Why China Matters For Doing Theology: The Inspired Authority Of Scripture

In Part 1, I said that China matters because biblical truth is at stake. Today, I want us to look at a second reason people should think about China.

The inspiration and authority of Scripture are at stake.

By this, I mean people’s recognition of the Bible as God’s inspired and authoritative word.

Christians believe that the one true God inspired the Bible. Through this revelation, God will bless all nations, in accordance with his covenant with Abraham. God is no provincial deity. The biblical writers and the diverse settings in which they wrote testify to the fact that the relevance of the Bible transcends any one culture and country.

The character of the Bible reflects the character of God.

Consider how it is that God reveals himself. Over forty human authors were inspired by God to write some portion of the Bible. They represented every spectrum of life and used an assortment of images and genres of literature. From this literary collage emerges a picture of God that is breathtakingly glorious. This is not some tribal god of the hills who lacks power in the plains.

Yet, inspiration is not the same thing as interpretation. The way we interpret Scripture can subtly undermine our doctrine of Scripture. To claim that God’s word is infallible should not be confused with saying our interpretation of the Bible is without error. What is the consequence of reading the Bible with only western eyes? We distort God’s revelation. We can misunderstand it and mixing up major and minor emphases. Perhaps, a particular statement or doctrine by itself is true enough, but is so limited that it may even obscure more central ideas.

This is why I wrote the article “We Compromise the Gospel When We Settle for Truth.”

The Bible is bigger than Western culture

Don’t misunderstand my use of the word “western.” It is not a subtle curse word for everything bad in theology or the world. Sometimes, one can get that impression when reading recent missions literature, as if Western Christians were theological despots causing all the havoc in the world. “Western” theology is neither inherently better nor worse than “eastern” theology.

In some ways, it seems Chinese culture is the opposite of everything Western. (This cannot be said among urban and young Chinese). It is common to hear people even today object when hearing a gospel presentation, “Christianity? That’s a Western religion!” Likewise, any foreign Christian who stays in China a while will eventually hear, “Oh, Christmas. Yes, . . . like Chinese New Year. Christmas is for Westerners. Chinese New Year is for us.”

Accordingly, many are unwilling to listen to God’s word.

China is big but the Bible is bigger.