Written by Tyler R. Wittman |
Wednesday, May 11, 2022
Biblical reasoning is a way of reading Scripture that is first and foremost a way of being taught by Jesus, about Jesus, for the sake of enjoying Jesus and belonging to Him. Jesus teaches us about His divinity and humanity alike, so that we may taste the depths of our salvation in the depths of our God.

Scripture is not disinterested in its readers because God is not disinterested in his people. God binds His people to Himself by binding them to His Word–a gift that creates covenant fellowship between them. God’s Word carries the promise of a further gift: holiness. His people will be holy as He is holy as they are sanctified through God’s Word by His Spirit (Lev 19:2; Jn 17:17). Most importantly, being made pure, they shall one day behold His glory face to face (Matt 5:8; Jn 17:24). This is the desire of Moses and of so many of the psalms: to see the LORD’s glory, to see His face (Exod. 33:18; Ps. 11:7; 17:15). This end, and the purification necessary for it, requires an all-encompassing orientation for one’s life, with duties enjoined upon God’s covenant partners. That is to say, the covenant’s fellowship is irreducibly religious–shaped by love and therefore justice and obligation. Those who read Scripture do so in this covenantal context, which is to say they do so under certain obligations and with certain promises, in pursuit of certain ends. God initiates the covenant and centers its fellowship on Himself because at its heart is God’s gift of Himself. Therefore, Scripture does not entertain disinterested readers because Scripture, like the covenant of which it is a part, is all about God.
So what difference does that make for what Scripture is, who its readers are, why they read it, and how?
Answering these questions is the work of “biblical reasoning,” a shorthand concept coined by the late John Webster for the complex interaction of systematic theology and biblical exegesis. According to Webster, biblical reasoning is “the redeemed intellect’s reflective apprehension of God’s gospel address through the embassy of Scripture, enabled and corrected by God’s presence, and having fellowship with him as its end.”[1] This definition joins two things which are often separated in practice if not in theory: doctrine and exegesis. However, it does so by emphasizing the primary actor in the covenant: God, the Alpha and Omega of all things, including Scripture and its reading. What this suggests is that Scripture should be read with a view to knowing, loving, and beholding God above all things. Only with such a fixation on God do other important concerns come into view with the proper focus. The gospel is very important, so too is eschatology, or practical Christian living. But their importance is relative, not absolute. The consuming fire at the center of these mysteries is the Holy Trinity, their author. Fixated thus on the Lord in whom all things hold together, we discover what Scripture is, who its readers are, how they read it, and to what end.
Consider the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Lk. 24:13-35), and how it sheds light on these matters.[2] The details are well known. On the third day after Jesus was crucified, Jesus joins two disciples walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus and asks what they’re talking about. The disciples don’t recognize Him, so they recount His passion, apparent failure to redeem Israel, and the odd reports about His possible resurrection. At this, Jesus rebukes them: “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!” (Lk. 24:25). Their foolishness suggests they lack wisdom (Deut. 32:31 lxx; Prov. 15:21). So He proceeds to instruct them about the necessity of His suffering and subsequent glory: “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Lk. 24:27). Later, at dinner, Jesus breaks bread with the disciples and in that moment “their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him” (Luke 24:31). Did not their hearts “burn” while Jesus opened the Scriptures to them? Quickly, they rejoin the other disciples in Jerusalem to confirm what they’ve been taught, only to find themselves once again standing before “Jesus Himself” (Lk. 24:36)!
At its most general, this episode shows us that reading Scripture rightly requires an encounter with the risen Lord, who is present and actively teaching us so that we might behold him with open eyes. Two qualities of this encounter deserve particular attention.
First, this encounter is pedagogical, a schooling in which we are trained and formed. As we watch Christ school his two disciples, he also schools us. Part of this is not surprising: Jesus belongs to first century Jewish scribal culture, so, as a Rabbi, He has a school with students whose curriculum is Holy Scripture. Yet the curriculum aims beyond itself. Unlike other teachers, Christ’s pedagogical aim is knowledge of Himself. Jesus causes His disciples’ hearts to burn and their minds to open as He directs their attention to Scripture and therein to Himself (Lk. 24:32, 45). He opens their eyes to matters of “first importance,” namely, His resurrection that happened “in accordance with” the Old Testament (1 Cor. 15:3-5). The resurrection not only manifests His Lordship but also the redemption of His people. And what is the aim of this redemption? “This is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). Jesus desires for His disciples that they behold the eternal glory that is His with the Father (John 17:24).
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Kuyper has been much talked about in recent years, but too seldom read.  He understood the threat that secular ideology posed to Christian ways of thinking and viewing the world.  He understood how the ideological conflict was working itself out in the debates over politics and society.

