If had any interaction with me last semester, you probably heard me mention various fascinating tidbits from my “Hebrew Scriptures” class, taught by Rabbi Barclay. And by taught, I mean learned.
Rabbi Barclay gave a speech on the first day of class I thought was a bit of a crock; he said “By the end of the semester, I will have learned just as much from you as you have learned from me.” Sounds hokey, right? He was just saying that to seem humble and boost our esteem so we’d raise our hands and get our full participation points. How could I possibly teach this teacher, this Rabbi, who has studied the Old Testament (ahem, don’t tell him I called it that because he said that assumes there is a New Testament) for years and years and is a highly regarded “expert” on the text? Throughout the semester and still more today, I am beginning to fully understand what the true meaning behind his words.
All of our individual thoughts or beliefs about what Scripture says are simply our own individual commentaries on the text. Meaning, I can interpret a verse one way and my friend could interpret it another way, and my pastor can interpret it another way… and who is to say whose interpretation is “truth?” Why should one person’s interpretation be the right one?
As my boyfriend, Peter, mentioned last night in his talk at Quest concerning the Biblical evidence for and against homosexuality,
Even when we believe the Scriptures are “infallible” or “without error,” it’s terribly dangerous to think that our understanding of every biblical text is also without error.
So I think what Rabbi Barclay was trying to say is that my interpretation of the text is just as valid and true as his interpretation. It didn’t matter that he had a reputation for being so wise because my interpretation was just as true. He would always shout to the class “So which interpretation is right, A or B?” and it was our duty to all shout back, “YES.” Both can be right.
I guess I’m just not one of those people who see issues as black and white. I believe there is grey most often because who defines black and white anyways?
A friend and sister in Christ said last night “the Bible never contradicts itself,” which I lovingly disagree with. One of my intern reading assignments is a book called “A Handbook to the Christian Faith” which is basically a paperback textbook on all things Christian. In one section it talks about the “majority rule” of reading the Bible, going on to explain that when there are 6 verses in the Bible about women in church leadership positions and 4 of them say it’s fine and 2 say it’s not, you should go with the majority who portray women in a positive role in the church. And that’s how I believe the text should be read.
But hey, I could be right and so could you.
What do you think? Does the Bible ever contradict itself? Is it possible to say that my interpretation of a certain verse is true as well as someone elses, as long as it is rooted in the text?
Paisley Said:
on July 24, 2008 at 7:12 pm
I’ve never heard of looking at the Bible with a “majority rule” perspective but that is definitely an interesting way to look at it!
Erin Said:
on July 24, 2008 at 7:22 pm
John 17:17- Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth
I think the question is what do you believe is true of God?
“If it was God who inspired men to write the Bible, what does that teach us about Scripture? Is it possible that Scripture, as it was given from God to men, can be anything less than perfect? Would God lie? Would He write in only half-truths? The Bible tells us otherwise:
2 Samuel 7:28 – “And now, O Lord God, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.”
Numbers 23:9 – “God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind.
Has he said, and will he not do it?
Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?”
Psalm 12:6 – The words of the Lord are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
Proverbs 30:5 – Every word of God proves true;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
We find a consistent Scriptural witness that God does not lie, for He is incapable of telling falsehood. The men who wrote God’s words, had supreme confidence in the rest of His words. If God is incapable of telling a lie, it follows that the words He spoke to those who wrote the words of Scripture must also be perfectly true. At this point, I trust we have sufficient Scriptural basis to conclude that Scripture is authoritative and that the words given by God to men were without error.”
And yes there is a huge danger of thinking that YOUR interpretation is right or mine. But there is TRUTH, that God reveals to us in Scripture.
In “The Truth War” by John MacArthur he talks about how relativism has seeped into the church. He says, “Uncertainty is the new truth. Doubt and skepticism have been canonized as a form of humility. Right and wrong have been redefined in terms of subjective feelings and personal perspectives…the emerging postmodernists have blurred the line between certainty and omniscience. They seem to presume that if we cannot know everything perfectly, we really cannot know anything with any degree of certainty.”
That is entirely at odds with what scripture teaches.. “we have the mind of Christ” (1 cor. 2:16) MacArthur talks more about it and says, that doesn’t mean we know all things but we do have infallible knowledge of what Scripture reveals, as the Spirit of God teaches us through the word of God: “We have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God” (1 Cor 2:12) The fact that our knowledge grows fuller and deeper–and we all therefore change our minds about some things as we gain more and more light-doesn’t mean that everything we know is uncertain, outdated, or in need of an overhaul every few years. The words of 1 John 2:20-21 apply in their true sense to every believer: “you have an anointing
from the Holy One, and you know all things. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and that no lie is of the truth.”
