The Bible Unfiltered (2)

Everything we have discussed so far does not come from a point of view that is determined by how intelligent i or any of you are. From my end it is nothing more than the result of passion combined with persistence. It may surprise you to learn that even though I have more than one degree. Which means nothing apart from Christ. That I barely passed my biology class in high school. And in college did not pass every single class the first time. I say that to tell you that my heart for you is to develop that same passion and persistence when it comes to how you see Christ and His Word!

What I also want you to see is that it is equally as important to understand “how” we believe something, as it is what we believe. In some cases I would say it is more so!

Yes I am prolife! Yes I believe babies have a soul. And yes I believe the Trinity is coequal and coeternal. But as one of your own members pointed out after last Wednesday night. Sometimes what has to happen is to deconstruct bad arguments. So that we can build better ones!

Paul did this masterfully in the NT. In fact he told people that was exactly what he was doing when he did it!

2Cor 10.4-5

2 Corinthians 10:4–5 ESV

4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,

It matters how you view the pro-life position! It matters how you come to understand that babies have a soul! It matters how you see the Trinity as coequal and coeternal!

So for me. When it comes to the Bible I care about 2 things. Primary source verification which is a fancy way of saying what does the text actually say beyond your English translation and based on that, what ideas can the biblical data sustain.

So with that in view what I’d like to do tonight is talk about how we should approach the Bible!

Much of the content tonight will not center around actual passages of the Bible. We will get to that later. Because I want us to focus on the “how”of reading the Bible.

Spiderwebs and naked eye!

Recommended Resource:

Heiser, M. S. (2017). The Bible Unfiltered: Approaching Scripture on Its Own Terms. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

What is the difference between Bible reading and Bible study?

Reading is a casual enterprise. It is often very loose. Bible study is very focused and concentrated. It requires effort. Reading is often for personal enrichment. Bible study is about mastering content. The goal is not so much for personal application. Although that can happen. It is more about understanding. Illustration. Facebook. Reading vs marketing.

When we write or speak with the intention of being understood, we naturally consider our audience. Whether we’re speaking to a toddler, writing an email to a parent, evaluating an employee, or clearing up a misunderstanding with a friend, we use vocabulary, style, and illustrative phrases drawn from common experiences, mutual intellectual perceptions, and familiar social situations. If we did not, we would have no right to expect to be understood. In fact, we would be misunderstood, perhaps quite disastrously. Our words derive from, and are shaped by, these factors. In other words, we understand each other to the extent that we share life.

What things do we need to consider?

The sort of connection between a writer and a reader that produces successful communication—with “success” being defined as the writer’s intended thoughts being well comprehended by the reader—cannot occur without shared worldview and outlook. The biblical writers wanted to be understood. They did not write with the intention of mis-communicating. More fundamentally, God wanted his thoughts, character, and purposes grasped with clarity. He prepared and chose men to accomplish that task, not to insert obstacles to that task. This means that those of us living thousands of years after the words of Scripture were written face a predicament. We come from a different world. We did not share life with them. We are not of one mind in a multitude of ways.

What things are involved in translating the Bible?

The hard work of translation has made it possible to read the words of the biblical writers. But communication involves far more than taking words of one language and converting them into the words of another. Sharing outlook and worldview—life as it were—makes those words comprehensible. I can tell a Chinese friend that “abortion is a hot potato in America,” but he’ll never know what I mean by merely knowing the words “hot” and “potato” in English. This idiomatic expression can only be understood by experience within American culture or plenty of exposure to Americans. In another conversation my words may be intended to be understood metaphorically. I might refer to some object or concept whose symbolic, iconic meaning is what I wanted him to catch so that I might be understood. He needs me living in his head (that is, he needs to understand my worldview) to really fathom what I’m talking about.

It’s true that some things in Scripture—often very important events and ideas—are communicated with simplicity and in ways that transcend a chronological approach. But the reverse is also true. Many passages in Scripture are quite perplexing. More troubling is the fact that a good number of our traditional, presumed understandings do not align with what the writer likely intended at all. The correct response to this is not despair. While we can’t understand everything in Scripture with perfect precision, we can understand a great deal once we connect to the worldview and outlook of the writers. It would be absurd to conclude that since it’s impossible to achieve exhaustive comprehension of the Bible we shouldn’t study it. Since you cannot know that everything you eat is entirely optimal for what your body needs at any given point should you stop eating?

We are blessed to have access to more information that connects us to the contexts of the biblical writers than ever before. .[1]

Serious Bible Study isn’t for Sissies!

