Whenever we pick up the Bible, read it, put it down, and say, "That's just what I thought," we are probably in trouble. The technical term for that kind of reading is "proof-texting." Using the text to confirm our presuppositions is sinful; it is an act of resistance against God's fresh speaking to us, an effective denial that the Bible is the word of the living God. The only alternative to proof-texting is reading with a view to what the New Testament calls metanoia, "repentance" - literally, "change of mind." - Ellen Davis, "Teaching the Bible Confessionally in the Church"
Uzzah and the Ark - Paul Burkhart | 6.30.24
We do not invite the text into a transformation of its original meaning, into a new application geared toward our thought forms; rather, the text invites us into a transformation of allegiances and commitments, which will manifest itself in behaviors appropriate to our social worlds. - Joel Green, "Practicing the Gospel in a Post-Critical World"
The Writing on the Wall - Rev. Ryan McCormick | 6.23.24
Our understanding does not seamlessly conform to God's reality, and instruction that suggests otherwise inevitably distorts the truth. The explanatory power such instruction generates is a mark of propaganda, not faithful Christian witness. Good teachers do not make Christianity easier for students by providing them with counterfeit clarity. If anything, they "jack up the price" by leading students more deeply into the subject matter, which in turn generates even more profound questions. - Adam Neder, Theology as a Way of Life