Studying the Bible

[darinhouston]

I believe that bible study and devotional time with God are separate but related, and that while devotional time may include reading Scripture to hear a word from God in your spirit, you are missing out on a big part of the Christian life if you don't also study the bible, intellectually.

I believe there is a great bias these days in much of fundamentalist Christian circles against intellectualism, and that ordered and wholistic study of the bible to understand it contextually and factually is looked down upon as simply looking for "head knowledge" or theological "nits to pick" or striving for controversy instead of spiritual introspection. This strikes me as an almost gnostic tendency that is dangerous and also risks losing doctrinal discernment beyond trusting their pastors or bible study groups for proper doctrine.

I recognize the danger of losing balance in my own walk, and often have to temper my studies for my devotional time. However, too many of my loved ones refuse to even consider even major theological "fine points" for whatever reason.

Recently, I was trying to explain to my mother-in-law (on her inquiry) why I had quit participating in BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) which she still attends. I tried to avoid the subject, but after simply stating that I felt after a while that some of the questions were a bit inane and a waste of time and also that the questions and materials were a bit too loaded, theologically, for my tastes as I had started developing my own beliefs and was a bit tired of having to "spit out bones" as they say. So, when pressed, I mentioned first their proof-texting and the mundane questions trying hard to avoid context in their questions and the discussion times in some cases to prove their doctrinal position. She said their position didn't make any difference since all that mattered was you were reading the text of the bible and letting God talk to you as you did the questions, and I was just looking for something to be critical of. She then asked what theological principle they held that I would disagree with and I mentioned their dispensationalism and a couple of other things off hand. She said she'd never seen that in the questions or the notes, and since she didn't have a critical nature, it didn't matter in any event. I then reminded her she asked me my opinion and I was just giving it to her and then dropped it trying hard to avoid what I knew was becoming inevitable.

I think this is a dangerous attitude, and rather than try to explain why to her I do want to encourage her to understand why theology and doctrine do matter in measure and that reading for context is so much more important than inane points about why God would call a man Johanan in the OT and then another man John in the NT (suggesting something I didn't understand about God's two covenants and the naming of people in their new covenants) (why they didn't choose Paul and Saul is beyond me).

Not much aggravates me more than daily devotionals (even highly respected ones) taking a single sentence completely and purposefully out of context and twisting it to support a devotional thought they wanted to provide you for a particular day.

Is there anything you guys could recommend for me to give my mother in law to bring her along this line of thinking? She's a very well-intended Christ-loving woman, but I really think she needs to move beyond this particular evangelical impediment. She's a seeker who would consider such things, but it just needs to come through some other messenger, I think.

[TK]

Hi darin-

i certainly agree with the heart of what you are saying.

the problem, though, is that most christians are simple people. they dont hang out on theology forums. they probably dont read their bibles daily, and probably dont go to bible studies. at my church, for example, 30% of the "regulard attenders" attend the mid-week bible study classes. my guess is that may be higher than average.

so the practicality of convincing your average christian to break out their lexicons (which they dont have) and strongs concordance (which they dont have) is suspect.

for me, personally, i struggle with "too much theology information" sometimes. it often gets to the point where you dont know what to believe, because both sides can often make very good arguments. it's sort of akin to being a news junkie, with all the internet sites out there with bloggers giving differing opinions.

I am NOT downplaying the importance of in depth bible study. but i ain't gonna get my mom to do it,(although she does read through the bible every year) and i very likely couldnt get very many christians i know to do it. getting them to read the bible, period, is often the biggest hurdle.

TK

[darinhouston]

I am NOT downplaying the importance of in depth bible study. but i ain't gonna get my mom to do it,(although she does read through the bible every year) and i very likely couldnt get very many christians i know to do it. getting them to read the bible, period, is often the biggest hurdle.

I'm talking about people like my M-I-L who do spend the time, but don't know there's value beyond answering the questions in devotionals and guided studies.

[TK]

do you think she knows how to go about doing it? i am not even sure if i know for sure.

