9Marks Journal: Biblical Theology (36期：圣经神学——教会的守护与引导)

Guardian & Guide of the Church

In The Beautiful Struggle, Ta-Nehisi Coates tells his own story of growing up as the son of a former Black Panther in West Baltimore in the 1980s and 90s. It was the era in which crack cocaine swallowed whole neighborhoods of Black men, while Black boys got shot over sneakers. Coates looked everywhere for identity—from middle school gangs, to Public Enemy, to the djembe, to waving the red, black, and green of a transcendent African mythology. He writes, “We searched our history for any way out.” This, in fact, is what biblical theology provides. It is a history that gives fallen humanity a way out. Our plight includes everything faced by West Baltimore, but add to it the wrath of God. Churches, as much as ever, need to know who they are, where they come from, who their ancestors are. Are we not children of Abraham? Doesn’t our family tree include Moses and David, Rahab and Ruth? Are we not all adopted heirs and coheirs with Christ? Sons of the divine king? Biblical theology is not just about reading the Bible rightly, though it begins there. It serves to guard and guide the local church. It maintains the right message, defines the task of the messenger, identifies impostors, tells us what we do when we gather, and sets the trajectory of our mission. It answers the question, Who are we, as the church in the world? Those are some of the topics this issue of the Journal will explore. The goal here is not so much to trace out the Bible’s storyline, but to show how knowing that storyline locates the identity and work of the church in the grand sweep of history.

在《美丽的奋斗》(Beautiful Struggle)一书中，科特斯（Ta-Nehisi Coates）讲述了自己作为1980-90年代西巴尔的摩前黑豹乐队成员之子的成长故事。那个时代，可卡因吞噬整个黑人社区，黑人男孩们常常被人射杀。科特斯到处寻找自己的身份认同—从中学帮派，到《全民公敌》（译者注：1998年的一部电影），再到非洲鼓，以及涂染非洲神话中的红、黑、绿。他写道：“我们都是从自己的历史中寻求出路。”

实际上，这正是圣经神学所提供的。它是给予堕落人类一个出路的历史。我们面临的困境包括了西巴尔的摩一切的问题，但更是面临神的忿怒。

教会，一直需要了解他们是谁，他们从哪里来，他们的先祖是谁。我们难道不是亚伯拉罕的子孙吗？我们的族谱里难道没有摩西、大卫、喇合和路得吗？我们不是被收纳为基督的后裔和至高君王的众子吗？

圣经神学不只是关乎如何正确地研读圣经，尽管这是起点。它也守护和引导地方教会。它持守正确的信息，定义报好消息者的使命，识别假教导，告诉我们当信徒聚集时所当做的，并且设定我们使命的轨道。它回答了这样一个问题：我们作为存在这世上的教会，到底是谁？

这是本期期刊所要探讨的主题。我们的目标不是描绘圣经的故事主线，而是显明，了解圣经的叙事如何定义教会在宏大历史中的身份与工作。