How Do I Apply Bible Tales to My Life?

Audio Transcript

Welcome again to the podcast, and welcome again to speaking about our Bible-reading plan this 12 months. We began the brand new 12 months trying on the religious battles we should overcome in our Bible studying. That was APJ 2112, an exquisite episode with all kinds of nice recommendation for the right way to learn the Bible in a 12 months, simply one in all many episodes on Bible-study rules from the thirteen-year historical past of the podcast — particularly within the Epistles and the right way to break down a paragraph from the Bible to its particular person statements, its propositions, to find out how these propositions relate to at least one one other logically. For a sampling of different episodes that can assist you learn your Bible higher, see the Ask Pastor John e book on pages 1–46, the longest part within the e book.

As we discover ourselves within the second half of January, we’re within the technique of studying Genesis 37–50 collectively, fourteen fascinating chapters concerning the lifetime of Joseph — world-famous tales. And as we learn these chapters, we’re attempting to know the worth of the Bible’s narratives for our personal lives. As we do, right here’s the query from Nicholas, who lives in Ontario, Canada — who’s, I collect, a pastor: “Hey, Pastor John. Thanks on your tireless work on this podcast. I’m presently listening on Audible to your e book Studying the Bible Supernaturally. It has been such an exquisite refresher on why to learn the Bible and the right way to focus my studying and research for private devotion and sermon prep.

“My query is concerning narratives. You make the purpose that your revolution in studying got here while you found that the Bible’s authors had been making arguments and that tracing these arguments effectively was key to understanding the writer and, thus, God’s intention within the phrase. I see how this is applicable to the Epistles of the New Testomony and in your LAB movies via Paul’s letters and even in Knowledge Literature. However what about narratives? My church is presently preaching via Luke, and whereas there’s certainly construction, how do you ‘arc out’ a story? Are there totally different keys you search for? Are there particular transitions, markers, or triggers you might be searching for within the narrative texts?”

Let me see if I can get everyone up to the mark with what he’s asking. I put an enormous emphasis on following an writer’s practice of thought so as to discover his true intention. And I do consider that essentially the most elementary purpose of studying is to find the writer’s intention — what he desires to speak.

Now, there could also be different good results of studying in addition to that discovery. You would possibly simply discover leisure, for instance. However with out pursuing this foundational impact of discovering an writer’s intention, we’re being discourteous, and we’re treating authors the way in which we don’t prefer to be handled — like once we attempt to talk one thing, and any individual says, “I don’t actually care what you’re attempting to speak. I’m going to take your phrases to imply this or that.”

And within the course of, we’re going to lose an awesome alternative for rising. If we don’t care about discovering what one other particular person has found in actuality, and we simply need to learn our personal concepts in, we’re not going to develop. And a couple of Peter 3:18 says, “Develop within the grace and data of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” So, I argue that one important technique of pursuing that purpose — of discovering an writer’s intention and rising in data and beauty — is to rigorously hint an writer’s argument.

Tracing Arguments

By argument, I don’t imply quarrel. (Typically individuals use the phrase argument in a different way than I do.) I imply a sequence of thought that builds from foundations to conclusions. For instance, Romans 1:15–17 goes like this: “I’m keen to evangelise the gospel to you additionally who’re in Rome. [Because]” — there are going to be three of those becauses. Pay attention now:

I’m keen to evangelise the gospel to you additionally who’re in Rome. [Because] I’m not ashamed of the gospel, [because] it’s the energy of God for salvation to everybody who believes. . . . [Because] in it the righteousness of God is revealed from religion for religion.

I learn my Bible for 20 years earlier than I found that’s the way in which Paul wrote. So, there are 4 statements right here, proper? Massively vital statements. And my level is you could’t perceive Paul’s intention, what he’s attempting to speak, except you perceive the logical relationships between these 4 statements. And Paul indicators loud and clear these relationships by utilizing the phrase as a result of thrice. He’s constructing an argument from foundations to conclusions.

