Digital Logos Edition
The method we use in the interpretation of Scripture is crucial for a correct understanding of God’s Word. Unfortunately, postmodern trends in the Christian church have largely led to the abandonment of the idea that in Scripture God is still speaking to us. But in order to hear God correctly, we need to apply proper methods in the interpretation of his Word. Understanding Scripture seeks to uncover methods of interpretation that arise from the Scriptures themselves and are in harmony with the Adventist high view of the Bible as the Word of God.
“When theologians deal with the R-I doctrine, they use the words ‘revelation’ and ‘inspiration’ in a technical sense. ‘Revelation’ broadly refers to the process through which the contents of Scripture emerged in the mind of prophets and apostles. ‘Inspiration,’ broadly speaking, refers to the process through which the contents in the mind of prophets and apostles were communicated in oral or in written forms. Thus, revelation is a cognitive process while inspiration is mainly a linguistic one.” (Page 50)
“Foundational to the development of the doctrinal system were the hermeneutical principles of typology and analogy of Scripture.” (Page 7)
“God’s Word is not culturally or historically conditioned but culturally/historically constituted. It transcends cultures and reaches us today. Therefore, what the biblical text meant in principle in its original setting is precisely what the text means for us today.” (Page 113)
“Realizing that they and their forefathers were taken captive because of their transgressions of the law and of the Sabbath (Jer 17:19–27; 2 Chron 36:15–21), post-exilic Jews moved increasingly toward a more rigid obedience of the law and the Sabbath as defined by tradition. These extra-biblical rules tended to overload and overshadow some basic teachings of the Scriptures (Matt 15:5–9).” (Page 1)
“Increasingly, prophetic preaching is left to the evangelists while weekly sermons focus more on social scientific insights and storytelling.” (Page 247)