The Hubris of Evangelical Textualism

For many Evangelical Christians, we are most comfortable when faith is clearly and cleanly definable within the bounds of reason.  We repeat the resounding Evangelical battle cry "God is a God of order" and we flock quickly and consistently to that thing which sets us apart (in our minds at least) Biblical Textualism.  We take great pride in our well-interpreted, well-reasoned understandings of the truth that the entirety of Scripture contains.  Yet for all of the sound Biblical exposition that this mindset has yielded, have we committed a fatal flaw?  

As a student at a prominent Christian university, I very quickly came to view God's Word as a textbook containing all the answers necessary to succeed in both classes and life.  While this mindset was certainly not encouraged by the university and was actually adamantly cautioned against, it was where my mind quickly gravitated.  Seeking truth became a purely mental pursuit.  If one desired to know God, all one needed to do was enter into a well educated study of His Word.  However, such hubris reflected a "confidence in the ability of the human mind to do that which the Bible declares it was never created to do and consequently is wholly incapable of doing."  

Please hear this and don't misunderstand what I mean to communicate.  While it is certainly important and vital for us to seek the Lord with all of our minds, let us not fall into the arrogant trap of believing that we are capable of mining the entire depths of God's character by reasoned mental pursuit alone!  For it is only through the illuminating of our hearts by the Holy Spirit that we can truly discern any real depth regarding our Creator.  

As we pursue the knowledge of our Lord through the study of His Word, we must do so with a constant humility, acknowledging the limited nature of our human minds and our deep need for the Holy Spirit to enlighten our souls to the deep things of God.  

by Matt Gould