Why Your Bible Lens Might Be Blurry - Beware of the Scribes 02

 

Beware of the Scribes: 

I was sitting in the passenger seat of a car recently, just watching the world go by through the window. It was one of those quiet afternoons where your mind starts to wander, and you think you’re just observing the scenery. Then, I saw it. A political bumper sticker on the car ahead of us. It wasn't just a logo; it represented a whole denomination of thought that I happen to disagree with. In an instant, something shifted in my spirit. Before I could even catch myself, I wasn't just looking at a sticker anymore. I started looking at the driver's yard as we passed their house. I began judging the condition of their lawn. I looked into their open garage and started making mental notes about the clutter inside. I was judging a man I had never met, all because of a few inches of vinyl on a bumper.

This is the "leaven" Jesus warned us about, and it’s a lot more dangerous than we think. We often walk through life with these presuppositional lenses strapped to our faces, and we don't even realize they’re there. We think we are seeing the world—and the Word—clearly, but we are actually seeing it through a thick fog of contemporary definitions, political biases, and even scenes from Hollywood movies. This is the pain point for so many believers today: we want to know the "biblical Jesus," but we are trying to find Him through centuries of interpretations and "leaven" that have been baked into our thinking.

If you’ve ever felt like your Bible reading is dry, or if you’ve noticed that different versions seem to be saying entirely different things, you are feeling that agitation. You’re scratching your head, wondering if you’ve been heard it all "through the grapevine" rather than from the mouth of God. The solution isn't just to read more; it's to change how we read. We need to get as close as we can to the original breath of God, back to when holy men were moved by the Spirit to capture the very essence of what God was saying. In this post, I want to show you how to strip away those lenses and beware of the "scribes" of our modern age so you can truly hear what the Spirit is saying.

When I talk about "Coffee with Conrad," I’m talking about getting back to the source. My passion is for you to have a spiritual relationship with the biblical Jesus. You need to know Jesus, not just know about Him. There is a world of difference between the two. Think about it: how can you truly know someone if you don't know what they actually said? And I don't mean a translation of a translation that has been smoothed over to fit a modern religious institution. I mean the words that proceeded out of the mouth of God in real time.

We have this habit of unknowingly superimposing our own ideas onto Scripture. Take movies, for example. When you read about the crucifixion, do scenes from The Passion of the Christ flash across the window of your mind? When you think of Moses, do you see Charlton Heston in The Ten Commandments? I’ve caught myself doing this many times. I have to make a conscious effort to block out those cinematic images and empty my mind. I have to "cast down every vain imagination that exalts itself against the knowledge of God." If I don't, I’m not reading the Word; I’m watching a rerun in my head.

This influence is so strong that we often swear things are in the Bible that simply aren't there. Have you ever heard someone say that "the lion shall lay with the lamb"? People say it so often they’d bet their life it’s in the book of Isaiah. But if you actually open the Book and look, you’ll find something slightly different. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. (Isaiah 11:6 KJV). It’s close, but it’s not the same. When we rely on popular culture or even popular sermons more than the actual text, we are inviting leaven into our hearts.

This brings me back to that car ride and the bumper sticker. That moment of judgment was a wake-up call for me. It’s what I call "contempt prior to investigation." Because of a sticker, I felt I knew everything I needed to know about that person. I had already judged them. This heart posture nullifies the precept of loving our neighbor or the stranger. And where does that judgment come from? It comes from the heart. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. (Luke 6:45 KJV).

If we want to see God, we have to deal with the heart. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. (Matthew 5:8 KJV). To have a pure heart, we have to be careful about what we let into our "eye gate" and "ear gate." I often think of Smith Wigglesworth, the "Apostle of Faith." This was a man who walked in the power of the Holy Ghost to raise the dead and heal the sick. One thing that stood out about Wigglesworth was his refusal to let "leaven" into his house. He wouldn't even let a secular newspaper through his front door! He wanted his heart filled with nothing but the Word of God.

While that might sound radical, think about the alternative. Every secular TV show, every political commentary, and even many modern sermons have the potential to knock our understanding of the Word of God off course. The devil is subtle. He was the most subtle being in the garden, and he hasn't changed his tactics. He doesn't always use a direct lie; he just perverts the Word enough to make it palatable to our "itching ears."

This is why William Tyndale’s story is so vital for us today. Tyndale was a man who was literally killed for how he translated the Bible. His last words were, "Lord, open the king of England's eyes!" That prayer actually inspired the title of my book, OPEN YOUR EYES: MY SUPERNATURAL JOURNEY. Tyndale wanted the common man to be able to read the Word for himself. At the time, sermons were in Latin, a language only the wealthy and educated could understand. It was religious gatekeeping at its worst. Paul tells us that he would rather speak five words with his understanding than ten thousand in an unknown tongue (1 Corinthians 14:19 KJV).

But Tyndale didn't just translate words; he translated the meaning. And that’s what got him in trouble. For instance, he translated the Greek word ekklesia as "congregation" rather than "church." To the religious authorities of his day, this was heresy. Why? Because the word "church" had become synonymous with a powerful religious institution—a building, a hierarchy, a system of control. By using "congregation," Tyndale was pointing back to the people, the body of believers called out by God.

