restoring our biblical and constitutional foundations

Should I Study Greek?

 David Alan Black 

I can’t tell you how many times this past week someone asked me about studying New Testament Greek. They’re curious but scared by the challenge. I don’t blame them in the least. I lasted 3 weeks in my first Greek class, remember? The Dave Black 101 of learning Greek goes something like this. One, you don’t have to be good at languages to start learning Greek. You just do it. Two, if it’s miserable, change your teacher or textbook. Three, well, I’m not sure there’s a three, but if there were it would be to persevere. If you keep on studying, you’ll eventually master the subject. Think of the act of sharpening a chain saw by hand. It takes a lot of time. It can seem tedious and mundane. But if you persist, the chain eventually gets sharp again. The same is true with Greek. When the chainsaw begins to fail, don’t get rid of it. Instead, face the struggle, one tooth at a time. Exchange the tedious now for a sharper edge later. 

“But,” you say, “I’m too old to learn Greek.” Yes, there are challenges as we age. But there’s also more wisdom. The other day I read about a new Greek grammar that will be published this month. It’s 600 pages and it calls itself an “introduction.” You’re kidding, right? The older I get, the more I realize that less is more. Beginning students don’t need to learn everything you know about Greek.

I love watching my newbies learning Greek every Monday night. I can identify with their nervousness. I think of my own “career” as a runner. While teaching is my safe spot, running isn’t. I figure me running is kinda like one of my students taking Greek for the first time. It’s just plain hard work but oh so satisfying once you begin to get the hang of it.

Should you study Greek? Yes. Can you learn the language? Absolutely. So what’s holding you back?

September 18, 2020

David Alan Black is the editor of www.daveblackonline.com.

Back to daveblackonline

   restoring our biblical and constitutional foundations

Mumpsimus

 David Alan Black 

Do you suffer from mumpsimus? Let me explain what I mean by taking you into my classroom. My poor students — they sit there so patiently as I wax elephant about the Pauline authorship of Hebrews or Matthean priority or Christ-centered (rather than pulpit-centered) gatherings or the usefulness of the Byzantine text type (rather that either its primacy or secondariness) or the weekly observance of the Lord’s Supper (see Acts 20:7). To me, Markan priority, to take one example, is a clear instance of mumpsimus — the migration of error from textbook to textbook.

Mumpsimus originally referred to those changes in church liturgy that were inserted without authority or good reason and then passed down from one group to another to become accepted dogma, never to be challenged.

Mumpsimus is based on the story of an illiterate priest who lived during the Middle Ages. Seems he had learned to recite the Latin Mass incorrectly. Instead of saying sumpsimus (Latin for “we have taken”) he said mumpsimus, which is not a Latin word at all. When somebody finally told him he was wrong, he reared up on his haunches and insisted he would never exchange his mumpsimus for their sumpsimus. Not only did he refuse to change. He refused to agree that he was wrong.

Evangelical group think — let’s not engage in it, okay folks? Jesus did not teach primus inter pares — first among equals. He did not allow us the use of honorific titles. He never entrusted leadership of a local church to one man. And the list goes on and on. If you will allow me to paraphrase Jesus, “It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone addicted to tradition to enter the kingdom of God.” Now that’s you, and that’s me. The more educated we are, the harder it is to accept the simple teachings of our Savior. It’s almost as if Jesus knew we would claim exalted titles for ourselves in the church. It’s almost as if he knew that the secret of church leadership awaited us at the bottom. Oh wait, that’s exactly what he knew. I can tell you from sad experience, with every step down the rung, the stripping away process becomes more excruciating. I had no earthly idea how tightly I had clung to tradition. Like that priest of old, I will follow my way of doing things and let the truth be confounded!

There’s a better way. I hope together with my students we will find it this semester.

September 4, 2020

David Alan Black is the editor of www.daveblackonline.com.

Back to daveblackonline

   restoring our biblical and constitutional foundations

Mumpsimus!

 David Alan Black 

Do you suffer from mumpsimus? Let me explain what I mean by taking you into my classroom. My poor students — they sit there so patiently as I wax elephant about the Pauline authorship of Hebrews or Matthean priority or Christ-centered (rather than pulpit-centered) gatherings or the usefulness of the Byzantine text type (rather that either its primacy or secondariness) or the weekly observance of the Lord’s Supper (see Acts 20:7). To me, Markan priority, to take one example, is a clear instance of mumpsimus — the migration of error from textbook to textbook.

Mumpsimus originally referred to those changes in church liturgy that were inserted without authority or good reason and then passed down from one group to another to become accepted dogma, never to be challenged.

Mumpsimus is based on the story of an illiterate priest who lived during the Middle Ages. Seems he had learned to recite the Latin Mass incorrectly. Instead of saying sumpsimus (Latin for “we have taken”) he said mumpsimus, which is not a Latin word at all. When somebody finally told him he was wrong, he reared up on his haunches and insisted he would never exchange his mumpsimus for their sumpsimus. Not only did he refuse to change. He refused to agree that he was wrong.

Evangelical group think — let’s not engage in it, okay folks? Jesus did not teach primus inter pares — first among equals. He did not allow us the use of honorific titles. He never entrusted leadership of a local church to one man. And the list goes on and on. If you will allow me to paraphrase Jesus, “It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone addicted to tradition to enter the kingdom of God.” Now that’s you, and that’s me. The more educated we are, the harder it is to accept the simple teachings of our Savior. It’s almost as if Jesus knew we would claim exalted titles for ourselves in the church. It’s almost as if he knew that the secret of church leadership awaited us at the bottom. Oh wait, that’s exactly what he knew. I can tell you from sad experience, with every step down the rung, the stripping away process becomes more excruciating. I had no earthly idea how tightly I had clung to tradition. Like that priest of old, I will follow my way of doing things and let the truth be confounded!

