An Alternative Pedagogy
For Understanding Scripture
Charles Faupel
Those of us
who have grown up in the church have learned to understand scripture as the
repository of inspired truth wherein can be found the answer to life’s
challenging questions. We have been taught to think of the Bible as a sort of
life’s “owner’s manual.” For many,
Genesis 1 is the beginning, and Revelation 22 is the end of all
inspiration. Minimally, we are taught
that the canonized scripture holds a place high above any other inspired
writing or teaching. It is true, of
course, that scripture is inspired by God, and that body of writing which we
have received as sacred canon has stood the test of time and of many challenges
throughout history as to its authenticity.
We are grateful for the precious inspired truth that can be found in the
pages of scripture.
Because of
the church system and its teachings, many have set scripture on a pedestal high above
all other forms of inspiration; the tendency is to elevate scripture to a place
of idolatry,[1]
and make it into an object to be revered and studied as an end it itself. This “objectification” of scripture has, over
the centuries, resulted in an approach to studying and understanding
scripture—a pedagogy—that has greatly
diminished the power of scripture itself to transform lives, and indeed, to
transform the world.
An Anemic Pedagogy
A pedagogy
is nothing more than a method or an approach to studying something. For example, in the years just prior to my
entering elementary school, the pedagogy for learning how to spell was rote
learning. Children were expected to rote
memorize the spelling of the words in a vocabulary list. The result of this approach was a generation
of children who would grow into adults that had a difficult time spelling. It is an onerous task to memorize the
spelling of thousands of words that will eventually become part of one’s
vocabulary. By the time that I entered
grade school, the pedagogy for learning to spell had changed. Rather than simply memorize the spelling of
words, we were taught to sound out the words.
There were guidelines taught as to how to translate the sounds of words
into correct spelling, as well as rules for spelling such as “i before e,
except after c, or when sounded like a as in neighbor and weigh” etc. It was much easier to learn a few rules of
spelling that could be applied to nearly any word that we encountered, than to
have to memorize the spelling of every single word. It was a superior and much more powerful
pedagogy that resulted in a generation of much better spellers!
The making
of scripture into an object to be studied has resulted in an approach to the
written text that, like the old rote method of learning spelling has been
cumbersome and has resulted in many “misspellings.” Moreover, it is an exercise that fails to
produce life—the very thing that the Word of God is and is intended to do! Generally, the pedagogical approach to
scripture that most have learned consists generally of the following aspects.
The Goal of Understanding Scripture
Every pedagogy has a goal, and in the case of the pedagogy that most of us have
inherited throughout our years in the church, the primary goal of studying
scripture is to come to a more complete and accurate understanding of what the
writers of scripture intended to convey.
This pedagogy requires countless hours engaging in what biblical
scholars call exegesis and hermeneutics. These are related terms that refer to a
critical analysis and interpretation of the text. Rules for proper interpretation of scripture
have been handed down through the centuries.
There is the “rule of first use,” for
example, which says that, to understand a particular word or doctrine, we must
find the first place
in Scripture that word or doctrine is revealed and study that passage. This will give us a more accurate
understanding of how to interpret subsequent passages which use that word. There is also the rule of “context determines meaning,” which
states that to fully and accurately understand the meaning of a statement or
truth presented, we must understand the context within which that statement was
made, including the background of the writer, as well as the social and
cultural circumstances of those to whom a particular letter or address was
written or spoken. These are, to be
sure, good and valuable rules for accurately understanding what a given
scripture means, as it was intended by the inspired writer. The simple point that I am making is that
under the present dominant pedagogy for approaching scripture, understanding the intended meaning (that
meaning which was intended by the writer) is the primary purpose of studying
scripture. The assumption is that if
we can but accurately discern the original intent of the author, we can then make
appropriate application of that scripture to present circumstances.
