4 – The Sufficiency of Scripture – Specific
Industries
Specific
Industries
Nowhere
is diminution of “Sola Scriptura” more apparent than in the counseling industry
where secular psychology and psychiatry take equal or superior position to the
Word of God. And many of those who use
this approach claim their Christianity.
How can one claim a Christian act, or industry, by treating secular
wisdom as equal to or superior to the Scripture? The answer is apparent. One dare not.
Pastors
and lay people used to go to Bible colleges or seminaries and learn the Word of
God and to master the Scripture, but sadly, now many go to schools of
psychology to study human wisdom in dealing with the problems of mankind. Psychologists and psychiatrists regularly
staff our Bible colleges and seminaries to teach what the Bible is apparently
no longer sufficient to teach. Bible
colleges and seminaries are giving in to the economic strains by offering
wholesale counseling programs that do not feature “sola Scriptura.” This is just one subtle way of saying the
Bible is insufficient. If pastors and
lay people are not equipped to appropriately minister to the spiritual needs of
others and to counsel, that is not the fault of the Scripture. It is not the fault of an all sufficient
God. It is the glaring fault of the
Christian schools and the Christian community who have lost sight of “sola
Scriptura.”
There
was a time when we believed that the Bible gave us adequate insight into
marriage and the family. Now we get this
insight from those popular Christian celebrities like Dr. Dobson or Dr. Crabb
who have earned their degrees in the secular disciplines or, worse yet, from
Dr. Phil or Oprah.
In
recent years, there has become a preoccupation with self-esteem, self-love,
self-fulfillment and self-actualization that psychology has brought into the
church that knows no biblical counterpart.
The Bible teaches that we have all fallen short of the glory of God
(Romans 3:23).
The
counseling industry is not alone in this fallacy. For subservience of the Scriptures is rampant
in the daily lives of Christians everywhere.
How often do we hear, “Let’s turn to the Word of God to solve this
issue?” Rather we first run to the
Christian book store to find the “Seven Steps to . . .” or the “Four ways to .
. .” and though many authors get around to the Word of God at some point, they
seldom start there. They seldom stay there. When the
Word of God is used, it is often subverted.
If we will only pray the prayer of Jabez several times a day, we will
expand our territory, influence and wealth.
We turn to the “Purpose Driven” everything for our wisdom, rather than
to the Word of God. Certainly no harm
was meant by such a catchy title as “Purpose Driven,” but why not “Christ
Driven” or “Scripture Driven?” Perhaps
those titles are not so “catchy.”
This
last thought leads to the entire publishing industry that seems to be more into
“fluff,” rather than truth. One can only
ask the questions, when did truth become less saleable than fluff? When did that which catches our eye become
more prominent than that which captures our very heart, mind and soul? Paul tells us in Colossians 3:17, “And
whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Jesus was never about “fluff.”
Recent
years have seen the rise in an over-emphasis on the “entertainment” of
worship. We are no longer content with worshiping in word and song and deed, but rather we determine worship on how
whatever happens makes us feel. But Paul
says to the Galatians:
So I say, live by the Spirit, and you
will not glorify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is
contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful
nature. They are in conflict with each
other, so that you do not do what you want.
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. The acts of the sinful nature are
obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and
debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage,
selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the
like. I warn you, as I did before, that
those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and
self-control. Against such things there
is no law. Those who belong to Christ
Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.”
We do not worship to make
us feel better. We worship because He is
the ever-living God. To worship to feel better is to take the
focus off of the cross and to “live by the desires of the sinful nature.” John 4:24 says, “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” Remember from John 17:17: “Your word is truth.” We may not know the exact form of worship
from Scripture, but we should know from the Word of God that the benefit of
worship is not how we feel, but how we honor God.
The
Bible used to be sufficient to tell us what was morally acceptable and what was
deviant, but now we redefine the male-female marriage, moral behavior before
and during marriage, homosexuality and the role of women in the marriage,
society and the church.
Next
we’ll conclude this study with “Practical Application.”
Doug
Comments