The Path — 3/4/24
Bible Translations, the Importance of a Confession and Christian Biography, Counseling in the Church, & the Necessity of Children's Ministry
In this week’s post, we will begin our study through Grasping God’s Word, the London Baptist Confession, 27 Servants of Sovereign Joy, Biblical Counseling and the Church, and Transforming Children into Spiritual Champions.
Translation & Exegesis
Written by J. Scott Duvall and J. Daniel Hays, Grasping God’s Word is a helpful resource for those who want to learn how to read, interpret, and apply the Bible for themselves. It contains clearly communicated information, practical exercises, and a step-by-step guide to interpreting God's Word. This was the textbook for the introductory biblical interpretation class in college, and it has been a useful resource to me ever since.
Divided into five major sections, Grasping God's Word begins with a discussion of the basic tools one needs to read the Bible. Chapter one provides a brief but thorough overview of Bible translations.
Duvall and Hays note that they “have a chapter on Bible translations because translation itself is unavoidable.” As seen in the below chart, God gave his word to human authors who recorded it in the original text, either in Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek. These originals were copied, and all translators face the challenge of figuring out which copies most likely reflect the original text. That text is then translated into the language of the intended audience by a translator or translation committee, making it accessible to modern readers. There are a great many English translations, and the authors do an excellent job of presenting a brief history and overview of them.
The process of transmission, translation, and interpretation is not an easy one. Translating anything from one language to another is a complex endeavor, especially when translating a divinely inspired book. Translators need to balance the formal and functional approaches to translation. The formal approach tries to stay as close as possible to both the structure and words of the original language. The functional approach tries to express the meaning of the original language. Then there are paraphrases, which merely restate or explain one English translation using different English words.
There’s so much more that I could write about Bible translation, but I’ll wrap up this section with the four guidelines Duvall and Hays provide for choosing a translation and one of my favorite quotes from their conclusion:
Choose a translation that uses modern English
Choose a translation that is based on the standard Hebrew and Greek text
Give preference to a translation by a committee over against a translation by an individual
Choose a translation that is appropriate for your own particular purpose at the time
We can be thankful that God has used translators to get the message of the original text into our hands. Can you imagine the Christian life without your own copy of God’s Word? In the past many Christians have lived under those circumstances, but it would be difficult for us today.
Theology
The word "confession" likely calls to mind conversations in which one party expresses guilt to another, times in prayer admitting one’s sin towards God, or even the image of a booth in which one acknowledges one’s sin to another person. That’s not the definition in mind in the title The London Baptist Confession.
Confession: a statement setting out essential religious doctrine; the religious body or church sharing a confession of faith; a statement of one’s principles
Many churches have a statement of faith, a written expression of what they believe. Some are short and to the point. Others are more detailed, potentially containing statements about current issues. Some are written in the form of a church constitution. These confessions or statements of faith do not possess equal standing with Scripture. In Creeds, Confessions, and Catechisms, Chad Van Dixhoorn writes that these documents “serve Christians well in their attempt to understand one another better; they help us listen quietly when we too often talk noisily.”
One historically important confession of faith is the London Baptist Confession (or the Second London Baptist Confession). Formally adopted in 1689, it was an adaptation of the Savoy Declaration of Faith, which was itself a modification of the Westminster Confession of Faith. To this day, it remains a helpful tool for teaching.
While it is not perfect, I have greatly benefited from the LBC. I certainly do not agree with everything written within it (and I will make that clear whenever disagreement arises), but there are many sections which beautifully and succinctly systematize the teachings of Scripture. Next week, we will begin examining perhaps my favorite chapter, Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures.
Church History
In his book 27 Servants of Sovereign Joy, John Piper presents twenty-seven mini-biographies. These entries were originally messages presented at the Bethlehem Conference by Piper, who was inspired by the work of Iain Murray. These biographical messages were intended to be enjoyable, edifying, and efficient, and I have certainly found them to be so.
Part of his passion for Christian biography is found in Hebrews 11. In Brothers, We Are Not Professionals, Piper comments on this chapter, which in some ways serves as a diving mandate to read Christian biography.
The unmistakable implication of the chapter is that if we hear about the faith of our forefathers (and mothers), we will “lay aside every weight and sin” and “run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Heb. 12:1). If we asked the author, “How shall we stir one another up to love and good works?” (10:24), his answer would be: “Through encouragement from the living and the dead” (10:25; 11:1–40). Christian biography is the means by which the “body life” of the church cuts across the centuries.
Through a study of Christian biography, we can find courage and strength, fell as though we are a part of something bigger, see that the worst of times are not the last of times, focus on the cause of truth, revive our love for Christ’s church, reinforce our resolve to holy living, and more.
With John Piper, I pray that this study will benefit us all and push us to become more like Christ.
Biblical Counseling
The authors of Biblical Counseling and the Church all share one commitment: to let the Bible shape everything they think. This commitment to the sufficiency of Scripture permeates biblical counseling. Through the lens of God’s Word, one gains a better understanding of people and how they change. The Bible tells us that people are creatures of God; sinners who are separate from God and broken within, suffers who live in a broken world; and, by God’s grace, many are saints who have been forgiven by God and restored to relationship with him. The Bible also tells us that lasting change requires a savior, and his name is Jesus.
This commitment to the sufficiency of Scripture and biblical progressive sanctification are vital parts of biblical counseling. It is this ministry that the authors of Biblical Counseling and the Church seek to equip churches to do. They “have a vision to see every Christian equipped to relate Christ’s gospel of grace to people’s live so we all mature in Christ — God’s care through God’s people.”
I share the Biblical Counseling Coalition’s passion “to equip all of God’s people to promote personal change centered on the Person of Christ through the personal ministry of the Word.” My goal through reading this book is to grow in an understanding of how to implement that passion within the local church. I pray that this study will be beneficial to you as well.
Pastoral Ministry
Yet somehow the wisdom and necessity of seeing children as the primary focus of ministry never occurred to me. In that regard, perhaps I’ve simply been a product of my environment. Like most adults, I have been aware of children, fond of them and willing to invest some resources in them; but I have not really been fully devoted to their development. In my mind, they were people en route to significance—i.e., adulthood—but were not yet deserving of the choice resources.
Many today think like George Barna, the author of Transforming Children into Spiritual Champions, once did. Quite often, ministry to kids is not seen as something that needs to be taken too seriously. Typically, a church’s resources and focus is predominately directed towards adults. While churches ought to pour into everyone in their congregation, too often kids just get the scraps from the table.
Barna’s typical process for book writing involves observation, discussion, prayer, and reflection; primary research and analyzation of the results; confirmation of the data through real-world ministry experience; and publication of the results. It was through this practice that God opened his heart and mind to the importance of children’s ministry.
Barna’s prayer and goal for this book is to reach an agreement with his readers, help others see the spiritual development of children as primary, motivate others to action, facilitate the appropriate linkage between the local church and parents, and identify common principles and best practices among effective churches.
Ultimately, the purpose of this endeavor is to enable the Church to engage in the process of transforming mere children into spiritual champions.
Next week, we will examine the state of American children.
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Soli Deo Gloria,
Caleb Friske
Can't wait to read more about the children's aspect, such a different viewpoint than what currently resides in many churches