Allegorical Bible Study

0:02 Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is the Theology Central podcast, making Theology Central. Here's an odd question or maybe questions. All right, so it may seem weird to ask this, but I'm going to ask this. When is an axe head not an axe head? And when is Israel not Israel? When is an axehead not an axehead? And when is Israel not Israel? Now you may be thinking, well, no, an ax said, is an axe head? Israel is Israel? When would they not be those things? Well, we're talking about Christianity, We're talking about Bible study, We're talking about hermeneutics. Where an axehead may not be an axe head, Israel may not be Israel, but Jesus is Jesus or who who knows. We're gonna figure it all out in just a minute, but for now, welcome everyone. It is Thursday, October seventeenth, twenty twenty four.

1:10 It is currently two thirty two pm Central time, and I am coming to you live from the Theology Central studio located right here in Abilene, Texas. But maybe studio isn't studio Abilene isn't Abilene Theology Central really means underwater basket weaving central. Maybe maybe nothing is what it seems, maybe nothing means what it means. Maybe maybe everything is subjective and relativistic, and maybe nobody knows anything. Maybe. I think yesterday I described the Christian actually the way Christians actually study the Bible, the actual Christian hermeneutic. Read the Bible and say whatever you want to say, read the Bible and just make things up. That's the actual way Christians study the Bible. You just read the Bible and make things up, and it's perfectly Okay. I know that sounds very cynical, very jaded. Some may say that's a little hyperbolic. It's not really that way. People care about the text because the Bible is the word of God and we respect Okay, I know all the right words.

2:20 But when it comes down to it, I think Christians just read the Bible, make things up, and you know it may offend you. But have you been listening to the sermon reviews we've been doing lately. Now, we did have one that was positive, but I mean, come on, sometimes even in our sermon reviews, I think we're all sitting there going what is happening right now? What is going on? Now? It all started. It all started when we found ourselves and Second Kings Chapter six, Second King's chapter six, where we read these words. Second King's chapter six, where we read these words, the sons of the prophets said, unto Elisha, behold now the place where we dwell with THEE is too straight for us. Let us go. We pray thee under Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place where we may dwell.

3:15 And he answered, go yee. And one said, be content, I pray thee and go with thy servants, And he answered, I will go. So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood. But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water, and he cried and said, alas master, for it was borrowed an axe head. Now we reviewed a sermon about the axe head, and the sermon said, the axe head, Now, now this is very important. Listen to the kind of the little game that's being played. They would not deny that this is a historical narrative. They would not deny that it was a real axehead. But after acknowledging that it's a real axehead and it's a real historical narrative the entire In fact, they didn't even really acknowledge it in the sermon, but they would acknowledge it.

4:09 I'm not going to question their their theology like that. They would acknowledge it. But almost instantaneously, all of a sudden, during the sermon, the axe head wasn't an axehead. The axhead represented our fellowship with God. The axhead represented our effectiveness and the work for God. The axehead represented our passion and our zeal. The axe head and it just started representing this and representing this, and it just started. It just continued and continued and continued and continued, and it became very frustrating. And when I started looking other things up about the axehead, I found we found in church history those say that it represents power. Then it represents effectiveness, it represents an issue with finances, a lot of different things. We went through all the different things and history, and I'm like, this is insane. Why can't the axe head just be an axhead? And then we draw some principles from losing an axe head that was borrowed and what took place. Maybe maybe we just try to place it in its context. Now we did hear a sermon at least some of it that did at least do that. So that's at least a positive thing that there was at least one sermon. But it seems much more common, much more frequent, to say the axe head represents this, and this represents this, and this represents this.

5:31 Even the man crying out saying saying, as his exact words, a last master, for it was borrowed. The crying out we we we heard was actually that's that's confessing of sin, and that him the axe head falling off is because he was spiritually apathetic and complacent and bored with the work of God. Like just it was just crazy what we were hearing. And I was like this, this is crazy. But even before we got to the axe head, we've been talking about Christians and sin and how Christians understand sin, and we got into a whole discussion about so, so do we have a new heart? Knew this, what do we have what? And over and over and over we heard sermon after sermon after sermon that kept saying we have a new heart, we have a new heart, we have a new heart, and every single one of them quoted so we have second King's chapter six about the axhead.

6:28 And then over and over and over we had everyone quoting Ezekiel chapter thirty six, where we read we where we read these words, we read them, and I'm going to read them right now, Ezequel thirty six, verse twenty six. I quote a new heart. Also, will I give you now if you read Ezekiel thirty six and all the verses that come before verse twenty six. I don't know how you can't how you would not be able to identify the you, the you is Israel. But I digress, and a new spirit will I put within you again? The you would be Israel. And I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh again, the you would be Israel. And I will put my spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statues. And you shall keep my judgments and do them, and ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers.

7:21 Once they get a new heart, once they get a new spirit, then they will dwell in the land. So you would think, well, who is it that's going to dwell in the land. That's not you and me, that's not Christians, that's the church. Unless now land isn't land, Israel isn't Israel. So once again we have a text where and just look at Ezekiel thirty six. You just start in verse one and count how many times Israel is used over and over and over before you get to twenty six. But somehow Israel isn't Israel. Go to Second Kings chapter six. An axe head isn't an axehead. So when is an axe head not an axe head? And when is Israel not Israel? And if I can, if I read my Bible, and I don't know when an axet is an axet, and I don't know when Israel is Israel, and I don't know when land is land, and I don't know when day is day, and I don't know when God is God, and I don't know when Jesus is Jesus, and I don't know when water is water, and I don't know when a storm is a storm. When it can just subjectively become whatever we want it to be, we just read our Bibles and make it up. If that's the hermeneutic, then ladies and gentlemen, there is no way to judge or criticize anyone's interpretation.

