Before I can jump into this, there’s a preliminary test. I mean, we’re going to be seeing if you can understand the Bible or not. Part of what will help answer that is if you can understand __________ or not. She’s got a…It’s a…I mean there’s not any…never mind. Just listen…
3 minutes - “Don’t Forget to Slop Your Dripper.” – see below
Did you get that? All of that? If you’re me, you need to hear it a few times, maybe study it written, spoken. A picture might help. I can’t repeat it to you, but, still, I feel like I “got” it. I feel like I caught enough of it to go on with the rest of life now.
Up front, I just want to encourage you that when it comes to the Bible, and lots of other writing, you aren’t going to “get” all of it. You’ll need to hear it a few times. You may need to see it and hear it. A picture might help. Maybe you can’t repeat it right away from memory, but you can at least get within an “understanding distance of the text.” And there will always be more to rethink and discover. 774,746 words. The Bible’s a big place, isn’t it?
That gets between a lot of people and God. Maybe you’re one of them. You see that the road to God seems to be between these leather covers, but there’s no way you can travel it. It’s too big, too dark, too full of curves. Some of you have been led to believe that the Bible’s a book to be read and understood only by “professionals.” A lot of “professionals” have contributed to that feeling over the years, including churches that tell you what you believe!
Interesting…if God meant for only “professionals” to read and understand the Bible, why did He have it written in the common languages for its culture? And why is there such a craving for it among common people once they finally have it in their own language?
Acts 8 we find a guy who has been visiting Jerusalem. He’s on his way back to Ethiopia, where he’s from. He’s reading the OT, and by his own testimony, he doesn’t understand it. He feels like he needs someone to explain it to him. But what is he doing anyway? He’s reading it!
In Acts 17, there’s a group of people in Berea being taught directly by Paul. But they don’t leave off there.
Acts 17:11 …they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
These people did this because they had some expectation that in reading God’s word they were going to learn and understand something.
Others of you have been led to believe that the Bible isn’t understandable at all – not by you, not by some professional, not by anyone; that really, anyone’s view is just as good as another because no one can be sure. I’d kind of wonder why God would give it to us in the first place then.
But let’s be honest – look at all the different interpretations there are of the Bible. How can hundreds of different sects and denominations read the same Bible and come up with such diverse views? I can understand how a person might look at that situation and conclude that there’s no such thing as a “right” interpretation of the Bible. Look at how many there are! But, that’s also what pushes me into a search for the right one. The fact that so many churches exist and that so many views exist just proves to me that we need to give some attention to rightly interpreting the Bible. Paul told Timothy:
2 Timothy 2:15 (Simple English Version) Do your best to present yourself to God as one who has passed the test. Be a worker who has nothing to be ashamed of. Interpret the message of truth in the proper way.
Roadblocks to Understanding
Maybe you’ve tried, but you just can’t seem to understand the Bible.
What’s in the way?
1. It might be as simple as the translation you’re using.
Unless you read Hebrew, Chaldee, and Greek, you’re going to have to depend on the work of translators to put the Bible in your language. That’s OK, because there are many good translations to use. This morning, I’m purposely using different translations to show how it can help.
If you don’t understand what you’re reading, it may be because your translation was written 401 years ago! Just like anyone else, we need the Bible in a language that we readily understand.
Wyclif translation, 1st ed., c.1380 (624 years ago)
2 Corinthians 1:17-18
But whanne Y wolde this thing, whether Y vside vnstidfastnesse, ether tho thingis that Y thenke, Y thenke aftir the fleisch, that at me be, it is and it is not? But God is trewe, for oure word that was at you is and is not, is not ther ynne, but is is in it
King James Version
2 Corinthians 1:17-18
When I therefore was thus minded, did I use lightness? or the things that I purpose, do I purpose according to the flesh, that with me there should be yea yea, and nay nay? But as God is true, our word toward you was not yea and nay.
New International Version
2 Corinthians 1:17-18
When I planned this, did I do it lightly? Or do I make my plans in a worldly manner so that in the same breath I say, "Yes, yes" and "No, no"? But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not "Yes" and "No."
The Message (a paraphrase)
2 Corinthians 1:17-18
Are you now going to accuse me of being flip with my promises because it didn't work out? Do you think I talk out of both sides of my mouth--a glib yes one moment, a glib no the next? Well, you're wrong. I try to be as true to my word as God is to his. Our word to you wasn't a careless yes canceled by an indifferent no. How could it be?
English has changed, and it continues to change. In ways, our language has become less lofty and “rougher,” but if you’re wanting to understand something, it needs to be in a language you understand. Make sure you’re using a good translation that you understand.
2. It might be your method of reading.
All of us have certain presuppositions. When you take these into a study of the Bible, it can keep you from hearing what God has said. You have to get the presuppositions out. You have to empty your mind. And, as Mark Scott used to say to us in college, “Some of you say, ‘No problem!’” If you assume homosexuality is OK, that presupposition is going to affect the way you interpret the Bible. If you don’t accept that the earth was created by God, that’s going to affect the way you interpret the Bible.
