1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:03,702 Hello and welcome to the Middletown Baptist Church podcast, 2 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:05,886 where we are proclaiming the truth to the 3 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:08,878 world. In this podcast series, we're 4 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:10,758 going to be looking into biblical 5 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:13,486 words that have great significance to our 6 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:16,318 faith. The name of this series is 7 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:18,854 called the word of the week, where 8 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:21,422 once a week we will dive deeper into 9 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:23,390 these words that we are familiar 10 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:26,494 with in scripture. So come along with me. 11 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:29,010 Let's study the word of the week. 12 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:32,206 Pastor Josh here. The word of the 13 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:35,422 week is interpretation. Last week 14 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:38,382 we looked at biblical inspiration and 15 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:40,270 how that term essentially means that 16 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:42,678 the Bible is given to us from God, 17 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:44,470 directly from him. The source of 18 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:47,222 scripture is God inspired, means 19 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:49,878 God breathed. And so when we look at 20 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:51,510 the Bible, we know that it is given 21 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:54,222 to us by God as his word for us to 22 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:56,568 follow. But there's one thing to 23 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:58,176 recognize, that the Bible is given 24 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:59,776 to us from God. It's another thing to 25 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:01,176 interpret it the way that we should 26 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:03,240 interpret it. The Bible actually 27 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:05,840 warns us against false interpretation or 28 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:08,552 misinterpretation. The Bible says 29 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:10,544 in two TimoTHy, chapter two, verse 15, 30 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:12,456 study to show thyself approved unto 31 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:14,888 God, a workman that needeth not to 32 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:17,552 be ashamed. Rightly dividing the 33 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:19,704 word of truth. I want us to focus 34 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:21,480 in on that last phrase. They're rightly 35 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:22,824 dividing the word of truth. Or you 36 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:24,424 could say it like this, rightly handling 37 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:26,672 the word of truth, interpreting the 38 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:30,192 Bible correctly. Now, all of us understand 39 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:31,784 this, or at least we should understand 40 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:33,528 that. We will never understand the 41 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:35,712 Bible completely, perfectly this 42 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:37,392 side of heaven. But we do need to 43 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:39,168 understand that. The Bible calls 44 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:41,992 us to strive to study the scriptures, 45 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:44,544 to dive deep into scriptures, and to rightly 46 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:46,608 divide or rightly interpret what 47 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:48,808 the word of God has to say. You know, 48 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:49,840 there could be someone that says, 49 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:51,176 I believe that this is the word of 50 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:53,472 God, but I believe that this is interpreted 51 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:54,976 differently than you're interpreting 52 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:57,654 this. And so we can come down the line 53 00:00:00,240 --> 00:01:59,798 on different sides when it comes to 54 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:01,374 interpretation, even if we believe 55 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:03,214 that this is the word of God. So how can 56 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:05,870 we deal with this? Well, really, 57 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:07,774 what we need to understand first and foremost 58 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:09,734 is that the study of the principles 59 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:11,678 and methods of interpreting scriptures, 60 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:13,798 something called hermeneutics, biblical 61 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:15,646 hermeneutics, I know that's a big 62 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:17,534 term, and I know that's something 63 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:19,814 that can sometimes be a little daunting 64 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:21,526 to think about. But the Bible does tell 65 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:23,390 us that there is a specific way that 66 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:24,918 we are to deal with scripture. And 67 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:26,986 it says here in two Timothy, chapter 68 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:28,642 two, rightly dividing the word of 69 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:31,354 truth. And so it's important to interpret 70 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:33,362 scripture correctly because we get 71 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:35,270 to the next step of application. 