When Jesus said, And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it (Matthew 16:18 KJV), He wasn't talking about a stone cathedral or a denominational headquarters. He was talking about His people. If you look up the word "church" in a resource like Vine's Expository Dictionary, you might be surprised. In some editions, the word "church" isn't even listed; it just says "See ASSEMBLY." The original Greek ekklesia comes from ek (out of) and klesis (a calling). It is a "calling out." It’s a body of citizens gathered for a purpose.

Tyndale was tried and killed for heresy because he dared to remove the institutional lens from the eyes of the common man. Today, we have the Bible in our own language, but the "scribes" are still at work. They work through our presuppositions and our cultural biases. We say "I'm going to church," and we think of a physical location. But if we want to follow the biblical Jesus, we need to realize that we are the assembly. We are the ones called out.

Personal Reflections

I’ve had to learn these lessons the hard way. There have been so many times when I thought I was being "spiritual" by judging others, only to realize that I was actually full of bitterness and leaven. That moment in the car with the bumper sticker was a moment where Jesus corrected me. He showed me that my heart wasn't as pure as I thought it was. I was letting external triggers dictate my internal state.

I’ve also had to repent for how I’ve read the Bible in the past. I used to read it to find verses that backed up what I already believed. That is the definition of a presuppositional lens. Now, I try to come to the Word as a "common man," like the ones Tyndale died for. I want to be moved by the Spirit. I want the "rocks of revelation" to be poured out, but that only happens when I’m willing to let go of my "contemporary English definitions" and seek the heart of the One who breathed the words in the first place.

When Susan and I do our daily Bible reading, we often notice how even modern apps like YouVersion change words between different versions. It makes you scratch your head. It reminds me that two things that are not the same are, well, not the same! This is why I always go back to the source. The closer we get to the source, the better.

Biblical References

Scripture is very clear about the importance of guarding the heart and the eyes. We must be diligent because our spiritual sight depends on it.

• Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. (Proverbs 4:23 KJV)
• But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. (Matthew 5:28 KJV)
• I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid? (Job 31:1 KJV)
• Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. (James 4:8 KJV)
• Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully. (Psalm 24:3 KJV)
• Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. (Psalm 119:11 KJV)

These verses all point to the same truth: what we allow into our hearts determines what we see and how we live. If our hearts are cluttered with the leaven of the Pharisees—or the leaven of modern media—we will not be able to see God clearly.

Key Takeaways

• Beware of "leaven," which is anything that isn't the pure Word of God, including cultural biases, political judgments, and media influences.
• Be conscious of the "presuppositional lenses" you wear, such as images from movies or popular sermons that might not be biblically accurate.
• The word "church" in the Bible (ekklesia) refers to an "assembly" or "congregation" of people, not a religious building or institution.
• Guard your "eye gate" and "ear gate" to maintain a pure heart, which is necessary to see and understand God.
• Prioritize the intake of the Bible over secular media and even popular sermons to avoid being misled by subtle perversions of the Truth.

Conclusion and Call to Action

Friend, it’s time to take the lenses off. We live in a world that is constantly trying to tell us who Jesus is and what the Bible means, but most of those voices are just "scribes" adding their own leaven to the bread. Don't be satisfied with a "grapevine" relationship with God. Dig deeper. Go higher.

William Tyndale gave his life so that you could have the Word of God in your hands. Don't let that sacrifice be in vain by letting your Bible gather dust or by reading it through the foggy lens of tradition. If you want to dive deeper into these topics, I highly recommend reading about Tyndale's life and the history of the English Bible.

I also invite you to pick up my book, OPEN YOUR EYES: MY SUPERNATURAL JOURNEY, where I talk more about these spiritual realities. And if you’re struggling with spiritual attacks or night terrors, my book Overcoming Night Terror: Making the Demons Leave can help you find freedom through the power of the Word.

What "leaven" have you noticed in your own life lately? Have you ever caught yourself "judging by the bumper sticker"? Let’s talk about it in the comments below. And don't forget to bookmark ConradRocks.net for more revelations.

Action Items

• Identify Your Lenses: This week, pay attention to the mental images that pop up when you read Scripture. Are they from the Bible, or are they from a movie or a painting? Make a conscious effort to "cast down" those imaginations.
• Guard the Gates: Take a "media fast" for a few days. Turn off the news and the secular shows, and fill that time with the pure Word of God. See if your spiritual clarity improves.
• Study the Source: Pick a common Christian word—like "church" or "pastor"—and look up the original Greek or Hebrew meaning using a tool like Strong's Concordance or Vine's. Compare the original meaning to how we use the word today.
• Repent of Contempt: If you find yourself judging someone based on an outward sign (like a bumper sticker or their appearance), stop immediately and ask God to help you see them through His eyes instead.
• Hide the Word: Commit one of the KJV verses mentioned in this post to memory this week. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. (Psalm 119:11 KJV).