Sacred Cows

"There will be general lamentation, tearing of garments, and wailing, at the following statement, but it must be made. Spurgeon was not infallible. I will pause so that those currently experiencing shock, dismay and hopelessness, may recover their senses. Second amazing statement coming up. You can actually gain great edification from someone with whom you have disagreements. Again, a brief pause. It is a sign of maturity, in my opinion, to be able to analyze a writer of the past, thank God for his insights and testimony, while at the same time, recognizing differences of viewpoint and even belief. No one could turn a phrase like Spurgeon. The term "wordsmith" does not do him justice. The prince of preachers indeed. But I risk much to add that quite often the prince of preachers' exegesis of a particular text suffered in the service of over-all sermonic excellence. We all know that there are some great sermons out there that are exegetically atrocious. They seem to get recycled all the time. And there are times when anyone who has turned to Spurgeon for comments on a particular passage has come away with significantly less than they may have expected. I do not believe this is even a disputable assertion. Spurgeon was a fallen human being, like all the rest of us." (Emphasis in bold is my own.)

The preceding was a quote from apologist, Dr. James White. I've pulled it from its context to share here because it stands well on its own and speaks to one of the most valuable lessons I've learned over the last few months. Dr. White uses Spurgeon for the sake of his own point, but you could easily substitute any individual whom you hold in very high esteem - with John Calvin, C.S. Lewis, John MacArthur, John Piper, J.I. Packer, G.K. Chesterton, and Martin Luther, just to name a few. We quote them as though their words are the authority which should bring an end to all argument, and God forbid anyone should dare disagree with them. We fallen humans have a long history of turning those we admire into sacred cows.