My Hermeneutic
I recall having an interview a number of years ago for an internship at a youth group in which the youth group pastor told me he had about 5 passages of the Bible that he used as a hermeneutic to interpret the Bible. At the time I thought it was kind of a strange idea. But now, several years later, I would like to revise that opinion, for I have arrived at such a position myself.
A hermeneutic is a way of interpreting or explaining (in this case) the Bible. It is not so much a method as a framework or grid or point(s) of reference against which to interpret a specific passage. Everybody has a hermeneutic, whether or not they know it, so it’s a good idea to be conscious of what one’s hermeneutic is. Here’s mine…
- Luke 24:27 – “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” This passages teaches that the purpose of all of Scripture is to point us to Christ, not to teach behavioural principles, etc. Scripture is the story of God’s work in redeeming his fallen creation, and central to this story is the redemptive work of Jesus.
- Galatians 2:14 – “But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, ‘If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?’” This passage teaches that the real problem in our lives is our failure to believe the gospel. When Peter was being a racist, Paul doesn’t tell him to stop breaking the no-racism rule; Paul tells him he is not living in line with the gospel. This means that underlying every sin is the deeper sin of failure to live in line with the gospel. The implication is that the way to deal with sin in our lives is not to try harder to do what is right, but to come to a deeper understanding of the gospel.
- Jeremiah 17:9 – “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” This passage tells me that I will always try to trick myself into believing that I can be my own saviour. Because of this, it is not enough to simply explain what a passage of Scripture means; it also has to be applied to the experiential issues of identity and self-perception.
- 1 Corinthians 1:18 – “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” Here we see the radical antithesis between a gospel-centred worldview and the worldview of the unbeliever. This means that as Christians live lives in response to the gospel, they do so in a distinctly Christian way. This also means that there is no neutral ground between Christians and non-Christians from which we can reason about the existence of God and the truth of the Bible.
- 2 Corinthians 5:21 – “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” I can never get enough of this verse. It teaches that the entirety of Christ’s life and death were substitutionary. He lived the life I can’t, and died the death I deserve, and I receive the credit. Righteousness is not a word that is used much today, at least not in positive terms. But the concept of righteousness in Scripture is all about acceptance. Everyone today is looking for acceptance. This verse teaches that we are accepted by the God of the universe, not because of anything we have done, but because of Christ. This means that our acceptance is deeper than anything we could have earned ourselves, and, because Christ’s work is done, it means our acceptance will not erode or pass away.
Taken as a whole, these passages provide a framework for interpreting any passage of Scripture. Every passage is pointing to the redemptive work of God in Christ. Every passage uncovers some area of sin in my life, and points me to the gospel to find healing and acceptance with God. Because my heart is deceitful, I will often devise ways to obey the Bible which rest upon my own pride, not on God’s grace, and being aware of this deep-rooted tendency makes me even more aware of my need for a Saviour. When I respond in obedience to God’s grace I should not be proud of what I have managed to accomplish, because I know that change is a gradual process by which God’s grace wears away at the areas of my life that have not been fully redeemed.
Obviously, this is not an exhaustive account of what these five verses teach, nor is it a complete disclosure of all the background I bring to the task of interpreting a passage of Scripture. However, what this framework provides is, 1) a pretty good idea of what a particular passage of the Bible is saying as I begin to study it, and 2) a safety net, so that if my interpretation and application is not in line with what I have said here, I know I have veered off course, and need to take another look.
January 11th, 2008 at 5:43 am
Thanks for this Bryce - interesting.
Also thanks for the Christmas card!
January 13th, 2008 at 7:40 pm
Thanks Judith. Glad you got the card, we were a little late getting them in the mail this year.
January 14th, 2008 at 4:33 am
Hi Bryce,
Just in your reference to Jer 17:9, I think I had a similar understanding of that verse until about a year ago. But then I read a book (”Waking the Dead”, I think, by John Eldredge) and dug into Scripture myself, and now I think that the verse refers really to our hearts before becoming Christians, and not after. I came to the conclusion after considering the following passages:
Eze 11:19, 18:31 - God’s answer to a deceitful heart, one that’s “beyond cure” (NIV) seems to be a new heart.
Lk 8:15 - We need a noble and good heart just to properly receive God’s word.
