I and some other preteens and young teenagers of the Hixson Church of Christ were baptized in the same year. The leadership of the church responded to our need as young Christians with a new converts’ class. Brother Bob Ray, a favorite teacher of the youth because of his positive nature and ability to be engaging and interesting, put together a series of lessons that he entitled: “After Baptism What?” I believe I still have the handouts of his lessons, securely fastened in a folder. The class was appropriately designed to focus on what Churches of Christ taught as the first principles of the faith. Generally, the first principles are structured in five categories of traditions covering the five steps of salvation, five acts of worship, five works of the church’s mission, five categories of the church’s leadership and five distinguishing characteristics of the New Testament church.
For those who are scratching their heads here’s the gist. The five steps of salvation are hear the word, believe, repent, confess and be baptized. The five acts of worship are praying, singing, preaching, partaking of the Lord’s Supper and giving. The five works of the church’s mission are edification, evangelism, fellowship, worship and benevolence. The five categories of the church’s leadership are elders, deacons, various teachers of the word, all other members who are all instructed to be involved workers, and the Lord who is the head of his body, the church. The purpose of emphasizing distinguishing marks of the New Testament church was to show how we followed the Bible in significant ways that the denominations ignored. Therefore, the distinguishing characteristics are that the New Testament church is non-denominational, congregationally autonomous, non-creedal, non-instrumental, and has no leadership or teaching of women over men. Restoration churches have never completely agreed on their teaching and practice of these traditions. Nevertheless, these traditions form a system of basic principles and practices on what it has meant to many churches to be a New Testament church.
This structured way of teaching the first principles of Christianity was not only taught to new converts, but was reinforced often in the continuing preaching and teaching of the church. However you judge the good intentions and benefits of this basic approach, over time the teachings on each of these basics came to define our identity as the Lord’s Church and our perception of the boundaries of membership and faithfulness to (i.e. good standing in) the Lord’s Church. No difference of opinion that proposed to alter a practice could be discussed without strife and accusations that these are matters of salvation. I did not list scriptures and reasoning supporting these 25 traditions (and there are more); but I would admit that there is as much scripturally based reasoning that the Pharisees had for their traditions on purification and Korban (offering vows), and on why the disciples of Jesus should have not been picking heads of grain on the holy Sabbath (See Matthew 12, 15 and Mark 7). Their systematic doctrines (the traditions of the elders), however supported from scripture, were still the traditions of men. Nevertheless, they taught their traditions as the commandment of God; and consequently neglected and contradicted the clear, weightier commandments of God (See also Matthew 23).
In future blogs on hermeneutics my plan, as the Lord wills, is to provide contemporary illustrations of the distortions in understanding and practice that arises from interpreting the Bible from the way restoration teachers have arranged supporting proof texts on the 25 traditions meant to ground new converts in the first principles and basics of the New Testament church. I do not disagree with the need for systematic doctrine, but I do want to promote responsible stewardship in our teaching that will make sure we do not distort God’s grace and commandments by our traditions of reasoning and teaching; regardless, of how many proof texts we put together to support these 25 traditions. Therefore, I want to leave with you a hermeneutical principle imparted to myself and other new converts in the class taught by our teacher, Bob Ray. Brother Ray told us from the beginning of the class and throughout: As Christians we teach the Bible; so if you should discover that I or any other teachers have not taught you the Bible, then you make sure that you go by the Bible.
P.S.: I received word not too long ago that Brother Bob Ray is now with Christ. Not only do I rejoice that Brother Ray held on to his hope in Christ, but I rejoice in the faithfulness of the Lord who upheld our beloved teacher and made him to stand in the midst of a brotherhood disputing about so many traditions (See Romans 14:4). I embrace the same hope for myself and for all you who name the name of our Lord.
Buttram, Bryan. Hermeneutics: Interpretation and Our Defining Traditions. WordPress.com: 2007/10/17.
2 Comments
October 17, 2007 at Wednesday, October 17, 2007
What does one mean by “Go by the Bible”? I had an undergraduate professor who used to say that to be biblical means you can “put a finger on a verse and a smile on your face.” Such thinking is with the noblest intention but, with a few exceptions, every denomination/fellowship (including the Churches of Christ) can lay claim to putting a finger on a verse for justification of a specific teaching. Ergo the need for theology… for it is not just enough to cite Philippian 2.11 and say “Jesus is Lord” (doctrine). We must also explain what we mean by the doctrinal claim “Jesus is Lord” (theology). And even when we have done this from a good methodological approach, we will still have those who say “Wrong!”
I have a friend. By secular standards, he would not be considered to smart. In fact, some would even consider him mentally slow. He cannot articulate a good theology of the kingdom, of the church, of eschatology, etc… However he believes in Jesus and because of that belief he is always finding ways to serve the underprivledged of his community and to tell them about the good news of Jesus. I cannot help but think that he has a better understanding of the Christian faith than many who would be able to articulate theological viewpoint of the above mentioned subjects and many more.
Great post and I look forward to more.
Rex Butts
Ithaca Church of Christ
Ithaca, NY
October 17, 2007 at Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Thank you Rex for raising deeper thought on this issue. I also know the kind of friend you are talking about. I am sure as I blog my thoughts that I will try to articulate more on the perspective that you have brought up.