March 4, 2025 • 19 mins
Have you ever felt like you're misinterpreting Scripture? In this eye-opening episode, we tackle some of the most commonly misunderstood Bible verses and reveal their true meanings by diving deep into their contexts. Unraveling the misapplications surrounding verses such as Philippians 4:13, we shift the focus from personal achievement to the Apostle Paul’s message about contentment amid life’s challenges.
We also explore Jeremiah 29:11, clarifying that it's not a blanket promise for personal prosperity but a reassuring reminder of God's sovereignty even during hardships. Matthew 7:1 faces scrutiny as we address its frequent misinterpretation regarding moral judgment. Listeners will learn the importance of discerning scripture carefully and the potential dangers of cherry-picking verses without understanding their backgrounds.
By encouraging thoughtful and holistic study of the Bible, we aim to equip you with the tools necessary for deeper insights. The episode closes with a challenge to examine specific verses in their entirety, fostering growth in your biblical knowledge. Together, we can build a more nuanced understanding of God’s Word and its impact on our lives. Don’t forget to subscribe and share your thoughts on the verses that have challenged you the most!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Hi and welcome back to the Pleasing God Podcast, a
show focused on helpingChristians to think biblically,
engage practically and livefaithfully for the glory of God.
I'm your host, jonathan Soul,and on this episode I want to
talk about misunderstood Bibleverses.
These are passages of scripturethat are commonly used and can
be taken out of context,misapplied, misunderstood and
(00:33):
I've heard it many times, alsoin younger years it was probably
one who misused some of theseverses, misapplied them to, not
understanding the context.
If you've ever been in a smallgroup, maybe you've heard
someone use a verse and youstart to think I don't think
that's what that verse istalking about, or maybe even the
(00:56):
danger of you being on thatside of things and you've used
verses or passages that soundgood and might be used to
encourage, but it doesn'tactually mean what you're saying
it means, and so I want toexplore common passages of
scripture that are misunderstoodand then kind of explain what
they really mean, and the hopeis that this would better us, as
(01:22):
interpreters of God's word,understanding the Bible, because
context matters in biblicalinterpretation and there's a
danger when we would go to acertain passage of scripture and
kind of just cherry pick averse out, pull it out and not
understand what's happeningaround in and through that verse
, and so I want to look at thosedangers and explain why context
(01:46):
matters and avoid the danger ofcherry picking, and then,
hopefully, to encourage you, thelistener, to study scripture
carefully.
So what are some of these oftenmisunderstood passages of
scripture or verses?
Well, I think the first onethat comes to my mind is
Philippians, chapter 4, verse 13, which reads I can do all
(02:08):
things through Christ, whostrengthens me.
And this is a verse that'scommonly used in sporting events
for athletes.
It's used as a motivationalquote for personal success, and
the thought is that Jesus givesme strength so I can accomplish
these things.
I could get an A on this testbecause Christ strengthens me.
(02:30):
I can throw for this passingtouchdown or I can hit this home
run because Christ strengthensme.
I can do all things, I canovercome all these things.
Well, that's not what the authormeant when he shared that verse
.
Actually, what the Apostle Paulis saying there the all things
(02:51):
is contentment.
He's talking about contentmentin all circumstances, whether in
plenty or in need or in want,and he's saying that I can do
all things, I can be content inall things because it is Christ
who gives me strength.
(03:12):
So when we want to use thatverse, I can do all things
through Christ who strengthensme.
It's best used in a time whereyou're battling contentment and
use it as a reminder that theApostle Paul, though his
circumstances were tough, heremained content.
Here's another one.
Jeremiah 29, 11 reads For Iknow the plans that I have for
(03:38):
you, declares the Lord, and itgoes on plans to prosper and
this verse is I think it's thegraduation verse.
