Wednesday, September 08, 2010
Churches of Christ and Scripture...
L am so thankful to have been raised in a fellowship that puts a high value on Scripture. The church of Christ has long had a reputation as a people of the Book. We studied it, memorized it, debated what it meant, and claimed it as the basis for our faith and practice. Sermons were built around the text.
I also love the fact that every Christian was expected to study the Scriptures personally. It was not enough to hear someone else talk about it. We knew it for ourselves. Bible School was a big deal. I hope and pray we never lose that intensity and focus on the Word.
However, we can certainly abuse our knowledge. Our intensity and passion about what we each think Scripture says can sure cause a lot of fussing and fighting. We can split churches because everyone does not read the Bible the same way. So we have a hard time agreeing to disagree.
Because we place so much emphasis on the Word, we sometimes assume everything we do is what the Bible teaches. And we have a difficult time sorting out what the Bible says from what it teaches based on stories and principles. For example, the Bible is explicit about the sin of homosexuality (what the Bible says). Teaching about internet pornography is not stated, but is taught from application of Scripture ( the "lust" passages). So we need to be careful about the difference between what the Bible says and what it teaches -- and what we interpret it to say or teach.
We were sometimes very inconsistent with how we applied Scripture. We can debate the exact meaning of all Scripture concerning Deacons (men, couples, women, etc.), but I never remember anybody worrying about the I Timothy 5 teaching on widows. Our elders at Southern Hills annoint with oil (see James 5), but growing up that was one of the verses "explained away".
And we have had a difficult time with what to do about the silence of the Scriptures. Is it permissive or prohibitive?
But having said all of that, I sure am glad that I had Church of Christ parents, preachers, teachers, and friends who valued the Word of God as something I needed to know. It's important.
So what do you think?
I also love the fact that every Christian was expected to study the Scriptures personally. It was not enough to hear someone else talk about it. We knew it for ourselves. Bible School was a big deal. I hope and pray we never lose that intensity and focus on the Word.
However, we can certainly abuse our knowledge. Our intensity and passion about what we each think Scripture says can sure cause a lot of fussing and fighting. We can split churches because everyone does not read the Bible the same way. So we have a hard time agreeing to disagree.
Because we place so much emphasis on the Word, we sometimes assume everything we do is what the Bible teaches. And we have a difficult time sorting out what the Bible says from what it teaches based on stories and principles. For example, the Bible is explicit about the sin of homosexuality (what the Bible says). Teaching about internet pornography is not stated, but is taught from application of Scripture ( the "lust" passages). So we need to be careful about the difference between what the Bible says and what it teaches -- and what we interpret it to say or teach.
We were sometimes very inconsistent with how we applied Scripture. We can debate the exact meaning of all Scripture concerning Deacons (men, couples, women, etc.), but I never remember anybody worrying about the I Timothy 5 teaching on widows. Our elders at Southern Hills annoint with oil (see James 5), but growing up that was one of the verses "explained away".
And we have had a difficult time with what to do about the silence of the Scriptures. Is it permissive or prohibitive?
But having said all of that, I sure am glad that I had Church of Christ parents, preachers, teachers, and friends who valued the Word of God as something I needed to know. It's important.
So what do you think?
