Subscribe to our PODCAST here.Christ and New Hermenutics
Intro.
A. Man has always been influenced by his environment:
1. Israel - wanted to be like the nations around them (1 Sam. 8:5).
2. Early church leaders - influenced by pyramid organization of Roman Empire.
3. In 1800's men looked for a larger organization than the local church - 1849 ACMS.
4. In mid 1900's churches adopted “sponsoring churches” (H.O.T. 1952). William Banowski: “But they sought a program whose scope would be more far-reaching than even the best, but isolated efforts of any one large congregation. They could not resist the temptation to shop about and contrast their plight with the obvious strong points in denominational machinery” (Mirror of A Movement, p. 313).
5. In 1988, Nashville meeting some preachers advocated the “new hermeneutic” - one young preacher (who later left the church and started his own religious group) said “precept, example and necessary inference, and generic and specific authority is Greek to me” (Randy Mayeau).
a. One argued that the first century church could not have looked upon Scripture as a pattern because the canon was not accepted until the fourth century (council of Hippo, 393 A.D. and Carthage, 397 A.D.) (Bill Swetmon). I asked one of the speakers on his side, who said “that is rank modernism.” (1971 James D. Bales wrote “Modernism: Trojan House in the Church” - modernism is a current movement in which science and individual experience replaces the Bible as being the authority for the Christian religion. The ultimate authority is the subjective experience, or feeling, of the individual.
b. Royce Money (president of ACU): “Is it coincidence that we have developed a controversy about the role of women in the assembly about the time we developed the idea of a new hermeneutic? It is certainly true that you can’t biblically justify the leadership role of women in the assembly by using the old hermeneutic! If you cannot prove that it is right to do something with the old hermeneutic, you must adopt a new one, or abandon the idea” (Christian Chronicle, May 1993).
c. It is a denial of pattern authority - “just do what you feel Jesus would do in your situation” (Bill Long, in Nashville).
B. Every error has some truth. We should study the life of Jesus and follow His example, but what is His example about respect for authority?
1. He accepted what Moses said as the word of God (Mk. 7:10-13).
2. The lawyer was told to do what Moses said, not what he felt Moses would do (Lk. 10:25-28).
3. Jesus never told anyone to do what they felt Moses would do, and those who teach this subjective approach are not following Jesus.
Body:
A. Jesus used precept, example and necessary inference (Mt. 19:3-12).
1. Quoted Moses’ precept (vs. 4,5; Gen. 2:24).
2. Used an example (v. 4) - the example of Adam and Eve (He used it as a binding example.)
3. Used necessary inferences (v. 6).
B. Jesus used two kinds of authority - generic and specific.
a. Generic (vs. 5,9) - “a man,” and “whoever.” (Did not say “whoever is under My covenant.” Rom. 1:26-29 the Gentile world was guilty of fornication; non-Christians, 1 Cor. 6:9-11).
b. Specific (vs. 4,5) - “male and female...a man...be joined to his wife.”
c. He did not have to say “a male cannot marry a male,” when a thing is specified it is necessarily inferred that nothing else is authorized. (We could not get along if we did not understand this principle!)
d. The methods of Jesus have been God’s way of communicating with man from the beginning and is our way of communicating. (It did not start with the restoration movement of the 1800's!)
C. The Jerusalem conference is a classic in establishing authority (Act 15)
1. James used precept (vs. 13-17; Amos 9:11,12).
2. Peter used example and necessary inference (15:7-9; 10:34-48; 15:7,8).
3.Apostles and elders respected God’s silence (v. 24; Heb. 1:5,8; 7:14; 8:4).
D. What is wrong with argument that canon not accepted till the fourth century, therefore early church could not have looked upon God’s word as a pattern? The message of Christ was authoritative when it was revealed through the Spirit - before it was written
1 Thess. 2:13 “For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.”
2 Thess. 2:15 “Therefore, brethren stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.”
Acts 2:42 the disciples “continued in the apostles’ doctrine...” (Long before it was written, there was a “spoken canon.”) We only have it through the written word today (Eph. 3:3-5).
E. Objections:
1. “Not all examples are binding” (Acts 20:8,9 third story).
a. Neither are all commands: Paul told Timothy: “Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come - and the books, especially the parchments” (2 Tim. 4:13).
b. Acts 20:7 is not all the N.T. says about the place of meeting - Jn. 4:23,24. c. Some who have embraced the New Hermeneutic have rejected the command in 1 Cor.
14:34 - “Lake Highland Church of Christ in Dallas, regularly uses women to lead singing, teach mixed adult classes or conduct seminars. One woman is so gifted that elders consider themselves blessed to sit in her class” (The Preceptor, 7/93). Brookline Church, near Hartford, Mass., “women do all that men do, including the pulpit ministry and serving as elders.” WHEN THERE IS NO PATTERN, THERE IS NO DIVINE LIMITATION.
2. “Whose inference are we going to accept?”
a. It must be inferred in God’s word, not just something someone wishes to be true.
b. How do we know that any of the Bible applies to us? By necessary inference - and we learn the precepts from the examples we read in Scripture. None of the Bible was written as a command to me - we take the examples from Scripture and consider what they were taught and decide whether we are in the same, or a similar condition.
Concl.
A. Jesus “explained (hermeneuo) the Scripture” (Lk. 24:25-27). The Holy Spirit revealed the mind of God in words (1 Cor. 2:9-13).
B. New hermeneutics is simply a rejection of objective authority and embracing of subjective authority (do as you feel). Jesus did not teach nor exemplify such an attitude - and those who follow that are not following Christ.
