Contextual interpretation of the Bible cost me my faith

Aaron56 mentioned having someone lay hands on you to receive the Holy Spirit. Also, wanted to point out that Jesus said God will give the Holy Spirit to those who ask.

Luke 11:13
If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

You can benefit here .

You seem to be confused between a contextual reading of a text and an interpretive reading of the text. I do not know who you have been studying with but what you are describing is NOT contextual reading. That is interpretive reading which falls prey to constant subjectivism. No wander you you are struggling. If you like, I would be happy to help you on private messenger.

I struggled with what might be called "morning star" doctrine for quite some time, but did not give up on believing in the goodness of the Lord. In my mind, based on certain things I had read in scripture, I thought that the Lord might indeed be satan. I also have a chemical imbalance that may have contributed to this misinterpretation. So, this belief was in my mind but not in my heart.

(During this time in my life, what encouraged me to keep going was Proverbs 3:5-6.)

What got me out of it was a continued reading of the scriptures.

On the basis of a number of passages, I saw that the Lord Jesus is in fact and indeed good.

Among these passages are Colossians 1:13,, Isaiah 53:9, James 5:11, Luke 10:18, Zechariah 9:9, and 1 John 2:1; Psalms 25:8, 34:8, 100:5, 106:1, 107:1, 118:1, 135:3, 136:1, 145:9, Psalms 92:15..

I consider that there is more than one morning star in heaven (Job 38:7); not just satan.

And, that Jesus, while He is the incarnation of the Father, also became human; and when He was resurrected He received a glorified body that is likened unto the angels (Matthew 22:30).

So, Jesus exists in an angelic body and is therefore identified as the "Bright and Morning Star" (Revelation 22:16).

It is also very likely that when Lucifer failed at his role of being the covering cherub, that God instituted a plan to become His own covering cherub, so that there would not be any more scr*w-ups.

AtHisMercy When I came into the fold I didn't buy into everything either! Holy Spirit said to me ,remember do not buy into people interpation of what I am saying, read for yourself and if you wonder about something, I!!!!! will give you the wisdom even as my Word says!( James 1:2-8)

What we find out as we do our best to follow after the Lord is that if people do not test you,the Lord sure will!! Reason?? To get you personal to believe what my Word says then DO what my Word says and test this for yourself. Which I did many times,and Jesus always proved his truth for me. STAY in HIS Word!! ( Rom 12:2) NEVER give up!!!

That is excatly what the enemy wants you to do!! Remember as soon as someone looks to become a believer the enemy strikes doubt in ones mindset!! Remember the parable of the sower?? ( Matt 13:18-23) So find a good Church, and like I did not all will have the mindset you want,so pick a few to join you in the core of becoming a doer of the Word and not a hearer only!! ( James 1:22)

When I did this we all grew!! And then by example helped the body of Christ understand just how important being a doer is!! Stick with it!! If being a true believer was easy everyone would do it. Blessing to you!

amen Brighthouse

I don't get you!

Good exegesis takes time and fastidious study.

When observing passages in isolation there are usually multiple valid interpretations (contexts) that can be perceived. We then test these isolated interpretations holistically against the body of scripture. When we determine which interpretations are compatible with scripture as a whole, we can explore which of those remaining interpretations we find to be the most compelling.

We can sometimes run into a problem of finding clusters of passages that work together within an interpretation but later discover that the interpretation contradicts some other passages. We might feel inclined to double-down because that interpretation might have worked with and gave clout to nonscriptural material that we also found valuable. We confidently start building an understanding, start mentally investing in other nonbiblical works that agree with that understanding, and after all of that time we uncomfortably stumble across a passage that seems to contradict the foundation of that understanding we were building. Two diametrically opposing questions start to butt heads: is it a contradiction in scripture? Or is our understanding subject to error? Sometimes we can be led astray by nonbiblical sources that seem to make sense at the time, seem to be consistent with scripture, and offer us the utility of more specific answers on a wider range of topics but ultimately don't work with scripture. There are three paths forward: 1) reject the interpretation, 2) amend the interpretation, or 3) question our initially accepted position (axiom) that that scripture is the inerrant word of God.

An example from scripture is on the colour of Jesus' robe at crucifixion. Was it red or purple? We can compare the Gospels to Revelation, and declare it was both. We could also justify the interpretation that it was actually magenta (a colour halfway between red and purple that often stirs debate about whether it is a type of red or a type of purple) and that the descriptors of "red" or "purple" could be simply close approximations to what the authors actually experienced. But ultimately, not a contradiction.

Some quick snapshots to think about:

A) Paul, angry?

