Our understanding of faith

The question of Abraham’s Bible is essentially a question of our understanding of faith and the Bible. For today it is clear that our faith feeds on the Bible. If we stand in the tradition of the Reformation, then expressions such as “Sola Scriptura” (Latin for Scripture alone) are the basis of the understanding of faith. Of course, such statements were made in a specific historical context. However, they have had a lasting impact on the understanding of faith up to the present day.

I would like to go one step further: For many Christians, faith does not exist in isolation from the Bible. In extreme cases, there are even “right” and “wrong” beliefs, depending on which doctrine one adheres to. Some people dive deeper and deeper into Scripture and lose themselves in a view that God and the Bible are almost interchangeable. People believe in the Bible instead of God. That is why the question of Abraham’s Bible is so important. For Abraham had no Bible at all. Nevertheless, Paul calls him “father of us all” when he talks about different views on the meaning of the law within Israel. Abraham unites those who live exactly according to the law and those who live by faith. Indeed, neither is as relevant as God’s promise underneath (Rom 4:16).

Abraham did not care in the least about all these considerations – he did not know them. His story shows what is at the core of faith – and it is not the Bible as a book. Faith can be lived without law, and completely without “religious affiliation”. You should take your time and let that sink in. By this I do not mean that all religions say the same thing, but only that faith in the Bible begins where a person enters into a trusting relationship with God. This has nothing to do with dogmatism and nothing to do with belonging to an institution. It doesn’t even have anything to do with whether you are Jewish or Christian. Nor does it have anything to do with what all I associate with it – doctrines and special teachings, religious practices, etc.

Abraham had no Bible

It is amazing, but Abraham got along completely without a Bible (I hear an outcry: Impossible!). Furthermore, it is not handed down whether he held daily “quiet time” (outrage!). He also did not go to synagogue or church (unheard of!). What we know for sure is that he was neither Jewish nor Christian, because these religions came much later. So Abraham was someone who had no Bible, was neither Jewish nor Christian, and yet God spoke to him.

What did Abraham do? Abraham believed God and this was counted to him for righteousness (Gen 15:6). There was no talk of regulations and church ordinances, and all this happened even before he was circumcised. Abraham does not fit into today’s schemes at all.

Abraham had a faith, but this faith took a very different form than we might understand today. Or is it perhaps the other way around? Can it be that the way Abraham simply “believed God” (cf. Acts 27:25) and took His words seriously is the very basis for any further understanding of faith? At least that is how Paul refers to it.

A theological problem

There is still a theological problem for today’s evangelicals. Abraham had never known Jesus. Isn’t that disturbing? Is Abraham saved now? Because that is what many are concerned with today, that you decide for Jesus and then you are saved. Poor Abraham. He could not know anything about Jesus. Strictly speaking, according to the doctrine of heaven and hell, he would not be there in a fictitious eternity.

Maybe Abraham can hope that they invented some special rules for him? But that would be rather tragic – not for Abraham, but for the theology just mentioned. For Abraham, according to a statement of Jesus, will very well be there (Mt 8,11). This also does not fit at all into the ideas of heaven and hell teachings. If such inconsistencies in the Bible stand out, does it not follow above all that one’s own understanding of faith was perhaps too narrow?

Abraham did not have a Bible. Fortunately, however, the Bible has Abraham.

Maintain foresight

Abraham’s story gives vision. This contemplation is also about finding our way in this world. Christians often look down on people of other faiths. Certainly there are people who do not share our views. But there are also people who are not at home in our Reli-Club, who may see some or many things quite differently, but who also cultivate a sincere faith. Sincerely, namely, before God. And I can confidently leave the judgment in His hands.

Similarly, today I can meet people of other religions quite openly and curiously. Perhaps I encounter genuine trust in God, even though I do not share the other person’s views in every respect. I didn’t think that was possible before. Today I know that there are indeed real encounters. I cannot look into the heart of the other person, but I can expect the other person to step out of the tent like Abraham at night, invited by God, to look up and trust God.

“And he brought him out, and said, Look up to heaven, and count the stars, if thou be able to count them. And he said unto him, So many shall thy seed be. And he believed the LORD; and he reckoned it unto him as righteousness.”
Gen 15:5-6

Deepening

• What did Adam and Eve’s faith consist of? Did they think? What kind of faith was that?
• What makes it easier to believe today? What makes it harder?
• What significance does the Bible have for your understanding of faith?
• Paul believes God (Acts 27:25). Compare his statement with the one about Abraham in Gen 15:6. See also the article “I trust God”.
• Am I free to encounter those of other faiths first as human beings and therein truly?