There’s a better way. I hope together with my students we will find it this semester.

September 4, 2020

David Alan Black is the editor of www.daveblackonline.com.

Back to daveblackonline

   restoring our biblical and constitutional foundations

I Never Dreamed

 David Alan Black 

Change is a fact of life. I’ve always seemed to live smack dab in the middle of it.

When I was a teenager in Hawaii, I never dreamed of leaving the Islands. But in 1971 I did just that. It was the best thing that ever happened to me. For it was at Biola that I discovered my calling – and met my future wife.

After Becky and I were married, I never dreamed we would pack our bags and leave for Switzerland in 1980. Studying for a doctorate in Europe was just way too expensive. But God made a way.

In 1998, God moved us from La Mirada, California, where we had lived for 27 years, to the tobacco fields of Granville County, North Carolina so that I could teach at Southeastern. I never dreamed I would leave SoCal. We loved it at Biola. But God had other plans.

In 2001 we bought our farm in Virginia. I never dreamed we would raise our own beef and grow our own vegetables and begin a retreat ministry. But we did.

When Becky was diagnosed with endometrial cancer in 2009, I never dreamed that I would one day be without her. But God had other plans. Becky went home in 2013, and I’ve been alone ever since.

When I began the spring 2020 semester, I never dreamed that a virus would upset all of my plans. I couldn’t have been more floored. No face to face classes? No lecturing at Princeton? No mission trip to Asia? No marathon in June? No surfing in Hawaii?

And when the fall 2020 semester began, I never dreamed that this would be my last year of fulltime teaching. Alas, institutions of higher education weren’t immune to the economic pressures of Covid.

The lesson? God may not change, but he uses change to change us.

And so, once again, the Lord is changing the trajectory of my life. And I’m okay with that. All of the changes I described above transformed me as a person, influencing what I believe, how I live, where I am going. None of it was accidental. God used each unexpected “I never dreamed” moment to expose my dependence on him and to develop my character. With every twist and turn, what I saw was good, just good in a way I did not always want, hope for, or imagine. But while I have no power to control my circumstances, I do have the power to determine how I will respond and whether or not I will trust God.

Forty-four years of teaching is a gift I didn’t and don’t deserve. And my, oh my, did it go by quickly. It’s been a love story all the way – one about growth and redemption and failure and success and giving grace and receiving it. It’s been full of surprises, not least the undeserved blessings of being given a chair and two Festschriften. This is the thing: The journey isn’t over yet. I’m not one who believes that Christians ever truly step away from the Lord’s service. I may be retiring from fulltime teaching, but I’m not retiring from my calling or my vocation. My priorities won’t dramatically change. I plan to continue living a life of purpose, service, and equipping wherever God places me. The school is graciously allowing me to maintain an office on campus, teach classes as the need arises, and continue to supervise theses and dissertations. I’ve also decided to write a best-seller: How to Retire Wild, Jolly, and Carefree in Hawaii. I predict that we Baby Boomers are going to redefine retirement. It’s time for more risk, more exploration, more change, not less. Besides, my kids won’t tolerate any moping.

During this final year of fulltime teaching I hope for some pretty specific fruit (just warning you, young ’uns.) I pray that

• Jesus will become supreme in your lives – not your pastor or your church or even your families. Not a method or a certain style of music or a program, but Christ himself.

• You will take ownership of your own maturity and not expect others to do all the heavy lifting for you.

• You will become fulltime missionaries and in fulltime Christian service until Jesus returns.

• You will, on a practical level, be fully committed to pursuing radical obedience to the commands of Christ regardless how much pushback you get from others.

• You will realize that relationships are of utmost importance.

• You will not be sidetracked by denominational or national politics.

• You will avoid becoming slick, packaged, or phony. Authenticity still matters.

• You will pursue the downward path of Jesus with all your heart.

Well, it’s been an honor to serve the Lord at Southeastern. I’ve loved my time here! As I retire from fulltime teaching, I can accept that there are things I hoped to do that I will never do because there are things I’ve done that I could never have imagined doing. And just like the hope that sustained me through Becky’s loss, the hope that Jesus brings during times of transition can bring wholeness to my life.

To Danny Akin and the entire administration at Southeastern: When I think of you, I think of the verse that says, “What do you have that you did not receive?” (1 Cor. 4:7). I am incredibly grateful for the opportunities you gave me to succeed in my calling long past my “official” retirement age of 66. I thank you from the depths of my heart.

To my faculty colleagues: Thank you for letting me be me and for supporting me on bright and cloudy days. You made me a better teacher and a better person.

To my students: So much love to you all. I never dreamed I would have had the privilege of teaching you all these years. I will never, ever, ever take for granted the time I spent with you.

Last, but certainly not least: Thank you, Jesus, for being both Lord to be obeyed and Savior to bestow blessing. Of course, it’s not enough just to say “thank you.” I pray that I may continue to pour out my life in service to you – the one who loved me and gave himself for me because he loved others more than he loved himself. 

Dave

September 3, 2020

David Alan Black is the editor of www.daveblackonline.com.

Back to daveblackonline