TK

[Michelle]

Hi Darin,

I've been thinking about your post all afternoon, ever since I read it during my lunch hour. I have a lot of thoughts swirling in my head although I'm not quite ready to get them organized. So, to help me along...

When you said this: "I think this is a dangerous attitude, and rather than try to explain why to her I do want to encourage her to understand why theology and doctrine do matter in measure and that reading for context is so much more important than inane points[...]" What attitude were you referring to? Is it her not having critical nature or is it "their position didn't make any difference since all that mattered was you were reading the text of the bible and letting God talk to you as you did the questions[...]"

I can't stand those little question booklets. I don't think I learn much from them or ever hear from God much. Maybe it's my bad attitude, however, I'm not sure.

By the way, you write long sentences!

[darinhouston]

Hi Darin,

I've been thinking about your post all afternoon, ever since I read it during my lunch hour. I have a lot of thoughts swirling in my head although I'm not quite ready to get them organized. So, to help me along...

When you said this: "I think this is a dangerous attitude, and rather than try to explain why to her I do want to encourage her to understand why theology and doctrine do matter in measure and that reading for context is so much more important than inane points[...]" What attitude were you referring to? Is it her not having critical nature or is it "their position didn't make any difference since all that mattered was you were reading the text of the bible and letting God talk to you as you did the questions[...]"

I can't stand those little question booklets. I don't think I learn much from them or ever hear from God much. Maybe it's my bad attitude, however, I'm not sure.

By the way, you write long sentences!

Both, I guess. Mainly the latter. But, if by "critical" you mean "critical thinking" instead of "critical attitude," then I'd say both.

[Michelle]

OK, for what they're worth, here are my opinions:

First, I've prayed for your wife. That exchange must have been a heckuva good time for her.

I tend to be curious about things that most of my friends are not curious about in any way. It's not just theology, either. I teach in a public school, and aside from anyone's opinion about the nature and quality of public education, there is such a thing as pedagogy and I study it all the time. The strange thing to me is that other teachers don't. Many times when a teacher doesn't understand why something is done a certain way, I can wax theoretical for quite some time.

My natural curiosity leads me to want to understand as much as I can about God and about what people think about God. That's why I spend a lot of time reading books, listening to podcasts, and reading or asking questions at theology message boards. For me just surface knowledge is not enough; I want (and feel sometimes I need)to have more a more in depth understanding. The more I know, the more secure I feel. I'm kind of driven.

So, as far as wanting to study the Bible intellectually and wanting to dig in and contemplate the finer points, I'm with you.

I also worry about the biblical illiteracy found among many Christians I know. Even if you read one of those wrested out of context verses each day, you wouldn't have read much of the Bible after a year, not to mention how disjointed it would seem. I think far too many people think that's how the Bible is written -- just a collection of verses, find the one that fits your present need. Even before I became interested in studying the Bible, I read it through every year and realized it hung together much better that way and that there was some interesting stuff in there...

So, as far as anti-intellectualism in the western church, I'm with you.

One thing I've noticed is that not many women share my desire to know more and more. Look at this forum; the men outnumber the women by a large margin. Most other women seem pretty happy knowing what they know now, it seems. I used to feel kind of weird about that, but I've decided that it's just the way I'm wired and it doesn't say anything about my femininity; I still love to nurture and I adore stuff like toenail polish.

The thing of it is, knowing what you know may be just fine, if what you know is Christ as Lord and Savior. If those answer-the-question devotionals encourage a person to walk after the Lord, what is wrong with that? If a believer is open to the leading of the Holy Spirit as they work through the workbook, I'm sure He is able to teach even through that. I don't particularly like those kind of lesson booklets because it's not the style of learning I'm best suited for, but many people must be suited for them because they sure make a lot of them. Perhaps your mother-in-law is one of those? Maybe that kind of knowledge is what makes her feel secure, which, by the way, is another mark of femininity, that need to feel secure.