8:29 All interpretations are a free for all, so just stop criticizing and just accept it. But no, no, no, no, no, no no, no, there's rules. Everyone will yell and scream that there are rules and there's right interpretation and wrong interpretation. Well the next thing, you know, this person is this, and this is this, and this represents this, and this is a picture of this, and everything just becomes very subjective. So why am I here right now? Right? Well, there was a part of me that was going to go and look at an interpretation I was taught in one of the schools, but I was having trouble finding it. But I was going to go there and talk about that. But I couldn't find all the information I needed. So then I was just like, man, this is frustrating. Do we just move on from Second King six?

9:19 Do I just say we're done? Or do I do some more work? And I still need to do some work in Second Kings fifteen and well we still need to work on the six Secrets of the Christian life, and we need to get to secret number four. Okay about light, Okay, we need to all right, Oh what do I do? What do I do? What do I do. So while I was sitting here just getting frustrated. Well, it's you know what, It's twenty twenty four, right, this is the year of the Sermons two point zero app Sermon Challenge. So I opened up Sermon Audio, went to Newest Sermons and I saw something that said the allegorical Method, and I'm like, oh, oh yeah, this is about hermeneutics. Okay.

10:03 So then once I saw that, I noticed that it was a part of a series, a series entitled how to Study the Bible. I'm like, oh, this is right up my alley. I love this. Here's a series on how to study the Bible. You know, I've taught the twelve Methods of Bible study countless times trying to get people to participate. So I'm like, this is good. So first, my goal here is to tell you about this series so that you'll go listen and download all the messages. Second, we're going to go to the message on the allegorical method and listen to a little bit, and I'm going to talk to you about how how is it, because this is really kind of maybe the thesis here. How is it that people who say they reject the allegorical method of biblical interpretation actually fall into it over and over and over again. The message we review the other day, where the axhead wasn't the axhead, and every it represented this.

11:02 They would tell you they hate the allegorical method. They would tell you they're completely against it. Yet what in the world is happening? They would say, no, see, we're not using the allegorical method. We're just using the text and showing you what it pictures. But you can change the language what it pictures. But I'm still saying that it's literal. I know this because I went to a school Harold Camping, who would say that the Bible has different layers of meaning. You've got the historical, you've got the literal, but you've got the spiritual. Well, inevitably, his spiritualizing the text destroyed what it meant literally or historically.

11:43 That became almost irrelevant. So a lot of people who say they're against the allegorical method, I think, in many cases are you are utilizing it. So we're going to listen to a little bit of this. But I want you to go find the series. It's called How to Study the Bible. The pastor is Ryan Combs. Combs, Ryan Combs. So far, the messages in this are two presuppositions. I must have to adequately study the Bible. The wrong approaches to the Bible. Tools for adequate Bible study. Tools for adequate Bible Study. Part two Aspects of Bible study, Schools of interpretation, the allegorical method, and the literal method. I want you to go listen to every single one of them.

12:27 Download them all. That is how to study the Bible with Ryan Combes Combs, and go listen to it. I'm going directly to the allegorical method. Now. I don't know if he's pro allegorical method anti allegorical method. I have no idea because I haven't listened to any of it. But we'll start it and we'll just use it. And I want you to just hear the allegorical method being explained. Whether we may agree with his explanation or disagree with his explanation. He may be pro, he may be against. But what I want you to hear is when you hear some of how the allegorical method is explained. When when you go back and consider that crazy sermon we heard on the axe head, where the axe head is in an axe head and all the messages we heard about Ezekiel thirty six. This is you and me, we get a new heart. Well, wait a minute, when did I become Israel? And if I get a new heart, when do I go into the land that was sworn to my father's? Who are my fathers? What the land that was sworn to the fathers? That's Israel? So when did Israel not become Israel? When is land not Israel?

13:32 And when is an axe head not an axe head? Well? Once, look, you go so far down this path you destroy any meaningful meaning of the Bible, and that is a problem. So I want to hear how the allegorical method is explained. But the goal here is simply to ask yourself that question. When is an axe head not an axe head? When is Israel not Israel? When is land not land? All right? Because you just need to constantly ask yourself, because it has your Bible study, become read it and make it up. I mean, if you just read the Bible, make up whatever you want. Then, ladies and gentlemen, I don't even know how we can judge anything, all right, But if there's actual principles, so we're gonna listen to this. I want you to go download all of the messages. There are seven. Download all of them. How to Study the Bible by Ryan Combs.

14:21 You can find it on the Sermon's two point oh app or the Sermon Audio website. Download them all. Of course, everything on sermon Audio is free, so go get everything. And we're gonna just utilize this to just kind of maybe just an ad to our ongoing discussion about the axe head and uh, I think it's very relevant to it. It's a part of the Sermon's two point oh app challenge, so it all fits together. I don't know how far we're gonna get into this. I don't know. I'm gonna go as long as I can, because at some point I'm gonna have to stop because we've got other things going on here. So I'm just gonna do what I can and then we will, uh well, and then if we need to come back later, we'll come back later.

15:03 So are you ready? I know that was fifteen minutes trying to put it all together, but are you ready? Here we go, Ryan Combs the allegorical method. I have no direct I have no idea which direction he's going to go. I may be sitting here ap plotting, going I agree, I agree, I agree, or I'm a going no. But you know what's kind of frustrating. Just think about it. Within Christianity, we don't even agree on what method should be utilized in interpreting the scriptures. Whenever I say Christians don't agree on anything, everyone gets ticked off at me and says, that's not true. We literally don't agree on how to interpret the Bible. So if we can't agree on how to interpret it, then how in the world are we ever going to agree on what it Means's that makes me just want to say, forget it. I'm going to the liquor store.

16:06 All right, But here we go. And of course we've been dealing with how to study the Bible, something that's very important. Should be very important each and every one of us. There should be no book on earth more important to you than God's Word. There should be nothing, no possession of yours that you treasure more than a copy of God's Word that you have possession of. There are many people around this world that do not have a copy of the Bible. As we were up at the Beacon of Truth rally, they were talking about the many millions of people who do not have a copy of the Word of God. And I was thinking while I was sitting there, of just how many Bibles I own.

