation called The Word on the Street. (You can read some samples from it here). I find it offensive that there are those who would compromise the language of God’s word for the sake of relevance to the culture. It reveals something about our priorities when we will change the word of God in order to try and make it appealing to the culture, as if what the Creator of the universe has said is not relevant enough.

In the midst of all of this comes a very needed book. It is called Scripture Alone by James White. I am very much looking forward to the release of this book in a few weeks. Because of the above scenarios, as well as others, I see this book as so important for all who call themselves Christians. If you are a Christian, please prayerfully consider purchasing this book for yourself as well as your pastor and friends. May we seek to honor God by rightly handling his word.

Link: Scripture Alone by James White

What exactly is the will of God and how does one know it? These are important, but complex questions that most college students wrestle with. The problem is that most students don’t spend time to think about what the phrase “the will of God” actually means and as a result then end up practicing some form of soft divination to determine this “secret will” of God. This is not the Biblical understanding of God’s will. Three weeks ago, John Piper preached a marvelous sermon on this issue. In it he covers what I think is one of the most helpful distinctions in theology, namely the distinction between God’s sovereign will and his revealed will. I recommend listening to this message.

Link: What is the will of God and how do we know it? – John Piper (10MB mp3)

If you’ve ever seen the VeggiTales cartoons then, you’ve probably seen the one with Larry singing a silly song about losing his hairbrush. I feel a little like that about this blog. Life has gotten increasingly busy and I am not able to write as much as I would like. This has mainly been due to the significant amount of time that I have been spending drafting a response to a presentation which was made in one of my classes a week ago. I will hopefully be posting that very soon. But until then I just wanted to say that I am still alive.

This is a question that I have been thinking about lately and I wanted to address publicly here on the site. The question that others have asked me and that I have of myself is: why do I write? I recognize that in a day and age such as ours it probably seems odd for a person to be so concerned with theological matters; issues which to most people seem to be of little relevance. What follows are two reasons why I care about theology and publicly write about it.

A deep love for the preservation and proclamation of God’s truth.

I love God’s written word! I could study it all day long for as long as I live and probably will. Contrary to what some might think, I don’t need controversies in order to study God’s word. But when God’s truth in compromised by individuals, I feel a great deal of responsibility to respond in ways which are appropriate to God’s revelation in Scripture. I believe that Scripture is the only rule of faith and practice in the life of the Christian. I believe that Scripture, as “breathed out” by God, needs to be handled with great care. To dishonor God’s word by not handling it correctly is to dishonor Him who gave it. The mishandling of God’s word is not anything new. Peter is clear in telling us that there will be ignorant and unstable people who twist the words of Scripture, to their own destruction (2 Pet 4:16). Paul tells us that there will be people who “will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tim 4:3-4). Even from within the Christian community, people will act in ways not in accordance with what they believe about God’s truth (see Paul’s opposition of Peter in Galatians 2). The point main point is, to where are we to turn when these things come up? Listen to Paul’s very pastoral words to Timothy:

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim 3:14-17 ESV)

Paul encourages Timothy to hold fast to what he has learned in the Scriptures. The Bible is sufficient to teach, reprove, correct and train in righteousness. As such, those who study under it will be competent and equipped for every good work. Only the Bible is sufficient to accomplish this task. Therefore, it is important that we study it, understand it, teach it to others and handle it with a great deal of care. This is what I am seeking to do.

I should add as a qualification that God doesn’t need my help in preserving his truth. He can do that just fine on his own. I have a great deal of trust in his sovereign control over all things, including the mind and so the work that I do is not to make up for some deficiency in God’s control over his creation. Often times I turn to John 10. Here Jesus gives Christians hope in order to proclaim his word uncompromised and with boldness. We are assured that His sheep hear his voice and when they hear it, they come to him. Therefore, I see it as my goal to clearly speak about Scripture and trust that God’s people will be encouraged. Again, to the degree that we sit back and let God’s word be mishandled, we dishonor God by not showing a deep concern for how his word is to be rightly taught and understood. So, first and foremost, I write in order that God’s truth may be clearly proclaimed for all to hear. The proclamation of His great glory throughout the world is His highest aim and the thing which brings me great joy.

A deep care and concern for my fellow students.

I recognize that not every student has the opportunity to study the Bible and theology in the way that I do. I, therefore, feel a great weight of responsibility upon my shoulders to be one who thoughtfully engages in Biblical and theological matters and does so in a public manner for others to see and benefit from. I try and make an effort to practice public discernment. Often we think of discernment as an individual quality. For the most part it is, but I would also add that there is a communal quality of discernment as well. I try to model Biblical and theological discernment so that others may learn how to do the same in their own spheres of influence. We as a Christian community need to be concerned about what is being taught and preached to us and we need to hold each other to the standard of God’s word.

Going back to Paul’s encouragement to Timothy, he goes on to say: “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim 4:1-2). This is the work of those, like myself, who concern themselves with the rigorous study of God’s word. Theology is always done in the service of the church. I do not read and study simply for my own sake, but I do so for the health and benefit of my brothers and sisters in Christ. I truly do love and care for them, which is why I sometimes respond harshly to those who would deceive them with errors not found in Scripture. It is not that I am trying to be mean, it is simply that I care deeply for the growth of my fellow believers. In summary, the second reason why I write is for the health and benefit of my brothers and sisters as I seek to point them to their all-sufficient Savior.

I hope that these words are helpful in putting a lot of what I write in perspective. There is much more that I could say about my interests here, but I will leave that for another time. I also hope that as you read what I have written and what I will continue to write, you are encouraged in your faith and that you are empowered to stand firm upon God’s written word in your daily encounters with others. To Him be all the glory!