5. The testimony of the church of God may stir and persuade us to adopt a high and reverent respect for the Holy Scriptures. Moreover, the heavenliness of the contents, the power of the system of truth, the majesty of the style, the harmony of all the parts, the central focus on giving all glory to God, the full revelation of the only way of salvation, and many other incomparable qualities and complete perfections, all provide abundant evidence that the Scriptures are the Word of God. Even so, our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority of the Scriptures comes from the internal work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts.
~Second London Baptist Confession (1689), 1.5
Series: The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith Church: South Caraway Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR Date: September 27, 2023
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light— 9 for the fruit of the light consists of all goodness, righteousness, and truth— 10 testing what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Don’t participate in the fruitless works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to mention what is done by them in secret. 13 Everything exposed by the light is made visible, 14 for what makes everything visible is light. Therefore it is said:
Get up, sleeper, and rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.
15 Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise— 16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit: 19 speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another in the fear of Christ.
~Ephesians 5.8-21
Title: On the Value of a Distinctively Christian Life Text: Ephesians 5.8-21 Series: The Letter to the Ephesians Church: South Caraway Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR Date: August 20, 2023
19 So, then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building, being put together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you are also being built together for God’s dwelling in the Spirit.
~Ephesians 2.19-22
Title: On the Security, Preservation, and Success of the Church Text: Ephesians 2.19-22 Series: The Letter to the Ephesians Church: South Caraway Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR Date: June 25, 2023
15 This is why, since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16 I never stop giving thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the mighty working of his strength.
20 He exercised this power in Christ by raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens— 21 far above every ruler and authority, power and dominion, and every title given, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.
~Ephesians 1.15-23
Title: On the Ground of Christian Hope Text: Ephesians 1.15-23 Series: The Letter to the Ephesians Church: South Caraway Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR Date: May 28, 2023
Despite the claims of postmodern literary critics, it is reasonably certain that the meaning of any given document or literary work is grounded in and governed by its author. To put it another way, the meaning of the text is limited by the message that the writer of that text intended to communicate. This principle has been the foundation of biblical interpretation for most of the modern period, and rightly so. The Word of God comes to us through human authors who were writing to historical audiences, so we must work within the boundaries of literary and historical context in order to understand it. The problem, however, is that an overemphasis on authorial intent could relegate our interpretive efforts to nothing more than an exercise in historical investigation. But, the Word of God is more than a historical artifact; it is living and active, and its truths are just as relevant today as they were when they were first written. Over the last twenty years or so, more and more emphasis has been given to the intent of the divine author in an attempt to arrive at a more robustly theological interpretation.
However, this too has led to certain hermeneutical problems, particularly when the supposed divine intent in a given text is set in competition with or in contradiction to the human intent. This appears to be the underlying assumption of a question that was posed on Twitter a few days ago (pictured above). A pastor on Twitter recently asked, “Did the human authors have perfect/sinless intentions while writing Scripture?” Of course, Twitter polls are probably not the best resource for scholarly research, but the results are nevertheless concerning. Some 73% of respondents answered the question in the negative, meaning that almost three quarters of those who answered the poll believe that the human authors of the Bible had sinful intentions when they wrote the words of Holy Scripture. While the relationship between the human and the divine in the writing of Holy Scripture may be complex, we must conclude that this answer is out of bounds for those who believe that the Bible is the Word of God. How can sinful words be received as the Word of a sinless and righteous God? This is a contradiction in terms. As we read in Second Peter, chapter 1, verse 21, “instead men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”
Based on this text, we must affirm that there is no divine intent apart from the words of the human author. In other words, our interpretive efforts must deal directly with the words of Holy Scripture; we must labor to understand the genre, the syntax, the vocabulary, the grammatical relationships, and the literary flow of thought of the documents themselves. This is the fundamental work of biblical interpretation. There is no such thing as meaning that is separate from the text; there is no mystical or hidden Word that may be sought apart from the words on the page. Whatever the timeless supernatural theological implications of the text may be, these truths must be grounded in and derived from the actual words of Holy Scripture. In theology, this doctrine is known as verbal plenary inspiration, meaning that the quality of inspiration extends to very words that comprise the text and not just the ideas that stand behind those words. In the act of inspiration, God so worked in through and with the human authors of Holy Scripture, such that their words are His very words, thus they are without error in every way.
