Tricky Bits
- Richard Collins
- Jun 12
- 5 min read
Do you like the Bible? I absolutely love it.
As a follower of Jesus, I love it because it tells me of God’s love and grace towards me. As a writer, I love it, because it contains some of the most remarkable and memorable stories known to humankind. Why do certain stories resonate down the ages? Because they tap into our deepest longings and our most intense human experiences. This is why the Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan would stand the test of time whether they were parables in the mouth of Jesus or whether they came from elsewhere. They are simply stunning examples of the power of story.
But the Bible also contains some sections that raise difficulties. We can’t deny this. I call these the tricky bits. Some are not just individual passages, but a theme within Scripture that has divided Christians for centuries. Examples include . . .
Baptism.
The role of women.
Charismatic gifts.
End times theology.
Creation theology.
Other parts are tricky because they bump up against our current, modern sensibilities. Church members today live within a very secular culture, and they often carry the values and pre-suppositions of our culture into their own thinking. Some of these tricky bits might, therefore, include . . .
Pain and suffering.
Violence in the Bible.
The treatment of women in the Old Testament.
Israel.
Sexual ethics. (Personally, I have a particular problem with the amount of polygamy in the Old Testament. For me, it’s a tricky bit.)
Such is the strength of feeling over some of these issues that simply mentioning them can sometimes cause problems. Yet a church leader is called to love and serve the flock, and that includes all those who bring these tricky issues into their conversations. (Not to mention their responses to the sermons they hear.)
What is a leader to do? Here are some suggestions.
DON’T GO SOFT
The Bible—in its original texts—is God’s revelation to humankind. It does not contain our human attempts to understand God. The moment you find yourself talking about our imperfect attempts, our ‘straining after who God is’, you will be sliding down a slope that could cost you your faith. Hyperbolic perhaps, but true. Tricky bits aren’t solved by re-working our hermeneutics. We must remain faithful to our core belief that the divinely inspired Scriptures, properly interpreted, are God’s revelation to us.
On this basis, as a church leader, you need to be able to do the following.
Know what you believe.
Know why you believe it.
Teach what you believe.
Church leadership is not for the faint-hearted. It requires a level of strength and inner conviction that comes from a secure knowledge of Scripture and trust in the Lord. As Jesus says frequently, ‘Do not fear, for I am with you’.
When tackling tricky bits, it’s also necessary to approach them with wisdom.
So . . .
DON’T SIDESTEP
It’s terribly tempting to wish away a tricky bit. Or dismiss it, or generally adopt a ‘nothing to see here’ approach. This is unwise. First, if someone is struggling with a passage, and they have come to you, then it’s important to them. To dismiss the challenge or downgrade its importance is to dismiss the person. Tricky bits can represent genuine challenges to faith. A person’s relationship with Jesus may stand in jeopardy, and they have come to you with a deep question of faith. It’s your job to care for them. If you’re impatient or dismissive, then you’re not acting as a shepherd. And that’s your job.
HERMENEUTICS
You’ll notice that I didn’t mention ‘Bible contradictions’ above. That’s because the vast majority of the tricky bits (including most apparent contradictions) can be addressed by the proper use of context, lexical breadth (at times, words have multiple meanings), and hermeneutics. Many (but not all) challenges simply require some teaching on how to interpret the various genres in the Bible (narrative, prophecy, gospel etc). It’s really helpful, therefore, to have an entry-level book on hermeneutics ready to hand. I happen to love Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart’s ‘How to Read the Bible for All its Worth.’ (i) Israel? Not such a problem once we learn how to interpret Old Testament narratives within the overarching flow of the whole Bible. Violence? Some teaching on the fall of humanity, God’s holiness and sovereignty, and his plan of salvation would certainly shed some light on that issue.
HUMILITY
It’s also tempting to talk about mystery. But here, great wisdom is necessary. Refer to mystery too soon and you may simply dismiss the person. ‘Gordon, I really have no idea about that. It’s a mystery.’ Gordon: ‘But you haven’t even discussed it with me!’ Gordon leaves deflated and annoyed.
What’s the answer?
Actually, it’s a pastoral one. Rather than be drawn into considerations around giving the right answer, the real issue is this: Why has this particular person raised this particular question? If you believe that your interlocutor genuinely wants to engage on a subject that is causing real problems for them, then you have an obligation to follow Peter’s advice, when he writes, ‘Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have’ (1 Pet 3.15a). If, however, you come to believe that the discussion is really just a cover for something deeper and more personal, then, with sensitivity, there is nothing wrong with probing a little deeper. Why does this particular passage bother you? How does it affect your ability to trust God? We should be happy to discuss these issues if this presents a real problem, but only when we’re content with a positive answer to the following question.
Is this discussion helping or hindering this person’s walk with the Lord?
Why?
Because discussing tricky bits is a means by which we show that we care for people.
It’s a form of love.
It doesn’t matter how educated a person is, or how complex their questions, when you tackle tricky bits in the Bible with someone in your community, you do it to demonstrate your love for them. You show patience, kindness, and above all, love. It’s how you demonstrate humility. And when you do, you’ll know exactly when to confess that you don’t know the answer. You refer to mystery only after you’ve shown that you care, and that you’ve taken their questions seriously without dismissing them.
Have you dealt with tricky bits recently?
Yes, it’s a challenge, but it doesn’t have to be if you remember that your primary responsibility is to love those you lead.
It’s often about love, isn’t it?
As it should be.
*Other books on hermeneutics are also available. I also recommend Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties by Gleason L. Archer. (Zondervan. 1982)
