HRB.Chapter3.docx

Scripture Interprets Scripture Defining the Principle “Measure twice and cut once.” This advice, given by older carpenters to younger apprentices, helps the Bible student as well. We want to make sure we have the right understanding of a particular passage, so we check our understanding of it agains...

Scripture Interprets Scripture Defining the Principle “Measure twice and cut once.” This advice, given by older carpenters to younger apprentices, helps the Bible student as well. We want to make sure we have the right understanding of a particular passage, so we check our understanding of it against another, similar passage (“measure twice”). We might also think of principle #2 as a type of quality control, where we see if we have the right understanding. Applying the Principle First Corinthians 15 In chapter 1 we read about the resurrection of Jesus (Matthew 28:1–10). The plain meaning of the text was that Jesus physically rose from the dead on the third day after His death and burial. To check our understanding, we turn to 1 Corinthians 15. Throughout this long chapter (58 verses), Paul writes about the resurrection of Jesus and what it means. Based on verses 1–8, answer the following questions: What is the heart of the Gospel (mentioned in verses 1 and 2)? See verses 3 and 4 for the answer. What does Paul mean by the phrase “according to the Scriptures” (verses 3–4)? How does Paul confirm the physical resurrection of Jesus to his readers? See verses 5–7. When you answer the second question, it may be helpful to read some of the introduction to First Corinthians in the Concordia Self-Study Bible (pages 1744–46), especially “Author and Date” (page 1744). Paul probably wrote First Corinthians in A.D. 55, before the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were written and circulated. This helps us understand the phrase “according to the Scriptures” as a reference to Old Testament prophecy. Thus, Paul tells us that the death and resurrection of Jesus were prophesied in the Old Testament. Paul confirms the physical resurrection of Jesus by affirming this is what he was told (15:3–4); listing eyewitnesses (15:4–7); pointing out the consequences if Jesus had not been raised (15:12–19); and pointing out the consequences of Jesus’ resurrection (15:20–24). First Corinthians 11–14 Using Scripture to interpret Scripture helps us understand the Lord’s Supper as well. In chapter 1 we used Matthew 26:17–35 to illustrate interpretation based on the plain and obvious meaning of the text. Also, we find other Scripture to support that interpretation, in this case 1 Corinthians 11:17–34. The church in Corinth suffers from a number of problems, including conduct at worship services. Paul addresses these problems in 11:3–14:40. In 11:17–34 he speaks directly to their celebration of the Lord’s Supper and outlines the problem in 11:17–22. Based on verses 17–34, answer the following questions: How have divisions within the congregation affected their celebration of the Lord’s Supper? Where does Paul begin when he addresses the issue (11:23–26)? Against what does a person sin when taking the Lord’s Supper unworthily? Why are many Corinthian Christians sick and weak, and why have some “fallen asleep”? What things should a person do before taking the Lord’s Supper? Paul recognized the many divisions within the Corinthian church in chapter 1 (verses 10–17). He appealed to the members to heal their divisions and unite their minds and thoughts in Jesus Christ (1:10). These divisions are connected with most of the problems Paul writes about in this letter, including their observance of the Lord’s Supper. For various reasons (which Paul does not mention), members of the Corinthian church arrive at their place of worship at different times. As strange as it seems, some of those who arrive early eat and drink the elements of the Lord’s Supper, and as a result later arrivals don’t get any and the early arrivals actually get drunk from drinking all the wine! When Paul corrects the Corinthians, he makes a point of repeating the Words of Institution (11:23–25). Paul’s understanding of the Lord’s Supper is based on the words Jesus spoke when He handed the bread and wine to His disciples. This helps us check our interpretation of Matthew 26. Paul writes (in 1 Corinthians 11:27) that someone who eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, not merely of abusing bread and wine. Paul had already written about this connection between the body of Jesus and the bread, as well as the wine of the Lord’s Supper and the blood of Jesus, in 10:14–22. He now specifically directs Christians to examine themselves before taking the Lord’s Supper because the body and the blood of Jesus are really present with the bread and wine. Some Christians at Corinth have already suffered for their misuse of the Lord’s Supper. Some have gotten sick, some have become weak, and some have “fallen asleep,” that is, died. Paul adds that if these Christians had “judged” the Lord’s Supper correctly, God would not have had to “judge” them by such severe discipline as sickness and death. Nevertheless, God did discipline them so that they would not be damned on the Last Day (1 Corinthians 11:32). Like a loving Father, God loves with a “tough love” because the stakes are so high. “Son of Man” The second principle of interpretation, that Scripture interprets Scripture, has helped us check our understanding of the resurrection account in Matthew as well as his record of the Last Supper. We see another way Scripture interprets Scripture in Jesus’ use of the phrase Son of Man. In Mark’s gospel Jesus uses it first in Mark 2:10 and for the second time in 2:28. In the Old Testament this phrase usually means human being, as in Psalm 8:4. There the psalmist sets son of man in the second line of the verse, parallel to man in the first line. The two terms are roughly equivalent in this psalm. Similarly, in Ezekiel God uses son of man to address the prophet (as in Ezekiel 2:1). The term emphasizes the humanity of the prophet, particularly in contrast to the divinity of God. But is that all Jesus means when He calls Himself the Son of Man? The first time Jesus uses this phrase in Mark, He says, “But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins …” (Mark 2:10). The second time Jesus calls Himself by the title, He says, “So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath” (2:28). We can readily see that Jesus has more in mind than Son of Man = human being in these two verses! The power to forgive sins and the authority to judge what is and is not acceptable on the Sabbath ordinarily do not rest with man but with God. As we read through Mark’s gospel, we eventually come to the key passage that helps us unlock what Jesus means by Son of Man. In Mark 14:62, when the high priest asks Jesus directly if He is the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One (that is, the Son of God), Jesus answers, “I am.” And He adds, “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” The third principle is to explain the parts in light of the whole. Jesus quotes Daniel 7:13–14, where the prophet sees a vision of the Last Day. On that day of universal judgment the ultimate judge is described as “one like a son of man” who comes with the authority of God to judge all people of all nations and rule over an everlasting kingdom. By quoting this passage, Jesus reveals what He has in His mind when He says Son of Man. Jesus declares Himself to be that divine judge of all people on the Last Day, the “ultimate referee” who has the authority to forgive sins or not to forgive. He has divine authority to decide what is right and wrong behavior on the Sabbath day. By allowing Scripture to interpret Scripture, we find that “Son of Man” means much more than merely human; it means that Jesus is the divine judge of all the living and the dead.