The Word

The WordPreconditions for Studying God’s Word

The Word – Preconditions to Studying God’s Word

To Properly approach and study the Bible,

there are a number of preconditions that we

must agree to…


Preconditions for Studying God’s Word

I. GodII. MiraclesIII. RevelationIV. TruthV. Logic

VI. LanguageVII. MeaningVIII. Interpretatio

nIX. HistoryX. Exclusivism


GodThe Metaphysical Precondition

Obviously, there can be no Word of God unless God exists. With respect to

existence, metaphysics (beyond the physical) concerns itself with the study of being or reality. Christianity believes in Theism, which says one God created all of reality as we know it and that this

God transcends everything. Many things may have being, but only one

thing can be Being.

And what is “being”? Being is “that which is”. Or as God said in Exodus:

"God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the

sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”"(Exodus 3:14). Literally, the verse says

“I be that I be”.



"...people say to me continually,

'Where is your God?'" (Psalm 42:3)



I. Something existsII. You don’t get something from

nothingIII. Therefore, a necessary and eternal

Being exists.IV. The only two rational options are an

eternal universe or an eternal Creator

V. Science has concluded the universe had a beginning and therefore is not eternal

VI. Therefore, God exists , is the eternal Being, and created all that we know

" In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

(Genesis 1:1)


MiraclesThe Supernatural Precondition

The Bible is filled with miracles. Skeptics claim that miracles cannot occur, but if you have a transcendent Creator God, miracles become

possible.

“But if we admit God, must we admit a miracle? Indeed, indeed, you have no security against it. That is the bargain.”

- C. S. Lewis



The Purpose of Miracles:

1. To glorify God (John 2:11)2. To validate God’s prophets/spokesmen (Acts

2:22)3. Provide evidence for belief in God (John 6:2)



Argument against miracles from Benjamin Spinoza

1. Miracles are violations of natural laws2. Natural laws are immutable3. It is impossible to violate immutable laws4. Therefore , miracles are impossible

Premise two is flawed. No proof natural laws are immutable; God transcends the natural order.


RevelationThe Revelational Precondition

Three Prerequisites for Divine Revelation

1. A Being capable of giving a revelation2. A being capable of receiving a revelation3. A medium through which a revelation can be

given


RevelationThree Mediums used by God

OntologicalRevelation

" In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God….And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among

us."(John 1:1,14)

General Revelation

"For since the creation of the

world His invisible attributes, His

eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has

been made, so that they are without

excuse.“ (Romans 1:20)

SpecialRevelation"All Scripture is

inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for

correction, for training in

righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every

good work.“(2 Timothy 3:16-17)


RevelationAll Denied by Fallen Man

General Revelation

“For they exchanged the

truth of God for a lie, and worshiped

and served the creature rather

than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”(Romans 1:25)

SpecialRevelation"For the time will

come when they will not endure sound

doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for

themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears

from the truth and will turn aside to myths.“

(2 Timothy 4:3-4)

OntologicalRevelation

"the wisdom which none of the rulers

of this age has understood; for if

they had understood it they

would not have crucified the Lord of

glory;“(1 Corinthians 2:8)


RevelationDifferences in General and Special Revelation

General Revelation Special RevelationGod as Creator God as RedeemerNorm for Society Norm for ChurchMeans of Condemnation

Means of Salvation

In Nature In Scripture"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what

has been made, so that they are without excuse."(Romans 1:20)

"and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ

Jesus."(2 Timothy 3:15)


RevelationA God Who Reveals and Hides

" At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent

and have revealed them to infants. “Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does

anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."

(Matthew 11:25-27)

"Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona,

because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."

(Matthew 16:16-17)


TruthThe Epistemological Precondition

The Bible purports to tell the truth about incredibly important things such as God,

reality, ethics, Jesus, eternal life, judgment, and more. Moreover, the Bible claims that its truth is absolute, that is, it applies to all

people, in all places, for all time.

The source of truth is God. Just as with being, many things can have the truth, but only one thing can be the truth. And the Bible is plain

on who and what truth is:

"Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the

Father but through Me."(John 14:6)

"“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth."(John 17:17)



Enemies of absolute truth include:

I. RelativismII. AgnosticismIII.SkepticismIV.PostmodernismV. Pluralism

Each one of these philosophies is self-defeating – they cannot live up to

their own truth claim. For example, the relativist says, “all truth is

relative…” Does that include their own statement? If so, then why

believe it? If not, then absolute truth exists.



