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I suggest that the use of proof-texts is a manifestation of laziness and the desire to get something for nothing. People do not wish to spend the time firmly grounding their understanding in what various Bible writers actually teach. They would much rather have a short list of texts that support precisely what they have decided to believe anyhow.
Thus, the use of proof-texts tends toward hypocrisy. To the uninformed, the purveyor of proof-texts can appear to be wonderfully informed and a deep scholar of the Bible. In fact, the result of reliance on proof-texts is a moral certainty and overbearing arrogance that is not supported by one's study or learning.
But first let me define what I mean by proof-texting. By proof-texting I mean the use of individual scripture texts to produce apparent support for a doctrinal position without adequate regard for the contexts of the individual texts which may indicate differences and nuances. I do not include the use of texts for illustration or the use of texts which are properly taken in context and limited appropriately in what one tries to prove from them. In particular, I'm referring to the creation of entire doctrines which one demands that others believe or commands which one then demands that others obey, taken from a tissue of the words of texts but ignoring the meaning of those texts in their original contexts.
http://www.apologeticsindex.org/b02.htmlWe can't have a "sure word" about the meaning of Scripture (or anything else) unless we have a sure method to interpret the words. The following eight rules are the center of all grammatical interpretation. They have been accepted and used by scholars from Socrates to the present. While my hope is that they will be used to "rightly divide the word of truth" of the Holy Bible, they are equally applicable to legal, historical, and other such language.
StormyOne said:Proof-text method = generally uses an isolated text for supporting ones point, taking passages out of context in order to apply them to the individuals preconceptions. This method emphasizes the practical, devotional application of Scripture to the readers own personal needs. It is inadequate because it fails to take into account the historical and literal context of each passage of Scripture, thus engaging in a superficial interpretation which can lead to misguided conclusions. Proof-texting can lead to "spiritualizing" of Bible verses and assumptions of true meaning due to the tendency of the individual reader to "add to" the interpretation. (For example: read the following consecutively Matthew 27:5; Luke 10:37; John 13:27
http://gospel-herald.com/genesis_studies/ch_4_questions.htm
Seraph1m said:At some point in time most of us have come across those who proof text however, the OP noted "for informational purposes ONLY".
What people do as individuals, in any church, is between them and Jesus.http://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/1Th/1Th005.html#21 We have all been instructed to - 1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. KJVCliff2 said:Do you think it is happening in the SDA Church to any degree?
Seraph1m said:What people do as individuals, in any church, is between them and Jesus. We have all been instructed to - 1Th 5:21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. KJV
StormyOne said:PROOF TEXT FALLACIES
The Proof Text Fallacies are a group of three related methodological errors in the interpretation of scripture.
The first of these errors is recognized by nearly everyone to be an error when someone else is guilty of it, but is, unfortunately tolerated by nearly everyone in formulating their own doctrinal position. It is the error of taking a passage of scripture out of its immediate context and setting it up, in opposition to its context, as proof of a doctrinal point.
The second of these errors is also commonly recognized, though seemingly somewhat less well-recognized than the first. It is the error of setting up a single passage of scripture, or several passages of scripture, as proof of a doctrinal point in opposition to the teachings of the remainder of the Bible. It is, in effect, to take one or a few scriptures out of their broader scriptural context and make a proof out of them.
The third of these errors is hardly discussed at all in other sources this author has read, yet in a way it may be the most divisive of the three. It is the error of carving the Bible up into a series of proof texts and insisting that, once a verse or passage has been identified as a proof text for a particular doctrine, it can serve no other purpose. Beyond simply taking some verses out of context, this error destroys the entire concept of context. It reduces Bible interpretation into simply a matter of deciding which pre-established doctrinal pigeon-hole each verse was intended to fill.
http://www.angelfire.com/ks2/fallacies/falltext.htm#AH
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