The Word of truth

Rightly handling the Word of Truth

Emphasizing only one aspect of a Biblical truth will result in a distorted picture. Arthur J. Ferch pointedly describes the responsibility of the preacher to present God's Word in a balanced manner that takes into consideration all phases of truth.

Arthur J. Ferch is chairman of the theology department, Avondale College, New South Wales, Australia.

Heresy assailed the fledgling Christian communities. Petty arguments and quarrelsome theological discussions retarded the progress of the church. Spiritual arrogance disguised itself as sanctity. Some unsettled and unsettling believers deserted the faith. Paul was at death's door in a Roman prison, and the gentle, somewhat timid Timothy urgently needed help.

To meet these circumstances, the anxious pastor recorded a series of counsels in what has come to be known as his "last will and testament." Among these counsels is the following advice:

"You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." "Remind them of this, and charge them before the Lord to avoid disputing about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth" (2 Tim. 2:1, 2, 14, 15, R.S.V.).

Apparently Paul considered a preaching ministry that "rightly handles the word of truth" an effective means not only to counter the crisis of his day but also to preserve the health of the Christian church. His advice is as pertinent today as it was when first addressed to Timothy.

What is implied in ministry that "rightly handles the word of truth" ? At a technical level such preaching would presuppose Biblical interpretation based on textual-criticism analysis: attention to philological and grammatical details of the original languages; close examination of the historical context of the Biblical text; and an elaboration of the theological implications of the passage. Yet it seems that "rightly handling the word of truth" extends beyond these mechanical skills of exegesis. Paul's advice seems to imply a basic honesty to and with the "word of truth." By basic honesty, I mean a fairness to all that the Word says on a given topic, a balanced approach to the Bible that represents the Word in such a way that no one part of the Scriptures will be in opposition to the picture presented by the Bible as a whole. Every phase of truth must receive its proper emphasis. The preacher who "rightly handles the word of truth" will neither accentuate truth that appeals to his (or his hearers') intellect or temperament, nor will he suppress a text, a Biblical book, or a writer that does not suit his system. Though such a balance may at times be misunderstood as a lack of conviction, a lack of that balance has, and will, cost the church dearly.

It seems significant that the scriptural canon includes two discrete histories of Israel, four distinct Gospels, and several diverse models of salvation.

The history of Israel, particularly from the time of the monarchy to the destruction of Jerusalem, is recorded on one hand in the books of Samuel and Kings and on the other in Chronicles. Both collections actually used many of the same sources for this period, yet Samuel and Kings interpret these sources and historical events from the perspective of the religious principles enunciated in the book of Deuteronomy, while Chronicles views the same happenings from a priestly and cultic perspective. Both histories occasionally omit details reported in the parallel block or include materials not recorded in the companion volume as they augment their interpretations of the historical data.

Similarly, the four Gospels offer some what diverse accounts of the life, work, and words of Jesus. Though Matthew, Mark, and Luke parallel one another more closely in their account of Jesus' ministry and preaching than does John (and for this reason are designated the Synoptic Gospels) , their reports nevertheless differ even among themselves. Matthew presents Jesus as a Jew and great teacher. Mark displays our Lord as a man of action who by the witness of His divine power is the Messiah. Luke, in contrast to Matthew, traces the ancestry of the Man of Galilee right back to Adam and presents Jesus as the man of all races. John's Gospel omits the accounts of Jesus' baptism, transfiguration, and experience in Gethsemane, but includes hitherto-unrecorded speeches to the disciples, as well as the controversial Temple discourses. As a whole, the fourth Gospel seems to be more theological than historical.

Yet, Divine Providence saw fit to preserve these different accounts in what we now call the New Testament, for their diversity provides a more comprehensive picture of the life, work, and words of Jesus than any one depiction in and of itself could have offered. "Rightly handling the word of truth" will give due attention to the whole picture.

