4. The Call to Study
If we are to build bridges and relate the word of God to the major themes of life and the major issues of today, we have to take both the Bible and today’s world seriously. To withdraw from the world into the Bible (escapism) or from the Bible into the world (conformity) will be fatal to our preaching. Our responsibility is to explore the landscape on both sides of the ravine until we are familiar with the territory. Only then shall we see the connections between them. Only then will we be able to speak God’s word into the human situation with authority, wisdom, sensitivity and accuracy.
This exploration means studying. The best teachers remain students all their lives. Spurgeon said it well: “He who has ceased to learn has ceased to teach. He who no longer sows in the study will no more reap in the pulpit.” Billy Graham quoted a preacher who said: “If I had only three years to serve the Lord, I would spend two of them studying and preparing.” Without study, our breath is stale and our touch clumsy; with study, our sermons will “be like the leaping of a fountain, and not like the pumping of a pump”. Freshness and sparkle come from study.
Bible Study
Since as pastors we are chiefly called to preach the word, the study of Scripture is one of our greatest responsibilities. Only when we have absorbed it can we confidently proclaim it. God spoke to Samuel when he listened; then, when Samuel spoke to Israel, they listened to him (1 Sam. 3:19–4:1). Before Ezekiel was able to speak God’s word to others, he himself had to swallow and digest it (Ezek. 3:1).
The more we value the Bible, the more careful and conscientious our study of it should be, for it takes time and focus to ensure that the text opens up its treasures. Our study must be comprehensive. Merely dipping into the Scriptures is not enough. Nor must we limit ourselves to our favourite passages or concentrate on the microscopic examination of a few key passages. Such use of Scripture plays into the devil’s hands. Every heresy or false teaching arises from overemphasising some truth, without allowing other truths to balance it. Instead, we must study a wide variety of passages before drawing general conclusions. In this way we can make sure that our theology is sound and biblical and that the grand themes of Scripture become clear. Then, in turn, we will see these themes in the individual passages. So, knowledge of the parts helps us to see the big picture, and the big picture helps us see what is in each part.
How can we get to know the whole Bible thoroughly? A good place to start is by using the McCheyne Bible reading calendar, produced in 1842 and reproduced in Appendix 2 at the back of this book. This scheme enables one to read the whole Bible through every year, the Old Testament once and the New Testament twice. Four chapters are to be read daily, two in the morning and two in the evening. What is particularly helpful is the way in which McCheyne allocates the chapters. We start on 1 January with the four great beginnings of Scripture: Genesis 1 (the birth of creation), Ezra 1 (the rebirth of the nation), Matthew 1 (the birth of the Christ) and Acts 1 (the birth of the church). In this way we follow the parallel lines of God’s unfolding purpose. This reading plan provides an extremely valuable way to survey the landscape of Scripture and grasp its underlying and recurring themes.
Our study of the Bible must also be humble. We must genuinely desire to hear and obey God’s word, without twisting its meaning or avoiding its challenge. How is this possible? How can I, who have been brought up in one culture, take a particular biblical text that was given in an ancient culture and interpret it without twisting the message? What are we to do about this cultural distance?
To begin with, we have to use our knowledge and imagination to transport ourselves back into the biblical writer’s situation. We need to think what he thought and feel what he felt. Our responsibility is not to adjust his views to ours, by reading our opinions into what he wrote, but to adjust our views to his, by struggling to enter into his heart and mind. To do this, we need more than just imaginative insight into his situation; we also need insight into our own. We do not come to the biblical text as innocent, objective, impartial, culture-free investigators. We are nothing of the kind! No, the reading-glasses through which we look at the Bible have cultural lenses. And the mind with which we think about the Bible, however open we keep it, is not empty! Instead, it is filled with cultural prejudices. We must be aware of these, even though we cannot ever escape them. We should pray earnestly that we do not read into the Bible the views and philosophies of the world, such as humanism, Marxism and capitalism.