Ill – In OH, I had a church member upset from something I’d said in a sermon. She was just sure I had meant it as an ugly insinuation against someone in the church. I hadn’t. I knew that, but she had presuppositions about me. In fact, when I assured her that what I meant was something else, she said, “Well, my husband and I have the tape and we’ll listen to it and see what we think.” What you think? I’m the one who said it! I know more than anyone else what was meant by it! I’m the author of the idea!
Some people approach the Bible like it’s completely mysterious. You know…it says that Jesus got into a boat, put out a little way from the shore, and taught the people. Some people read that simple narrative and mystify the whole thing: “Don’t you think that it means that life is like being a fisherman on the seashore, and that you should let Jesus into the boat of your life, and you should put out a little way away from the world, and when you do, then Jesus will teach you?” No. I think it means that Jesus got into a boat, put out a little way from the shore, and taught the people! Now, what I’m supposed to do about that may sound different, but what it means is fairly simple!
Some people think that the way we’re to use the Bible as a mysterious thing too – like it’s some divinely sanctioned Ouija board – like magically, it’s going to open to where it needs to and the words are just going to mysteriously stand out at you.
You’d never do this with a road atlas! You’d never do this with a phone directory. Why do it with the Bible?
Some think that Bible study should be a group grope – that’s where a small group or a SS class gets together, reads a passage, and then each person takes a turn saying, “Well, I think it means…”
One of the first keys to understanding the Bible is to read it like anything else you’re trying to understand. You may need to change the way you read it.
3. It might be a heart issue.
Sometimes there are heart issues that keep us from understanding God’s word.
Jesus told a parable about this - about the way God’s good word is received by people. He compared God’s word to seed, and the ways people receive it are like different kinds of soil. Not everyone who hears it is going to receive it well and have it produce good things in their life. But the reason isn’t because they can’t understand it. In fact, I want you to see the way Mt, Mk, and Lk report Jesus’ explanation of this parable. Pay special attention to what it is that makes God’s word take root and work in a person’s life:
Matthew 13:23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."
Mark 4:20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop--thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown."
Luke 8:15 (New American Standard) "But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.
For the Bible to make any sense to us and for it to produce anything good in our lives is going to take a right heart. Some of it is simply a matter of our will. It takes a noble and good heart. It takes persevering. It takes accepting it. These are the things that accompany understanding.
Right now, Satan would like you not to listen. Maybe you’re not. Right now, a war is waging in your heart, or it has already been won or lost.
Apathy will keep you from understanding God’s word. If it doesn’t matter to you, why make the effort?
Pride will keep you from understanding God’s word. No one likes to hear that they need to change something about themselves.
Fear will keep you from understanding God’s word. Many know deep down that to listen to it will mean changing, so they’re running from what it really says.
I’ve met more than one person who is avoiding a trip to the doctor, because, once he gets there, he knows that the Dr. is going to tell him he needs to make some changes. I’ve met some people with similar attitudes toward the Bible.
With all that’s possibly working to keep you from hearing and understanding God’s word, this may sound like a good news / bad news story, because that was the bad news and here’s the good news. We can understand. We can come within an understanding distance of the text.
Reminders that we can understand:
Ill - You and I understand what it’s like to have a communication gap. I recall more than once, a few years ago, when I was speaking to my kids and they would say to me, “Dad, could you say that in English?” What they meant was, put it in words they’d understand.
Ill - I had a professor in seminary who would sometimes have us take a deep theological subject and write it up as a lesson for children’s church. His point was to make sure we grasped the concept. In order to be able to explain something to little children, you have to understand it yourself. It can be challenging to put big subjects into small words that make sense.
Some people suggest that God has the same problem – that He’s so far beyond us, so much bigger, so much more holy, so “transcendent,” that human speech is incapable of containing and communicating His truth to us. Really? What does God say about this?
Isaiah 55:8-9 (The Message paraphrase) "I don't think the way you think. The way you work isn't the way I work." GOD's Decree. "For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think.”
Sounds like they’re right. Sounds like there’s no way we could begin to understand a word from God. He’s just too far beyond us. But then He says,
10-11 Just as rain and snow descend from the skies and don't go back until they've watered the earth, Doing their work of making things grow and blossom, producing seed for farmers and food for the hungry, So will the words that come out of my mouth not come back empty--handed. They'll do the work I sent them to do, they'll complete the assignment I gave them.
In another place, God talks about His word…
Jeremiah 23:29 (Contemporary English Version) My words are a powerful fire; they are a hammer that shatters rocks.
How can God’s word be so powerful, how can it do so much, if it’s something we can’t even understand?
