Oct. 20, 2024

Bible Interpretation Errors Pt 1

Bible Interpretation Errors Pt 1

We begin looking at errors made in bible interpretation

Spreaker Apple Podcasts Spotify PocketCasts Amazon Music Overcast Audible Castro iHeartRadio Castbox Podchaser TuneIn Deezer Pandora RadioPublic Podcast Addict RSS Feed YouTube Fountain PlayerFM Goodpods Podverse Podyssey Breaker Podurama Audacy JioSaavn
Spreaker podcast player icon Spreaker Spreaker Apple Podcasts podcast player icon Apple Podcasts Apple Podcasts Spotify podcast player icon Spotify Spotify PocketCasts podcast player icon PocketCasts PocketCasts Amazon Music podcast player icon Amazon Music Amazon Music Overcast podcast player icon Overcast Overcast Audible podcast player icon Audible Audible Castro podcast player icon Castro Castro iHeartRadio podcast player icon iHeartRadio iHeartRadio Castbox podcast player icon Castbox Castbox Podchaser podcast player icon Podchaser Podchaser TuneIn podcast player icon TuneIn TuneIn Deezer podcast player icon Deezer Deezer Pandora podcast player icon Pandora Pandora RadioPublic podcast player icon RadioPublic RadioPublic Podcast Addict podcast player icon Podcast Addict Podcast Addict RSS Feed podcast player icon RSS Feed RSS Feed YouTube podcast player icon YouTube YouTube Fountain podcast player icon Fountain Fountain PlayerFM podcast player icon PlayerFM PlayerFM Goodpods podcast player icon Goodpods Goodpods Podverse podcast player icon Podverse Podverse Podyssey podcast player icon Podyssey Podyssey Breaker podcast player icon Breaker Breaker Podurama podcast player icon Podurama Podurama Audacy podcast player icon Audacy Audacy JioSaavn podcast player icon JioSaavn JioSaavn

We begin looking at errors made in bible interpretation

WEBVTT

1
00:00:01.280 --> 00:00:07.040
All right, this morning, we're going to hopefully take something

2
00:00:07.040 --> 00:00:09.560
I've been talking about all week and advance this to

3
00:00:09.599 --> 00:00:12.679
some level and try to bring to some kind of conclusion.

4
00:00:12.759 --> 00:00:15.800
But for Sunday School, I want to revert back to

5
00:00:16.320 --> 00:00:18.559
what we were talking about for a long time, and

6
00:00:18.600 --> 00:00:21.079
then we took kind of a detour. We were talking

7
00:00:21.120 --> 00:00:24.559
about the different covenants. We talked about the Abrahamic Covenant,

8
00:00:24.800 --> 00:00:27.920
talked about the Davidic Covenant. We didn't finish the Davidic Covenant.

9
00:00:28.199 --> 00:00:30.239
And because we were doing kind of a series on

10
00:00:30.399 --> 00:00:33.640
eschatology and dealing with a lot of issues related to eschatology,

11
00:00:34.159 --> 00:00:36.520
and what we found is when we start talking about

12
00:00:36.560 --> 00:00:40.840
the covenants or anything related to eschatology, we immediately realize

13
00:00:40.920 --> 00:00:45.159
and see there are lots of disagreements, of course, and

14
00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:48.079
when it comes to some aspects of the Covenant, the

15
00:00:48.119 --> 00:00:51.240
issue is, okay, was the Covenant made with Israel? Or

16
00:00:51.240 --> 00:00:53.359
do we see Israel not as Israel? Do we see

17
00:00:53.439 --> 00:00:56.000
Israel as the Church? And those types of things, which

18
00:00:56.039 --> 00:00:58.880
all of this comes down to the issue of how

19
00:00:58.880 --> 00:01:02.280
do we interpret the Bible. Whose interpretation is right, who

20
00:01:02.359 --> 00:01:06.359
interpretation is wrong? Because everyone has one and it kind

21
00:01:06.359 --> 00:01:13.239
of demonstrates how subjective Bible interpretation really is. Everyone not

22
00:01:13.280 --> 00:01:16.480
only does everyone interpret the Bible, because within the non

23
00:01:16.480 --> 00:01:20.840
Catholic system, every person supposedly has the authority. So everyone

24
00:01:20.879 --> 00:01:23.840
not only can interpret the Bible, then the people sitting

25
00:01:23.840 --> 00:01:25.879
in the pew are actually supposed to be judging what

26
00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:28.760
is preached to determine whether it's true or false. Meaning

27
00:01:28.760 --> 00:01:30.879
they have great authority because they're the ones who are

28
00:01:30.920 --> 00:01:34.000
going to determinef it's tru or false. And so it

29
00:01:34.159 --> 00:01:38.040
just leads to kind of a spiritual chaos and anarchy.

30
00:01:38.359 --> 00:01:40.680
And I've talked about this forever. I've talked about it

31
00:01:40.760 --> 00:01:44.599
in connection to know in the Catholic system, the church

32
00:01:44.640 --> 00:01:47.439
had the authority. Now the people have the authority. We

33
00:01:47.560 --> 00:01:50.120
claim the Bible has the authority, but the reality is

34
00:01:50.159 --> 00:01:53.640
what has the authority is my interpretation. Because my interpretation

35
00:01:53.879 --> 00:01:56.480
I believe is right, and then I judge everyone else

36
00:01:56.519 --> 00:02:00.280
based off their acceptance or disagreement with my interpretation. And

37
00:02:00.319 --> 00:02:05.480
it's just subjective, it's relativistic, it's chaos, it's anarchy. And

38
00:02:05.799 --> 00:02:10.240
whenever I put forth that kind of perspective, I know

39
00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:12.919
people tend to push back and they don't necessarily like it,

40
00:02:13.000 --> 00:02:17.240
but I think history proves that I'm right. We've got

41
00:02:18.159 --> 00:02:21.360
thousands upon thousands of denominations and groups and nobody can

42
00:02:21.400 --> 00:02:24.800
agree on anything. So there's times I talk a lot

43
00:02:24.840 --> 00:02:28.520
about that, I discuss it, I mention it, and then

44
00:02:28.560 --> 00:02:33.199
there are times that I feel like the issue comes

45
00:02:33.280 --> 00:02:37.280
back in a very glaring way. So this week I

46
00:02:37.439 --> 00:02:40.719
was going to I'll reviewed a sermon on Second King's

47
00:02:40.800 --> 00:02:43.360
chapter six. If you want to turn there, Second King's

48
00:02:43.439 --> 00:02:45.520
chapter six. I'll just make sure you guys are all

49
00:02:45.520 --> 00:02:52.280
cut up on what has transpired over the last week.

50
00:02:52.639 --> 00:03:00.240
Second King's chapter six, Pseci King's chapter six. Very famous story. Yeah,

51
00:03:00.280 --> 00:03:03.520
the axe heads, Second Kings chapter six. So I was

52
00:03:03.560 --> 00:03:06.159
going to review a sermon on Second King's chapter six,

53
00:03:06.479 --> 00:03:09.560
which is about the floating axehead. Right, it's in chapter

54
00:03:09.560 --> 00:03:12.960
six versus one. I think it goes to basically one

55
00:03:13.000 --> 00:03:15.159
through seven, all right, and I won't read it for

56
00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:18.120
time's sake. But Second King chapter six, verses one through seven. Well,

57
00:03:18.159 --> 00:03:20.560
when you start reviewing the sermon, all of a sudden,

58
00:03:20.599 --> 00:03:23.240
guess what we find out? The axehead is not really

59
00:03:23.240 --> 00:03:25.599
an axet. I mean, it is an axhead, but it

60
00:03:25.719 --> 00:03:30.120
actually represents our effectiveness and our work for God. It

61
00:03:30.439 --> 00:03:35.759
actually represents our pictures our fellowship with God, It actually

62
00:03:36.039 --> 00:03:40.159
pictures or represents our passion and zeal for God. Well,

63
00:03:40.199 --> 00:03:43.240
there's a million issues with that, mainly what are you

64
00:03:43.360 --> 00:03:46.280
basing that on other than just you read the text

65
00:03:46.280 --> 00:03:49.000
and you say, well, this pictures this, and this represents this,

66
00:03:49.080 --> 00:03:52.360
and this represents this based off what There's nothing in

67
00:03:52.400 --> 00:03:55.039
the Bible that would say an axead represents these things

68
00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:59.240
in any way, shape or form. So it it was maddening.

69
00:03:59.319 --> 00:04:02.560
So we reviewed that. I told everyone in the podcasts

70
00:04:02.560 --> 00:04:04.879
to start listening to sermons on Second Kings chapter six.

71
00:04:05.080 --> 00:04:07.400
We listened to a second one which took it in

72
00:04:07.400 --> 00:04:10.520
a much more literal way. So we had two sermons.

73
00:04:10.800 --> 00:04:14.680
One takes it in a much more figurative, allegorical I

74
00:04:14.719 --> 00:04:17.360
don't even know what that is way, another one takes

75
00:04:17.399 --> 00:04:19.720
it in a more literal way, and it just shows

76
00:04:19.800 --> 00:04:23.240
you again the subjectivity when it comes to interpreting the Bible.

77
00:04:23.519 --> 00:04:26.600
So then I saw a message on how to study

78
00:04:26.600 --> 00:04:29.480
the Bible dealing with the allegorical method, and I'm like, oh,

79
00:04:29.519 --> 00:04:31.959
this will be good because they'll give me the principles

80
00:04:31.959 --> 00:04:34.959
of the allegorical method, and then I will demonstrate that

81
00:04:35.000 --> 00:04:38.120
the preacher preaching Second King six, who would argue all

82
00:04:38.240 --> 00:04:40.800
day that he doesn't use the allegorical method, which are

83
00:04:40.959 --> 00:04:45.000
actually using the allegorical method. I thought this will be great. Well,

84
00:04:45.040 --> 00:04:49.959
that entire sermon on the allegorical method was a complete

85
00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:53.040
misrepresentation of the allegorical method, and it was really a

86
00:04:53.120 --> 00:04:56.160
rant against Calvinism, and it was it was just insane.

