How dependable and trustworthy is the practice of theology today?

How dependable and trustworthy is the practice of theology today? 

(1) Its basis as a largely empirical science is almost completely missing from current-day preaching.[1]

(2) Its main texts are widely read in highly misleading translations.[2]

(3) Normal preaching is unbiblical, in opposition to God's Word (even the well translated parts of the Bible).[3] 

Other sciences, like biology or physics, have also gone through long periods of confusion: for centuries, people seen as experts made assertions without a basis in empirical-scientific method, and with little or no connection to actual facts. The field of medicine has likely been populated over its history mainly by quacks, who gave advice and performed operations without the proper scientific basis. Even up to our day, physicians (medical doctors) have been causing tremendous injury to others when they lose their grasp of the basic principles of medical science.[4] 

These facts provide powerful reasons not to give up on a science just because of current-day darkness:
(a) The history of natural sciences proves that earnest devotion to good methodology yields progress.
(b) It is immoral to stand by while a science is improperly practiced to the injury of many people.

Another reason to press onward with theology, is that the widespread confusion, even corruption, in theological practice today are predicted and described in the Holy Bible.[5] That means that we should recognize it as false preaching, rather than confusing it with theology rightly practiced. Otherwise we have only ourselves to blame: the Holy Bible gives us fair warning that people will need to discern (i.e. distinguish) between genuine preaching and false preaching. 

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[1] A very brief introduction to the empirical-scientific character of the Bible is provided here. 

[2] Brief treatments of this topics are provided in these articles: "The most important misreadings of the Bible?", and "New solutions for New Testament verses".

[3] See for example "Early warnings of grave misunderstandings of Christianity".

[4] An outstanding example of quackery among elite medical institutions has been widely recognized just this year at Karolinska Institute and Hospital in Sweden: the "invention" of synthetic thoracic transplants, which were essentially untested before they began maiming and killing transplant recipients, a tragedy that in its turn was covered up through false assertions allowed into leading publications like The Lancet.

[5] Matthew 24:10-12, 24; Acts 20:29-30; 2 Timothy 3:1-9, 4:3-4; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 3:16-17.

Jesus demands works but prohibits boasting: how?

Jesus's speech recorded in Luke 17 (in the Authorized King James Version):

5 And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.6 And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you. 7 But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? 8 And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? 9 Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.



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AKJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

Bad theology versus God's rescue systems

Update: I wish to question the endorsement of hierarchies in this article. Yes, Jesus is recorded as having named 12 apostles, who would in future judge the 12 tribes of Israel. But is any earthly hierarchy given by Jesus? Instead, Jesus can be understood to prohibit hierarchy in Matthew 23. Likewise, in John 21, the commission to Peter can be read without any permission for a hierarchy (authorities within the Church/Flock of Christ). This is because the two Ancient Greek verbs used there, bosko and poimaino, had several senses each, such as "feed" and "tend" respectively.

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It is wonderful to find God's amazing systems* of rescue described in the Christian Bible. It's also surprising, although it shouldn't be so: God is the creator of the entire Universe, a proof of which is the astounding fine-tuning of the systems of the universe.

One divine system could be called sanctification for glorification for salvation. 

(1) Christians are enabled by God to do good works (Ephesians 2:10; 2 Corinthians 9:8).

(2) Those good works cause other people to glorify God (Matthew 5:16).

(3) People who glorify God take one key step closer to receiving God's salvation (Acts 10:1-48; 1 Corinthians 14:19-25; 1 Peter 2:12).

Bad theology works against these systems. Consider, for example, the theological mistake that says—in contradiction to Matthew 5:16 and James 2:14-26—that Christians do not need to do good works because Christ's righteousness is counted as theirs. Such bad theology will disrupt the system of sanctification for glorification for salvation. 

Or consider another divine system described in the New Testament: it could be called chastizement for sanctification, witness and unity.

(1) God sends illnesses on Christians to save them from condemnation (1 Corinthians 11:30-32). 

(2) If a Christian has an illness (James 5:14-18), he or she should
- confess his or her sins to another Christian; 
and
- have the elders of the church pray for them and anoint them with oil.

What does such a system achieve? 
(A) Sanctification. 
Christians are led away from sinful behaviors.

(B) Witnesses to God. 
Being healed by God provides proof to unbelievers of God's existence and character, and builds up the faith of Christians. 

(C) Church-building. 
Healing requires a church with elders. This gives a powerful incentive for Christians to build up and care for churches (rather than trying to practice Christianity independently).

Bad theology undermines this system, for example 
- when preachers and pastors are teaching that God does not send illnesses on Christians;
- when preachers and pastors are teaching that Christians with illnesses do not need to confess their sins; 
- when preachers and pastors fail to teach that God demands holiness from His children (1 Peter 1:13-20).

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* A system is where different parts work together to achieve something.

What the New Testament actually says about anger

Enough of Christians praising what they dangerously label "holy anger" in themselves or other Christians!

Please listen to what the New Testament actually says:

(1) Christians are to put away all anger / wrath—in Ancient Greek, "orge" (Ephesians 4:31).

(2) The anger / wrath ("orge") of human beings does not produce the righteousness of God (James 1:20).

