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Once sufficient doubt is cast upon the Bible as a body of objective truth, it will cease to be either an instrument of faith or a standard of practice. It can be cherished as literature, adorning our tables and filling our libraries; yet it will be no more authoritative than Aesop's Fables, nor more relevant than the Analeds of Confucius. Neo-orthodoxy characteristically emphasizes the clement of "encounter" in its approach to Scriptures. It defines the Bible as a word of man which may or may not become, for the reader, the Word of God. If and when God reveals to a given man some truth through the Scriptures, that portion of the Bible becomes the Word of God for him. Hence neo-orthodoxy holds that the Bible as such is not the Word of God; it simply contains the Word of God; At moments of "encounter" the errant writings of the Bible become the media through which God speaks. Thus Karl Barth finds no apparent difficulty in denying the existence of a personal devil, even though the activities of such a being are often described in the Bible; and even Barth himself admits the practical inescapableness of the devil's activities. The neo-orthodox approach to Scriptures destroys them as an objective standard of truth and authority. It tends to leave every man to do that which is right in his own eyes. To the degree that the authority of the Scriptures is weakened, its high standard of ethical requirement disappears. This results in sin's blackness being neutralized. Confession of sin consequently ceases to be heard, and "Thus saith the Lord" no longer is proclaimed from the pulpit. Instead, strange forms of doctrinal error are heard. (3) A denial of the objective authority of Scriptures opens the floodgates, allowing paganism, impurity, and pandemonium to inundate society. (written by Chairman of dept of Religion at Spring Arbor College) judyt He that says "I know Him" and doesn't keep His Commandments is a liar (1 John 2:4) |