Following Narratives

Now, Nicholas’s query is how that detailed, rigorous give attention to the logical relationships between explicit statements pertains to the interpretation of huge sections of narrative within the Bible or tales within the Bible. (And he may increase it out and say, “How does it relate to poetry and parable?” And so forth.)

Occasions which might be woven collectively in a sure manner — that’s what I imply by narrative. Ought to we search the writer’s intention in the identical manner? And my reply is, in precept, sure, however within the particulars of how the writer indicators his intention, we’re going to have to look at for different issues than merely one proposition following one other proposition with a logical connector in between. Tales don’t work like that. However biblical authors write tales for a motive. They’re attempting to speak one thing to us. They need us to seek out it.

“I put an enormous emphasis on following an writer’s practice of thought so as to discover his true intention.”

Considered one of Jesus’s predominant criticisms — I keep in mind that, after I wrote that e book he referred to, I used to be simply blown away by this, that I noticed this actually for the primary time. Considered one of Jesus’s predominant criticisms of the Pharisees was that he mentioned they didn’t know the right way to learn. It will need to have completely galled them. They had been the readers, proper? Time and again, he says, “Have you ever not learn? Have you ever not learn?” (Matthew 12:3; 19:4; 22:31). “Have you ever not learn?” They usually’re scratching their heads and saying, “That’s all we do — learn.” In fact they learn. So, what does he imply? He means, “You’re studying and never studying. You’re seeing and never seeing.”

In different phrases, there are actual intentions that the impressed authors — on this case, the Previous Testomony authors that the Pharisees learn each day — have to speak, whether or not via cautious sentence-by-sentence exposition or whether or not via poetry or whether or not via narrative, and people Pharisees weren’t seeing it in any respect. That’s what Jesus was upset about.

So sure, we must always search for an writer’s intention in all writing — all writing that’s value its salt. And sure, we must always search for no matter clues the writer provides us. And all good authors do give clues to assist us discover what he’s attempting to speak. These clues with regard to narrative may be repetitions, or the order of occasions, or what the dialogues really say, or the results of sure occasions, or precise inserted interpretive feedback by the writer, and so forth. So let me simply give a couple of illustrations from probably the greatest tales within the Previous Testomony.

Authorial Intention within the Joseph Story

I’m considering of Joseph now (Genesis 37–50). Some regard this as probably the greatest quick tales that’s ever been written, if you wish to put it in these classes. It’s a completely riveting story, and also you marvel, What on this planet is happening right here? The place is that this going — this story? There are fourteen complete chapters about Joseph’s desires, the hatred of his brothers, their promoting him into slavery, his fall additional and additional into distress as Potiphar’s spouse lies about him, after which he goes to jail and he’s forgotten in jail, after which he turns into the second-ranked ruler in Egypt, and the individuals of God are saved from hunger within the famine, and the road of the Messiah is preserved. Oh, that’s what was occurring.

And there are quite a few layers of intentions on this writing. I need to get it out of individuals’s minds that while you learn a story, get the large image; get the one large level. Nicely, sure, by all means, get the one large level; it might govern all of the others. However there are a variety of little factors that authors make alongside the way in which.

Large Image: Sovereignty

So, let’s begin with the large image of this story. Moses doesn’t go away us — I believe Moses wrote this e book, Genesis — questioning concerning the large overarching intention of the story. He fills us in with a few very clear, pointed abstract statements of what he’s been speaking about. For instance, Joseph says in Genesis 45:7–8,

God despatched me [to Egypt] earlier than you to protect for you a remnant on earth, and to maintain alive for you a lot survivors. So it was not you who despatched me right here [even though you sold me into slavery], however God. He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his home and ruler over all of the land of Egypt.

In different phrases, all these apparently human occasions that we’ve been studying about for fourteen chapters, even the sinful ones, had been within the management of the sovereign God, who’s sending his emissary via sinful actions all the way down to Egypt to avoid wasting his individuals. That’s loopy. That’s great. That’s nearly the that means of the Bible, in parable.

