Today’s featured article is written by Richard D. Stafford, Ph.D.
Recently, Rev. Joel Osteen, the engaging minister and author at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas created a media controversy when he said in an interview, “The Apostles Paul, Peter and John, were wrong and need to be rebuked.”
Many Christians, in their first reaction, took offense at Rev. Osteen’s comments, believing that the Apostles were incapable of saying or doing incorrect things and that every word they uttered, even after Jesus was crucified, were inspired by God and considered indisputable.
Unfortunately, if we carefully read Jesus’ own accounts of events during his short ministry, we often find him rebuking all three of these particular disciples, in word and in action. In fact, he used the Apostles actions and reactions as illustrations for what not to do, or think, or say. I find it hard to believe that on the day of Jesus’ resurrection that the Apostles immediately became sanctified, infallible, or perfect. And so it seems likely in some situations they may have continued some of the same errors they had already previously committed, especially in the area of women’s roles in a church, who may enter the kingdom of God, and forgiveness of sins.
To make mention that the Apostles may have said and even done things Jesus would not approve of after his Resurrection, appears to some as an attack on the Holiness of the Bible. Not me.
As we understand from reading some scriptures, there are many directives, or religious laws, that if we followed today in American culture we would be arrested, found guilty by a jury, placed in prison, and in some situations, put to death by a jury. And in many of those instances most of us would probably agree that following some scriptures, religious laws, would actually be morally wrong, if not legally wrong. In fact, isn’t that why Jesus was crucified? He dared to question written religious laws and the purposes for many of those laws and the terrible impact they had on society?
I like to look at exactly what is recorded in the New Testament as being the words and parables attributed to Jesus Christ. I have come to see that his own words, assuming they were recorded and interpreted correctly, have a powerful message in my little world. I am not able to find any message that seemingly came from Jesus to be questionable in any way. Even today, his own words and parables seem to be a solid way of life giving and forgiving.
But like Rev. Joel Osteen, and many other Biblical scholars, I can indeed find reasons to question words and actions of the Apostles, and even find them to seemingly be at odds with what I suspect Jesus would say, if he had the chance. This perspective causes me to stop and think about all the many conclusions we come to about what it means to be a Christian in 2015 in the Southern United States. Do we misapply religious law, directives, rules, expectations and give ownership of those to Jesus Christ and our Christian life? I find it valuable to examine what I believe and then measure it exactly to what Jesus said…not to what others may have said, thought or done in his name.
