Scholars Are A Pain

WED., SEPT. 7, 1994, 12:43 PM
OFFICE, PULLIAM HALL

You, Bob Russell, are legitimately called an academician, but you haven’t been much of a scholar. In your younger years you did some investigating, but you’ve not read excessively or truly studied some aspects of your field… and published the results. (Your Dubos paper is a good scholarly piece, and you should be proud of it. Go over it again and have it processed, at least.) Publishing is part of the scholarly process, in order that you might share your findings with more than your own personal students.

I, the Holy Spirit, am truly not interested in most of what is presented as scholarly work. You had the feeling this morning, in the after-breakfast discussion, that I would not be approving of the conclusions of the Jesus Seminar. You are right. The “scholars” are, to Me, a pain. I have told you before that I consider most theological scholarship “a chasing after wind.” Motivations are mostly self-aggrandizement and favorable judgments by colleagues. This has very little to do with spirit, as I’m using the term spirit.

All right, how do I respond to this conclusion that I, as Jesus, actually said very little of what is attributed to Me in the Gospels? I say that it makes no difference whether I actually said what is written, in the context that the Gospel suggests. I, the Holy Spirit, am responsible for the texts of each Gospel, and there is a reason for each inclusion. As Jesus I said all that is written, expressed in different ways, so that no translation is supreme over others. You are presently profiting from The Living Bible, and I shall continue to help you see truth in the words of this version. I also said a lot more than what is included, and you must rely on Me for ways to know about these utterances.

Consider it possible that some day, probably after you’ve crossed on over, scholars will study these pages you’ve written, as you’ve listened to Me. There could be comparable agreement that I don’t appear to be completely consistent, so much of it “couldn’t be the Holy Spirit.” But it is. Though every word is not exactly as I sent it to you, the ideas, concepts, and truths are quite accurate. Still, you wouldn’t fare even as well as the Gospel writers. Scholarship that challenges faith may be occasionally worthwhile, but most is silly and undesirable.

The essence of relationship with Me, as the Triune God or as any of My Manifestations, is faith and trust. And part of that faith is that I come to you in many, many ways, not just through Scripture, most particularly the Gospel stories. Memorization of some important (for you) Scriptural passages is desirable, but I want you have the essential idea, not necessarily only one way of expression. It may be that your paraphrasing of a Jesus quote is a “better” way of expressing the truth, just as you find your present Bible to be superior to ones you’ve studied in earlier years.