Comments on: How will you teach the Bible at the new Church?

By: Anthony Orzo

Anthony Orzo — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:03:20 +0000

Cody, this is another really good insight. I believe your right. It seems at times that studying the Bible has been farmed out to what a good friend of mine used to call…the hired guns!

By this he meant the pasotral staff, and trained Bible teachers. We should never undermine the task of those who have been called by God to teach (which I know you are not doing), however we should always remember that Bible study happens on both a corporate and individual level.

Cody, I wonder if you would ever be willing to do a guest post for me? We have a long history together and I think you write well. Let me know.

By: Cody Bauman

Cody Bauman — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:17:29 +0000

I believe that teaching the word of God should take many forms: line by line, series that show the interconnection between the old and new testaments, series that deal with specific life issues, and series of themes through an entire book of the Bible.
I find where most churches miss the mark is in the individual’s study of God’s Word. That is to say I believe that teaching the Bible to the new church must come at the individual level. This being in the form of individual study and family Bible studies at home with our spouses and with our children. The new church must take accountability for learning the Word for themself and not depending on someone to show it to them. I believe that many of us were raised in a church where the responsibility of obtaining knowledge of the Bible fell upon the pastor, leader or teacher and not the individual themself.
So with that said I believe that the new church must be challenged toward individual study and the teaching when the community comes together should supplement that individual study.

By: Anthony Orzo

Anthony Orzo — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 13:32:26 +0000

Kelly, as a brother in Christ I love you, but I feel your antagonistic tones are somewhat harmful to others wanting to participate in this blog. I’m asking you gently to be mindful of your choice of words and the tone in which some (including myself) might be reading them.

You’ll notice that Acts 20:27 was used to reference the idea of teaching the whole will of God. By this I mean that one of the ways we will teach the Bible at the new church is to teach all of the Bible in its entirety. It was not my intention to proof text every statement with a Bible verse.

By: Larry Kirk

Larry Kirk — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 05:07:09 +0000

Anthony, I think the Acts verse is relevant! It doesn’t focus on methods of exposition but it have bearing on the subject at hand by Paul is assuring the Ephesian elders that he hasn’t failed to proclaim the whole will of God. He follows this by telling them to shepherd the flock. I think this helps us consider our approach to preaching. We can ask, what approach or approaches will best serve the need to preach the whole will of God and shepherd the flock entrusted to our care.

I’m of the opinion that a blend of expository preaching through books or sections of Scripture supplemented by series of expository sermons on selected Scriptures as well as occasional sermons to address particular needs offers the more complete and flexible approach to preaching the whole will of God and shepherding the flock.
I appreciate your willingness to employ various approaches to best accomplish the Biblical mandates for preaching. .

By: chris

chris — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 03:57:08 +0000

“So…what do you think?”

I suspect you’ll be doing both, Ant.

“Both.” One word with significant, unencumbered, clarity.

But, of course, Acts 20.27 has nothing to do with any number of variable methods of biblical exposition in an EV church, but has everything to do with Paul’s proclamation of a unified Gospel message to Jews and Gentiles alike in the face of life-threatening persecution for same.

So “[if] we intend to teach the whole Bible . . . in a way that reflects the original intent of the author who wrote the book,” we will recognize that Luke is intending to provide us with a genuinely Pauline mission statement summarizing his ministry, not a tiny, self-contained guide on how to approach the preaching of God’s word.

I don’t disagree with your stated goal, Ant. I just want to have some assurance that you’ve thought these things through at a foundational level.

You are a church planter, after all.

cks