87
00:04:56.240 --> 00:04:59.160
So then I was like, Okay, this is really getting

88
00:04:59.160 --> 00:05:01.000
on my nerves. So then I'm like, you know what,

89
00:05:01.079 --> 00:05:03.920
I'll take a break from everything. I'll do a sermon

90
00:05:03.959 --> 00:05:06.959
review on a sermon on Proverbs chapter thirty. I mean,

91
00:05:07.000 --> 00:05:11.040
you can't go wrong right Proverbs chapter thirty. This should

92
00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:14.120
be simple, this should be straightforward. I saw that what

93
00:05:14.160 --> 00:05:17.519
the text for the sermon was Proverbs chapter thirty versus

94
00:05:17.519 --> 00:05:22.920
eleven through seventeen. Proverbs chapter thirty, verses eleven through seventeen,

95
00:05:23.399 --> 00:05:27.439
and we see a phrase repeated numerous times Proverbs chapter thirty,

96
00:05:27.519 --> 00:05:31.879
verse eleven. There is a generation Proverbs chapter thirty, verse twelve.

97
00:05:32.199 --> 00:05:36.199
There is a generation Proverbs chapter thirty, verse thirteen. There

98
00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:40.040
is a generation Proverbs chapter thirty, verse fourteen. There is

99
00:05:40.079 --> 00:05:43.040
a generation and I'm like, okay, so this is going

100
00:05:43.120 --> 00:05:46.040
to be a discuss about a discussion about there is

101
00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:49.439
a generation that will be like this. So then I thought,

102
00:05:49.519 --> 00:05:51.959
you know what I'll do. I'll review a little bit

103
00:05:51.959 --> 00:05:54.279
of this sermon, but then I can utilize this to

104
00:05:54.319 --> 00:05:58.000
get into a discussion how the older generation always talks

105
00:05:58.040 --> 00:06:01.439
about this generation, and I wanted to go all the

106
00:06:01.439 --> 00:06:06.399
way back to an ancient Egyptian document where the older

107
00:06:06.439 --> 00:06:10.000
generation was condemning the younger generation and saying that this

108
00:06:10.040 --> 00:06:12.759
has been going on for well over three thousand years,

109
00:06:12.759 --> 00:06:15.279
if not longer. So I wanted to get into that discussion.

110
00:06:15.319 --> 00:06:18.560
I thought, elthy, it'll be great, It'll be wonderful, great

111
00:06:18.959 --> 00:06:22.879
hit play. Well, it was not long that the sermon

112
00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:27.560
and Proverbs chapter thirty, verses eleven through seventeen turned into

113
00:06:28.319 --> 00:06:33.680
this there is coming a time where people will eat

114
00:06:33.920 --> 00:06:39.240
poor people. They will chop off their heads, drink their blood,

115
00:06:39.720 --> 00:06:49.240
and eat their flesh. And I was like, what just happened? Okay, yeah,

116
00:06:49.279 --> 00:06:51.720
you think it's a Halloween sermon. They based it off

117
00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:56.360
Proverbs chapter thirty, verse fourteen. There is a generation whose

118
00:06:56.439 --> 00:07:01.480
teeth are as swords, their jaw teeth as knives to

119
00:07:01.600 --> 00:07:06.279
devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy

120
00:07:06.560 --> 00:07:11.480
from among men. So it turned into this bizarre idea

121
00:07:11.800 --> 00:07:14.639
that Proverbs thirty fourteen is to be is to be

122
00:07:14.720 --> 00:07:19.160
interpreted what way literal? Right? So then they started doing

123
00:07:19.160 --> 00:07:22.160
cross references. Right, they did cross references. They went to

124
00:07:22.199 --> 00:07:26.079
Psalm fourteen four, Psalm fourteen four. If you want to

125
00:07:26.120 --> 00:07:31.959
go there, Psalm fourteen four, Psalm fourteen four. Have all

126
00:07:32.040 --> 00:07:35.199
the workers of iniquity no knowledge? Who eat up my

127
00:07:35.360 --> 00:07:40.079
people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord. Well,

128
00:07:40.120 --> 00:07:44.360
guess how they interpreted Psalm fourteen four literal right. Then

129
00:07:44.399 --> 00:07:53.319
they went to Micah chapter three, Micah chapter three, Michaeh

130
00:07:53.399 --> 00:07:56.879
chapter three, verse one, And I said, here, I pray you,

131
00:07:57.040 --> 00:07:59.360
oh heads of Jacob, and ye princes of the House

132
00:07:59.360 --> 00:08:02.279
of Israel, Is it not for you to know judgment?

133
00:08:02.480 --> 00:08:05.839
Who hate good love evil? Who pluck off their skin

134
00:08:05.920 --> 00:08:09.120
from off them, and their flesh from off their bones,

135
00:08:09.199 --> 00:08:11.600
who also eat the flesh of my people and flay

136
00:08:11.639 --> 00:08:14.439
their skin from off them, and they break their bones

137
00:08:14.879 --> 00:08:19.639
and chop them in pieces for the pot, and the

138
00:08:19.639 --> 00:08:22.360
flesh within the cauldron. Okay, you get the idea, right.

139
00:08:22.560 --> 00:08:25.199
So they're like all these passages. I know some of

140
00:08:25.240 --> 00:08:28.560
you could say it's metaphorical, but basically made the argument

141
00:08:28.600 --> 00:08:31.439
that these are literal, These are literal, These are literal,

142
00:08:31.600 --> 00:08:35.000
and that there's coming a time in the tribulation where

143
00:08:35.039 --> 00:08:37.159
they're gonna take poor people, they're gonna chop off their heads,

144
00:08:37.240 --> 00:08:39.559
drink their blood, and eat their flesh. And I was like,

145
00:08:39.679 --> 00:08:42.559
what is happening right now? What is happening? And then

146
00:08:42.559 --> 00:08:45.720
in the very same sermon, after about a fifteen minute

147
00:08:45.840 --> 00:08:50.399
rant about this basically being true and literal and that's

148
00:08:50.440 --> 00:08:52.519
the way it's going to happen, even though some people

149
00:08:52.559 --> 00:08:55.919
may say it's metaphorical, and the very same sermon, about

150
00:08:56.000 --> 00:08:59.679
fifteen minutes later, he said, if you want to know

151
00:08:59.720 --> 00:09:07.639
what the figurative is, go to John chapter six, John

152
00:09:07.720 --> 00:09:16.480
chapter six, Yes, John six, verse fifty three. Barely John

153
00:09:16.519 --> 00:09:18.799
six fifty three. Then Jesus said, into them verily, barely,

154
00:09:18.840 --> 00:09:20.600
as in you, except you eat the flesh of the

155
00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:22.320
sun of man and you drink his blood, you have

156
00:09:22.399 --> 00:09:27.759
no life in you. That's figurative. All the other passages

157
00:09:27.799 --> 00:09:31.759
are literal. This is figurative. Well, at this point I

158
00:09:31.799 --> 00:09:36.039
was ready just to I mean, I just I don't

159
00:09:36.720 --> 00:09:41.720
it just makes me so frustrated how within Christianity we

160
00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:44.200
go around saying the Bible is the final authority. The

161
00:09:44.200 --> 00:09:46.799
Bible is not the final authority, Ladies and gentlemen, it

162
00:09:46.840 --> 00:09:51.440
is not. It is our own interpretation, and our interpretation

163
00:09:51.639 --> 00:09:54.720
can be We can make it say whatever we want

164
00:09:54.720 --> 00:09:58.519
it to say. The hermeneutic. Within Christianity, nobody wants to

165
00:09:58.519 --> 00:10:01.799
admit this. We read the Bible and we make it up.

166
00:10:02.480 --> 00:10:05.480
That's what we do, that's what we've been doing. And

167
00:10:05.519 --> 00:10:09.399
nobody wants to acknowledge that. The unintended consequences of the

168
00:10:09.440 --> 00:10:15.080
Protestant Reformation is you took where the interpretive authority rested

169
00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:17.919
within the church. You ripped it away from the church.

170
00:10:18.159 --> 00:10:21.639
You gave it to every individual, and every individual can

171
00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:26.360
just read the Bible and say whatever they want, and

172
00:10:26.480 --> 00:10:29.240
I can say it's wrong, and they can simply turn

173
00:10:29.279 --> 00:10:32.360
around and tell me I am wrong. I mean, I've

174
00:10:32.360 --> 00:10:34.799
seen it as a pastor, we've seen it as a church.

175
00:10:34.960 --> 00:10:38.840
Doesn't matter, doesn't matter, your education doesn't matter, your study

176
00:10:38.879 --> 00:10:42.360
doesn't matter. Anyone can just read and say that's what

177
00:10:42.399 --> 00:10:45.519
it means, and it doesn't matter. You can even challenge them. No,

178
00:10:45.639 --> 00:10:48.279
go look up everything doesn't matter. They don't have to

179
00:10:48.279 --> 00:10:51.919
look it up. Anybody can just interpret it. It's subjective

180
00:10:52.200 --> 00:10:57.480
and it's total complete spiritual anarchy and chaos. And I

181
00:10:57.679 --> 00:11:01.039
sometimes and like I think, if you just don't listen

182
00:11:01.080 --> 00:11:04.840
to sermons, you may convince yourself that it's not that bad.

183
00:11:04.919 --> 00:11:07.799
But the reality is it's bad. So what we're going

184
00:11:07.840 --> 00:11:10.799
to do at least part of this hour, maybe we'll

185
00:11:10.840 --> 00:11:13.759
do it the next hour. So I started doing a

186
00:11:13.759 --> 00:11:21.000
lot of things talking about allegory, metaphor just different harmoneutical subjects.

187
00:11:21.200 --> 00:11:22.799
So I'm just going to kind of step back and

188
00:11:22.879 --> 00:11:27.120
just try at least to discuss how this should possibly work.

189
00:11:27.159 --> 00:11:29.159
So let's do this. I'm going to break this down

190
00:11:29.240 --> 00:11:32.360
under a number of headings. Let's just start with reality

191
00:11:32.399 --> 00:11:35.639
and history. Let's just start with reality and history because

192
00:11:35.720 --> 00:11:38.000
Christians don't want to admit this reality. But let's just

193
00:11:38.039 --> 00:11:43.799
deal with reality and history. Right. The reality is there

194
00:11:43.840 --> 00:11:48.960
is a great level of subjectivity that arises in biblical interpretation.

