Pages: 1

Understanding God's Word-

(Click here to view the original thread with full colors/images)

Posted by: Christian Commando

I thought I'd share some insights of how over the years of reading and studying God's Word, God had taught me how to understand It.

Now, for general understanding of any particular version you have, its best to get hold of a Bible Dictionary that matches with it. Secondly, get hold of the large "Exhaustive" version of a "Strong's Concordance".

The old version I have, contains all the old original Hebrew and Greek words used from ancient texts- (mid 1950's), and this newer one I have, contains some of the older words, but more newer ones replacing old text words.

One of the first patterns I found God uses in His Word is this-

1- God and Christ use various forms of explaining what they are saying- literal written, symbolic and figurative.

A- Literal- "Thou shalt not kill"- "Fear not, for I am with you".

B- Symbolic- Jesus said- "I Am the door, by Me, if any man enters in, he shall be saved".

C- Figurative- "It is easier for a camel to pass thru the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter Heaven".

Another pattern God showed me was this-

2- Always take God's Word for what It literally says It means, unless God provides another meaning for It-

A- Job 38:7- "When the morning stars sang together, and all the son's of God shouted for joy."

There have been all kinds of arguments over time about Angels being of neutral sex or being male and female. The above clearly denotes a sexual reference to Angels.

People have argued- "stars" are Heavenly planets. Not in this instance- see Rev.1:20- "The seven stars are the Angels of the seven Churches". and Concordance- Heb. "kokab"- 3556- "heavenly power" (that serves God).

B- Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones- Ezek. 37- God gives Ezekiel this vision and commands him to speak God's life into those bones. And it happens. but what does this stand for ?

God then tells Ezekiel in vs- 11-14 that God is telling him, He- God, will bring the whole House of Isreal- (people), eventually back to thier Home Land.

But, this won't be until the New Test. time. How do I know this? At Ezekiel's time, God only had one chosen people- Isreal- Jews. But, in the New, Test, God opens up the door of Salvation to Gentiles as well. Now there are two groups.

Vs 16-22, shows two nations of believers brought together as one Body, using two sticks as an example. "Judah", has always represented Isreal, so the stick for "Joseph", represents Christ, who establishes the "New Covenant" that opens the door of Salvation to the Gentiles as well, which thus represents the Gentile believers in the New Covenant era.

If God has some other meaning for a Scripture, He will show that. As you have seen in the above examples, I had used another pattern God Himself speaks of in His Word- The Old Test confirms the New Test and vise versa.

3- Until you get to know God's "confirming method" between the Testaments, never try to use just one Scripture by Itself to claim a Truth. Always, a person should read ajoining Scriptures, leading up to it, to even going past it in many cases, to realize the full scope of understanding a Scripture honestly means-

A- Moses' burden of leadership divided- Now, the simple reasoning could be because there were so many following God thru Moses. Thats true, but... the full scope of understanding, requires going way back to shortly after Moses first lead the Isrealites out of Egypt.

Almost imediately they started to complain. Over the course of Moses' leading them, God got very irritated with these impatient and slow to learn people. Finally, thier complaints got so Moses could no longer bear that- Num. 11:14.

B- Man's creation- Theres alot of disagreement about when Adam and Eve were created. One side argues they were both created as "living being" comletely- simultaneously. The other side claims they were created at different times.

The second belief claimed is the accurate one. For this, lets look how God progressed thru man's creation. (1- God declares- Gen. 1:26, (2- God creates- (makes something out of nothing- 1:27, (3- God instructs them as spirits- 1:28-29, (4- God "makes" the physical body of Adam- 2:7, God "made" Eve 2:21-23.

The problem comes in where people do not catch on to specific words used and how they re used example- 1:27- God "created" man, both male and female. Yet, in 2:7, God "makes" the body of Adam, and his alone.

Create means to bring forth, something from nothing, where the word "make", means to combine togther, that which alread exists, into something else.

4- God shows us the meaning of His Word thru various methods as in culture, people specifically, or events

A- culture- God's Word declares Christ was buried in the grave on A sabbath, but after 3 days and nites, He rose from the dead on the 1st day of the week.

The secular world claims thats impossible because thats Saturday. and some Christians cannot explain it. It's really quite simple.

Go back to Leviticus and look at the last Chapters of specific holy days God chose for the Jews to observe. Notice they fall on certain days of certain months. Remember, God declares to them to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.

Thus, these extra "holy days" are considered as extra "Sabbath days" to old Jewish custom.

Thus, its quite clear, during the year Jesus was crucified, a special "holy Day" (special Sabbath), apparently fell on the right day of the right month, for Him to be crucified that day. But, heres another clincher-

Jewish days start and end, at 6 pm each day. That would mean then, the (special holy Sabbath), had to be on a Thursday that year, month and day. Why? Since He was crucified in daylight, He had to have died shortly before 6 p Wed evening (for us), in order to be placed in the tomb right around 6 p.

Wed nite and then thurs- (1 nite and day pass), Thurs. nite and Friday- (2nd nite and day pass), Friday nite and Sat,- (3rd nite and day pass. Jesus would've been ressurrected shortly after 6 p Sat evening- (for us), but the start of Sunday- (1st day of the week) for Jews.