Like so many themes in the Bible, the story of our salvation is inexhaustible. Yet, while its intricacies can tax the sharpest intellect both in this life and throughout eternity, its good news is simple enough for a child to comprehend. It is particularly our new standing in Christ that is too rich to be encompassed by any one expression. For this reason the New Testament uses several terms, or models, of salvation— justification, redemption, reconciliation, adoption, forgiveness, et cetera—to describe this new reality of a person in Christ. (Note a more extended discussion of this diversity in "The Dynamics of Salvation," Adventist Review, July 31, 1980, pp. 6, 7.)

These different expressions or models of our salvation in Christ have been drawn from diverse secular settings and all have a distinctive Biblical usage and meaning. From the setting of the law court originates the word justification. This model of our new status in Christ depicts mankind as a criminal arraigned before God's bar of justice, guilty with no hope of reprieve. Unexpectedly, however, Someone rises to speak on behalf of the condemned. More than that, while acknowledging the dis obedience of the accused, He offers His own obedience and instead of agreeing to man's death, He points to His own sacrificial death. As our substitute and representative, He accepts our condemnation while we hear the sentence "Acquit ted." In Romans 3:9-31, where Paul employs this law-court language, we notice that he mingles this model of salvation with that of redemption.

Redemption is a term related to the ancient slave markets and pawnshops. Mankind is described as being in absolute bondage to sin with no hope of escape until, at His own gracious initiative, the Divine Redeemer pays the exorbitant price that releases man to Christian freedom (see Rom. 3:24; Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:13, 14; Heb. 9:15).

Reconciliation is an expression drawn from human relations in which friends have become estranged (see 2 Cor. 5:18- 20). Although for one party the cause of ill has already been removed, the other nurses his feelings of hostility until one day he recognizes the full impact of his estrangement from his friend and, touched by the generosity of his former friend, turns around and becomes reconciled.

Jesus' use of the parable of the two debtors describes the model of forgiveness (see Matt. 18:25-35) reminiscent of the world of financial transactions. Mankind is confronted with an incredible debt of sin that it can never repay. Yet in the midst of the debtor's despair God freely cancels the obligation.

Again, the Bible depicts us in the unfortunate condition of "orphans." There is a loss of belonging, identity, and purpose. Then one day, moved by grace, our heavenly Father adopts us as sons and daughters (see Gal. 4:5; Eph. 1:5). Our wretched condition changes; we have a home, and belong.

All these terms, whether they depict mankind as condemned, enslaved, indebted, estranged, or orphaned, portray a central truth and simply highlight variations on this common core: man, left to himself, stands without hope before God until he hears the incredibly good news that God, at His own initiative, has done for and in him that which he neither deserves nor could ever do for himself.

Every model paints a picture that is complemented by the other expressions illustrating our new standing in Christ. To concentrate on one of these models exclusively or even to give prominence to it would do an injustice to the totality expressed by all. There must be no filtering out of any color or feature since the various expressions have varied appeals to different people's intellect, emotions, and needs.

Nowadays books describing the human body frequently add transparencies depicting the various parts and functions of the human anatomy. One transparency might illustrate the bone structure, others the nervous system, the blood vessels, the muscles, the organs, or the tissues. Each transparency appears to be complete, and of itself arouses wonder in the observer, but it is still only part of a larger, comprehensive depiction of man. To what greater degree does awe, amazement, and gratitude to God well up in many a Christian when all the various representatives of the human body are placed together and the complete person emerges!

Like these transparencies of the human body, the Bible provides the reader with a variety of models of salvation that, when taken together, convey the full meaning of our new standing in Christ. Similarly, the Scriptures offer a diversity of sketches of Israel's history and of the life and words of Christ. "Rightly handling the word of truth" will neither highlight nor subdue any colors or aspects providentially recorded in Scripture, be they in the historical, prophetic, apocalyptic, Gospel, or epistolary literature of the Bible.

Balanced preaching may not only meet contemporary theological challenges, preserve the church's health, and stimulate its progress, but also evoke wonder for, and obedient truth in, the Lord of Scripture.


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Arthur J. Ferch is chairman of the theology department, Avondale College, New South Wales, Australia.

August 1981

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