I would
challenge the supposition that understanding the writer’s intended meaning
should be the primary goal of studying scripture. Indeed, I might be so bold as to suggest that
the intent of the human author—be it Moses, Jeremiah, Matthew, Luke, Paul or
any of the other scribes that penned the words of scripture—should be of relatively little consequence if we
truly believe the words that they penned were inspired by the Holy Spirit. Rather, we should want to understand God’s
purposes for His inspired words through
these human instruments, and these purposes are as varied as His creation and
every generation of people who will have the opportunity to read them. Achieving this goal will require a relationship
with the Holy Spirit.
Human Reason the Ultimate Basis for
Understanding
I would
contend that because scripture has been elevated to a place of idolatry, and a
replacement for the voice of God, it has come to be regarded by most church
people as “the word of God.” Most in the
church system have conceded that this word is the Word that speaks quite apart
from the Holy Spirit. That being the case, the scriptures have been objectified
as something we must discern and approach with the best available knowledge and
tools at our disposal. This, of course,
leaves people dependent on the seminary trained pastors and bible-schooled leaders
to spoon feed their interpretations of the scriptures based on their best logic
and reasoning. While we say that we seek
the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and in many cases we actually receive that
guidance, seeking Holy Spirit enlightenment is not part of the conventional
pedagogy, at least as taught in most seminaries. Rather, any moments of Holy Spirit
illumination take place despite the conventional
pedagogy that we have been trained to use.
This pedagogy requires, instead, that one must employ proper principles
of hermeneutics and exegesis to the written text. These “proper principles” have been developed
over time by biblical scholars through much discipline of the mind. They are the best guide to understanding the
scripture that human reasoning can offer.
The result
of a pedagogy, which ultimately relies on human reasoning, is thousands of
competing and contradictory doctrines and denominations which are built upon
those doctrines. The “church” has been
terribly fractured. Some of the most
inane and inconceivable doctrines have emerged from the mind of man using this
pedagogy. Elaborate predictive dating
schemes have been concocted, for example, as to the timing of the Second Coming
of Christ—typically based on the texts in the ninth chapter of Daniel. So far, every one of them has been
wrong. All of these schemes, of course,
are predicated upon a “premillennial” return of Christ, a debatable doctrine
which itself has competing eschatological timing frames of “pretribulation,”
“mid-tribulation,” and “post-tribulation” for the return of Christ. All of these competing understandings are the
fruit of a pedagogy that relies primarily on strategies of human
reasoning. The inevitable result of such
competing and contradictory scriptural interpretations is a preoccupation with
doctrinal correctness. But which of the many minds of men can be trusted when
even the scripture says that the carnal mind is the enemy of God?
Preoccupation with Correctness of
Interpretation and Doctrine
I suggested
above that the primary goal of the conventional pedagogy for understanding
scripture is to come to an accurate understanding of what the original writers
were attempting to convey. Hence, the
overriding preoccupation with theologians and biblical experts is with
“correct” doctrine. The path to correct
doctrine is in refining the techniques of hermeneutics and exegesis, as well as
honing linguistic skills in ancient Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic languages. All of these strategies involve discipline of
the natural mind in order to come to a more accurate interpretation of
scripture. Generally speaking, the
expert with the most and highest degrees behind his or her name is more likely
to be recognized as an authority in their area of biblical studies; greater
weight is usually placed on their interpretation as correct than, say, an
uneducated man or woman, regardless of the fact that this man or woman has a
much more intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. Because such scholarship is the product of
natural human reasoning, it is not surprising that many contending, conflicting
and contradictory interpretations are provided for any given passage of
scripture. The layman, who simply wants
to know what this scripture means, and especially what it means for his or her
life, is often left in a state of confusion, having to then decide which of
these “experts” he or she is to believe. Sadly this is because the layman has too often
acquiesced to the delusion that it is not their relationship with the Holy
Spirit that can be trusted, but rather the minds of greatly learned men who have
become the replaced interpreter of Truth for them.
