Can We Interpret the Bible to Fit in with Modern Society?
Introduction
The pressure to make the Bible "relevant" or acceptable to modern sensibilities is strong. People often want to re-read difficult or counter-cultural passages (such as those concerning sexuality, marriage, or wealth) in a way that aligns with current social trends, effectively making the Bible conform to the prevailing culture—this is often called cultural relativism in interpretation.
The Christian faith, however, rests on the conviction that the Bible is the unchanging Word of God, and its meaning is fixed, transcending time and culture.
1. The Authority of Scripture: God’s Word is Eternal
The primary reason to reject cultural reinterpretation is the belief that the Bible is the inspired, authoritative, and eternal word of the Creator.
God’s Word is Fixed: If the Bible's meaning were fluid, changing with every generation, it would lose all authority. It would become a mirror reflecting human opinion rather than a lamp revealing divine truth. Jesus affirmed that not the smallest part of the Law would change until all was accomplished.
Scripture Says: "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16). If it is "God-breathed," it reflects God's unchanging nature.
Scripture Says: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away." (Matthew 24:35).
The Goal is to Conform to the Bible, Not the Culture: The Christian life is defined by sanctification—the process of being made holy and conforming to Christ's image. This requires the believer to change their life, mind, and perspective to align with Scripture, not the other way around. The Bible is the plumb line; the culture is the crooked wall.
2. The Danger of Twisting Scripture
Attempting to change the meaning of the Bible to suit a modern agenda is directly warned against in the New Testament, where it is called "twisting" the Scriptures.
Twisting for Personal Gain: The Apostle Peter warned that some people, through ignorance or instability, will deliberately distort the Scriptures to promote their own ideas, often leading to spiritual destruction for themselves and others. This desire to make the text say what we want it to say is a form of self-idolatry.
Scripture Says: "His [Paul’s] letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction." (2 Peter 3:16).
Listening to "Itching Ears": The temptation of cultural twisting comes from a desire to hear teachings that are comfortable and popular, rather than those that challenge us to live a difficult, counter-cultural life.
Scripture Says: "For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear." (2 Timothy 4:3).
3. The Christian Mandate: Proper Interpretation (Hermeneutics)
While the application of the Bible is always contemporary, the meaning of the Bible is historical and fixed.
Seek the Author’s Original Intent: Proper biblical interpretation (hermeneutics) involves diligently seeking to understand what the original author meant to the original audience. The meaning of a text is found in its historical and literary context, not in the reader's personal feelings or the demands of modern society.
The Holy Spirit's Role: Christians rely on the Holy Spirit to illuminate the true meaning of the text, but the Spirit will never contradict the plain, clear meaning of the Scripture itself. The Spirit guides us into understanding the truth, not changing the truth.
Scripture Says: "But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth." (John 16:13).
Conclusion
A Christian must resist the impulse to interpret the Bible to fit modern society. To do so is to place cultural opinion above God's authority, leading to the spiritual danger of "twisting" Scripture to suit an agenda.
Instead, the Christian must submit to the unchanging truth of God's Word, allowing it to act as the eternal plumb line that corrects, guides, and judges our shifting culture and personal lives.