If their words are His words, then we may conclude that their intent is His intent as well. The difficulty, however, lies in the reality that the God of the Bible is infinite in His understanding, that He sees more and knows more than the human authors could possibly comprehend when they were writing. So, there is a sense in which the divine intent is so much more than what the human authors could understand; some have referred to this as the sensus plenior, or the fuller sense of the text. In their book Introduction to Biblical Interpretation, Klein, Blomberg, and Hubbard identify the problem with this idea, namely that “we have no objective criteria to posit the existence of a sensus, or to determine where it might exist, or how one might proceed to unravel its significance. In other words, if the human author of a text did not intend and was unaware of a deeper level of meaning, how can we be confident today that we can detect it?” To put it another way, if we understand textual meaning as something that is grounded in authorial intent, then we must assume a certain amount of similitude, if not even near identity, between the intent of both the Divine and the human author. Otherwise, we would never be able to understand what God is saying to us in any real or meaningful way.
In the final analysis, we must conclude that there is no competition or contradiction between the intent of the human the divine authors of Holy Scripture. While it is possible that the Spirit intended more than human authors, He certainly did not intend less than what they intended to communicate to their audiences through the words that they wrote. In other words, authorial intent in the Bible must be viewed as finely woven tapestry in which the human and divine is so interlaced and knitted together, such that any attempts to divide or separate them would in effect destroy its beauty and grandeur. As interpreters, we must hold these facets of the text in harmony and proceed with conviction the Bible is the very Word of God. B.B. Warfield puts it this way in his book The Inspiration and Authority of the Bible, “The Scriptures, in other words, are conceived by the writers of the New Testament as through and through God’s book, in every part expressive of His mind, given through men after a fashion which does no violence to their nature as men, and constitutes the book also men’s book as well as God’s, in every part expressive of the mind of its human authors.”
For further study, see: Warfield, B.B. “The Divine and the Human in the Bible.” Pages 542-548in Selected Shorter Writings, 2 Vols.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will: To the faithful saints in Christ Jesus at Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
~Ephesians 1.1-2
Title: On a Historical, Literary, and Theological Overview of Ephesians Text: Ephesians 1.1-2 Series: The Letter to the Ephesians Church: South Caraway Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR Date: April 30, 2023
For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge,knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness,godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being useless or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
~2 Peter 1.5-8
Topic: Introduction and Overview Series: Spiritual Disciplines of the Christian Life Church: South Caraway Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR Date: January 11, 2023
It is commonly accepted wisdom among most Christians that the Book of Revelation is the hardest book of the Bible to interpret and understand, and it certainly does stand out as one of the most unique books of the New Testament. Those who do attempt to read it are immediately confronted by literary forms, images and symbols, and pastoral concerns that are so unlike their own lived experiences that they tend to put it down faster than they picked it up. Couple this with the myriad of disagreements that exist over the meaning of all these details, and it seems easier to simply leave this book of the Bible to the domain of trained Biblical scholars. However, the book itself affirms, “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it, because the time is near.” (Revelation 1.3) So, when we neglect and ignore this final book of the Bible, we miss out on the blessing that it very clearly promises. But how do we overcome the intimidating and off-putting obstacles that keep us from drinking deeply from its pages?
When we are met with an interpretive challenge like the Book of Revelation, we must return to our basic hermeneutical convictions, those fundamental interpretive principles that help us navigate the Scriptural waters. And one of those rules that is particularly helpful for understanding the Book of Revelation is this: A text without a context is a pretext for a proof text. In other words, when we understand who the biblical author is writing to and why he is writing to them, we are in a better position to understand what he is saying. Or to put it another way, the meaning of the text must be grounded in the inspired intention of the biblical author. He is writing to real people with real needs, and he intends for his message to truly address those needs. If we come up with an interpretation that would make zero sense for the original audience, then we must reevaluate our understanding of the text. Of course, any reconstruction of the historical audience must begin with the details in the text, but historical sources from the time period can add additional detail to our understanding of the audience and their situation.
