Lizzo has got a point, but the Bible is much more than a historical document

Singer Lizzo recently made an Instagram live video where she shared to her 11.6 million followers how she reads the Bible. In a recorded snippet of the About Damn Time singer on Instagram live she said: “I read the Bible intellectually”. Lizzo claims to have read the entire Bible from front to back, she said: “The Bible to me is a historical document… especially in the Old Testament, there is a lot of genealogy and there’s a lot of historical events that are documented.”

Whilst Lizzo has a point that the Bible is a historical document, I believe reading the Bible purely from an intellectual standpoint means you miss the supernatural aspect.

Whilst Lizzo has a point that the Bible is a historical document, I believe reading the Bible purely from an intellectual standpoint means you miss the supernatural aspect. Hebrews 4:12 says, ‘For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.’

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But first, let us consider the validity of Lizzo’s point. Let’s explore how reading the Bible through an intellectual lens can help our faith.

Discovering the historical foundations of the Bible can help give us confidence that God’s word is true. It also helps with evangelism, particularly in a Western context where people are looking to understand Christianity primarily through a logical lens.  There are some brilliant Christian theologians, like Amy Orr Ewing, who are well-versed in apologetics and can defend the faith to unbelievers as an evangelism tool.

Biblical scholar, Wes Huff recently went viral for confronting Billy Carson for promoting false teachings discrediting the Bible. The video saw millions of views and even had comments from atheists who reconsidered their position on faith and Billy Carson following the debate.

READ MORE: People in the Bible lived well into their hundreds, but the oldest known woman in the world today is 115. What are we doing wrong?

So I want to be clear that I do not think studying the Bible as simply a historical document is the antithesis of Christianity

So I want to be clear that I do not think studying the Bible as simply a historical document is the antithesis of Christianity, as it is something Christian apologetics heavily hinges upon. I know God uses it as a step to draw people closer to him.

A relationship with God, just like marriage, goes beyond head knowledge alone. It’s a spiritual journey. The Christian faith is about applied knowledge, which seeps into your heart for true transformation.

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The verses in Hebrews 4 speak to what the Word of God primarily is - spiritual. It is a book that is designed not only for us to read but for it to ‘read us’ and lead to transformation. As James 1:22 says: ‘Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.’

So, I would suggest to Lizzo that reading the Bible as simply a historical document is missing the point. If you are reading this Lizzo, let God’s Word transform you.