The Eight Rules of Bible Interpretation

[Jim B]

It is due to a lack of faith.

Until every one has enough faith to actually believe verses like PR 3:5 and 1JN 2:27 (Thanks Enoch--such a great verse) and put their trust totally in the Lord you will have differing beliefs.

God is calling us to trust Him totally, completely, 100%. He deserves no less!!

PR 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

1JN 2:27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit--just as it has taught you, remain in him.

I agree, if we all lived the ideal life of faith -- "has enough faith to actually believe" -- we could always know the truth the Spirit was guiding us into. But, does anyone on this forum have that kind of faith. If we did there would be no disagreements (like this one) and we would all "know the truth." The fact is, ALL of us disagree with EACH of us on at least one little point of doctrine or interpretation and no two Chrisitans on earth (I believe) perfectly agree on everything (except, of course, cult members).

Is it that no one has enough faith to be lead into truth?

Or, perhaps the problem (this thought just hit me) lies in our definition of just what "all truth" really means?

Any insight, anybody?

\o/

 

[flyfishing]

It is due to a lack of faith.

Until every one has enough faith to actually believe verses like PR 3:5 and 1JN 2:27 (Thanks Enoch--such a great verse) and put their trust totally in the Lord you will have differing beliefs.

God is calling us to trust Him totally, completely, 100%. He deserves no less!!

PR 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

1JN 2:27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit--just as it has taught you, remain in him.

Ah yes wasnt this scripture in 1john in the thread of most misused scriptures?

Let me share something i believe is left out. Line upon line, precept upon precept... The context in this chapter refers to knowing CHRIST. Once we have established a full relationship with Christ we dont need another introduction but The holy ghost will reveal jesus and is in fact the only one who can.

This verse if not looked at corectly could be taken to say that for example we dont need to go to church, we dont need the godly men set up in leadership over us. And some do use it for that. It is not what the verse means.

Jesus told peter blessed art thou simon for flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto you but God did. However peter takes his revelation which believers not grounded are wont to do and trys to tell CHRIST he should not die on the cross..

This takes place immediately after the revelation, and is a perfect example of why we need "pastors" and 'guidelines' to help us keep on the straight and narrow..

One of the most misunderstood things in the body today is the 'church leadership" structure. misunderstood by both the pastor and body alike..

I know that you have a genuine heart teri, and appreciate you.. I hope this ministered to you. i am blessed..

 

[invisiblebabe]

I've found that relying totally on God to lead me into all understanding makes a set of rules unnecessary.

If you're using the intellect and information He gave you, aren't you still relying totally on Him?

 

[Jim B]

If you're using the intellect and information He gave you, aren't you still relying totally on Him?

Exactly, babe. Thanx for your insightfulness.

I might add "If you're using the intellect and information He gave you ... and the teachers He has set in the church ... aren't you still relying totally on Him?

\o/

 

[enoch son]

I could go off on the preacher in the pulit of today church but I will let that dog lay. As for the book it is spiritual and it takes the spiritual awaken to understand it. Until the Holy Spirit open one's eyes to it you will not see it. And I do not care how many rules you have. BOTTOM LINE. As for faith WE HAVE THE FAITH OF CHRIST how can man improve on that? And that gets us to the problem MAN! Just die to self and Jesus will show you by the Holy Spirit.

 

[Andrew]

These are good guidelines.

But has anyone heard of the "law of first mention"? ie, when you want to know what a word means, it sometimes helps to find out where it first appears in the Bible and what it means there.

Also, what about "letting the Bible interpret the Bible". eg what does "You shall fear the Lord your God" mean? Jesus, when he was tempted, quoted this verse but changed the word "fear" to "worship". So that helps to explain what "fear the Lord" means -- to worship him. and that is the Bible interpreting the Bible.

But what these rules cannot cover is the interpretation given by the Holy Spirit. this type of interpretation is most awesome, dynamic and alive. It goes beyond just surface interpretation. It is what makes reading your Bible so personal and alive!

There are certainly a lot of shadows hidden in the OT esp. And it takes the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to see these shadows. For eg, many seemingly dry and boring laws in the OT, are actually shadows of the work of Christ and the church. Christ is always hidden in these passages. The central theme of the Bible is always Christ.

When we study the Bible, we 'look' for Christ.

