Normally I do not start threads on this forum, but this subject seems to me one that should be shared.
The following article borders on blatant misuse of the work of someone else, a confession I openly and freely admit. However, the lesson for professing Christians is too important not to make available in terms that we, as Gentiles, can accept, and I do give proper credit to the author. The original, untouched and uncorrupted article is located at the web page cited at the end of this post. Please read the original.
What I have done is to take Hebrew teaching using the combined references from the Mishna, Torah, and Talmud. In doing so, I substituted Gentile terms for the referenced Hebraic documents, as noted in [brackets]. What I discovered was that the Jews had the art of Bible study right all along, and we, the adopted children of Abraham, that have not yet learned the fundamental principles of cultivating a personal relationship with God. That is, most Christians are content to sit back and ‘let God do it’. The Spirit of God will teach me, He will instruct me, tell me what to do and when to do it, etc. As a religious people, we have become passive in our spiritual life, rather than being an active participant in it.
So, please consider the following Jewish teaching, concerning spiritual growth and maturity, as it comes down to us from our own religious heritage.
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Pirkei Avos
Killing Ourselves
Chapter 5, Mishna 17
Original document written by:
Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld
"There are four types among those who go to the study hall. [One who] goes but does not 'do' receives reward for the going. [One who] does but does not go receives reward for the doing. [One who] goes and does is pious. [One who] does not go and does not do is wicked."
This week's [Sunday morning service] contrasts people in regard to their [Sunday school/church] attendance. Before we begin, R. Samson Raphael Hirsch points out that in the time of the [initial church] the [New Testament doctrines] had not yet been committed to writing [and the Old Testament scrolls were not available for public use]. Thus, the Bible was typically studied publicly and orally, at first from teacher [Rabbi/Apostle/Preacher/Pastor/Teacher] to student [disciple/believer] and then discussed among the [congregation]. This in itself increased the dynamic, engaging nature of [Bible] study, contributing to its becoming the living wisdom it is today. Conversely, the possibility of any sort of advanced level of study in private was severely limited. Thus, our [Bible teachers] views one who does not attend a place of study as one who has very little serious involvement in [Bible] study -- beyond what he has been taught already and the little he can deduce on his own.
Our [Bible teachers] categorizes people in terms of going to study and "doing". The term doing is not entirely clear. It would seem to refer to what the person does after he arrives at [church]. But if he does nothing, of what value is the traveling?
The commentator [tacher] explains that one who does not do is one who listens to the lectures of others but does not actively study himself. He is rewarded for the "traveling" -- going as well listening to others, but not so much for the "doing" -- vigorously endeavoring to understand himself. [My Added Note:
James 1:22 (KJV) But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.]
This is a key distinction in the eyes of the [Bible scholars], so much so that one who merely passively attends lectures is viewed as having accomplished little more than traveling to a place of study. The travel was his primary effort; sitting back and listening to someone else lecture is almost the relaxing part (bringing great heaviness to the eyelids, as we all know). True Bible study is something much grander and more intense. The [Bible scholars], view achievement in [Bible study] as coming through exertion alone.
Numbers19 discusses certain laws of impurity relating to corpses. Verse 14 states: "This is the Torah [law]: If a man dies in a tent, anyone who enters the tent... becomes impure for seven days." On this the [major Bible commentary] comments, "This is the [Law] -- if a man dies:" [The Law] is only acquired if a person kills himself over it [a non-biblical reference]. Bible knowledge cannot be acquired passively. Although the initial knowledge will always come from a scholar or sacred text, understanding the material is not where the effort ends; it is where it begins. The student must then analyze, review, and internalize -- often with the help of study partners and colleagues. Only then will the Torah knowledge become his own.
There is a much higher goal required of us in [Bible] study than the basically passive task of absorbing information. We learned earlier that ideally one should study in order to "do" [See above note, reference
James 1:22]. This certainly sounds like an active accomplishment -- not unlike the "doing" of our [preaching sermons]. What does it mean to study in order to do?
We explained there that studying to do does not mean in order to know how to fulfill the commandments. Most of the texts we study discuss laws and practices which have little or no relevance to our daily lives. Further, that would have [Bible] study as a means alone, while in truth it is an ends -- and an ends like no other. Ideally, we study not merely to know, but to "do" -- to make a change in ourselves and become different people. We study Torah to gain an understanding of God's wisdom, and ultimately to understand and develop a relationship with God Himself. This requires an enormous degree of exertion, devotion and submission before God's infinite wisdom. We build that relationship when we master and internalize the [Scriptures] -- when it enters our hearts and minds -- transforming our very beings into [Bible] personalities.
Thus, our [sermons & Sunday school teachers] tells us that one who merely attends [Sunday school] classes but does little to internalize the wisdom is lacking in the most critical aspect of Bible study. He has traveled to a worthy location, and he is certainly in good company. Far better to relax with words of [the scriptures] than in front of a TV screen. But his study has at best only begun. What does he do after the lecture [or service]? Does he build on his new-found wisdom, deepening and expanding his knowledge? Does he apply it to himself? Or does he move on to greener pastures -- unwilling to put in the true intellectual effort required for accomplishment in learning?
Over the years I have both observed and been involved in many [Bible] study programs geared for the wider community, and they have invariably foundered on this point. It is not so difficult to attract people to an enticing [church service] -- in which a lively, engaging speaker selects some fascinating / amusing / timely topic and entertains an audience for an hour. People are more than willing to sacrifice the boob-tube for an evening (depending, of course, on the prime-time showings that night and the current pro-sports season) to attend a [church service or revival] -- and only some of them will doze. But when these programs invite people to sit down and learn for themselves -- or even study with an advanced partner, the casually interested quickly fall away and pitifully few remain.
This, however, is our ultimate task when it comes to Bible study. Bible study cannot be viewed as a pastime -- something one does without serious commitment and gut-wrenching effort. Sitting back and expecting to be taught -- that everything should be figured out by someone else and spoonfed [sic] to you -- will hardly create a knowledgeable [Christian], let alone a [Bible] personality. And this is for the all-too-simple reason that God gave us the [Scriptures] not merely as a code of laws and ethics. It is a tool: for seeking and discovering God and His truths, and in so doing discovering ourselves. And it must be done by us alone. God will not come to us, nor can anyone else truly bring Him to us. We, and only we, can take possession of the [Word of God], making it -- and God -- a part of our lives.
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Text Copyright © 2006 by Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld and Torah.org.
Rosenfeld, Dovid. (2010) Pirkei Avos - .org. Retrieved July 15, 2010, from
http://www.torah.org/learning/pirkei...apter5-17.html
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