I always like to find a namesake. Recently I came across in reading, another Mr. Howell. We have more in common than just our last name. We both spent alot of time in Texas, and both have a passion for the study of scripture. His ability as a student of scripture far surpassed mine however. He knew large chunks of the bible by heart, memorized much of it by the time he was 12. He was a walking concordance that would put most of our pastors to shame with his comprehensive knowledge of scripture. When he taught, He encouraged his students to check everything that he taught against scripture. He had a problem with his interpretation though, because it was based on a False Authority – his own. His practice then, was not grounded on God’s precepts. False traditions slowly developed over time, and were “based on scripture” so they felt right to those who listened to this learned bible teacher. We should do what feels right, right? Some still follow his teachings today, though they do not call him Vernon Wayne Howell, they prefer to call him David Koresh. They prefer to call him their messiah.
In several ways our contemporary evangelical Christian culture has infected our hearts and minds with the traditions of men. Yes, (shock) this is true even in “Bible” churches. When we focus on our exegesis to the point that it leads to private interpretation, we have set aside the tradition of God for the tradition of men. When we “buy” into the “prosperity ecclesiology” which over-emphasizes church growth and programs, likewise, when we accept and adopt a pastoral theology based more on business models than on soul care, we set aside the tradition of God for the traditions of men. This should not be. We need to listen to the tradition of the apostles and the prophets, to valid sources of tradition to ground our understanding of scripture and ground our practice on Gods precepts.
In the opening verses of Mark 7 we see that Israel had Accepted False Tradition from False Authority (7:1-7:4). Now these Scribes and Pharisees were false authorities in that they did not have the appointment by God as Prophet, that is to deliver God’s requirements to his people, nor the appointment by God as Priest, to lead the people before God in worship. Yet the understanding of these ‘interpreters of the Law” was passed on as if it was holy writ, slowly adding to and eventually setting aside the traditions of God for the traditions of men. Read more…