The questions we bring to the Bible and the answers we expect to get are both shaped by our cultural background. “What is received back, however, will not be answers only, but more questions. . . . We find that our culturally conditioned presuppositions are being challenged and our questions corrected. In fact, we are compelled to re-formulate our previous questions and to ask fresh ones.” We have to open our minds wide enough to risk hearing what we do not want to hear. We have to be willing to let God decide what he wants to say to us, however uncomfortable we may find it. We have to break down the cultural barriers, and struggle to open our hearts and minds to listen to whatever he has to say.
Thirdly, our Bible study needs to be expectant. Sadly, expectancy can be blocked by pessimism. The interpretation of Scripture may appear so complicated that we despair of ever gaining a true and balanced understanding of God’s word. But Scripture is intended for ordinary people like us. Consider 1 Corinthians with all its deep teaching on doctrine, morals and church order. It was written to a Christian community where “not many of you were wise by human standards” (1 Cor. 1:26). Be patient! God will enable us to understand the Bible, if we study it faithfully.
Spiritual staleness also blocks our expectancy. This can be a major problem for all pastors. If we read through the whole Bible annually, after a few years we feel we know it fairly well. We may come to our daily reading with no very lively expectation that God is going to speak to us through it. Yet we should be confident that God has “more truth and light yet to break forth out of his holy word”. We need to ask God to waken our ears as he did for Isaiah (50:4). We need, like Samuel, to say “speak, for your servant is listening” (1 Sam. 3:10). We need to “call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding”, to “look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure”. Then we shall understand and “find the knowledge of God” (Prov. 2:3-5). We need to keep going. Like Jacob, we must hold onto God and refuse to let him go until he blesses us (Gen. 32:26). God honours this spirit of eager and determined expectation. He promises to fill the hungry with good things; it is only the self-satisfied whom he sends away empty (Luke 1:53). So we must not give in to spiritual staleness as if it were normal or tolerable. We must pray that the Holy Spirit will light the fires of expectancy in us again.
Although the Bible itself is always our textbook, we should also take advantage of all the available aids to understanding. How widely we can read will depend on the availability of good books, the time we have, and where we feel an interest or a need.
We would be wise to read old books as well as new, especially the Christian classics that have been tested over the years. Some of these are often included in Bible software packages, or are available in full on the Internet. These books are often more valuable than recent popular books, although it is important to be able to guide our congregations about modern writings too. Some knowledge of historical theology will also give us a background from which to view the latest doctrinal fashions. Few truths or heresies are new; most are simply old ideas said in a new way. Reading biographies can also bring balance, wisdom and encouragement as we learn how God has dealt with Christians in other times and places. Our aim in all this reading should not so much be to gather knowledge as to develop our Christian mind.
Books are expensive. If there is a good public library nearby, use it. See if it offers interlibrary loans, which will make it possible for you to order almost any book you want. Read articles and journals on the Internet, taking care to check that they come from reliable sources. Electronic books are already a blessing to some, and may become more widely available. Ideally, the local church should develop a small lending and reference library. Pastors can also lend books to one another and to their church members. Concentrate on collecting essential reference books, especially dictionaries and commentaries to which you will turn again and again. All the better if they are written for your own culture, like the one-volume Africa Bible Commentary, the soon-to-be published South Asia Bible Commentary, the Latin America Bible Commentary and the Arabic Contemporary Commentary.
We should also make the most of pastors’ gatherings and preachers’ clubs where we can encourage one another in study. The most famous of these was started in 1783 by John Newton, the ex-slave-trader who became a pastor. After tea and prayer, the group discussed “for about three hours on a proposed subject”. Newton commented that the group should be called the Royal Society because they were all members of God’s royal family and “the King himself condescends to meet with us”. All over the world such groups still meet to share what they have learned from Scripture and to help one another become better preachers.
The Contemporary World
Biblical and theological studies alone, however, do not make for good preaching. They provide an essential foundation, but unless we also study contemporary society we can be disastrously isolated on one side of the ravine. Our study of today’s world begins with people, not books. The best preachers are always diligent pastors, who know their congregations and the people of their area. These pastors understand life with its pain and pleasure, glory and tragedy. The quickest way to gain this understanding is to shut our mouths (a hard task for some of us preachers!) and open our eyes and ears. It has been said that God gives us two ears and two eyes but only one mouth, so he obviously intends us to look and listen twice as much as we talk!
