I worship "The Bible" it is my Idol?

[W2L]

And what if, because of pride, they love trusting in the power of their own intellect rather than in the power of God Himself to understand the scriptures? Would or would this not be a form of idolatry?

I dont know anyone who trusts in their own intellect, but instead look to the scriptures for understanding. I have however known folks who put trust in their denomination above the scriptures. Catholics for example, i have talked to many of them and they are among the first to preach about bible idolatry. However, they hold the Popes word as infallible and accuse anyone who doesn't agree with them of being prideful, or being their own Pope. Not all Catholics are like that, but many of them on CF sure seem to be.

 

[W2L]

If people would just humble themselves, and look to God, and His scriptures, for guidance, then they would do well i think. Of course i believe in simplicity not complicated theology. I believe the Lords command is simple to understand. Its the "doing" part that we fail to do so often

 

[Hidden In Him]

I dont know anyone who trusts in their own intellect, but instead look to the scriptures for understanding.

I study high-powered scholarly Biblical commentaries. I could list for you a ton of them.

 

[W2L]

I study high-powered scholarly Biblical commentaries. I could list for you a ton of them.

What do you mean?

 

[Hillsage]

bible idolatry is a term invented by misguided folks. Man shall not live on bread alone but on every word of God. The scriptures are food for our soul.

That quote sounds good, but in the light of the context it is written in, I think it still supports exactly what I just posted;

MAT 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

To me it looks like the spoken 'word that proceedeth' from God's mouth, is still the very point of distinction I am trying to make. This Matt 4 scripture, which is based upon Deut 8:3 is also, in context, distinguishing between the physical bread...or manna from heaven. and contrasting how it differs from God's spoken word. So, for me anyway, this Deut. scripture is essentially equating that physical 'manna' or physical "bread from heaven", with our physical 'bible' of today as being distinct from God's spoken word to us present tense today.

DEU 8:3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

So I'm still of the persuasion that the word that proceeds from the mouth of God is the word that immediately accomplishes the thing for which it was intended on earth. For example; When do you recieve faith to believe that you may first receive the life that is in God?

ROM 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

I read the bible many times before 'hearing the word of God' to believe...the bible/scriptures. And that 'truth' is just as true for me today. Verses of scripture, come alive, when they are 'his word' and not just 'the bible'.

 

[W2L]

That quote sounds good, but in the light of the context it is written in, I think it still supports exactly what I just posted;

MAT 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

To me it looks like the spoken 'word that proceedeth' from God's mouth, is still the very point of distinction I am trying to make. This Matt 4 scripture, which is based upon Deut 8:3 is also, in context, distinguishing between the physical bread...or manna from heaven. and contrasting how it differs from God's spoken word. So, for me anyway, this Deut. scripture is essentially equating that physical 'manna' or physical "bread from heaven", with our physical 'bible' of today as being distinct from God's spoken word to us present tense today.

DEU 8:3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.

So I'm still of the persuasion that the word that proceeds from the mouth of God is the word that immediately accomplishes the thing for which it was intended on earth. For example; When do you recieve faith to believe that you may first receive the life that is in God?

ROM 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

I read the bible many times before 'hearing the word of God' to believe...the bible/scriptures. And that 'truth' is just as true for me today. Verses of scripture, come alive, when they are 'his word' and not just 'the bible'.

I understand what you mean. You are distinguishing Gods word from the scriptures. However, when people start doing that they get into trouble. The Catholics believe the Pope speaks the word. SDA believe Ellen white speaks the word. Prosperity followers believe Kenneth Copeland speaks the Word. I just follow the bible and God speaks to me through it. I dont trust prophets or teachers. I must follow the path i have "heard" as i read scripture.

 

[W2L]

BTW, when Christ said "man shall not live on bread alone", he was actually talking about scripture. Thrice he said "it is written""

 

[W2L]

I dont want to hyjack the thread so i'll be quiet now, and only respond to those who respond to me. As for me, the scriptures are as close to hearing God as i will probably get. Im content. I hear Gods voice in those scriptures. They speak to me all day long.

Proverbs 6:21 22 When you roam, they will lead you;
When you sleep, they will keep you;
And when you awake, they will speak with you.
23 For the commandment is a lamp,
And the law a light;
Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,

 

[My Brother's Keeper2]

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 7:16 So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me..."

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Acts 1:1-3 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

Acts 2:42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

2 Peter 1:20-21 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

BBM
The scriptures are the written Word of God. As I think is evident from the scriptures above, Jesus taught his disciples the Word given to him by the Father and he commanded the disciples to teach it to others. The Church, then, continued in those same teachings which were written for future generations. No one has been given authority to deviate from those teachings. 1 John 4:1 says, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world." People today speak the Word of God only when they quote the scriptures.

I can see certain ways in which the Bible, the bound book, can be an idol. One way is if we consider ourselves religious because we own a Bible although we do not read it, but use it only for show (maybe we don't want to risk soiling its pages or expose it to wear and tear because we revere it). We might also believe having a Bible in our home or carrying it with us protects us from any harm or brings us good fortune.

Also, remember that the Bible has been translated from the original manuscripts into many different languages. In English alone there are around twenty versions, most of them paraphrases of other versions. Not even word-for-word translations are completely accurate because they are translated by fallible humans. So, a Bible can be an idol if we insist on using a particular version because it appears to say what we think it should say, or if we define a word used in that version in a manner that seems to support our beliefs or lifestyle. Really, it's no different than the Israelites making a golden calf and claiming it was the god that brought them out of Egypt. Personally, I like to compare several versions of the Bible, including word-for-word translations, and look up controversial or unclear passages in the interlinear Greek or Hebrew.

Another way the Bible--the bound book--can be an idol is if we sing praises to it (yes, there are hymns extolling the Bible). It's the Holy Word of God contained therein that is sacred, not a book. The same Word is holy no matter where it's written (it was originally inscribed on scrolls) and, again, not all versions/verses are faithful to the original text; and when it is spoken.