I haven't been attending a church regularly for a while now, and I'll probably never be a member of one again. When people find this out, they are usually pretty sure I've backslidden and are anxious to get me hooked up into a home Bible study, and it's usually one of those booklet things. Really, I'm not suited for those things. Filling them out is torture for me -- I keep thinking that there must be an answer that they're looking for and I'm not always quite sure I know what it is. I've done a couple, but now just politely turn down offers with excuses of being busy or having to take care of my parents or something like that. I wonder if your mother-in-law would feel the same way about your efforts at persuading her to take a more intellectual approach to biblical studies?

Darin, I think you are a wonderful guy for caring so much about your mother-in-law and her Christian walk. Reading between the lines, it sounds like your discussion might have gotten a little heated; I hope I'm wrong, or, if not, I hope it's been smoothed over. Sorry for going on for so long in this post.

Michelle

[darinhouston]

Thanks for your words....

If those answer-the-question devotionals encourage a person to walk after the Lord, what is wrong with that? If a believer is open to the leading of the Holy Spirit as they work through the workbook, I'm sure He is able to teach even through that.

Because I think doctrine does matter -- thinking good thoughts about God isn't enough, I don't think, if they're the wrong thoughts. Taking wrong life lessons from the bible is dangerous, depending on what's being taught -- if you don't have some basis for testing against error, you're vulnerable to all kinds of wrong beliefs about God and His will for us. Witness the LDS , etc. Some folks say it doesn't matter what they believe as long as they're growing close to and walking after the Lord. Yes, the Holy Spirit can work through even LDS teaching, but it's a dangerous practice nonetheless in my opinion.

Reading between the lines, it sounds like your discussion might have gotten a little heated; I hope I'm wrong, or, if not, I hope it's been smoothed over. Sorry for going on for so long in this post.

Wasn't a problem -- the "heat" only lasted about 30 seconds, and wasn't very hot -- she was just a bit frustrated with me. We can all be a bit opinionated, so it's not that big a deal on that front.

[Michelle]

Because I think doctrine does matter -- thinking good thoughts about God isn't enough, I don't think, if they're the wrong thoughts. Taking wrong life lessons from the bible is dangerous, depending on what's being taught -- if you don't have some basis for testing against error, you're vulnerable to all kinds of wrong beliefs about God and His will for us. Witness the LDS , etc. Some folks say it doesn't matter what they believe as long as they're growing close to and walking after the Lord. Yes, the Holy Spirit can work through even LDS teaching, but it's a dangerous practice nonetheless in my opinion.

Interesting thoughts. If that's what you're afraid is happening with your mother-in-law's bible study, then you are right to be alarmed. I tend to be more worried that people stay immature as Christians for much too long, continuing to have a steady diet of milk without meat. I hadn't been so concerned that they would fall into dangerous heresy. You've given me something more to consider.

[mikew]

My first question is "How many people are tempted to add the years up in Genesis to see how long Abraham was born after Adam?" So each person is designed with a different interest and a different dedication to understanding scriptures.

First thing I would note is that the New Testament doesn't really seem to tell people in general to read the Bible. And not as many people had access to the scriptures in the first century. So the legalistic requirement is removed.

The Old Testament shows how good it is to meditate on the scriptures. So it is a good idea to read and ponder.

But it doesn't seem that everyone has to approach scriptures so deeply. And God seems to have made scripture benefitial to people even on a superficial reading -- you may end up taking the right action for the wrong reason though. Or you may sense the comfort of Christ through the reading.

Those people who do go deeper into the context then can often influence or correct the casual readers. And maybe its my insecurity or maybe a reasonable view of the situation -- it may be 50 years from now where the ideas I'm studying will become more important and more influential -- I've my ideas are right

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So, do some encouragement toward in-depth study but not forceful. Maybe show interesting tidbits per chance that people will be drawn to deeper study.

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Now regarding those Bible surveys or study booklets...
I was looking at some copies our Church group used to use. Egad. The discussion and questions were so superficial I'm shocked that anyone would print that garbage. There was nothing of intellectual nor emotional benefit. It was as if the attempt was made not to interfere with anyone's beliefs, so they just put meaningless discussion in there.