195
00:11:50.360 --> 00:11:53.879
There is a great level of subjectivity and biblical interpretation,

196
00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:58.320
particularly when we consider the vast number of different and

197
00:11:58.399 --> 00:12:03.360
sometimes contradictory interpretations throughout two thousand years of Church history

198
00:12:03.559 --> 00:12:06.679
and that's just the fact over two thousand years, the

199
00:12:06.759 --> 00:12:12.720
number of interpretations, they're innumerable. They're innumerable, all the different interpretations,

200
00:12:12.919 --> 00:12:19.480
and the interpretations do what completely contradict one another? And

201
00:12:19.919 --> 00:12:23.159
right here in this local area, at this very hour,

202
00:12:23.559 --> 00:12:26.200
there are over two hundred and what fifty churches and

203
00:12:26.240 --> 00:12:29.600
probably about a fifty mile radius, all meeting this morning.

204
00:12:30.320 --> 00:12:33.720
All of them are offering interpretations. And guess what. Most

205
00:12:33.720 --> 00:12:39.559
of those interpretations do what contradict one another? And everyone

206
00:12:39.639 --> 00:12:44.399
thinks what they are right? And why do they go

207
00:12:44.480 --> 00:12:47.279
to that church because their church interprets it's better than

208
00:12:48.279 --> 00:12:52.159
the other church. So I'm wrong in my interpretation. They

209
00:12:52.200 --> 00:12:55.360
think they're right, they think I'm wrong. I think they're wrong.

210
00:12:56.240 --> 00:12:58.480
What do you even do with it? But the reality

211
00:12:58.600 --> 00:13:01.360
is there's a great level of subjectivity to it, even

212
00:13:01.399 --> 00:13:03.960
though nobody wants to admit that. It's just the fact.

213
00:13:04.679 --> 00:13:08.720
So so we're going to break this down in reality

214
00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:11.679
and history, right, So let's just start with the reality

215
00:13:11.759 --> 00:13:16.360
of multiple interpretations, because that's just the fact. It is

216
00:13:16.519 --> 00:13:19.519
true that throughout Church history there have been a vast

217
00:13:19.639 --> 00:13:22.960
number of interpretations of scripture, from the early Church Fathers

218
00:13:23.200 --> 00:13:29.480
Augustine origin to the Reformation, Luther Calvin and modern theological movements.

219
00:13:29.679 --> 00:13:32.600
Christians have disagreed on key issues such as baptism, the

220
00:13:32.600 --> 00:13:37.679
Lord's Supper, salvation, end times, and many other theological doctrines.

221
00:13:37.960 --> 00:13:44.039
The diversity of interpretations continue today across denominations, culturals, and

222
00:13:44.080 --> 00:13:47.720
theological traditions. We have his so when we talk about

223
00:13:47.759 --> 00:13:51.759
the history, we have a history of diversity. Right. So

224
00:13:51.840 --> 00:13:53.879
if we want to talk about the reality, there's a

225
00:13:53.919 --> 00:13:58.000
reality of multiple interpretations. And that reality of multiple interpretations

226
00:13:58.080 --> 00:14:01.559
has seen in the historical diversity that we see within

227
00:14:01.639 --> 00:14:04.919
church history. I mean, we've got everything in church history.

228
00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:09.200
You name it, it's there. You just throw out an idea,

229
00:14:09.480 --> 00:14:11.879
you can find someone in church history saying that idea

230
00:14:12.000 --> 00:14:18.159
was what either wrong or are right and just and not.

231
00:14:18.600 --> 00:14:21.879
The diversity is just crazy. And I think the average

232
00:14:21.919 --> 00:14:24.759
Christian just and our brains, at least when we first

233
00:14:24.799 --> 00:14:28.279
became saved, I think we thought, for the most part,

234
00:14:29.159 --> 00:14:33.240
everyone agrees and wherever they disagree, it's on insignificant matters.

235
00:14:33.240 --> 00:14:35.759
That's usually what we told ourselves, right, But that's just

236
00:14:35.840 --> 00:14:41.279
not the case. So the reality of all these different

237
00:14:41.279 --> 00:14:44.759
translations is seen in the historical diversity and there's just

238
00:14:44.799 --> 00:14:49.279
no Look, that's not even debatable. Church history shows me

239
00:14:49.600 --> 00:14:53.360
a diversity of interpretation, right, So that shows the reality

240
00:14:53.360 --> 00:14:57.559
of multiple interpretations, endless interpretation. So we have historical diversity,

241
00:14:57.720 --> 00:15:04.440
we have endless interpretations, with innumerable individuals throughout history offering

242
00:15:04.480 --> 00:15:11.320
interpretations and new interpretations continually arising. The total number of

243
00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:20.320
perspectives on Biblical texts are endless. It's endless. Even within

244
00:15:20.440 --> 00:15:26.679
specific theological traditions. There can be great significant disagreement within

245
00:15:26.919 --> 00:15:32.480
one philological tradition. You can have one philological tradition, and

246
00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:34.799
what do you have within that tradition? All kinds of

247
00:15:34.919 --> 00:15:39.360
arguing and debating even within one right. That's why even

248
00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:42.399
within the reform world, if we say we're reform Baptistist,

249
00:15:42.440 --> 00:15:46.000
what most reform people will say, you can't really be

250
00:15:46.360 --> 00:15:49.919
reformed and be a Baptist because because Baptists belief about

251
00:15:49.919 --> 00:15:52.879
baptism and not placing the quote unquote sign of the

252
00:15:52.879 --> 00:15:56.639
Covenant on a child removes us from Covenant from reform theology,

253
00:15:56.799 --> 00:15:59.720
so we're not reformed enough. When we will say, well, no,

254
00:15:59.759 --> 00:16:02.200
you're problem is if you're really reformed to believe the

255
00:16:02.200 --> 00:16:04.559
Bible is the final authority you wouldn't be baptizing a

256
00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:06.960
baby because there's nothing in the Bible about it, right,

257
00:16:07.600 --> 00:16:14.000
But that's within one same philological stream. I mean, that's

258
00:16:14.120 --> 00:16:17.559
just that's just crazy. So the reality of multiple interpretations

259
00:16:17.600 --> 00:16:20.320
are seen in historical diversity, and it is seen in

260
00:16:20.399 --> 00:16:25.799
the endless interpretations. They are innumerable. Not only the reality

261
00:16:25.840 --> 00:16:29.480
of multiple interpretations are seen in historical diversity. Not only

262
00:16:29.559 --> 00:16:32.120
is it seen in the endless interpretations, it is seen

263
00:16:32.440 --> 00:16:40.200
in the contradictory interpretations. There are constant, never ending, contradictory

264
00:16:40.200 --> 00:16:44.679
interpretations on basically almost every verse in the Bible. Almost

265
00:16:44.720 --> 00:16:48.000
every verse in the Bible, there is a there's contradictory interpretations.

266
00:16:49.200 --> 00:16:52.919
For instance, one group may interpret passages as supporting infant baptism,

267
00:16:53.799 --> 00:16:59.480
while many others may argue it supports believers baptism only. Similarly,

268
00:16:59.559 --> 00:17:03.360
debates around predestination, free will, the nature of the millennium

269
00:17:03.559 --> 00:17:09.240
can be deeply divided. And we know that, right, it's contradictory. Now,

270
00:17:09.519 --> 00:17:15.640
why should contradictory bother us? The diversity and the endless

271
00:17:15.759 --> 00:17:18.000
number should bother us. But when it comes to the

272
00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:21.920
fact that they're contradictory, that really should disturb us, and

273
00:17:21.960 --> 00:17:25.119
the reason why is if they're all contradictory, what does

274
00:17:25.160 --> 00:17:30.920
that mean not all of them can be right? So

275
00:17:31.039 --> 00:17:36.559
if they're endless, if the history is full of diversity,

276
00:17:37.119 --> 00:17:41.359
there's endless numbers of interpretations and they contradict one another,

277
00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:45.720
then it comes down to who's right and ultimately who

278
00:17:45.759 --> 00:17:51.920
decides who's right the individual? Well, the Catholic Church at

279
00:17:51.960 --> 00:17:55.160
least has a magisterial authority, right, so they can determine

280
00:17:55.160 --> 00:17:57.279
that they're right right, and they would believe they have

281
00:17:57.359 --> 00:17:59.599
the authority to do that. But when it comes to

282
00:17:59.640 --> 00:18:03.640
the non Catholic world, who determines who's right? The individual?

283
00:18:04.400 --> 00:18:06.240
Now we can say, oh, the church, Now the church

284
00:18:06.279 --> 00:18:09.559
has no authority, the church only how much authority does

285
00:18:09.640 --> 00:18:13.880
any Protestant church have as only as not as the

286
00:18:13.880 --> 00:18:18.240
individual grants it right? So like, what how do we

287
00:18:18.279 --> 00:18:21.039
even process that? Does anybody even have a I don't

288
00:18:21.039 --> 00:18:25.440
even know how we process that. It's just complete chaos,

289
00:18:25.960 --> 00:18:29.200
all right. So there's the reality of multiple interpretations. The

290
00:18:29.279 --> 00:18:32.599
reality of multiple interpretations are broken down into historical diversity.

291
00:18:33.000 --> 00:18:36.079
No one can argue that the endless interpretations, no one

292
00:18:36.079 --> 00:18:38.960
can argue that and their contradictory. No one can argue

293
00:18:39.000 --> 00:18:43.640
that everything there is factual, all right, So this leads

294
00:18:43.640 --> 00:18:48.240
to number two, the subjectivity in interpretation. Biblical interpretation is

295
00:18:48.279 --> 00:18:52.279
subjective to some extent. I will say it's more than

296
00:18:52.359 --> 00:18:57.319
just to some extent. I think Biblical interpretation is absolutely subjective.

297
00:18:57.680 --> 00:18:59.759
I used to try to. I just have come to

298
00:18:59.759 --> 00:19:03.720
the colon. There is no It's just an endless subjectivity.

299
00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:08.160
And when we say something is subjective, what do we

300
00:19:08.240 --> 00:19:16.960
mean by that? When we say something is subjective, Well, subjective,

301
00:19:17.000 --> 00:19:19.480
it just it can be a matter of anything, right,

302
00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:23.880
there's no something, there's nothing definitive. When we say something

303
00:19:23.960 --> 00:19:27.640
is objective, we're like, this is objective truth it is,

304
00:19:28.000 --> 00:19:33.160
it's fixed, it's settled. If it's subjective, it fluctuates, it

305
00:19:33.200 --> 00:19:36.119
can change. We don't really know. Well, when it comes

306
00:19:36.160 --> 00:19:39.559
to Bible interpretation, why would I argue it's subjective. Well,

307
00:19:39.559 --> 00:19:43.319
go back to my previous point. The reality of multiple interpretations.

