2 Timothy 2:15
When I was young, I used to
love nothing more than playing football with my friends. Near to where I lived
was a large grass area and when we arrived, we would take our jumpers off and
lay them on the ground to use as goalposts. The problem with those ‘jumper’ goalposts
was that they were broad and easily relocated. The goalkeeper could move them
when we weren’t looking to make the goal smaller, and a sneaky opposition player
could use his foot to move the posts to make the goals bigger. These were not
the only problems.
I remember heated
discussions regarding whether the ball had crossed the line (pretty difficult
to be sure when there was no actual line to cross); or whether the ball had
gone in or over the extra-large goalpost – such fun!
As fondly as all this lives
in the memory, and as entertaining as it was at the time, on reflection I
realise that what we were playing was a faulty version of football. To play the
game properly we needed fixed goalposts of the correct size and a line of the
correct length and width. Using the right equipment for the job would have ensured
that the game we were playing was indeed genuine football. Where am I going
with all this, I hear you ask? Bear with…
Hermen Who?
Sometimes you will hear
preachers and teachers use words that you do not understand, but you think
everyone else does, so you just smile and nod your head. One such word may be
hermeneutics. You may have heard your pastor say something along the lines of ‘To
understand our Bibles correctly we need to apply the correct principles of
hermeneutics’. Your pastor is right – but what on earth is he talking about? He
is saying that using the right equipment for the job would ensure the faith we
are living is indeed genuine Christianity.
You see to rightly
understand the message of the Bible, correct principles of interpretation need
to be used. These principles of interpretation are called hermeneutics. Without
‘fixed goalposts’ (principles), without the ‘correct lines’ being drawn, we are
liable to preach and teach a faulty version of the biblical message. Without
hermeneutics, we may find ourselves preaching and teaching a faulty version of
Christianity. It would be the equivalent of having jumpers for goalposts.
Basic Instructions
Before Leaving Earth
The Bible is
God’s Word. Paul writing to Timothy said that all Scripture is theopneustos –
that is ‘God breathed’ and it is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for
correction, and for training in righteousness, that the
man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2
Timothy 3:16-17). In saying this, Paul must have believed that Scripture could
be read, understood, and applied to the lives of believers. If true, then this
begs a question, one that I have heard many times. If the Bible can be read,
understood, and applied, then why are there so many different beliefs amongst
Christians?
I remember once
opening the door to a Jehovah’s Witness who asked me what my view was on same
sex marriage. I told him that I did not agree with it as marriage, according to
the Bible, is between one man and one woman. He smiled and said he agreed, but
then challenged me with a further question. If you and I agree that same sex
marriage is biblically prohibited, why have I just spoken to another churchgoer
who said that she has no problem with two men, or two women being married? That’s
a fair question. He then rather smugly proceeded to tell me that every one of
Jehovah’s Witnesses would agree, not only on this moral issue, but on all points
of doctrine.
There are reasons
why all Jehovah’s Witnesses believe alike, and it is not because they use the
correct principles of biblical interpretation (a future article on this would
be helpful). The bigger question this post seeks to address is why do
Christians interpret things differently?
Has God given us
a book that it is impossible to agree upon or is there a problem with how
people read it, study it, and interpret it? I believe the answer lies in the latter.
Now before we proceed, let us point out something that the Jehovah’s Witness on
the doorstep would not understand. It is okay for Christians to hold different
views, if the differences relate to secondary, non-salvific issues. All those
who would have Jesus as their Lord and Saviour, should agree on the primary
issues (eg Monotheism; Trinity; Deity of Christ; Death and Physical
Resurrection of Christ, Salvation by Grace etc.); but there can be diverse
opinions on issues of less import. But shouldn’t Christians agree on all matters
relating to the faith?
I would like to offer
five reasons why Christians may have different interpretations of Scripture:
1) The Person interpreting Scripture is not a Christian.
2) The Person
interpreting Scripture seeks to impose pre-existing presuppositional beliefs.
3) The Person
interpreting Scripture has not been trained in how to read and understand the
Bible.
4) The Person
interpreting Scripture has not been trained in Biblical hermeneutics.
5) The Person
interpreting Scripture follows their denominational tradition.
You may be able
to think of other reasons, but I am convinced that with the use of some basic
principles of interpretation (hermeneutics), Christians would find themselves
more closely aligned to each other in rightly handling the word of truth.
My next article
will unpack the five reasons listed above and a further article will consider some of the
hermeneutical tools available to help us understand the Bible.
Comments