It is important to overcome a purely \u201cverbal\u201d understanding of Scripture. It must be admitted that Protestant theology has rightly insisted on the indispensable role of preaching in the Church\u2019s inner life as well as in its mission to the world. Our Church, through its Vibrant Parish Initiative, encourages us to make every effort to integrate the reading of Scripture into our daily lives and to wrestle with its meaning. All to frequently the concept of the \u201cWord of God\u201d in Reformed tradition has been reduced to the canonical Scriptures or even to the sermon, as though one or the other possessed in and of itself the capacity to transmit knowledge of God and to establish communion with Him. As Luke 18:34 and similar passages make clear, though, the scriptural Word is not necessarily self-revealing. Human words can become the very Word of God only through the inspiration and interpretive power of the Holy Spirit. Only the risen Christ, the eternal divine Logos operating through the Spirit, can open men\u2019s minds to understand the Scriptures, bringing to their remembrance the fullness of His teaching and declaring the hidden truths of this age of our salvation, to His own glory and to the glory of the Father. The fact that even Christ\u2019s own words are not automatically self-revealing explains why He invariably links proclamation of the \u201cgood news\u201d of the Kingdom with concrete, material signs that reveal the deeper meaning and confirm the truth of His words. At the beginning of His ministry, He concludes and validates His teaching in the Temple by healing a man with an unclean spirit. Similarly, the apostolic commission consists of the double imperative to preach and to heal: Whenever you enter a town, heal the sick in it and say to them, \u2018The Kingdom of God has drawn near to you\u2019\u201d (Luke 10:8f). The prophet\u2019s oracle was dramatically sealed by a \u201csign-act\u201d that associated some material object with the pronouncement of divine judgment. In this case, the object participated in the prophecy by enabling those to whom the oracle was addressed to visualize the consequences of their refusal to repent. The sign-acts of Jesus and the apostles, however, actually accomplish the work of salvation proleptically by actualizing the promise of the kerygma in the life of the diseased or possessed individual. This healing – accomplished through the power of the spoken word – is a true \u201csymbol\u201d of salvation. Jesus makes a new creation come true.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It is important to overcome a purely \u201cverbal\u201d understanding of Scripture. It must be admitted that Protestant theology has rightly insisted on the indispensable role of preaching in the Church\u2019s inner life as well as in its mission to the … Continue reading