B- People- God uses people alot, look at Daniel, for as a youth, to show so much respect for leadership over him, while still in all, staying inline with God, how he was Blessed over and over by God.

Jonah- The attitude he had not to do God's Will, God knew what to take him thru, to finally reach the committment He needed from Jonah.

Peter- How bold and yet stupid Peter continually was, yet to be turned around as one of the foremost chosen Apostles to the Gentiles.

Events-

Abraham and Sarah- Sarah being barren and both laughed at God that she would concieve a child. She did.

Sodom and Gomorah and Lot- How God wanted to destroy those cities but Lot asked for chances for them and the process went thru before destruction was decided.

Or Jacob and Egypt- Where Jacob was confined, then sold into slavery to Egypt, only to end up head of the food service, where his family now came hungry to him for that.

5- All that God speaks of in His Word, has both a physical and Spiritual meaning to it. In its simplist understanding, here are a few examples-

1- Creation- God "created" the Heaven and the earth. Notice the order of things- Heaven named first, then earth. Thus, we know, God developed the spirit realm as His main place of existance. and the physical, secondary.

But, God also made it easier for man to understand this concept of "creation" as such- As God "created" the earth and this physical world, He also divided the Spirit realm in comparison to the physical one. God speaks of the 1st Heaven- Gen. 1:7-8. Second Heaven- (Celestial) - I Cor. 15:40, 3rd Heaven- II Cor. 12:2.

2- Evil cannot exist with good, for the fact there is too strong a contradiction between them-

1- Lucifer and his fellow fallen Angels- Jude 1:6- They had to leave or be destroyed by God.

2- Moses- Who asked God to let him see Him- (God). When God approached, He put His hand over Moses' eyes to block him from seeing God's face, that the Glory in Power emitting from It, would not destroy Moses. God removed His Hand so Moses could view God from behind instead.

Ok, this is the basic foundation God had given me for understanding His Word better. Now, if have the money hehe, you can spend the incredible price, book stores want for a copy of the "Jewish Encyclopedia of the Bible" called- "Judaica", which is in several volumes I believe now, that are even better yet, with old original Hebrew and Greek words, phrases etc in it for better understanding yet.

I pray this helps others to understand God's Word better, and I am open for any and all comments.

God Bless!!


Posted by: here4u

Thank you CC, for sharing. I found your post very insightful. I know it will help me to have a closer understanding and walk with our GOD. May God, continue to bless and use you for his glory.


Posted by: hjbigrapids

"Or Jacob and Egypt- Where Jacob was confined, then sold into slavery to Egypt, only to end up head of the food service, where his family now came hungry to him for that."

Are you sure this is right????????


Posted by: Christian Commando

hibigrapids-

hehe, excuse me, it was Joseph. My mistake. I sometimes get those two confused. But he was in charge of that part, since being made ruler over Egypt under Pharoh after he was found innocent of false charges the Pharoh's wife had claimed and got him in prison for a time- Gen. 36-40. From there, Joseph is made ruler- "govenor", over Egypt under Pharoh. That leads up to Gen. 42 where Joseph's brothers are now sent to Egypt to buy food and come across Joseph there.42:6- Being governor over the land, Joseph was selling the food. (This is where his brothers now show up to him also).

Thanks for the correction. If you or others see any more, please point them out.

God Bless!!


Posted by: Christian Commando

Thanks here4u, your welcome-

Some religions have claimed you must take Go's Word prophetically or figuratively all the way thru. I differ with that view, as God clearly shows, all thru His Word, example after example, how balance is the key for understanding how to live His Word.

First, He gives us instructions- guidelines, but, within those guidelines, He explains how we are to put them to use. There are two basic understanding for what I've learne- "Legalistic" and "Moral".

God originally gave us His Word, all thru history, in order to keep us thinking and operating "morally" within the "Law".

The balance comes, where we are to learn the "Law", to understand what the guidelines are to avoid sinning, yet consider it "morally", that all things we think upon or do, will be of good report. For- All that is good is from above- God, all that is evil is of darkness- Satan.

If we end up leaning too far one way- "Legalistic", we become extreme fundalmentally. But, if we lean too far the other way- "morally", we become extremely liberal. The first is overly strict and out of context, while the other way is overly leanient and out of context.

Jesus re-itterates this fact in His "Sermon on the Mount"- examples-

1- Matt. 5:19- "Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whosoever shall do and teach them (the Truth), the same shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven."

2- v 21- "Ye have heard it said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgement. 22- But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgement; and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca- (Term of abuse, derived from Aramaic meaning- empty headed), shall be in danger of the council; but whosoever shall say thou fool, shall be in danger of hellfire".

Now thats just one of the 9 "moral" commandments God gave His First Chosen way back, and with Christ, re-directed some of the emphasis of "legalism" seen with the Pharocees, Saducess, Scribes and others who were extreme "legalist's" towards the Law, more towards the "Moral" side, to bring "balance" back. Why?

Jesus declares- Matt. 5:17- "Think not that I am come to destroy the Law, or the Prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill".

God gave man the "Law" to instill "morality" in our hearts and minds. But you can see where man slowly walked away from that understanding several times in God's Word, and which includes our time. Why? Jesus declares the evil that are signs of the "Last Days", shall wax worse, reaching a point as it was back in Noah's Day.

I pray this helps-

God Bless!!