BIBLIOLATRY

I am not advocating bibliolatry. I am not suggesting that we should worship the Bible, any more than a soldier worships his sword or a surgeon worships his scalpel. I am, however, fervently urging a return to Bible-centered preaching, a Gospel presentation that says without apology and without ambiguity, “Thus saith the Lord.”

The world longs for authority, finality, and conclusiveness. It is weary of theological floundering and uncertainty. Belief exhilarates the human spirit; doubt depresses. Nothing is gained psychologically or spiritually by casting aspersions on the Bible. A generation that occupied itself with criticism of the Scriptures all too soon found itself questioning Divine revelation.

It is my conviction that if the preaching of the Gospel is to be authoritative, if it is to produce conviction of sin, if it is to challenge men and women to walk in newness of life, if it is to be attended by the Spirit’s power, then the Bible with its discerning, piercing, burning message must become the basis of our preaching.

From my experience in preaching across America, I am convinced that the average American is vulnerable to the Christian message if it is seasoned with authority and proclaimed as verily from God through His Word.

Do we not have authority in other realms of life? Mathematics has its inviolable rules, formulas, and equations; if these are ignored, no provable answers can be found.

Music has its rules of harmony, progression, and time. The greatest music of the ages has been composed in accordance with these rules. To break the rules is to produce discord and “audio-bedlam.” The composer uses imagination and creative genius, to be sure, but his work must be done within the framework of the accepted forms of time, melody, and harmony. He must go by the book. To ignore the laws of music would be to make no music. Every intelligent action takes place in a climate of authority.^[1]

My question is. Are you sinning the sin of bibliolatry? Worship of the Bible, particularly among fundamental churches, as reflected in their saying, “the Bible and Bible only.”^[2] Excessive veneration for the letter of Scripture is bibliolatry.^[3]

According to some heretics among the fundamentalists, "KJV and KJV only." They have the audacity to split the body of God and the church because of KJV. In what ways are the churches being divided? They disobeyed people in higher positions by criticizing those who do not read KJV, and they expelled those individuals from their churches. By nature, aren't these heretics?

We worship the God of the Bible, not the Bible.^[4]

The Bible is a sacred text for Christians, but it is not the object of worship itself. Christians worship the God revealed in the Bible, particularly through Jesus Christ. The Bible is seen as a tool that helps believers understand and connect with God, but it is not God himself.

Some Christians may be accused of "bibliolatry," or worshipping the Bible itself, but this is generally not the intention. The Bible is valued as a source of divine guidance and truth, but ultimately, it points to God as the ultimate object of worship.

Read whatever chapter of scripture you will, and be ever so delighted with it—yet it will leave you as poor, as empty and unchanged as it found you unless it has turned you wholly and solely to the Spirit of God, and brought you into full union with and dependence upon him.¹²

We must emphasize the importance of spiritual transformation, rather than merely intellectual understanding. It suggests that reading the Bible, while valuable, is not sufficient for spiritual growth. True spiritual growth comes from a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit, which leads to a deeper understanding of God's Word and a transformation of one's heart and mind.

In other words, the Bible is a tool that can lead us to God, but it cannot replace God Himself. It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can truly experience the life-changing power of God's Word.

Because some of us do not read the KJV, how can we split up the Church, which is the body of Christ?

Divisions can arise over seemingly minor differences, such as the specific translation of the Bible used. While the KJV is a historically significant translation, it is not the only valid one. Many other translations exist, each with its own strengths and weaknesses.

The focus should be on the underlying message of the Bible, which is consistent across all translations. By emphasizing the core teachings of love, grace, and forgiveness, Christians can overcome divisions and unite as one body of Christ.

Please hear me out: my plea, don't split up this flock that belongs to the One and Only Savior; instead, go back to the One and Only Flock. Return, before it is too late.

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^[1] Graham, Billy. 1956. “Biblical Authority in Evangelism.” Christianity Today, 1956.

^[2] Kurian, George Thomas. 2001. In Nelson’s New Christian Dictionary: The Authoritative Resource on the Christian World. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

^[3] Cross, F. L., and Elizabeth A. Livingstone, eds. 2005. In The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd ed. rev., 208. Oxford;  New York: Oxford University Press.

^[4] Kennedy, Jeff. 2014. Father, Son, and the Other One: Experiencing the Holy Spirit as a Transforming, Empowering Reality in Your Life. Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House.

¹² William Law, The Power of the Spirit (Fort Washington, PA: CLC, 2012), 19.