We need to ask people questions and get them talking. We ought to know more about the Bible than they do, but they are likely to know more about the world than we do. So we should encourage them to tell us about their home and family life, their job, their expertise and their interests. We also need to hear about their thinking. How does their Christian faith motivate them? What problems prevent them from believing or from applying their faith to their life? The more varied their backgrounds, the more we have to learn. Listen to the different generations. Listen to different cultures. Such humble listening is essential. Our knowledge of the Bible and other people’s knowledge of the world combine to construct bridges and ensure that our preaching is relevant.
In addition, we should read a newspaper or news magazine, follow in-depth Web or radio news reports, watch some television and, where possible, discover what books are influencing our listeners most so that we can read them too. We may also find it helpful to see some of the better films and plays that mirror our society.
However, Jesus’ teaching about the offending eye, foot or hand still applies (Matt. 5:29-30). So it is sensible to make careful enquiries before reading books or seeing plays or films. In cases where the spirit of antichrist is dangerously subtle, it may be helpful to go with a group of friends who will make it easier to remain detached and so avoid being sucked into the atmosphere.
Even if we feel that we are strong enough to withstand pollution, we must consider the weak conscience of a brother or sister and must not make them stumble. If, therefore, we have those in our congregation who would be offended by our going to the theatre or cinema, it is up to us to educate or “strengthen” their consciences by patiently teaching sound doctrine. It must be clear that we are not cooperating with the spirit of the age but trying to understand it so that our preaching can be relevant.
Reading and Resource Groups
What else can we do to increase our understanding of today’s world? I can testify to the immense value I have received over the years from a small reading group of about a dozen young graduates, professionals and post-graduate students. At each monthly meeting we would decide what we would read before the next meeting. We then spent an evening together, sharing our reactions to the book, discussing its message and implications, and trying to develop a Christian response to it. Some of the chosen books were written from a Christian perspective, but we concentrated on non-religious books because the main purpose of the group was to help us understand the non-Christian mind.
I recommend this approach. In almost every congregation there are surely a few thoughtful people who could meet with their pastor occasionally to discuss the relationship between the church and the world, the Christian mind and the non-Christian mind, Jesus Christ and his rivals. Resource groups of experts in areas of concern are also of tremendous value to a busy pastor.
Habits of Study
We have to study both the ancient text and the present scene, both Scripture and culture, both the word and the world. It is a huge task, demanding a lifetime of study. How can it be done? In times past, ministers managed it mostly by avoiding distracting duties. Joseph Parker, the first minister of the City Temple in London, began his studies at seven-thirty every morning and refused to get involved in public life or business. “I have lived for my work,” he explained. “That is all. If I had talked all the week, I could not have preached on Sunday. That is all. If I had attended committee meetings, immersed myself in politics . . . my strength would have been consumed. That is all.” Campbell Morgan, who had no seminary education and no university degree, was in his study by six o’clock every morning. An early start helps, but with chores and family responsibilities, perhaps we live in a very different world.
Instead of giving up on study because the ideal is impossible, we must simply set more realistic goals. I have come to realize the value of a number of shorter periods of study. I doubt if any pastor is so busy that he cannot manage one hour a day for reading, in addition to his sermon preparation time and personal Bible study and prayer. Most will also find it possible to set aside one four-hour period a week for more prolonged study. This requires the discipline of blocking off these hours in one’s weekly calendar and refusing to allow them to be invaded, except by an emergency. Congregations need to be taught the essential value of this time and will usually respect it when they see it bearing fruit.
I have also discovered the immense profit of a quiet day at least once a month. I became Rector of All Souls at the age of twenty-nine, much too young and inexperienced for such a responsibility. I began living from hand to mouth. Everything piled up and got on top of me and I felt crushed by the heavy administrative load. I started having the typical pastor’s nightmare: dreaming that I was half-way up the pulpit steps when I realized that I had forgotten to prepare a sermon! Then I heard Rev. L. F. E. Wilkinson speak at a pastor’s conference. “Take a quiet day once a month,” he said. “Go away into the country, if you can, where you can be sure of being undisturbed. Stand back, look ahead, and consider where you are going. Allow yourself to be drawn up into the mind and perspective of God. Try to see things as he sees them. Relax!” I did. I went home, and immediately marked one day a month in my diary with the letter “Q” for Quiet. And as I began to enjoy these days, the intolerable burden lifted and has never returned. In fact, so valuable did these days prove that for many years I have tried to manage one a week. I use them for those items which need unhurried and uninterrupted time — long-term planning, problems I must think and pray over, difficult letters, preparation, reading and writing. These quiet days have brought immense blessing to my life and ministry.
