Jamie Grant on Scripture Today

I enjoy keeping in contact with the Christian scene in Scotland by reading Scottish Bulletin of Evangelical Theology, a great journal, had one of my first articles published there. In the latest issue, I enjoyed reading my friend and former colleague Jamie A. Grant, “The Bible as Scepter: Authority and Worldview,” SBET 33.2 (2015): 138-50. In the article, he addresses how the Bible speaks to all aspects of life and society under the headings: The range of Scripture (it speaks to the totality of human life and experience); the voices of Scripture (we need to use the diverse genres of Scripture to communicate to a postmodern audience); the use of Scripture (useful for reading, teaching, meditating, contextualizing the world, singing and praying); and the doctrine of Scripture (its veracity).

In particular, Grant offers wise advice on what to do with Scripture in a missional context:

The evangelical community of all brands shares a high view of Scripture, a positive belief that the Bible shapes and changes lives in their every aspect. Our focus, therefore, should  not be derailed by debates on the minutiae of how we define the veracity of the biblical text. We should, rather, be focussed on our shared desire to bring the worldview-challenging truth of the Bible to the 95% of the population in Scotland who seldom, if ever, encounter the scriptures in any sort of meaningful way.