How to read the bible cheat sheet

WEEK 1:

What is potentially problematic about the following statements: “The Bible says it, I believe it, that settles it!” Or… “If we’d spend less time interpreting the Bible and more time just doing what it says, we’d all be better off.”

While it is true that the aim of good interpretation is simple: to get at the plain meaning of the text this is complicated by two factors:

The Reader: We assume that we understand what we are reading and that our understanding is the intended meaning.

The Nature of scripture: The Bible has eternal relevance and speaks to all humankind but it was also written by humans(inspired by God) to a particular culture in a particular period of time.

Guiding principles for reading the Bible

The two tasks of good Bible reading are…

Exegesis- Think then and there

Seeks to discover the original, intended meaning of the text.

Hermeneutics- Think here and now

Seeks to understand what the text means for us today.

Here are 3 basic steps to approaching a text:

Observe, ask “ What does it say?”

Interpret, ask “ What does it mean?

Apply, ask “ What am I supposed to do with it?”

Two Key Kinds of Questions:

-Questions of context (historical/cultural and literary)

-Questions of content (the meaning of words/phrases, textual issues)

WEEK 2:

Western Perspective VS Eastern Perspective

The writers of the Bible were Hebrew and they were very Eastern in nature. Not only that, they were also writing to a very Eastern audience. So, when we read the Bible, we are eavesdropping in on a very Eastern conversation.

Dissecting Frog Example:

The Western perspective would be able to tell you things like how the heart works, and how it’s respiratory system functions. Without the western perspective we would never have advanced medicine and technology.

The Eastern perspective walks into a room and looks at the frog and asks, What was the frog’s name? Did the frog have a girlfriend? The eastern perspective wants to get to know the frog.

Each perspective brings something to the table, and each perspective would be incomplete without the other.

The Eastern perspective reminds us that we don’t have to have all the answers.

The Eastern perspective reminds us that we don’t have to be afraid of hard questions.

The Eastern perspective reminds us that this isn’t about fixing things that are wrong. It’s about learning how to wrestle with the tension and to recognize that we don’t know everything.

WEEK 3:

5 Principles for interpreting Biblical Narrative:

1. Narrative records what happened--not necessarily what should have happened or what ought to happen every time. Therefore, not every narrative has an individual identifiable moral application.
2. We are not always told at the end of a narrative whether what happened was good or bad. We are expected to be able to judge this on the basis of what God taught us directly and categorically elsewhere in Scripture.
3. All narratives are selective and incomplete; not all relevant details are always given(cf. John 21:25). What does appear in the narrative is everything that the inspired author thought important for us to know.
4. Narratives are not written to answer all of our theological questions. They have particular, specific, limited purposes and deal with certain issues, leaving others to be dealt with elsewhere in other ways.
5. In the final analysis, God is the hero of all biblical narratives.

WEEK 4:

Letters

Out of the 27 books in the New Testament 21 are letters (epistles) this fact alone means that to understand the New Testament we have to learn how to interpret letters correctly.

How do you know when you’re reading a letter?

• Letters have a specific style (date, recipient, greeting, body, salutation, signature).
• Letters are usually directed to a specific person or group
• Letters address a specific situation or issue, called forth by a specific circumstance from the reader’s side or the authors.
• Letters are technically called occasional documents because you cannot really understand a letter without understanding why it was written.
• Think of letters as applied theology (the practice of applying religious beliefs in practical ways)

We can’t bring our questions and issues to the New Testament letters without first understanding the questions and issues they were written to address.

WEEK 5:

Gospels

Why are there four gospels and not just one? One potential answer- because they were written for different audiences.

Matthew was written to the Jews

Mark was written to the Romans

Luke was written to the Greeks

John was written to everyone

When it comes to understanding how the gospels were written, it is important to remember that the gospel writers were not just compilers of stories, they were authors. As such, there were three principles at work in the composition of the gospels.

1. Selectivity
2. Arrangement
3. Adaptation

They were not meant to be exhaustive collections--no one is telling the WHOLE story

Luke and Matthew used Mark as a primary source.

Mark’s primary source was Peter (he was one of the inner three of the apostles so he had ultimate access to Jesus)

WEEK 6:

Revelation

The book of Revelation is a unique combination of THREE distinct types of literature

1. Apocalypse
2. Prophecy
3. Letters

• Apocalyptic literature is full of symbolic language with hidden meanings.
• The imagery is more fantasy than reality.
• The images are highly structured and divide time and events into neat packages, and they often use numbers as symbols.
• The images are often described using similes.  This is a tool to try to describe something that is indescribable. The clue of simile should tip the reader off to the fact that it should not be taken literally.

“The main themes of Revelation are abundantly clear: The church and the state are on a collision course; and initial victory will appear to belong to the state…BUT… this prophetic word is also one of encouragement--for God is in control of all things.  Christ holds the keys to history, and he holds the churches in his hands (1:17-20).  Thus the church triumphs even through death (12:11).”

-How to Read the Bible For All It’s Worth, pg. 258

Following Jesus is the way of the cross.  God has not promised us freedom from suffering and death, but victory through it.