Are you getting all you can from God's word?

Sunday we are starting to teach through our core values. Our values are a way to define Northwest as we transition into a missional church. The core value states: The Bible is the authoritative word of God. I was looking at this and got hung up on the word "authoritative." While I believe the Bible is the authority we live by, I am afraid we have done something very wrong. By using the word "authoritative" what are saying about God?

Webster's first definition defines "authoritative" as, "having or proceeding from authority : official." The example after this definition is "church doctrine" (imagine that). While God is our authority and the Bible is the authority that we live by, I think we are missing what the Bible is about. This definition teaches us that the Bible reads like a book of Law, a bunch of do's and don'ts. So we look at the Bible, God's word as a burden. The problem is that Jesus tells us in 1 John 5:3 "his commands are not burdensome to us." So by using the word "authoritative" are we making the Bible something it is not meant to be, a burden?

Oxford Universtiy Press Dictionary's first definition defines "authoritative" as, "reliable because it is true and accurate." If we define "authoritative" like Oxford, what does that say about God? First, it says He is someone we can rely on. He is always there. But it is the reason He is reliable that makes all the difference in the world. He is reliable because what He says is true and accurate.

He has authority over us, but he does not stand over us like some dictator watching our every move. He provides His reliable word to us so that we can live an abudant life. The commands he gives are not a burden to us because God does not approach it as a law, he approaches it as a way to protect us an provide for us. His commands are out of wisdom not control. His word is motivated out of love for people not out of love for Himself.

We need to stop reading the Bible as a book of law. We need to start reading it as a collection of stories about God. The Bible is a story about God and how he interacts with people. It is a story of how God provides a way for people to have a relationship with Him. And this story is "reliable because it is true and accurate" about how to live a life filled with hope, peace and love.