 

[Jim B]

I could go off on the preacher in the pulit of today church but I will let that dog lay. As for the book it is spiritual and it takes the spiritual awaken to understand it. Until the Holy Spirit open one's eyes to it you will not see it. And I do not care how many rules you have. BOTTOM LINE. As for faith WE HAVE THE FAITH OF CHRIST how can man improve on that? And that gets us to the problem MAN! Just die to self and Jesus will show you by the Holy Spirit.

"Just die to self and Jesus will show you by the Holy Spirit."

You make it sound so simple, enoch. Who do you know that really does that ... dies to self and is truly enlightened by the Spirit? Apparently, no one on this forum. Because if we did we would all be saying the same thing. Then we would all know the “truth,” wouldn’t we, and their would be no differences of opinion, or debates, division, or growth, or learning, or searching, or studying? We would all be spiritually enlightened clones without need of help from anyone, but the Holy Spirit. We would not need teachers, pastors, prophets. It would be like, well, heaven. It could be … Gnosticism, raising its ugly head once again.

But life just isn’t that way in this less than ideal world we live in nor are complex problems as simple as we want to make them.

So, when I hear Jesus say, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come,” (John 16.13) He must mean something else besides what I am hearing on this thread.

The Apostle John wrote, “I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit--just as it has taught you, remain in him.” (1 John 1.26-27). If we take this scripture as popularly interpreted (even in this forum), there is no real need for teachers (or, for that matter, forums) within the body of Christ. I can see little purpose for the church in the way this verse is being applied and if our only source of truth is what we subjectively "feel" the "Spirit" is teaching us.

My dad is now in his 80s. Many years ago, he decided that no man could teach him anything, so he got rid of his books, bought a KJV Bible and a Strong’s Concordance (?) and decided he would let the Holy Spirit teach him “all things.” He has, over the years, spiritually and socially degenerated into a hermit, convinced that his truth is the only truth. He loves nor respects no one that disagrees with him. He believes that Christ has already come in the person of the Roman Emperor Titus, that the Holy Spirit is air exhaled when he teaches (oh yes, we are not allowed the same Spirit-enlightenment he has claimed for himself), toys with British-Israelism, rejects the Trinity, believes that Flavius Josephus was as inspired as the Apostles, etc. etc. It is a weird and convoluted belief system that is the product of his own “private interpretation” which he has confused with spiritual enlightenment. There is no reasoning with him because these things were “shown” to him by the Spirit. He is angry at the world, bitter at life, feels he is the only human among the 6-billion on the planet that sees things clearly, and is totally unteachable and untouchable. He has become wholly self-absorbed and his “doctrine” has become his all-consuming passion in life, his only purpose for being. Family and friends, people and human suffering are of no concern to him … just “truth.”

Please pray for him.

But this seems to be the inevitable (albeit extreme) result of relying only on what we say is “the Holy Spirit” (which turns out to be nothing but relying on our “own” understanding). We wind up blaming our deviant beliefs on the Spirit of God and, to me, this is just another sin against the Holy Spirit.

So, please explain to me what Jesus meant in John 16.13 and the Apostle meant in 1 John 2.27? Surely, it is not what is being offered on this thread. Or I am misunderstanding you.

Jim
\o/

 

[flyfishing]

Jim i was touched as i read about your DAD.. I have to say that a lot of the belief system he now has was not obtained from the bible and a concordance though. Somewheree he has been studying church fathers etc. It is ok to look into historical context to enrichen scripture but not to the point you are rejecting the plain simple truth of a verse..

Jim i believe some answers have been shared, as i mentioned about the context of the scripture in 1 john .. I would challenge you to reread john 16 esp v14 where Christ defines what truth the holy ghost leads us into. It is the truth of CHRIST AND THE FATHER..


Jim here is my thought, if you are looking to men for an answer to helping your dad it could be a futile search. I feel very strongly in my heart that this answer can not come from flesh and blood... I also feel that this is not just about your dad,but through this your FATHER wants to do a work in you. I feel very strongly that there is needed a revelation of grace,love and surrender to the soverignity of our LORD... I pray he shows you the fullness of what i am trying to communicate...

 

[enoch son]

I think you to guy's need to ask God for a different measure of faith. Or just believe the one He gave you. You are so into you church views. Who said anything about 1 John by itself? I didn't and Terri didn't you guy's did. And why is that. Because it fly's in the face of the rules. As for your dad I'm sorry but the word say's not to forsake the gathering of the saints as we see the day coming. But I can understand why He did what he did, and I do not blame him. It also say's may God open the eyes of your heart, doesn't it. Sometimes the frist LOVE IS THE BEST LOVE.