16:48 I've got bibles over at the house. I've got some in the bedroom, I've got some out in the out in the living room. I've got multiple bibles there in my office. We've got plenty of Bibles out here. And yes, we have Bibles that we give out and all of those things. But many times we take for granted the book that we have. And you may say, well, I read my Bible. I don't take it for granted. Well do we do what tewod Timothy chapter two fifteen says when it says study to show thyself approved unto God? Do we do that? Because if we do not do that, we're taking for granted the word of God. I want us to go to the Lord and prayer and then we'll get into the message here this evening.

17:33 That's a good challenge. Do we take it for granted? I agree with him. I got bibles everywhere, ladies and gentlemen. Okay, just right here, right here in front of this microphone, are you ready for this? Okay, right directly in front behind this microphone, all right, I'm in front of it, so behind it there's a Bible. Right underneath it, there's a Bible. So there's two just right here on this table. If I turn to my right, there. Are one you see, one, two, three, four, five, six.

18:15 I think there's six maybe seven bibles just yeah, seven bibles right here to my right, right here to my right, So that's nine bibles. Nine bibles. Literally, I could just reach down. I can just reach down and touch one, like I'm just gonna reach down. I don't know if you can hear that there's one. That's how close one is right Literally my foot can touch most of them. And then right here on the table there's two. There's two right here. Nine bibles. They're everywhere. I've got them, and I've got a right here on my iPad. They're every Do we take the word of God for granted? Do we? And you know what they say, familiarity breeds contempt.

18:57 I think sometimes we just take it for granted. Look, I say that. One of the reasons we've done the challenge, the sermon's two point oh app sermon challenge is I think we take it for granted. You can just open your device, tap on the sermon's two point oh app and you have access to millions of sermons for free, with about six to eight thousand sermons being added every single week. Six to eight thousand being added every single week. I think that's a pretty accurate number. Just wrap your mind around that. You can't you can't even come close. They're all there. And do you take it for granted? I take it for granted? Right, don't we take it for granted? And again, sometimes the more that's available to us, the less it means to us. Do you remember back in the olden days when if you wanted music, you got in your car, you went to a record store, you looked around, you found it, you purchased it, you got back in your car, drove home, opened it up.

20:05 It meant something, right, you had some kind of connection because it took an effort to actually go get it. You remember when you used to get in the car and drive to a video rental store to rent a video and to drive home, and then you'd have to rewind it and drive it back. Well, that it meant something to go get that movie. Right now, everything is just a million things available to you. Music on you can have basically access to everything that's ever been made on any music streaming service. You've got video streaming services, and you just take it for granted. It doesn't have the same meaning. You just kind of you just kind of view it as ah, whatever, Yeah it's something I want to watch. Where we lose the we lose the excitement that Oh I remember going to the video store.

20:46 It was almost an excitement. People just like go into a movie. Go into a movie doesn't even mean anything to the younger generation. It's irrelevant. Sometimes the more that's available to us, the less it means to us. Well, we've got so many Bibles. I don't know if we really if it matters to us. So that's a good challenge. I'm convicted. Look, I get convicted not just about spiritual things. I get convicted when I take all of the things I have available to me on streaming services for granted. I'm like, I want these albums on these streaming services to mean something to me. I want these playlists to mean something to me. I want all of those movies available to me. And there's no way I can truly ever give it the meaning that I had when I had less. The less you have, the more everything means.

21:36 The more you have, the less everything means, and there's just no way to combat that. But spiritually, we should not take for granted that we have basically access to the entire history of Christiandom available to us on a mobile device. But do we know more? I mean, you think Christians today, just think about it. The average Christian today should be the most sophisticated in their thiological and biblical knowledge today than at any time in the entire history of Christianity. You know what's bizarre. If you take Calvin's Institutes, the Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin that was written for new believers. You give the Institutes by John Calvin to a new believer today, they won't even They'll look at you like you're out of your mind? Why hacked? Shouldn't we be more knowledgeable, more sophisticated, more hermeneutically equipped than at any time in the history of Christiandom? And the resounding answer should be yes. But it's something's wrong. The more knowledge available, the less knowledgeable we become. You know why, because the more other things are available as well, which are is more entertaining than knowledge. Okay, look,

23:09 I understand that. Look. Look, I'm right there with you, right, So let's see where he goes with I mean, I know where. That wasn't his thesis of this message, but it was convicting to me. And may the Lord help us to see how blessed we are to have a copy of the Word of God. Amen, let's pray do your having a father. We come before you this evening. We thank you, Lord for who you are and all that you're doing. Lord, I pray that you would help each one of us to see how blessed we are to own a copy of your word. Lord. We're just so thankful Lord for the many generations Lord that you have preserved your word through. We know it's because Lord, as your word says forever. O Lord, my word is settled in Heaven and the Lord, we know that we have your word. I pray to God that we would study Lord as we go through this school of interpretation tonight, as we discuss this, I pray to Your God that you would help us to see the not all aspects of this are wrong. But Lord, if this is the only way that we study, Lord, that that's wrong. Would I pray that you would help us to see that tonight and give us clarity as we leave this place in Lord, just to be able to study your word even better than we have even coming into this place.

24:25 We ask all these things in Jesus' holy name. Amen. Notice here in this verse we see the Bible starts out in second chapter two and verse fifteen. The word is study. Of course we've discussed that word there, and of course how it means. It's talking about travailing in study. It's talking about work. It's not. It doesn't say read to show thyself approved. I can look at a at a verse, and I can see a verse like this, it says study to show thyself approved in the God, or work with it needed not to be ashamed rightly dividing the word of truth. I could read that verse and move on and read verse after verse after verse after verse, and I could read the whole entire Bible over and over and over again.