This
approach to scripture also tends to place a great deal of importance on orthodoxy. That is, there is great hesitancy to deviate
from the longstanding interpretations that the early church fathers and great
theologians of the past have pronounced in their letters and essays. Often it is the case that these ideas are
regarded as authoritative as the original writings of scripture themselves. To
deviate from orthodoxy is tantamount to heresy.
Indeed, much time and attention is devoted to identifying heresy, an
exercise that is not only fruitless in advancing the Kingdom of God, but is
actually counterproductive in that it serves only to further divide the body of
Christ. There are certainly doctrines
that have been put forth which are troubling, even dangerous in where they may
lead followers in their thinking or actions.
We need only remember tragedy of some 900 people who committed suicide
at the command of Jim Jones, cult leader of The
People’s Temple. It behooves us all to soberly examine any doctrine, whether that doctrine be a
radically novel interpretation or highly orthodox. We must examine these doctrines, not through
the use of highly sophisticated pedagogical methods of hermeneutics and exegesis,
however, but rather by listening closely to the Holy Spirit and the Anointing which teaches us all things,
as He bears witness to our spirit as Truth within us…or not.
Practitioners
of conventional pedagogy rely heavily on the practice of apologetics to then promote what they consider to be the correct
interpretation of scripture. Apologetics is simply the discipline of
defending religious doctrines through systematic argumentation and
discourse. Most preachers engage in this practice through their Sunday
sermonizing, though some have honed this practice to a science. These apologists have developed their skills
of persuasion to a degree that would put many a trial lawyer to shame. Indeed some, such as Lee Strobel[2]
were trained as lawyers—in Strobel’s case graduating from the highly
prestigious Yale Law School. While the
practice of apologetics has achieved a good bit of success in challenging and
changing the belief systems of
people, changing belief systems falls far short of coming into relationship
with the Savior of the World. Another
approach is required to complete the mission which Jesus of Nazareth
commissioned His disciples to do.
Concluding Thoughts on the Conventional
Pedagogy
The pedagogy
that most of us growing up in the church have inherited is one that almost
exclusively emphasizes intellectual knowledge about Christ, the Kingdom of God, the return of Christ, water and
Spirit baptism or any of a host of other matters that church authorities have
deemed to be of theological significance.
While there is certainly nothing wrong, in and of itself, to increase
our knowledge about God and His purposes, if the pursuit of this knowledge
becomes the central focus we will have missed the whole purpose that the
witness of scripture is intended to accomplish.
That purpose is to know God
(not merely know about God), and to know who we are in Christ. The problem with this approach to scripture
is not so much that it leads to wrong information about God; good hermeneutics
should certainly lead to much valuable information. The problem is that it fails to provide a
means to know God—the very purpose
for which the scriptural witness was given.
Stated differently, the life of
Christ is not facilitated by the conventional or orthodox pedagogy for the
study of scripture. The experience of
all too many of us has been to dutifully read whatever portion of scripture
that we have predetermined to read, gather our concordances and commentaries
around us to help in correctly interpreting these scriptures, and then to walk
away from our study time with perhaps a greater intellectual insight into the
meaning of a given passage, but with nothing of His life being stirred within
us. Yes, there may be occasional Holy
Spirit intrusions which spark life, but these experiences are in spite of our
Bible study efforts; this approach to understanding scripture does not
facilitate these Holy Spirit encounters.
The
Pharisees of Jesus’ day had honed the “science” of studying scripture to a
degree unparalleled by most biblical scholars today. Anyone debating them on any point in
scripture was sure to come out the loser.
Anyone, that is, except Jesus. Recall
that when Jesus was rebuked and persecuted for healing the man with the
infirmity on the Sabbath, he said to His accusers:
You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you
have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.
But you are not willing to come to Me that you may
have life (John
5:39-40, NKJV).
