Relevance of Scripture in a Post-Christian Era
Scripture's authority does not derive from cultural consensus but from its self-attested origin in divine inspiration. The apostle Paul declares that "all scripture is given by inspiration of God" (2 Timothy 3:16), a claim extended to the Holy Spirit's agency in the production of the biblical text [1]. This foundational assertion—that Scripture originates not in human invention but in God's breath—establishes its relevance independent of any era's receptivity. The question of Scripture's pertinence in a post-Christian context thus hinges not on cultural mood but on whether its claims about its own nature remain coherent and whether its testimony to Christ retains explanatory power.
The Biblical Witness to Its Own Function
The New Testament presents Scripture as performing specific work in the life of the church and the individual believer. Jesus himself "sanctioned" the Hebrew Scriptures "by appealing to them" in moments of temptation and controversy, citing them as final authority (Matthew 4:4; Mark 12:10; John 7:42) [1]. After his resurrection, he "taught out of" these texts, interpreting the Law, Prophets, and Writings as a unified testimony to his identity and mission (Luke 24:27) [1]. This interpretive move—reading the Old Testament as Christocentric—became normative for the apostolic church.
John's Gospel records Jesus instructing his opponents to "search the scriptures" because "in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me" (John 5:39) [3]. The commentary tradition notes the dual emphasis here: Christ honors Scripture as "a record which all have a right and are bound to search," while simultaneously identifying himself as "the Great Burden of their testimony" [3]. Scripture's relevance, in this framework, is inseparable from its witness to Christ. A post-Christian era may reject that witness, but it cannot render the witness itself obsolete without first dismantling the coherence of the biblical narrative.
Perpetual Use and Public Reading
The early church inherited from the synagogue the practice of public Scripture reading, transferring it into Christian worship (Luke 4:16–20; Acts 13:15; Acts 15:21; 2 Corinthians 3:14) [2]. Paul's instruction to Timothy—"Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine" (1 Timothy 4:13)—assumes that Scripture reading is central to congregational life [2]. The New Testament epistles, "being recognized as inspired by those who had the gift of discerning spirits, were from the first, according as they were written, read along with the Old Testament in the Church" [2]. This liturgical embedding of Scripture ensured its transmission and interpretation across generations, regardless of external cultural shifts.
The commentary on Hebrews 3:15 observes that the repetition of Psalm 95's warning—"Today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts"—demonstrates that "Scripture instructions and exhortations are of perpetual use" [7]. The text's relevance is not time-bound; the "today" of the psalm applies to "the present times of the Gospel" and contains "matter of moment, and great concern" [7]. This principle of perpetual applicability challenges the notion that Scripture's authority wanes when a culture ceases to identify as Christian. The text addresses the human condition—rebellion, unbelief, the hardening of the heart—which persists across epochs.
Scripture as the Means of Faith
The Proverbs commentary identifies Scripture's instrumental role in generating and sustaining trust in God: "By means of the words of the wise, or doctrines of the Gospel, faith in Christ is first had; men are directed and encouraged hereby to believe in him; and by the same means faith is increased, confirmed, and established" [4]. The purpose of "penning the Scriptures" is precisely this: to create and fortify faith [4]. In a post-Christian context, where institutional Christianity no longer shapes public discourse, Scripture retains this generative capacity. It does not require cultural scaffolding to perform its work; it requires readers.
The disciples' initial failure to grasp the resurrection, despite Jesus' repeated predictions, illustrates the gap between exposure to Scripture and comprehension of it. John 20:9 notes that "as yet they knew not the Scripture" concerning the resurrection, despite the presence of types and prophecies throughout the Old Testament (Genesis 22:3; Matthew 12:40) [5]. Their "dulness" and "prejudices in favour of the Messiah being to continue, and set up a temporal kingdom" obscured the text's meaning [5]. This hermeneutical struggle is not unique to the first century. Every era brings its own prejudices to the text, and a post-Christian era is no exception. The question is whether readers will allow Scripture to interrogate their assumptions or will impose those assumptions onto the text.
Scripture's Convicting Function
Galatians 3:22 describes Scripture as having "concluded" or "shut up" humanity under condemnation, "under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe" [6]. The commentary clarifies that "the written letter was needed so as permanently to convict man of disobedience to God's command" [6]. This convicting function—Scripture's capacity to expose human rebellion and moral failure—does not depend on a society's self-identification as Christian. If anything, a post-Christian culture may be more susceptible to Scripture's diagnostic power, having shed the veneer of nominal religiosity that can inoculate against genuine confrontation with the text.
