"Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ." (1 Cor 11:1)
As great a man as Paul was, he believed that Christians should only follow him to the extent that he followed Christ. He wasn't interested in training Christians to be man-followers (1 Cor 1:12f; 3:4).
I'm saddened by the fact that many serious, devoted, well-meaning believers are being inadvertently trained to be man-followers in how they study and teach the Scriptures. In particular, there is a growing obsession with the church fathers and the Reformers (hereafter CFAR). For many teachers, the study of any topic (or passage) entails studying what one or both of these two groups of men had to say. The Bible is interpreted through the lens of the CFAR. Quotes and appeals to the CFAR constitute a large portion of these believers' study and ministry - often a larger portion that the Bible itself.
It is common to hear men criticize "grasshopper exegesis" (i.e. referring to passages elsewhere in the Bible), but they have no problem (in fact, they deem it an evidence of thorough, serious study) to hop through the writings of the CFAR at length. Often they belittle a message that only uses the Bible. They (ironically) feel that genuine, serious Bible study uses less and less of the Bible and more and more of the CFAR.
Given that most of the CFAR wouldn't be allowed to teach in our churches today because they were wildly heretical on a variety of topics, one wonders why so many are obsessed with them. I suspect that in many cases, the obsession is simply a trained one. But in some cases (hopefully only a few), I can't help but think that pride plays a role - there's a belief that any Christian can study just the Bible, but it takes a real scholar to sift through the CFAR. A knowledge of the arcane CFAR proves that we are "above" the simple masses who have not moved beyond studying the Bible.
"But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word." (Isa 66:2)
As great a man as Paul was, he believed that Christians should only follow him to the extent that he followed Christ. He wasn't interested in training Christians to be man-followers (1 Cor 1:12f; 3:4).
I'm saddened by the fact that many serious, devoted, well-meaning believers are being inadvertently trained to be man-followers in how they study and teach the Scriptures. In particular, there is a growing obsession with the church fathers and the Reformers (hereafter CFAR). For many teachers, the study of any topic (or passage) entails studying what one or both of these two groups of men had to say. The Bible is interpreted through the lens of the CFAR. Quotes and appeals to the CFAR constitute a large portion of these believers' study and ministry - often a larger portion that the Bible itself.
It is common to hear men criticize "grasshopper exegesis" (i.e. referring to passages elsewhere in the Bible), but they have no problem (in fact, they deem it an evidence of thorough, serious study) to hop through the writings of the CFAR at length. Often they belittle a message that only uses the Bible. They (ironically) feel that genuine, serious Bible study uses less and less of the Bible and more and more of the CFAR.
Given that most of the CFAR wouldn't be allowed to teach in our churches today because they were wildly heretical on a variety of topics, one wonders why so many are obsessed with them. I suspect that in many cases, the obsession is simply a trained one. But in some cases (hopefully only a few), I can't help but think that pride plays a role - there's a belief that any Christian can study just the Bible, but it takes a real scholar to sift through the CFAR. A knowledge of the arcane CFAR proves that we are "above" the simple masses who have not moved beyond studying the Bible.
"But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word." (Isa 66:2)
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