Then why even ask?

When I was a pastor, persons of the church occasionally asked me for advice on what the Bible has to say about various matters, and whether we are obligated to follow its views on these matters or not. I often asked a counter-question: if my answer was yes, were they willing to follow those admonitions in the Bible? In other words, I asked them, would they be willing to accept the Bible’s judgments on their behavior and act accordingly? If not, then, of course, the Bible would not function as a canon for them; they would simply be asking historical questions that they might, or might not, choose to follow when answered. Formation of the Bible, page 161

<idle musing>
I like his response; it cuts to the heart of the issue. Are we or are we not going to submit to the authority of scripture? If not, then don't even pretend that you want to hear the answer...
</idle musing>