Now is not a good time for Christians to flirt with the spirit of the age. We cannot afford to be apathetic about the truth God has put in our trust. It is our duty to guard, proclaim, and pass truth on.
We also need to test everything by Scripture. Not naively believe things we read in Christian authors books. If it doesn’t match up with the Bible, than it is wrong. The bible is of the highest authority. The Bible speaks of itself as from God, perfect, helpful, authoritative, truthful, flawless..etc.
The question I have is regarding the topic of Homosexuality and whether the Bible is God-breathed (2 Tim. 3:16) and it being divinely inspired what do you think Jesus would say bout these topics. I sure think he would have an opinion on it. What do you think his would be?
Mark Driscoll speaks at a conference and you should download it. It is called “Special: Scripture (Week 1) and then (Week 2) as well.
Paisley Said:
on July 26, 2008 at 4:18 am
Hey Erin!
I don’t know if you’ve seen the documentary “For the Bible Tells Me So”…but it discusses the question you posed about what Jesus would say about homosexuality. It also provides a lot of examples of why it can sometimes be detrimental to not question the Bible in any way. Maybe I misunderstood what you wrote, but I think its part of a spiritual journey (at least my spiritual journey) to sometimes question what the Bible says and wonder if we should take it literally at all times. I don’t think that questioning what the Bible says means in any way that I don’t trust God, but that I am seeking to understand how certain passages can exist with other parts seeming so contradictory. I think the parts of the Bible that I believe to be 100% true definitely outweigh the few passages I am uncertain about. I guess that’s kind of what Jenn’s talking about! This is a definitely interesting conversation and I really like the quotations you showed to help me understand your view better…yay for jenn’s blog
Rhett Smith Said:
on July 28, 2008 at 10:23 am
Jenny:
Good post. A tough topic for sure.
I think that all of us need more humility when we talk about the Bible and when we speak on behalf of God. It’s one thing to point people to Scripture and another to act as if we speak without error in regards to what scripture means and is applied in our lives.
The issue of homosexuality aside, I think the “conservative” side of the evangelical church operates in many ways like the Roman Catholic Church. For example, the Pope speaks “ex cathedra” about a topic and that is the final word. And then some Christians listen to MacArthur, Franis Chan or Mark Driscoll and treat them the same…as if it’s the Pope speaking “ex cathedra.”
MacArthur is super conservative and acts as if he knows everything about everything. I find that dangerous.
So I appreciate the way that Peter posed the topic and brought it into discussion.
A bunch of verses on a page doesn’t mean much apart from the context of the passage, letter, book, etc. Anyone can pull verses out to say anything they want to. But what do they mean in the canon of Scripture can often be very different.
rhett
jennlindsay Said:
on July 28, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Paisley — I hadn’t heard of the majority rule before… it’s an interesting concept I’ll have to look for from now on when I read the Bible (or really anything for that matter.) I really appreciate your insight on this post and i love your open mind.
Erin — I’m so glad you read this and commented with your thoughts. I think we believe the same bottom lines, we just see it through different lenses. I’ve been thinking about this whole concept for the past week and I agree that there is TRUTH but I still respectfully believe that we don’t always have the capabilities to understand it. Yes, God is black and white. But perhaps God knows a bit more than us, and our limited understanding of his infinite knowledge makes what we see gray. Keep searching and so will I
Rhett — I’m glad you pointed out that this post wasn’t about homosexuality per-se, but more about humans thinking they have the ability to understand everything. Good point about speaking “ex cathedra” – I hadn’t thought about it in that light before.
Thank you everyone for reading and being open to discussion!! <3
Erin Said:
on July 31, 2008 at 1:46 am
hey jenn,
i am totally with you on not knowing everything. I hope i didn’t come off like that. my point was to say that God does let us in on some stuff. You know? And just because we don’t know everything doesn’t mean we no nothing at all. And i just know that we should guard the truth that God has entrusted into our hands as we are his ambassadors. My prayer is that every day I can bring glory to him and him alone and that I can continue to raise my view of Him and Isaiah 26:8
Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws,
we wait for you;
your name and renown
are the desire of our hearts.
So, anyways praise God we don’t have all the answers because life is so fun trusting God and clinging to him through every situation. It is an adventure and my life will be about dependency on God, yielding everything in me to him and watching him blow my mind in every single way. So praise God that we cannot comprehend even a tiny bit of him because we worship a huge God who is rich in mercy and grace and delights in us! Now that blows my mind. I love this verse “as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you. (Isaiah 62:5)” So anyways, a little more of my heart is just everyday I am completely stunned at God’s goodness and grace that he has poured out on me..i am so undeserving! t was cool tonight to hear a little more of your testimony I wanna hear more about how God has transformed your life!