Can We Worship the Bible?

The term “bibliolatry” is sometimes used to describe an unhealthy elevation of Scripture, as though a person can value the Bible so highly that the Bible itself becomes an object of worship. But is that really the problem? Can we place too much emphasis on the Bible?

Scripture repeatedly calls us to treasure God’s Word, meditate on it, teach it, and measure what we believe by it. The danger is not loving God’s Word too much. The danger comes when we misuse it for our own purposes.

Tadd shares some thoughts below on the difference between devotion to Scripture and the very human tendency to wield Scripture in ways God never intended.

article by tadd corder

“I have not departed from the command of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.” (Job 23:12)

“O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.” (Psalm 119:97)

“Let my tongue sing of Your word, for all Your commandments are righteousness.” (Psalm 119:172)

“When they say to you, ‘Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,’ should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living? To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.” (Isaiah 8:19-20)

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

I do not believe that there is such a thing as bibliolatry — worship of the Bible, or too much emphasis on the Bible. Believers may apply Biblical principles in an exploitative way; we may be inconsistent; we may misunderstand God’s purpose for giving us the Scriptures; but we cannot put too much emphasis on the word of God. The Bible comes from God. It has been breathed out by Him. Paul described the teaching of the apostles through the Holy Spirit as the mind of God being revealed (1 Corinthians 2:12-13).

This is why the people within the stories of the Bible are constantly praising the Scriptures as a gift and challenging others to do the same. We must study and teach the word of God humbly. We will give an account for ourselves, but the Bible is a book of doctrines as well as stories. Doctrines are even necessarily woven into the stories because we see God pleased or displeased, glorified or dishonored, by the people in the stories. In many places, the Bible is not stories at all. It is the communication of direct commandments: do this, don’t do that.

The Bible wasn’t given to us so that we could win arguments for a particular sect. The Bible was given to facilitate our belief in God, our peace with God, our peace with fellow believers, and our effectiveness in His kingdom: “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their [the apostles] word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:20-21).

Don’t misunderstand me. Believers are called to engage false doctrine. False doctrine cannot produce the peace that God offers to us in Jesus Christ. We are called to declare what is true, even in the face of violent opposition. Bible teaching should call all men to repentance, but it should not keep sinners in a constant state of fear and misery, leaving them feeling as if they will never be accepted by the God who is just. The God of the Bible is also gracious. When Scripture is wielded as a carnal weapon, this is not bibliolatry (too much emphasis on the Bible). This is human error. This is too much emphasis on our selfish interests and desires.