181: Let’s Stop Using ‘Biblical’ to Divide the Church

This anniversary series is about naming what’s broken in church culture—and making room for leadership that looks like Jesus.

In this episode, we’re rethinking the phrase “We’re a biblical church.” It’s often used to divide, not unite—and that’s a problem.

We’ll cover:

1. Why “we’re a biblical church” can actually drive people apart instead of uniting us.
2. My personal frustration with how “biblical” has sometimes been used as a measuring stick for others’ faith.
3. Celebrating our diverse, Scripture-loving community
4. How using “biblical” as a litmus test for belonging does more harm than good.
5. Reclaiming “biblical” as a term that reflects Christlike love, humility, and connection.

Let’s use our words to build unity—not walls.

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Transcript

Laurie Graham: 0:01

Hey, welcome to the small church ministry podcast, where we help volunteers and ministry leaders experience less stress, more joy and greater impact as we share strategies that actually do work in smaller churches. I'm your host. Laurie Graham, let's dive in. You. Laurie, Hey there. Welcome back to another episode of the small church ministry Podcast. I'm Laurie, and this is the third in a sequence of our special anniversary series called off script, five years of saying what needs to be said. Now today's episode might step on a few toes, and I am okay with that, because it matters. We're going to talk today about the word biblical. And before you hit pause, please, please stick with me. I love scripture. I love it deeply. And I've also come to realize something difficult and honest over the last few years of relating to and connecting with 1000s of churches worldwide, across all kinds of denominations. And here it is, too often, when someone says we are a biblical church, what they really mean is we're the ones who are right, and if you're not like us, maybe you don't take Scripture seriously. And I want to talk about this because the church, the global church, all the little dots all over the map that surround the entire world, the church should be known for emotional connection, for humility, for empathy, not for smugness, not for division, not for pride, and especially in small churches where our relationships matter the most. So stay with me as we begin an honest conversation about something I have seen that hurts the church, the global church I have been in so many conversations, sometimes on social media, sometimes in church staff, situations where someone says we are a biblical church, and suddenly silence or worse, division. Now it's not that we shouldn't strive to live in line with Scripture, we absolutely should, but let's be honest, the word biblical has become a buzzword, a badge, a battle line, and I get it. When we say biblical, we're trying to say we are faithful to God's Word. We are we feel responsible for taking the Word of God and living by it. But too often, the word biblical is used to imply that other people are not that if someone interprets something differently or belongs to a different denomination or applies scripture with a more nuanced or compassionate lens, then they are not really biblical, and it's not that. It's not just fair, it's not Christ like now, let me be real with you. There have been times I've heard someone use biblical in a conversation, and instead of feeling unified, I personally have felt shut down like the space wasn't safe to ask an honest question or to bring in a different perspective, a question, a conversation, many more times than I can count, I've had someone say we're going to stick with what the Bible says, in response to a conversation about women in leadership, about inclusiveness, about parenting, about marriage, or even about the behavior of children running in the hallway, as though I hadn't read the Bible, as though I hadn't prayed or studied or wrestled With the text myself, or worse, like I didn't care about what Scripture said. I care deeply, and I know you do, too, when these kind of conversations happen, when this comes up, I felt a mix of things. Sometimes I feel really dismissed, like my voice does not matter in the conversation, or at the very least, it doesn't matter to them. I also have a feeling of confusion, because I love scripture deeply, and I believe in unity. And I really believe that that all of us who love Jesus are headed to the same place, and when we finally get to heaven, all these things that we disagree on, not only will it not be the conversation, but it just won't matter. So I felt confused, I felt dismissed, I felt unseen. I felt disheartened, really, because instead of curiosity, I felt a wall go up, like this is the shutdown phrase. Ways that cancels all incoming questions or conversation, and I didn't feel these things because I disagreed with them. Disagreement is okay. In fact, it's very normal. I felt these ways because of the assumption that loving the Bible only counts if it leads you to the same conclusion, have you ever felt like this? Do you know what I'm saying? Like someone questioned your faith, not because you didn't care, but because you saw something differently, or you were at a different place in your journey, or because of your experiences, or because of learning and a place of growth. Now, one of the things that I love about our community, in small church ministry, our Facebook community, our podcast community, our conference communities, is how many different backgrounds we all come from when we started this ministry five years ago. This is our fifth anniversary. I had a lot of people say this could not be done. We couldn't really have a ministry that was interdenominational. But I want to tell you, we have done it. We've got Baptist, Methodist Pentecostals, Lutherans, Presbyterians, non denominationalists. We have tons of people in our community with no formal denomination at all, but a deep love for Jesus and His Word. We may not agree on every point, but we're unified by something deeper. We do love scripture. We want to follow Jesus, we want to grow. We want to become more like Him, and we're also open to learning from each other. And I want to be honest, some of the people I know who love Jesus the most and take Scripture incredibly seriously are actually in churches that you might call more progressive or more liberal. But here's the thing, they didn't land there casually or because culture pulled them in that direction. They studied, they wrestled, they prayed. They've taken scripture seriously, and I know you have, too. No matter what denomination