Go to a homeschool, high schoolgraduation, christian school
graduation, and you know, if yougo to a dozen of them, 10 of
them, we'll use Jeremiah 29, 11for you know plans that for the
(04:02):
students as they are graduatingand moving on, and just a
reminder to the students God hasa perfect plan for your life,
that this verse is a personalprosperity promise that you're
going to prosper because theLord has plans for you.
What was happening inJeremiah's day and what was
Jeremiah doing?
He's writing to the nation ofIsrael, the southern kingdom,
(04:22):
Judah, and the statement here isthat God is speaking to his
people and it's a promise to hispeople as they're going into
exile and during their exile,and he's saying during this time
of punishment for yourdisobedience.
During this time of exile anddifficulty, just remember I am
(04:44):
sovereign, that I do have a planfor you and that this
wilderness, this season, thistime of again being removed from
the land, is not going to lastforever.
Once again, you will flourish,but you have to go through
suffering first.
But you have to go throughsuffering first.
And so the broader applicationof Jeremiah 29, 11 isn't
(05:08):
personal prosperity plan, buttrusting in God's sovereignty,
even when things don't makesense, even when it seems upside
down and backwards.
Matthew, chapter 7, verse 1.
I've heard this one dozens oftimes Judge not, that you be not
judged.
People say, hey, you can'tjudge that person.
The Bible says do not judge.
(05:34):
Who are you to be judgmental?
Who are you to make a judgmentcall on that person's life?
Only God sees the heart.
This is the kind of speech thatcomes up often in Christian
circles and say I can't judge,and it's used to silence any
moral or doctrinal correction.
Well, that's just their lifeand that's just their.
You know, they do their thingand that's their theology.
(05:56):
The very next passage Jesus saysdo not cast your pearls to
swine.
He makes a judgment that we areto make, a judgment.
We have to judge who is swine.
Makes a judgment that we are tomake a judgment, we have to
judge who is swine.
And so what Jesus is sayinghere in judge, not that you be
not judged is do not commithypocritical judgment.
He's not saying avoid righteousdiscernment.
We make judgment calls all thetime.
(06:18):
Jesus later on, in the samechapter, talks about false
teachers and how we need to makejudgment about them.
Beware false teachers.
He talks about a tree will beknown by its fruits.
You must evaluate, must haverighteous discernment.
We must make judgment callsbased off of the fruit that is
(06:38):
evidence of someone's life.
And so judge, not that you benot judged is do not be a
hypocrite in your judgment, butexercise righteous discernment.
We are to judge.
We are to do it carefully andwith precision.
Here's another misunderstoodverse Romans, chapter 8, verse
28.
Read all things work togetherfor good, and sometimes it just
(07:01):
kind of stops right there andthe thought is that this is a
verse of encouragement.
And the thought is that this isa verse of encouragement.
And it absolutely is.
It is a verse of encouragement.
All things do work together forgood for those who love God and
are called according to hispurposes.
So we've got to finish theverse, and the misunderstanding
here of this passage is thateverything will turn out fine in
(07:23):
life, all things will worktogether for good, everything's
going to be okay.
Now, as a Christian, werecognize that ultimately
everything will be okay, but itmight not be in this life.
Ultimately everything is goingto be okay because Jesus died on
the cross, conquered death,rose again and is returning and
(07:46):
he's to bring us where he is, sothat in the end, the ultimate
analysis, all things will beokay in the end.
But that doesn't necessarilymean that all things will turn
out good in this life.
In this life you will havetrials and tribulations.
This is what Jesus says.
But take heart, I have overcomethe world.
So, again, our source ofencouragement is in the
(08:07):
accomplishments of Jesus Christand contextually in Romans,
chapter 8, this all things worktogether for good.
It's our sanctification, it'sthe things that are good, are
what God defines as good, and itis our growth in the likeness
of Jesus.
(08:28):
So what we need to see is thecircumstances, and the suffering
and the difficulty and thetrials of life can be and will
be worked out for good if andwhen they produce in us a
greater likeness to Jesus, us agreater likeness to Jesus.
