Don't Study the Bible!?

I recently wrote a blog about the famous pastor Mark Driscoll's latest sermon. Today I watched the entire sermon (watch it here) partially because of a blog I read that critiqued a quote by Driscoll from that sermon. I watched the entire sermon to see for myself whether or not they were appropriately handling the quote (since I try to give Driscoll the benefit of the doubt). I encourage you to watch and determine for yourself whether or not their blog (or mine) has been fair to Driscoll (and Christ and his body).

As Driscoll enters into Ephesians 5:22-33 he tells people they won't like what he has to say. He starts with the first two words. "Wives, submit..." He lightens the mood by laughing about how this has already caused tension for the audience (I appreciated that). "Submit" can be a word that causes tension, he knows this, maybe better than most these days. He stops his reading after emphasizing the word "submit" and states,

"'What does that mean in the Greek, Pastor Mark?' You can always tell a rebellious evangelical. They do word studies. They try to go to the Greek and figure out if it perhaps means something else. I'll just read. Ok..."

And with that he continues reading the passage.

BUT HOLD UP. There is a problem.

Whatever Driscoll meant is probably lost in his wording because his wording is communicating that word studies and learning about the Biblical languages is a sign of a rebellious evangelical. I don't know why he chose the term "evangelical" over "Christian" but I'll touch on that in a moment

I am sure he doesn't mean what his words communicate at face value. I think we owe it to him to investigate what his intended meaning was because it can be dangerous to just take people's words at face value when the words can be controversial.

What he might mean is that a casual reading of a translated Bible in the English will be sufficient for our understanding of a passage's meaning. In other words, an author's intent can be found through a reading void of investigatory study. 

Maybe Driscoll is (also) trying to say that people in other theological camps who disagree with his complementarian position try to find loopholes through selective word studies so they can disagree with his position and escape the "soft patriarchy" position he finds to be the Christian truth. Thus, "rebellious evangelicals." Maybe he is trying to argue that those who disagree with his position are abusing scripture to support their claims. Sadly, that approach reeks of an unwillingness to have reasonable discussion over a theological disagreement. I'm hoping this isn't what was in his heart/mind when he spoke these words but, at the same time, it wouldn't be surprising if he's making an off handed comment that jabs at people for disagreeing with him by trying to make them look bad. He's done it before without apology. Maybe this isn't the case though! Let's hope not. 

Maybe he meant those sorts of things but Driscoll doesn't say any of that. He doesn't qualify his statement at all. He leaves us with a statement that, at face value, villainizes word studies and a deeper look at author's intent. At the very least, at face value, he villainizes those who disagree with him. Either way, he used poor wording and for the sake of those under his teaching (and the rest of the body of Christ) he should clarify his statement in a public address or his next sermon. An apology would even be helpful since a lack of clarity can be incredibly damaging. I think of the new believers at Mars Hill and those who listen to his podcasts that will be confused or poorly influenced by this statement.

It's fine if Driscoll thinks his position is the right one. I expect that. I feel the same way about my opposing position. However, the way we talk about each other must be respectful Jabs don't help. Bold truth is fine but cheap shots are not loving. Implying that the brothers and sisters who disagree with us are abusing scripture simply because they reach a different conclusion isn't helping. We have to try to understand each other. Hopefully Driscoll isn't taking cheap shots. Hopefully he meant something harmless and just used the totally wrong words. 

 I hope he makes this more clear because right now he's saying the sort of thing that cult leaders say. I'm not wanting him to be viewed that way. I don't want my brother to be so terribly misinterpreted. 

To be clear, I'm not saying he is trying to start a cult or is trying to hoard power over people. I'm not saying Mars Hill isn't a part of the body of Christ as a faithful church. I'm merely saying Driscoll, at face value, just sent a message that sounds like the message cult leaders send (that is, don't investigate to see if my teaching is right or wrong, just listen to what I say). And remember, I'm hoping to God that he didn't mean what he said. That'd be incredibly sad and would cause me to seriously worry about the people under Driscoll's leadership. 

I just obtained my Masters of Arts in Biblical Studies. I had to take 2 years of Koine Greek classes to get that degree. I don't like Greek. In fact, I despised those classes because they got on my nerves. But I understand the value of word studies, etymology, cultural studies, and all the research that helps to better understand the biblical author's intent. This is especially true for passages that are controversial. That's what makes this statement so troubling.

Only minutes earlier Driscoll emphasized that this might be one of the most controversial passage in all of scripture for some listeners. This is a big deal, a hot button issue. This is difficult and causes tension. He admits this before he begins. He even says some people refuse to discuss the issue because it's so touchy. He makes it clear that our culture has trouble with the word "submit" and then, almost immediately, dismisses the pursuit of understanding what that word means for the author and his audience. Driscoll opts out for his own interpretation (which can't be void of word study with how much he speaks on this issue on a public level). That's beyond foolish. It's dangerous. 

However, again, I'm hoping and betting he's not truly against word study. I think he'd agree that it is good and wise to do word studies and to do everything you can to better understand the words of scripture. If all we can do is read the Bible at face value then that's fine but most of us can do far more than this and we should do far more. We should do everything we can (together) to better understand the truth of scripture as Holy Spirit leads us in our learning (and remember, God gave us study tools as well as the Spirit). I firmly believe Driscoll and I agree on this.

I won't villainize Driscoll. I'd rather assume he said something he shouldn't have said off the cuff and it was a poor choice of words to communicate what he actually meant. I pray that he clarifies and apologizes. I encourage you to study scripture and to respectfully interact with those with whom you disagree. Seek unity! Seek to understand how you might be wrong. I may be wrong about Driscoll's statement. I try to be fair but perhaps I'm not being fair enough. I don't know but I'm trying to help us all however I can, if I can, if it's needed.

And if you want, tweet @PastorMark and encourage him to clarify this confusing and dangerous statement for the sake of his ministry. Be blessed my siblings!