After which, in Genesis 50:20, Joseph says to his brothers, “As for you, you meant evil in opposition to me, however God meant it for good, to deliver it about that many individuals must be saved alive.” I believe that while you learn that, you nearly have to return and reread the story, as a result of now you get it. Now you say, “Oh, that’s the place it was all going.” And you’ll reread the story and say, with that clue in your thoughts, “This meant that, and this was going right here,” and also you see God’s hand extra instantly.

So, the large level is that the human sinfulness of God’s individuals, or human sinfulness in opposition to God’s individuals, not solely doesn’t thwart his saving plans; it advances his saving plans. They’re a part of the plans of God to avoid wasting his individuals and eventually his Messiah and produce him into the world via that line. In order that’s the large image, and he clues us in with hints all alongside the way in which and with that large explanatory assertion on the finish.

Sub-Level: Steadfast Love

However there are different clues of that means and layers of that means in addition to the large interpretive assertion on the finish. Alongside the way in which, Moses mingles worsening circumstances with encouraging phrases. Joseph is thrown into the pit. He’s offered as a slave. He’s removed from house in Egypt. He’s lied about by Potiphar’s spouse. He’s forgotten in jail. Down, down, down, down. You may graph this story, and it corresponds to a lot of your lives. I’ve completed this for our individuals: I graph it and say, “The place are you on this horribly descending graph of depressing circumstances in your life?” And he involves the tip, after which he appears to be forgotten by God. What on this planet? It’s presupposed to sound that manner.

However alongside the way in which, he says issues like (Moses says), “The Lord was with him and . . . the Lord prompted all that he did to reach his arms” (Genesis 39:3). Or once more, “The Lord was with Joseph and confirmed him steadfast love and gave him favor within the sight of the keeper of the jail” (Genesis 39:21). So we get these hints alongside the way in which that although issues are getting worse for Joseph, it’s not due to his sinfulness. He’s not bringing this on himself. It’s not as a result of he’s been deserted by God, however due to God’s hidden function. And as we learn, we need to know, “What’s the aim? What’s the aim? God, you say you’re for him. You don’t appear like you’re for him.”

Sub-Level: Sexual Purity

Another illustration of how the writer will get throughout his intention — and this is likely one of the perplexing issues to me in the entire story. Chapter 38 completely, it appears, interrupts the stream of this story. The story begins in chapter 37 with the desires and the promoting into slavery in Egypt, and bang — Moses inserts chapter 38 as quickly as the large story begins, and it’s so extraneous. It tells this weird story about Judah, Joseph’s older brother, who winds up getting his daughter-in-law pregnant, considering she’s a prostitute. Now, no matter else is happening right here, my query is, “Moses, why right here? Put that chapter earlier than chapter 37; let the story stream. What’s the purpose of interrupting the narrative with this chapter 38?”

Nicely, right here’s my suggestion (and I might like to know whether or not it’s proper or not), as a result of the very subsequent factor after that horrible immorality of Judah in chapter 38 — the very subsequent factor we examine in Joseph’s story is his unimaginable uprightness in sexual relations with Potiphar’s spouse, who tries to seduce him. And Moses data his phrases: “How then can I do that nice wickedness and sin in opposition to God?” (Genesis 39:9).

So, I believe the ordering of the narrative with the insertion of Judah’s sexual immorality simply earlier than Joseph’s staggeringly efficient and delightful sexual morality is to underline in brilliant colours the distinction between Judah’s unfaithfulness and Joseph’s wonderful sexual uprightness, which merely goes to point out that there could be details to narratives and plenty of sub-points to narratives that we must be alert to.

What Is the Writer Saying?

So, in reply to Nicholas’s query: whether or not we’re studying a tightly argued epistle of Paul or a sweeping narrative throughout fourteen chapters, we’re at all times searching for what the writer intends to speak. And we search for the sorts of clues that he provides us, whether or not in exposition or in narration, to assist us discover the intention. And I might simply say to Nicholas that the extra you learn, the extra I learn, with that purpose of recognizing these suggestions and pointers that authors give us, the extra you’re going to see.