Skip to main content

Review: Abusing Scripture: The Consequences of Misreading the Bible By, Manfred Brauch IVP Academic



Abusing Scripture: 
The Consequences of Misreading the Bible [Paperback]



Manfred Brauch 

  • Publisher: IVP Academic (March 17, 2009)
  • ISBN-10: 0830825797
  • ISBN-13: 978-0830825790


This is one of the best books on the topic of Biblical Misrepresentation I have read. Braunch has a definite way of putting into clear context sections of scripture that have for years been pulled out of context and form fitted to someones doctrinal idea of a "truth". Many times preachers will unknowingly pull a sentence or two out as a sermon illustration or as a topic starter thinking there is no harm in this, but what happens when we begin adding to The Word ends up belittling the truth of scripture. Its not our job to make scripture fit our sermon or our notes, but rather our duty to make sure our sermons and notes fit the truth of Scripture. After Reading this book I have to agree with the very appropriate and concise review given by George P. Wood the Director of Ministerial Resourcing for the Assemblies of God.

 Brauch is past professor and president of Palmer Theological Seminary (formerly Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary), as well as the author of Set Free to Be and Hard Sayings of Paul. The seminary has been described as "conservative, yet progressive" because of its combination of theological orthodoxy and social activism. The primary example of this conservative progressivism is undoubtedly Ron Sider, Palmer's best-known professor. Brauch is also an able exponent of that tradition.

Abusing Scripture offers a sixfold taxonomy of ways evangelicals (including us Pentecostals) are guilty of "doing violence to" Scripture:

  •  The abuse of the whole gospel through a failure to address human need for salvation in both "personal and social dimensions"
  • The abuse of selectivity, which "is not an outright distortion of the meaning of given texts" but rather entails "ignoring or rejecting...other parts or passages of Scripture that support a different teaching, or present an alternative perspective, or advocate an opposing view"
  • The abuse of biblical balance by means of "emphasizing certain biblical doctrines, perspectives, teachings, themes or mandates, while ignoring or minimizing the equal, or even greater, importance of complementary ones"
  • The abuse of words, "when words and expressions are decoded (by teachers or readers) in ways that are not in keeping with the original encoding [by the biblical authors]"
  • The abuse of literary and theological context, in which the meanings of specific passages are not derived from "the immediate textual materials that surround them" or from "the overarching theological concepts in broader literary contexts"
  • The abuse of historical situation and cultural reality, which is really a failure to discern between "those things in Scripture that are culturally or historically relative, and, therefore, limited in their inspired authority to the people and situations addressed at that time, and the things that are transcultural and transhistorical, where the authoritative Word of God ins binding for all Christians at all times and in all cultures"

Throughout his discussion of this taxonomy, Brauch returns to three illustrations of these kinds of abuses in practice: "(1) the use and justification of force and violence in human affairs; (2) the relationship between men and women in home, church and society; and (3) the concern for justice and the sanctity of life in all areas of human relationships, institutions and culture."

Source: http://www.amazon.com/review/R23U6F0YQUQT7C/ref=cm_cr_pr_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=0830825797&linkCode=&nodeID=&tag=

Comments

  1. Then, utilizing a free guess provide, you can to|you presumably can} guess on rugby, football, cricket, and different current occasions. It is necessary to also evaluate the terms and circumstances 강원랜드 쪽박걸 of the Betway bonus before utilizing the benefits. If you've have} already registered on the positioning, you are not thought-about a new new} user- for instance, think about net site|a internet site} with a sportsbook and a casino. You won’t be eligible for the sportsbook’s welcome bonus should you previously signed up as a casino player on that website.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review of Persuasions by Douglas Wilson

Douglas Wilson’s book, Persuasions is a collection of short parables involving the character Evangelist, who meets various people in a variety of situations all having one thing in common. They are all walking the one Road toward the Abyss. The Master of the City tried to give warning to the travelers, but many ignored them. One man known only as the Evangelist meets these travelers. With what seems to them as almost otherworldly ability he sees right to the heart of the individuals and can share with them the truth about their journey.   Some of the people whom Evangelist encounters seem significantly impacted by his insight and profound revelatory words, others offended, while yet others just ignore and keep walking on.   Persuasions deal with some very pertinent issues facing humanity today, Immorality, Feminism, Atheism, Marriage, Hypocrisy, Evolution, and other topics. Each issue discussed is done with articulation and a firm understanding in a manner that engages the reader to th

Can we REALLY trust the Resurrection Story?

Basically the story of the resurrection of Jesus has some major flaws from our modern believability perspective and commercial appeal. The Gospel writers had the idea all wrong,  if they were going to make up this story about a resurrection it should have looked totally different if they wanted it to be easily accepted by everyone. There are 7 basic points raised by New Testament Scholar and historian N.T. Wright as to the perspective of the Christian Resurrection story verses the Jewish traditions. Remember the people of the time of this situation were Jewish and this idea of Jesus as the Messiah was not only THE single most radical thing to happen in their history, this includes a burning bush, parting of the Red Sea, world-wide flood, plagues of  hemorrhoids (1 Samuel 5 look it up) but it was also challenging everything they had believed up to this point. Their heads must have been swimming at this new idea of a Resurrected Savior. Here they are in short (I recommend reading the

Is Good, Good Enough?

Every language in the world has a word expressing good in the sense of having the right or desirable quality. Media has projected the idea of “good” like a sliding scale, from desirable like The Beach Boys who were looking for Good Vibrations, though in point of fact this good is regarding Transcendental Meditation. As the song of the same name indicates “Transcendental meditation can emancipate the man and get you feeling grand it's good, it’s good, it’s good.” 1 On the other end, good is something to be avoided as Billy Joel says in Only the Good Die Young, "They say there's a heaven for those who will wait, some say it's better but I say it ain’t, I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints, the sinners are much more fun... You know that only the good die young.” 2 More recently The Black Eyed Peas twist “good” to involve spending the night partying in a way that they will probably not remember the next morning. “I’ve got a feeling, that tonight