Is Theology Futile?- Part 4
I think in regards to the Holy Spirit and interpretation, Dan Wallace's paper on this says it all. Thus, I won't be discussing this issue any further, for now.
Let me end with some of my remaining thoughts on wether it is right for us to proclaim that we have the truth (or to say that we are right) about a certain Bible verse.
Some would say that, because of the plethora of interpretations out there, we ought to shy away from pronouncing that we are right. I think that this claim is basically unfounded.
I think that we have the right to say that we have the truth when we are convinced that we do so. One's convictions, however, musn't be merely feelings. Rather, it must be backed up and be defensible.
How do we arrive at that sort of convictions? Well, we study the Bible. And let me stress that it is not enough to superficially read and compare verses. We must comb through everything- the grammar, what it would've meant to its listeners, context and many other things.
This may be daunting, but that doesn't mean we can laze around and still interpret the Bible like experts. It is our responsibility that when we say we are right, we can truly tell or show others the effort we went through to come to our conclusion.
But shouldn't we still be careful when we make truth proclamations? Yes, but not to do so would be against everything the Bible is. To not say that the we are speaking the truth goes against Truth itself. Namely, God and His Word.
Everytime a preacher says "the Bible says", he is making a claim that what he is telling you right now is what the Bible means. And I think that to say that he instead should be careful when making such proclamations and instead say "the Bible might mean this" or "There is a probability that Jesus could be telling us to do this" is ludicrous.
We may be wrong, but that doesn't mean we can't say that we are right when we are convinced that we are. Convictions can wary from feelings of certainty to certainty spawned by study and effort. And we should always strive for the latter kind of conviction.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. - 2 Timothy 2:15
Soli Deo Gloria.
Let me end with some of my remaining thoughts on wether it is right for us to proclaim that we have the truth (or to say that we are right) about a certain Bible verse.
Some would say that, because of the plethora of interpretations out there, we ought to shy away from pronouncing that we are right. I think that this claim is basically unfounded.
I think that we have the right to say that we have the truth when we are convinced that we do so. One's convictions, however, musn't be merely feelings. Rather, it must be backed up and be defensible.
How do we arrive at that sort of convictions? Well, we study the Bible. And let me stress that it is not enough to superficially read and compare verses. We must comb through everything- the grammar, what it would've meant to its listeners, context and many other things.
This may be daunting, but that doesn't mean we can laze around and still interpret the Bible like experts. It is our responsibility that when we say we are right, we can truly tell or show others the effort we went through to come to our conclusion.
But shouldn't we still be careful when we make truth proclamations? Yes, but not to do so would be against everything the Bible is. To not say that the we are speaking the truth goes against Truth itself. Namely, God and His Word.
Everytime a preacher says "the Bible says", he is making a claim that what he is telling you right now is what the Bible means. And I think that to say that he instead should be careful when making such proclamations and instead say "the Bible might mean this" or "There is a probability that Jesus could be telling us to do this" is ludicrous.
We may be wrong, but that doesn't mean we can't say that we are right when we are convinced that we are. Convictions can wary from feelings of certainty to certainty spawned by study and effort. And we should always strive for the latter kind of conviction.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. - 2 Timothy 2:15
Soli Deo Gloria.
This entry was posted
on Thursday, July 06, 2006 at 3:58 PM.
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