John 5:39-47
39 You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me to have life.
41 “I do not accept glory from human beings, 42 but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts. 43 I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. 44 How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?
45 “But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. 46 If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. 47 But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?”
One of the many things I love about being Lutheran is that we take Scripture seriously. Of course, I imagine many Christians from many other traditions would say the same thing.
The question is whether all of us mean the same thing when we say that we take Scripture seriously. The answer is: not always.
There is a word for one particular danger: bibliolatry. Bibliolatry is the practice of treating the physical book, or even the literal words on the page, with the kind of devotion and worship that belong to God alone. Practically speaking, it can show up in several ways. First, people may prioritize the letter over the meaning, insisting on a rigid reading of the words while missing the larger witness of the text. Second, people may treat the Bible like a magical object, as though the physical pages, one particular translation, or precise grammar were divine in themselves. Finally, the text itself can become a kind of idol, treated as though it were equal to the Triune God rather than a witness that points us to God.
Martin Luther understood this danger. In his 1523 Preface to the Old Testament, he wrote, “Here you will find the swaddling cloths and the manger in which Christ lies, and to which the angel points the shepherds. Simple and lowly are these swaddling cloths, but dear is the treasure, Christ, who lies in them.”
That is the point. Scripture matters deeply because it is the place where Christ is given to us. It is the manger that holds him. It is the witness that points to him. It is the Word through which we come to know God’s Word made flesh.
That is exactly what the religious leaders in John 5 could not see. They searched the Scriptures diligently, but they missed the One to whom the Scriptures were pointing. They pursued knowledge for knowledge’s sake, when all along life and salvation were being offered to them in Jesus.
It is worth asking how often we make the same mistake in our own Bible study. Are we reading the Bible merely to know more information, or are we reading so that we might know Someone? That is a serious difference.
– Pr. Jason
God, thank you for not remaining hidden from us. Thank you for revealing your Son, Jesus, through Scripture so that we may know him, trust him, and love him. Keep us from making an idol of the gift, and teach us to receive the treasure to whom Scripture points. Amen.
