Understanding context in personal Bible study is crucial for accurate interpretation and effective preaching.
Transcript
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Introduction: Does the Bible Say There Is No God?
Did you know the Bible says there is no God? Let’s take a look. Right here it says there is no God. Welcome to Servants Not Professionals. Today we’re going to be taking a look at the importance of context in personal Bible study and in teaching the Bible.
Immediate Reactions to Controversial Statements
Now, if you’re a Christian, two thoughts probably just entered your head when I said the Bible says there is no God.
Number one, well that can’t be what it means, right? The text has to mean something else.
And number two, that’s not what the rest of the Bible says.
Both of those thoughts are thoughts about context. Context is a compound word coming from cone, which means “with,” and text, which is what you’re reading. It means what is with or around the text you’re reading right now.
To look at context is to understand the surrounding information. This could be cultural context or textual context or theological context or more.
Example: Psalm 53:1 in Context
Now let’s take a look again with some additional context. The entirety of Psalm 53:1 says this, “The fool says in his heart there is no God.” Now obviously, this has been taken out of its rightful context.
When it’s removed from the surrounding information—which is “the fool says in his heart”—it completely changes the meaning.
Example: Philippians 4:13 in Context
Another famous example of a verse being taken out of context is from Philippians 4:13, which says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
You know, I had a shirt that said that when I was in middle school, had a little guy on it, and said, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Now this is often taken to mean if I have my faith in Jesus I can accomplish my goals—winning a football game, passing a test, or whatever. But looking at the context, Paul says, “I have learned to be content in all circumstances; I can do all things through Christ.”
This context completely changes the meaning from “I can accomplish my goal” to “I can endure anything because of Jesus’ strength.” One is active and one is passive, and the meaning is passive. Anything can happen to me, but I’m going to remain in Christ’s strength.
The Importance of Context in Bible Study and Teaching
As we look at personal Bible study and teaching others, it’s very important to understand a few different points of context.
The first is near context, and the second is far context.
First, near context looks at what’s already going on in the verses, chapters, and book around the passage. This is where we take a look at the five W’s: who, what, when, where, and why.
We look at what’s going on and what part this passage plays in the overall theme of the book.
Example: Near Context of the Book of John
For example, let’s take a look at the book of John. What do you know about the book of John? What immediately comes to mind?
Now, what differences are there between a book like John and a book like Isaiah? See, both of them are named after people, so if you don’t already know what the books are about, know the context—then how could you tell what they’re about just from their names alone?
When you tell someone, “Oh, the book of John says this,” they have no idea the context that goes with the book of John. How can they know the meaning of what you’re going to say?
Isaiah tells Israel to turn back to God, to be kicked out, and happens hundreds of years before John, which tells of the One who comes to fix everything, which is Jesus.
But if you don’t already know that context, you’re going to be completely lost when someone says the book of Maccabees. See? You already know something’s up.
Far Context: The Whole Biblical Story
Second, far context looks at the passage and context of the whole Bible’s history: creation, fall, redemption, and restoration.
The story centers around Jesus, so where does this passage place in the biblical story, and what does it have to do with Jesus?
The best interpreter of the Bible is the Bible itself, so are there other sections of the Bible that talk about the same thing?
Example: The Book of Genesis in Far Context
As an example, when I went through the Genesis class in Bible college, I was very surprised to learn how much of Genesis is just despicable evil.
Almost the entire book is horrific acts of murder, rape, incest, jealousy, revenge, deceit, and more. Anything that you could think of.
And I always thought Genesis was a book about beginnings. So what is this? The beginning of the downfall of all people?
See, Genesis in Greek does mean beginning, Genesis. But what part does it play in the entire Bible?
Well, the book of Genesis comes right before the law, which is where God shows Israel how to have a right relationship with Him.
Well, why do the Israelites need the law at all?
Well, because of the fall. There’s creation, fall, redemption, and restoration. In Genesis, it shows the creation but it also systematically lays out the effects of the fall on people—the reason the Israelites need the law at all.
So when we read Genesis, we shouldn’t be surprised to see, “Oh my gosh, these people are so evil.”
Well, that’s why God in the next book, Exodus, separates His people from all the evilness and gives them the law for a right relationship with Him. The law was going to begin that redemptive process.
Cultural Context as a Subpart of Far Context
Now a subpart of far context is what we would call cultural context. This often requires searching online.
Is there a special kind of meaning from the original audience of the book?
Many aspects of cultural context we completely take for granted having already learned them from awesome Bible teachers.
For example, if someone was paid 100 denarii—who cares? I don’t know what a denarii is. What difference does that make?
But considering cultural context here, that a denarii is worth about a day’s wages, well, 100 days’ wages, or about $10,000, is a pretty big deal.
See, we are naturally just going to take for granted what we already know about the Bible and especially about the Bible’s context that other people who aren’t as strong in their walk aren’t going to understand.
People who don’t know the story of the Bible or strange streams of cultural context or even what specific books are about like you do might be lost if you try to reach them.
Conclusion: The Importance of Context for Understanding Scripture
So let’s revisit our first example: Scripture says there is no God.
Remember this next time you hear a sermon where the teacher isn’t explaining the context. Think of how lost those people are going to be in the audience.
How can a new Christian just jump in and understand? Well, they won’t.
So next time you’re reading the Bible, make sure you try to understand the context to understand the real meaning of the text—even behind the text—so you can explain it to anyone.
Please leave your questions in the comments below, and you can click on this video here to see an example of exploring context as we begin our Romans series.