308
00:19:44.000 --> 00:19:48.240
History shows me what nobody can agree endless interpretations. What

309
00:19:48.279 --> 00:19:51.759
does that demonstrate No one can agree and every interpretation

310
00:19:51.839 --> 00:19:55.319
contradicts the other. Well, then that only screams to me

311
00:19:55.680 --> 00:20:01.559
that is subjective. Even well meaning and vout believers and

312
00:20:01.720 --> 00:20:05.440
scholars and theologians come to different conclusions because they bring

313
00:20:05.519 --> 00:20:12.400
their own experience, presuppositions, and philological framework and cultural influence

314
00:20:12.680 --> 00:20:17.119
and biases to the text. So where does the problem begin?

315
00:20:17.359 --> 00:20:22.960
Why do we have all of this diversity, endless interpretations

316
00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:27.119
and contradiction. Why because there's a level of subjectivity to it?

317
00:20:27.400 --> 00:20:30.079
Why is there a level of subjectivity to it? Because

318
00:20:30.119 --> 00:20:31.839
what do we bring to the text? I want you

319
00:20:31.920 --> 00:20:33.640
to write those things down? We bring to the text?

320
00:20:33.640 --> 00:20:42.279
Are you ready experience or experiences if you want, plural presuppositions,

321
00:20:44.039 --> 00:20:54.119
philological frameworks, cultural influences and biases to the text. This

322
00:20:54.359 --> 00:20:59.799
leads to the variety of interpretations. Now what do we

323
00:20:59.880 --> 00:21:07.319
mean when we bring our experiences to the text? Just

324
00:21:07.400 --> 00:21:11.319
our life? While we've experienced things, We've encountered things, and

325
00:21:11.400 --> 00:21:14.440
so we bring that to the text. Now should we

326
00:21:14.440 --> 00:21:19.279
bring our experiences to the text? In reality, no, what

327
00:21:19.440 --> 00:21:23.000
you experience has nothing to do with what the text says.

328
00:21:24.599 --> 00:21:27.799
But it impacts it does it absolutely impacts. What was

329
00:21:27.799 --> 00:21:31.640
the second thing that we bring to the text? Presuppositions?

330
00:21:31.640 --> 00:21:34.240
We bring all kinds of presuppositions to the text. And

331
00:21:34.279 --> 00:21:38.400
what have I been saying forever in this church? Take

332
00:21:38.440 --> 00:21:41.839
our presupposition out back and shoot it now. Whenever I

333
00:21:41.920 --> 00:21:45.000
say that, everyone laughs. But then we see the danger

334
00:21:45.079 --> 00:21:47.920
that happens when I set us at our presuppositions. Right

335
00:21:48.160 --> 00:21:50.799
as soon as I set our presuppositions aside, and I

336
00:21:50.839 --> 00:21:54.279
start questioning and I start challenging, and I start going,

337
00:21:54.279 --> 00:21:57.200
well what about this and what about that? Inevitably someone

338
00:21:57.240 --> 00:22:01.000
didn't shoot their presupposition because they get mad, they get defensive,

339
00:22:01.240 --> 00:22:04.480
they get upset, they get argumentative. Instead of just saying, well,

340
00:22:04.519 --> 00:22:06.599
you know what, I don't have a presupposition here. It

341
00:22:06.640 --> 00:22:09.160
doesn't matter what I learned yesterday. It doesn't matter what

342
00:22:09.200 --> 00:22:11.119
I learned last week. I'm willing to look at the

343
00:22:11.160 --> 00:22:14.359
text anew and start over. Nobody wants to start over.

344
00:22:14.519 --> 00:22:18.000
Everybody wants a conclusion, and that conclusion must remain true

345
00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:23.039
Sunday after say, until when they come to a different conclusion.

346
00:22:23.200 --> 00:22:26.920
Then I must be willing to do what consider they're

347
00:22:27.039 --> 00:22:30.160
new And it's so just ridiculous the way that works.

348
00:22:30.680 --> 00:22:33.960
But everyone brings their presupposition. If you bring your presupposition

349
00:22:34.039 --> 00:22:36.279
to the text at that point, what does that mean

350
00:22:36.279 --> 00:22:43.160
about Bible interpretation. It's just it's utterly subjective, and we're

351
00:22:43.519 --> 00:22:48.759
guess what's now the authority we are or what's the

352
00:22:48.759 --> 00:22:51.240
third thing they say can be brought to the text

353
00:22:52.319 --> 00:22:57.000
theological framework? What does that mean? Yeah, whatever theological team

354
00:22:57.000 --> 00:23:00.319
you're in, right. So if I'm in Team Reformed, what

355
00:23:00.400 --> 00:23:04.799
should I never do in my preaching ever, say anything

356
00:23:04.799 --> 00:23:08.079
that would call into question Team Reform and get I

357
00:23:08.119 --> 00:23:10.559
take off reform people when I call into question the

358
00:23:10.559 --> 00:23:15.000
way the Reformation went right, the unintended consequences of the Reformation. Well, look,

359
00:23:15.160 --> 00:23:17.240
nobody should get mad at me for that. That's something

360
00:23:17.279 --> 00:23:21.039
we should all acknowledge. Something happened, right. Everyone wants to

361
00:23:21.200 --> 00:23:24.680
argue about, Well, the Reformation was about the ninety five PCs.

362
00:23:24.720 --> 00:23:28.119
The Reformation was about indulgences. The Reformation was about justification.

363
00:23:28.319 --> 00:23:34.440
You know what the Reformation was about who's in charge? Right?

364
00:23:34.839 --> 00:23:37.880
That's what it comes down to, right and our system?

365
00:23:38.599 --> 00:23:40.960
What does the Reformation tell us in our system that

366
00:23:41.039 --> 00:23:46.759
who's in charge the individual? Right? And that what the

367
00:23:46.759 --> 00:23:52.559
Reformation proves? Right? I mean, what did Luther say? Yeah,

368
00:23:52.559 --> 00:23:54.920
I know we preach that the scriptures are, but in reality,

369
00:23:54.960 --> 00:23:58.119
what does the Reformation say? One individual said the Church

370
00:23:58.319 --> 00:24:04.400
was wrong? And then and we and we celebrate him

371
00:24:04.400 --> 00:24:08.119
as the hero. Right, Yay, he told that church. Now

372
00:24:08.160 --> 00:24:13.920
everyone celebrates it until what I tell that church you're wrong? No, no, no,

373
00:24:14.160 --> 00:24:17.799
what about the pastor has the spiritual authority? The pastor

374
00:24:17.839 --> 00:24:20.319
has no spiritual authority if the person in the pew

375
00:24:20.440 --> 00:24:23.039
at any particular time can simply stand up and say

376
00:24:23.920 --> 00:24:26.279
you're wrong because the Word of God says so, and

377
00:24:26.400 --> 00:24:31.119
here I stand, I can do no other. I even

378
00:24:31.279 --> 00:24:35.839
use that argument against my pastor in uh in Nebraska.

379
00:24:36.319 --> 00:24:38.359
And when we got into a huge argument, I said,

380
00:24:38.359 --> 00:24:40.920
I basically said, I believe this is what the Bible teaches.

381
00:24:41.039 --> 00:24:44.599
Here I stand. I literally quoted Luther because I felt

382
00:24:44.599 --> 00:24:47.880
like I have historical justification to tell the pastor what

383
00:24:49.400 --> 00:24:53.400
you're wrong. Well, at that point, and so guess what,

384
00:24:53.759 --> 00:24:57.920
so we we and so whatever film logical idea that

385
00:24:58.000 --> 00:25:00.599
I'm in, that that's what we're supp to go with.

386
00:25:00.720 --> 00:25:03.079
And nobody is supposed to challenge it. But our system

387
00:25:03.079 --> 00:25:06.920
says every individual can do what challenge it? And challenging

388
00:25:07.000 --> 00:25:11.480
it makes you what the hero? But it doesn't really

389
00:25:11.480 --> 00:25:14.240
make you the hero, does it? It makes you It

390
00:25:14.279 --> 00:25:17.400
will get you kicked out. As Catholics kicked out Luther,

391
00:25:17.799 --> 00:25:21.160
every other group will kick out the individual who questions them.

392
00:25:22.240 --> 00:25:25.680
That's the way it works, right, And and so the

393
00:25:25.680 --> 00:25:29.440
philological framework really could I will argue that we interpret

394
00:25:29.519 --> 00:25:32.359
the Bible not based off the study of the Bible.

395
00:25:32.400 --> 00:25:34.039
We base it, and I say it all the time,

396
00:25:34.279 --> 00:25:39.240
we interpret it off what our theological framework. So if

397
00:25:39.279 --> 00:25:42.519
your theological framework is that Israel isn't Israel, and I

398
00:25:42.720 --> 00:25:44.799
challenge that, then I'm just going to be wrong. But

399
00:25:44.839 --> 00:25:47.079
it's really it doesn't come down to us looking at

400
00:25:47.079 --> 00:25:51.039
the text. Your theology says Israel is an Israel. My

401
00:25:51.119 --> 00:25:53.599
theology says Israel is Israel. And we're never going to

402
00:25:53.640 --> 00:25:55.960
come to an agreement because nobody actually cares about the

403
00:25:55.960 --> 00:25:59.759
actual text because everyone's going to interpret the text on

404
00:25:59.759 --> 00:26:03.640
the bays of what the theological framework. So then it's

405
00:26:03.680 --> 00:26:07.599
just pointless. And even having the conversation, it's just it's meaningless.

406
00:26:07.839 --> 00:26:12.240
It's ridiculous. All Right, What was the next thing? Cultural influence?

407
00:26:12.279 --> 00:26:14.839
What does that have to do? What does that refer

408
00:26:14.920 --> 00:26:20.240
to the culture? Well, what can state it this way?