So when we think aboutdifficulties, trials,
circumstances, all the thingsthat are tools in this life,
(08:55):
that they can be and should beused for good to promote
holiness in us.
And so sometimes the thingsthat work together for good are
suffering.
Here's another one Proverbs 22,6.
Train up a child in the way heshould go, and when he is old he
will not depart from it.
A danger, not just with thisverse but with a lot of the
Proverbs, is a misunderstandingbetween promises and principles,
(09:20):
and so the misuse of this verseis that it's used as a
guarantee that good parentingwill produce godly kids.
I want to say that that is nottrue.
It just simply isn't that weshould apply.
(09:47):
But to say that here's thepromise if a parent trains the
child exactly how and you knowright doctrine, right ethics,
right beliefs that guaranteesthe success and the growth in
godliness of the child, is afalse statement.
There are many, many parentsI'm sure some are even listening
now who have done everythingthat they possibly could to be
(10:08):
faithful in what they knew andthought was best at the time for
raising their children in agodly way, to have children walk
away from the faith, tobackslide to the point of maybe
even deniers of the faith.
And many times parents havebeen discouraged because they
have been told that this verseis a promise and there's, you
(10:30):
know, much time.
Just where did I go wrong,reevaluating everything from
parenting, to say that you knowto believe that well, I didn't
train them enough, I didn'ttrain them well.
And then the burden ofresponsibility is the parent is
shouldering it for a wayward,prodigal or even rebellious
child, and that is anunnecessary burden.
(10:51):
The proverb is a principleChildren will still make their
own choices.
I think that's important torecognize and remember.
But parents should be diligent.
Deuteronomy, chapter 6, speakingof the things of the Lord,
instilling a God consciousness,talking much about the Lord as
you go, as you lay down, by theway, as you rise, all of life
(11:14):
being consumed with all ofChrist.
And so here's another one,matthew, chapter 18, verse 20,
where two or three are gatheredin my name.
There I will be also.
And oh man, I don't know howmany times I've been in a church
prayer meeting and it might belike small in numbers, you know.
Half a dozen people show up andfacilitator of the prayer
(11:38):
meeting just says well, you know, it's okay.
I mean, where two or three aregathered, you know, there Christ
will be also, and it's like youknow.
This is fine, you know.
But what the verse isinterpreted as needing multiple
people or that invokes God'spresence.
(11:59):
Then there's something elsegoing on and it's just a common
misunderstanding of context ofthe passage and what is being
stated here.
The Holy Spirit resides inevery believer.
Therefore, the presence ofChrist in his spirit is in every
individual believer.
(12:20):
So then, why is it that if twoor three are gathered in his
name, there he will be also, ifhe is within each and every
individual believer?
Well, this is why we wouldexamine the context of the
passage.
(12:48):
And in Matthew, chapter 18,jesus is instructing his
apostles how to exercise churchdiscipline.
Well, and it's not a, so it'snot a proof text for the
presence of Jesus at your prayermeeting because there's
multiple people there.
No, he's speaking of thecollective decision of the
church in a matter of churchdiscipline.
And so, as the people gather inthe name of Jesus, where
there's more than just oneperson exercising discipline,
(13:10):
but a gathered church, we canrecognize when there's unity and
agreement among those gatheredon a matter of discipline.
It's guided by the presence ofChrist.
So it also is a verse to tellus don't do church discipline
with one person as the authority.
(13:30):
There's to be a gathering ofJesus's people for discipline.
And so, as I think about this,these are some of the often
misunderstood passages.
Maybe another one in 2Chronicles 7, if my people who
are called by my name willhumble themselves and pray, I
will turn and I will heal theirland and it's treated like you
(13:54):
know.
America needs to turn back toJesus and all the evils of our
nation will be fixed andthere'll be this wide, sweeping
revival.
