189 Understanding the Bible correctly – Part 1

How God speaks to us   Talk 5   Understanding the Bible correctly (Part 1)

In the last talk we considered why we should believe that God speaks to us through the Bible. In the next few talks will be looking at how he does so. But first it will be important to consider how to understand the Bible correctly.

We have already seen that as far as Jesus was concerned, when the Bible spoke, God spoke[1]. We also said that the writings of the Scriptures are as much the voice of God as the experience Peter had when he heard God’s voice in audible form on the Mount of Transfiguration[2]. All that’s true, but it clearly needs further explanation. We know from the account of when Jesus was tempted in the desert that the devil can quote Scripture[3]. The Scripture he quoted from Psalm 91 is certainly the word of God, but Satan was misapplying it, and Jesus knew it! From this we learn the importance of correctly understanding what the Bible is saying, and in this talk I’ll be outlining some of the things we need to bear in mind when asking what God might be saying to us through a particular verse or passage. Before we jump to a conclusion as to what it means, there are two basic questions we need to ask:

• What part of the Bible are we reading?
• What is the context of the passage we are reading?

What part of the Bible are we reading?

The first thing we need to be aware of is whether the passage we’re reading is from the Old Testament or the New. Whenever we read the OT it is important to remember that it is not God’s final revelation to the human race. As the writer to the Hebrews pointed out:

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe

(Hebrews 1:1-2).

 

We need to understand that Jesus himself is the fulfilment of all OT law and prophecy:

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them (Matthew 5:17).

 

The OT is a revelation of the old covenant that God made with his people, but the OT itself promised that the day would come when God would make a new and better covenant with them. This is made very clear in the letter to the Hebrews. As Christians, we are not living under the old covenant that God made with the Jewish people, but under the new covenant which is sealed with the blood of Jesus. John 19:30 tells us that when Jesus died on the cross he declared, IT IS FINISHED. The word ‘finished’ here means ‘accomplished’ or ‘completed’. Jesus had completed the work his Father had given him to do. His death on the cross provided atonement for our sins and was the fulfilment of all OT law. This is why we should always read the OT in the light of the NT. A good example of how to apply this practice is the OT food laws.

 

The Old Testament food laws as an example

We’ll use Leviticus 11:1-8 as a passage that represents the sort of things the Israelites were allowed to eat and not to eat. Camels, hyraxes, rabbits and pigs were forbidden, but an animal that both chews the cud and has a divided hoof was permitted.

 

We don’t need to concern ourselves with why the Lord gave Moses these instructions. What is significant is that the instructions were given to the Israelites. But how do we know that they don’t apply to us as well? To answer this we need to consider various passages in the New Testament.

 

First, notice what Jesus said in Mark 7:14-23. He makes it clear that nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them because it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body. Mark then clarifies this by saying:

In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.

This certainly seems to mean that for us as Christians there’s no such thing as unclean food. But how does this stand up in the light of Acts 15:22-29? In this passage we have a record of a decision made by the early church in order to resolve a particular problem they were facing at the time. Some of the Jewish believers, because of their Old Testament background, had been teaching that Gentiles who became Christians should be circumcised in line with OT teaching. This was clearly causing great difficulty for the Gentille converts and a meeting of the apostles and elders was called to resolve the problem. The decision they came to, with the help of the Holy Spirit, was that the Gentile converts did not need to be circumcised – something which Paul makes very clear in his letter to the Galatians – but that there were certain things that the Gentiles should abstain from. So they sent them a letter saying:

 

It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality.

 

But does this mean that those prohibitions apply to Christians today? In my opinion, with the exception of the last item in the list, which is of course forbidden in the rest of the NT, the answer is no. I say this for three reasons:

 

1. Acts 15 is a record of a decision made by the church at a specific time to resolve a problem that was current at that point in history. It is not necessary to understand it as being applicable to Christians today who are living in quite different circumstances.
2. The decision was almost certainly made so that the Jewish Christians would not be unnecessarily offended. This interpretation is certainly in line with Paul’s teaching in Romans 14 and 1 Corinthians 10[4].
3. It is very clear from Paul’s epistles that Christians are not subject to legalistic regulations, but that out of love for our fellow believers we should modify our behaviour so as not to cause anyone to stumble.