409
00:26:20.519 --> 00:26:24.920
And a culture that say is pro gun, pro republican,

410
00:26:25.119 --> 00:26:27.839
pro whatever, they're going to interpret the Bible through that

411
00:26:27.960 --> 00:26:30.559
cultural lens. So the Bible all of a sudden is

412
00:26:30.559 --> 00:26:33.720
going to be what pro gun, pro war, pro this,

413
00:26:34.319 --> 00:26:37.599
anti immigration, And if you come from a very liberal

414
00:26:37.640 --> 00:26:41.200
cultural culture, the Bible is going to be interpreted as

415
00:26:41.279 --> 00:26:46.440
more passive, more pro immigration. And so guess what, that's

416
00:26:46.559 --> 00:26:49.440
just us interpreting the Bible based off our cultural background,

417
00:26:49.559 --> 00:26:54.599
which just makes the Bible interpretation what completely subjective because

418
00:26:54.640 --> 00:26:57.960
they should not work. And what's the last thing, biases?

419
00:26:58.039 --> 00:27:04.559
Everyone has a bias somewhere tox So guess what the subjectivity.

420
00:27:04.839 --> 00:27:07.440
All of that leads to subjectivity and which leads to

421
00:27:07.519 --> 00:27:12.880
subject What a subjectivity leads to variety of interpretations. It

422
00:27:12.960 --> 00:27:16.039
leads to the historical diversity, the endless interpretations, and the

423
00:27:16.039 --> 00:27:21.519
contradictory interpretations. All right, so there's the subject, there's there's

424
00:27:21.720 --> 00:27:25.920
Bible interpretation is subject subjective due to those very reasons.

425
00:27:25.920 --> 00:27:30.240
Those things being added. Now, we have interpretive frameworks which

426
00:27:30.319 --> 00:27:36.000
lead to subjectivity and interpretation. Various hermaeneutical frameworks, and I'll

427
00:27:36.000 --> 00:27:41.759
just go through a couple of them. Literal, allegorical, typological,

428
00:27:42.279 --> 00:27:50.920
historical grammatical. Those are just some of the schools of hermoneutics. Right, Literal, allegorical, typological, historical, grammatical.

429
00:27:51.480 --> 00:27:56.039
They lead to significant different understandings of the same text.

430
00:27:56.559 --> 00:27:59.920
For instance, someone using a literal approach might interpret revelation

431
00:28:00.079 --> 00:28:03.279
and very different than someone using an allegorical approach. These

432
00:28:03.319 --> 00:28:07.279
frameworks themselves are often shaped by theological traditions, which further

433
00:28:07.440 --> 00:28:11.160
leads to differences. In other words, this not only do

434
00:28:11.279 --> 00:28:15.680
we have Bible interpretation subjective because we bring all of

435
00:28:15.720 --> 00:28:19.759
this stuff to it. It's subjective because everyone is using

436
00:28:19.759 --> 00:28:24.400
a hermeneutical framework to some level, at least from behind

437
00:28:24.440 --> 00:28:27.960
the pulpit they should be. Now, sadly, the people sitting

438
00:28:28.000 --> 00:28:30.799
in the pew, do they have a hermeneutical framework. In

439
00:28:30.799 --> 00:28:35.359
most cases, no, they do not. They do only because

440
00:28:35.400 --> 00:28:38.319
of what they've heard. But they've never actually studied hermeneutics.

441
00:28:38.359 --> 00:28:40.880
I mean, at least in all of my years of

442
00:28:40.960 --> 00:28:43.799
going to church, right and all of my years of

443
00:28:43.799 --> 00:28:48.680
going to church, I have never met a layperson, almost

444
00:28:48.839 --> 00:28:54.039
never who's studied hermeneutics to any great degree. Most of

445
00:28:54.079 --> 00:28:57.759
them have never read a hermeneutical textbook. They could not

446
00:28:57.960 --> 00:29:00.200
articulate the different schools of thought. I mean, And I

447
00:29:00.200 --> 00:29:02.640
spent a good portion of I mean, I spent a

448
00:29:02.680 --> 00:29:04.680
good portion of my ministry here trying to get everyone

449
00:29:04.680 --> 00:29:07.799
simply to read this book Protestant Biblical interpretation. It's not

450
00:29:07.839 --> 00:29:10.480
even a big book, couldn't get anyone to read it, right,

451
00:29:10.480 --> 00:29:13.200
it's a simple, small book, right because it goes to

452
00:29:13.279 --> 00:29:16.640
all the different schools of hermoneutics. Right because most people

453
00:29:16.640 --> 00:29:19.599
aren't interested in it. I understand that right now, people

454
00:29:19.599 --> 00:29:23.039
who fill a call to ministry are much more likely

455
00:29:23.079 --> 00:29:25.359
to read it. But the average lay person isn't. But

456
00:29:25.480 --> 00:29:28.720
even though so, they don't want to study the subject.

457
00:29:28.839 --> 00:29:34.319
But what will they do spake authoritatively on the subject?

458
00:29:34.319 --> 00:29:37.759
Which is maddening to me? Right, It's like, it's maddening.

459
00:29:37.759 --> 00:29:40.079
It's like, if you don't want to really engage, then

460
00:29:40.119 --> 00:29:42.559
why do you speak so authoritative about it? But that's

461
00:29:42.599 --> 00:29:46.079
the case. But the point is these hermaeutical frameworks are

462
00:29:46.119 --> 00:29:51.640
inevitably going to lead to what different interpretation, which, now,

463
00:29:51.720 --> 00:29:54.000
just think about this from a now, just see how

464
00:29:54.200 --> 00:29:57.920
depressing this can be. We look at the text and

465
00:29:57.960 --> 00:30:00.160
do we not see in nothing but a never the

466
00:30:00.319 --> 00:30:05.279
amount of interpretations and contradictions? Yes, well, is there ever

467
00:30:05.400 --> 00:30:10.559
a way to solve that? If Christianity cannot even agree

468
00:30:11.119 --> 00:30:16.160
on the hermoneutical framework, If we can't even agree on

469
00:30:16.240 --> 00:30:19.160
the framework in which we're going to approach the text.

470
00:30:19.880 --> 00:30:23.079
This happened in this very church when I had people

471
00:30:23.240 --> 00:30:27.039
arguing with me about the whole you know, Israel being Israel,

472
00:30:27.480 --> 00:30:30.279
And I was like, okay, so what's the hermoneutical framework

473
00:30:30.319 --> 00:30:32.559
we're going to use? I thought, if you've gone to

474
00:30:32.599 --> 00:30:35.000
this church, you know we take things from a much

475
00:30:35.039 --> 00:30:40.319
more historical, grammatical, literal approach. Right is Genesis one, Literal

476
00:30:40.559 --> 00:30:44.680
is Genesis two, Literal is Genesis three, Literal is Genesis four,

477
00:30:44.799 --> 00:30:48.599
Literal is Genesis five, Literal is Genesis six, literal is

478
00:30:48.640 --> 00:30:51.400
Genesis seven. And it would be like, well, yes, yes, yes, yes,

479
00:30:51.559 --> 00:30:55.240
but all of a sudden, Israel isn't Israel. Well when

480
00:30:55.279 --> 00:30:58.640
did that happen? And so, and you try to have

481
00:30:58.720 --> 00:31:03.839
that debate. Doesn't matter, No, it doesn't matter. So you

482
00:31:03.880 --> 00:31:06.960
can't even get people in your own church to agree

483
00:31:07.079 --> 00:31:09.880
on a hermeneutical framework. If you can't even get people

484
00:31:09.960 --> 00:31:12.680
in your own church to agree in a hermeneutical framework, look,

485
00:31:12.759 --> 00:31:16.119
ladies and gentlemen, the battle is lost. It's over. Everyone

486
00:31:16.119 --> 00:31:19.319
should just go home and give up. There has to

487
00:31:19.359 --> 00:31:23.960
be some agreement on the hermeneutical framework. If Christianity cannot

488
00:31:24.000 --> 00:31:26.640
agree on hermonutual framework. Then guess what you do? You

489
00:31:26.799 --> 00:31:30.960
just break off into groups based off hermeneutical framework, even

490
00:31:31.000 --> 00:31:34.160
though nobody really knows what their hermeneutical framework is, and

491
00:31:34.200 --> 00:31:36.799
then everyone just pretends that that's the one they use.

492
00:31:37.000 --> 00:31:39.359
But I will say, what even makes it worse is

493
00:31:39.400 --> 00:31:42.240
people are not even even pastors are not consistent on

494
00:31:42.279 --> 00:31:46.000
their hermeneutical framework. The guy that was yelling and screaming

495
00:31:46.000 --> 00:31:48.400
that poor people are going to be eaten and the

496
00:31:48.480 --> 00:31:50.680
axet is not an axe head. They would have both

497
00:31:50.920 --> 00:31:54.079
argued to you that they do not buy into the

498
00:31:54.160 --> 00:31:58.799
allegorical type method. But in many cases, well, he went

499
00:31:58.799 --> 00:32:02.519
to John six fifty three said what, it's not literal,

500
00:32:03.480 --> 00:32:05.839
but then he went to Proverbs thirty and says it is.

501
00:32:06.240 --> 00:32:09.799
The other man went to Second King six and said, well,

502
00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:11.519
I mean it's an axe head, but I mean it

503
00:32:11.559 --> 00:32:14.480
pictures this, this and this and this, meaning that we

504
00:32:14.559 --> 00:32:18.640
don't even remain true to necessarily our hermeneutical framework. It's

505
00:32:18.799 --> 00:32:21.839
it's subjective. And even how we apply the hermonutical framework

506
00:32:21.880 --> 00:32:24.640
to the text, Well, if we can't even stay true

507
00:32:24.680 --> 00:32:28.599
to our hermoneutical framework, then there's no hope forever coming

508
00:32:28.640 --> 00:32:32.960
to any objective interpretation, it's just chaos. There's got to

509
00:32:33.000 --> 00:32:38.319
be some way of determining something correct. There should be right,

510
00:32:40.119 --> 00:32:43.680
and so well, we went through most of that, and

511
00:32:44.440 --> 00:32:47.240
so we have kind of a subjectivity because of all

512
00:32:47.279 --> 00:32:48.960
the things we bring to the text. We have these

513
00:32:49.000 --> 00:32:51.640
interpretive frameworks that don't even agree. And then we have

514
00:32:51.960 --> 00:32:55.279
doctrinal biases. People often interpret the Bible through the lens

515
00:32:55.279 --> 00:33:00.759
of their theological tradition Calvinism or Minianism, Catholicism, pentecostal. In

516
00:33:00.880 --> 00:33:03.359
such cases, the interpretation is not coming from the text.