25:12 But if I never apply anything does mean no good. If I never see that this is not just words on a page, but it's the inspired, preserved word of God that's been translated for English speaking people so that I myself can study to show myself approved under God. If I don't see that, individually speaking, I failed at the task that God's given me study. To show thyself approved unto God. You know, many. Couple of things. First, in his prayer, he made some idea that not everything about the allegorical method is wrong. So this could get very subjective. It seems like he's indicating, well, there's some good aspects of the allegorical method. Oh boy, okay, so that's already got me a little nervous. I do agree with him. I've been trying to make this point my whole Christian life is we're supposed to be studying the Bible. How do you get Christians to actually engage in study? I don't know what you have to do.

26:11 I really don't know. I've never been able to figure it out right. I think a lot of people just want to come to church and that's it. I do how do you get Christians to actually engage in study? And what I have found is that if you actually try to engage in meaningful study from the pulpit, you actually drive people away from the church. I know Christians are going to say, no, I want to place that studies, But if you really study, you start questioning and you start challenging, and you start going, well what about this? And wait, that doesn't make sense, and what about this? And what about this? And people don't want to hear what about this? And what about this? They just want to hear this is what it means, simple, easy, and don't confuse me. And so, but to get people to actually study is difficult. I agree, it's work. We're supposed to be agonizing in a sense, putting forth great effort into the tech. The more effort you put into the text, sometimes the more you're like, I don't know what this means, and I don't know, and why does everyone say that it means this when it doesn't, Like why does everyone say an axe head? It's not an axhead? And Israel isn't Israel. Well, then immediately you find yourself in conflict with a team of Christianity and you can't tick off any team or you get in trouble. Well, I think good Bible study actually puts you on conflict with most Christians because you're actually studying and questioning and challenging and trying to figure it out. And guess what, the more you study, you realize it doesn't all fit nicely into your little system, and then you take people off. But do we really want to study?

27:43 Many times we'll study, and we'll study for tests and those types of things. And many times we're studying for a test because we always say. We want to get a good grade. But you know what happens when we don't get a good grade on something. We don't want anyone to know about it. Why because we take it personally that we got a bad grade. We're studying, and yes, we want to get a good grade. But we'd all love to say, you know, I studied for that test, and tell our family and our friends, I got one hundred percent on the test that I studied for. We'd all like to say that we're not told in this verse, though, to study to show thyself approved. In the man, it says here studies to show thyself approved unto God. Notice here a workman that need is not to be ashamed. And I want us to see this last phrase rightly dividing the word of truth.

28:40 Now, I love this because I don't know where he's going. I don't know what he's going to do with the allegorical method. I know he's going to go through the allegorical method in about twenty five minutes, which is kind of frightening. How you can go through the allegorical method in twenty five minutes. I mean, I just if I just go through my notes here, I have my notes here have the history of the allegorical movement. Right, are the allegorical method going all the way to the early Jewish interpretation, which would be was it Philo of Alexandria, I believe around twenty b seed of fifty a D. I believe Filo is how you say his name, Felo Philo. And then uh, we have the early Christian Church right origin between what one, five, two something, it's numbers AD.

29:26 Then I have the Middle Ages Augustin right, and we've talked his book on Christian doctrine. Remember I've I led my church through some hermeneutical principles taken from Augustine, and they were somewhat people were somewhat surprised. And remember Augustine some of his own hermoneutical principles he didn't follow. Right. And then we have the Reformation period Luther Calvin, and then we have modern times. So I have I have it broken down into five time periods. So I don't know, I don't know how he's going to I don't know how he's going to this. I mean twenty minutes to get through this. It's gonna be, it's gonna be really it's gonna be really quick. But I love the fact that he's going rightly divide, rightly divide. And the reason I love this now, I don't know which direction he's going to go, so just to me, I just find it hilarious because you'll have obviously people who are very dispensational, maybe hold to a very literal method, not then allegorical men, very literal maybe historical grammatical type method, and they will be like, rightly divide the Word of truth. And then you'll have someone who'll be maybe more an allegorical approach, and they'll be like, rightly divide the Word of truth.

30:41 Everyone quotes that verse on rightly divide, and all think that they are the ones who rightly divide everyone. Look, you think you rightly divided? I think I rightly divide it. Presbyterians think they rightly divide it. Lutherans think they rightly divide it. Church of Christ think they rightly divide it. Charismatic think they rightly divide it. Baptistinct, they rightly divide it all millennial, pre millennial Calvinists, non Calvinist. Everyone thinks they rightly divide it. Everyone does. You don't have anyone going, well, we don't rightly divide it. Come to our church. You know, everyone thinks we do. They don't, but not everyone can be rightly dividing. If no one can agree on literally anything, I just find it fun rightly divide. You're absolutely right we should rightly divide. And let me guess you rightly divide, and everyone who disagrees with you doesn't got it. I love how Christianity works. I rightly divide, and if you agree with me, you rightly divide. But if you disagree with me, you don't rightly divide, because they know the way you know you rightly divide is you agree with me.

31:52 It's just I don't even know what that means. All right, here we go. There are many people that divide the world of truth, but they don't do it rightly. There's an awful lot of people that will try to convince you that the Bible says one thing, but they. Don't put it into the context of scripture. Lord also another thing. Everyone says context, context content. Presbyterians will say context context context. Baptists will say context context cont. You get a discussion about baptism, context cont. You get into discussion about Israel is God made promises to Israel all millennialism, dispensational context context. Everyone says rightly divide, everyone says context, Everyone says scripture, interpret scripture. Everyone says all the same things, but nobody comes to the same conclusions.

32:45 But guess what they all think that they rightly divide, that they look at the context and you just look. I know, whenever I say this it makes Christians uncomfortable, but you just got to be willing to acknowledge that. Right I can say something, you'll be like, you're not rightly divided. You're not looking at the context. You're not looking at this. You're not looking at this. And I can be turning around back and you're not looking at the context, and you're not looking at this, and you're not looking at this. You're wrong. No, you're wrong. No, I'm right, No, you're right. No. Yeah, what help us. As we look over this, uh, this message tonight or this lesson, whatever.