72 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:38,434 And so our application must be tied to right 73 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:40,442 interpretation. That's tied to the 74 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:42,714 inspiration of God. And so the way 75 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:43,682 that you could think about it is 76 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:45,674 this. To have the right application 77 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:48,498 of scripture, we must rightly interpret 78 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:50,570 scripture and understand that it's 79 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:53,276 inspired. So what are we doing to 80 00:00:00,240 --> 00:02:56,996 apply the instruction given to us 81 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:00,276 by God through our proper interpretation, 82 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:02,724 through inspiration? And so I want 83 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:04,604 to give you some tools in rightly 84 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:07,852 dividing the word of truth. The Bible 85 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:09,996 tells us that it's so important to 86 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:11,724 see the word of God as literally 87 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:14,012 the word of God. And so I believe one of the 88 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:15,564 most important principles in dealing 89 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:16,892 with interpretation of scripture 90 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:19,236 is to take the Bible literally or basically 91 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:21,108 understanding the Bible in its normal 92 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:23,772 and plain meaning, unless the passage 93 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:26,204 is obviously and very clearly laying 94 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:28,676 out a symbolic or figurative speech. 95 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:31,348 For example, God is a rock. We know 96 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:32,732 he's not literally a rock, but we 97 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:35,284 know that that is describing something 98 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:37,092 that God could be compared to for 99 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:38,972 us to understand. So certainly there 100 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:41,284 are some symbolic, figurative references 101 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:43,172 in scripture, but contextually, we 102 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:45,916 understand those. The difficulty 103 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:47,588 that comes with interpreting scripture 104 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:50,748 is what is figurative and what is literal? 105 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:53,276 Well, we have to look at context, and that's 106 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:55,612 really the next step of understanding 107 00:00:00,240 --> 00:03:58,596 the interpretation of scripture. Is interpreting 108 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:00,960 scripture historically, in context, 109 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:04,964 grammatically in context, and really 110 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:06,940 just in the understanding of contextually 111 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:09,252 in the chapter and in the book that 112 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:11,158 we're reading. You know, we can get 113 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:13,230 into a lot of difficulty when we 114 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:14,918 come to a passage of scripture and 115 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:16,486 say, well, what is this saying for 116 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:18,606 me? Well, before we start getting 117 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:21,526 to application, we have to see contextually 118 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:23,134 what the Bible is actually teaching. 119 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:25,118 And if we're interpreting correctly, 120 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:27,286 because we could look at a passage and misinterpret 121 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:29,590 that passage and then misapply that 122 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:32,374 passage to our life. And so one of 123 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:34,582 the things you have to take in, in 124 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:36,246 the understanding of how to interpret 125 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:39,238 is historically, who is the original 126 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:40,830 author through the inspiration of scripture, 127 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:44,534 addressing. Obviously, the people 128 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:46,990 that were in the time of the Bible had 129 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:49,246 a different culture. Historically speaking. 130 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:51,582 They had a different viewpoint on 131 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:52,662 certain things. If you studied the 132 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:54,702 book of Ruth and the things that 133 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:56,590 she was doing with Boaz, right. That 134 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:58,214 doesn't make sense to us in our context 135 00:00:00,240 --> 00:04:59,734 today, but it made sense for them 136 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:01,142 back in the time that they lived. 137 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:03,038 And all of that can be seen throughout 138 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:05,034 the Old Testament and the New Testament. 139 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:08,098 So it takes some study to understand contextually 140 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:09,722 and historically what it's talking 141 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:11,578 about there. Grammatically, I don't 142 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:13,786 think you have to be a proper grammarian 143 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:15,162 to understand scripture, but it is 144 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:16,378 important to understand what the 145 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:18,650 Bible is saying in the original language, 146 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:20,354 in the original Hebrew, in the original 147 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:23,890 Greek. And with enough commentaries 148 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:25,594 today that are available to us online, 149 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:27,546 it's very easy to dive deeper into those 150 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:30,810 greek lexicons and to see those true 151 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:32,330 definitions of what those greek words 152 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:34,218 are. And so we have to understand 153 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:35,802 that. We have to understand that as we read 154 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:37,146 a passage of scripture, we can't just 155 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:39,058 take one verse out of context. We 156 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:40,274 have to see what's been leading up 157 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:42,930 to that verse. What's the whole chapter 158 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:44,162 been talking about? What's this whole 159 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:45,546 book been talking about? What comes 160 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:48,010 after this? And so, to rightly divide 161 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:49,658 the word of truth, obviously, we 162 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:51,442 have to get into it, right? That's 163 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:52,826 what it says in two Timothy, chapter 164 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:54,830 two, study to show thyself approved 165 00:00:00,240 --> 00:05:59,700 unto goddess a workman. So it takes effort. 