As Little Truth as Possible?

Many professing believers content themselves with a mere cursory knowledge of Scripture, while filling their minds, hearts, and conversations with a knowledge of politics, literature, sports, entertainment, exercise, travel, and food. They are content to know little of Scripture while giving a deep dive into these other areas of interest. This is no phenomenon unique to our day and age. Nearly 75 years ago, J. Gresham Machen––in his book What is Faith?––made the following observation about the propensity of many professing believers to content themselves with a little knowledge of Scripture:

“Some men seem to devote most of their energies to the task of seeing just how little of Christian truth they can get along with. For our part, we regard it as a perilous business; we prefer, instead of seeing how little of Christian truth we can get along with, to see just how much of Christian truth we can obtain. We ought to search the Scriptures reverently and thoughtfully and pray God that he may lead us into an ever fuller understanding of the truth that can make us wise unto salvation. There is no virtue whatever in ignorance, but much virtue in a knowledge of what God has revealed.”1

What Machen noted so long ago of many in the mainline churches of his day sadly is true of many professing believers in our day. It was also indicative of many in the fledgling Christian churches in the first century. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews paused his exposition about Christ being the great high priest of the church to rebuke these professing believers for becoming “dull of hearing.” He wrote, 

“About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God” (Heb. 5:11-12). 

The author of Hebrews was waxing eloquently about the way in which Jesus fills the office of high priest as the eternal Son incarnate, appointed by God the Father to be a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek (Heb. 4:14-5:10). Before proceeding to explain the rich typological connection between Melchizedek and Christ, the author censures his readers for having a shallow knowledge of Scripture. If they had known the Scriptures carefully, they would have understood the mystery of the priesthood of Christ from the pages of the Old Testament. Instead, they had not left “the elementary doctrine of Christ.” They were only familiar with the first principles of the Christian faith (i.e., repentance, faith, baptism, laying on of hands, resurrection, and eternal judgment). These were the rudimentary principles that all believers should have come to terms with at the beginning of their Christian lives. However, the writer of Hebrews exhorted them to move on from these things to “go on to [spiritual] maturity” by discovering the deep things of Christ in the Old Testament. 

There is no virtue in being ignorant of the truth of Scripture. In fact, knowledge of God’s revelation in the Bible is never forwned upon in Scripture. As Machen explained, 

“There is no rebuke whatever for an intelligent faith that is founded upon the facts. The childlike simplicity of faith is marred sometimes by ignorance, but never by knowledge; it will never be marred—and never has been marred in the lives of the great theologians—by the blessed knowledge of God and of the Saviour Jesus Christ which is contained in the Word of God. Without that knowledge we might be tempted to trust partly in ourselves; but with it we trust wholly to God. The more we know of God, the more unreservedly we trust Him; the greater be our progress in theology, the simpler and more childlike will be our faith.”2

A hunger of the knowledge of God and the things of Scripture and those who do not ultimately lies, not in the mind but in the heart. William Still once put it so well when he said, “the heart is the key to the mind.” An unwilling mind is driven by an unwilling heart. A heart that wishes to know more about Christ will spend time pouring over the Scriptures in order to glean those precious doctrines that move us on to spiritual maturity. A willing mind is fueled by an eager heart. Accordingly, we must cry out to God for a spiritually enlarged heart, knowing that with it He will also give us a mind committed to seeing “just how much of Christian truth we can obtain.” 

1. J. Gresham Machen What is Faith? pp. 159-160

2. Ibid., p. 95