I would first address the comment in last week’s “Free Speech” section. Someone wrote that I would fight to the death defending my views.

How un-Christian that would be! Never would I harm another human. The Scriptures do not tell us to force anyone to believe what the Bible says, but we are commanded to preach the “good news of the kingdom to all the nations” (Matt. 24:14; 28:19,20).

When I say I will defend God’s word with my last breath, I mean that I will verbally defend it, not with violence as some other religions have. You can accept the information or reject it, I just deliver the message.

The example to follow in helping others to understand the Bible is provided by Jesus Christ and his apostles. In answer to questions, Jesus quoted Scriptures and at times used appropriate illustrations that would help honest-hearted persons to be receptive to what the Bible says (Matt. 12:1-12). The apostle Paul made it a practice to “reason from the Scriptures, explaining and proving by references” what he taught (Acts 17:2, 3.)

One may think “everyone has their own interpretation of the Bible.” Obviously not all of them are right. Twisting the Scriptures to fit our own ideas can result in lasting harm (2 Pet 3:15, 16). Two things can help us to understand the Bible correctly.

First consider the context or surrounding verses of any statement. Next, compare texts with other statements in the Bible that deal with that same subject. In this way we are letting God’s own Word guide our thinking, and the interpretation is not ours but His. This is the approach that should be taken.

The Bible is God’s Word of truth. It does not lie, for He cannot lie. (Heb 6:18) It is the standard by which all faiths called “Christian” should be measured.

Russell Murphy

Fayetteville, Ga.

login to post comments