One of my favorite scholarly quotations about the hard work of seriously engaging the biblical text—what we popularly call Bible study—is that of the renowned Greek lexicographer, Frederick W. Danker (the “D” in BDAG).1 Danker famously said that “scholars’ tasks are not for sissies.” He was right, and I’m grateful he was willing to say what needed to be said.

The truth about serious Bible study is that it isn’t easy. It takes sustained time and effort, often measured in days, weeks, and months, to really grasp what a passage means (or probably means) and why. If Bible study doesn’t seem like work to you, you aren’t really doing it.

I realize that saying serious Bible study is work takes the pleasure out of it for some people. But presuming that you have to choose between enjoying the study of Scripture and attaining a more advanced grasp of it is a fallacy. People who are really good at anything or have a deep comprehension of a subject enjoy their mastery because they put in the work. Whether it’s mastering an instrument, becoming a chef, or fielding countless ground balls in practice, people at the top of any given field only reached that station after thousands of hours of effort. People who make those sorts of sacrifices when it comes to the study of Scripture have counted the cost. They decided that the exertion wasn’t going to deter them. They weren’t sissies.

Do you really want to know more about Scripture than satisfies most? Do you really want a deep comprehension of this thing we call the word of God? If you do, here are some points of advice.

The goal of Bible study isn’t to get a spiritual buzz

First, let’s get the obvious out of the way. Any student of Scripture who really believes the Bible is God’s message to humanity will be emotionally moved from time to time at the wonder of why and how God maintains a loving interest in us. That’s normal for someone who really understands the spiritual implications of Scripture. So I’m not suggesting emotional responses are antithetical to serious engagement with the Bible. What I am suggesting, though, is that if you’re doing Bible study to feel a particular way, or get some spiritual high, then your Bible study is too self-focused.

Nowhere are we taught in the Bible to “search the Scriptures to feel a certain way.” Ultimately, Scripture is about God—what he did, what he is doing, and what he will do—not about you. You’ll never appreciate God’s story if your story—and solving your problems—is what you focus on when you study Scripture. Comprehending God’s story can go a long way toward addressing your problems, but the reverse will never be true. Serious Bible study that transcends self-therapy is about mastering the inspired text. You either want that or you don’t. If you do, you’ll be willing to put in the time and be willing to constantly reevaluate your work and your thinking.

Does this mean Scripture doesn’t address our needs?

Paying attention to detail and thinking clearly are not in opposition to loving Jesus

The answer to why women who had their periods were considered unclean (Lev 15:19–24), or what the Urim and Thummim were (Exod 28:30), or why some English translations of John 5 don’t include verse 4 in the chapter have little to do with Jesus. The fact that they’re in the Bible means they’re just as inspired as any passage that is about Jesus.

Why not just give us the 4 Gospels?

Bible study is about learning what this thing we say is inspired actually means. Knowing what all its parts mean will give us a deeper appreciation for the salvation history of God’s people, and the character of God. Jesus is the core component of all that, but there’s a lot more to those things than the story of his life, death, and resurrection; his parables; and the Sermon on the Mount. If that was all God wanted us to know, he’d have given us only the four gospels. It’s pretty evident he had more in mind.

The Spirit’s guidance wasn’t intended to serve as a cheat sheet

If you’ve watched a baseball or football game on American television at some point, you no doubt have seen players either ask God for success or thank him for it. Athletes today regularly do things like point to the heavens after crossing home plate or finding themselves in the end zone. Some will bow in a short prayer. It’s a nice sentiment and, for many, a testimony that transcends a token gesture.

But let’s be honest. Unless that football player gets in shape and memorizes the playbook, all the pointing to heaven in the world isn’t going to lead to success. You can say a short prayer on the mound or in the batter’s box, but unless you can hit the curveball, you’re going to fail—perhaps spectacularly.

It’s the same in Bible study. All too often people who sincerely want the feeling of knowing Scripture aren’t willing to put in the time it takes to get there. Instead, they’ll take short cuts and then expect the Spirit to take up the slack. The assumption seems to be that the promise of the Spirit to guide us into truth means he’ll excuse a lack of effort and give us the answers we need. The third person of the Trinity isn’t the boy sitting next to you in high school that lets you cheat off his exam.

Rather than substitute the Spirit for personal effort, ask the Spirit for insight to expose flawed thinking (your own and that of whomever you’re reading) when you’re engaged in Bible study. The more of God’s word you’ve devoted attention to, the more the Spirit has to work with.[2]

[1]Heiser, M. S. (2017). The Bible Unfiltered: Approaching Scripture on Its Own Terms (pp. 1–3). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press. [2]Heiser, M. S. (2017). The Bible Unfiltered: Approaching Scripture on Its Own Terms (pp. 7–10). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.