Jesus knew
and proclaimed that simply searching and knowing the scriptures—which the
Pharisees had honed to a science—would never result
in giving them Life. I would humbly
suggest another approach to apprehending scripture which, while it may cause
heartburn among theologians and biblical scholars, is more effective for
opening the door of our hearts to receive His Life—Life to which these written
passages give witness.
A Pneumatological
Pedagogy
While a
familiarity with the principles of hermeneutics and exegesis, as well as a
versatility with biblical research tools such as concordances, commentaries and
Bible dictionaries can be valuable for understanding written truths that these
recorded words have for us today, those who are called to rule and reign with
Christ as His mature sons will find that these conventional tools and methods
are not only insufficient but an impediment
to unveiling the deep mysteries
that our Father wishes to share with those whom He is raising up in this
way. We must be willing to leave behind
the traditions and the doctrines of men—and the old wineskins which have
contained them—in order to embrace the new wineskin to receive the new wine
that God is pouring into empty vessels who are ready
to carry it.
We need a
different pedagogy entirely for approaching scripture. I am calling this a “pneumatological
pedagogy.” The word “pneumatological”
is an adjective that is derived from two ancient Greek words: pneuma and logos. Pneuma can most directly be translated as “breath” or
“spirit.” It is the root word from which
we get the word “pneumatic,” referring to air-filled tires, air-powered tools,
etc. Logos
is a Greek word from which are derived English words
such as “logic,” “logistics,” etc. Logos
literally means “word,” and is also used to denote reason or discourse. When combined with other Greek words it
denotes “the study of.” Pneumatological, therefore, refers to a Spirit-driven
approach to study. Hence, my use of the
term “pneumatological pedagogy” suggests an
approach to the study and understanding of scripture that has its origins in
and is driven by the Holy Spirit.
While this pedagogy might make use of some of the conventional tools of
biblical study, it is not dependent upon them and, indeed, comes from a
different paradigm for understanding the nature of scripture itself.[3] There are several important principles to
this Spirit-driven pedagogy.
The Purpose of Scripture
Paul wrote
to Timothy, his son in the faith, the following bit of wisdom:
All scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and
[is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness (2Timothy
3:16, KJV).
This was
valuable advice given to a young disciple of Paul who was encountering all
manner of false and dangerous teachings that were being introduced among those
who had come out of paganism under Paul’s ministry. The problem is that we have used this verse
as a club to attack anyone or any teaching that does not conform to the
teaching that we believe to be the “correct” teaching. The correct teaching, of course, is usually
understood as that teaching which has been handed down through the years and
centuries by the highly trained and educated clergy class. Moreover, this verse has also had the effect
of raising scripture to a level of importance that is greater than the Holy
Spirit Himself.
Please note
the context in which Paul wrote these words to Timothy. He had been warning Timothy that in the days
to come there would be men who were lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God;
who had a form of godliness but who denied the power thereof; and who were ever
learning but never coming to the knowledge of the truth. These whom Paul was describing were people
who took great pleasure in their own high-mindedness and knowledge. They were more concerned about proselytizing
their doctrines, beliefs and lifestyles than they were about seeking the
Truth. Paul warned Timothy to beware of
these, and indeed, from such men to turn away (2 Timothy 3:5).
May I
suggest that Paul is advising young Timothy that in the face of all of the
false teachings that Timothy would be facing, scripture is a witness to the
Life that is to be found in Christ. The purpose of scripture is not to be a basis
for developing sophisticated and elaborate doctrines about God or any other
matter. Its purpose, rather, is for
doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness that will lead
to Life in Christ. Jesus himself makes
this crystal clear when He told the Jews who were seeking to kill Him that in
all of their study of the scripture they had missed the entire purpose of such
study because they refused to come to Him, who is the source of life (John
5:37-40).