 

In short, Paul clearly teaches that it doesn’t matter what we eat or drink as long as we can do it with a clear conscience and will not distress someone else by doing so. The underlying consideration is LOVE.  The whole law is summarised in this:

For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ (Galatians 5:14).

Jesus replied: ‘ “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: “Love your neighbour as yourself.” All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments’” (Matthew 22:37-40).

 

In this example with regard to the OT food laws, which we’ve used to illustrate how the Old Testament must be interpreted in the light of the New, we’ve been careful not to read a passage in isolation, but to compare scripture with scripture. We have also touched on another important principle with regard to how to interpret the Bible correctly – the context of the book or passage we are reading.

What is the context of the passage we are reading?

The question of context is undoubtedly the most important issue with regard to understanding correctly what God is saying. We’ve already dealt with the most basic aspect – Which part of the Bible are you looking at? OT or NT?  But there are three other areas in which context is vitally important:

• The literary context
• The cultural/historical context
• The immediate context

The literary context

The Bible is not really a book. It’s a collection of books. In the Greek New Testament the word for bible is plural and it means the books. These books were written over a period of some 1500 years by a wide range of people in many different places. If we want to understand a book correctly we need to consider its genre – what kind of literature it is. Here’s a brief summary of the different kinds of literature we find in the Bible:

Types of OT literature

• Narrative (found mainly from Genesis to Esther)
• The Law (found in the Pentateuch, the first five books)
• The Psalms
• Wisdom (Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs)
• The Prophets

Types of NT Literature

• Narrative (The Gospels, Acts)
• Parables (found mainly in the Gospels)
• Letters
• Apocalyptic (Revelation).

The reason it’s helpful to know what type of literature we are reading is that although all Scripture is inspired by God[5], the way he may speak to us through it may vary according to the kind of literature it is. For example, in the narrative passages we may learn from the example of what happened to God’s people in the past[6], but in the NT letters we’re given direct instructions as to what to do. We learn from all these different kinds of literature, but we learn in different ways. To use the illustration of the OT food laws again, you will have noticed that I based my conclusions on what Paul said in his letters rather than on the narrative of what the early church decided in the book of Acts. I was taking the genre, the literary context, into consideration.

The cultural/historical context

Although the books of the Bible were inspired by the Holy Spirit, God used human authors to write them. The epistles, for example, are conditioned by the language and culture of the first century. They speak to specific situations in the first century church. Their authors lived at a certain point in history and in a society where the culture was often very different from ours today. This is reflected in their writings and if we understand their culture we will understand more clearly what God might be saying through them. And although some passages may not seem directly relevant to us today, we should be able to see the principles being taught in them and apply them to situations that arise in our own lives and the life of the church today.

 

One example of this might be how we understand Paul’s teaching on eating food that has been offered to idols. The Christians in Corinth were confronted with this problem on a daily basis, and there are parts of the world where Paul’s teaching is still highly relevant today. However, if you’re like me, this may not be an issue that has ever arisen for you personally. But does this mean that those of us who have never been in those circumstances can learn nothing from what Paul says on the subject in 1 Corinthians 8?

 

By no means! The principles Paul teaches will always be relevant wherever we live and whatever the culture may be. However much we may think we know, our first duty is to love other people (vv. 1-3). We must be careful that our freedom in Christ does not become a stumbling-block to those who are weak (v.9). It’s better not to exercise our freedom if it’s going to cause a brother or sister to fall into sin (v.13). So even if we’re not in a situation where we’re likely to be invited to eat meat that’s been sacrificed to an idol, it’s not difficult to think of ways in which we can apply the principles Paul teaches in this chapter. For example, although the New Testament nowhere teaches total abstinence from alcohol, many Christians feel that they should abstain rather than setting an example that might lead others into addiction.

 

So, to summarise what we’ve said so far in this talk, when we’re reading a particular passage or verse and we want to understand what God is saying to us through it, we need to be aware of what part of the Bible we are reading – Old or New Testament. We should also bear in mind the literary context and the historical and cultural context in which it was written. If you’re not sure about this, there are many different sources that will help you. The Bible you are reading may already have the information available. The NIV Life Application Bible, for example, at the beginning of each individual book of the Bible, gives you a useful summary of what the book is about, and provides a basic outline of the context it in which it was written. With all that in mind, you’re now in a position to consider the immediate context. And that’s something we’ll be looking at next time.