33:26 You want to call it. I want us to see. This this allegorical school and all go into more detail on that. We discussed a little bit about that last time when we were in this study. I want to go a little bit deeper into that tonight. But the reality is this, if if we if we read the Bible, we're going to find there are some allegories. There are some things that are that are pictures that that the Lord draws for us. We'll mention parables and those types of things in just a little while. Uh, there are things there are, there are allegories in the scripture, and and it's fine to to study the Bible and know when the allegories are there, But if you study the whole book is just something that's mystical, you're going to miss the plain truths that are right.

34:09 In front of you. Now, the thing is, when you say there's allegory in the Bible, it has to be clearly identified as an allegory. But if you turn it into an allegory, then it's not. For example, second King's Chapter six, do you turn the axe head into an allegory of the axe? Hed now represents this? And this represents this, and this represents this. Do you go to stories in the in the Gospels where Jesus is in a boat and a storm happens and he's asleep, and the next thing, you know, Jesus, the boat is us. It's our lives, and we find ourselves in the storm. And storm represents trials and troubles and tribulations. But Jesus is in the boat, and if we'll just turn to Jesus, he'll calm the storms of our life. What in the name of bubblegum is that's the cocoa for cocoa puffs? You're just making stuff up?

35:04 Is a story there that my life is a boat on the ocean and their storms and I'll just wake if I'll just turn to Jesus and prayer, I'll just say, peace be still, and all the problems in my life will be still. Is that the point of that story? Or is it the point of the story the one sleeping in their boat happened to be the creator of all things and therefore he has control over nature. Was it more about demonstrating the deity of Christ than trying to turn it into some kind of you know, bedtime story that all your problems go away because Jesus is in your boat. Like what what is that. But pastors do that stuff all the time. Now, if the story is an allegory, then okay, but it's if it's a historical narrative and you flip it into an allegory, or you say this represents this, and this represents this, that's see, that's the problem. So I agree, we can say there's allegory in the Bible, but it has to be clearly identified as an allegory. Right, Well, how do you identify it?

36:03 If I was to tell you to take your Bible, just start going through it right now, and you find the passages that are allegorical, what would you be what would be your proof that it's allegorical? How would you be identifying that? Now, in some books, we know it's poetical because we know it's a it's using that genre of literature. We know it's this we know and now once we can identify the literary genre, then yes, it's very easy to go, well, this is poetry. So now we have to bring in how we interpret poetry because we were those are rules for that. Oh, this is a historical narrative. There's rules for that. Okay, So but how do you just go through and go if it's a historical narrative. And then all of a sudden you're like, this is an allegory. According to what how are you proving that it's an allegory. I don't know if he's going to give some examples. I would love to see that.

36:54 Maybe maybe we'll do a message and all the passages in the Bible that that are that are most likely to identified as allegory, and then why are we what are the rules to identify that? Look, we need to make that a priority. We'll we'll try to do that soon. You know, the Bible heard this saying it's not original with me, but it goes like this, The Bible is not a scientific book, but when it talks about science, it's one hundred percent accurate. The Bible is not as a whole a historical book, but when it speaks of history, it's one hundred percent accurate. The Bible is not one hundred percent a geographical book.

37:37 But I don't care what man says if they. Say, well, well, the Bible speaks of that, and there's no evidence of that. There, No, the Bible is one hundred percent true. Man just hasn't dug far enough to find that the Bible really is true in those things. I love seeing those the scientists that come out with something and and they they're they're in an area and they're digging, and they they uncover something and they they have to admit, wait a second, this may. Be what we said was not true in the Bible. I love that, you know. I want to say, take that scientist, amen, That's what I want to say. The reality is the Bible is true in everything that it says, and God wants us to study to show ourselves have proved. And Neemiah chapter eight, his brother England read and preached on Sunday evening. We saw that Ezra stood up and he taught the word of God. He did not teach his opinions. He did not teach what the government said. He didn't teach what the elites had paid him to say. But he read and taught the word of God. That's what he read and taught. Throughout the Old Testament, you find that the priests, the prophets, the preachers in different ways. They were told to teach people the word of God. But they were told to teach them this, teach them how to choose between the holy and the profane.

38:56 How is that? How can you teach somebody how to choose between something that's holy and something that's profane by teaching the word of God as we're told to the whole counsel of God, not leaving anything out. There's an awful lot of things that I could make the Bible say if I wanted to leave out other scriptures. The reality is we're told to teach the whole counsel of God, the clear word of God. Last time we were in this study, we saw that in order to study the Bible correctly, we must seek the ordinary meaning of the language. We must identify the literary style of the language, and then also we must seek the single interpretation that was intended by the writer.

39:41 Okay, that's all good stuff, right, the single meaning, the literary genre. Okay, this is all. These are all good principles. I'm just getting a little nervous because he's down to about twenty minutes. Maybe that because typically at the end you're going to summarize what you've said. We're about got about twenty minutes. I don't know how he's going to get through the entire allegorical method, and maybe twenty minutes. It's I don't know. I'm going to be very interested to see how he's going to cover this, Like I don't know if I could cover the allegorical method in five hours. But so I'm maybe he's just going to give us the key principles, which could be very beneficial. Let's just see. I'm I'm just curious now now this is more. I'm just like, how are you going to do this.

40:27 With that? We discussed a little bit about the allegorical method, and we're going to dig into that here a little bit more, and and Lord willing next week get into the literal method of study. But I want us to notice first of all tonight, I want us to notice this the disguise of the allegorical method, the disguise of the allegorical method. Oh, this could get good. The disguise of the allegorical method, the disguise. And I think that's kind of what I'm referencing, as you have churches who say we believe in the literal method, but all of a sudden, an Acteat is not an axe head, and all of a sudden, Israel is not Israel. Well, I thought you said you you hold to the literal meth what we do. But this is not literal. So are you Are you using the allegorical but you're disguising it? Is that what he's about to say, the disguise of the allegorical method. I like that.

