KNOWING THE BIBLE
Read and pray: “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
PREFACE
This book is composed of messages given in Taipei, Taiwan, in the 1950s. They were given as part of a training to encourage and help young people to read the Bible. In these chapters we have a panoramic view of the Bible, how it was written, its subject, central thought, its parts, and the principles of biblical interpretation. The purpose of publishing these words is to supply the need of the newly saved.
The goal of these lessons is to help people learn to read the Bible, that is, to help them know how to read the Bible. Perhaps some brothers may think that in each lesson we will be studying the Bible itself; but that is not what we will do. Instead, we will help the brothers learn how to read the Bible and how to know it.
To build up a person spiritually, we need to help them know the Bible. In the last two thousand years, all Christians recognize that no one can truly know the Lord without knowing the Bible. We human beings are not merely spirit. Although we have a spirit, we are not simply a spirit, but a complete human being. If we were only a spirit, God would only need to give us His Spirit; there would be no need for the Bible; however, since we are not only spirit, He also had to give us the Bible.
The spiritual inheritances that God has given us are the Spirit, which cannot be seen, and the Bible, which can be seen. The Spirit is within us, and the Bible is outside of us. Christians of all ages can testify from their experience that a proper Christian must be fully balanced in these two aspects—the Bible outwardly and the Spirit inwardly. These two aspects must be absolutely balanced. Any leaning toward one of these sides will result in serious problems.
Among Christians throughout the centuries, some leaned toward the inward Spirit, which resulted in great errors. Most, however, leaned toward the outward Bible. Apparently, these did not err as much, yet among them there is a very serious condition of death.
In other words, if there were only the inward Spirit and no outward Bible, man would easily make mistakes. On the other hand, if there were only the outward Bible and no inward Spirit, man would be completely dead, totally without life and without any vitality.
Christians can be compared to a train. There must be fuel inside to serve as its driving force. But a train also needs tracks outside. If there is fuel inside but no tracks outside, the train cannot move. Even if it does move, there will be problems. However, if there are only tracks outside and no fuel inside, the train may be on the right road, but it will not move. Therefore, for a train to move, and move well, there must be the coordination of these two aspects: the inward aspect and the outward aspect. Outwardly, there must be the adjustment of the tracks, and inwardly, there must be the energy from the fuel.
The same is true with us. We have the Spirit inwardly and the Bible outwardly. Unfortunately, Christians throughout the centuries have leaned toward one or the other. Even in our days, many people continue to do the same. Those who overemphasize the Spirit condemn those who lean toward the Bible, saying to them: “What you read is just dead letters. Every day you only use your mind to study dead teachings. The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Only we live in the Spirit.”
Those who lean toward the outward Bible, in the same way, condemn those who emphasize the inward Spirit, saying to them: “What you have is just emotion. There is only excitement and enthusiasm, but no stability. Consider all the people you say were awakened by the Spirit. Where are they today? Many things that were claimed to have been initiated by the Spirit actually ended in complete disaster.”
Years ago, we saw much of this kind of condemnation in northern China. When the so-called Pentecostal movement or charismatic movement was in full swing there, its participants strongly opposed the interpretation of the Bible. They thought it was enough to be filled with the Holy Spirit and to have the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. However, among them, there were not only many errors but also many strange stories. Those errors and strange stories really brought much shame to the name of the Lord. These things did not occur only in China but also in Western Christianity. Even today, there are still these two tendencies and these two errors.
These things show us that a proper Christian must be balanced; he must be filled with the Spirit inwardly and know the Bible outwardly. One who is filled with the Spirit inwardly and knows the Bible outwardly will be like a train that inwardly has the fuel that gives energy and outwardly is on the tracks.
In this way, he will be a Christian who is living, stable, moving, and also heading toward the goal. Therefore, we must equally emphasize the Spirit and the Bible; we must not neglect either of these matters. We cannot omit the inward Spirit nor despise the outward Bible.
Enjoy more:
Hymn Study of the Word – “The Function of the Word”
https://hinario.org/detail.php?id=880
Instrumental
https://on.soundcloud.com/BsfO7IAfVcY1avHbKh
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