Contempt toward wrongdoing is a theme that is sometimes seen in scripture. Even Jesus was flipping tables and whipping people. You can be stern with a disobedient child and still love them at the same time.

B) Paul "follow government to avoid punishment"

Jesus paid taxes to avoid offense. There is also a passage in Proverbs that speaks about wise men hiding themselves from harm. There is good founding to suggest what you have presented is a viable interpretation, but it is still not necessarily the case that references to respecting government are only about avoiding punishment. We should also be careful about weighing scripture against nonscriptural sources.

C) Nero = "the antichrist"

Are we sure John the revelator was talking about then-current events? Are we sure there is only a singular antichrist and not multiple? The interpretations may be valid in their own right but not necessarily the case.

D) Sermon on the mount = plains?

I'd have to look into that one, possibly one of those red/purple distinctions.

E) perfect church

I'd have to look into that one too. Possibly not so much a contradiction but commentary of conflicting elements. To the effect of: "The utopia shines through but its manifestation is imperfect"

F) Two creation stories

If we observe the second account as achronological (the story backtracking to give more detail) it makes sense without contradiction, especially if Adam and his woman (later named Eve) are metaphors for men and women of a population rather than literal and distinct individuals. It's a good topic for discussion.

You may find many times that several interpretations can work to address perceived contradictions. Each of those interpretations may be consistent with scripture but contradict eachother. Someone might have a literal Adam and Eve interpretation that is incompatible with a metaphor Adam and Eve interpretation, but each of those interpretations by themselves are consistent with scripture and address perceived contradictions. First we must acknowledge valid interpretations, then we are left to search for which of those we find to be the most compelling.

These were two different occasions. And you did mean "plain". However, it is obvious from your post that you have no clue about how Scripture was inspired and written as directed by God the Holy Spirit. You have put a naturalistic spin on everything so I will not even take the time to correct your errors.

LUKE 6: MULTITUDES FROM TYRE AND SIDON
17 And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;

MATTHEW 4: MULTITUDES FROM DECAPOLIS
25 And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan. [then He went up to a mountain]

Tyre and Sidon are NORTHWEST of Galilee. Decapolis is SOUTHEAST of Galilee. Huge difference.

Only me?

Who besides unbelievers are without the Holy Spirit?

My thanks for the many replies!

Yes, Im sorry for the mistake. Im not a native English speaker, but I hope you understood most of my posts.

This would have been helpful if it wasnt preceeded by this:
Luckily I have seen some of you who see my errors as well, but offer help. There are some who see my flaws, but recognize Im searching and that Im aware I dont hold the answers. Thats why I started with questions in my first post and asked for advice in the second.
For the ones who offered help/advice, thanks! Ill try to use the PM function soon.
My original question was if someone else had lost his/her trust in the Bible and overcame this. I would still like to know this, if I may be so persistent.

PS. If I didnt respond to your post, I dont mean anything by that. Im just not used to the amount of reactions, so take that as a compliment for CC.

It can be very confusing because the Devil our enemy has been working for about 2000 years to turn us against each other. He uses our weakness not only against ourselves but against each other just as much. These weaknesses would be the basics like pride, money, power, lust, arrogance and the evil need to control others. They've caused Popes, Kings, Generals, martyrs, Queens, Dictators, evangelists and name what ever they called themselves to depart from or distort the word of God. The devil has been successful in splitting us into more primitive tribal like camps opposed to each other. Like a house divided against itself.

The churches founded by the men of the Good News, (Gospels and Epistles) are for the most part gone. We have been led astray so many times in so many ways, it's nearly impossible with the Holy Spirit's gift of discernment (which obviously all didn't receive) to know the truth from deception. We need a guide and a carpenters string.

Our string is the Bible as we build our new house upon the Rock, which is Jesus. Not Peter, Moses, Buddha, Muhamad the King or the Pope. The word Gospel literaly means Good News, not book. It's in the New Testament but it's scattered throughout the entire Bible. The New Testament is our plumb bomb it's the line by which we measure. What we were/are taught must be measured against the remnant of the word that we have left. Accept no substitutes!

A translation Bible is founded on the Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek texts that were saved and found. They are very, very good. A praphraise is a bastardized translation put into someone else's words like a child or a learning challenged person (with reduced comprehension) may benefit from. They are more like fairy tales. Not good for founding a doctrine because they are opinions, not facts. If I have offended any body I'm not sorry, but possibly mistaken. I have nothing to fear because the Lord is with me and the Holy Spirit is in me. I will defend the Gospel to and beyond the grave. So please forgive my honest mistakes. I hate to use the word mantra because it's mainly used by Buddist's but the 1st psalm is mine.