 

[flyfishing]

Enoch please i would urge you to word your posts in a manner that is not as judgemental as the one above. You seem to communicate a superiority that some could take offence to. I love you and wanted to show you to be more effective as a "forthteller" of Gods ways you would do more dignity to the kingdom by allowing some rough edges to be polished off. Hope you take this in the spirit given..

 

[enoch son]

No problem but sometime it takes being straightforward Gal. 2-14

 

[Jim B]

Jim i believe some answers have been shared, as i mentioned about the context of the scripture in 1 john .. I would challenge you to reread john 16 esp v14 where Christ defines what truth the holy ghost leads us into. It is the truth of CHRIST AND THE FATHER..

Exactly, fly. But, unfortunately, that is not the way I am hearing it on this thread. Thanks for clearing this up. What I am hearing is that we do not need guidelines of interpretation (given to us by teachers that the Lord has set in the church) because we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. I can accept “truth” as you have defined it but I cannot accept the belief that the Holy Spirit leads us into some kind of spiritual correctness or doctrinal purity and that is what I am hearing in this forum. If that were the case, it just ain’t happening!

Thank you fly for your concern about me personally. There is nothing I want more than for God to do a surrendering work in me and show me more of his grace and love.

\o/

 

[Jim B]

No problem but sometime it takes being straightforward Gal. 2-14

Sure, it is good to be straightforward so long as we don’t forget to be respectful and gentle, especially when we debate an issue.

1 Peter 3:15
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.

\o/

 

[enoch son]

I understand your point. But I would perfer someone be up front with me. Then smile and tell me Jesus loves me and they do too. As I pull the knifes out of my back. At lest the up front is honest. Remeber christian are the only one's that kill thier wounded.

 

[flyfishing]

Exactly, fly. But, unfortunately, that is not the way I am hearing it on this thread. Thanks for clearing this up. What I am hearing is that we do not need guidelines of interpretation (given to us by teachers that the Lord has set in the church) because we have the Holy Spirit to guide us. I can accept “truth” as you have defined it but I cannot accept the belief that the Holy Spirit leads us into some kind of spiritual correctness or doctrinal purity and that is what I am hearing in this forum. If that were the case, it just ain’t happening!

Thank you fly for your concern about me personally. There is nothing I want more than for God to do a surrendering work in me and show me more of his grace and love.

\o/

Thank you for sharing your heart Jim. it helps me understand your objections in the other thread.

We do so need to be careful that we dont become like peter who received true holy ghost revelation and then next minute is telling christ not to go to the cross.. It is so easy to mix the human element in our revelation, sometimes i see those proclaiming freedom from the old man yet when they share truth you see the ole carnal man... My prayer before i preach is LORD hide me behind the cross of calvary, let people not see me,my thoughts but know that the Living God hath spoken to them..

Jim i do see your thirst for more of Him.. And so does HE.. A revelation is coming your way brother i believe..

 

[Jim B]

I understand your point. But I would perfer someone be up front with me. Then smile and tell me Jesus loves me and they do too. As I pull the knifes out of my back. At lest the up front is honest. Remeber christian are the only one's that kill thier wounded.

Thanks, e. I do believe it is possible to "speak the truth in love" with respect and gentleness.

\o/

 

[Jim B]

Thank you for sharing your heart Jim. it helps me understand your objections in the other thread.

We do so need to be careful that we dont become like peter who received true holy ghost revelation and then next minute is telling christ not to go to the cross.. It is so easy to mix the human element in our revelation, sometimes i see those proclaiming freedom from the old man yet when they share truth you see the ole carnal man... My prayer before i preach is LORD hide me behind the cross of calvary, let people not see me,my thoughts but know that the Living God hath spoken to them..

Jim i do see your thirst for more of Him.. And so does HE.. A revelation is coming your way brother i believe..

Thanx, fly. I value your friendship and prayers.

\o/

 

[flyfishing]

Thanks right back at you. there are some very great people here, diverse but they have precious spirits and a genuine love for the LoRD JESUS CHRIST...

 

[hal]

The Bible says no Scripture is of private interpretation.
I do not look at the Bible as my primary source of truth.
I trust the Author, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, to tell me all I need to know to enable me to do what He directs me to do.
However, He will pop up Scriptures in my mind as part of His speaking to me. Therefore, I need to store Scripture in my memory bank for Him to draw on.