Clearly, the
purpose of scripture is to bring us to the Source of Life, which is Christ, who
now comes and speaks to us through the Holy Spirit. We must understand this. Our study of scripture should never be for
the purpose of becoming more knowledgeable about
God; nor for learning a code for upright moral lifestyles; nor for learning
about the “end times;” nor for learning about any of the multitude of
theological questions that might be presented to us. These may be fine things to know, but they
are not the purpose of scripture. Its ultimate
purpose, rather, is to bring us to Jesus Christ, the Source of Life through its
testimony and witness of HIM. As will be
emphasized below, this is best realized through listening to and trusting the
voice of the Holy Spirit as one’s primary pedagogical tool. After all, when Jesus was preparing His
disciples for His earthly departure, He promised them the Holy Spirit. It was not more scripture for them to
diligently study that Jesus promised that He would leave after He was gone. Nor was it a set of Bible commentaries. Nor, indeed, was it an increased reasoning
capacity to study the scriptures that was His gift. No, what He promised them was the precious
Holy Spirit who “shall teach you all
things” (John 14:26). And so it is
that we must develop a relationship with the Holy Spirit, listening closely to
His voice within, and seeing with His eyes, as we approach scripture.
Place All Preconceptions of Scripture
on the Altar
Several
years ago, I was strongly led of the Lord to deliver a word to a brother with
whom I was in fellowship at the time.
This was an individual who was steeped in legalism and as a consequence
continually found himself under great condemnation. The problem was that he was absolutely
convinced in the correctness of his interpretation of scripture regarding these
matters, and so he inflicted this condemnation on those around him as well. The word that the Lord gave me to speak to
him was “Forget everything you ever knew about God.” Quite frankly, I was a bit startled when I
heard this, and while I didn’t fully understand it at the time, I knew that he
needed a radical paradigm shift in his understanding of God—a shift from his
concept of God as a cruel taskmaster to a God who loved him passionately. His harsh view of God was only reinforced by
the lens through which he interpreted scripture. This was a lens that he
inherited from his childhood experiences in a legalistically-oriented
church. God was calling for him to offer
up all of these preconceptions on the altar before the Lord. Indeed, God is calling us all to do the same!
We all have
a tendency, when reading scripture (or any other written work), to “read into”
that passage with our preconceived ideas of what it is saying or what it
means. These are usually ideas that we
have been taught by pastors, Sunday school teachers, and previous material that
we have read. Those of us coming from a
tradition in which hell is taught as a place of eternal damnation, for example,
have likely approached the following text with great fear and trepidation:
But I say unto
you, That whosoever is angry with
his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the
judgment: and whosoever shall say to
his brother, Raca, shall be in
danger of the council; but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall
be in danger of hell fire (Matthew 5:22; KJV).
We are prone
to interpret this passage to mean that if we hold anger toward a brother that
God will judge us severely. More than
this, however, if we let this anger grow into such a root of bitterness that we
regard and call that brother a fool, we are in danger of being cast into an
eternal lake of fire where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. If, however, we can suspend those doctrinal understandings
of hell and let the God of love speak to us by His Holy Spirit, we might then
come to understand that the hell that Jesus was referring to was a purifying
flame—usually painful, to be sure—that God brings to purge out the insidious,
wicked anger and offense in our heart that we have toward our brother.
Insofar as
we can hold in suspense the traditional understandings of scripture that we
have inherited, approaching scripture with more or less a “blank slate” willing
to be written upon, we become open for the life-giving breath of the Holy
Spirit to apprehend and transform us.
Most of us, I am sure, have had that “aha!” experience when reading a
portion of scripture that is confronting us in a way that we had never seen
before. These experiences come only as
the voices coming from our preconceived ideas are sufficiently muted so as to
give room to the fresh voice of the Holy Spirit. These experiences can be maximized as we
consciously hold our preconceptions in a suspended state of skepticism. Stated differently, we attempt to take an
“agnostic” approach as to the meaning of any given passage of scripture.[4] We are in this way “becoming as little
children,” with an openness to hearing whatever the
Holy Spirit may want to share with us through a given passage of scripture.