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

4 The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

6 For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

That's all be blessed, have a good day.

You ask, "How do I overcome this?" Firstly keep in mind that, from the gist of your message and concerns, you are still seeking Jesus. And Jesus made a promise, "Seek and you shall find, Knock and the door will be opened for you."

You are correct in your assertion that the Bible/Scripture is difficult to understand. Keep in mind that Jesus meant his teachings to be simple, for simple uneducated people. In fact, he picked common uneducated fishermen as His apostles, and, except for Matthew they probably couldn't read or write.

So, my advice to you in your search for faith in Jesus is to keep things simple. Use common sense and reason things out. Here is something I wrote years ago.

Jesus Asked, “Who Do You Say That I Am?”


Jesus asked His Disciples an important question, “Who do men say that I Am?”

So, who was Jesus? Let’s take a look at His life and begin with a plain fact. Throughout all history, it would be hard to find any individual whose life has had a greater impact on the world than Jesus’.

A famous author, an atheist named, H.G. Wells said, “I am not a believer, but as an historian, I must confess that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is easily the most dominant person in all history.”

Jesus’ impact on the world is amazing when we recall that he lived 2,000 years ago in a small town and never travelled far from home as an adult. He never held political office, never wrote a book, never invented something, never discovered anything, never led an army into battle, and He never amassed great wealth. He never did any of the things that are considered to be historic.

We know almost nothing about His first 30 years on earth, and during the three short years of His public work, He spent most of His time in small villages. He avoided publicity, commanded His followers not to tell anyone of the miracles that He was said to have performed.

So how is it then that Jesus has become the most influential person in the history of the world? Christians see Him as their Savior, other religions regard Him as a holy man. Nations, Cultures, and religious traditions have been deeply influenced by the civilization that spread throughout the world in His Name. Even people of no religious faith have been deeply influenced by Jesus’ teachings.

So, what sets this man apart from the billions of others who have lived upon this earth?

Indeed, He is most remembered by eyewitnesses for being rejected by his own people, that He died naked, penniless, shamed, virtually alone, and in great agony. He appeared to be a spectacular failure. So why did He become a central point of history?

Jesus appears to be like some other religious figures, preaching love of neighbor and urging people to turn to God. But something separates Jesus from all the others.

Other religious leaders like Moses, Buddha, Mohammed, or Confucius had a message about God or about the right way of living. But the most they had to say about themselves was that they were prophets or wise teachers.

Unlike all these other religious figures Jesus made a far more radical claim. He claimed not only to be a messenger from God, but to be the actual Message, in short, His identity is the issue.

Jesus demanded the apostles make a decision and asked them, “Who do you say that I Am?”

Actually, the possible answers to this question are surprisingly limited. Let’s look at some of the non-Christian attempts to explain Jesus.

Many non-Christians see Jesus as merely being a good and wise man. Albert Einstein said, I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene. He added, “No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus.”

And yet, we miss the point almost entirely if we treat Jesus merely as a good and wise man, because Jesus made claims that no mere man ever made.

When Jesus claimed to forgive sins, He was making the claim that it was He was the One who was offended by men’s sins. He was criticized for forgiving sins, because only God can forgive sins. And his critics were right, Only God can forgive sins, and Jesus never disputed that.

Jesus claimed that before Abraham was, I Am. Understand what Jesus claimed here. Jesus claimed to be, “I Am”, and I Am is the Name by which God revealed Himself to Moses. Jesus is claiming to be the same eternal God who spoke to Moses from the burning bush. The religious leaders understood perfectly what He was saying and they picked up stones and attempted to kill Him for blasphemy. (John 8:58)

Jesus guided by word and example, forgiving, loving and caring for others. But far more than showing us the way, Jesus claimed that He is the Way, and the Truth, and the Life; and that no one can come to the Father but by Me.

Jesus allowed Himself to be worshipped. After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to the Apostle Thomas, in the upper room and Thomas fell to the ground and worshipped Jesus praying to Jesus, My Lord and my God!” Being strict Jews, Jesus and the apostles worshipped only one God, but when Thomas fell down and worshipped Jesus as God, neither Jesus nor any of the other apostles corrected him.

Instead, Jesus accepted His worship, acknowledging that He is the one God of Israel. It is clear; none of Jesus disciples thought that Jesus was only a good and wise man.

If Jesus’ claims weren’t true, then Jesus was an egomaniac, and an evil man. But, if Jesus’ claims are true then He is certainly much more than a good and wise man.

