On Joyce Meyer

A while back I slammed Kathryn Kuhlman for some of her poor decisions. For a counter example, see Joyce Meyer, tpreacher, mother, and wife of Dave. I have no problem recommending her as a preacher worth hearing.

A Few Words on the Word

The Bible is the most remarkable body of literature on Earth. It includes oral tradition, court records, poetry, correspondence, history, and prophecy in a consistent and accurate whole. The reader must keep in mind the cultures, languages, and circumstances of the various authors to reach a full understanding. He can't read as if Paul's letters were written in English. He can't even completely trust that the English translation accurately conveys the author's intended meaning.

Aside from the usual difficulty involved in understanding any text absent inflection and body language, politics and religious dogma and an inevitable failure to understand the cultural milieu that would have informed a contemporary reader make a perfectly accurate understanding almost impossible. Add to this the challenges of translating extinct languages such as the Bible's original Greek and Hebrew into living and evolving tongues like English, and the obstacles to true understanding seem insurmountable.

It is nothing short of amazing that we can read the Bible in English today and, so long as the entirety of its teachings are considered and no single passage is taken in isolation, we can still have a very good idea of what God is trying to tell us through it.

I understand how some people come to elevate the Bible above God himself, treating the physical material of paper and ink or the translated text as if it is itself something to be worshiped. There is a strong temptation to be distracted by the distinctive--miraculous even--nature of the Bible's preservation through the ages. However, as we read and study it, we must keep in mind all of the cultural and personal filters through which we understand its words.

Most people aren't able to read the Bible in its original languages, and some sections of scripture no longer even exist in their original forms. We don't have access to the actual words that God spoke to Adam in the Garden, only a paraphrase that was passed down from person to person and translated from language to language.

That's not to say that the meaning of the words we do have can't be trusted--as I already pointed out, the Bible is astonishingly consistent from end to end--but that they are frequently not word-for-word transcripts. Even in those places where the text is precise, the words are not always inspired or truthful. Letters and messages from kings and generals are reproduced for history and context, not necessarily because they contain any great truths. Some passages contain advice that doesn't rise to the level of command let alone divine command.

The Bible is an amazing collection of Scriptures, but it is not all we need to understand the world or even all we need to understand God and our relationship with him. It is essential, but it is not everything.