Therefore, Christians who say the Bible requires the death penalty for murderers are wrong. Likewise, Christians who say it is wrong for the state to impose the death penalty because killing is prohibited in Scripture are also wrong. It comes down to proper hermeneutics. The ceremonial law, with its many offerings and sacrifices, was fulfilled in Christ. Jesus was the fulfillment of all that was typified by those ordinances.
Therefore, they are no longer necessary or relevant. This also passed away in A. The moral law the Ten Commandments is the abiding law of God for all time and did not pass with the coming of Christ. There is never a hint given that this has been repealed.
These commands are the transcript of holiness and as such, they are the divine standard. They were written first upon the heart of Adam before they were inscribed on tablets of stone at Sinai. This moral law is binding upon all men for all time. Man is responsible and accountable to the standard. It is impossible to keep. Jesus is the only person who has ever kept the law in its entirety. It is a serious matter for any person to dismiss the law of God as irrelevant.
This applies to people both inside and outside the church. The absolute moral law of God has never been revoked. We are expected to conform to its requirements for holy living. Proper hermeneutics is important for interpreting Scripture in relation to contemporary social and spiritual issues. Hermeneutics can unfold a new meaning or reveal something that is hidden from casual readers of the Bible and make obscure words expounded into their full significance.
Hermeneutics is applied when we translate the Greek or Hebrew into the English. Jews and converts to Judaism ; Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues! Jews and converts to Judaism ; Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own languages! This is very important when expositional preaching of the Bible is done.
The original words that differed from the English translation of it may give greater insight and meaning to the context. Exegesis though is concerned with focusing on the written text itself. Hermeneutics can help us understand the original intent of the Scripture, give us a proper interpretation, allow us to understand it more deeply and thus, apply it to our everyday lives.
I have heard so much bad doctrines developed when churches or Christians take one verse and make it a stand-alone doctrine. The error in this is when text is taken out of context it makes it a pretext — and often a false one.
A key point that I have heard is that all Scripture is written for believers but not all Scripture is written to believers. For example we could look at the Sabbath laws in the Old Testament and realize that they were written for us as an example but not written to us to follow strictly. It would be a little hard today for Christians to observe the Sabbath because when we drive to church we are breaking the commandment to not go more than a mile approximately or prepare any food.
There are idiosyncrasies to the Greek and Hebrew language just like there are today in English, Spanish, French, and the many worldwide languages. There is also the historical context in which Scriptures were written that must be considered and may not be applicable to the 21st Century.
If the Word of God is the sword and the Holy Spirit moves the sword, then good biblical hermeneutics is the sharpens the sword.
Hermeneutics agrees with how we can discern difficult to understand passages or verses. We can use the adjacent Scriptures, the chapter itself, or even the entire book to see the specific purpose of one verse. For example, the hard sayings of Jesus allow us to look at the broader picture and understand that He is using hyperbole or an extreme exaggeration to make a point that gets our attention.
When Jesus speaks the name of a person twice like Martha, Martha, Saul, Saul, or Simon, Simon Peter , we realize that Jesus is not just repeating the name for no good reason. When a name is repeated twice, it is symbolic of an intimate relationship. Away from me, you evildoers! Away from Me, you evildoers!
They claimed to be a Christian but perhaps they never read the Bible, never attended a church where the Body of Christ worships , they never stopped sinning, and they never repented.
Knowing why a name is repeated twice is important to know the reason that was. It makes a person less vulnerable to false teachers Ephesians It will help Christians to speak the truth in love Ephesians It enables believers to be taught accurately by the Holy Spirit.
John It enables a person to deal with learned skeptics 1 Peter Finally, it enables a believer to walk in the light of what the Scripture instructs them to do John Thus, the well-being of the Church enhanced, and the spiritual life of the believer can be more fully realized. If a believer sees the need for accurate Bible Interpretation, where does he begin? What tools or resources are available to help believers learn more about using the principles of Bible Interpretation in their study of the Scriptures?
How do you feel about the doctrinal condition of the Church today? How do you make sure you accurately divide the Word of God when you study the Bible?
What resources have you found to help you with interpreting the Bible when you study? Sproul, Knowing Scripture , p. Of Practical Theology, , pg.
Is Bible Interpretation Really Necessary? Marvin Yoder Years ago the church I was attending got a pastor who was fresh out of seminary. Accurately Studying the Word The doctrine of every denomination, camp, and movement is a representation of their Bible interpretation, e. In interpreting the Old Testament it is often very easy to self-relate or seek private interpretation of the scripture, when the authoritative nature of the scripture has already given an interpretation as the Word speaks for itself.
Many people today fail to delve into the historical, cultural. Moreover, it is for us to know that God desires to have a relationship with us and for us to be set apart in a covenant relationship with Him to display holy lives that bring Him glory. Interpretation, using hermeneutical principles, help guide us in proper boundaries for interpreting Scripture so that we can reveal the intended meaning of the text.
Without this, we run the risk of imposing our own ideas on the text, therefore misinterpreting. Since one of the characteristics of God is that He is unchanging, there are theological truths He provides us in Scripture that transcend time and different cultures. We need to understand these theological principles when considering how to live them out today. We also need to evaluate a principle in a passage of Scripture to the rest of the.
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