166 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:03,960 But through that effort comes that 167 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:05,536 confidence that we are doing our 168 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:07,032 best to rightly divide the word of 169 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:09,824 truth. Now, will we make some mistakes? 170 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:11,816 Of course, because we're human. But 171 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:13,248 obviously, we need to check ourselves. 172 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:16,512 We need to have godly counselors around 173 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:20,144 us. And so it takes a lot of steps 174 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:21,888 to get to a place where we can feel, 175 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:23,706 you know what? And we can know. For that 176 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:25,330 matter, we can know that we are doing 177 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:27,138 our best to rightly divide the word 178 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:30,018 of truth. For, for example, you could 179 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:31,042 look at the passage of scripture 180 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:32,746 where Jesus says, you know what? Love your 181 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:34,898 neighbor. Well, first of all, who 182 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:36,666 is my neighbor? Well, to understand 183 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:38,482 it from the wrong context, might say, 184 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:40,186 well, okay, I need to love the people 185 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:41,378 that live to the left and right of 186 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:42,474 me in my neighborhood and across 187 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:44,666 the street from me. But we know through 188 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:46,106 context that Jesus isn't just talking 189 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:47,498 about those who live right next to 190 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:48,658 you. He's talking about those that 191 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:51,140 you come across in your life. Another 192 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:52,516 thing that you could misinterpret 193 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:55,116 there is that word love. Our culture today 194 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:56,692 speaks of love in a very romantic 195 00:00:00,240 --> 00:06:59,260 way, a very selfish way. But Jesus is speaking 196 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:00,700 there of agape love. He's speaking 197 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:02,596 of sacrificial love. He's not talking 198 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:04,516 about the love that's laid out for 199 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:06,132 us in our culture today. He's talking 200 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:07,388 about the love that's described in 201 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:10,548 one corinthians chapter 13. And so 202 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:12,116 we need to know the whole scope of 203 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:13,996 scripture, from Genesis to revelation. 204 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:15,958 What is it talking about here? Now, we 205 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:17,830 know the Bible doesn't contradict 206 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:20,038 itself. Sometimes there can be what we would 207 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:21,598 call seeming contradictions. But 208 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:23,574 if we read the Bible in its complete 209 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:25,966 form, we know that this isn't contradicting 210 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:27,454 this. This is just seeing this from a different 211 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:29,766 perspective. One of those examples 212 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:31,038 would be the book of James. If you read 213 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:32,446 the book of James outside of the 214 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:34,262 whole context of scripture, you might 215 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:36,022 tend to think that there's works 216 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:37,846 needed for salvation. Now, he's not 217 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:39,582 teaching that, but if you looked 218 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:41,206 at that from an isolated standpoint 219 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:43,702 and didn't understand all of what the 220 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:45,022 rest of scripture says, you might 221 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:46,318 be tempted to think that, hey, you know 222 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:49,130 what? Works need to be added to salvation 223 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:51,926 for our forgiveness. But we know 224 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:55,054 that we are saved by God's grace 225 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:57,702 through our faith, faith alone. And 226 00:00:00,240 --> 00:07:59,846 it's the works that are produced 227 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:02,974 through that true faith. And so it took context 228 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:05,102 to understand that. Now, we could 229 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:07,230 talk a lot about this, and we will 230 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:08,910 not take up too much time dealing 231 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:11,108 with interpretation, but it is so important 232 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:12,756 to understand interpretation when it 233 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:15,080 comes to that next step of application. 