The three C's of interpretation
In commercial real estate there are three L's that a potential location must possess in order to give a better chance for a business's survival, location, location, location.
In Biblical interpretation, especially sermons, there are three C's which must be considered in order to proper a passage properly, context, context, context.
Why?
Well, if you don't know why a particular passage is written how will you be able to interpret it properly. Context is crucial. A person who is responsible for expounding upon the Word of God must understand the prompting behind the writing of the passage. This is important no matter what text you are approaching. Why is Moses telling a particular story in Genesis? Why is Jude quoting from the Book of Enoch in his epistle? Why is Paul dealing with disunity in the Church in First Corinthians? Without a good understanding of the immediate audience, it can lead to moralistic intepretation, or even interpretation that the original audience would have never recognized from the text.
Dealing with a passage from this framework will lend toward a better understanding of that particular scripture and how it fits within the entire conext of the whole scripture, as well as the history of redemption. This opens up more avenues than just moralism or a 21st century superiority interpretation because it connects the modern audience with original audience and also will allow the preacher to derrive application that is relevant in all ages, even though the situational specificity may be different.
This is the key to preaching and teaching, that is, understanding the context of Scripture.
Book of the day Let the Reader Understand: A Guide to Interpreting and Applying the Bible by Dan McCartney and Charles Clayton.
In Biblical interpretation, especially sermons, there are three C's which must be considered in order to proper a passage properly, context, context, context.
Why?
Well, if you don't know why a particular passage is written how will you be able to interpret it properly. Context is crucial. A person who is responsible for expounding upon the Word of God must understand the prompting behind the writing of the passage. This is important no matter what text you are approaching. Why is Moses telling a particular story in Genesis? Why is Jude quoting from the Book of Enoch in his epistle? Why is Paul dealing with disunity in the Church in First Corinthians? Without a good understanding of the immediate audience, it can lead to moralistic intepretation, or even interpretation that the original audience would have never recognized from the text.
Dealing with a passage from this framework will lend toward a better understanding of that particular scripture and how it fits within the entire conext of the whole scripture, as well as the history of redemption. This opens up more avenues than just moralism or a 21st century superiority interpretation because it connects the modern audience with original audience and also will allow the preacher to derrive application that is relevant in all ages, even though the situational specificity may be different.
This is the key to preaching and teaching, that is, understanding the context of Scripture.
Book of the day Let the Reader Understand: A Guide to Interpreting and Applying the Bible by Dan McCartney and Charles Clayton.
posted by Bobby's blog at 5:27 PM
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