41:21 I like that phraseology, the disguise of the allegorical method. Is the allegorical method being disguised in your church? And if it's being disguised, are you being deceived? I don't know. Let's see. Let's see how he's going to handle that. So this he's got my attention? Does he have yours? All? Right? Here we go. The allegorical method can be described in this one statement. And when I when I mentioned the allegorical method, when I when I talk about that as a whole, and uh, when I when I'm mentioning things about that that are negative in context, what I'm saying is this, I'm saying, if you study the whole Bible allegorically, you're going to find yourself in a mess. You're going to find yourself on all sorts of false doctrines and all of those things.

42:08 So when I say things negative, I am in no way implying that there are no. Allegories in the Word of God. That's not what I'm implying. But when we talk about the allegorical method as a whole, when it's applied to scripture in every single part, and the ones that believe it that way, here's what they say, Beneath the letter the word or the obvious meaning. Is the real meaning. So somewhere beneath all of that, beneath the word that says for all. Have sin to come sure of the glory of God. Well, beneath the word all, there's got to be something else there.

42:53 No, wait a minute, I'm not a fan of that. Anyone who has a discussion about the word all, it's not because they're saying there's a deeper meaning behind all. It would be an argument about how is all utilized? Does all always mean every single person? Does all mean every type of person? Because all can be used in various ways. So then what you would do is use, Hey, here's the word all. Here's the Greek word. The Greek word all shows up in this verse and this verse and this verse and this verse, and clearly all has some kind of limit that that's not about. That's not the allegorical method. Ladies and gentlemen having a difference of an opinion about how the word all is being utilized is not the allegorical method. People who have an argument about all is not using the allergory. That's not that's not even accurate. That's not even an accurate understanding of the allegorical method. The allegorical method of Biblical interpretation as a way of understanding scripture by looking for deeper symbolic meanings behind the literal or historical sense of the text.

43:56 In this method, various elements of the Biblical stories, such as character, events, or places, are seen as representing biblical spiritual truths or theological concepts often connected to Christ or the Church, or aspects of the Christian life. This approach suggests that many passages in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament, contain hidden spiritual lessons, are typological or typological meanings that go beyond their straightforward narrative or doctrinal content. The goal is to uncover these deeper meanings, which are believed to convey the timeless truths about God's salvation or the Christian life. Here's some examples. The Garden of Eden symbolizes the human soul and its relationship with God. Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt and allegory for Christ's leading humanity out of sin. The Promised Land is a symbol of heaven or the final state of the redeemed.

44:49 So this represents this, and this represents this. Pastors do this all the time. That is how the allegorical method, I believe, is disguised. Not because you have a disagree about all. And someone in the in the congregation there was like, oh, yeah, that seems like maybe they are not a fan of Calvinism or the idea of particular redemption or limited atonement, and so they were like, the word all always means all, But then you have verses where all would meaning every single person on earth would have some major problems. Right, So so look, I understand that can be complicated. I understand that can be difficult, But this is not about the allegorical method. It means here's a word. How is this word being used? Well?

45:35 Does the word have a variety of meanings as used in the Bible. Yes, So you look it up. Here's the Greek word. The Greek word has used thirty two times. It's used this, It's translated this way. Look at all the different ways it's translated Okay, oh wait, look at how that it's used in this case, in this case, in this case, hmm, what do we do with that? Now there may be strong disagreements in what we do with that, But that's not the allegorical method. It means words can be used many different ways and have many different shades of meaning depending on how it's being used. Sometimes the basic definition of a word is greatly determined by the context in which it is found. That's that's just dealing with definitions and the meaning of words. That's not the allegorical method. The allegorical method would be like, hey, this says land, but underneath it it's a deeper meaning that doesn't actually mean land, that actually means this. Or hey, it's talking about a storm. Well, underneath the actual storm, it means trials and troubles in life. See, that's what we're talking about when I'm talking about Well, this word could mean this, this word can mean this, this word can mean no. That's that's not a oh boy, All right, here we go. Let's let's hope, let's hope this gets a little better.

46:51 All means all, and that's all all means amen. There's nothing else there for all have sandy come sure the glory of God. The Bible says, wersoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Who's that? Whosoever? It's for all have sin? Everyone that's sin. They've they they have They've been born into this world. They're born into sin, and they haven't trusted Priss their personal savior. But every single one of them can. Why because God's words says that they can. I don't care what the Calvinists say. I don't care what these other groups say. Anyone who calls upon the name of the Lord says, Lord, I'm a sinner. I can't. I cannot work my way to heaven. I know that I'm on my way to hell. Lord, I know that you've paid for my sins. Lord, forgive me and take me to heaven. Not one person will the Lord say you've done too much.

47:39 Now. This is turning into I know, is an issue against Calvinism. I know is an issue against Calvinism. Oh man alive. This has nothing to do with the allegorical method. Okay, The term all in the Bible does not always mean every single person universally. Its meaning can vary depending on the context with which it is used. In some instances, all can refer to a specific group of people, while in other cases it might imply a broader, more universal scope. For example, and some passages, all refers to a subset of people rather than every individual in the world. For instance, in Romans eleven twenty six, it says all Israel will be saved. This doesn't necessarily mean that every single ethnic Israelite will be saved. The term all here is often interpreted to refer to the collective body of true believers from Israel or the remnant chosen by God. Now we could get into a major discussion and argument over that, Right, all Israel. Does it mean all Israel? Does it mean the nation of Israel? Does it mean Israel of all time?

