Reflection on Pastoral Epistles

Once again, another course is nearing an end, and this exercise of reflecting on what we have learned is a good practice, lest we miss out valuable lessons that we could have learned from the course. Personally, I think it is important to not just think through the lessons, discussions and experiences, but to personalise them in our hearts – something that I am well aware of, but sometimes fail to put in enough effort to practise. Ultimately, the goal of reflection should not just be mental knowledge but a transformed life, and often the chasm between the head and the heart is often what makes biblical study ineffective.

            A major theme which can be seen in all the three epistles is perhaps the importance of living up the faith which we believe in, both for the ordinary Christian so that prebelievers will see the attractiveness of the gospel (the gospel IS attractive, just that prebelievers will not see it if Christians do not live up to it), and for the Christian leader to set an example for those they lead and influence. This is, of course, obvious to most, but the question is how much we often practise this in our own lives? After all, it is the most obvious things which we often pay the least attention to. I, for one, must confess that I frequently discover in myself how I have missed out practising seemingly fundamental principles like love (instead of self-centredness), patience (instead of impatience), humility (instead of affirming myself for every little thing which I do well), perseverance (instead of giving up easily), faith (intead of living by sight), reliance on God (instead of trusting in my own problem-solving)... I could go on and on. Furthermore, the pragmatic and efficiency/effectiveness-driven culture of Singapore could skew the idea of setting an example towards the hard values of discipline and diligence (which are good principles) to the neglect of more fundamental values of faith, hope and love. The former, I contend, could also be a mask for self-sufficiency and pride instead of a desire towards godliness.

            A related thought is the damage which wrong teachings and values could wreck on a community. In the highly educated society of Singapore (and in correlation the church too), overtly false teachings are unlikely to be embraced. However, the danger lies in erroneous teachings which bear resemblance to what the Bible teaches, but either quote it in the wrong context or emphasise minor doctrines at the expense of major principles. One well-known example is the prosperity gospel, which is often taught with substantiating verses from the Bible but shows signs of specious reasoning on closer scrutiny.

            The implication for myself is that I need to examine where in the Bible the teachings and doctrines which I  believe in comes from, and to make sure I comprehend the contexts from where they are quoted, so that I can understand and apply them correctly in my own life and in what I teach. At the same time, it is important for me to know the Word of God well generally, and to be sensitive to the values which come out in normal conversation, in the hope that I might help to correct wrong values and teachings that are being shared over fellowship.

            Timothy is often understood to be relatively young and of a less assertive personality in view of the regular encouragement from Paul to stand firm, especially in 2 Timothy. However, a possible reason for Paul’s encourage could be the degree of opposition which Timothy faced at Ephesus. In spite of the prevalence of false teachings and opposition, Timothy was encouraged to stand against it not only through teaching but also through living out the faith he taught. However, to change opinion by example is often a long-drawn process, since values are not immediately obvious, but confirmed in the life of a person only through time. In our “instant” society, we have less patience for nagging issues that persist in our midst, and the temptation might be to solve problems with the fastest ways possible. However, since we are dealing with people, a lack of patience and wisdom could lead to hurts and divisions which could be irreparable in the community. I personally have much room to grow in patience and perseverance, both in my personal life and in ministry settings. Perhaps the greatest value of standing against opposition through life example is the strong foundation established in the character of the leader.

            One problem which the church at Ephesus seems to be dealing with is legalistic adherence to forms instead of pursuing godliness and love in response to the grace of God. Legalism is perhaps a common trap for young believers and new leaders to fall into, since it is always easier to have a fixed, observable set of rules to follow and to define what spirituality is. However, such legalistic religiosity contributes little to genuine spiritual growth, and serves mainly to feed the pride and self-righteousness of the person practising it. After being a Christian for over a decade, I can still see signs of this in how I evaluate myself and compare myself with others (the fact that I even evaluate and compare myself with others shows how deceitful and pretentious my heart can be, since in trying to evaluate others in spirituality I show myself to be unspiritual and prideful!).

            One last thing I have to comment about the experience in this module is the sharing of lives while working with my teammates. Though it is tough to plan meet-ups and discuss through our assignment, it is perhaps the most memorable time of the module. We met in Jenny’s home, and she exercised her hospitality by brewing tea for us and preparing food for us. We had our differences of opinions, but learned to deal with it without getting into quarrels. We also had a great time in our presentation! My general mindset is that as a working adult I have little time for such group work, but I am glad that this is still a valuable part of learning process.

Reflection on Corinthians Adventure

It has been a fruitful course, and both the course content on the book of 1 Corinthians (presently, we have not reached 2 Corinthians yet) and the discussions in the class have been an enriching experience. Bro Casey is a knowledgeable teacher and helps us understand the background of the book well, and also facilitates application of what we learn to our contemporary context.