A Lesson from Science.
The importance of disencumbering ourselves from the crusty lens of
tradition and past interpretation is brought home by a brief look at the
history of the understanding of scientific knowledge. The long-held belief was that scientific
knowledge was “cumulative;” that is, that past discoveries and theories are the
basis from which to conduct further scientific inquiry, and new discoveries are
made which add to the existing body of knowledge. Budding scientists are taught to learn the
scientific theories in their area of study and to master the methods of
scientific inquiry that have been handed down to them. Using this knowledge and these methods they
engage in further scientific inquiry which will then result in further bits of
knowledge that are then added to the body of scientific knowledge in any given
area of study, and in turn reinforce the preexisting paradigms for understanding
the world around us. This “conventional”
approach to the study of science is basically what has been adopted by biblical
scholars as they rely on past knowledge and methods for the study of
scripture. The result is that they add
bits of knowledge and insights as to the meaning of any given portion of
scripture, but they do not appreciably challenge the dominant theological
paradigms in which they operate. Indeed,
these efforts serve only to further reinforce these paradigms.
In 1962, a
philosopher of science by the name of Thomas Kuhn wrote a paradigm shattering
book entitled The Structure of Scientific
Revolutions. In this explosive work,
Kuhn demonstrated that the history of scientific inquiry is anything but a simple accumulation of
knowledge whereby new discoveries build upon existing knowledge that has been
passed down through the generations.
Rather, Kuhn suggests, new discoveries are made which somehow cannot be
explained by the knowledge and theories that have been developed over
time. Kuhn refers to these novel
discoveries as “anomalies.” These
anomalies are often regarded as bad science at first by the purveyors of
conventional scientific wisdom. However,
over time, other “anomalies” are discovered which do not fit into the
conventional scientific paradigm. When
enough of these anomalies emerge, a scientific crisis ensues because the old
paradigm is no longer tenable under the weight of the accumulation of
discoveries that cannot be explained through that lens. A new paradigm is required in order to
explain all of the anomalies.
Eventually, an entirely new paradigm emerges which explains not only the
“unexplainable” discoveries (through the lens of the old paradigm), but
accounts for the previous body of knowledge as well. A “paradigm revolution” has taken place.
Kuhn
provides the example of the Copernican revolution that took place in the field
of astronomy to make his point. The old Ptolemaic
paradigm for understanding the universe was that the earth was the center of
the universe, and all of the stars—including the sun and the planets—revolved
around the earth. Further observations
over the centuries, however, exposed problems with this theory as the movement
of the planets and stars that were now being more closely observed, was not compatible
with the idea that they were revolving around a stationary earth. Attempts were made to explain this and other
“anomalies” away, but over time the theory of a stationary earth was simply not
tenable. Along came the Polish
astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus in the mid-16th century with what
came to be known as a “heliocentric” theory of the solar system, identifying
the sun as the center of our solar system, and the planets—including the
earth—revolve around the sun.
Copernicus’ theory answered the dilemmas posed by the unexplainable
anomalies under the old Ptolemaic paradigm.
A paradigm revolution was underway.
For this to take place, it was necessary for Copernicus to put aside the
established knowledge regarding the nature of the universe, and see what was
taking place through completely new eyes.
This,
friends, is what God is now calling us to do as we approach scripture. We
must be willing to relinquish dearly held traditional understandings if we are
to receive fully the Life that He has in store for us! Most, if not all of you reading this article
have had the experience of “anomalies” as you have walked this journey of
faith. You have been quickened within
your spirit by truths which did not seem compatible with past teachings you
have been taught. Indeed, these Holy
Spirit inspired insights seemed to contradict your understanding of
scripture—understanding that was based upon years of indoctrination by the
religious system of which you were a part.