517
00:33:03.519 --> 00:33:06.839
It is filtered through the pre existing doctrinal beliefs, making

518
00:33:06.920 --> 00:33:13.920
interpretation absolutely subjective. And everyone has a philological bias. If

519
00:33:13.920 --> 00:33:16.160
your lordship, how are you going to interpret the text

520
00:33:17.440 --> 00:33:20.319
from a lordship perspective? And anyone who says that that's

521
00:33:20.319 --> 00:33:23.400
wrong is going to be considered a heretic. How do

522
00:33:23.480 --> 00:33:28.359
Catholics interpret it to the framework of Catholicism right? How

523
00:33:28.400 --> 00:33:31.599
does a free grace person through that? So then our

524
00:33:31.599 --> 00:33:35.839
theological biases get in the way. So it's subjective because

525
00:33:35.880 --> 00:33:37.680
of all the things we bring to the text. It's

526
00:33:37.680 --> 00:33:40.799
subjective because of all these different interpretive frameworks, and it

527
00:33:40.880 --> 00:33:45.000
is subjective because we bring our doctrinal biases to the text.

528
00:33:45.279 --> 00:33:51.119
Meaning the text is by no means the authority. So

529
00:33:51.599 --> 00:33:53.279
what do we have here? We have the reality of

530
00:33:53.680 --> 00:33:57.319
multiple interpretations. We see this in historical diversity. We see

531
00:33:57.359 --> 00:34:00.160
this in endless interpretations. We see this in the contradiction.

532
00:34:00.400 --> 00:34:03.200
We see the subjectivity and interpretation because of what we

533
00:34:03.240 --> 00:34:07.200
bring to the text interpretive framework and because of doctrinal biases.

534
00:34:07.680 --> 00:34:15.000
So is personal interpretation. The real authority is personal interpretation.

535
00:34:15.079 --> 00:34:21.199
The real authority I dogmatically say what it is, and

536
00:34:21.360 --> 00:34:24.639
the reality is personal interpretation is the authority. The Bible

537
00:34:24.679 --> 00:34:27.880
is not the authority. Our interpretation is the authority. Now,

538
00:34:27.920 --> 00:34:30.079
whenever I say that, every Christian is going to disagree,

539
00:34:30.239 --> 00:34:36.119
but I think it's factual. Given the subjective nature of interpretation,

540
00:34:36.519 --> 00:34:39.639
it can sometimes appear that the real authority in Christianity

541
00:34:39.719 --> 00:34:42.239
lies not in the text of Scripture itself, but how

542
00:34:42.320 --> 00:34:45.480
individuals or groups interpret that text. In many cases, the

543
00:34:45.480 --> 00:34:50.519
authority of the text is mediated by tradition, church leadership,

544
00:34:50.599 --> 00:34:54.159
or individual interpretation, which can cause the actual meaning of

545
00:34:54.199 --> 00:34:57.719
the text to seem less important than the interpretive framework

546
00:34:58.039 --> 00:35:03.079
someone adopts. I will argue it doesn't just seem that way.

547
00:35:04.280 --> 00:35:09.920
The authority is the interpretation. The authority is not the text, right,

548
00:35:10.039 --> 00:35:13.119
That's the reality of Christianity. Nobody wants to admit it.

549
00:35:13.159 --> 00:35:14.800
I'm going to make that a dogmatic I'm not even

550
00:35:14.840 --> 00:35:20.760
making that a hypothesis. The authority lies where your interpretation.

551
00:35:22.159 --> 00:35:28.920
And then guess what your interpretation becomes, what dogma right

552
00:35:29.400 --> 00:35:31.760
and what not? Only do you say you are right,

553
00:35:33.960 --> 00:35:40.360
you say everyone else is wrong? It becomes a dogmatic declaration,

554
00:35:40.599 --> 00:35:46.000
all right. So, in many Christian contexts, the community quote

555
00:35:46.079 --> 00:35:50.239
unquote I hate that term, or denominations interpretations takes precedent

556
00:35:50.360 --> 00:35:54.639
over individual interpretations. For example, Catholics give interpretive authority to

557
00:35:54.679 --> 00:36:00.760
the magisterium will Protestants tend to prioritize individual interpretation. But

558
00:36:00.880 --> 00:36:04.679
even then into visual interpretation are often influenced by one's

559
00:36:04.679 --> 00:36:08.760
denominational tradition. So you can you can try. Sometimes we'll

560
00:36:08.800 --> 00:36:10.880
try to be like, well, the church gets to make

561
00:36:10.920 --> 00:36:13.400
some decision, But the reality is it still goes down

562
00:36:13.440 --> 00:36:16.199
to the individual. Still goes down to the individual. Now

563
00:36:16.199 --> 00:36:20.800
that individual may be influenced by their theology, but it's

564
00:36:20.840 --> 00:36:25.239
still their interpretation that's authoritative, and that's the way it works,

565
00:36:25.360 --> 00:36:30.960
all right. Now, Despite that reality, most Christian traditions hold

566
00:36:31.559 --> 00:36:35.039
that scripture itself is the final authority, even though interpretations

567
00:36:35.079 --> 00:36:38.559
may vary. The issue is that subjectivity and the variety

568
00:36:38.559 --> 00:36:41.840
of interpretations make it challenging to say that the text

569
00:36:41.960 --> 00:36:46.760
always functions as the ultimate authority and practice. Now they

570
00:36:46.800 --> 00:36:49.039
won't go as far as I will go, but they

571
00:36:49.079 --> 00:36:51.480
will say it almost makes it. It makes it very

572
00:36:51.480 --> 00:36:56.760
difficult to say, what is the authority? The word makes

573
00:36:56.760 --> 00:36:58.719
it very difficult to say that. You can't say that

574
00:36:58.760 --> 00:37:02.000
with a straight face. The fact that people reach different

575
00:37:02.039 --> 00:37:06.480
conclusions based on the same text suggests that interpretation takes

576
00:37:06.880 --> 00:37:12.480
precedence over the objective meaning of the text itself. Let

577
00:37:12.519 --> 00:37:14.079
me hear that. I want you to hear that again,

578
00:37:14.199 --> 00:37:20.559
all right. The fact that people reach different conclusions based

579
00:37:20.599 --> 00:37:29.760
on the exact same text suggest that interpretation takes precedence

580
00:37:31.159 --> 00:37:40.239
over the objective meaning of the text itself. So what

581
00:37:40.400 --> 00:37:50.159
takes precedence? Interpretation over text, interpretation over text meaning? We

582
00:37:50.239 --> 00:37:53.400
do not believe in sola scripture? What do we believe?

583
00:37:55.039 --> 00:38:01.440
And sola interpretation? Sola individual? We are the pope, we

584
00:38:01.519 --> 00:38:05.239
are the magisterium, we are the expert we are the

585
00:38:05.280 --> 00:38:09.119
seminary professor. We are the Bible scholar, we are the theologian.

586
00:38:09.400 --> 00:38:12.639
We basically are our own pastor. We determine right, we

587
00:38:12.800 --> 00:38:15.960
determine wrong. We tell people what they should and shouldn't do,

588
00:38:16.199 --> 00:38:19.039
and you must do what they do or you are gone.

589
00:38:20.480 --> 00:38:23.199
And it's all based off what they say they will.

590
00:38:23.199 --> 00:38:28.760
And everyone claims what that they are simply following the Bible.

591
00:38:28.920 --> 00:38:30.440
If we were to get in a car right now

592
00:38:30.440 --> 00:38:32.480
and drive to a Pentecostal church, what would they tell

593
00:38:32.559 --> 00:38:37.679
us they're following the Bible. If we went to another

594
00:38:37.800 --> 00:38:39.760
form of charismatic church right now, they would tell us

595
00:38:39.760 --> 00:38:41.239
they following the Bible. If we went to a Church

596
00:38:41.280 --> 00:38:42.800
of Christ right now, what would they tell us they're

597
00:38:42.800 --> 00:38:45.239
following the Bible. If we went to a Nazarene church

598
00:38:45.440 --> 00:38:48.199
the Bible, go to a Lutheran church the Bible. Every

599
00:38:48.280 --> 00:38:51.559
church we would go to would all say we follow

600
00:38:51.599 --> 00:38:53.639
the Bible. The Bible is the word of God, the

601
00:38:53.679 --> 00:38:56.559
Bible is the authority. But not one church agrees on

602
00:38:56.920 --> 00:39:01.519
basically anything, and you're just like, well, what's the authority?

603
00:39:02.119 --> 00:39:08.880
The people? The people, and that like every Christian should

604
00:39:08.960 --> 00:39:11.320
just be like that, should just leads you to almost

605
00:39:11.360 --> 00:39:14.960
a point of despair. Look, it typically does. I mean,

606
00:39:15.000 --> 00:39:18.440
I get frustrated with it constantly. Right, But when you

607
00:39:18.480 --> 00:39:20.719
listen to a sermon on Proverbs thirty and the next

608
00:39:20.719 --> 00:39:22.679
thing you know, people's heads are being chopped off and

609
00:39:22.679 --> 00:39:26.320
you're drinking blood and eating flesh you got, you'd start

610
00:39:26.400 --> 00:39:28.960
losing all hope and humanity. You know, you listen to

611
00:39:29.000 --> 00:39:30.559
a sermon about an axet and all a sudden an

612
00:39:30.559 --> 00:39:34.000
accent isn't an axe head. I don't know what anything is. Right,

613
00:39:34.239 --> 00:39:40.199
you go to Ezekiel thirty six, where it says Israel Israel, Israel, Israel, Israel, Israel, Israel, Israel,

614
00:39:40.239 --> 00:39:42.159
Israel Israel. I'm gonna give you a new heart and

615
00:39:42.199 --> 00:39:44.559
new spirit. Next thing, you know, that's me, even though

616
00:39:44.559 --> 00:39:46.159
the text says once they get a new heart in

617
00:39:46.199 --> 00:39:48.159
the new spirit, then you'll go into the land that

618
00:39:48.199 --> 00:39:50.559
I promised your father's. How can you make that about me?

619
00:39:50.800 --> 00:39:53.239
Since I know none of my fathers were promised any

620
00:39:53.320 --> 00:39:59.119
land right like that? That's not even that doesn't even

621
00:39:59.159 --> 00:40:05.719
require any great philological training. That's just basic reading comprehension skills.

