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| English: Abraham embraces his son Isaac after receiving him back from God (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
"Because that Abraham obeyed my voice,
and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." Genesis 26:5 (KJV)
God
tells us why he did something for Abraham. Do you think that is important?
The
question of why is a very important question. But what makes this an important
question? What makes why such an important part of living? In order for anyone
to determine meaning in anything there are six basic questions we ask to
determine the context. Who, what, where, when, why, and how. Each of these
individual questions are to determine something different in our understanding.
·
The question of who gives us a clarity in
meaning.
·
The question of what determines the object that
is to have value whether intrinsic or extrinsic.
·
The question of where as to the clarity of
meaning to determine location because we live in a three dimensional world.
·
The question of when also provides a clarity of
meaning to determine the timing since we perceive the fourth dimension of time.
·
The question of why provides us the
understanding of purpose. The purpose of something, such as a promise from God
given to Abraham because obedience is highly valued; so the purpose of the
promise was the reward for obedience.
·
Finally the question of how helps us determine
context and meaning clearly. How gives a practice or plan of expressing of that
which is to be valued.
How
and why are a legitimate part of the context and cannot be removed without
making the principal found in the scripture void of context. This is true for
any of the six questions to determine context and meaning. By removing any one
we violate either the meaning of the text, the value of the text, the purpose
of text, or the practice given in the text. It is true however that in any
statement all six questions may not be answerable but overall reading of the
surrounding text will supply those answers. In order to determine proper
context you must try to answer as many questions as possible to deduce proper
meaning. If for instance the why or how is not included in the text it may be
deduced however should not be assumed.
A
simple context chart can be used to see the meaning of the text:
Who
(Meaning)
|
|
What
(Value)
|
|
Where
(Meaning)
|
|
When
(Meaning)
|
|
Why
(Purpose)
|
|
How
(Practice)
|
Remember
that when God tells you why something happened or how to do something, that is
authoritative. Also remember that the Bible was written clearly and does not
use riddles. The word of God is not cryptic or mysterious. The Bible was
written plainly and obvious to those who have a spiritual foundation (ears to
hear). It is true that there are poetic prose, parable and figures of speech
that must be accounted for. The lack in understanding these texts is due to the
intellectual laziness of the student and not the text.
It
is important for everyone to see when reading the Bible how much emphasis is
placed upon false teachers who would corrupt the Gospel. Because of this is
also equally important for you to see at the Gospel message itself must be the
source of all fundamental doctrine. Paul wrote to Timothy about knowing the
Scriptures.
“And that from a child
thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto
salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” - 2 Timothy 3:15 (KJV)
What
Paul was essentially saying here is that if doctrine is essential for salvation
we are to learn it from the Bible. The Bible is adequate and equipped for every
good work. The truth of God is not targeted at intellectuals or people who have
studied for many years but it is written in a form that is simple enough for
children. Because word is not a puzzle. Psalm 19:7. Hebrews 11:6. That verse
makes faith a central to the right elation ship with God. We have already seen
many Scripture that discuss the eternal life is obtained through the knowledge
of the true God and Jesus Christ.
"And
this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus
Christ, whom thou hast sent." - John 17:3 (KJV)
"Jesus
saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the
Father, but by me." - John 14:6 (KJV)
"Neither
is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven
given among men, whereby we must be saved." - Acts 4:12 (KJV)
When
we are reading the Bible we must keep in mind the six questions. We must
recognize the Bible as being authoritative. We must also not fall for the fallacy
of improper authority. For those people who take authority as truth, fail to
take truth as authority. The six questions of context help you to see the true
meaning of text. And remember no one has the right to remove any of the
questions.
To
illustrate this consider the denomination of the Salvation Army. They believe
in no sacraments. Even though the Bible clearly includes baptism in the plan of
salvation, this denomination ignores it. Even though the Lord's Supper is
clearly written about in the days of the early church, this denomination
ignores it. In essence the Salvation Army is attempting to remove the how and
why from the Scripture. What or who ever gave them that authority?
Many
denominations do this today. When anyone is determining the truth of any
denomination or any religion for that matter, understand first that God has
given you the ability to think. This does not mean that people think but it
does mean they have the ability to do so. When so many people ask the question
"why are there so many denominations?", the answer is clear: people
are not rigorously rational.