A. Man has always been influenced by his environment:
1. Israel - wanted to be like the nations around them (1 Sam. 8:5).
2. Early church leaders - influenced by pyramid organization of Roman Empire.
3. In 1800's men looked for a larger organization than the local church - 1849 ACMS.
4. In mid 1900's churches adopted “sponsoring churches” (H.O.T. 1952). William Banowski: “But they sought a program whose scope would be more far-reaching than even the best, but isolated efforts of any one large congregation. They could not resist the temptation to shop about and contrast their plight with the obvious strong points in denominational machinery” (Mirror of A Movement, p. 313).
5. In 1988, Nashville meeting some preachers advocated the “new hermeneutic” - one young preacher (who later left the church and started his own religious group) said “precept, example and necessary inference, and generic and specific authority is Greek to me” (Randy Mayeau).
a. One argued that the first century church could not have looked upon Scripture as a pattern because the canon was not accepted until the fourth century (council of Hippo, 393 A.D. and Carthage, 397 A.D.) (Bill Swetmon). I asked one of the speakers on his side, who said “that is rank modernism.” (1971 James D. Bales wrote “Modernism: Trojan House in the Church” - modernism is a current movement in which science and individual experience replaces the Bible as being the authority for the Christian religion. The ultimate authority is the subjective experience, or feeling, of the individual.
b. Royce Money (president of ACU): “Is it coincidence that we have developed a controversy about the role of women in the assembly about the time we developed the idea of a new hermeneutic? It is certainly true that you can’t biblically justify the leadership role of women in the assembly by using the old hermeneutic! If you cannot prove that it is right to do something with the old hermeneutic, you must adopt a new one, or abandon the idea” (Christian Chronicle, May 1993).
c. It is a denial of pattern authority - “just do what you feel Jesus would do in your situation” (Bill Long, in Nashville).
B. Every error has some truth. We should study the life of Jesus and follow His example, but what is His example about respect for authority?
1. He accepted what Moses said as the word of God (Mk. 7:10-13).
2. The lawyer was told to do what Moses said, not what he felt Moses would do (Lk. 10:25-28).
3. Jesus never told anyone to do what they felt Moses would do, and those who teach this subjective approach are not following Jesus.
Body:
A. Jesus used precept, example and necessary inference (Mt. 19:3-12).
1. Quoted Moses’ precept (vs. 4,5; Gen. 2:24).
2. Used an example (v. 4) - the example of Adam and Eve (He used it as a binding example.)
3. Used necessary inferences (v. 6).
B. Jesus used two kinds of authority - generic and specific.
a. Generic (vs. 5,9) - “a man,” and “whoever.” (Did not say “whoever is under My covenant.” Rom. 1:26-29 the Gentile world was guilty of fornication; non-Christians, 1 Cor. 6:9-11).
b. Specific (vs. 4,5) - “male and female...a man...be joined to his wife.”
c. He did not have to say “a male cannot marry a male,” when a thing is specified it is necessarily inferred that nothing else is authorized. (We could not get along if we did not understand this principle!)
d. The methods of Jesus have been God’s way of communicating with man from the beginning and is our way of communicating. (It did not start with the restoration movement of the 1800's!)
C. The Jerusalem conference is a classic in establishing authority (Act 15)
1. James used precept (vs. 13-17; Amos 9:11,12).
2. Peter used example and necessary inference (15:7-9; 10:34-48; 15:7,8).
3.Apostles and elders respected God’s silence (v. 24; Heb. 1:5,8; 7:14; 8:4).
D. What is wrong with argument that canon not accepted till the fourth century, therefore early church could not have looked upon God’s word as a pattern? The message of Christ was authoritative when it was revealed through the Spirit - before it was written
1 Thess. 2:13 “For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.”
2 Thess. 2:15 “Therefore, brethren stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.”
Acts 2:42 the disciples “continued in the apostles’ doctrine...” (Long before it was written, there was a “spoken canon.”) We only have it through the written word today (Eph. 3:3-5).
E. Objections:
1. “Not all examples are binding” (Acts 20:8,9 third story).
a. Neither are all commands: Paul told Timothy: “Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come - and the books, especially the parchments” (2 Tim. 4:13).
b. Acts 20:7 is not all the N.T. says about the place of meeting - Jn. 4:23,24. c. Some who have embraced the New Hermeneutic have rejected the command in 1 Cor.
14:34 - “Lake Highland Church of Christ in Dallas, regularly uses women to lead singing, teach mixed adult classes or conduct seminars. One woman is so gifted that elders consider themselves blessed to sit in her class” (The Preceptor, 7/93). Brookline Church, near Hartford, Mass., “women do all that men do, including the pulpit ministry and serving as elders.” WHEN THERE IS NO PATTERN, THERE IS NO DIVINE LIMITATION.
2. “Whose inference are we going to accept?”
a. It must be inferred in God’s word, not just something someone wishes to be true.
b. How do we know that any of the Bible applies to us? By necessary inference - and we learn the precepts from the examples we read in Scripture. None of the Bible was written as a command to me - we take the examples from Scripture and consider what they were taught and decide whether we are in the same, or a similar condition.
Concl.
A. Jesus “explained (hermeneuo) the Scripture” (Lk. 24:25-27). The Holy Spirit revealed the mind of God in words (1 Cor. 2:9-13).
B. New hermeneutics is simply a rejection of objective authority and embracing of subjective authority (do as you feel). Jesus did not teach nor exemplify such an attitude - and those who follow that are not following Christ.