I just heard a person described as loving the
Bible with all her heart, mind and soul.
Commendable, I guess.
However, the most important command of
that Bible is to love the Lord, thy God with all our hearts, minds, and souls.
I love the Bible, too. But the Bible isn’t God. It isn’t a
person at all. It is a tool by which I
can gain insight into the nature of God.
Am I just splitting hairs? I don’t think so. If you worship
an inanimate object, that’s called idolatry. In fact, there is a specialized
term for people who worship the Bible: bibliolatry. It leads to death, dissatisfaction, and
loneliness, just like any other form of idolatry.
I hate to talk about this in an age when so few people
really look at their Bibles. The Bible is important. It’s a collection
of our most ancient and basic documents upon which Christianity is based.
People need to know their scriptures because it’s a principle way of getting to
know their God.
But the Bible isn’t God.
Like the song said originally: “BEYOND the sacred page, I
seek thee, Lord.”
