New Article by J. J. M. Roberts

"For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope" (Romans 15:4).

Yesterday's mail included the latest volume of Christian Studies (number 21). It's published by Austin Graduate School of Theology, and is billed as "a publication of the faculty."

I've always liked this journal. It's primary audience seems to be other scholars and preachers among the Churches of Christ. And although informed by good scholarship, the articles tend to be non-technical. Best of all, they usually deal with topics that are interesting and important to the main audience.

This latest issue contains an article by J. J. M. Roberts, "The Importance of the Old Testament for the Church." In case you don't recognize Roberts' name, he's one of the better O.T. scholars around these days, certainly one of the finest ever produced by the Churches of Christ. This latest essay of his packs a wallop. Here's the first paragraph:

"The emphasis in the Restoration tradition on 'rightly dividing the Word,' on recognizing the different dispensations reflected in scripture, on seeing a clear distinction between the old and new covenant was a correct and important insight, but even correct insights drag in their wake unintended, incorrect, and harmful consequences. In the Restoration tradition the emphasis on being under the new covenant has led to a serious neglect and even disparagement of the Old Testament as of no relevance for modern believers. Patently false dichotomies between Law in the Old Testament versus Grace in the New, a God of Wrath in the Old Testament versus a God of Love in the New Testament, harsh punishment in the Old Testament versus forgiveness in the New, etc. have been widely passed off as true largely because the Old Testament has been little read and seldom seriously studied in our tradition. One does not need to listen long in a typical Bible class to hear such negative, uninformed stereotypes about the Old Testament scriptures, and it is not unusual to hear the complaint that classes on an Old Testament book or sermons on an Old Testament text are a waste of time. After all, as New Testament Christians, of what relevance is the Old Testament to our lives?"

What preacher in the Church of Christ can't relate to that? (That's assuming the preacher isn't one who's perpetuating the problem).

The article goes on to explain that Churches of Christ aren't the only ones with this problem. In fact, there have been worse cases. Roberts mentions especially Marcion in the second century, and Adolf von Harnack in the nineteenth. And don't think that where you come out on this question doesn't make that much difference. Roberts points out that Harnack's "theological hostility to the Old Testament was taken up by a significant portion of German Old Testament scholarship, providing ready-made weapons for the anti-Semitism of the Third Reich."

Roberts goes on to explain the genuine place of the Old Testament in Christianity and its Bible. Towards the end, he demonstrates how the variety of the O.T. actually makes it a rich resource and corrective for people who rarely move away from a narrow vision of what the New Testament teaches.

If you've gotten the latest issue of Christian Studies, be sure to read the article. If you don't receive the journal, you can get a free subscription. See the links on the left side of the School's home page. They even send out back issues for (bargain alert!) $3 a piece. You can see the article titles in past issues, again, at the website.