Letters    

ON THE KNOWLEDGE OF HEBREW AND GREEK

Dear W. E. B.                                                                                                    March 7, 1990

      ...The knowledge of Hebrew and Greek is not indispensable: they are helps, nothing more. If we take the position that the knowledge of the languages is essential to know the Bible, we take the Scriptures from the ploughboy, and again chain it to the pulpit. ...

ON THE USE OF THE TERM "REVEREND"

Dear M. S.                                                                                                 September 13, 1987

     ...The word "reverend" is used in Psalm 111:9 where it says, "Holy and reverend is his name." The Hebrew word "yare" is used 242 times to translate the word "fear," 75 times "be afraid," times "terrible", 5 times "dreadful", 2 times "fearful", and several other variations of these words. The root meaning means to "fear," i.e. "to reverence," and we are commanded to show such reverence to our parents (Leviticus 19:3), to our leaders (Joshua 4:14), for the sanctuary (Leviticus 19:30), and for an oath we make (I Samuel 14:26).

     "Ye shall fear (reverence, i.e. hold reverend) every man his mother, and his father, and keep my Sabbaths ..." (Leviticus 19:3).

     We also read, "On that day, the LORD magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared (reverenced) him, as they feared (reverenced) Moses, all the days of his life" (Joshua 4:14).

     You cannot separate God, or His Christ, from His authority, whether invested in a husband, or in parents, or in a civil leader, or in a minister. They rise or fall together. Some folks think of them together, and God looks upon them together.

    M., the word "reverend" in Psalm 111:9 is not God's title, but is an attribute. There are other attributes of God such as His goodness, His love, and His justice, etc. Do you believe it is wrong to call a person "just"? The Scriptures do it. Is it wrong to call a person "righteous" when we know that God is righteous, and that righteousness is one of His attributes?

    The argument seems to me to be picayune because no good man is trying to seize anything from God and claim it for himself. Are we to reverence our parents? Should we not reverence a man called of God to preach the Word of God? Israel feared Elisha and Elijah, and our first settlers in this country "highly esteemed" preachers "for their work's sake" (I Thessalonians 5:13). So it should be today. May God be gracious unto you for Jesus' sake.

THE PLURALITY OF ELDERS

Dear T. L.                                                                                                  September 25, 1985

      ...I do not believe the Bible teaches the plurality of elders in the local church, however, some Reformed Baptists practice it. The text they use is Acts 14:23: "And when they had ordained them elders in every church ...." However, I understand it in the sense that Paul spoke of it in Titus 1:5: "For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city ...." Certainly, there was not one congregation in each city. This should not be a bone of contention, however, where the Word of God is loved and proclaimed.

Dear D. S.                                                                                                 September 16, 1992

   ...I do not accept the Reformed Baptist concept of the plurality of elders. When Scripture says, "And when they had ordained them elders in every church, ..." (Acts 14:23), it is not speaking about local churches, but of municipalities. For instance, there is only one church in Augusta, Georgia. We are part of that church.

     For the first 300 years, Christians met in homes. It is therefore only reasonable to believe that there were many houses of worship. So, when Paul writes, "unto the church of God which is at Corinth," he is saying there is but one church there, but certainly he does not mean there is only one congregation.

     I reject Presbyterianism because a man is not free to be a servant of God. A few years ago, I published a sermon in our local newspapers that angered many Neo-Evangelicals. It was titled, "Smile, God Loves You: A Theological Absurdity". An elderly Presbyterian elder was very angry with me. Had I been pastoring a Presbyterian church with men like him serving as elders, my hands would have been tied. ...

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