The NT warnings are clear - there are dangers in both directions related to the charges to “pass on sound doctrine” & “guard the good deposit.”
On the one hand, we can widen the tent too much, to the extent that we become or tolerate false teachers who tickle itching ears.
On the other hand, we can, in the interest of doctrinal fidelity, shrink the boundaries so much that we become divisive, obsessed with silly myths, endless genealogies, & pointless controversies.
The way of Christ is the narrow way between these two divergent paths. We need to pursue theological fidelity that leads us further into the wisdom & knowledge of God, which is Christ, while also refusing to divide from those who belong, alongside us, to Christ.
This narrow way is the one we hope to walk at CBR. I certainly don’t pretend that we have done, currently do, or will do so perfectly, but that’s where we want to be. So, again, in a time where the culture pulls us at once toward both itching ears & divisiveness, check it out.
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Remember in the 2000s when we emphasized “guard the good deposit” and “pass on sound doctrine”?
It’s obvious now that, while that emphasis is biblical and good, we forgot to emphasize its counterpart - found in the same letters! - regarding divisiveness:
“…remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith.” 1 Tim. 1:3–4
“Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.” 1 Tim. 1:6–7
Seriously, how many of these Twitter debates would be put to bed if we all - including many of the loudest voices - shared a grasp on basic hermeneutical concepts?
Honestly, I suspect that this, along with other online “controversies,” are more about catechesis (or the lack thereof) in our local churches than they are about whatever is purported to be the source of conflict.
I get that Christians are (rightly) wary of elitism. Christian scholars are not any closer to or more in tune with God than a fellow believer in the pew.
And, for Baptists in particular, the local congregation is the locus of authority, not any pope, ecclesial or academic, making pronouncements from afar.
At the same time, there are academic discussions related to hermeneutics, theology, ethics, and the like that use technical terminology and difficult concepts and that therefore require familiarity and precision.