This week’s program continues on the topic of context among the forest of Bible verses. Christians have been trained to think of the Bible as one book, when in fact, it is made up of many different books recorded over hundreds and even thousands of years. We’re not saying it’s wrong to memorize individual verses, but they should always be considered within the context of the passage, the gospel, the New Covenant, and the Bible as a whole. We touch quickly on a few examples that you may have heard from a different perspective than what the context is communicating. These include: the law of shaving thy face; you will know them by their fruits; this is the day the Lord has made; and the tithing verse from the book of Hebrews.
Chapters and verses in the Bible were added by publishers for reference purposes. It’s a handy tool in being able to locate specific passages in Scripture. Most of us have been taught to memorize by these individual verses, but there is an element of danger in doing this — it risks the assumption that a complete thought from the writer is contained with an individual verse. The writer may be communicating a point that is being shared over the course of many verses, or even several chapters. Plucking verses out of context not only leads to a misunderstanding of the passage, but of the gospel itself. This practice can cause Christians to slip into confusion and even despair, while often leading people into religious cults. While all Scripture is given by inspiration of God, this isn’t to be assumed that everything in the Bible is meant to be applied to us in a direct, personal way. Our understanding of the written Word will grow as we rightly divide this Word of Truth… not only from the context of the passage, but of the context of the gospel from a New Covenant perspective.
