The Bible is not a theological handbook. The inspired Scriptures are composed of history, poetry, prophecy, biography, and epistles which tell us about God and his interaction with mankind. As such, the scriptures are rich in detail, in tension, in conflict, in beauty, in instruction, and in nuance. The Bible is a rugged landscape filled with mountains and valleys, streams and deserts, jungles and tundra. The Scriptures are given for the shaping of us into the image of Jesus Christ and are for the variety of human experiences, speaking to the rich and the poor, men and women, slave and free. The Bible is a highly textured text.
Systematic Theology is man’s attempt (non-inspired) to summarize and syncretize the various currents of the Scriptures into concise doctrines, short-hand synopses of what the Bible says about this or that topic. By necessity, this process loses the tension, detail, and nuance of the texts in all their diversity and difference. As a consequence, therefore, the intended richness and specificity of the Scriptures as intended for the life of the Church is also lost. Systematic Theology is no substitute for the Scriptures.
A problem then arises if Systematic Theology is used as the sole or primary tool for interpreting the Scriptures. The summarized and syncretized doctrines should not be turned into lenses by which to view the Bible. The Bible should always stand above and over the doctrines that were derived from it. Otherwise, the tendency is to warp the understanding of specific texts to fit within the doctrinal boundaries. Let scripture interpret scripture, but let not doctrine interpret scripture.
At this point some will object that I go too far, that I denigrate those who have studied to understand the Bible and help others understand it by providing a roadmap of its varied terrain. Not so. I only stand against using a doctrine derived from a summary of many texts to override the plain meaning of a single text. Perhaps an example will help.
The Westminster Confession of Faith states the following regarding the doctrine Of the Perseverance of the Saints:
They whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.
Compare this to the warning against apostasy in Hebrews 6:4-8
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned.
The Westminster Confession seems to negate even the possibility of apostasy, about which the author of Hebrews takes great pains to warn his readers. If the doctrine overrides the text, then this warning loses much (if not all) of its intended intensity. Therefore, let the text stand above the doctrine.
Let us be students of the Bible first, and know each part as well as we are able, so that we can then interpret the various doctrines and systems which are presented to us, and not lose the richness of the Scriptures intended for our good.