234 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:16,876 And next week, we'll look more at the 235 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:18,388 application process. But it's all 236 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:21,364 about the application of the interpretation 237 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:24,436 of the inspiration. And so I would encourage 238 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:25,916 you, as you read scripture first 239 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:29,120 and foremost, to read scripture. Study, 240 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:32,852 do your best, strive to dig deeper into 241 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:34,920 the word. The Bible speaks of meditation. 242 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:38,109 Obviously, we know that this isn't 243 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:39,813 talking about the cultural meditation 244 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:41,941 of clearing our minds and emptying our 245 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:44,181 minds. No. It's about standing upon 246 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:45,861 the truths of God and dwelling upon 247 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:48,717 the truths in a healthy way. It's 248 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:50,813 so important to interpret scripture 249 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:53,389 because as we interpret scripture properly, 250 00:00:00,240 --> 00:08:57,293 can guide our steps. I love what psalm 251 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:00,525 119 says. In psalm 119, we look at 252 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:01,781 a couple of different verses here. 253 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:03,189 Thy word have I hid in my heart, 254 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:04,701 that I might not sin against thee. That's 255 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:07,698 verse eleven. So as we hide God's 256 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:09,114 word in our heart, as we memorize 257 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:11,642 it, as we meditate upon it, it allows us 258 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:13,282 to live that life of holiness. It 259 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:15,194 allows us to live that life of righteousness, 260 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:17,434 not because we're just trying really 261 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:19,442 hard, but now we know the word of 262 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:21,122 God, and now we're dwelling upon 263 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:23,066 the word of God. And so, as we meditate 264 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:25,322 upon the word of God, as we dwell upon 265 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:27,162 it, as it says in verse 15 of psalm 266 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:29,506 119, I will meditate in thy precepts 267 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:31,890 and have respect unto thy ways. Verse 268 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:34,426 16, I will delight myself in thy statutes, 269 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:36,866 I will not forget thy word. And so, 270 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:38,682 over and over again in that chapter, 271 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:40,458 we are reminded of the importance of 272 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:42,090 meditating upon the truth of God. 273 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:44,322 Psalm one reminds us of that. It 274 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:46,858 tells us that we will be like trees 275 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:48,498 planted by the rivers of water when 276 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:50,202 we meditate upon the truths of God's 277 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:53,394 word. Later on in psalm 119, verse 278 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:56,386 105, we are reminded of the light 279 00:00:00,240 --> 00:09:58,922 that it brings us in our life. Psalm 280 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:01,890 119 105 says, thy word is a lamp 281 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:03,946 unto my feet and a light unto my 282 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:06,218 path. And so to rightly divide the 283 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:08,058 word of truth allows us to get to 284 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:09,450 a place in our life where we are 285 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:12,682 guided by his word. And so I would 286 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:14,218 encourage you to think about, yes, 287 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:16,506 the source of scripture is God. But 288 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:18,138 secondarily, we need to understand 289 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:20,098 that as we interpret scripture, we need to 290 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:22,122 interpret it as God would have us 291 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:23,570 interpret it, not the way that we 292 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:25,652 would want to interpret it. So there's 293 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:26,828 two terms that I want to leave you 294 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:28,796 with here today. There's the term 295 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:32,764 eisegesis and exegesis. Eisegesis 296 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:36,820 is a term for the action of us, taking 297 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:38,916 what we already believe and what we want 298 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:41,172 to think and imparting that into 299 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:43,276 scripture, basically adding it to 300 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:44,884 scripture or trying to find those 301 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:47,860 truths there in scripture. Exegesis 302 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:50,356 is looking at the text and pulling out 303 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:51,860 from the text the actual teaching 304 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:55,452 that's there. And so it's important to practice 305 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:57,372 exegesis because we want to make 306 00:00:00,240 --> 00:10:58,860 sure we know what the Bible says, 307 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:00,268 right. We want to be Bereans. We 308 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:02,036 want to dig deeper and say, okay, 309 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:04,244 what is the Bible teaching me? Not 310 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:06,252 what can I bring into the Bible? 