Exploring the Holy Scriptures: The Back to Basics Series - Softcover

Johnson, Rev. O. L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 144016455X ISBN 13: 9781440164552

Verlag: iUniverse, 2009

Inhaltsangabe

Trying to understand the Bible can be a daunting task, especially for students who are just beginning to try to grasp its meaning. But anyone who has a passion for God can enhance his or her understanding of the Bible with some effort. In Exploring the Holy Scriptures, beginning students will find concise answers to their questions, and those trying to hone their knowledge will take their understanding to the next level. Reverend O.L. Johnson considers some of the most essential questions for Christians, including: How to know and understand God, The nature of faith, How to develop Christian maturity, Ways to build God's kingdom, And much more! With this book, you will be devoting yourself to a practical study of Christian doctrines. If you prefer books that skip long-flowing theological concepts and get to what really matters, then it's time to begin. Exploring the Holy Scriptures.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Reverend O.L. Johnson graduated with a bachelor's degree in public affairs from the University of Southern California and retired in 1990 after thirty years as a police officer with the Los Angeles Police Department. An ordained minister, he lives with his wife in Diamond Bar, California.

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Exploring the Holy Scriptures

The Back to Basics SeriesBy O.L. Johnson

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2009 Reverend O.L. Johnson
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4401-6455-2

Contents

Foreword.....................................................viiPrologue.....................................................ixChapter 1: Discovering Bible Meaning.........................1Chapter 2: Knowing and Understanding God.....................13Chapter 3: Faith.............................................25Chapter 4: Christian Maturity................................35Chapter 5: Kingdom Building..................................51Chapter 6: Stewardship.......................................63Chapter 7: Eternal Destiny...................................77

Chapter One

Discovering Bible Meaning

The Bible is the most unique book ever written. Consider these facts about the Bible: it was written by forty men over a period of about sixteen hundred years; the writers of the Old Testament never knew the writers of the New Testament, yet they were in complete agreement on the subject matter within the book; it is the only book written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; and, it is the only book "authored" by God the Father. Although a perennial best seller, the Bible is probably the least read and the least understood book ever written.

Trying to understand the meaning of some parts of the Bible can be an intimidating experience. The purpose of this chapter is to suggest a simple, understandable method of interpreting scripture which will help in efforts to discover Bible meaning. Our goal is to "discover" meaning, which implies that the meaning is already there waiting to be found. Too many of us "create" meaning by twisting scripture to make it say what we want it to say. Some of us have preconceived notions of truth based on our personal opinions and philosophies. As a result, we find ourselves creating meaning as opposed to letting scripture speak for itself, thus discovering meaning. There are two basic ways the Bible communicates meaning to its readers:

1. What the writers meant by what they wrote.

2. What the original readers understood as they read the printed page.

Since neither the writers nor the readers are available to guide us, we only have the biblical text to rely on to discover meaning. To take advantage of the help the text has to offer, we must first determine the meaning of selected key words within a given text. In making these determinations, it is essential to consider each word from the following points of view:

1. What the word refers to in the text.

2. What is the dictionary meaning of the word.

3. Does emotion contribute to the meaning of the word.

4. How surrounding verses contribute to the meaning of the word.

If we accept the position that the Bible writers intended that they be understood, then it is our responsibility to interpret scripture correctly, which involves the task of correct word definition. Our minds automatically process what we hear, and we unconsciously understand the meanings of words almost immediately. Unfortunately, this is not the case when we read the Bible, for the following reasons:

1. The Bible was written in languages foreign to us.

2. It was written to people who lived centuries ago.

3. Those people lived in a different part of the world and had different cultures and lifestyles from ours.

4. What they understood automatically takes more effort for us. As a result, we must analyze what we read in the Bible to get the understanding they got automatically. There are four basic elements of interpretation to employ to help us in our efforts to understand:

1. Literary context

2. Historical-cultural background

3. Word meanings

4. Grammatical relationships

By literary context, we mean the train of thought in the verses prior to the verse in question and how that thought impacts the verse as it flows through and beyond it. We can test the validity of our interpretation of a given verse by determining whether our thought process follows the writer's train of thought, or whether our meaning is consistent with the literary context of the verse. In considering context, it is important to understand that it is an ever expanding concept. It can be only a few verses, or the chapter in which the verse is located, or the entire book in which the chapter is located. Context is the cardinal rule of interpretation. To ignore it is to determine meaning on only a part of what the writer wrote and, as a result, arrive at a meaning he did not intend. Every passage of scripture must be interpreted consistent with its context.

Since words are primary to communication, correct interpretation of scripture depends upon determining the normal meaning of the words used by the writer in concert with proper literary context. Due to the complexity of words, this may not be as simple as one might think.

Most words have a range of meaning and several nuances of meaning. For example, in Philippians 3:2, Paul uses the word "dog."

The dictionary meaning is "a highly variable domestic animal closely related to the common wolf." When we consider the context of the verse, it is clear that Paul is not talking about an animal; he is referring to people and registering his disapproval of some of their practices. This suggests a careful study of words to discover specific meanings, and the part emotions may have had as the writer chose which words to use. We cannot ever understand any passage if we do not know the meaning of the words in the passage. Not all words in a passage will require detailed study. In some cases, meanings can be discovered by comparing the words in a passage using various modern English translations. Other words, however, do require extensive study. For example: English words we do not understand; words which have an impact on the meaning of the passage; words that relate to history, culture, or theology; seldom used words in contemporary society; and words that are used repeatedly.

Range of meaning refers to all the possible meanings of a given word used by the writer in the original text. Discovering range of meaning requires research in Hebrew or Greek lexicons and dictionaries, which are available in Bible bookstores. These sources contain all possible meanings of a given word in a passage. Coupled with context, history, culture, and grammatical relationships, one can then determine the best meaning of that word in that passage. Resist the temptation to select a meaning that seems to verify any preconceived personal opinions or philosophies. This may reduce study time, but it usually results in an incorrect interpretation far removed from the intent of the writer. Put in the effort to discover all possible meanings of a word, and then determine the best meaning given the grammatical relationships, historical-cultural background, and literary context. It cannot be overemphasized that the single most important criterion for determining meaning in a given passage is context.

Grammar is a basic tool writers use to organize words in ways that convey the thoughts they want to get across to their readers. Readers also use grammar to determine meaning from the written word. In any given passage of scripture, meaning is impacted by the relationships between words which are seen in the order in which words appear, the forms of the words, the use of connecting words, and what words describe. An...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: iUniverse
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2009
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 144016455X
• ISBN 13: 9781440164552
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 108
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: gpsr@libri.de; gpsr@libri.de; ; Europaallee 1; Bad Hersfeld; 36244; Deutschland