its atmosphere and vocabulary, perhaps the way may be opened
40 THE BIBLICAL BASIS
4. Only Jesus Christ is from above. We are all men saved or to be saved by him, and to be saved time and again from our imaginations. "Christian" imaginations are seven times worse than other religious imaginations (Mt. 12:43-45). Therefore it is the privilege of Christ and his Spirit to convince man and the world of sin and judgment (Jn. 16:8-11). We are his messengers and must remain faithful to him and his message. We remember his words, "I did not come to judge the world but to save the world." (Jn. 12:47). To help people discover the deep and hidden process of thinking in the light of the Gospel means to help a neighbor who is in exactly the same position as we are; as sinners who fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). Only in solidarity with man can we give him the bread of life and be identified as ambassadors of Christ.
5. While we may agree that the Bible does not know about and is not interested in religious systems as such, we must not draw the false conclusion that the Bible is interested only in "man" and not in "his religion." The way in which many parts of the Old and New Testaments are formulated shows a vivid interest in, and often a reflection upon, the religious position of man. This is not because his position is considered either to be right or wrong, but
_ simply because man can hear the Gospel only in terms of his own
religious position. Therefore it is important to have a real knowledge of the religions of man, not only because of general interest, but in order better to be able to articulate the Word of God which
is for all men, as the Word of God for this man in his particular religious position.* &
6. By going as far as possible with man into his religious home,
its atmosphere and vocabulary, perhaps the way may be opened for a new understanding both of "this religion" and "this gospel." It is only through the Church gathered out of all nations that "the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places" (Eph. 3:10).
7. In full recognition of the Biblical view of man as sinner against God, it is necessary to consider at greater length than has been possible here the question whether or not the statement of St. Paul in Colossians 1:15-20, concerning the reconciliation of
"Consider, for instance, the use of the term kyrios for Jesus Christ, which was taken from the idiom of the religion(s) in New Testament times; and the use St. Paul makes of Stoic terms and ideas, such as in his Areopagus speech.