A Fresh Perspective - 05/16/08

I have a notion that some people have rejected the Christian faith because of what they think one must believe in order to be a Christian. When they inquire as to "why" one must believe a particular doctrine or teaching that they find distasteful or even detestable they are told, "It's in the Bible." And because their reason, intellectual acumen, common sense, and good judgment will not permit them to accept such teaching, they reject the Bible and the Christian faith. (I am not suggesting that all teaching should be rejected because we don't like it; we may not like it because it cuts against the grain of our ego-centeredness, which is just the reason to give it serious consideration).

But there are many Christians, like myself, who take the Bible seriously as a guide to faith, but we do not take it literally, accepting every statement as the Word of God. We are usually accused of not believing the Bible by those who claim to take everything in the Bible as God's direct word to humanity. That is not true, of course. We believe in bringing all the knowledge, reason, common sense, intellect, and discernment we can muster to understand the Bible, to make sense of its various kinds of literature, and to use and apply the Scriptures to nurture a life of faith. We do however, to put it simply, take the human elements of the Bible with as much seriousness as we do the divine elements.

Even those who claim to take "all" the Bible as the Word of God do not actually practice what they preach. For example, I know very few preachers who try to practice and implement 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, even though they may claim that the Bible is inerrant and infallible. That text says: "Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in church?" Even for those who claim to believe in an inerrant Bible that text is an embarrassment. Is that God's Word? Congregations that say they believe the whole Bible have no choice but to obey it. But do they? I know very few churches that try to implement this. Why? Because it's downgrading and demeaning to women in our culture. But it's in the Bible. See my point. Those who claim to take the whole Bible as God's Word, don't really.

I said all that to say this: just because the idea of "hell" is in the Bible does not automatically mean that it is God's Word to us. If you think that one must believe in the concept of eternal punishment to be a Christian, then you are mistaken.

I am a Baptist pastor and a disciple of Jesus Christ. I have invested my entire life in the study of the Bible. Preaching and teaching Scripture is a constant part of my work and ministry, and I do not believe in a literal hell or the concept of eternal punishment. I am not alone. Our tribe is increasing daily. We find the idea of a literal hell totally incompatible with the revelation of God's love and grace in Jesus Christ. Next week I will reflect on how the idea of hell developed.

Chuck Queen is Pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church, Frankfort (CBF affiliated). You can access his sermons and past articles at www.ibcfrankfort.com. He welcomes your comments at cqueen@fewpb.net