The latest issue of Credo Magazine focuses on Christian Platonism. The following is one of the issue’s featured book reviews by Gary Steward. Dr. Steward serves as Associate Professor of History at Colorado Christian University.
Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) is one of the few Christian theologians in the modern era who articulated a full-orbed political theology and labored to implement specific policies as a political leader of a nation.  As the founder and leader of the Antirevolutionary Party (so named for its opposition to the ideology of the French Revolution) from 1879 to 1920, Kuyper worked out his Reformed theological convictions into a complete political program, serving as the Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1901 to 1905.  In addition to this, Kuyper wrote much in the area of theology and founded the Free University in Amsterdam in 1880.
Public Theology
So much of Kuyper’s work in the area of public theology and political thought has not been accessible in English until now.  Thanks to the work of the Abraham Kuyper Translation Society and the Acton Institute, the Collected Works in Public Theology have now at last been made available in twelve large volumes that contain a trove of Kuyper’s thought on matters of politics and society.  These volumes contain many pieces that have not been published before in English, and each volume contains helpful explanatory introductions that situate Kuyper’s thought within its historical context.  The editors have gone to great lengths to make sure that the reader can work his way through Kuyper’s works and understand the significance of each piece in its historical and theological setting.  In addition to this particular volume, On Education, the Collected Works contain Kuyper’s Our Program (his political manifesto), Common Grace, Pro Rege, and other volumes with shorter pieces on the Church, Islam, business, economics, charity, and justice.
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Paul says every gift is essential for the church to be healthy. Thus, every gift has value. And that implies that every skill and every worker is valuable too. But Paul also says we differ in our functions. Yet there are “higher gifts” and believers rightly “desire” them (12:31). If God grants them, he expects us to use them. If the gift is service, we serve. If it is leadership, we lead “with zeal” (Rom. 12:6-8).

At this moment, two contradictory ideas about work compete for our attention. On one hand, economists say the desire to work is waning. People aren’t rushing to return to work after the disruptions of Covid. Specifically, employers can’t obtain laborers for entry level jobs. People would rather be unemployed than accept a job with low pay, poor benefits, and no prospects. Meanwhile, the church, and especially the faith and work movement, enthusiastically promotes the dignity and value of all labor. We cite Paul, who says, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord” (Col. 3:23). In particular, Protestants refuse to call church work “sacred” and ordinary work “secular.” The faith and work movement cheers workers on saying, “All work is holy. Your work matters to God!”
Like all slogans, “All work is holy” must be refined. The idea that all work is holy doesn’t cover dishonest or illegal work. Pushing opioids is work, but it isn’t good work. Further, work can be lawful, yet almost meaningless. There is work that neither lasts long nor matters much. How important is it to sell lottery tickets? Cotton candy? Promotional T-shirts that can’t survive two journeys through a washing machine? It is unpopular but necessary to say it, but all work is not equal in every way.
First, let’s agree that all honest work has dignity. Second, every worker has equal value, whether they sweep floors or run major corporations. Third, both CEOs and cleaners can and should please God at work. In fact, the cleaner may well please God more, since a CEO can easily become impatient or selfish.
Nonetheless, certain positions have more strategic weight than others. The CEO has more impact on a corporation than the cleaning crew. A restaurant chain in my area recently declared bankruptcy due to a series of errors by corporate leadership. A little later, a Christian camping ministry escaped bankruptcy through a series of wise and sacrificial decisions. The labor force at both places was skillful and faithful. The restaurant enjoyed good food, loyal customers, and prices that were low enough to be acceptable but high enough to be profitable. The camp also had good food and programs, but the camp had better leaders in a time of crisis. Situations like these show how leaders have strategic influence. In short, all work can please God and every honest job has worth, but executives exert greater influence than security guards do – I say this as a former security guard.
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