Well then, maybe Jesus was just a great teacher? But if what Jesus said about Himself was true, then, He must be more than just a great teacher. Jesus taught that He is God and that we are not. He emphasized that He is from above and that we are from below, that we are sinners and that He is without sin, and that God is one. Jesus had a thoroughly Jewish concept of the God of Israel; and Jesus clearly stated a number of times, “I Am!”

Jesus surely claimed to be much more than a good man or a teacher. And, if He wasn’t who He claimed to be, then He was not a good man or a teacher of truth.

One atheist, who converted to Christianity, was the great protestant thinker and writer, C.S. Lewis. He said, “Jesus claimed to be God, so there are only two possibilities, either He is God or He is not God.” There are no other possibilities.

If Jesus is not God, then we are left with two options: He either knows that He is not God and is a liar, or he is a lunatic and mistakenly thinks that He is God.

If Jesus was a liar, His lies were about the most important things imaginable. For a man to lie about such claims to His friends and followers, He would have to been deeply evil.

Liars tell lies in the pursuit of some gain. So, if Jesus was a liar, for what purpose ? What does Jesus gain as a result of His lies? Earthly power? No, when men try to crown Him, He runs away. Status? No, He only wins the admiration of a small crowd of unimportant people; prostitutes, tax collectors, fishermen, and the undying hatred of men who are bent on His destruction.

Why would He lie when He is on trial for His life and is challenged to answer whether He is the Christ, the Son of God? He didn’t hesitate. He answered, I AM, (Mark 14:61) thereby inviting crucifixion, the most horrific death known to man. No liar, bent on earthly gain would do this.

So, if Jesus is not God and not a liar, we are left with only one other alternative; He was mistakenly insane. The trouble with this thought is that He is unlike any other lunatic whoever claimed to be God. There is nothing in Scripture to indicate that Jesus was insane. Study His interactions with His enemies or His warm conversations with His friends. No one ever thought that He was a deranged man, out of His wits.

So, if Jesus wasn’t a compulsive liar or insane, it begins to look as though there is difficulty in accounting for Jesus in any other way but the way that Peter did. When Jesus asked him, “Who do you say that I AM.” Peter answered Jesus’ question, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

And Jesus asks the same question to all people, throughout time, He asks the same question of you and me, “Who do you say that, I Am?”

So, think about it in understandable terms as that is a question that each of us needs to answer.

A final thought to my blog above. All of Jesus' apostles, the men who know him best died martyr's deaths, except for John and Judas. They died separately without any seeking of worldly gains for themselves. They gave their lives for the spreading of Jesus' Gospel. The apostles gave their lives fully convinced that Jesus was Lord and God. These are the men who knew Jesus best and they gave their lives for Him. That's a powerful testimony if you think about it.

The thing also to remember is that many of the compairisons made like gold refined by fire. The people of the day understood then better we educated people of today do not grasp fully or much at all. Today for me even King James 1611 is difficult to share with others because of the difference's in dialect between then and now.. Not that it's wrong but thou shalt not sounds like an oxymoron. does that mean I should or shouldn't. about 25% of the people in my life including my mom were and are English second or third language people. Slavic was mom's home language and in the 1020's it was illegal to speak any language in public schools. Mom went to catholic school and learned latin second language. Then english. I had an uncle who criticized me for reading the Bible. He thought it was too difficult to understand. He relied on the priests's explanation. What they couldn't understand or explain was called "A sacred mistery."

I can only do my bit my brother . Jesus will perfect the rest .

Yes, I did lose trust in the Bible. The way I got it back involved several things, not just one.

First, the Lord helped me. I can't overstate this. Let me ask you: Do you consider yourself a Christian or is your interest in the Bible mainly intellectual? If you profess belief in Jesus Christ as the risen Savior, He'll help you get back your confidence in God's word. Understanding the Bible is important, but even more important is believing in the One the Bible reveals. If you want to understand God's word and get your faith back, ask the One who wrote it (God). This is the single most important thing you can do.

Second, as you study Bible history, use critical thinking. Don't just accept anything anyone says. Listen to many different opinions and compare them to what the Bible actually says. In your original post you cited some different ideas that led you to lose faith. I'd encourage you to challenge some of them. Look for opposing viewpoints. Look for all the solid information that's out there that confirms the Bible and will strengthen your faith. There's a lot more than you might imagine, especially in this information age we live in.

Third, it may just take time. God doesn't expect you to understand everything about the Bible in order for you to have a relationship with Him. He wants sincerity and humility. Just enjoy walking with Him and learn as you go.

Finally, I'd beware of depending too much on human understanding. That's how I lost my faith in God's word to begin with.

"Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God."—1 Corinthians 3:18-19