Is a Literal Interpretation of God's Word Important?

The source information for a theologian will reveal his philosophy. If a man claims the Koran or the book of Mormon as their epistemology, then his belief will be conformed to what his source teaches. The way a man believes will reveal what he places his trust in. A Christian believes in Christ Jesus because the Bible teaches him about eternal life only coming through a faith in the finished work and Lordship of Christ. A Christian’s source is the Bible, not his mind. Proposing that absolute truth is established only by being revealed by an objective source (God), the only logical conclusion is that there is absolutely one objective interpretation of something God presents as His objective truth. Therefore, a literal interpretation is important because it produces objectivity, decreases human interaction, and brings collective fellowship to God’s people.

As a basic understanding of the God revealed in creation, He is objectivity. Logic would rationalize the fact that if God were subject to human understanding, then He would not be capable of being God at all. Why? Because the authority of God’s dominion would be proposed by faulty, experiential, subjective, and relativistic human reason. In his January newsletter, “The Shepherd’s Staff,” Dr. Clay Nuttall writes, “The faithful interpreter who wants to find the one interpretation of a text will ‘simplify to clarify,’ while the one who wants to insert motive and presupposition will ‘complicate to confuse.’” A man that wants to complicate his message must be unsure of the validity of his message, or is trying to push an agenda. In an attempt to “rightly divide” the Bible, one must remain true to God’s revealed Word through seeking objectivity.

Humans have a tendency to be sinful. It is part of the sin nature in us that points us to a sinful lifestyle, that’s why so much hope in found in I John 3:2 where God tells us that, at the Rapture, we will be like Christ. Pastors, great men of God, should keep themselves accountable when shepherding women. Why? Because the flesh, though dead to our spirit, but is ever-present in our lifestyles. If a great man of God can fall in the blink of an eye in regard to immorality with another woman at his church, how easily could it be for the average Christian to place some personal agenda into the text of Scripture? In an attempt to glorify the Lord in our interpretation of His Word, exegetes need to limit human influence on the text because of the unfortunate influence of the flesh on human reason.

The purpose of God’s revelation is, as the term implies, to reveal Himself in His glory. In his book, Biblical Ethics, Dr. Robertson McQuilkin explains sin as a “moral wrong,” meaning that sin implies a purpose of diluting the righteous character of God. Taking McQuilkin’s definition of sin and the propositions already established, it is a moral, outright, sickening demonstration of unrighteousness when an interpreter takes what God says and adds to it, or takes away from it. There is no room for hidden agendas when a man approaches God’s glorious self-revelation. When God reveals Himself, He does so in means that would reveal His glory to his recipients. Since His recipients are men, then God expects men to comprehend what God wants them to understand. God’s Word, rightly interpreted, performs the purpose as it reveals itself. Therefore, man can have fellowship with God and has an unwavering rule by which to have common fellowship with fellow man through an objective interpretation of His Word.

In conclusion, a literal interpretation is important because it produces objectivity, decreases human interaction, and brings collective fellowship to God’s people. A Christian is labeled by His epistemology like canned food is labeled by their respective labels. If a Christian decides to change his epistemology from the Bible to human reason, let me strongly urge him to change his label to something other than Christian because it paints a bad picture for the rest of us. Imagine going to the grocery store to get corn and bringing it home only to find that the label is wrong, pretty disappointing huh?