Bible Teaching: Gaps to Bridge & Principles to Understand

Bible Teaching: Gaps to Bridge & Principles to Understand

Ever been guilty of twisting the Scriptures to say what you want it to
say? or maybe just unkowingly or maybe even carelessly using a passage
to fit a point you want to make? or maybe quickly coming up with a
lesson without proper preparation and analysis of your content?

May this article help us become better at our study and lesson preparations....

By John MacArthur

As I read Scripture, I always keep in mind one simple question:
What does this mean???
It's not enough to read the text and jump directly to the
application; we must first determine what it means, otherwise the
application may be incorrect.

Gaps to Bridge
The first step in interpreting the Bible is to recognize the four gaps
we have to bridge: language, culture, geography, and history.

Language The Bible was originally written in Greek, Hebrew, and
Aramaic. Often, understanding the meaning of a word or phrase in the
original language can be the key to correctly interpreting a passage
of Scripture. Two books that will help you close the language gap are
An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, by W. E. Vine, and
Nelson's Expository Dictionary of the Old Testament, by Merrill F.
Unger and William White, Jr.

You don't need to know Greek or Hebrew to use those books effectively.


Culture
The culture gap can be tricky. Some people try to use cultural
differences to explain away the more difficult biblical commands.
Don't fall into that trap, but realize that we must first view
Scripture in the context of the culture in which it was written.
Without an understanding of first-century Jewish culture, it is
difficult to understand the gospels. Acts and the epistles must be
read in light of the Greek and Roman cultures.

The following books will help you understand the cultural background
of the Bible: The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, by Alfred
Edersheim, Sketches of Jewish Social Life, also by Edersheim, and The
New Manners and Customs of Bible Times, by Ralph Gower. Geography


Geography
A third gap that needs to be closed is the geography gap. Biblical
geography makes the Bible come alive. A good Bible atlas is an
invaluable reference tool that can help you comprehend the geography
of the Holy Land. Of course, nothing helps like seeing the land
first-hand on a tour.


History
We must also bridge the history gap. Unlike the scriptures of most
other world religions, the Bible contains the records of actual
historical persons and events. An understanding of Bible history will
help us place the people and events in it in their proper historical
perspective. A good Bible dictionary or Bible encyclopedia is useful
here, as are basic historical studies.

Principles to Understand
Four principles should guide us as we interpret the Bible: literal,
historical, grammatical, and synthesis.

The Literal Principle Scripture should be understood in its literal,
normal, and natural sense. While the Bible does contain figures of
speech and symbols, they were intended to convey literal truth. In
general, however, the Bible speaks in literal terms, and we must allow
it to speak for itself.

The Historical Principle This means that we interpret Scripture in its
historical context. We must ask what the text meant to the people to
whom it was first written. In this way we can develop a proper
contextual understanding of the original intent of Scripture.

The Grammatical Principle This requires that we understand the basic
grammatical structure of each sentence in the original language. To
whom do the pronouns refer? What is the tense of the main verb? You'll
find that when you ask some simple questions like those, the meaning
of the text immediately becomes clearer.

The Synthesis Principle This is what the Reformers called the analogia
scriptura. It means that the Bible doesn't contradict itself. If we
arrive at an interpretation of a passage that contradicts a truth
taught elsewhere in the Scriptures, our interpretation cannot be
correct. Scripture must be compared with Scripture to discover its
full meaning.