311 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:08,996 And so Iseousis would be me saying, I 312 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:11,012 know that this is true. I want this 313 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:13,236 to be true. This is what I believe. 314 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:14,820 And so where can I find in scripture 315 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:18,782 that to fit into my belief system? So we 316 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:20,982 never want to bring into the scriptures 317 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:23,558 what we want it to say. We want to 318 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:25,278 see exactly what the Bible has to 319 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:27,374 say to us. So that might be different 320 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:30,254 than what we want it to say. So I 321 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:31,222 would encourage you to think about 322 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:33,454 those two terms, exegesis pulling 323 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:35,798 out of the passage to the truth, or Isajesus 324 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:37,966 infusing into the passage what we 325 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:41,090 want it to say. And so, in so doing, 326 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:44,350 we can learn from scripture, we can 327 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:46,326 grow from scripture, instead of trying 328 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:48,054 to make scripture fit into our box, 329 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:51,254 into our culture, into our lifestyle. 330 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:53,190 And so sometimes there's some justification 331 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:55,534 with that. Right. Well, I feel good about 332 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:57,230 doing this. So can I find something 333 00:00:00,240 --> 00:11:59,334 in scripture that can make me feel better 334 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:01,630 about myself instead of saying, well, 335 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:03,166 what does the Bible say about my 336 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:04,862 life? And do I need to change this? 337 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:06,286 Does God want me to grow in this 338 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:08,950 area? And so part of interpretation 339 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:12,376 in that hermeneutic model is to pull out 340 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:13,920 from the passage what is there not 341 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:15,632 to infuse what we want to be there. 342 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:16,696 Now, we're seeing that in culture 343 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:18,560 today. We're seeing people trying 344 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:21,352 to fit their lifestyle, their belief 345 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:24,240 system, their comfort into what scripture 346 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:26,128 says. And we can even see a lot of 347 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:27,176 people saying, well, that was the 348 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:29,416 culture back then, but this is the 349 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:31,656 culture now. So we need to interpret 350 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:34,576 it with that mindset. And so there's 351 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:36,720 danger with that. Because if we say 352 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:38,528 that that was the culture, then, 353 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:40,528 this is the culture now. We can change 354 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:42,912 that teaching then basically, we have 355 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:45,120 the latitude and the freedom in our own 356 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:47,072 minds to then change anything we 357 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:49,488 want to our culture today. And we 358 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:50,664 know that the truths of scripture 359 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:53,992 never change. The Bible says that the grass 360 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:57,552 will wither, it will pass away, but 361 00:00:00,240 --> 00:12:59,580 the word of God will stand forever. 362 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:01,960 And so the word of God standing forever 363 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:03,232 means the truths that are in the 364 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:05,260 word of God will stand forever. Forever, 365 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:07,884 o Lord, is thy word settled in heaven. 366 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:10,868 And so the word of God is eternal. 367 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:15,356 Its impact is timeless. It doesn't change 368 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:17,196 over culture. Now, sometimes in the 369 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:19,300 application, there might be some 370 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:20,660 differences, right, in the concept 371 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:22,948 of, okay, let's look at iPhones, right? 372 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:26,276 Or smartphones. Smartphones weren't 373 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:29,692 around 2000 years ago. And so obviously 374 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:32,180 the Bible doesn't speak directly to smartphones 375 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:33,252 and how we should deal with them, 376 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:34,972 but it does speak to the principles that 377 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:36,316 are involved in the idea of self 378 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:38,104 control, not putting wicked things 379 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:40,144 before our eyes, not allowing something 380 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:42,032 to control our lives. That's all 381 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:43,912 there in scripture. And so what we 382 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:45,824 do is we look at our life and we 383 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:48,392 see how the truths of scripture that 384 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:50,520 we're interpreting correctly as two 385 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:51,952 Timothy, chapter two tells us to 386 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:53,664 do, to rightly divide the word of 387 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:55,232 truth as we rightly divide the word 388 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:56,896 of truth, then we take those truths 389 00:00:00,240 --> 00:13:59,216 with us and then we apply them to 390 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:01,656 our life today. We apply them to 391 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:03,342 what we're dealing with today. So 392 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:04,678 many times people want to go from 393 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:06,598 inspiration and go right to application 394 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:08,486 without the proper interpretation 395 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:11,358 there. And so, again, we're not going to be 396 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:12,398 perfect. You're not going to be perfect. 