Living by the Book/Living by the Book Workbook Set (37 page)

Also, where does this passage fit in the unfolding of Scripture? You see, the Bible was not dropped out of the sky as a finished piece of work. It took thousands of years to put it all together. And during that time, God revealed more and more of His message to the authors.

Have you ever held a progressive dinner with a group of friends? You go to one person’s house and have appetizers. Then you go to someone else’s house for the salad. Then you go somewhere else for the main course. You
work your way around until you’ve eaten the whole meal. Well, that’s the sort of process the Bible went through, only we call it “progressive revelation.” Over time, God slowly unveiled the truth of His Word.

So it’s important to locate your passage in the flow of Scripture. If you’re studying Noah in Genesis, then you’re before the Ten Commandments, before the Sermon on the Mount, before John 3:16. In fact, Noah didn’t have a scrap of biblical text to work with. So what does that tell you when you read that “Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord” (Genesis 6:8)?

One of the helpful resources you’ll want to turn to as you investigate theological context is a commentary. I’ll say more about commentaries in
chapter 34
.

O
ne of the rallying cries of the Protestant Reformation was
sola scriptura
— Scripture alone is our final authority for faith and practice. That led to a crucial development in the history of Christianity, the right to private interpretation. The Reformation, coupled with the Gutenberg Bible, put Scripture back into the hands of laypeople. However, as R. C. Sproul says so perceptively,

How can you avoid distorting God’s message? We’ve already seen two keys to help you unlock the door of accurate understanding—content and context. Now we come to a third key, which is perhaps the best insurance against distortion:

In comparison we compare Scripture with Scripture. And that offers a great safety net, because the greatest interpreter of Scripture is Scripture itself.

Donald Grey Barnhouse used to put it so clearly: “You very rarely have to go outside of the Bible to explain anything in the Bible.” That’s very instructive, coming from an individual who was incredibly well-read and who knew how to use a wide variety of secondary sources. But he understood the priority of the Word of God. He realized that the more you compare Scripture with Scripture, the more the meaning of the Bible becomes apparent. The parts take on meaning in light of the whole.

Remember, although we have about forty different human authors, the sixty-six books are ultimately the result of one primary Author, the Holy Spirit, who coordinated the entire message. His Book is integrated. It hangs together.

Comparison points up the great need you have for a concordance. A concordance is a tool that enables you to chase down terms and concepts from one book of the Bible to the next. Using a concordance, you can put together things that appear isolated in the text; and they take on greater meaning in relation to each other. Let me give you several illustrations.

The word
belief
is one of the most determinative terms in the Bible. But it is used in a variety of ways. If you look it up in a concordance, you’ll find that it is especially prominent in the gospel by John. For example, in John 2:23 we read:

You see, they “believed” superficially, on the basis of the miracles. It was obvious He had done them; the facts were known to all. But facts do not save. They are an essential basis for salvation, but one must
believe
, that is, embrace the truth; use those facts on a personal basis.

Let me illustrate how John uses
believe
here. Suppose you come to me and say, “Prof, I hate to tell you this, but I’m suffering from a terminal disease.”

We talk about it for a while, and after learning more about your situation, I say, “Hey, I’ve got fantastic news. I’ve got a doctor friend in Houston who’s just come up with a proven cure for that disease. If you go see him, I guarantee you’ll be fully cured.”

You say, “That’s wonderful.”

“Do you believe it?” I ask.

“Oh, certainly”

So I reach out and shake your hand and say, “You’re cured.”

Naturally, you’d think I was the one who needed to see a doctor— specifically a psychiatrist. No amount of information concerning a doctor in Houston who has a cure for your disease will do anything to bring healing to your body. You’ve got to go there. You’ve got to submit yourself to his treatment. You’ve got to benefit from the medicine that he prescribes.

A second illustration of comparative Bible study comes from Ephesians, which is a fascinating book that tells you how to live a heavenly life in a hell-like world. When you read it you come across two remarkable verses:

Are there any terms to chase down in this passage? Yes, a crucial one,
equip
. How is it used? Again, turn to your concordance and look it up. And you discover three things.

First, the word
equip
is used of the mending of broken nets. Fishermen such as the disciples would be out fishing all day, and their nets would become torn and broken. So in the evening they would repair (literally, “equip”) them, so that the next morning they’d be ready to go. What a beautiful expression of what a pastor-teacher is called to do. Living in this world, people’s nets get broken. A pastor’s job is to help repair them, or “equip” them.

But the same word is used for the setting of broken bones. It’s a medical term. Two bones get out of joint. So what does a doctor do? He sets them, he mends them, he “equips” them. He brings them back together so that they can heal and return to their former strength. Again, that’s exactly what happens in life. There’s no such thing as living in this world without getting broken up. Ours is a broken society. So we need to be under the Word of God with someone who is “equipping” us, healing the broken bones.

Third, the word is also used of outfitting a ship for a journey. Imagine a ship being prepared to cross the Mediterranean. No shopping malls out there. So the crew must load on board everything they will need until they arrive at their destination. That image grabs me, because good preaching and teaching of the Word should outfit people for their journey through life. It should “equip” them so that when they’re out in the marketplace, when they’re in a crisis, when they really need to know God’s mind, they know it. Somebody has “equipped” them to be and to do what God wants them to be and to do.

Comparative study goes beyond studying terms. Let’s suppose you want to study a character in Scripture. I highly recommend it. Biographical study is fascinating beyond words. Say you get captivated by the life of Moses. I suggest you get out a concordance and look him up.

The first thing that becomes obvious is that the bulk of his life story can
be found in Exodus. That means you’ll need to do a concerted study of the book of Exodus to find out how he got started. You’ll want to study his remarkable parents, who hid him from the pharaoh, so that ultimately he became the quintessential leader of Israel.

You’ll also discover from your concordance that there’s something about Moses in Acts 7. In fact, you’ll find there some of the most insightful material on this man, editorialized by the Spirit. So anyone who wants to study Moses and doesn’t read Acts 7 is really out of it.

Moses can also be found in Hebrews 11. In fact, he takes up more space in God’s Hall of Fame than any other character. You’ll find his life described from God’s perspective in that passage. What does He think of him? What does He call significant in Moses’ life?

I’ll talk more about concordances in
chapters 34
and
35
. But whenever you study the Word of God, pull out the key of comparison. Keep putting things together so that you come up with a fully-orbed understanding of Scripture.

NOTE