My last post discussed how we can accurately view and teach Scripture. If you didn’t read it, you can read it here. There is a second part to my thoughts tonight. I’d also like your thoughts on this one.
One classmate responded to the question with a decent answer on how it is dangerous to add our own thoughts to Scripture, which is good. However she then stated, “As bible teachers we are under a divine mandate to teach the Word of God in spirit and in truth and the best way to do that is to teach from the tool itself. Many today use the iPad, cell phones and other technological ways to read God’s Word which is ok, but I still believe that as believers we should never replace the hard copy of the bible for anything else.”
Ummm What?!
So this is how I responded.. Too harsh??
I feel that I must disagree with the full statement that “as believers we should never replace the hard copy of the bible for anything else.”
I do agree that there is something sentimental and nostalgic about holding a Bible in our hands. It is good for us to hold books and to underline and flip pages; to touch the Words of God. I personally prefer this over technology. However, at the end of the day, the Gospel is the Gospel and whether it’s being read on a computer, iPad, ancient scroll, or hard bound book, God’s Word is still alive and active in people’s lives. The same is said of reading Scripture in different languages. One cannot make the jump to say that if scripture isn’t read in the original Greek, Hebrew, or Aramaic, then it has been replaced. Sure sometimes the weight of each word might change, but God is still speaking through and to His people. We cannot confine God to English, when there are thousands of other languages in the world. God is a God above language and above paper and pen, screen and typed letters. This makes our relationship with God so personal and unique – He longs to know us where we are at.
I feel like the “technology war” for Scripture is the same way. I think that God is still pleased that His children are reading His letters if it’s on a tablet or if it is from pieces of paper bound together. He is not bound by little boxes in our minds or to pages or scrolling websites. Each person is different, and some find it more personal to read from their phones. This could be a benefit when people are on the go. There are also useful tools coming out all the time that help in studying, teaching, and learning the Scriptures.
I still prefer my paper Bible, but I’m not comfortable confining God to a statement saying that God cannot speak to people in different forms, when the Words are the same, and God is still moving in our lives.
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Thoughts??
bluegirlsministry 