People like to say that there are many interpretations of the Bible. They say this in order to justify their viewpoint when it differs from that of established thought. This is why we have SO many denominations of the Christian church. The problem is that if we allow people to interpret the Bible any way they want, in order to validate their precepts, we end up with the mess we have where denominations are constantly squabbling over points of scripture. Sniping at one another creates disunity in a body that should be perfectly united in the love of God. Some are trying to rewrite the Bible because they can’t force existing scriptures into the mold they want to follow. God does not allow us to “interpret” His word. If we change His word, it is no longer His word, but our word and we are no longer believing in God, but in a god of our own design. That is idolatry, even if we use the traditional names and images.
But, it may not be possible to get all Christians to agree on one, single, all-encompassing definition of everything the Bible says. Even in the days just after Jesus ascended and the Apostles were teaching in Jerusalem, there were some — former disciples — who were teaching some twisted interpretations of the Gospel. One wanted to require followers of Jesus to obey the old covenant as well as the commandments of Jesus. These Legalists wanted to keep circumcision, the festivals, and many of the requirements of The Law. This was wrong, and misled anyone who followed them.
The old covenant was an agreement between God and the Hebrews. No one attained salvation under The Law, because no one could keep it perfectly. The purpose of The Law was to show them how far they were from being Godly. When the Hebrews followed God’s Law as well as they could, sacrificing when they messed up, God blessed them with abundance on this Earth. When they strayed, God took from them what they had. The Israelites had no clear concept of an after-life until they were enslaved in Egypt (Egyptians were consumed with the idea of an after-life).
Israelites were promised blessing in this life for their obedience: which is why so many devout Jews were (and are) leaders in the financial world.
Jesus offers us just the opposite. If we believe and obey, we may or may not be blessed with riches in this life (He promises us life in abundance, not necessarily a life of abundance) but we have the assurance of an eternity with Him. Before Jesus ascended, he told His disciples “I go to prepare a place…” (John 14:2). PREPARE: that means it did not yet exist. Once Jesus got (back) to Heaven, he began preparing a place to receive us.
To claim His promise, we must understand and obey His commandments. To understand God’s Word, we need to dig in deep and study it diligently — for ourselves. We must avoid inserting things we want it to say. We must pray for wisdom and be receptive to God’s word as we study. It’s too easy for people to apply contemporary meanings to ancient words and phrases then state as fact, “this obviously means…” when in fact they are offering an opinion that may not be Biblical. The Bible tells us, “study diligently to show yourself approved.” (2 Timothy 2:15) Learning from an educated and dedicated teacher is a fine thing, but don’t rely on him or her alone for scriptural truth: study it for yourself.
There will be many (billions, probably) who will stand before the judgment seat of God and cry out, “But my pastor told me…”
What Do I Need For Bible Study?
A good start on studying God’s word is a good study bible. A study bible contains the full text of the bible but also offers notations on each passage that will bring insight and clarity. It will also offer cross-references to related passages and additional material that helps explain biblical concepts. In the back is a concordance of important terms and concepts and maybe a dictionary of terms. These are available in most translations and from various commentary sources and with a wide variety of features. Visit a Christian book store and look at their selection.
Digging Deeper
To ferret out the original meanings of words, get a copy of Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. This is an invaluable aid in finding instances of words in the bible and it cross-indexes these words with a Hebrew/Aramaic dictionary that explains the meanings and uses of each word. This tool brings great clarity to your studies! If money is tight, look for a copy in a used book store or on-line. The latest edition is an expanded, exhaustive version that offers some added tools, but new ones can be pricey.
The Vines Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words is an excellent resource for Bible word studies in Greek or Hebrew. It includes Strong’s Concordance numbers for each word making it easy to differentiate between various meanings. I use it in conjunction with Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance.
An Amplified Bible is also handy when trying to understand tricky passages. The amplified re-states the bible in detailed, plain English terminology.