622
00:40:06.119 --> 00:40:08.280
And so I don't know what you do at that

623
00:40:08.400 --> 00:40:15.000
point so a question, then, can interpretation be objective? That's

624
00:40:15.039 --> 00:40:17.639
the history and the reality. That's the history and reality,

625
00:40:17.760 --> 00:40:20.119
And the history and reality leads us into a very

626
00:40:20.199 --> 00:40:23.599
dark place. Can we agree with that? In fact, where

627
00:40:23.639 --> 00:40:26.679
does history and reality lead us? That the reality is?

628
00:40:26.840 --> 00:40:29.159
The Bible is not even the authority, the individuals, the

629
00:40:29.199 --> 00:40:33.719
authority and interpretation trump's texts. So can there be an

630
00:40:33.760 --> 00:40:42.800
objective interpretation all efforts towards objectivity, Well, Biblical interpretations does

631
00:40:42.840 --> 00:40:46.679
involve some degree of subjectivity. There are methods scholars and

632
00:40:46.760 --> 00:40:51.519
theologians use to minimize the subjectivity. So they're saying, there

633
00:40:51.840 --> 00:40:56.719
have been efforts made by theologians and scholars to minimize

634
00:40:57.119 --> 00:41:00.599
the subjectivity and biblical interpretation. What can can we say

635
00:41:00.599 --> 00:41:04.440
about those efforts? What can we say about those efforts

636
00:41:04.519 --> 00:41:12.800
of theologians and Bible scholars? Their efforts have failed? All right? Now?

637
00:41:12.800 --> 00:41:17.440
Why have they failed? Now? Who do we blame here?

638
00:41:19.159 --> 00:41:21.800
Who do we blame for the failure of their efforts

639
00:41:21.920 --> 00:41:25.039
to stop the subjectivity or to lessen the amount of

640
00:41:25.039 --> 00:41:38.639
subjectivity and biblical interpretation? Who should we blame? Now? There

641
00:41:38.639 --> 00:41:41.360
are times I would always put the blame at the

642
00:41:41.400 --> 00:41:44.199
foot of the church or the pastor. Then there are

643
00:41:44.239 --> 00:41:46.519
issues now where I blame the people in the pew

644
00:41:46.800 --> 00:41:50.239
far more than the people in the pulpit. I think

645
00:41:50.280 --> 00:41:54.239
in this area, I'm going to blame the church. But

646
00:41:54.320 --> 00:41:56.679
at the same time I blame the people. I think

647
00:41:56.719 --> 00:41:58.679
there's a shared blame. And let me try to explain,

648
00:41:58.800 --> 00:42:04.440
all right, any person who's a Christian in twenty twenty

649
00:42:04.440 --> 00:42:08.880
four twenty over the last probably fifteen twenty years, you

650
00:42:08.960 --> 00:42:12.880
have access to everything. You have access to everything, right,

651
00:42:13.519 --> 00:42:16.239
So you have access to books on how to study

652
00:42:16.239 --> 00:42:19.400
the Bible, you have access to hermineutical textbooks, you have

653
00:42:19.440 --> 00:42:24.440
access to hermoneutical lectures. You have access to literally everything.

654
00:42:24.960 --> 00:42:27.599
So if you go to a church that is not

655
00:42:27.840 --> 00:42:30.800
in any way, shape or form helping you understand how

656
00:42:30.800 --> 00:42:32.880
to handle the text, if you don't know how to

657
00:42:32.880 --> 00:42:35.519
handle the text, it really is your fault because there's

658
00:42:35.559 --> 00:42:38.880
no one stopping you from learning. There's no one stopping you. Right,

659
00:42:39.119 --> 00:42:43.280
there was no my church right down the road where

660
00:42:43.320 --> 00:42:48.239
I became a Christian. I immediately realized as a teenager, it's

661
00:42:48.280 --> 00:42:51.320
not answering questions, it's not helping me. Right, So did

662
00:42:51.360 --> 00:42:55.079
I sit around waiting, No, I got in my car,

663
00:42:55.199 --> 00:42:57.639
I drove to Abilene to Butternut Street and went to

664
00:42:57.679 --> 00:43:01.199
the Bible bookstore. I drove to Harden Simmons and went

665
00:43:01.199 --> 00:43:03.440
to the library. I drove to ACU and went to

666
00:43:03.440 --> 00:43:05.440
the library. I drove to McMurray and went to the

667
00:43:05.440 --> 00:43:07.840
library and I started looking for book. I didn't even

668
00:43:07.840 --> 00:43:10.079
have the internet, and I went find Now, that's not

669
00:43:10.280 --> 00:43:13.800
I don't say that because I was spiritual. Had nothing

670
00:43:13.800 --> 00:43:17.400
to do with being spiritual. It had something about doing what. Well,

671
00:43:17.400 --> 00:43:21.800
if I'm supposed to understand this, I'm holding up a

672
00:43:21.840 --> 00:43:24.280
Bible for those listening online. Well, I got to find

673
00:43:24.280 --> 00:43:26.679
a way to get answers. If the church is not

674
00:43:26.719 --> 00:43:29.079
going to give me the answers, where do I find them?

675
00:43:29.400 --> 00:43:31.639
Because the church wanted me to go to lock ins

676
00:43:31.639 --> 00:43:36.280
and pizza parties and six Flags and some dumb church

677
00:43:36.320 --> 00:43:39.039
camp where I could be manipulated and indoctrinated, and I

678
00:43:39.159 --> 00:43:42.679
refused to play any of their reindeer games because it

679
00:43:42.760 --> 00:43:45.280
was stupid. I didn't want to go to church for fun.

680
00:43:45.559 --> 00:43:47.400
I thought I was going to church because I heard

681
00:43:47.639 --> 00:43:50.159
that we have a book that comes from God. Right,

682
00:43:50.360 --> 00:43:53.119
and so my understanding, if there's a God and he's

683
00:43:53.159 --> 00:43:55.800
put his word and a book, then I think we

684
00:43:55.840 --> 00:43:59.760
should be obsessed with figuring out what what it says,

685
00:44:00.079 --> 00:44:04.039
what it means. That doesn't mean I was spiritual. I

686
00:44:04.079 --> 00:44:06.159
don't want in any way to say that the heck

687
00:44:06.920 --> 00:44:09.719
it was not because I was spiritual. It was just

688
00:44:09.760 --> 00:44:12.400
because if this book is from God, I want to

689
00:44:12.519 --> 00:44:17.679
understand it. So on one hand, I can't make any

690
00:44:18.079 --> 00:44:20.559
excuse for people sitting in the pew who are just

691
00:44:20.760 --> 00:44:24.719
foolish and subject. That's their own fault, there's nobody else's fault.

692
00:44:24.960 --> 00:44:28.199
At the same time, it ticks me off that churches

693
00:44:28.840 --> 00:44:32.599
just I look, I think churches give the people what

694
00:44:32.639 --> 00:44:36.280
they think the people want because a church can What

695
00:44:36.320 --> 00:44:40.039
can a church not do and survive? Can a church

696
00:44:40.119 --> 00:44:43.679
survive by giving the people what they don't want? Cannot?

697
00:44:44.599 --> 00:44:47.119
I mean? I look, I know it, right, Okay, I

698
00:44:47.679 --> 00:44:52.159
know it because okay I I look, if anyone says,

699
00:44:52.159 --> 00:44:53.719
what did I mean? I failed in a lot of

700
00:44:53.760 --> 00:44:55.599
ways as a pastor, like I could, I could make

701
00:44:55.599 --> 00:44:57.639
a write a book and all the ways I failed.

702
00:44:57.880 --> 00:45:00.440
But I in some ways from a human perspective, I

703
00:45:00.519 --> 00:45:03.119
was an idiot because I really thought that what the

704
00:45:03.119 --> 00:45:08.320
people wanted was in depth study, to study, to dig in. Now,

705
00:45:08.679 --> 00:45:11.960
people would tell me that, but inevitably you would find

706
00:45:11.960 --> 00:45:15.400
out they don't really want that. They want a church

707
00:45:15.440 --> 00:45:18.159
to believe a certain thing, and they wanted to agree

708
00:45:18.199 --> 00:45:22.719
with them, right, and then just basically do what Just

709
00:45:22.800 --> 00:45:26.079
repeat it over and over and over. You don't challenge it,

710
00:45:26.320 --> 00:45:29.639
you don't grow, you don't evolve, You just and and

711
00:45:30.039 --> 00:45:34.559
well that's where we are. So the whole thing is

712
00:45:34.960 --> 00:45:39.519
to me, the idea that these scholars and people tried

713
00:45:39.559 --> 00:45:43.880
to get rid of subjectivity. I think they tried. Pastors

714
00:45:43.880 --> 00:45:46.280
weren't going to really try to get into it because

715
00:45:46.280 --> 00:45:49.320
they really can't and the people don't really want it.

716
00:45:51.639 --> 00:45:55.840
So it failed. So for so, let's look at some

717
00:45:55.920 --> 00:46:00.840
of their efforts. Right, So, they were a method known

718
00:46:00.840 --> 00:46:05.039
as the historical grammatical method. This method sought to understand

719
00:46:05.039 --> 00:46:08.400
the text in its original context, looking at the original language,

720
00:46:08.679 --> 00:46:11.960
historical setting, and grammar to draw out the intended meeting.

721
00:46:12.400 --> 00:46:15.679
Now that sounds good. Hey, here's this method. It's called

722
00:46:15.679 --> 00:46:21.119
the historical grammatical method. The historical grammatical method. That's the

723
00:46:21.159 --> 00:46:25.119
method I have put forth in this church since the inception.

724
00:46:27.280 --> 00:46:30.440
I thought everyone in this church agreed with the historical

725
00:46:30.719 --> 00:46:37.360
grammatical did that fix any of our disagreements or problems

726
00:46:37.360 --> 00:46:40.440
in the no did not fix anything, because guess what,

727
00:46:41.239 --> 00:46:43.760
they can just violate that whenever they wanted to violate it.

728
00:46:43.840 --> 00:46:46.079
If they want Israel not to be Israel, Israel's not Israel.

729
00:46:46.079 --> 00:46:48.400
If they want forever, want they don't want forever to

730
00:46:48.440 --> 00:46:51.440
be forever, guess what forever isn't forever. I mean we've

731
00:46:51.840 --> 00:46:54.400
watched it in real time. Because of the way I teach,

732
00:46:54.440 --> 00:46:57.400
I've kind of, you know, allowed sometimes more more chaos

733
00:46:57.440 --> 00:46:59.639
to happen. I mean, people outside the church who listen

734
00:46:59.679 --> 00:47:02.840
online telling man y'all would have some serious arguments going on.

