Never Read a Bible Verse

Some of you, especially those of you in my Acts class, know what an advocate I am for careful reading of Scripture. Here is an excerpt from an excellent article written by Gregory Koukl on the subject of Bible verses. Take this to heart.

Meaning always flows from the top down, from the larger units to the smaller units, not the other way around. The key to the meaning of any verse comes from the paragraph, not just from the individual words.

The numbers in front of the sentences give the illusion the verses stand alone in their meaning. They were not in the originals, though. Numbers were added hundreds of years later. Chapter and verse breaks sometimes pop up in unfortunate places, separating relevant material that should be grouped together.

First, ignore the verse numbers and try to get the big picture. Then begin to narrow your focus. It's not very hard or time consuming. It takes only a few moments and a little observation of the text.

Begin with the broad context of the book. What type of literature is it history, poetry, proverb? What is the passage about in general? What idea is being developed?

Stand back from the verse and look for breaks in the narrative that identify major units of thought. Ask, "What in this paragraph or group of paragraphs gives any clue to the meaning of the verse?"

There's a reason this little exercise is so important. Words have different meanings in different contexts (that's what makes puns work). When we consider a verse in isolation, one meaning may occur to us. But how do we know it's the right one? Help won't come from the dictionary. Dictionaries only complicate the issue, giving us more choices, not fewer. Help must come from somewhere else close by: the surrounding paragraph.

With the larger context now in view, you can narrow your focus and speculate on the meaning of the verse itself. Sum it up in your own words.

Finally and this is critical see if your paraphrase makes sense when inserted in the passage. Does it dovetail naturally with the bigger picture?

The rest of the article contains soild examples of how to avoid the traps and do sound Bible reading. You can read it here.

Visit to Minneapolis

I haven't blogged for a bit because I've been in Minneapolis receiving some training on how to lead short-term missions teams well. I had the chance tonight to visit The Fusion Community, a ministry led by my friend Bryan McWhite, in whose guest room I am currently typing this and where I've been sleeping for the last 4 nights.

Bryan is a gifted teacher, and I recommend to you the sermon he presented tonight which covered the end of 1 Cor.10. Check it out here.

In hope to share with you some insights on my training in the days to come.

Life in the Vine

My two part Life in the Vine series is now available. I welcome any comments or helpful suggestions. Thanks.



Part 1 John 15:1-8




Part 2 John 15:9-17

Election as a Call to Love First

I have enjoyed carefully examining a short portion of Jesus' discussion with his disciples during the last supper in John 15:1-17. Over the last few days I have been pondering 15:16, a verse that I am sure will raise some eyebrows tomorrow when I discuss it in the sermon. It stands out for its theological bluntness on the doctrine of election.

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. John 15:16 ESV

What it says is plain enough. We did not choose Jesus. Jesus chose us. His move was primary, and any decision we feel we've made with regard to Jesus is a result of his sovereign choice. That's clear enough; but what I've been pondering is the location of this particular bit of theological precision. Jesus is talking about his love and how we as his beloved friends are to abide in his love and love others in the same way he loves us. Why, seemingly out of the blue, does Jesus switch to the topic of his sovereign choice?

And then it hit me. Election is not only Christ's sovereign choice of the people for whom he will sacrificially give his life; election is also the model for how we are to love others first. Now, my thoughts on this are just now simmering, so I would welcome any perspective or critique you may bring to them.

Here's what I think I'm seeing. In 15:12, Jesus says we are to love others as he has loved us. This means sacrificially, which is clear from the next verse that says no one has greater love than he who gives his life for his friends. Now that's challenging enough. To love to the point where you are willing to die in the place of the other person is beautiful, costly love, and it is absolutely the central message of the cross, because Jesus dies as the substitute sacrifice for the sins of his people.

But 15:16 heightens the challenge by showing us yet one more aspect of Jesus' love for his people that must be modeled in the loving fruit they produce, namely, that we are to be the people who love others first. The disciples didn't choose to love and abide in Jesus. Jesus chose them when they were perfectly content to keep on fishing, collecting taxes, etc. without any love for Jesus at all.