Every church should also release its pastor for a personal retreat for at least one week a year, perhaps breaking this up into smaller chunks of two or three days. Pastors will need to use this time well, but the value to the congregation in terms of the depth and quality of their teaching will soon be seen. Even family holidays can provide some time to read, think and discuss.
What I have suggested seems to me to be an absolute minimum of time for study and general reading. Even the busiest pastors should manage this; many will achieve more. But the minimum would mount up: one hour every day; one four-hour session every week; a full day every month; a week every year. It sounds very little. It is too little! Yet everybody who tries it is surprised to discover how much reading can be done within such a disciplined framework. It adds up to nearly 600 hours a year.
Whatever habits of study we develop, it is obviously important to gather the fruits of study. “A preacher has to be like a squirrel and has to learn to collect and store matter for the future days of winter.” Every reader of books develops his own practice of marking, underlining or note-taking. As one gets older some means of aiding the memory become essential. I have found it helpful, while the theme of an important book is fresh in my mind, to make a brief summary of its argument. After finishing each book I also try to write out a few of its striking quotations. I file these on cards punched with two holes, so that they can be stored in a filing cabinet or fitted into a loose-leaf book. I keep two files, the one running from Genesis to Revelation, and the other from A to Z, and file each card where I think I am most likely to find it again, or at any rate least likely to lose it! This system has served me well as it is simple and flexible. I find I can fit the notes of an average sermon on four cards, and can then add other cards containing appropriate quotations or illustrations. If I were to begin my ministry again, I would adopt the same system.
For those who use computers, various electronic filing systems are available for organizing this material. Some quotations and illustrations can even be downloaded directly from the Web or other electronic sources into one’s own system.
Hindrances to Study
Some pastors may claim that, being overworked and understaffed, they have no time to study. Almost always what lies behind this argument is a false concept of the pastor’s task. If the pastor holds all the reins and has no concept of shared responsibility with lay leaders, then of course there is no time to study. But the New Testament describes the church as the body of Christ, in which every member has been given gifts. Pastors who have grasped this idea will be continuously on the lookout for the gifts God has given in order to encourage people to recognize, develop and exercise them. “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in various forms” (1 Pet. 4:10). Like the apostles, pastors are called to “prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). We must not let anything, even very good things, keep us from those tasks. It is tragic that many conscientious people are making the mistake the apostles were avoiding. One cannot question their dedication, their enthusiasm or their commitment, but the body of Christ does not grow to maturity that way.
What else keeps us from studying? Distraction. As computers and mobile phones become our constant companions, we all too easily allow them to eat into time that should be set aside for meditation and contemplation. We can be distracted by incoming phone calls, text messages and e-mails, or simply by the limitless opportunities of the Web. Temptations lurk on the Web too, with pornography only a mouse click away. We need the discipline to switch off these devices if we are to have time alone with God.
The ultimate obstacle to study is, frankly, laziness. Was it Ralph Waldo Emerson who said that people are as lazy as they dare to be? It is true. And we pastors can be as guilty as anyone else because our work is usually unsupervised. We have few set tasks and no set times to do them, and are left to organize our own schedule. So it is possible for us to fritter our days away until our lives sink into indiscipline and our laziness becomes painfully obvious to others.
But if we look back at the great men and women of God, we shall find that their lives were disciplined, allowing much time for prayer and study. So we need constantly to repent and renew our determination to discipline our lives and our schedules. Only a constantly fresh vision of Christ and of his commission can rescue us from laziness and keep our priorities straight. Then we shall make time to read and think, and our preaching will be fresh, faithful and relevant, yet simple enough for people to understand.