If anyone ever tells you there is no such thing as truth, they are

asking you not to believe them…

… So don’t!


LogicThe Rational Precondition

Logic is the study of right reason or valid inferences, with the rejection of

arguments that contain fallacious thought. Throughout all of Scripture,

you find logical and universal propositions and arguments being put

forth about matters.

"And according to Paul’s custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths

reasoned with them from the Scriptures,"(Acts 17:2)

Literally, Theology is a logos about the theos – the “logic of God”.


LogicThe Rational Precondition

There are four laws that serve as the foundation of logic:

I. Law of non-contradiction – something cannot be “A” and “non-A” at the same time and in the same sense.

II. Law of the excluded middle – something is either “A” or “non-A”.

III. Law of identity – “A” is really “A”.IV. Law of rational inference – e.g. All

men are mortal, John is a man, therefore John is mortal.

"Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” (1

Kings 18:21)


LanguageThe Linguistic Precondition

If the Bible is God’s Word in human words, then we must acknowledge that

finite human language is capable of meaningfully expressing thoughts about

an infinite Being – God.

“God-Talk” can only occur in one of three ways:

I. Equivocally – totally different than God is

II. Univocally – exactly as God isIII. Analogically – similar to the way God

is

The Bible’s language affirms the analogical method of “God-Talk”



"The Christian faith is mysterious to the core. It is about things and beings that ultimately can't be

put into words. Language fails. And if we do definitively put God into words, we have at that very moment made God something God is not"

-Rob Bell, Emergent Church LeaderVelvet Elvis, p. 32



Equivocal talk leaves us completely in the dark about God and assails the concept of special revelation.

Univocal talk isn’t possible as the finite cannot adequately describe the infinite: "“For My thoughts are not your

thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your

thoughts."(Isaiah 55:8-9)

The Analogical method is the only form of God-Talk left to us. As an example, God is called “good”, but is His

“good” the same “good” as that which might be applied to a human being such as Mother Teresa?



"Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the

things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in

those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words."

(1 Corinthians 2:12-13)

Here, the Apostle Paul makes clear that God’s thoughts can indeed by communicated via finite human language.

"They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into

heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth. . . . “Come,

let Us go down and there confuse their language, so that they will not understand

one another’s speech.”“(Genesis 11:4,7)

" When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and

it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire

distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy

Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance."

(Acts 2:1-4)

Regarding language – what was done at Babel was undone at Pentecost to unite all under God’s

Name…



MeaningThe Semantical Precondition

If we accept that the Bible is God’s Word written in a language we can

understand, then our next step to claim that it has meaning. Further, it has

objective meaning, which equates to a meaning that applies to all people,

equally, everywhere, regardless of what language is used to convey the truths

contained in Scripture.

This objective meaning can be conveyed regardless of the language used to

convey it (English, German, Aramaic, etc.) so it is transcendent from a linguistic perspective and is not

dependent upon particular signs and symbols.



“To get rid of God, we must get rid of

Grammar.”- Frederick Nietzsche



Opponents of objective meaning include philosophers such as Saussure, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and others. Philosophers such as Hume and Ayer say that all talk

about God is meaningless as only statements that (a) are tautologies or (b) speak about empirical facts can be

meaningful; all God-talk to them is nonsense.

However, such a position is self-defeating as their claim is neither a

tautology nor an empirically verifiable statement. Unfortunately, this is still

the stance of many Postmodern’s today – relativistic meaning .



If you don’t think relativistic or postmodern views of

meaning have entered the Church, ask yourself if

you’ve ever been in a Bible study where a leader has

asked:

What does this passage mean to you…?


InterpretationThe Hermeneutical Precondition

Because there is absolute truth and objective meaning in the text of

Scripture that has been revealed by God about Himself to rational finite beings,

the next question is if we are capable of deriving the objective meaning from His word – can we properly interpret what

the text actually says?

Even if everything else is true – God exists, He has revealed His Word to us, a

Word written in human language that contains truth, rationality, meaning, we must still accurately interpret the text to discover the true meaning behind what

God is saying.



Some philosophers (such as postmodernist Jacque Derrida) hold to a private interpretative position – that any text must be interpreted subjectively by

reading, deconstructing, and reconstructing the text so that the

interpretation and ultimate meaning fits with what the reader believes it to be. The proper interpretation and ultimate

meaning does not lie with the author but with the reader. There is no one correct

interpretation.

