hermeneutics Archives - Gospel Union - A blog about Christian faith and unity

Are musical instruments in worship wrong?

Thursday, 20 February 2014 by Editor

I have touched on this subject on this blog, but not yet delved into it fully until now. Is it okay for Christians to worship God with the accompaniment of musical instruments? This seems like such a silly question to believers outside of the nominal Church of Christ. “Why would it matter?,” they ask. For

Published in Commentary, Musical Instruments

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What does “inspired” mean?

Sunday, 23 August 2009 by Editor

The Bible is inspired and authoritative, but many Christians misunderstand what that means. Does it mean that every statement found in Sacred Scripture is true? Absolutely not. I can hear the gasps right now as that statement sinks in, but it’s true. Not every statement in the Bible is accurate, much less authoritative. In fact,

context hermeneutics inspiration sarcasm

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Instruments of peace

Tuesday, 16 June 2009 by Editor

It is ironic that musical instruments get the blame for a major division in Christ’s body when music is supposed to be (and is in fact) such a unifying part of Christian worship. There is nothing more unifying than standing and praising God in song together with other believers, whether there are instruments in the

hermeneutics instruments music unity

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The law of silence in Scripture

Friday, 11 May 2007 by Editor

Probably the most thorough, though in my opinion, misguided defense of the so called Law of Silence, comes from a conservative, non-institutional church of Christ website called Bible.ca. I have to admire the creativity of the author in presenting these opinions using the traffic sign analogies. They show a semblance of logic, much like a

cain and abel hermeneutics law of silence nadab and abihu noah and the ark uzzah

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The flaw of silence

Sunday, 09 July 2006 by Editor

Awhile back, I began to suspect that there was a flaw in the theory, sometimes called the Law of Silence, that the Bible’s silence on a subject is always prohibitive. I’ve found cases where it indeed appears to be, but also cases where it appears not to be. I’m convinced that figuring out which is

hermeneutics law of silence

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Is God binary?

Friday, 11 March 2005 by Editor

Too often, I’ve made the mistake of thinking that God is binary–that He can only be “for” something or “agin it.” Fortunately, he’s more merciful than that. Often times, there is a third option that may be in play that we haven’t considered–“I don’t care, as long as you act in love.” I see this

hermeneutics legalism

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Words mean things

Friday, 11 March 2005 by Editor

There is an interesting article in BusinessWeek Online about whether bloggers are journalists: So is a blogger a journalist? Certainly, some organizations have begun to legitimize Web logs as a valid grassroots form of journalism. In 2004, bloggers for the first time received press passes to cover the conventions during the Presidential elections. They have

hermeneutics language

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Worshipping on Mountains

Wednesday, 02 March 2005 by Editor

I found a very funny and useful parody about “prooftexting” our beliefs, written by a blogger named Rey at BibleArchive.com. I disagree with Rey on some important points of theology, like “eternal security” and insisting that being immersed into Christ is trying to be saved by our “works.” Rey, my friend, keep reading those Scriptures

hermeneutics Pattern Theology speculative theology

Published in Bible, Commentary, Reviews

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What is the New Testament?

Friday, 18 February 2005 by Editor

What is the New Testament? Of course, this question could be tackled from a number of different angles, but I want to look at the most basic one. Does the New Testament consist of the books of Matthew through Revelation? Hold your breath…no! Words and phrases take on new meanings as humans use them. For

Bible hermeneutics

Published in Bible, Commentary

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Firm and flexible

Tuesday, 08 February 2005 by Editor

Good essay, Charles. –KH Firm and Flexible http://livwat.com/articles/10048.html by Charles Fry Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:45, NIV, -she was Mary) No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory

fellowship hermeneutics unity

Published in Commentary, Unity

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Barton Stone - "I blush for my fellows who hold up the Bible as the bond of union, yet make their opinions of it a test of fellowship; who plead for union of all Christians, yet refuse to fellowship with such as dissent from their notions. Vain men! Their zeal is not according to knowledge, nor is their spirit that of Christ. Such antisectarian-sectarians are doing more mischief to the cause and advancement of truth, the unity of Christians, and the salvation of the world, than all the skeptics in the world. In fact, they create skeptics."

Alexander Campbell - "We will not hearken to those questions which gender strife, nor discuss them at all. If a person says such is his private opinion, let him have it as his private opinion; but lay no stress upon it; and if it be a wrong private opinion, it will die a natural death much sooner than if you attempt to kill it."

Alexander Campbell - "But men cannot give up their opinions, and therefore, they can never unite, says one. We do not ask them to give up their opinions--we ask them only not to impose them upon others. Let them hold their opinions, but let them hold them as private property. The faith is public property; opinions are, and always have been private property. Men have foolishly attempted to make the deductions of some great minds the common measure of all Christians. Hence the deductions of a Luther, and a Calvin, and a Wesley, have been the rule and measure of all who coalesce under the names of these leaders. It is cruel to excommunicate a man because of the imbecility of his intellect."

Alexander Campbell - "Dear sir, this plan of making our own nest, and fluttering over our own brood; of building our own tent, and of confining all goodness and grace to our noble selves and the "elect few" who are like us, is the quintessence of sublimated pharisaism. The old Pharisees were but babes in comparison to the modern: and the longer I live, and the more I reflect upon God and man--heaven and earth--the Bible and the world--the Redeemer and his church--the more I am assured that all sectarianism is the offspring of hell; and that all differences about words, and names, and opinions, hatched in Egypt, or Rome, or Edinburgh, are like the frolics of drunken men; and that where there is a new creature, or a society of them, with all their imperfections and frailties, and errors in sentiment, in views, and opinions, they ought to receive one another, and the strong to support the weak, and not to please themselves. To lock ourselves up in the bandbox of our own little circle; to associate with a few units, tens, or hundreds, as the pure church, as the elect, is real Protestant monkery, it is evangelical pharisaism."

Alexander Campbell - "I have tried the pharisaic plan, and the monastic. I was once so straight, that, like the Indian's tree, I leaned a little the other way. And however much I may be slandered now as seeking "popularity" or a popular course, I have to rejoice that to my own satisfaction, as well as to others, I proved that truth, and not popularity, was my object; for I was once so strict a Separatist that I would neither pray nor sing praises with any one who was not as perfect as I supposed myself. In this most unpopular course I persisted until I discovered the mistake, and saw that on the principle embraced in my conduct, there never could be a congregation or church upon the earth."

Alexander Campbell - "I have no idea of adding to the catalogue of new sects. I labor to see sectarianism abolished and all Christians of every name united upon the one foundation upon which the apostolic church was founded."