48:36 Does it mean a specific group of Israel living at a specific time? Right, There's all kinds of we could have. That discussion has nothing to do with the allegorical method. In some cases, all can be used for rhetorical effect or hyperbole, not meant to be taken as an absolute. For example, in Mark one to five, it says that all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem was going out to him. Clearly not every single individual was going out to be baptized by John, but the phrase emphasized the widespread nature of his influence, so it can be used in different ways and other passages. All can genuinely mean every single person. Sometimes all refers to all types of kinds of people rather than every individual One. Timothy four says that God desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Many interpreters understand this is referring to all categories of people jew and gentile, rich and poor, not necessarily every single person without exception. The original languages of the Bible, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, can also influence how we understand all. In Greek, for example, the Greek word translated as all can mean all kinds of every kind in a certain context. Therefore, the meaning of all in the Bible depends on literary, historical, and philological context. It can sometimes mean every single person, but not always, and careful interpretation is necessary to discern the intended meaning in each case. So here we have a message and how to study the Bible, which is

50:06 literally leading you to a misunderstanding of different opinions about a word difference opinions about a word. It is not. The allegorical method has nothing to do with the allegorical method. Calvinists don't use the allegorical method to become Calvinist. That is a complete misrepresentation. And I'm not even defending Calvinism here. Just if you're gonna do, if you're gonna have a message about the allegorical method, teach what the allegorical method is. Don't make up what the allegorical method is. Hey, well, all they think there's a hidden meaning behind all. It's not. They think there's a hidden meaning behind the word all. They just know literary from a from a linguistic approach of understanding. It can have varied meanings depending on context, that can be used in various different ways. That's that's not allegorical. That's a that's called the a literal historical grammatical approach. The grammar matters. The words mean something, words have context, Words have different levels and shades of meaning depending on how they're being utilized. For crying out loud, it's not the allegorical method has nothing to do with the allegorical method. Now, if you want to say the allegorical method has been a tree isn't a tree, Water isn't water water, an ocean isn't an ocean, and ocean actually is a picture of hell. This storm isn't a storm, it's trials and tribulation. Now we're getting in more to

51:38 the allegorical method. Not one person. I've talked to some Calvinists before, and this not too long ago. I was talking to a gentleman that told me that he was a Calvinist and told him I said, well, we differ there, and he said, well, how can you prove that anyone can get saved? I said, well, the Bible says whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And here's what he told me. He said, well, what that means is whosoever of the elect I said, well, why doesn't it say that, I said, you put of the elect you added to the Word of God, which there's also something in the back of this book that talks about adding to and taking away from the Word of God.

52:21 Amen. He didn't have a argument for me. He couldn't prove his point. But the reality is this, when you start digging and you start looking for something that's not there, and understand, I am all for Bible study. I love word studies and those sorts of things. But when you start looking for something and you're trying to make the Bible save something that it doesn't say, you are on your way to destruction. That's where you're going. I got no problem saying that. If you are adding to the Word of God, that's a problem. You make it say something that doesn't say, that's a problem. But I also know if you tell me the allegorical method is what you're claiming, it's not the allegorical method, Okay, it has nothing to do with the allegory myth. We're arguing about the meaning of words and what does it mean whosoever believeth. Now, every Calvinist would say, of course, whosoever believeth will be saved, because Calvinists believe that you have to believe in order to be saved. The issue is who will be of the whosoever how do you become one of the whosoevers that believe anyone who believes will be saved. All Calvinists would be saying, amen to that.

53:31 I'm not even defending Calvinism. I hate when I have to defend a system of belief, not because I believe it or reject it. It's simply because I don't like something being misrepresented. All Calvinists would be You're absolutely right, whosoever believed will be saved. Now the issue is why do we believe? Do we believe because we just do on our own? Or is faith a gift given to us by God? Now we're getting into deeper issues. And can a man freely believe? Who's a depraved center? Well, then now we get to an argument about augustinian An understanding of depravity versus a Pallagian view. Now we're getting into deep theological issues. That this has nothing to do with the allegorical method. Now we're getting into if you want to talk about Calvinism, talk about Calvinism. But the issue is not the allegorical method. How do I know that because I hate the allegorical method and I would be classified a Calvinists has nothing to do with the allegorical method. And I've known plenty of other Calvinists who would have nothing to do with the allegorical method. So that isn't It's just, oh, what in the name of bubblegum?

54:41 The worst place you can go to figure out what the Bible says, is the internet the worst place. They also say that. Wait, the worst place you can go to figure out what the Bible says is the internet. So where's the right place? Oh, let me guess the church? Is the church the only ones that have the authority to interpret the Bible. You can't go to the internet, do I only go to the church. This is sounding very magisterial authority Catholic kind of thing, right. I wait, your sermons on the internet, so I can't listen to you. I can't listen to him tell me how to interpret the Bible because the worst place to go is the internet.

55:29 You literally put your sermons on the internet, so I shouldn't listen to any of your preaching. You put the sermons on the Internet and then tell people the worst place to go to hear what the Bible means is the internet. Then why are's your sermons on the internet? That makes no sense? Hey, the worst place to learn theology is the internet. But I'm gonna put all of the episodes of the Theology Central podcast on the Internet. That doesn't make any sense. The allegorical method, it's the method of interpreting a literary text that regards notice this that regards the literal sense as a mere vehicle for a secondary, more spiritual You ready for this and a more profound sense? Boy, that sounds good, doesn't it.

56:30 Well? I don't want to miss out on anything. So if there's some if there's some secondary or more spiritual and more profound sense there, then I want to know what that is. By the way, this person that's telling me this, they've got all of these degrees after their name. They know a whole lot more than I do. You'll find yourself in the trap. As we discussed last time, there's allegories in the Bible. We discussed when the Lord said go tell that fox speaking of Herod, that was an allegory. He wasn't telling them to go find a little red fox and talk to it, No, he was. He was saying that Herod was uh, was h was sly like a fox was.

57:10 He wasn't saying that Herod was part fox or anything like that. He's saying he's sly, he's uh, he's sneaky, and he says, and go tell him. So we know that there are allegories. However, when you follow the allegorical school of interpretation, the literal historical sense is going to be ignored or denied in many passages. Some would ask, well, why would. Someone give themselves to that style of study, Why would someone read the whole Bible and study it that way? Obviously it's wrong, But we must remember that the purpose of the allegorical method is not to interpret scripture as a whole.