Fortunately for us, John identifies his intended audience directly; in chapter 1, verse 11, we read, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.” We must affirm that these were seven real churches that were located in the Roman province of Asia Minor, or what we would call modern day Turkey. Each one of these seven churches is addressed directly in the letters of chapters 2 and 3, but the author’s concern for these churches cannot be limited to these first few chapters, even if they are primary for understanding the particular needs of these churches. The entire book was written to and for the members of these seven churches of Asia Minor. As to the date of writing, there are two views that are held by biblical scholars. The majority view holds that the book was written during the reign of the Emperor Domitian (81-96 CE); the minority view suggests that the book was written during the reign of the Emperor Nero (54-68 CE). Either of these dates is possible for the book’s composition, but a review of the historical evidence slightly favors the later date, meaning that the Book of Revelation was probably written sometime around 95 CE.
Regardless of which date is preferred, it is clear that these seven churches were facing challenges both internally and externally. These Christians were living in a world that was openly hostile to their faith in Christ, and while there was no official imperial policy of persecution at this time, they were facing intense social pressure in their local communities to compromise their convictions and conform to the Roman way of life. Culturally, they simply had no where to belong. The Jews had rejected them, and the Gentiles would not accept them. They were ostracized marginalized outsiders who did not belong to the world they lived in. And Jesus is writing to them through John to encourage them to persevere in faithfulness, to hold on to the blessed hope that is His appearing. The Revelation is a reminder that they are part of something bigger than themselves, that the victory and vindication that they long for is ahead of them, and that there will be a day when all oppression shall cease. This is the message of Revelation. It is not about beasts and bowls; rather, it is about Christ, our King, who is coming again in glory and power to do away with sin once and for all and establish His perfect Kingdom on earth.
Of course, there are those who would disagree with this assessment of the message of Revelation. Some, particularly those who hold to an early date for the book, would suggest that part or perhaps all of the book was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Problems with the early date notwithstanding, it is not clear how this understanding addresses the needs of Christians living in the Roman province of Asia Minor. As noted above, they were facing persecution from the Jews living in those cities, but Jerusalem was not the primary enemy that they were facing. In fact, the Book of Revelation makes it clear that while earthly enemies may affect us, they are not our ultimate foe anyway. Therefore, the destruction Jerusalem would hold little promise for bringing their persecution to an end and accomplishing the victory that the book promises. Further, it isn’t clear how the book’s descriptions of “all the nations”, “all those who live on the face of the earth”, and “the whole earth” can refer only to the people of Israel or the citizens of Jerusalem. So, while this view attempts to maintain the book’s relevance for the original audience by positing all fulfillment in the first century, in actuality, it does the exact opposite. In fact, it completely undercuts the hope and blessing that the book promises its readers, both in the first century and today.
The Book of Revelation paints a glorious and beautiful picture of the hope that is ours in Christ Jesus. It is the promise of a world that is free from the contamination of sin, free from the heavy burden of the curse, free from all opposition to Christ and His people. As Christians, we must remember that this is our blessed hope. This world’s troubles and difficulties are not the end of our story; no, we are part of something that is bigger than ourselves, an eternal story that far surpasses our momentary lives here on earth. Moreover, the Book of Revelation teaches us that our sufferings, our difficulties, our heartaches, they matter deeply to God. He takes note of every wrong, every insult that we suffer, and one day, He will right those wrongs and vindicate His people. This is the central message of Revelation. Of course, the difference is in the details as they say, and there are still many details within the pages of Revelation that we must wrestle with. But this is the point, we must wrestle with them. We cannot ignore or neglect this last book of the Bible simply because it is too challenging, too difficult, too different. We must explore with our minds and our hearts what the Spirit is saying to His church. We must pray that He will give us ears to hear, and when we engage this book in earnest, we may be confident that we will find the strength to persevere and hold fast in hope.
