Slanted Scripture for Social Media?

Jen Wilkin threw the Christian social media world a curve with her post last year, "Beware the Instagram Bible."  Recently she was interviewed and discussed ways that the social media platform can favor a slanted or incomplete picture of the Bible's message.  This raises great questions for every Christian to consider:  What presuppositions (self-imposed) or pressures (from external influences) are getting in the way of our believing and sharing "the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27)?  And how does a given forum of communication (e.g., social media) tilt conversations in one direction or another?  What are the unwritten rules about things you "can" and "cannot" say?

Tim Kaine's Careless Hermeneutics

Trevin Wax responds to Tim Kaine's reckless reading of the Bible.  Kaine's approach provides a classic illustration of how not to read--not just how not to read the Bible, but how not to read, or even to think.  No doubt Kaine would cry foul if anyone handled his words in this kind of sloppy, manipulative way.

Are Old Testament Promises to Israel Applicable to Gentile Christians?

In his "Look at the Book" video lab, John Piper explains why it is valid--and urgent--for Gentile Christians to take OT promises, such as Isaiah 41:10, as applying to them.  The line of reasoning presented here has far-reaching implications for how Christians handle the Word of God.

"Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand" (Isaiah 41:10).

"Seek the Welfare of the City"

Stephen McAlpine makes a strong and urgent case for what it means for Christian communities to love the cities where God has placed them.  "But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare" (Jeremiah 29:7).

"If my people..."

It gets messy sorting out the believer’s allegiance to God and country. Let’s take the “If my people” text as case study. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chron 7:14). My people… their land… How is this word to ancient Israel relevant for God’s people in the world today?

In Old Testament times God’s people lived under “theocracy”: devotion to God and allegiance to government were one and the same thing; there’s no separation between religion and public life, between “church and state.” American Christians are at times prone to think we should have a theocracy today—that the rule of God can somehow be restored in the U.S.A. But that’s not a biblical hope. With the coming of Christ and his giving of the Great Commission, the Lord brought theocracy to an end.

God’s people today is an inter­national, inter-racial, worldwide people—called the church—that can’t be con­tained in any one nation-state. So a promise about the “land” of ancient Israel cannot be neatly transferred to our country today. Rather, the application of 2 Chronicles 7:14 would center on the church—that group who, today, are God’s people: “my people.” If we as Christians scattered in fellowships all around the world repent and pray and humbly seek God, then he will respond and renew his people—the church. And so, the text relates to the revival of the church, not the improvement of living conditions in any particular country.

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Scripture Twisting

On April 14 President Obama, in a speech at Georgetown University, used--i.e., misused, abused--the Bible in an effort to promote his economic plans:

Now, there's a parable at the end of the Sermon on the Mount that tells the story of two men. The first built his house on a pile of sand, and it was soon destroyed when a storm hit. But the second is known as the wise man, for when "the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock."

It was founded upon a rock. We cannot rebuild this economy on the same pile of sand. We must build our house upon a rock. We must lay a new foundation for growth and prosperity -- a foundation that will move us from an era of borrow and spend to one where we save and invest; where we consume less at home and send more exports abroad.

I suppose there's a kind of conventional wisdom that says, "Lot's of people view the Bible positively, so why not borrow some Bible-talk to add a little credibility to my message?" But the result, in so many cases, is a brazen disregard for the word of God and for God himself.

A reading of Matthew 7:24-27 reveals this: the one who builds his house upon the rock is the person who hears what Jesus teaches and obeys it. The whole point of the parable is to exhort listeners/readers to hear and obey Jesus Christ. Founding your life upon the rock means trusting Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

But, alas, a little ripping of the text out of context, and you can (mis)use the Bible to make it say anything.

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