Your first inclination is to suppress these quickenings,
and explain them away as your own imagination, or possibly as having eaten too
much pizza the night before! It is very
possible, however—even likely—that these are Holy Spirit intrusions designed to
shatter the long-held paradigm that you have inherited from the religious
traditions of which you were a part.
Listen carefully to these quickenings, and
carefully discern the Word of God to you with a willingness to abandon even
that which you have believed to be absolute truth as you explore what you are
hearing within your being. A
Copernican-level paradigm shift is about to take place within you!
Listen to the Voice Within as You Read
The primary
“study tool” that we must learn to rely upon as we approach any given passage
of scripture is the voice of the Holy Spirit.
We would do well to throw away all of the commentaries, dictionaries and
other tools that we have come to depend upon. These resources may be helpful to provide some
historical, cultural and/or linguistic context as we later process what has
been revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. But to rely on these materials “up
front” as a primary guide to interpreting scripture can only get in the way of
hearing God’s word specifically to us through the Bible.
Listening to
the Holy Spirit in our meditations upon scripture will almost certainly require
that we also intentionally and consciously “suspend” any previous knowledge or
understanding of scriptural passages, as I have suggested above. It will require coming to a place of
quietness before the Lord in our own minds—simply listening and then speaking
forth what we hear—and then meditating some more.
Listening to
the voice of the Holy Spirit for many of us will involve remembering past
experiences and words that we have received in our inner man as we read
scriptural passages. My experience has
often been that God will show me something in an encounter that I have with
someone or some thing, but I cannot fully process it
at the time. Somehow, it just doesn’t
make sense; or possibly it seems to contradict my understanding of
scripture. It might even seem like
heresy. At these times, I find that I
must let these revelations lie dormant until the Lord further reveals His truth
regarding the matter. Often, this
further revelation will take place as I am directed to a passage of scripture. As I read that passage without the old lens
of traditional doctrines that I have been taught, but with an
openness to a fresh word from the Holy Spirit, I will remember these
experiences and encounters, and His Truth will explode upon me as scripture now
takes on new meaning and new Life.
There will,
of course, be some rabbit trails that we pursue in this process. This is why so many of us are reluctant to
approach scripture without our reinforcements of many study aids. Indeed, many preachers and Bible teachers
strongly advocate against such an approach because they do not trust the Holy
Spirit to lead us into all truth. We
must, however, trust the ultimate guidance and teaching of the Anointing….Christ
within. We must learn to trust that the
Holy Spirit will correct any misunderstandings that we might have had, and will
even use the rabbit trails to reveal Himself to us and
to ultimately accomplish His purposes within us.
Actively Respond
to the Truths that are Being Revealed
The pneumatological pedagogy for approaching scripture requires
more than merely acquiring intellectual knowledge and insight. It demands a response. Indeed, it is in our response to that which
is being revealed to us that scripture comes to life and becomes incarnate
within us. Our responses will be varied,
and will depend upon many factors. I
would suggest three general types of response to revelation that we receive
from the Holy Spirit that might be highly valuable. To be sure, these are valuable responses to
revelation that we might receive from any source, not to be limited to that
coming out of our reading and meditating upon scripture.
Recording what God has revealed.
I have found that keeping a journal of what God is doing and speaking is
invaluable. Over the years I have kept
journals of significant dreams that I have had. I have also kept a “travel
journal” while we were on the road throughout the country on a motorcycle. I was quite diligent in making daily entries,
focusing especially on spiritually significant encounters, events and insights. I also keep a general journal in which I make
entries only when significant events or encounters take place. The value of journaling goes far beyond
recording something for purposes of later recall—though it certainly has that
benefit. Many people who journal will
later go back and “harvest” their journals, which is to say some months or
years later they will reread their journal entries for purposes of listening to
what the Holy Spirit might have to say to them with regard to their current
circumstances. I have found that an even
greater advantage of journaling is that simply the process of writing down
those things which are being revealed to us helps to reinforce those
revelations and the new understandings that come forth. Educators tell us that there are two modes of
learning: passive and active. Passive learning refers simply to the recording
(in our mind) and processing of those stimuli which we take in through our
senses. Reading is a form of passive
learning. Active learning, on the other hand, requires some sort of active
response to that which we take in.
