Bible Question (short): name and claim.. is it Biblical? |
Question (full): I've always wondered if it is correct (for lack of a better word) to "claim" a verse from the Bible as our own, as though the verse was addressed personally to us, even though in the Biblical context the verse was addressed to a specific group or a specific person; ie., to the exiles, or to King David, etc.. How can we exclude the fact that it was originally written or spoken to someone else and "pretend" through faith it was meant for us? For example, Jer. 29:11 God was speaking through Jeremiah to the surviving elders among the exiles, to the priests, the prophets and all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from Jerusalem in Babylon. How can we take His words out of that situation and apply it to our own particular circumstances? We've always been told "don't take verses out of context but isn't that exactly what we're doing when we "name and claim" a verse? |