                The first and most immediate learning point I learned from the course is the importance of understanding the socio-cultural and historical context of each book when we study it. This, of course, has been learned in a previous course on biblical interpretation, but studying about the background of the Corinthian church and seeing its link to the content of the epistle really gives me a deepened sense of the relevance of the background in understanding the book.  The influence of the Hellenistic philosophy explains why the topic of wisdom was raised in 1 Cor 1, and why the topic of not marrying was being discussed in 1 Cor 7. In fact for the latter, it is new to me that not getting married is more the argument of the Corinthians than Paul’s exhortation (though Paul preferred singlehood for practical reasons, he did not prescribe it as something superior).  The pagan practice of idolatry clarifies Paul’s reasoning in 1 Cor 8-10, and the unfavourable regard of some Corinthians towards Paul explains Paul’s strong language in his self-defence in 1 Cor 9. At the same time, there are always certain passages that we could not easily explain, like the covering of women (1 Cor 11) and why women were forbidden to minister (1 Cor 14:34-35). This sense of allowing for uncertainty in our understanding of the Bible can be seen in both our class discussions and the commentators’ writings in commentaries (in this case Gordon Fee in his NICNT on 1 Corinthians).

                A second idea I have learned is related to the first point above, in how our socio-cultural context affects how we see things. The Corinthians asked the questions in their letter to Paul according to the social practices and lifestyles of their times. We certainly have our own ideological leaning according to the times that we live in. Personally, I have recently realised how my personal focus on experiencing and a subtle aversion against rules has a postmodern ring to it. Furthermore, a reading of the different perspectives on atonement in my current Christology class makes me realise how underemphasised the holiness of God and the gravity of sin is in my personal outlook, which could also in part be due to the culture I live in. Of course, biblical perspectives need to be applied to contemporary times, but it would be good to have a more balanced perspective on biblical fundamentals.

                A third learning point I gained from the content of the course is the meaning of true spirituality in 1 Cor 13, which is love, and not the exercise of some spiritual gift and great sacrifice. The term “true spirituality” is not specifically coined by Paul, but this indication is inherent in Paul’s emphasis of love in the midst of his discussion of spiritual gifts in his letter to the Corinthians. It might seemed obvious to a third party reading about Paul’s discourse that love is superior to exercising spiritual gifts, especially as it aligns with our understanding of God as love (1 Jn 4:8). However, this will not be clear to one who is personally involved in searching for spirituality, especially when pride is a motivating factor. I can remember more than once when I “affirmed” myself in my heart whenever I explained the Bible well, or when I sacrificed when ministering to others. When I have personal issues with someone, there is a strong temptation in my heart to compare myself favourably with that person in an area of gift/talent to “proof” to myself that I am more “spiritually mature”. However, all these carnal motivations are undercut by Paul’s discourse on love as the only thing (and he means ONLY, if I understood the passage correctly) that gives value to everything we do, be it exercising spiritual gifts, exercising faith, or sacrificing for God or someone else.

                A fourth idea I gained from the class is the participation of the audience in worship, which was discussed in more than one lesson. This reminded me of the beginnings of the Pentecostal movement in Kenneth Archer’s Pentecostal Hermeneutic for the Twenty First Century: Spirit, Scripture and Community. The worship gatherings were often marked by mass participation of the audience who were gathered, and the profound experience of the Holy Spirit in the gatherings drew in more people who sought God. The focus is on how the Holy Spirit moved during each gathering, though there is a minister in each meeting to moderate the session. This is very different from most of our present day gatherings where worship is directed from the stage. I believe the involvement of the audience does create a greater sense of expectation of the Holy Spirit to move in the gathering. However, it is easy to say some practice we read of is good, but it is another matter to apply it in our present day context. To implement a whole new practice in a congregation is not easy, especially if the congregation is of considerable size, and most likely will lead to confusion and adjustment problems for the congregation. A change of practice will not always lead to the outcome we expect, because the heart of the matter is our inner desire to seek God and faith to expect Him to move. But I believe that practices do facilitate inner change, and if it is beneficial, perhaps we can work towards something which could lead our groups toward greater participation in worship gatherings.

                A fifth idea I got from the lessons is the benefits of learning in a team. We all know theoretically that there is a wealth of learning opportunities in learning in a team, though I suspect there is more than a few who would prefer to learn on their own. I for one do not enjoy working in a team, mainly because of the hassle of meeting up for discussions, needing to discuss through and agree on common ideas from the different perspectives of the team, and trying to get things done through the different working styles of the team members. Much as I hate to acknowledge, learning in teams does have its benefits. The most immediate reward is not related to the content of the subject, but the building of relationship from the interactions. Also, learning to navigate through the different learning styles in the team is sometimes as challenging as the cognitive training of theology – especially when we have different priorities and schedules on top of our classes. Finally, learning in a team always reminds me how there are other, equally valid perspectives on issues different from my own.