Wednesday, November 16, 2022

Robert L. Millet on 2 Timothy 3:17 and Stanley E. Porter on Romans 15:4

  

Robert L. Millet on 2 Timothy 3:17:

 

Notice the areas of the life of the disciple of Christ that are enriched, edified, and strengthened by serious scripture study:

 

Doctrine. The scriptures, together with the words and warnings of latter-day prophets, contain the doctrine of the gospel those matters that are of greatest worth.

 

Reproof. A careful and sincere study of the scriptures can result in the reader feeling chastened by the Holy Spirit, who can reveal to the individual a specific attitude or behavior that needs to be repented of. A person may be reading the four Gospels, for example, looking carefully at the tender and ever-loving way the Savior treated other people, especially those who were needy or heartbroken, and feel uncomfortable or ill at ease about the way he or she often treats people.

 

Correction. Not only do the scriptures teach us what we should not do, but through the searching of those sacred pages, God’s Holy Spirit can also make known to His children what they should do, For example, someone may read 3 Nephi, particularly of the ministry of the risen Lord to the Nephites, and come away feeling the need to be more consistent and more focused in their individual prayers. Or someone may read about the ancient tabernacle in the days of Moses and come away sensing the need to spend more time in temple worship.

 

Instruction. Let us suppose a newly called bishop of a ward finds himself, not long after his call, facing some very serious cases of transgression among the members of his congregation. He feels overwhelmed and, like Alma the Elder, is deeply worried “that he should do wrong in the sight of God” (Mosiah 26:13). He picks up his copy of the Book of Mormon and finds himself reading the instructions of Jesus Christ to Alma concerning how priesthood leaders should deal properly and lovingly with members of the Church who have fallen into serious sin (see Mosiah 26:13-32). He is both comforted and instructed as he identifies significant principles taught in that specific chapter.

 

The Apostle Paul’s words help us appreciate how vital our standard works, our divine curriculum—the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl of Great Price—are to the formation of a Christian character. These holy words are fundamental in our continuing quest to become perfect—that is, suited, ready, mature, and complete—as our Exemplar Jesus Christ has called us to be (see Matthew 5:48; 3 Nephi 12:48). (Robert L. Millet, Becoming New: A Doctrinal Commentary on the Writings of Paul [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2022], 342-43)

 

Stanley E. Porter on Romans 15:4:

 

. . . this verse offers insights into how Paul conceives of the role of Scripture. Admittedly, this is not a full-blown statement on the use of Scripture (he does not explicitly address the ultimate cause or intermediate agency of revelation; note the use of the passive voice verbs), but Paul does inadvertently acknowledge a number of factors: the Scriptures were written previously, and hence by implication they are addressing a different set of situations than he is facing in the present. Paul does not simply refer to what was written, but to what was written beforehand, acknowledging that they do not reflect the same context. The second factor is that he asserts that the Scriptures were written for the purpose of instruction, and, more than that, for ‘our very own’ instruction. In other words, regardless of the function that the Scriptures may have played in ancient Israelite life or in contemporary Jewish life, for Paul they serve the purpose of teaching contemporary Christians. The lexeme ‘teaching’ has a broad and unspecified semantic range, and it is not significantly modulated by its cotext, except by noting that it is instruction that is to be ours. The third factor is that Paul believes that the Scriptures are relevant. Whatever the teaching may be that they convey, this teaching is ‘our very own’ teaching, with the idea that not only are the Scriptures useful to determine what that teaching is, but they are specifically addressed to us. The defining use of the possessive pronoun (‘our’) indicates that Paul sees this as an attribute of the teaching, that it is ours and for our use and benefit and relevance. The fourth factor is that the purpose of this instruction is so that we as believers might have hope. This hope comes about through endurance and encouragement as we see God’s words offering instructive insights into our contemporary Christian situation. (Stanley E. Porter, The Letter to the Romans: A Linguistic and Literary Commentary [New Testament Monographs 37; Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2015], 270)

 

It should be noted that these two verses are often used to support the Protestant doctrine of Sola Scriptura (which is not a high view of scripture merely!). For a thorough refutation, see:

 

Not By Scripture Alone: A Latter-day Saint Refutation of Sola Scriptura