Writing down one’s discoveries or new-found insights is a form of active
learning. I would always advise students
in my classes to rewrite their lecture notes at their earliest convenience
because I knew that the rewriting would reinforce the facts and ideas
presented. So it is with journaling the
fresh insights that are revealed to us by the Holy Spirit as we read scripture
and listen to His voice within. Write in
an attitude of prayer, giving the Lord permission to do whatever He will with
that revelation.
Sharing with Others.
Another form of active learning is to give testimony to what God is
doing and saying. In the first place,
this forces us to articulate that which God is speaking. Even more significantly, sharing in this way
opens up an opportunity for dialog, which allows the Lord to speak to us
through other members of His body. His
word to us begins to take on greater substance as we share with others. Often there is a “synergistic” effect when we
share that which God has revealed to us; as others in the body of Christ then
respond, there is almost a gushing forth of life-giving words among those
present. This is one way in which we are growing up into Him, and being fitted
together as His corporate body (Ephesians 4:15-16).
Acting Obediently Upon Any
Directives.
It is often
the case when we read and meditate upon scripture in this way, that the Lord
will direct us to speak a word to another person, or to engage in some specific
act. These acts may be major,
significant activities that have the potential to change the direction of our
lives; or they may seem insignificant, even foolish in our eyes. They are not foolish. We must develop a keen sense of hearing the
Lord on even the seemingly most insignificant of matters, and to act on that
Word. We are often reticent to act or
speak because we are unsure that this is really the Lord speaking. I would suggest to you that if this is not
the Lord speaking, you will find that out soon enough. What is far more important to God, however,
is an obedient spirit. This is what
pleases God. Acting in obedience to God
may surely result in a little egg on your face if you are not hearing Him
correctly in a particular instance; but it will be a valuable lesson in
learning to discern the voice of God.
All of the “mistakes” as well as the “bull’s eyes” are part of the
valuable curriculum for true spiritual growth that comes from the Head, as well
as learning to wield the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God—His very life which is contained
within.
Concluding Thoughts
I have
previously shared my concern over how the church in our day has raised
scripture to a place of idolatry (see footnotes 1 and 3). I would suggest that this is both a result
of, and a cause of an inappropriate pedagogy for understanding scripture. We have approached scripture, and more
specifically, correct understanding of scripture, as an end in itself. We approach the study of scripture as we
would approach any other subject, whether that be
microbiology, astronomy, music and art appreciation, or, frankly any other
piece of literature. Because we have set
scripture apart, however, above all other literature, scripture has become
elevated to a place of worship beyond what it was ever intended to be. William
Law (1761) has called this “bibliolatry.”
We desperately need a different
approach to scripture. We need a new
pedagogy. What I am proposing here as a
“pneumatological pedagogy” is but a humble attempt to
broadly outline what a more appropriate approach to scripture might look like. Rather than a correct understanding of
scripture as an end in itself, the biblical text is here understood to be but a
means to a far greater end—namely an intimate union with the Author of
scripture Himself. This greater end can
only be achieved as we allow Him to shatter all prior “knowledge” that we have
accumulated about Him, and indeed about scripture itself. We let Him be our teacher—not commentaries or
Bible dictionaries or a preacher’s sermon notes. As we yield to His teaching through His
Spirit within us, scripture is no longer simply an object to be understood, but
as with all living epistles including you and I, the author and the Author
behind the author becomes a conduit of Life!
References
Kuhn, Thomas. 1962. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Law, William. 1761. An Humble, Earnest, Affectionate
Address to the Clergy. [Available on the
internet] https://www.ccel.org/l/law/address/addr.htm
Strobel, Lee. 1998. The Case for Christ. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing
Company