Comments on: Why I Shy Away from “Application”

By: mvpcworshipblog

mvpcworshipblog — Sat, 09 Jun 2012 02:28:29 +0000

Andrew,

The antidote to bad application isn’t no application but modeling how God’s word rightly understood applies to our lives. If you don’t show people what careful application of Scripture is like they may be left thinking that they have to chose between (1) Moralistic and therapeutic approaches to applying Scripture (that is mostly what they hear in North America); and (2) Not applying Scripture at all. The very fact that you are concerned about abuses in how Scripture is applied makes you more likely to be a model of how to do it well.

Best wishes,

David

By: Andrew Rozalowsky

Andrew Rozalowsky — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:31:38 +0000

Hey Kyle,

Thanks for the feedback and interaction.

I think we’re mostly on the same page. I agree that people in our culture generally view the Bible as irrelevant and that it was written in a different world, so to speak. We do have to bridge the gap.

My point, however, is that application as commonly conceived will not bridge that gap. I’m not saying do away with it altogether, only that it is only of value if placed within a proper biblical worldview. The ‘do this’ ‘don’t do that’ application mentality effects little to no worldview transformation to make sense of the application point in the first place. We need worldview transformation which comes from being in the Bible and being reformed in the light of Scripture.

Cheers.

By: Kyle Donnelly

Kyle Donnelly — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:05:06 +0000

Hey Andrew,
I enjoy your posts and check up on them regularly. I think the people that we are sharing with need application. Yes we believe that it is God’s word that transforms people and not us or our points. However, we do live in a culture that views the bible as irrelevant. One of the most common questions that I hear is, “What does this have to do with me and my life? The bible was written in an entirely different world.” As communicators of the Word, we need to bridge the gap between the biblical world and today’s world. That is often accomplished through application.

However, that is where most of the heresy happens :). Dr. Haddon Robinson was interviewed for an article called ‘The Heresy of Application.’ He says that too often preachers elevate possible implications to the authority of “Thus saith the Lord.” For example, a necessary implication of “You shall not commit adultery” is you cannot have a sexual relationship with a person who is not your spouse. A probable implication is you ought to be very careful of strong bonding friendships with a person who is not your spouse. A possible implication is you ought not travel regularly to conventions or other places with a person who is not your spouse. An improbable conclusion is you should not at any time have lunch with someone who is not your spouse. An impossible implication is you ought not have dinner with another couple because you are at the same table with a person who is not your spouse.

I don’t think we should shy away from application. However, we need to keep it biblical and shy away from the topical.

Thanks for this. You got me thinking.