I suppose in the Protestant tradition it is because people assume that all they need to understand the Bible is their brains and a good translation, that good commentaries on Bible books are too seldom consulted. But a moment’s reflection will show that the brains and Bible and Spirit plus nothing approach is sadly deficient, because what happens, of course, is that any active reader, without guidance, reads their own culture and preferences and ideas into the Biblical text.
Most of the free resources you find online for Biblical studies are: 1) badly out of date and out of print; or 2) not worth the pixels they are using up to display on your screen; or 3) really bad and misleading information.
~ Dr. Ben Witherington III, Bible scholar and professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary
I am appalled at what passes for sound Bible resources and commentaries, especially those written by lay people.
No one is completely freed from assumptions when approaching the scriptures, but it is extremely important to find reliable sources to consult.
Dr. Witherington is saying that it is important to realize the dangers of interpreting scripture through the lens of present day cultural assumptions. Most of the modern/postmodern ways of thinking that many assume are rooted in absolute truths are actually philosophical constructs from various thinkers that wrote during the Enlightenment/Age of Reason. If we would just accept that the Western way of thinking is NOT the same as the thinking from the middle-east during the time of Jesus and the early Christian authors, we would finally find ourselves appreciating the depth and wonder of the Scriptures in a whole new way. In addition, we would know how to effectively apply Scripture to our 21st century living.
In that wonderment, with our minds renewed to an accurate understanding of the Word of God, our lives would be truly changed and Christianity itself would have a greater impact on our culture.
