Understanding the ScripturesMcConnell, Francis John
Religion
Understanding the Scriptures
McConnell, Francis John
Bible -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.; Bible -- Study and teaching
A friend of mine many years ago wrote a book which he called The Hero
God. The publishers objected to the title because they saw in it a
touch of sensationalism. No title, however, could have more adequately
set forth the biblical God. God is the hero of the Bible. His heroism
appears in growing revelation from the beginning. It shows itself
superbly in his willingness to bear the burdens of mankind and in the
appeals which he makes for response from men. The picture is of a God
who dares to believe in men and who dares to call on them for the
extremes of self-sacrificing devotion, not to himself as an arbitrary
Person, but to himself as the center of the moral life which is above
all other life worth while. It is open to anyone to object that this
biblical picture does not necessarily hold good for God; but it is
hardly possible to object that the picture is not biblical. The picture
stands in its own right and makes its own appeal. The only way to test
it in life is to yield to its appeal.
If we are asked to account for the power of the Bible, we are at a loss
for any one single statement. The most compendious reply is the
magnetism of the love of God as revealed in Christ. This is so broad,
however, that it may not make a direct and vivid impression. We may
say, then, that one element of the magnetism of the biblical revelation
is the magnetism of the appeal to the heroic. Whatever else the Bible
may or may not be, it is not a book of soft and easy things. Breaths of
the most rigorous life blow across every page. It is made for man in
that it calls men to the service of the highest and best. The religious
systems which make the fewest and least demands upon their followers
most speedily fall away; those that call for the utmost are most likely
to meet the enthusiastic response. There is a frank honesty about the
biblical appeal which holds a charm for all men in whom there are any
sparks of real manhood. The severities of the Christian life are
nowhere disguised. Men are never lured on by false pretenses. The path
is the path of cross-bearing, and the reward is the comradeship between
God and man as they together work toward the highest goal, a
comradeship which of itself brings relief to men burdened with the
mystery of the universe and agonized by remorse over sin. This essay
is quite as significant for what it has not said as for what it has
said. In our omissions we have tried to keep clear the main outlines of
scriptural revelation. We have sought to hold fast to principles rather
than to discuss details. We have done this because we have believed
that there is more value for religious understanding in pointing out
the loftier biblical peaks which give the direction of the whole range
than in tracing out pathways through detailed passages. Moreover, we
have been afraid to employ many theoretical terms lest we blur the
quick moral impressions made by the Scripture phrasings. For example,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account