About the New Testament

I watched your entire series of videos and found them very refreshing. But are we required to do church exactly like they did in the first century? Are the New Testament verses prescriptive or descriptive?

Some NT verses are clearly intended to be “prescriptive,” such as when Paul says, “This is my rule in all the churches.” But other verses, such as those found in Acts, simply “describe” what was going on, without mentioning whether the activity was mandatory for all time.

Yet, even when a particular verse seems prescriptive, the question remains, “Was this biblical statement intended to be prescriptive for that particular church in that particular time, or does the statement apply to all churches in all cultures throughout all time?”

Ignored Prescriptions

For example, Paul and Peter clearly commanded Christians to “Greet one another with a holy kiss” (Rom 16:16; 1 Cor 16:20; 2 Cor 13:12; 1 Thess 5:26; 1 Pet 5:14). Paul also prescribed that women must have a head covering “while praying or prophesying” (1 Cor 11:2-16). Paul and Peter also expressly taught against “braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive apparel” (1 Tim 2:9; 1 Pet 3:3). Yet, I know of extremely few churches that follow these “prescriptions.”

Don’t misunderstand. I’m not urging that women wear veils, kiss all the males at church, and refrain from braiding their hair. I’m just saying that there may be first-century Greco-Roman or Jewish cultural values that prompted those prescriptions. What do we do when those first-century cultural values no longer exist? If Paul were alive today, would he give different advice?

Understanding the Context

A related issue is understanding the purpose and nature of the various documents found in our New Testament. Since the Old Testament documents are today often bound together in the same volume and New Testament documents, some Christians view Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians as having the same legal force as the 413 “Thus saith the Lord” statements found in the Old Testament.

Yet, even Paul occasionally described his statements as his “opinion” (1 Cor 7:40; 2 Cor 8:10), and he once admitted, “I have no command of the Lord, but I am offering my opinion …” (1 Cor 7:25). So, for all biblical issues, it’s essential that we understand the context in which statements are found.

Having said all that, when we find various biblical statements about the assembly, how should we apply them to our church life today?

What Are We Missing?

For my doctoral research into this issue, I deliberately entered my investigation with the intention of not defending or attacking any particular modern assembly practice. It is not my intent to determine who’s “right” and who’s “wrong.” I find that this “blame game” is not productive or helpful.

Instead of trying to determine who’s right or wrong, I think it’s more important to examine the first-century evidence to determine “what we’re missing.” By focusing on what we’re missing, I hope that my research will provide helpful and productive ideas that help to make churches more effective and more durable in the face of a changing culture.