I've talked to enough people, done enough counseling, and searched my own heart enough to know that we humans are not inclined to love first. What I am inclined to do is love conditionally. I will extend love as an invitation to others, and if it is accepted, friendship begins. When it's rejected, I assume the other person is not worth my love and move on. That's what my sinful heart wants to do. I want to revoke the invitation.

But Jesus' love isn't an invitation, it's a selection. He chooses us, and we become his beloved friends. As such, my love isn't to be simply an invitation, but a choice to love. I don't get to decide how and to what extent I'm going to love other people anymore than I decided how and to what extent Jesus was going to love me.

Now of course, my love for another person is not irresistable like Jesus' love. My love doesn't bring about new birth or new creation in another person. But it is not the doctrine of irresistable grace that Jesus references. It is the doctrine of unconditional election, and to that end my love for another person must pour from me regardless of how it is received.

Imagine if everyone who followed Jesus realized that they were chosen, in spite of themselves, by Jesus, and used that love as a model for loving everyone else. Imagine if we said, "No matter what you do to me or how you receive me, I am going to love you first as unconditionally as Jesus loved me first, even if it kills me."

Another Reflection on John 15:3

Following the service yesterday I had a great discussion with my wife about John 15:3, a seemingly enigmatic little sentence in the middle of Jesus' analogy of the vine and the branches.

"Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you." 15:3

The word clean here is the same as the word prunes in 15:2, so Jesus is saying that the eleven remaining disciples are pruned, fruit-bearing branches. Judas is the ideal example of the dead branch that seemed to be "in Christ" but whom the Father has "taken away."

At this point in the sermon I made the comment that what Jesus says next is directed to fruit-bearing branches. Rachel told me that she wondered whether she would have understood Jesus to be speaking to only one kind of branch following this verse if I hadn't pointed it out. This caused me to go back to the verse and have another look at it.

This short verse is even more important than I thought. Here's why:

1. Often people quoting or referencing this passage will start in 15:4. "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me."

2. Had Jesus begun his speech here, you might be able to make a good case that Jesus is arguing for a sort of works righteousness, where it is the responsibility of the individual to stop being a dead branch and start producing fruit that God will accept. Try reading 15:1-2, skipping 15:3, and moving right to 15:4 to see what I mean.

3. 15:3 is the pronouncement of grace. The Gospel has cleaned these remaining eleven apostles. They are being pruned by the vinedresser to bear more fruit. Their responsibility is not to clean themselves, but to endure and partner in the continued discipleship process by abiding in the source of their spiritual life, Jesus Christ.

4. 15:3 and 15:6 work together to make certain that fruit-bearing branches realize it is God's sovereign grace that saves them and allows them to bear the fruit of Christ-like love.

What an important little sentence!

Sermon Series Begins This Week

I just want to let you all know that I will be starting a new sermon series at King Street this week entitled Life in the Vine. Over two weeks we'll explore John 15:1-17, a passage I've been reflecting on in my personal study over the last few months. It's great when I have the opportunity to share Scripture that is addressing some of my own current questions. Hope you can join us.

Christ Endured So That I...

Christ was all anguish that I might be all joy, cast off that I might be brought in, trodden down as an enemy that I might be welcomed as a friend, surrendered to hell’s worst that I might attain heaven’s best, stripped that I might be clothed, wounded that I might be healed, athirst that I might drink, tormented that I might be comforted, made a shame that I might inherit glory, entered darkness that I might have eternal life.My Saviour wept that all tears might be wiped from my eyes, groaned that I might have endless song, endured all pain that I might have unfading health, bore a thorned crown that I might have a glory-diadem, bowed his head that I might uplift mine, experienced reproach that I might receive welcome, closed his eyes in death that I might gaze on unclouded brightness, expired that I might for ever live.

The Valley of Vision, “Love Lustres at Calvary”


HT: Kevin DeYoung, read more here.