Certainty Or Uncertainty?
This morning I read a social media post that reminded me of other posts that were much like it, and I think this is quickly becoming a current trend that is both deceptive and dangerous. The common theme is this, that we cannot be certain that we have the truth from the Bible. They say the Bible is inerrant and infallible, however, our interpretations of the Bible are neither inerrant or infallible because we are mere creatures. Because of this, we must be humble and not be certain about the truth, but rather leave room for others who have a different interpretation.
On the surface, this sounds like a very pious, humble position. After all, is it not humble to not insist your way is the right way? Therefore, since your interpretation is yours, humility demands you be uncertain about it. The Bible itself lifts up humility as a virtue for Christians to have, does it not? Is it not the height of arrogance to insist that you are right in everything? And look, no one is claiming that the Bible is not inerrant or not infallible, we are only claiming the problem is with men, not God. This all looks like the one who takes this position might have the moral high ground.
Let’s first consider the absurdity of the statement itself. These people profess the Bible to be inerrant and infallible, they claim they are certain of that. They also claim that men are imperfect and fallible. How do they know either of these two things are true with any level of certainty? The only answer to that is that their interpretation of the Bible leads them to this certainty, and therefore, their position on uncertainty is built on principles of certainty from God’s Word. Furthermore, the virtue of humility is taught from God’s Word, but can we be certain that is the right interpretation of what God means with the words He used to describe the humble? What if my interpretation is that humility is actually supposed to be practiced very differently, then their position has lost all of its virtue. In other words, their statement is fully self-defeating.
This all looks like the one who takes this position might have the moral high ground.
However, let me address the core issue, can we have certainty about what the Bible says since it is true that we are imperfect and fallible? The answer to that is absolutely we can, despite our imperfections and our fallibility. The reasons for this are numerous but let me make a statement here and then explain…if it is not possible for us to come to certainty of what the Bible is communicating, then the Bible is no longer infallible. If we cannot come to any certainty, then God’s Word is not infallible, but rather the Word of God would be fallible. You cannot claim infallibility of the Scriptures while simultaneously claiming that we cannot know for certain what the Scriptures say.
How do I explain that? First, God created us, designed us, knows how we think, knows how we process information, knows how we communicate, better than anyone ever could possibly know. God wrote His Word to communicate truth to us, certain truth. He did not write so we would read His Word and say, “Well, I think it means this, but who could possibly know for sure?” No, God wrote so that we might know truth, believe the truth, and be transformed by the truth. Therefore, if that was the purpose of God, but His purpose is thwarted by my inability, then God failed in the writing of His Word. It is now God’s fault because He did not speak clearly enough and did not give us enough ability to truly be certain about truth. If there is no certainty to be found in interpretation, then God’s Word has failed.
He did not write so we would read His Word and say, “Well, I think it means this, but who could possibly know for sure?”
But God’s Word never fails. “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what pleases Me, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11, Legacy Standard Bible). God’s Word accomplishes everything He sends it out to do, therefore, if God desired to communicate truth clearly to mankind through His Word, then it accomplishes that. “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you abide in My word, then you are truly My disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free’” (John 8:31, 32). “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). “And He Himself gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teacher, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11-13). I could go on, but I think anyone who spends time in the Word recognizes that God desires certainty in knowledge for His people.
Let me say one more thing, there may be those who are deceived thinking it is wisdom or humble to not be certain, but those who are teaching such things are not only wrong, but they are dangerously wrong. God’s desire is for us to know Him, know His Son, know His work, know doctrine and theology, know salvation, and so much more, and God has not nor will He ever fail in accomplishing His desire with His Word. Sure, there are a few passages that might give us difficulty, and there are right ways and wrong ways to approach interpretation of Scripture, perhaps that is for another blog post, but the vast majority of God’s Word is plain, clear, and not open to varying interpretations. The people making these claims are not holding to inerrancy and infallibility of the Scripture, rather they are placing themselves over Scripture as the judges of it, because they do not wish for the Scripture to lay them open and bare before God.
Do not hesitate to be certain about the plain things God has given to us in His Word. Certainty is not arrogance when God has spoken plainly, rather the most humbling thing we can do is place ourselves underneath God’s mighty hand revealed in His Word and just let Him speak out the truth. That is where true humility is found.
