powerpoint presentation designed by claro ruiz vicente Adult Bible Study Guide Jan Feb Mar 2009 Adult Bible Study Guide Jan Feb Mar 2009

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Contributor Gerhard Pfandl Principal Contributor

The Prophetic Gift Contents 1. Heaven’s Means of COMMUNICATION 2. The Prophetic GIFT 3. SPIRITUAL Gifts and Prophecy 4. The Gift of Prophecy and God’s REMNANT Church 5. The INSPIRATION of the Prophets 6. TESTING the Prophets 7. The WORK of the Prophets 8. The AUTHORITY of the Prophets 9. The INTEGRITY of the Prophets 10. The MESSAGE of the Prophets 11. INTERPRETING the Prophetic Writings 12. The BLESSINGS of the Prophetic Gift 13. CONFIDENCE in the Prophetic Gift

The Prophetic Gift Our Goal {5} The real focus is on the Gift-Giver. We’ll learn about the Lord who loves this world so much He gave Himself, in the person of Jesus, as the sacrifice for our sins. That’s the God we serve, and that’s the God we seek to reveal in this quarter’s lessons.

The Prophetic Gift Lesson 11, March 14 The Prophetic Gift Lesson 11, March 14

Interpreting the Prophetic Writings Key Text Luke 24:27 NKJV “And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.”

Interpreting the Prophetic Writings Initial Words {139} Just as the interpretation of Scripture requires the use of sound methods of interpretation, so, too, the writings of Ellen G White need to be studied carefully in order to understand accurately their meaning.

Interpreting the Prophetic Writings Quick Look 1. Exegesis Versus Homiletics (Mark 1:17) 2. Time and Place (Jeremiah 4:23-26) 3. Immediate and Larger Context (Judges 4:4-10)

Interpreting the Prophetic Writings 1. Exegesis Versus Homiletics Mark 1:17 NKJV “Then Jesus said to them, ‘Come after Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.’ ”

1.Exegesis Versus Homiletics Word Meanings {138, 140} Exegesis is concerned with the original meaning of a text. It focuses on what the author wanted to say and what the text meant to the original reader. A preacher may use just the wording of a text, without special regard for its original meaning, to make a point or an appeal during a sermon. This is homiletical use of Scripture.

1.Exegesis Versus Homiletics An Illustration {140} A modern preacher, using the words of Mark 1:17, may call upon church members to follow Jesus because only He can make us fishers of men. Exegetically the text applies to Simon and Andrew, but homiletically it can be applied to every Christian, because Jesus wants us all to become fishers of men (Matt 18:19, 20).

1.Exegesis Versus Homiletics Ellen White’s Use {140} “Among the first things to be aimed at should be a correct position, both in sitting and in standing. God made man upright, and He desires him to possess … the mental and moral benefit … which an erect bearing so greatly tends to promote” Education 198. Ecclesiastes 7:9 refers to moral uprightness, not to posture.

Interpreting the Prophetic Writings 2. Time and Place Jeremiah 4:23-26 NKJV “I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void…. I beheld, and indeed there was no man…. I beheld, indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the L ORD ….”

2. Time and Place The Millennium? {142} When most Adventists read these texts, they think of the millennium. When Jeremiah wrote this text, around 600 B.C., he was not thinking of the millennium. The context of this passage is the destruction of Jerusalem. What happened in 586 B.C. is a symbol of what will happen to the world in the future.

2. Time and Place The Bicycle of 1897 {142} “The money expended in bicycles and dress and other needless things must be accounted for” Testimonies to Ministers 398. The bicycle was not an economical means of transportation but was rather a rich person’s toy. Within a few years’ time it became an inexpensive means of transportation, she never again spoke against it.

Isaiah 65:17 NKJV “ ‘For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.’ ” Interpreting the Prophetic Writings 3. Immediate and Larger Context

Immediate Context {144} In the immediate context, Isaiah says, “ ‘No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; for the child shall die one hundred years old’ ” (vs 20 NKJV). A “new creation” would have been brought about had Israel, remained faithful to God and fulfilled the divine commission.

3. Immediate and Larger Context Larger Context {146} The larger context refers to what other texts beyond the immediate passage have to say on a particular topic. It can refer to other chapters in the book, the whole book, or to the whole of Scripture.

3. Immediate and Larger Context Larger Context {144} In a secondary sense these verses point forward to the close of the millennium. But in that “new heaven and new earth” there will be no children born to the redeemed (Matt 22:30), neither will there be any more sorrow or death (Rev 21:4), so we have to be careful how far we seek to push the imagery.

3. Immediate and Larger Context Ellen White’s Use {146} In reading Ellen White, we also need to look at the larger context in her writings; i.e., everything she has written on a particular topic. For example, on the issue of meat-eating she has very absolute-sounding statements but also many modifying statements that need to be considered, as well.

Further Guidelines for Interpretation Final Words {148} 1. Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. 2. Use one or more good translations. 3. Look for principles that are universal. 4. Obey the truths discovered. 5. Open mind; surrender held positions. 6. Guard against extreme interpretations. 7. Work together with people of experience. 8. Use common sense.