(3) Fits of passion, akin to wrath—in Ancient Greek, "thumoi"—are among "the works of the flesh" that prevent a person from inheriting the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21).

(4) Christ Jesus is not described as being angry—that is, with the words "orge" or "thumoi", except once, when Christ is described as having looked with anger at people who refused to deal with basic questions of justice and compassion (Mark 3:5). But even in that single instance, Christ did not act towards those with whom He was angry!   

(5) Christ was greatly irritated—the verb "aganakteo" referred firstly to physical effects, such as of cold on the human body (see LSJ)—when the disciples censured people bringing their children to Jesus (Mark 10:14). Unfortunately, many Bible translations misleadingly describe Christ as "angry".

(6) Paul instructs Timothy and Titus to rebuke ("elegcho") elders who are sinning and false teachers (respectively).

(7) It appears fair to conclude from these NT texts, then, that Christians are required to use reason, for example when powerfully irritated or when confronting misbehavior, and naturally this cannot be done when in anger / wrath / fits of passion.

The Christian Bible and a scientific, evidence-based approach

If one reads the entire Christian Bible, one regularly encounters what can be called "the rule of science". This rule is what one encounters without pause in natural sciences like physics and chemistry. It requires that beliefs are based on evidence and logic.

Here are some Christian-biblical instances of the rule of science:

(I) God promises explicitly over-abundant blessing in return for collectively bringing "all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in [God's] house", adding the commandment to "test" God in this (Malachi 3:10). [1]

(II) The prophet Jeremiah concludes a long, evidence-based reasoning in his letter to the Israelites captive in Babylon, where worship of idols was common: "Therefore, [in] no way is [it] manifest that [they] are gods: therefore, do not fear them" (Letter of Jeremiah 65 / Baruch 6:68).

(III) Paul describes that there is a huge range of evidence of God's wrath on "every impiety and injustice of people who suppress the truth in injustice" (Romans 1:18). The types of evidence of God's wrath are described in Romans 1:21-31.

(IV) The Lord Jesus states that "If someone loves Me, My Word he will keep, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and an abode beside him We will make" (John 14:23). 

(V) According to one reading of the text of Mark 16:17, Christ Jesus promises that a range of types of signs will follow those who are faithful to the commandment to go out into the entire world and preach the Gospel in all creation.[2] Those types of signs, which are all miraculous, are described in Mark 16:17b-18. 

(VI) Paul describes the evidence of the pre-Christian existence ("the works of the flesh"), and the evidence of the divine spirit, the Holy Spirit, dwelling in Christians ("the fruit of the Spirit"), in Galatians 5:19-23. 

(VII) Christ Jesus describes, according to John 13:34-35, one foremost type of evidence that will identify who are disciples (i.e. devoted students) of Jesus: if they love one another as Christ loves (i.e. self-sacrificingly). 

Notes
[1] If more people followed this commandment, there could hardly be any material need among God's people, just as it was with the Church in the first years (Acts 4:34).
[2] There is a lot of evidence that this verse has been mistranslated and then misapplied: foremost, the incidents of people using the act of handling poisonous snakes as a test of being a believing Christian. Further analysis is provided here.

Early warnings of grave misunderstandings of Christianity

Among the riskiest hypotheses about the message of the Christian Bible are surely those hypotheses, "teachings", or "doctrines" that describe how God judges Christians. If anyone proposes a theory that Christians can act immorally without consequences from God's hand, when consequences do exist, the potential destructiveness seems almost limitless: great injury to the person duped into acting immorally, to those persons he or she acts immorally against, and to the person who led the fraud. 
      This form of misunderstanding of Christianity - moral libertarianism, antinomianism, or lawlessness - appears to have arisen so fast that several or even all of the apostles and books of the New Testament strive to point out the misunderstanding and correct it. To begin with, the Lord, Christ Jesus, warned beforehand of it in the Sermon on the Mount:

"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matthew 7:15-23, AKJV)

After the Lord we might listen first to the apostle St. John:

"Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." (1 John 3:7-8, AKJV) 

Then Paul:

"Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor cowardly, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10,)

And Peter:

"Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear...." (1 Peter 1:13-17, AKJV)

AKJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

The Christian Bible's Guide to reading the Christian Bible

Update:  Please see my Translator's Preface to The Christ Family Bible.

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The Christian Bible does articulate principles that, very likely, are essential for avoiding misreadings (and mistranslations) of the Bible:

(1) Jesus Christ is the only "guide" (kathēgētēs) to Christian teaching, which is then taught and supervised by teachers (Matthew 23:8-10; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11).

(2) The Holy Spirit, promised and sent by Christ to faithful disciples, guides Christians to all truth (John 14:15-17; John 16:13). 

(3) Wisdom is given freely to Christians who pray for it (James 1:5).

(4) Divinely authored Scripture as a whole is entirely orderly, never contradicting itself (1 Corinthians 14:32-33).

(5) A wicked force ("the god of this aeon") works to prevent people from perceiving God's wonderful message of good things (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).

(6) Experience confirms the correct reading, or in the words of Jesus, "Wisdom is justified [shown to be righteous] by her works" (Matthew 11:19) and "all her children" (Luke 7:35).

(7) The Christian Bible can be misread, "twisted", to the extent of the "self destruction" of the misreaders (2 Peter 3:16).