For further study, see Osborne, Grant R. Revelation. Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2002.
Recently, I was following a thread on a friends Facebook post where the participants were discussing their disagreement on a question of biblical interpretation. The specific issue under debate is not important at the moment, and I’ll just say that I was surprised to find that this particular exchange was more graceful than these kinds of forums usually are. However, with that being said, after reading through the various points and counterpoints being made, I came across one response that made me pause. Figuring that the minds of the other participants were unlikely to change, one commenter attempted to conclude the discussion by saying:
“When it all comes down to it we should rely on The Holy Spirit of God to reveal His truths to us!! Don’t take what man has to say about it!!”
~Unnamed Facebook Commenter
In my previous post, I examined the question of “man-made” bible study resources, and I concluded that there is great wisdom in listening to the voices of those who have studied the Bible before us. We were never intended to approach Bible study as if we are the “lone ranger” of Bible interpretation, carving a path that has somehow never been carved before. Commentaries, theologies, and the like are part of God’s gift to the church (Ephesians 4.11-13); they are part of that “great cloud of witnesses” within which we pursue Christian maturity and godliness (Hebrews 12.1). However, even greater than these is the gift that is God’s Spirit. In the New Covenant, we who have been united with Christ by faith have been indwelt by God’s very Spirit, and He is the one who writes the Word upon our hearts and moves us to obey it (Jeremiah 31.33, Ezekiel 36.27). This is what makes Christian biblical interpretation unique; we have God’s Spirit (1 Corinthians 2.10-16).
Unfortunately, there is great misunderstanding as to the exact nature of the Spirit’s role in biblical interpretation, and in the space that follows, I would like to explore the contours of the Spirit’s work in Bible interpretation. According to the view represented by the Facebook comment above, all we need to do is read the Bible and then open our hearts and minds so that the Spirit can tell us what the Scripture means. This approach is essentially a recapitulation of the ancient heresy of Gnosticism. In other words, it suggests that Biblical knowledge comes to us by some kind of secret mystical experiential revelation from the Spirit apart from the text. But this is not the way that the Spirit works. Revelation is fixed, and the canon is closed. Moreover, the Spirit will not do for us what God has equipped us to do for ourselves. He has given us rational minds with the ability to read and comprehend His revealed Word. This is why we are repeatedly commanded to read, study, and grow in the knowledge of the Scriptures.
The Spirit’s work in biblical interpretation is not primarily revelatory; He does not impart the content of biblical meaning. Rather, His work pertains more to our accepting and obeying the principles that are revealed in the Scriptures. This is what is known in theology as the doctrine of illumination.
The Spirit convinces God’s people of the truth of the biblical message, and then convicts and enables them to live consistently with that truth. The Spirit does not inform us of Scripture’s meaning.