Yet, this view becomes self-defeating for postmodernists such as Derrida who

write books and expect their writings to be properly interpreted and followed in the manner they – the author – intend

and desire.



The science of Biblical interpretation consists of a number of guidelines that

should be followed, including the following:

I. The author determines the meaning, not the reader.

II. The author’s what is more important than their why in writing.

III.The meaning is in the text, not outside it.

IV. There is one correct interpretation – one objective meaning in a text

An author is the efficient cause of meaning – the goal of interpretation is

to determine that meaning.


HistoryThe Historical Precondition

Christianity is inseparably tied to historical events. The knowability of

history is key to Christian theology, but also apologetically as well because the life of Christ as we know it depends on the historicity of the New Testament

documents.

How do we anything from history actually occurred? We rely on written eyewitness accounts from individuals

whose testimony can be trusted (preferably multiple sources that agree).

And using this standard, there is not another historical document from

antiquity that has proven to be more reliable than the Bible.



Some argue that we cannot really know anything from history and put forth the

following arguments:

I. The past cannot be directly observed.

II. Our knowledge of history is fragmentary.

III. Selective inclusions/exclusions can skew understanding.

IV. History depends upon selective and proper arrangement.

V. Value judgments enter into recording of history.

VI. Worldviews enter into the recording of history.

VII. Miracles are super-historical.



Each objection to history being knowable is easily answered:

I. Forensic science is very highly regarded and used to understand what happened in the past. Many crimes solved with this discipline.

II. As long as you have the key pieces of evidence, you can understand what happened. You don’t need 100% of the evidence to make a decision. Rarely does a jury have 100% knowledge when they render a judgment.

III. There is a difference between condensing an account and excluding material that produces a different understanding

IV. There is no reason to conclude that a historian cannot properly arrange events.

V. Value judgments are needed to properly do the work of a historian.

VI. Concluding that worldviews cloud the recording of history is like saying a Holocaust victim couldn’t record events of the Holocaust.

VII. The evidence for the rare (miracles) can exceed that for the regular.


ExclusivismThe Oppositional Precondition

The Bible is a book that makes many exclusive claims such as:

"“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the

house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before Me."(Exodus 20:2-3)

"Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me."(John 14:6)

As such, these claims exclude any and all challengers to them. Any other

religion is deemed invalid.


ExclusivismThe Oppositional Precondition

The challenger to an exclusivistic stance is the philosophy of pluralism, which makes the claim that all religions are equal and basically teach the same thing. This, however, runs against

logically thinking as all religions teach radically different things about major religious doctrines (e.g. the nature of

God).

In short, pluralism may be fine in matters of opinion but not reality:

“Pluralism is desirable and tolerable only in those areas that are matters of taste

rather than matters of truth.”- Mortimer Adler, Truth in Religion



I. God – He existsII. Miracles – Are possible because God existsIII. Revelation – God has revealed Himself in creation,

His Word, and Jesus ChristIV. Truth – Is absolute and knowable V. Logic – Is used by a rational God and His rational

creatures to decide things



VI. Language – Analogical language is used to express ideas about God to finite human beings

VII. Meaning – Objective meaning is available in the Bible

VIII. Interpretation – Can be used to discover the true meaning in the text of Scripture as placed there by the author

IX. History – We can trust and believe historical accounts by applying criteria that ensures its validity

X. Exclusivism – Must be used in matters of truth and is used throughout the Bible


But there is one last precondition for Studying the

Bible…


SalvationThe Regenerative Precondition

"But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand

them, because they are spiritually appraised."(1 Corinthians 2:14)

" For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are

being saved it is the power of God.”

(1 Corinthians 1:18)


“The Bible is not addressed to just anybody. Its message is directed to a chosen few.”

– A. W. Tozer, Why People find the Bible Difficult


"Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise.

For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is the one who catches the wise in their craftiness”; and again,

“The Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are useless.”“

(1 Corinthians 3:18-20)

"Professing to be wise, they became fools,"(Romans 1:22)

Philosophy without God…


"See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to

the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than

according to Christ."(Colossians 2:8)

“We have educated ourselves into imbecility”- Malcolm Muggeridge

A Warning to All…

Lit. “Rob”; “Spoil” (as one would a young girl)

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