Local Church Discussions - View Single Post - LSM’s Ignorance of the Synoptic Problem

Freedom · 03-06-2015, 07:42 PM

I’m glad Nigel took the time to write on this subject. There are two reasons why I say that. First of all, in my LC experience, I wasn’t even aware that there was a “synoptic problem” until maybe several years ago when I started taking a look at non-LSM materials. To me, the fact that I was in an “uninformed” state is a problem. That is especially so considering how much time I devoted to the LC, going to meetings and “studying” the Bible. The second reason why I think this is an important issue is because of how the RcV Bible is promoted. Since it contains Lee’s exposition of the Bible, it naturally supports Lee’s positions on various issues. The RcV is said to “unlock” the whole Bible and is thought to supersede all other study Bibles and versions of the Bible. Because of groups like BFA pushing for a widespread distribution of the RcV, many people might come into contact the RcV, having very little knowledge of the Bible, and thus accept what Lee says at face value.

When we have done BFA distributions in the past or have introduced the RcV to people, one of the main “selling points” we used was to show them Lee’s commentary on the purpose of each of the gospels, and sometimes we introduced them to the outlines as well. This always caught people’s interest, because what Lee said all sounded so logical, especially to people with very little background in the Bible. Thus it is not difficult at all for people to accept Lee’s positions without any reservations.

I think Nigel makes some strong points as to why Lee’s view is antiquated and not tenable in a modern context. That is where I think the importance of the issue lies. Whether anyone likes it or not, modern Bible scholarship exists and it brings new theories and ideas to the table. Not everyone is going to be comfortable with that, but that’s the way it is. Of course, most people aren’t going to overly concern themselves with these issues. Within the LC, however, there is the view that Lee “unlocked” the entire Bible, and thus there is no possibility of revising Lee’s views on key issues. Lee’s ministry is said to be “the ministry of the age”, so there is no room to bring in anything new past the point in time when Lee died.

03-06-2015, 07:42 PM	#2
Freedom Member Join Date: Mar 2014 Posts: 1,636	Re: LSM’s Ignorance of the Synoptic Problem - Nigel Tomes I’m glad Nigel took the time to write on this subject. There are two reasons why I say that. First of all, in my LC experience, I wasn’t even aware that there was a “synoptic problem” until maybe several years ago when I started taking a look at non-LSM materials. To me, the fact that I was in an “uninformed” state is a problem. That is especially so considering how much time I devoted to the LC, going to meetings and “studying” the Bible. The second reason why I think this is an important issue is because of how the RcV Bible is promoted. Since it contains Lee’s exposition of the Bible, it naturally supports Lee’s positions on various issues. The RcV is said to “unlock” the whole Bible and is thought to supersede all other study Bibles and versions of the Bible. Because of groups like BFA pushing for a widespread distribution of the RcV, many people might come into contact the RcV, having very little knowledge of the Bible, and thus accept what Lee says at face value. When we have done BFA distributions in the past or have introduced the RcV to people, one of the main “selling points” we used was to show them Lee’s commentary on the purpose of each of the gospels, and sometimes we introduced them to the outlines as well. This always caught people’s interest, because what Lee said all sounded so logical, especially to people with very little background in the Bible. Thus it is not difficult at all for people to accept Lee’s positions without any reservations. I think Nigel makes some strong points as to why Lee’s view is antiquated and not tenable in a modern context. That is where I think the importance of the issue lies. Whether anyone likes it or not, modern Bible scholarship exists and it brings new theories and ideas to the table. Not everyone is going to be comfortable with that, but that’s the way it is. Of course, most people aren’t going to overly concern themselves with these issues. Within the LC, however, there is the view that Lee “unlocked” the entire Bible, and thus there is no possibility of revising Lee’s views on key issues. Lee’s ministry is said to be “the ministry of the age”, so there is no room to bring in anything new past the point in time when Lee died.