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NASB | 2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 2 Timothy 2:15 Study and do your best to present yourself to God approved, a workman [tested by trial] who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth. |
Bible Question: With the Holy Spirit indwelling believers, why do we not all come to the same conclusions on the interpretation of various passages of Scripture? Why are there disagreements on the interpretation of Scripture? |
Bible Answer: kalos I personally believe that believer's have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit who will come to the aid of those who continually rely upon Him for the correct interpretation of the word of God. I have taught adult Bible studies and adult Sunday school, and I have noticed an increasing tendancy for individual's to go directly to the commentator's thoughts, or the foot-notes in their Study Bibles for their understanding of particular verses. Instead they should pray that the Holy Spirit will lead them to the correct interpretation of God's word, and that may not come immediately. It may be that God wants us to read, and re-read that text, and to continue to pray for the Holy Spirit to help us understand the text. Then in time as we patiently and prayerfully wait for God to reveal the correct meaning of the text to us, it will come. A light will come on if you will, and it will become plain to the one truly desiring to gain understanding. The Commentaries themselves are not necessarily evil, but since the various commentary authors themselves do not always agree, commentaries and foot-notes should not be relied upon, because they are not inspired like the actual text, and can often mislead. I found the following quote which seems appropriate for this post. I believe it comes from A. W. Tozer, but I'm not sure. "It is a dangerous and costly practice to consult men every time we reach a dark spot in the Scriptures. We do not overlook the importance of the gift of teaching to the Church, but we do warn against the habit of taking by blind faith the opinions of men - even good men. A few minutes of earnest prayer will often give more light than hours of reading the commentaries. The best rule is: Go to God first about the meaning of any text. Then consult the teachers. They may have found a grain of wheat you had overlooked." God Bless you New Creature |