How to Read the Bible So That It Makes Sense

Outline  October 19 – Where Do Bibles Come From?  October 26 – What’s the Point?  November 2 – Finding the Point: Charts and Diagrams  November 9 – Finding the Point: Narratives  November 16 – No Munch (Business meeting)  Today, Nov. 23 – What Difference Does It Make?

Review

 When you read the Bible you encounter 3 things: a text, a human author and God.

Review  When you read the Bible you encounter 3 things: a text, a human author and God.  Therefore, we need to understand how words work, the mind and culture of the human author and most importantly we need the help of God Himself if we are going to make sense of the Bible.

Review  When you read the Bible you encounter 3 things: a text, a human author and God.  Therefore, we need to understand how words work, the mind and culture of the human author and most importantly we need the help of God Himself if we are going to make sense of the Bible.  Since we can only make sense of words in reference to their context, reading the Bible in chunks of a paragraph or larger is always the best.

Review  When you read the Bible you encounter 3 things: a text, a human author and God.  Therefore, we need to understand how words work, the mind and culture of the human author and most importantly we need the help of God Himself if we are going to make sense of the Bible.  Since we can only make sense of words in reference to their context, reading the Bible in chunks of a paragraph or larger is always the best.  It is the main point or idea of a paragraph or more that carries the inspired message we need to hear from God. Therefore finding the main point of a passage is always our goal when reading the Bible.

Review  An idea (main point) has two parts:

Review  An idea (main point) has two parts:  Subject: what it is talking about.

Review  An idea (main point) has two parts:  Subject: what it is talking about.  Complement: what it is saying about what it is talking about.

Review  An idea (main point) has two parts:  Subject: what it is talking about.  Complement: what it is saying about what it is talking about.  Charting a book helps us find the main point by ensuring we understand the overall literary context and therefore don’t make wild errors. (e.g. Job).

Review  An idea (main point) has two parts:  Subject: what it is talking about.  Complement: what it is saying about what it is talking about.  Charting a book helps us find the main point by ensuring we understand the overall literary context and therefore don’t make wild errors. (e.g. Job).  Diagramming a passage helps us to separate major and minor clauses and discover the relationships between them which, in turn, helps us to clarify what is subject and what is complement and how the two relate.

Review  An idea (main point) has two parts:  Subject: what it is talking about.  Complement: what it is saying about what it is talking about.  Charting a book helps us find the main point by ensuring we understand the overall literary context and therefore don’t make wild errors. (e.g. Job).  Diagramming a passage helps us to separate major and minor clauses and discover the relationships between them which, in turn, helps us to clarify what is subject and what is complement and how the two relate.  Searching for the evaluative point of view of the A/author in a biblical narrative allows us to determine which characters to imitate and listen to and which ones we are to avoid imitating or listening to.

What Difference Does It Make?

What do we do after we feel reasonably confident that we have found the main point of our passage?

What Difference Does It Make? What do we do after we feel reasonably confident that we have found the main point of our passage? Problem:  The main point brings clarity. But if we can’t see how the main point relates to our lives, the message will sound distant, boring and irrelevant.

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant?

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant? 1.Avoid “The Heresy of Application” – H. Robinson

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant? 1.Avoid “The Heresy of Application” – H. Robinson  Learning how to apply the main point to our lives does not make it relevant.

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant? 1.Avoid “The Heresy of Application” – H. Robinson  Learning how to apply the main point to our lives does not make it relevant.  Before we get to how we do something, we must first understand why it’s important in the first place.

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant? 1.Avoid “The Heresy of Application” – H. Robinson  Learning how to apply the main point to our lives does not make it relevant.  Before we get to how we do something, we must first understand why it’s important in the first place. “Without the ‘so what?’ we preach a ‘who cares?’” – Bryan Chapell

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant? 1.Avoid “The Heresy of Application” – H. Robinson  Learning how to apply the main point to our lives does not make it relevant.  Before we get to how we do something, we must first understand why it’s important in the first place. “Without the ‘so what?’ we preach a ‘who cares?’” – Bryan Chapell  Therefore, the more we can learn about why God inspired the passage in the first place, the more relevant it will become to us. (We will want to apply it).

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the point relevant? 1.Avoid “The Heresy of Application” – H. Robinson  Learning how to apply the main point to our lives does not make it relevant.  Before we get to how we do something, we must first understand why it’s important in the first place. “Without the ‘so what?’ we preach a ‘who cares?’” – Bryan Chapell  Therefore, the more we can learn about why God inspired the passage in the first place, the more relevant it will become to us. (We will want to apply it).  The question then is how do we discover why God inspired the passage we’re reading?

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  First, why did God inspire the Bible?

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  First, why did God inspire the Bible?  In order to redeem us from the fall into sin.

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  First, why did God inspire the Bible?  In order to redeem us from the fall into sin.  Therefore, it’s safe to make the assumption that every passage in the Bible has a redemptive purpose; it is seeking to save us from something that has gone wrong with us or the world.