57:52 It's not to interpret scripture. But there were the ones that use the allegorical method. It's their intent to pervert the scriptures, to make it say what they wanted to say. Oh, now, come on now, So anyone who uses the allegorical method, their purpose is to pervert the scriptures and to make it say what they wanted to say. I've heard people who do not use the allegorical method make the Bible say what they wanted to say. It's literally you just now taking everyone from a system, a hermoneutical system, and said your intent is to pervert it. So you got all the allegorical people and they met, you know, underneath you know, a church somewhere at midnight. Nobody knew that there was a trap door, and it went down into the underground headquarters of the allegorical method and are like, okay, guys, we got this churchip above us, and this church above us represents all churches, and what we want to do is pervert the Word of God. So what are we gonna do. We're gonna come up with the allegorical method?

58:58 What is that? Come on, now, you can't say that their intent is to pervert it? We could go how about we go through the history of it. The allegorical methods started in early Jewish interpretation, which literally comes before well twenty twenty BC to a d fifty, So even before you would have the Day of Pentecost and what some would refer to as the birth of the New Testament Church, there's ideas already there. Well, guess what. Judaism greatly influenced early Christianity, and early Christianity was greatly influenced by the allegorical method. Why how come maybe we should ask some of the deeper questions to say, Well, they all got together and they wanted to pervert the Word of God. What their intent was to pervert it? So they could say they can make it say whatever they wanted to say. Christians have been making it say whatever they wanted to say.

59:51 From every philological background, every hermeneutical background, including me and including you, because we're sinners, and whenever sinners touch the word of God, we have a way of trying to make it say what us, as a sinner wants it to. Say, because who are you to say that it doesn't say that. Well, here's what I saw in the clouds one day. Well here's what I heard when the wind blew. It told me that this verse meant. Now you're going to say the allegorical method. People are getting these ideas from the clouds and from the wind. That's not the allegorical method. Oh no, that's more of a mysticism. That's more of a mystical approach to scripture.

1:00:50 You could argue a charismatic approach. Reality is, many times we seek that deeper, more spiritual meaning, and it's disguised under this perversion of God's word. Lord help us. I want us to notice the also the dangers of the allegorical method. So we saw the disguise. All right, we'll stop there, because we're sixty one minutes. I'm really frustrated. I know him and I would agree that the allegorical method is wrong. I would completely be in agreement with him. Obviously he thinks I use the allegorical method because I guess because of my calvinistic approach to salvation, but which it was just a completely misrepresentation.

1:01:41 But I'm not going to accuse anyone who holds to the allegorical method of them intending to pervert the scriptures. No, they're just using a different hermeneutical approach. Everywhere. All of christiandom is about that. But he didn't even go through the history here. He didn't go through Alexandra Filo of Alexandria twenty to eighty fifty. He is the key figure in the early period. He sought to reconcile Greek philosophy, especially Platonic thought, with Jewish scripture. Follow interpreted many Old Testament passages allegorically and seeking deeper spiritual meaning behind the literal text. Then we have Origin one eight five to two fifty three, one of the most famous early Christian allegorists.

1:02:23 He developed a system of interpretation where scripture had three levels of meaning, the literal historical level, the moral level, and the spiritual level. Origin's influence spread throughout the early Church, particularly in Alexandria, and many of his successors, including Clement of Alexandria and later Ambrose Amilian used similar approaches there. Origin is where you really want to go. Origin was the key here from a Christian perspective, and I'm hopefully saying Filo correctly, but he, I mean, he's he's the one that kind of really started it. And then but then Origin is the one who really christianizes it. But I guess we're not going to even have that to discussion everything. He kind of gave a definition of the allegorical method, but then immediately every example he's given is not the allegorical method. When a clouds, that's not the allegorical method, because all someone argues how all is being used in a similar context. I already read to you.

1:03:21 I'm not even reading from a calvinistic source. I just read, like, what is that? Does all always mean every single person in the Bible and anyone looking at just the linguistic use of no, it doesn't always use it that way. And here are the reasons why that's not allegory? That just man, Okay. Well, I don't know why I was hoping for something different. I was hoping for, like, oh, we're going to dig into what the allegorical method is. And then you'll see how the steps of the allegorical method, even though people who say they don't use the allegorical method maybe utilizing the influence of the allegorical method when they say in Second King six that the axet isn't an axe head, or in Eequel thirty six, or Israel and Land isn't Land.

1:04:11 So I wanted to see the principles of the allegorical method, and then we could see how those principles are often used by people who say they don't hold it the allegorical method. That would have been fascinating. But we're not actually getting to the principles of the allegorical method, are we. No, Well, I don't know what that is, all right, Well, still go download the series. Still go download it. Still listen to all of it. I always tell you to do that, and go listen to the rest of it. There's about I don't know, maybe maybe ten minutes left, maybe fifteen maybe about fifteen minutes of it left, about fifteen minutes of it left, and so you can go listen to it. The allegorical method. I appreciate him doing a series on how to study the Bible. I'm not trying to be negative, just it's a little frustrating when all of a sudden, the allegorical method is being described in a way. Look, I hate the allegorical method. I hate it, but I'm not gonna sit there and say the people who hold to the allegorical method is their intent now I'm speaking to the intent of the heart is to pervert the scriptures and to make it say what they want to say.

1:05:11 How can I say that that's making a judgment against something you can't judge. I would just say they're using a method I completely disagree with. I hate charismatic theology. I loathe it, but I can't judge the intents of the heart of a charismatic I think that they really believe the Bible teaches what they think, it thinks what it says. When do we just start making accusations about the intents of people's hearts. How can we make that judgment. We're not God. So there would have a strong disagreement. Would It's weird because on winning I probably is in great agreement with this person about the allegorical method, but I can't agree with the way that allegorical method is being described here. It's not the allegorical method. I mean, I know the allegorical method. I was the allegorical method, so I know it really really really well. I did really well in that school. Okay, well now I've got to go get food. So thanks for listening. Everyone, have a great day. I'm going to take a break. God bless