where we've ended up, we can love Jesus and take Scripture very seriously and end up in different places, sometimes a different place, than when we were even raised. And I respect it. It's not unbiblical. It's spiritual maturity to be able to respect people who are different, who see things differently. And I really do believe this is what the early church looked like. It was messy, it was diverse, it was curious. They didn't all have the exact same theology, but they did have the same spirit. They didn't use the word biblical as a way to draw lines. They used the love of Christ to bring people in. I'm going to say that one more time. They didn't use the word biblical as a way to draw a line in the sand. They used the love of Christ to bring people in. Is this possible? I believe it is, because I've seen it in our communities. The trouble comes when the word biblical is like the line in the sand. It's used to divide who's in and who's out, or it's worn even like a badge to feel more right than others. It stops being about following Jesus, and it starts being about proving a point, digging in our heels. It assumes your interpretation is the only one. It shuts down conversation and curiosity. It lacks empathy and love and grace and respect, and when we lead that way in small churches, we alienate the people who are genuinely trying to follow Jesus and grow and maybe they aren't quite like us. It's not just that. It's unkind, it's not helpful, because discipleship is a journey, and faith is dynamic. It's supposed to be dynamic. We're not supposed to learn it all and stay stuck there. That's not even possible with how God created us to be. Faith is dynamic. If we can't create space for people to grow and question and experience God with their whole selves, including their mind and their hearts. We're not really making disciples, we're just policing them. So here's a thought, what if being biblical? The word biblical, being biblical meant being like Jesus, being like him. What if we stop using the word biblical to separate and start using it to invite What if biblical meant humility, like Philippians two, compassion, like John eight, curiosity. Like the questions that Jesus asked, the way he engaged with people around him, connection, how he treated outcasts and children and women and doubters. If we really look at Jesus at His life and His love, His emotional connectedness, his relational way. I think we'd really see that being biblical is never about winning an argument. It's not what Christ did. Being biblical is about embodying the heart of God and honestly, small churches can lead the way in this. We are relational by nature. We know each other. We can't even hide behind programs or big stages because we don't have them. This is where emotional connection matters the most, because we are in the thick of real life relationships, people will notice if we're judgmental, they do. People will notice if we're judgmental, they will also notice if we are gentle. Is it possible that gentle is the opposite of judgmental? Just let that rest on you for a minute. Can we have deep convictions to our own beliefs and still be gentle, still respect others, still invite conversation, in love, in peace and unity, because I believe we can. I don't think we need to water down our interpretation of the Scripture at all, but we do need to elevate empathy. Could we just elevate empathy? Could we give some respect to the lives other people have lived, to their perspectives, to their experiences, and that starts by changing how we talk about being biblical. When I look up church websites, which I often do, I'm in connection with 1000s of small churches all around the world. And typically when I meet somebody, when I have zoom call, I just have fun. I want to see what their perspective is, what their context in the questions they're coming in with, what that what their church is like. And I'll go on a website, and as soon as I see we are a biblical church, I just go, what does that mean? Like people put it on their website as though it says what it means, because it doesn't to me. Biblical means a lot of things. Let's stop using the word biblical to divide. Let's start using it to embody Christ. And once again, what if biblical meant humility? What if it meant compassion, what if it meant gentleness, like the very life that Jesus led? Now, if you want to put that on your church website, we are a biblical church because we love like Jesus loved, wow, would that mean something different to a visitor or a guest to your website, which, by the way, is your front door. It is where hospitality starts. If they saw that, no matter if they were coming to you with a lot of church hurt, with some damaging things in their lives, with questions about their faith. Do you see how that would welcome people rather than turn off the very people that we would love to love? Let me just leave you up with a couple questions. Have you personally ever felt shut down by someone using the word biblical? Another question, have you ever caught yourself using that word biblical as a way to measure or level other people's faith, other people's understanding of God, of Scripture. And my last question is, what would it look like to reclaim the word biblical as something relational and humble and emotionally connecting like Jesus? I really believe the church can do better. And honestly, I believe if the church is going to be relevant in the upcoming generations, we have to do better. I believe small churches can lead the way, because when we stop drawing battle lines and putting divisions up. You and start extending open hands, open hearts. I'm going to tell you, we look a whole lot more like Jesus. If this episode speaks to you at all, would you do me a favor? It's a short episode. It's a really easy one to share it with somebody, maybe somebody who's wrestled with this too, maybe someone that you are great friends with and you've never thought about this concept. Don't just share it, but share it with somebody and have a discussion. Let's just start having some conversations that are open, that are heartfelt, that are sincere, that are loving, that are kind, that are gentle, and let's just start being intentional about the way we use the word biblical to think about how it's landing so often our intention does not match impact. It is so good to think about the fact that that impact that we have by calling out biblical in this way might not be intended at all. So let's keep learning and growing and showing up with heart, soul, Grace, kindness. So keep loving like Jesus and be a light you.