We need to help our students switch their focus from their teachers to the Bible. We want them to be able to say with full confidence, “This is what the Bible teaches.”
How can we do that? It must begin with a major change of emphasis at our schools. We must teach our students how to think and not merely what to think. We must develop students’ confidence and skills to read, interpret, and apply the Bible for themselves.
In this article, Brian Arensen argues for the importance of teaching inductive Bible study methods in African theological colleges. He reports that after teaching and reinforcing inductive Bible study concepts, they have seen a significant difference in the way the students handle the Scriptures:
They approach the Scriptures with real confidence. They preach with greater authority. They bridge the gap between biblical teaching and African application.
A contextualized gospel is not possible until the church is ready and able to struggle with Scripture on a daily, personal level. This will not happen if the church is content to accept a hand-me-down theology instead of a hands-on approach. This can only happen as Christians are trained to respect the authority of Scripture and wrestle with its truths in their everyday lives.
