The Holy Spirit doesn't lead us to read the Bible if it means separating ourselves from the community that He is the Soul, the Life Force.
You appear to be making this an either/or situation. All I'm trying to say is that learning the scriptures is a good part of sanctification.
Not at all. I am not making it an either/or situation. I am saying that becoming holy is not from bible reading per sec, but from the Holy Spirit.
I understand that to be a Roman Catholic view, and I respectfully disagree with it. I understand the Roman Catholic view to be that the most important thing is to learn the Tradition of men FIRST, and then if people want to read the Bible on side issues it is tolerated to a degree.
It's not the "Roman Catholic" view. Why you continue this self-created charade is beyond me. The Catholic Church has maintained the Bible and continues to hold a high place for it. COMMON SENSE dictates that we need a living body to interpret that book. Thus, your "Scriptures interpret themselves" is a desperate attempt to do away with the leadership established by Christ Himself.
"Tradition" is the lense through which we read and interpret and act upon the Word of God. Sanctification is about putting into practice what we have been taught, not about our knowledge of how many chapters are in 2 Corinthians or other such trivial information. Knowledge of Scriptures is not an indication of sanctification - merely consider the atheist who "knows" Scriptures...
As a result, one can be quite holy without being intimately familiar with all the writings of the Bible. As I have pointed out, numerous illiterate Christians have proven this to be true. The bible itself says that they are HELPFUL, not essential to growth in Christ. Paul never makes the statement that we can ONLY be in Christ by bible reading... He talks about faith and love and repentance, not about reading. Reading is where we get God's Word from, but certainly we can get God's Word from other sources, such as our teachers and preachers, as Paul writes in Ephesians.
Now, you may think I am defending NOT reading the Bible? Not at all. I am merely saying that reading the Bible ALONE is not enough, nor is it even ABSOLUTELY necessary to becoming sanctified. Being sanctified is dependent upon God's graces, not our own knowledge!
I find it interesting that you appear to be pushing forth a "self-sanctification" program. Our own reading doesn't make us holy, the Holy Spirit does. Isn't yours a "work" salvation? "Read the Bible and I will become holy"?
Regards
This thread reminds me of “the matter of Jarndyce and Jarndyce”. Not a settlement in site.
Oh, I forgot. The Holy Spirit completely turns His back on me, not just in interpretation, because I'm not Roman Catholic. I suppose when I read the Bible and agree with your interpretation, that is just me using my inner goodness? :)
FK: "You appear to be making this an either/or situation. All I'm trying to say is that learning the scriptures is a good part of sanctification."
Not at all. I am not making it an either/or situation. I am saying that becoming holy is not from bible reading per sec, but from the Holy Spirit.
But combined with your first statement, you certainly ARE saying that the only way to gain spiritually from Bible reading is at the direction of, or under the supervision of, the men of your Church. That is either/or. Either one is Roman Catholic and Bible reading is good, or one is anything else, and Bible reading does not benefit one spiritually. Sometimes, you all will say that outside of Roman Catholicism, it's all a "mystery" and others may be children of God. But at other times we get wholly exclusionary "either/or" (Roman Catholic or non-Christian) statements like this. IOW, you CANNOT consider me a Christian if you believe I get nothing from scripture reading since I am not Roman Catholic.
The Catholic Church has maintained the Bible and continues to hold a high place for it. COMMON SENSE dictates that we need a living body to interpret that book. Thus, your "Scriptures interpret themselves" is a desperate attempt to do away with the leadership established by Christ Himself.
In that case you either mean that God "needed" man's help, or you think that God ordained Himself to do a half-baked job that needed to be later completed SOLELY by the Roman Catholic Magisterium. Neither option is appealing to me. :)
Sanctification is about putting into practice what we have been taught, not about our knowledge of how many chapters are in 2 Corinthians or other such trivial information. Knowledge of Scriptures is not an indication of sanctification - merely consider the atheist who "knows" Scriptures...
It IS an "indication", but is not determinative. The determinator is true faith, for there can be no sanctification without faith. It sounds like your view of sanctification is merely physical and not so much spiritual. I see it very differently.
As a result, one can be quite holy without being intimately familiar with all the writings of the Bible.
And I have agreed with this. I have been saying that among those who DO have access to God's direct word, that learning it is beneficial spiritually.
Paul never makes the statement that we can ONLY be in Christ by bible reading...
Maybe not, but if one does not know about God's word, one way or another, then in what is such a person's faith. In men? I would reject that. God's word can be transmitted in more than one way. I really don't understand your arguing against the importance of scripture like this. I wouldn't expect you to say that ONLY extra-scriptural Tradition is important, and I do not think you believe that. Likewise, I have never said that scripture reading is the ONLY way to sanctification, just that it does lead there for those of faith.
Reading is where we get God's Word from, but certainly we can get God's Word from other sources, such as our teachers and preachers, as Paul writes in Ephesians.
Yes, of course, and as the very first Christians did.
Now, you may think I am defending NOT reading the Bible? Not at all. I am merely saying that reading the Bible ALONE is not enough, nor is it even ABSOLUTELY necessary to becoming sanctified.
Yes, that's what I was thinking, but I'll take your word for it here. :) Maybe there has been misunderstanding on both sides.
I find it interesting that you appear to be pushing forth a "self-sanctification" program. Our own reading doesn't make us holy, the Holy Spirit does. Isn't yours a "work" salvation? "Read the Bible and I will become holy"?
Case in point. I have no idea how the thrust of this applies to me, or how you could possibly think that it does.