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  First, why did God inspire the Bible?  In order to redeem us from the fall into sin.  Therefore, it’s safe to make the assumption that every passage in the Bible has a redemptive purpose; it is seeking to save us from something that has gone wrong with us or the world.  And if God is offering us salvation through His Word, we must ask the question “Salvation from what?”

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  First, why did God inspire the Bible?  In order to redeem us from the fall into sin.  Therefore, it’s safe to make the assumption that every passage in the Bible has a redemptive purpose; it is seeking to save us from something that has gone wrong with us or the world.  And if God is offering us salvation through His Word, we must ask the question “Salvation from what?”  What’s the problem? What is wrong with us and our world that we need God to step in and save us?

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  Once you know what the text you’re studying is concerned with redeeming you from, then relevance is simply a matter of discovering how you and I are a part of the problem that’s being redeemed.

Making the Point Relevant. How do I find the “why” behind the text?  Once you know what the text you’re studying is concerned with redeeming you from, then relevance is simply a matter of discovering how you and I are a part of the problem that’s being redeemed.  Bryan Chapell calls this the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF for short).

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the main point relevant? 1.Avoid “Heresy of Application.” 2.Find the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF) of the Bible passage. – Bryan Chapell

Making the Point Relevant. “Since God designed the Bible to complete us for the purposes of his glory, the necessary implication is that in some sense we are incomplete… Our lack of wholeness is a consequence of the fallen condition in which we live. Aspects of this fallenness that are reflected in our sinfulness and in our world’s brokenness prompt Scripture’s instruction.” B. Chapell

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the main point relevant? 1.Avoid “Heresy of Application.” 2.Find the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF) of the Bible passage. – Bryan Chapell  The FCF “is the mutual condition that contemporary believers share with those to or about whom the text was written that requires the grace of the passage for God’s people to glorify and enjoy Him.” B. Chapell

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the main point relevant? 1.Avoid “Heresy of Application.” 2.Find the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF) of the Bible passage. – Bryan Chapell  The FCF is always phrased in negative terms. (i.e. it is something wrong, either with us or our world that needs God’s saving grace).

Making the Point Relevant. How do we make the main point relevant? 1.Avoid “Heresy of Application.” 2.Find the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF) of the Bible passage. – Bryan Chapell  The FCF is always phrased in negative terms. (i.e. it is something wrong, either with us or our world that needs God’s saving grace).  It can also be phrased as question. (e.g. How can I maintain integrity when my boss has none? Or, Why do we struggle to pray when family stresses make prayer most necessary?)

Making the Point Relevant Example: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Making the Point Relevant Example: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Main Point: What should we do when a fellow Christian dies? Do not grieve like those without hope for because of Christ’s death, resurrection and return we are always with the Lord and will be together again forever.

Making the Point Relevant Example: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Main Point: What should we do when a fellow Christian dies? Do not grieve like those without hope for because of Christ’s death, resurrection and return we are always with the Lord and will be together again forever. FCF: If being together forever with the Lord is the solution, then the separation caused by death must be the problem. Specifically, the belief that death separates us forever is the problem. That’s what’s wrong with us since the fall. If God hadn’t told us about being with the Lord forever through Paul then we would be overwhelmed with grief at the death of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Conclusion

 Knowing how to apply a text, does not make it relevant.

Conclusion  Knowing how to apply a text, does not make it relevant.  In order for us to experience a passage from the Bible as important to us, that is as relevant, we need to learn why God inspired it in the first place.

Conclusion  Knowing how to apply a text, does not make it relevant.  In order for us to experience a passage from the Bible as important to us, that is as relevant, we need to learn why God inspired it in the first place.  The answer to that question is found by searching for the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF). The fallen condition we or our world shares with the people to whom the text was originally written.

Conclusion  Knowing how to apply a text, does not make it relevant.  In order for us to experience a passage from the Bible as important to us, that is as relevant, we need to learn why God inspired it in the first place.  The answer to that question is found by searching for the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF). The fallen condition we or our world shares with the people to whom the text was originally written.  Knowing that it’s our separation from a loved one that makes their death so painful (the FCF of 1 Thess. 4) means that I will experience the news that I will be together with them again when Christ returns as good news for me personally. It is relevant to my life.

Conclusion  Knowing how to apply a text, does not make it relevant.  In order for us to experience a passage from the Bible as important to us, that is as relevant, we need to learn why God inspired it in the first place.  The answer to that question is found by searching for the Fallen Condition Focus (FCF). The fallen condition we or our world shares with the people to whom the text was originally written.  Knowing that it’s our separation from a loved one that makes their death so painful (the FCF of 1 Thess. 4) means that I will experience the news that I will be together with them again when Christ returns as good news for me personally. It is relevant to my life.  Moreover, I can also now explain to others why it is relevant for their lives too!