FHG,
What is this 'single truth' the Bible speaks to?
As for the word needing no outside interpretation, this is a straw man fallacy. All of the Bible needs careful exegesis - obtaining the meaning from the text.
Do you realise that is not a single word in the NT that explains Greek grammar and syntax? If I didn't use J W Wenham's
Elements of New Testament Greek, I would have a clue about the original NT language and how to translate it.
Whatever translation you use needed translators with an intricate knowledge of the original languages. They had to have knowledge acquired from outside sources to understand the original languages.
I find it to be a simplistic brushing aside of the importance of other Bible teachers for you to say: 'the word needs no outside interpretations'. The fact is that without outside interpretations we would have
no Bible translations. I have a friend who is a SIL Bible translator in a foreign land. He went to Australian National University to get a degree in linguistics to assist him in developing a Bible translation for a tribe whose language was not in written form. It takes a lot of work to bring oral tradition into print and then to translate a Bible in the lingua franca of the people.
Frankly, I'm tired of your pushing the line that 'the word needs no outside interpretations' or the Bible is self-interpreting.
This is a false accusation, and that by a moderator. I know some of his beliefs by his stating
he is not Christian in his avatar.
Are Christians called to judge false doctrine? With your statement in bold, you provided no biblical reference. Could you be referring to Matt 7:1?
However, you've missed a lot of other Scriptures that call Christians to discernment (being judges of false and correct). I'm thinking of verses such as:
- 1 Corinthians 5:11–13 (NIV): 'But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people. What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. ‘Expel the wicked person from among you.’
- 1 Cor 6:4 (NIV): 'Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, do you ask for a ruling from those whose way of life is scorned in the church?'
- 2 Thessalonians 3:6 (NIV): 'In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching you received from us'.
- 1 Timothy 6:20 (NIV): 'Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge'.
- Titus 3:9 (NIV): 'But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless'.
- Etc, etc.
Based on these and many other verses it is the responsibility of Christians on this earth to be judges.
Until my dying day, you will never ever convince me that '
we judge no man or woman as judgement belongs to God'. When you make this kind of statement you promote false doctrine.
Oz