Ps 37:4 - God’s willing to give us the desires of our heart, which I think wouldn’t be the case if it were so wicked.
Rom 7:17-22 - Paul distinguishes between his true self - his inner being, that doesn’t want to sin - and his sinful nature, which does.
I’ve found much freedom in thinking of myself with a new heart, being a new creation. Christ’s work on the cross, and his resurrection, seems that much more miraculous. Anyway, that’s why I thought I should share this. I wrote a short article on the subject, if you’re interested.
Hope this finds you well.
January 14th, 2008 at 10:25 am
Joey, thanks for your response.
I think this falls under the already/not yet, simultaneously saint and sinner aspect of Christianity. God promises to give Christians a new heart, and on the basis of our justification we can say in some sense that we posses it now. However, until our sanctification in complete–which doesn’t take place in this life–our heart is still deceitful and desperately sick.
Paul’s writting in Romans 7, which you mentioned, bears this out. (Don’t be confused by his use of the word “flesh”; this doesn’t refer to the external or bodily as opposed to the “heart”–the “flesh” is the self apart from Christ). Paul is saying that even as a Christian he is caught up in an internal struggle between wanting to do what is right and wanting to what is wrong. This is a perfect illustration of what Jer. 17:9 is talking about.
I think that to deny that our hearts are still deceitful is to enter dangerous waters. Can you really say that, as a Christian, you can always rely 100% on your convictions, etc.?
I agree with your statement about the freedom that comes from knowing that we are new creations. However, I think it needs to be understood like this: we are declared righteous by God on the basis of our justification. After our justification, the process of our actual growth in holiness begins (sanctification). Because we are justified, we can be sure that God will finish the work which he began in us, at which time we will be in actuality what God declares us to be in our justification (that is, righteous). When the work of sanctification is complete, we will be new creations with new hearts. Until then, however, we are both/and. By the Holy Spirit’s work in our life we can certainly see real progress, but that word is not completed in this life. So, yes, we can claim to be new creations now on the basis of our justification, but we have to understand that we do so only in a categorical sense, not in an actual sense. Until our sanctification is complete, we are simultaneously saints and sinners.
I hope that makes sense!
January 14th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Hi Bryce,
Thanks for the response. A couple of thoughts on what you said about sanctification and how God sees us (though I may not change your view…!):
When God looks at us, he looks at our heart (1 Sam 16:7). When he declares us righteous, it has to be because he sees the new heart, regenerated by Christ. If our hearts were even a little sinful, they could not be declared righteous or clean by God. It’s not just about justification; it’s also about being a new creation (”regeneration”, if you like) - being born again, which has to be in the past, not the future. How else can we have a noble and good heart, required to take in God’s word - which we’ll need in this life? (Lk 8:15)
Regarding the issue of our continued sinning, I think Jesus explained it really well when he spoke to Peter in relation to the washing of feet. “‘A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.’” (Jn 13:10) When we sin, we don’t lose our salvation; our ‘feet’ get dirty, but our ‘body’ stays clean. Our new heart remains righteous, because it’s never been about what we’ve done, but about what God’s done.
Sanctification, then, is the working of God from the inside out; from a new heart - the core of who we are - outwards into every part of us.
One final note: I no longer dare to have what I previously thought to be a “safe”, dualistic view. As God said to Peter: “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.” (Acts 10:15, NIV). I think that applies as much to how we view God’s regenerating work in us, as it does to food or to Gentiles generally.
Anyway, I’ll leave at that!
January 15th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
Joey, thanks for taking the time to respond.
I don’t want to sound to harsh in saying this, but I’m afraid that you are simply wrong, and dangerously so. You seem to be placing sanctification before justification, which is highly problematic.
You say that God declares us righteous on the basis of our new heart, which has been regenerated by Christ. This is simply wrong. God declares us righteous on the basis of the righteousness of Christ, not on the basis of anything in us or done by us. Justification is thoroughly God’s work.
You say “It’s not just about justification; it’s also about being a new creation (”regeneration”, if you like) - being born again…” But justification comes first; it is because God declares us righteous that he makes us righteous. The only alternative is to say that God declares us righteous because we are already righteous, which is to say that we play at least some role in our salvation, which is again, completely unbiblical.