The shift from Christendom to post-Christendom removes certain cultural supports for biblical literacy and authority, but it also strips away the confusion between cultural Christianity and biblical faith. In a context where Scripture is no longer assumed to be authoritative, those who engage it do so with greater intentionality. The text's strangeness—its ancient Near Eastern cosmology, its patriarchal social structures, its scandal of particularity—becomes more visible, but so does its central claim: that the God of Israel has acted decisively in history through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.
Scripture's relevance in a post-Christian era is not a matter of cultural accommodation or apologetic strategy. It is a matter of whether the text's testimony to Christ remains true. If the resurrection occurred, if Jesus is who the Gospels claim he is, then Scripture's witness to him retains its force regardless of societal reception. The early church proclaimed this message in a pre-Christian Roman world; the contemporary church proclaims it in a post-Christian Western context. The cultural moment differs, but the text's function—to testify to Christ, to convict of sin, to generate faith—remains unchanged.
Sources
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Scriptures, The — Given by inspiration of God -- 2Ti 3:16. Given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit -- Ac 1:16; Heb 3:7; 2Pe 1:21. Christ sanctioned, by appealing to them -- Mt 4:4; Mr 12:10; Joh 7:42. Christ taught out of -- Lu 24:27. Are called the Word. -- Jas 1:21-23; 1Pe 2:2. Word of God. -- Lu 11:28; Heb 4:12. Word of Christ. -- Col 3:16. Word of truth. -- Jas 1:18. Holy Scriptures. -- Ro 1:2; 2Ti 3:15. Scripture of truth. -- Da 10:21. Book. -- Ps 40:7; Re 22:19. Book of the Lord. -- Isa 34:16. Book of the law. -- Ne 8:3; Ga 3:10. Law of the Lord. -- Ps 1:2; Isa”
- 1 Timothy (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on 1 Timothy 4:13: Till I come--when Timothy's commission would be superseded for the time by the presence of the apostle himself (Ti1 1:3; Ti1 3:14). reading--especially in the public congregation. The practice of reading Scripture was transferred from the Jewish synagogue to the Christian Church (Luk 4:16-20; Act 13:15; Act 15:21; Co2 3:14). The New Testament Gospel and Epistles being recognized as inspired by those who had the gift of discerning spirits, were from the first, according as they were written, read along with the Old Testament in the Church (Th1 5:21”
- John (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on John 5:39: Search the scriptures, &c.--"In the Scriptures ye find your charter of eternal life; go search them then, and you will find that I am the Great Burden of their testimony; yet ye will not come to Me for that life eternal which you profess to find there, and of which they tell you I am the appointed Dispenser." (Compare Act 17:11-12). How touching and gracious are these last words! Observe here (1) The honor which Christ gives to the Scriptures, as a record which all have a right and are bound to search--the reverse of which the Church of Rome teaches; (2)”
- Proverbs (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Proverbs 22:19: That thy trust may be in the Lord,.... By means of the words of the wise, or doctrines of the Gospel, faith in Christ is first had; men are directed and encouraged hereby to believe in him; and by the same means faith is increased, confirmed, and established. This is the end of penning the Scriptures, and of the Gospel ministry, as follows: I have made known to thee this day, even to thee; the said words and doctrines in the ministry of the word, by the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of them; giving not only a notional, but a spiritual and exper”
- John (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on John 20:9: For as yet they knew not the Scripture,.... Meaning not some particular passage of Scripture, but the writings of the Old Testament in general, and the various places in it, which spoke of the resurrection of Christ, either in a way of type, or prophecy; such as Gen 22:3 and though our Lord had often referred to some of them, at least as in Mat 12:40 yet such was the dulness of the disciples, or such their prejudices in favour of the Messiah being to continue, and set up a temporal kingdom, that even John, who leaned on his breast, and Peter, who was so inquisitive and ”
- Galatians (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Galatians 3:22: But--as the law cannot give life or righteousness [ALFORD]. Or the "But" means, So far is righteousness from being of the law, that the knowledge of sin is rather what comes of the law [BENGEL]. the scripture--which began to be written after the time of the promise, at the time when the law was given. The written letter was needed SO as PERMANENTLY to convict man of disobedience to God's command. Therefore he says, "the Scripture," not the "Law." Compare Gal 3:8, "Scripture," for "the God of the Scripture." concluded--"shut up," under condemnati”
- Hebrews (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Hebrews 3:15: While it is said today,.... Exhort one another, and hold fast Christ and his Gospel, and faith and confidence therein; what follows is a repetition of the citation in Heb 3:7 in order to make a further improvement of it; which shows, that the words belong to the present times of the Gospel, and contain in them matter of moment, and great concern; and that Scripture instructions and exhortations are of perpetual use. in order to make a further improvement of it; which shows, that the words belong to the present times of the Gospel, and contain in them matter of momen”