397 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:13,758 I'm not going to be perfect. We're 398 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:15,502 going to misinterpret passages, we're 399 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:17,278 going to misunderstand passages. 400 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:19,422 But it's so important for us to dig deeper 401 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:21,966 into understanding those checks and balances 402 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:25,134 when it comes to looking at scripture. 403 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:27,966 So I could say this, scripture is always 404 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:30,224 the best commentary on scripture. 405 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:32,780 And so for that reason, make sure you read 406 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:34,532 more passages. Maybe you read a passage 407 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:35,812 of scripture and it confuses you, 408 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:37,796 or maybe it kind of contradicts what 409 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:41,012 you think it should say. Go and read 410 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:42,204 the rest of scripture. See what the 411 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:43,988 Bible has to say about the topic. 412 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:46,756 I mean, ultimately, in John 1717, Jesus 413 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:48,316 says, sanctify them through thy truth. 414 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:50,720 Thy word is truth. The Bible is truth. 415 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:52,484 So many times in our world today, 416 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:53,684 people want to come up with other 417 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:56,340 truths. But what we do is we start 418 00:00:00,240 --> 00:14:58,156 with scripture as our truth and we 419 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:00,442 build from there. And so I would 420 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:01,986 encourage you, as you study scripture, 421 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:05,378 read, meditate, grow in the truth 422 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:07,530 of God, grow in the understanding of 423 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:09,154 what that means for your life. But 424 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:11,234 start with that proper interpretation. 425 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:14,938 So start with the understanding of inspiration. 426 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:17,586 This is coming from God, not a work of 427 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:19,386 man. All scripture is given by inspiration 428 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:21,026 of God. And it's profitable for doctrine, 429 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:22,322 for reproof, for correction, for 430 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:23,978 instruction and righteousness. And 431 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:25,984 then go from that understanding of 432 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:29,336 interpretation, or, excuse me, inspiration, 433 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:32,024 and then take it to that interpretation 434 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:34,640 and say, okay, what is this saying? What 435 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:36,976 is this teaching? And then next week, 436 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:38,728 we will look at application. What 437 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:40,008 does this look like in our lives 438 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:42,420 after we go past the interpretive 439 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:45,272 stage? So, thank you so much for listening today. 440 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:46,392 I hope that this has been a help 441 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:48,352 for you. I hope that you can continue 442 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:49,888 to study the word of God, and as the 443 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:51,176 Bible says there in two Timothy, 444 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:53,628 chapter two, verse 15, to rightly divide 445 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:55,812 the word of truth. Well, God bless you. 446 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:57,148 Have a wonderful week. We will talk 447 00:00:00,240 --> 00:15:58,828 to you next week on the word of the 448 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:01,020 week episode. Hey, I really appreciate 449 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:02,452 that you listen to the word of the 450 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:05,084 Week podcast. If you have any questions 451 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:07,540 about the podcast or about our church, 452 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:09,436 Middletown Baptist Church, you can 453 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:11,020 find more information about us on 454 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:13,524 Facebook or YouTube, or you can find 455 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:17,116 the podcast on nbcpodcast.org dot. 456 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:20,290 You can contact me directly at Joshmissaro 457 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:23,350 middletownbaptistchurch.org. stay 458 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:24,966 tuned for future word of the week 459 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:27,182 episodes where we dive deeper into 460 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:29,398 words that impact our life according 461 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:31,486 to scripture. Thank you so much. God 462 00:00:00,240 --> 00:16:32,750 bless. We'll talk to you soon.