You ask “How else can we have a noble and good heart, required to take in God’s word - which we’ll need in this life? (Lk 8:15)” We have a new heart because God gives it to us. We have it categorically because of justification, and we have it increasingly in actuality because of our sanctification. Your saying that our hearts are no longer deceitful combined with your quote of Luke 8:15 implies that you now understand God’s Word completely and thoroughly. Are you really wanting to make that claim? I certainly don’t!
In relation to your reference of John 13, I never said you loose your salvation, nor anything close to it. However, the logic of your position leaves you open to that charge. How does a person with a pure heart do what is not pure? How does a person with a new heart carry our the works of the old? If our hearts are new and we continue to act deceitfully, the conclusion must be that we gain and loose and gain again our salvation several times a day! However, if our hearts are new categorically and becoming new in actuality–if we are simultaneously saints and sinners–then it makes sense that our deeds are both good and bad.
I’m not sure that I understand what you are characterizing as a dualistic view. Are you saying that I’m being dualistic in some way? I thoroughly reject dualism as a philosophical notion (though that doesn’t mean I never stumble into it).
Your thoughts on Acts 10:15, I’m afraid, don’t hold up. Of course we should not disagree with God, but the point of the passage is that God shows no favoritism between Jew and Gentile, and Peter is therefore to go to the house of Cornelius with the people coming to meet him. But in case that doesn’t convince you, let me ask what exactly God has said about our hearts? Consider as just one example James 3:8-12:
“no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.”
Our speech comes from our heart, and our speech in both pure and impure, reflecting the condition of our heart. Lest there’s any confusion, please note that James is talking to Christians, as in clear by his addressing them as “brothers”.
Ok, I’ll leave it at that. I’m not trying to be argumentative here (and I don’t want this blog to become a place to argue); I write this in a spirit of brothers seeking to clarify their thinking together. If it didn’t come across that way, please accept my apology.
January 17th, 2008 at 7:22 pm
Bryce,
Well, I wasn’t going to add anything else, but I suppose it would be rude of me to not at least answer your questions / objections. So shall try to do so without raising any more issues.
In relation to justification, the point I intended to make is that if God declares someone righteous, he is righteous. Not just ‘will be’, but is. If God sees someone righteous, he is righteous. And as our hearts are, so are we - if we have a generous heart, we are generous, a foolish heart, then foolish, etc. Which is why God looks at our heart, and the Psalmist asked God to search him and know his heart (Ps 139:23).
You referred to sanctification as “the process of our actual growth in holiness”. It’s always seemed odd to me that theological types often only cast sanctification as an ongoing process (not that you necessarily are). I suppose it’s from trying to be too precise in definition. Paul says to the Corinthians: “But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified…”. Note the past tense.
In your response to Lk 8:15, you seem to agree that God gives us a new heart, which was my point. God gives us a new heart because the one we had was desperately sick / incurable. I don’t think God replaced our wicked hearts with another wicked heart. He only gives good gifts.
Just because we have a noble and good heart does not mean we automatically understand everything. It’s like getting a hammer to put nails in the wall - just because you have one doesn’t mean that all the nails are magically nailed in; you still have to hammer them in, one by one. A noble and good heart is the soil where God can sow the seed of his word, day by day, through the Holy Spirit.
In terms of my reliance, it of course has to be on God, not my heart. A heart may be noble and good, but it isn’t all-knowing, all-wise, etc. Only God is.
You ask how a person with a new heart carry our the works of the old - that’s essentially what Rom 7 talks about. Paul says “As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it [sin], but it is sin living in me.” (7:17). Of course Paul isn’t attempting to escape moral responsibility, but is highlighting the war between our inner being and sin.
Finally, in relation to Jas 3:8-12. While it is true that out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks (Mt 12:34), it is wrong to conclude that everything we speak reflects the heart. Eg. Isa 29:13: “these people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” Which is why not everyone who says to Jesus ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven. (Mt 7:21).
If anything, Jas 3 suggests that our hearts cannot produce both good and evil, any more than a spring can pour forth both fresh and salt water. When our lips speak evil, it must be coming from different source - like Paul said, sin living in me.
And apologies for using the term ‘dualistic’ - I meant it in the general vernacular, not as used in philosophical or theological circles. I was referring to the view of ourselves as ‘categorically’ righteous, but in actuality not.
It’s your website, so I’ll leave it to you to have the last say!