Right after giving Israel His instructions, God says,
Deuteronomy 30:11-14 (New Living Translation) "This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand or perform. It is not up in heaven, so distant that you must ask, `Who will go to heaven and bring it down so we can hear and obey it?' It is not beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, `Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear and obey it?' The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.”
God made our minds. God gave us language. If God chooses to use human language to convey His truth, then I trust that He can. He’s smart enough to make it understandable.
John understood this as he wrote.
1 John 5:20a We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true.
It was this same man who wrote,
John 20:31 - But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
You see, John wrote with this expectation – that you would read what he wrote, and that you would come to know and believe in Jesus Christ by reading it.
Some helps you can use:
I’m glad to say that there are also some specific helps available to us to help us in understanding the Bible. These aren’t really so earth-shattering. Really, they’re the same principles we use for most everything else we try to understand. For instance:
1. Understand the Bible as a whole
I’m in a hotel in India. No Gideon Bible there. Instead, I find a Hindu religious book that’s labeled a “Veda.” So, I pick it up and read a bit of it. I can’t remember what it said – only that it didn’t make any sense to me…at all. It’s only later that I learn about this collection, and its history and its purpose that I can even begin to make any sense of it. (I confess: I haven’t read it since then.)
If you’re going to appreciate and understand the Bible, you’ll do better if you understand a bit about the whole Bible when you read it. You need to understand that it’s made up of an OT and a NT. You need to understand a little bit about its divisions, instead of just opening it up to the middle to Song of Songs and wandering why you’re reading some love poems between a man and woman! I’ve made some cards this week – for you to use or to just give away, that give a quick breakdown of the different sections in the Bible. Take these and use them.
2. Use a plan
Don’t just read randomly. Take a plan into it. Are you wanting devotional reading? Go to the Psalms or Proverbs. Are you wanting to learn about God’s plan of salvation? Try starting with His promises to Abraham in the OT. Wanting to learn about what it means to live like a Christ-follower? Read the NT letters. Reading through the whole Bible in a year? Try using a scheduled that takes you through chronologically.
3. Expect to understand
There’s a big difference between sitting down to study with a Jr. High student who has no hope of doing well and with one who is determined to do well. We need to expect to understand. We need to approach God’s word with appreciation and with confidence that we can do this thing.
It’s a “doable.” (And that’s a real word too! I found it in my really old big dictionary!)
4. Consider what’s at stake
Remember, last week I mentioned why it matters so much that this book is reliable – because it has eternal ramifications. I need to know that it’s reliable. But, just as importantly, I need to read it with the confidence that I can get this truth and understand it. To believe it’s truly God’s word is one thing. To read it with the goal of understanding it is another thing.
Conclusion:
A little boy comes to be baptized. He doesn’t understand everything the Bible has to teach him. Not yet. Who does? I imagine that for many years he will continue to learn from it. But this much he understands, because the Bible says it to him: That Jesus loves him, that he has sinned, that he needs a Savior, and that the way to make Jesus your Savior is to accept Him as Lord and be baptized into Him.
These things are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you might have life in His name. If a little child can do this, so can you. You can understand you need a Savior…
The Story of Rindercella
Once upon a time, in a coreign fountry, there lived a very geautiful birl; her name was Rindercella. Now, Rindercella lived with her mugly other and her two sad bisters. And in this same coreign fountry, there was a very prandsom hince.
And this prandsom hince was going to have a bancy fall. And he'd invited people from riles amound, especially the pich reople. Rindercella's mugly other and her two sad bisters went out to buy some drancy fesses to wear to this bancy fall, but Rindercella could not go because all she had to wear were some old rirty dags. Finally, the night of the bancy fall arrived and Rindercella couldn't go. So she just cat down and scried. She was a kitten there a scrien, when all at once there appeared before her, her gairy fodmother. And he touched her with his wagic mand ... and there appeared before her, a cig boach and hix white sorces to take her to the bancy fall. But now he said to Rindercella, "Rindercella, you must be home before nidmight, or I'll purn you into a tumpkin!"
When Rindercella arrived at the bancy fall, the prandsom hince met her at the door because he had been watchin' behind a widden hindow. And Rindercella and the prandsom hince nanced all dight until nidmight...and they lell in fove. And finally, the mid clock struck night, and Rindercella staced down the rairs, and just as she beached the rottom, she slopped her dripper!
The next day, the prandsom hince went all over the coreign fountry looking for the geautiful birl who had slopped her dripper. Finally he came to Rindercella's house. He tried it on her mugly other ... and it fidn't dit. Then he tried it on her two sigly usters ... and it fidn't dit. Then he tried it on Rindercella ... and it fid dit. It was exactly the sight rize!
So they were married and lived heverly ever hapwards. Now, the storal of the mory is this: If you go to a bancy fall and want to have a pransom hince loll in fove with you, don't forget to slop your dripper!
(A transcription of the Rindercella MP3 of Archie Campbell)
