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|  Discovering God's Word Part TwoIn Part-2 of "Discovering God's Word" we learn very important lessons on how to interpret Scripture correctly. It serves every believer well to know how to interpret Scripture under the leadership of the Holy Spirit, the Author.
By: All Peoples Church and World Outreach Bangalore Hermeneutics = The science (principles) "This is that" Joel 2:28 Acts 2:17 What Joel Said: Prophesy, dreams, visions, Wonders in heaven and in earth, blood, fire, pillars of smoke, etc. What Actually Happened: Sound of a mighty wind, tongues of fire, speaking in tongues Although through our natural analysis we would say that these are very dissimilar occurrences - Peter, an unlearned and uneducated (untaught in Scripture) man, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said "This is that". While this is not a basis for us to randomly interpret Scripture at our own spiritual whims and fancies, it does bring home a point - that the best Interpreter of Scripture is the Author Himself - the Holy Spirit. The Challenge in Biblical Interpretation The first five books were written by Moses around 1400 B.C. (about 3400 years ago). The last book, Revelation, was written by the Apostle John around 90 A.D. (about 1900 years ago). The Bible was written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament was made around 200 B.C. A spiritual gap A time gap A geographical gap A cultural gap A language gap A literary gap Inspiration and Illumination (Revelation) Inspiration of Scripture was given only once – when the Word was first written. Illumination (Enlightening, Revelation) of Scripture is given repeatedly. By illumination we mean that today God again breathes on His Word, the Holy Spirit imparts light to us; the anointing of the Holy Spirit is upon His Word so that once again we see what God said in that day. God does something today to make alive the inspiration of yesterday. Illumination (Enlightening, Revelation) occurs when God’s Word is alive and full of life to me today as at the time when it was first written. This is a work of the Spirit. Receiving revelation in one area does not necessarily mean you have revelation in all areas. Here are some important things to keep in mind in the context of the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit: 1. The Holy Spirit’s role does not mean that one’s interpretations are infallible 2. The work of the Spirit in interpretation does not mean that He gives some interpreters “hidden” meaning divergent from the normal, literal meaning of the passage. 3. The place of the Holy Spirit in interpreting the Bible means that He does not normally give sudden intuitive flashes of insight into the meaning of Scripture – independent of careful study and meditation. 4. The Holy Spirit guides the believer into all truth (John 16:13). Bible truth is available to all believers. However, it is up to the believer to follow obediently. We study the Word to receive illumination of God's Word that will lead us to right application and life transformation. Conventions Rules for Biblical Interpretation (Hermeneutics) #1, Interpret with the Cultural Context in mind The context in which a given Scripture passage is written influences how that passage is to be understood. Context includes: * The verses immediately before and after the passage * The paragraph and book in which the verses occur * The dispensation in which it was written * The message of the entire Bible * The historical-cultural environment of that time when it was written * The Bible reflects the culture of its day. Therefore it is important to know what the people in the Bible thought, believed, said, did and made. If we fail to give attention to these matters of culture, then we may be guilty of reading into the Bible our modern-day ideas. Eleven Cultural Categories : Political, Religious, Economic, Legal, Agricultural, Architectural, Clothing, Domestic, Geographical, Military, Social Here is a sample listing of some practices we see in the Bible. Are the following practices permanent (P) meaning that we are to continue them or temporary (T) meaning that they are limited to the culture of that day? Greet one another with a holy kiss (Romans 16:16) (T) Be baptized (Acts 2:38) (P) Wash one another’s feet (John 13:14) (T) Observe the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:24) (P) Be circumcised (Acts 15:5) (T) Wear sandals but not an extra tunic (Mark 6:9) (T) Cast lots for church officers (Acts 1:26) (T) The following principles are useful in determining which cultural practices and situations, commands and precepts in the Bible are transferable to our culture and which ones are non-transferrable: 1. Some situations, commands, or principles are repeatable, continuous, or not revoked, and/or pertain to moral and theological subjects, and/or are repeated elsewhere in Scripture, and therefore are permanent and transferable to us. The Bible is its own authority, including the authority to set limits on which practices are culture-bound and which ones are not. 2. Some situations, commands, or principles pertain to an individual’s specific non-repeatable circumstances, and/or non-moral or non-theological subjects, and/or have been revoked, and are therefore not transferable to today. 3. Some situations or commands pertain to cultural settings that are only partially similar to ours and in which only the principles are transferable 4. Some situations or commands pertain to cultural settings with no similarities but in which the principles are transferable #2 Keep in mind normal rules for grammar and figures of speech #3 Recognize Types, Illustrations and Parables Types, Illustrations and parables The type or illustration is an historical event divinely designed by God and clearly identified as such in Scripture that pointed to another event which was the "reality", the main focus. The "type" carried some elements (features, characteristics) The illustration is divinely designed by God as a picture of the truth. A parable is an example or story from our world that conveys spiritual truth. Spiritual truth lies hidden in the story. #4 Use Allegorizing With Caution Allegorizing is when we take an incident or narrative in Scripture and elicit meaning that is not stated explicitly in Scripture. #5, God's revelation of Himself, His plans and purposes are progressive. Additional Rules for Biblical Interpretation #6, Interpretation based on Divine Nature #7, Scripture interprets Scripture The Holy Spirit connects Scripture to Scripture and we need to follow the pattern He sets. Read the full article from our website Watch the message: https://vimeo.com/ End
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