735
00:47:02.920 --> 00:47:04.440
I'm like, well, you know, that's kind of the way.

736
00:47:04.679 --> 00:47:07.480
That's my own fault. But the point is sometimes it

737
00:47:07.519 --> 00:47:12.440
would be baffling because that would be like we agreed

738
00:47:12.480 --> 00:47:15.960
on the same hermeneutical method, right, if we agree on

739
00:47:16.000 --> 00:47:20.920
the same hermonutical method, then what should happen? I mean,

740
00:47:21.320 --> 00:47:23.639
there may be disagreement, but the disagreement should be what

741
00:47:24.800 --> 00:47:30.159
should be. But the only way that works is you've

742
00:47:30.159 --> 00:47:33.199
got to get people to do what go put in

743
00:47:33.280 --> 00:47:36.679
the work according to that method and then see where

744
00:47:36.719 --> 00:47:38.599
we are. But I could never get people to do

745
00:47:38.639 --> 00:47:40.840
that work. Remember I started making the I started making

746
00:47:40.880 --> 00:47:44.360
statements like, look, don't argue until you go do the work.

747
00:47:44.519 --> 00:47:46.719
That didn't even stop the arguing. I mean, finally, I

748
00:47:46.840 --> 00:47:49.079
think it finally toned it down, but it took a

749
00:47:49.119 --> 00:47:52.800
while because people still wanted to just argue without ever

750
00:47:52.920 --> 00:47:55.119
doing the study. It's like, you've got to go do

751
00:47:55.239 --> 00:47:58.639
the work. If there's an actual method, you can't say

752
00:47:58.679 --> 00:48:03.039
anything until you've run them method. Right, So the historical

753
00:48:03.079 --> 00:48:07.840
grammatical is great, but it hasn't fixed anything. So that

754
00:48:08.000 --> 00:48:11.800
was a concept to try to fix to minimize subjectivity,

755
00:48:11.880 --> 00:48:14.880
was the historical grammatical method. Another thing was the idea

756
00:48:14.880 --> 00:48:20.000
of comparing scripture with scripture. Many interpreters use the principle

757
00:48:20.000 --> 00:48:22.840
of scripture interpreting scripture, believing that the Bible is a

758
00:48:22.880 --> 00:48:26.000
cohesive whole and one passage can clarify another. But guess

759
00:48:26.000 --> 00:48:30.039
what does that fix anything? It doesn't fix anything, because

760
00:48:30.079 --> 00:48:32.400
guess what. When I listened to that sermon this week

761
00:48:32.440 --> 00:48:37.039
on Proverbs thirty, guess what they did. They compared scripture

762
00:48:37.039 --> 00:48:39.920
with scripture. They went Proverbs thirty fourteen. When Psalm fourteen

763
00:48:40.000 --> 00:48:42.280
four went Micah chapter three. The next thing, you know,

764
00:48:42.320 --> 00:48:44.480
people's heads are being chopped off and we're eating bodies.

765
00:48:44.920 --> 00:48:48.599
What just happened? So, because what can you do? When

766
00:48:48.639 --> 00:48:55.199
you compare scripture with scripture? You can fit the thing

767
00:48:55.239 --> 00:49:00.679
that fits your narrative. Right, So now I like the

768
00:49:00.719 --> 00:49:03.320
concept though, it sounds good, right, we hold through the

769
00:49:03.519 --> 00:49:09.320
historical grammatical method, right, the historical grammatical method. It sounds good, right,

770
00:49:09.440 --> 00:49:14.599
we compare scripture with scripture. Also, hermaeneutical principles were developed.

771
00:49:15.000 --> 00:49:20.719
Hermaeneutical principles like contact, genre and author intent can help

772
00:49:20.760 --> 00:49:25.159
bring more objectivity to interpretation. So hermautical principles were developed,

773
00:49:25.199 --> 00:49:28.960
hermaeutical systems were developed. Comparing scripture with scripture was given

774
00:49:29.159 --> 00:49:35.440
hermeneutical principles. Did that fix everything? No? Even with these methods,

775
00:49:36.760 --> 00:49:41.519
interpretations are influenced by the interpreter's cultural background, theological presuppositions,

776
00:49:41.559 --> 00:49:46.920
and personal biases. In the end, complete objectivity, they say

777
00:49:46.960 --> 00:49:51.000
it's difficult to achieve. I'm gonna say complete objectivity is

778
00:49:52.039 --> 00:49:58.719
impossible to achieve. We can never reach true objectivity and

779
00:49:58.760 --> 00:50:03.920
biblical interpretation meaning and some level Biblical interpretation is always

780
00:50:03.920 --> 00:50:15.079
what subjective, that is, that's very, that's very that's not

781
00:50:15.119 --> 00:50:17.079
a good place to be. Can we agree on that

782
00:50:17.519 --> 00:50:20.719
if all Biblical interpretation to some level is subjective, what

783
00:50:21.079 --> 00:50:23.599
does that lead to? Well, then how can we say

784
00:50:23.599 --> 00:50:29.119
something as writer, say something is wrong? And why do

785
00:50:29.239 --> 00:50:31.280
we get so mad when we think that somebody over

786
00:50:31.320 --> 00:50:34.840
there is being too subjective in their interpretation. Well, because

787
00:50:34.880 --> 00:50:39.039
we can be just as guilty of it. So what

788
00:50:39.079 --> 00:50:44.440
does this mean for biblical authority? Now, according to this argument,

789
00:50:44.920 --> 00:50:48.840
despite the subjectivity of interpretation, most Christians would agree that

790
00:50:48.840 --> 00:50:51.519
the Bible itself holds the ultimate authority. Now, I think

791
00:50:51.599 --> 00:50:57.039
Christians agree to that, but it doesn't mean anything. I

792
00:50:57.239 --> 00:50:59.760
think it's just I think it's just a useless, a

793
00:50:59.800 --> 00:51:03.280
youth full a useless thing to say, because it doesn't

794
00:51:03.320 --> 00:51:06.679
really mean anything. However, the issue lies and how that

795
00:51:06.760 --> 00:51:11.320
authority is applied or understood throughout different interpretations. Yeah, of course,

796
00:51:12.639 --> 00:51:15.320
in this sense, while the Bible is the objective authority,

797
00:51:15.480 --> 00:51:19.800
the variety of interpretations create the impression that individual communal

798
00:51:20.079 --> 00:51:23.639
interpretations hold more weight than the text itself. Again, I

799
00:51:23.639 --> 00:51:25.840
don't think it gives a I don't think it gives

800
00:51:25.880 --> 00:51:29.360
the idea that the interpretation holds more weight than the text.

801
00:51:29.559 --> 00:51:34.039
The reality is the interpretation trumps the text. That's the reality.

802
00:51:35.280 --> 00:51:41.199
So what reality have we come to conclude? Bible interpretation

803
00:51:41.440 --> 00:51:51.039
is subjective interpretation trumps the text. That's that's nobody wants

804
00:51:51.039 --> 00:51:54.440
to admit any of that, do they? Nobody wants to

805
00:51:55.800 --> 00:52:00.199
all right? And so how about tradition and traditions such

806
00:52:00.239 --> 00:52:03.639
as Catholicism or Eastern Orthodoxy. Tradition plays a key role

807
00:52:03.639 --> 00:52:06.960
in interpreting scripture, with the belief that the Church provides

808
00:52:07.000 --> 00:52:10.800
the correct understanding of the text, and Protestantism the emphasis

809
00:52:10.800 --> 00:52:14.000
on solo script tora theoretically places the scripture above all

810
00:52:14.039 --> 00:52:21.840
else but in practice, but in practice, interpretations vary widely,

811
00:52:22.960 --> 00:52:27.280
and really who becomes the authority the individual? Right? So

812
00:52:28.360 --> 00:52:33.519
uh yeah, well there's more, much more I can say here,

813
00:52:33.519 --> 00:52:35.960
but we're out of time, so we'll have to stop

814
00:52:36.000 --> 00:52:39.519
there for now. That leads us in a very depressed way. Right.

815
00:52:40.119 --> 00:52:43.800
The reality is, it's just been chaos throughout Church history.

816
00:52:44.440 --> 00:52:48.559
The reality is everything's been subjective. And the reality is

817
00:52:48.760 --> 00:52:52.239
when it comes to the Bible, Bible interpretation is subjective,

818
00:52:52.639 --> 00:52:55.519
and the and the end result, the end result of

819
00:52:55.519 --> 00:52:59.800
this subjectivity is that the interpretation trumps the text. So

820
00:52:59.840 --> 00:53:03.639
the final authority lies within the individual. The final authority

821
00:53:03.639 --> 00:53:07.800
a lies within the lies within the interpretation, and the

822
00:53:07.840 --> 00:53:12.639
text is subject is basically has to submit to the

823
00:53:12.639 --> 00:53:15.440
individual and to the interpretation. Even though we would say

824
00:53:15.440 --> 00:53:18.519
that's not the case. Anything we argue is simply a

825
00:53:18.559 --> 00:53:22.440
theoretical concept, because in practical reality, that's just the way

826
00:53:22.440 --> 00:53:24.599
it works, and there's no way to deny it in

827
00:53:24.639 --> 00:53:27.480
any way, shape or form. All right, so we'll stop

828
00:53:27.519 --> 00:53:29.599
there and then see how we want to approach the

829
00:53:29.639 --> 00:53:34.199
next hour. Maybe we can do something of benefit here. Right,

830
00:53:34.239 --> 00:53:37.000
let's pray, Lord God, we come before you this morning. Lord.

831
00:53:37.039 --> 00:53:42.440
It's a sad state that we all find ourselves, even

832
00:53:42.480 --> 00:53:45.039
though we may not want to admit it. The reality is, Lord,

833
00:53:45.079 --> 00:53:51.039
we have placed your word underneath us, and there's nothing

834
00:53:51.039 --> 00:53:53.000
we can do but ask for your forgiveness for that

835
00:53:53.320 --> 00:53:54.840
and be willing to admit that. And we asked this

836
00:53:54.880 --> 00:53:59.000
in Jesus name. It got people said,