Thoughtful Reflections on Faith and Life
When I hear people claiming that their theological position is correct, one of the most frequent statements is something like “The Bible is clear…” The point is that since the Bible is clear, people should not be disagreeing with this theological position. But how clear is the Bible? I recently did a Twitter poll and … Read More “Is the Bible Clear?” »
I often talk about the process of interpreting when it comes to the Bible. I don’t mean the practical steps of interpretation, although I’m very interested in that, but rather the theological implications of interpretation. The statement that I am often trying to respond to is: “The Bible clearly says…” What do people mean when … Read More “Bible Reading, Interpretation, and Confidence” »
The most important book for Christians is the Bible. It is important for us to read it, study it, and reflect upon its teachings. But what happens when we find it confusing or even disturbing? I remember when I cam back to faith in my early 20s after a childhood of not really taking it … Read More “It is Okay to Struggle With the Bible” »
Some people are extremely confident in their interpretation of the Bible. So much so, they will claim that what they say is not an interpretation but the direct voice of the Bible itself. They get frustrated when people disagree with their interpretation because those people are not disagreeing with an interpretation but are disagreeing with … Read More “We All Interpret the Bible” »
James Bishop is a thoughtful blogger who frequently writes on issues touching on theology, apologetics and biblical studies, I frequently link to his posts in my Midweek Apologetics Roundups. James recently wrote a thought-proving post called Why I No Longer Hold to Inerrancy & The Need For A New Model of Inspiration. James makes some very … Read More “Why I Continue to Hold to Inerrancy” »
I love it when people contact me and seek clarification about the meaning of Bible passages. As a pastor and a Bible teacher, I love this stuff. Most of the time. There are certain passages that for me are just hard to understand. This is not a plea for people to explain them to me. … Read More “4 Bible Passages That Totally Confuse Me” »
Many years ago, I had a couple of Roman Catholic ladies come to my door. They went on to explain to me that the problem with the world today was that too many people read the Bible (I in no way am suggesting that this is typical of Catholicism). After my initial shock, I realized … Read More “7 Things to Remember When Reading the Bible” »
Christians need to learn the Bible It is well known that the average person in the pew no longer has a good grasp of the Bible. Yes there are a few exceptions in certain families and in certain congregations, but generally Bible knowledge is much less than it was a few generations ago. The Canadian … Read More “3 Things for Pastors to Teach About the Bible” »
Previously, I wrote on the key to interpreting the Book of Revelation. The point I was trying to make was that we need to interpret Revelation within its genre, which is apocalyptic literature. We should read other apocalyptic texts to help us understand the grammar of apocalyptic writing. Well, here is the other key to … Read More “The Other Key to Interpreting the Book of Revelation” »
I truly believe that good biblical interpretation is one of the greatest needs within the Church. Hermeneutical errors have been responsible for heresies from the beginning. Thankfully there are some good principles that can help us navigate the Bible and avoid these errors. One of the books that I have gone back to a number … Read More “Protestant Biblical Interpretation” »