~Klein, Blomberg, & Hubbard, Introduction to Biblical Interpretation
The Spirit illuminates our hearts to accept the truth of God’s Word, and He helps to conform our will in submission to that Word through conviction. This illumination comes to us not through some mystical experiential supra-rational revelation, but through the classic word-centered spiritual disciplines. In other words, once we have done our exegetical work in the text, then we must do our closet work (ala Matt 6.6) through memorization, meditation, and prayer. When we engage in these rhythms of the Spirit, we put ourselves in a posture where He can use the fruits of our study to sift our souls. As the Scripture says,
“For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”
Hebrews 4.12
Under the New Covenant, one of the primary roles of the Spirit is to mediate the knowledge of God, but this ministry cannot, nay must not, be separated from the Word of God. Throughout all of Holy Scripture, the Spirit of God and the Word of God work together to transform the people of God into the image of God. More often than not, this transformation happens in ways and means that are consistent with the way God has made us. We do not seek any secret mystical revelation of God’s Word; rather, we use all of the natural and supernatural resources that God has given us to understand His revelation of Himself to us through His Word.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s will: To the faithful saints in Christ Jesus at Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Title: On an Introduction to Ephesians Series: John Newton Pastors Conference Church: Grace Baptist Church, West Memphis, AR Date: May 20, 2022
Faith seeking Understanding 
On Biblical Interpretation and the Holy Spirit
Recently, I was following a thread on a friends Facebook post where the participants were discussing their disagreement on a question of biblical interpretation. The specific issue under debate is not important at the moment, and I’ll just say that I was surprised to find that this particular exchange was more graceful than these kinds of forums usually are. However, with that being said, after reading through the various points and counterpoints being made, I came across one response that made me pause. Figuring that the minds of the other participants were unlikely to change, one commenter attempted to conclude the discussion by saying:
In my previous post, I examined the question of “man-made” bible study resources, and I concluded that there is great wisdom in listening to the voices of those who have studied the Bible before us. We were never intended to approach Bible study as if we are the “lone ranger” of Bible interpretation, carving a path that has somehow never been carved before. Commentaries, theologies, and the like are part of God’s gift to the church (Ephesians 4.11-13); they are part of that “great cloud of witnesses” within which we pursue Christian maturity and godliness (Hebrews 12.1). However, even greater than these is the gift that is God’s Spirit. In the New Covenant, we who have been united with Christ by faith have been indwelt by God’s very Spirit, and He is the one who writes the Word upon our hearts and moves us to obey it (Jeremiah 31.33, Ezekiel 36.27). This is what makes Christian biblical interpretation unique; we have God’s Spirit (1 Corinthians 2.10-16).
Unfortunately, there is great misunderstanding as to the exact nature of the Spirit’s role in biblical interpretation, and in the space that follows, I would like to explore the contours of the Spirit’s work in Bible interpretation. According to the view represented by the Facebook comment above, all we need to do is read the Bible and then open our hearts and minds so that the Spirit can tell us what the Scripture means. This approach is essentially a recapitulation of the ancient heresy of Gnosticism. In other words, it suggests that Biblical knowledge comes to us by some kind of secret mystical experiential revelation from the Spirit apart from the text. But this is not the way that the Spirit works. Revelation is fixed, and the canon is closed. Moreover, the Spirit will not do for us what God has equipped us to do for ourselves. He has given us rational minds with the ability to read and comprehend His revealed Word. This is why we are repeatedly commanded to read, study, and grow in the knowledge of the Scriptures.
The Spirit’s work in biblical interpretation is not primarily revelatory; He does not impart the content of biblical meaning. Rather, His work pertains more to our accepting and obeying the principles that are revealed in the Scriptures. This is what is known in theology as the doctrine of illumination.
The Spirit illuminates our hearts to accept the truth of God’s Word, and He helps to conform our will in submission to that Word through conviction. This illumination comes to us not through some mystical experiential supra-rational revelation, but through the classic word-centered spiritual disciplines. In other words, once we have done our exegetical work in the text, then we must do our closet work (ala Matt 6.6) through memorization, meditation, and prayer. When we engage in these rhythms of the Spirit, we put ourselves in a posture where He can use the fruits of our study to sift our souls. As the Scripture says,
Under the New Covenant, one of the primary roles of the Spirit is to mediate the knowledge of God, but this ministry cannot, nay must not, be separated from the Word of God. Throughout all of Holy Scripture, the Spirit of God and the Word of God work together to transform the people of God into the image of God. More often than not, this transformation happens in ways and means that are consistent with the way God has made us. We do not seek any secret mystical revelation of God’s Word; rather, we use all of the natural and supernatural resources that God has given us to understand His revelation of Himself to us through His Word.
For further study:
On the Spirit and the Word
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4 Comments | tags: Bible Study Resources, Closet Work, Commentaries, Exegetical Work, Gnosticism, Holy Spirit, Illumination, Meditation, Memorization, New Covenant, Phillip Powers, Prayer, Spiritual Disciplines, Theologies | posted in Biblical Theology, Hermeneutics, Spiritual Formation