Arguments among Christians never cease

I have been accused, with some justification, of loving an argument. Is this a part of my nature, or is it fundamental to refining truths about life?

Is argument a treasure of the human experience, or is it a fatal flaw that keeps human beings apart?

As a teenager and young adult, I loved to argue in order to prove that my point of view was correct. That dynamic changed when I was in seminary.

As a student at Garrett Theological Seminary, I became aware that the faculty was made up of people who did not agree with one another and who argued among themselves ceaselessly. Further, I came to the realization that the Bible was a collection of writings of differing opinions.

The Bible materials do not represent one view of a religious tradition, but differing opinions about the very nature of that religion and religious practices of the faithful. I cannot imagine a full life as a Christian without the joy of good arguments about the Bible and about the Christian faith itself.

I regret that there is so little arguing within our Christian churches. Unfortunately, when argument does take place in our churches, the argument becomes the occasion for people to leave the church or a segment of the congregation leaving to form a new church with purer forms of

belief.

Arguing has been a part of the life of Christians from the beginning. A fundamental issue quickly comes to mind. How does a person find salvation in the Kingdom of God? For the sake of the illustration, I will set aside the meaning of “salvation.” That would call for an argument all of its own.

In the early Christian churches there was a roaring debate about how salvation is to be obtained. The first known council of church leaders is reported in the book of Acts. The purpose of the gathering in Jerusalem was to debate that very issue. Does salvation come to a person by faith, or by the way he/she lives life?

The short form of the debate is illustrated by two quotes, one written by Paul and recorded in the book of Galatians. In chapter 2, Paul writes “… a man is not justified by works of the law, but through faith in Jesus Christ …. by works of the law shall no one be justified.”

The counter to that statement comes from the book of James. In chapter 2, James writes “You see then that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.”

These are not two isolated statements taken out of context. Martin Luther recognized the fundamental disagreement and suggested that the whole book of James should be excluded from the discussion of how a person finds salvation and is declared righteous before God.

The great problem with ignoring James is that among all of the letters and essays of the New Testament, James is the book that most accurately reflects the teachings of Jesus and, in particular, the Sermon on the Mount.

When the teachings of Jesus, especially his parables and his aphorisms, are carefully analyzed, little or nothing is ever said about righteousness being established by faith. The teachings of Jesus are devoted to the kingdom of God on Earth, the meaning of the laws of Moses, and their application in God’s reign. Nothing in the teachings of Jesus harmonizes with Paul’s theology of justification by faith and faith alone.

This debate will not go away. In American/European Christian theology of the last half of the 20th century, Paul’s theology was triumphant, and the teachings of the historical Jesus were crowded off the page of discussion and debate. The 21st century has brought about a huge swing in this fundamental debate.

Interest in the teachings of the historical Jesus has never been greater. The witness of James is coming through loud and strong. James says “Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith.”

I suspect the future of Christian churches rests heavily on the showing of faith by the works that are done.

Again, James asks the crucial question. “If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled” without giving them the things needed for the body, who does it profit?” So, faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.”

Great debates are needed in our churches, and not about faith vs. works only. Immigration, wealth and poverty, race, sexual diversity, and war and peace are begging for debate in our worshipping communities. The actions that come from honest debate in religious communities are awaited by a skeptical world.

It is important for our churches to sing, pray, listen to meaningful preaching and celebrate the ordinances and sacraments. However, those exercises are without meaning until the doing of the gospel takes its proper place.

Let the debates begin.

The Rev. Howard Bess is a retired American Baptist minister, who lives in Palmer. His email address is hdbss@mtaonline.net.

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