The chronicler had no thoughtof America in writing that verse
, no, but did think about thecovenant people of God in Israel
(14:17):
and the land promises to Israelof the Old Testament as he
wrote that passage and youactually see that played out
throughout the Old Testament asthe people of God turned and
repented, there was blessing,and as the people rebelled and
turned away from God, there wascurses.
It's just what was stated inDeuteronomy and it happens.
(14:41):
And so we need to be careful ofnot reading our own social,
political agendas or contextinto passages of the Scripture.
That promise is not made toAmerica.
There is no promises to Americain all of the Scriptures, but
if you are to kind of draw aprinciple out of there, it would
(15:03):
apply to the covenant people ofGod and that the covenant
people of God receive blessingas they seek the Lord, as they
are to turn from wickedness andto follow righteousness and to
pursue righteousness.
Maybe it'd be better applied,not healing the land, but maybe
healing a wayward church that isin need of restoration.
(15:27):
Maybe it's a revival of thechurch, not the nation state
that did away.
That was done AD 70, the nationstate ended, and so again,
these are just a commonmisunderstanding, verses that
are misunderstood.
That can easily be fixed if weare to carefully read the
(15:48):
passage in context, study thescriptures as we can.
This means understanding whathistorical events are taking
place at the time,distinguishing between your Old
and New Testament.
There's big things that havehappened there.
Where are you if you're in theOld Testament of the history of
(16:09):
Israel?
What covenant were theyoperating under?
Was it Abraham, moses?
Had they received the Davidiccovenant?
Also, another thing to do isunderstand the literature that
you're reading.
We don't necessarily interpretnarrative the same way we would
(16:29):
interpret a proverb, for example, principles versus promises.
Sometimes narrative isdescriptive, sometimes it's
prescriptive, and so,understanding what's happening
there and, yeah, ultimatelytheological context, where are
you in the biblical mapconcerning the Christ event?
(16:51):
We will interpret passagespost-cross, burial and
resurrection and the outpouringof the Holy Spirit than we would
necessarily in the OldTestament times in their lesser
revelation and understanding ofthe fullness of the gospel
promise.
And so I just want to encourageyou as you think through some
(17:14):
of these verses and maybe evenways in which you can be helped
to better understand and applythe scriptures.
Listen to faithful teachers,listen to people and trusted
resources and if you don't knowwhat those are, talk to your
pastors, talk to your elders.
They are your first and primarytrusted resources for helping
(17:37):
to understand the Bible better.
And let me close with giving youa challenge I want you to read.
I would encourage you to readone of the misunderstood verses
that I gave here in this episode, and I want you to read it in
its full context.
So zoom out from the verseitself and read what's happening
around it If it's Matthew 7 andjudge not to be not judged,
(18:01):
maybe read all of Matthew,chapter 7, or maybe even zoom
out and say, hey, this is theSermon on the Mount.
This is Jesus teaching aboutthe ethical implications of
living as a kingdom follower,living in the kingdom of God,
and you know.
Take it all in and then hearthat verse as you're reading
(18:21):
through and you'll start to see,oh, there's a lot of other
layers around this.
Or the letter to thePhilippians in chapter four.
Read chapter four layers aroundthis.
Or the letter to thePhilippians in chapter 4.
Read chapter 4, and then, whenyou get to 4.13, you start to
see why he says what he says.
And so pick one of the verses.
I would encourage you read itin its full context and pray
through that passage that youwould have illumination and
(18:44):
understanding as you seek tointerpret and apply God's word
faithfully to your life.
I want to thank you forlistening to the Pleasing God
podcast.
If you have any questions, I'dlove to hear from you.
You could reach out atquestions at
pleasinggodpodcastorg.
And remember 1 Thessalonians4.3,.
This is the will of God, yoursanctification.
Hi and welcome back to the Pleasing God Podcast, a
show focused on helpingChristians to think biblically,
engage practically and livefaithfully for the glory of God.
I'm your host, jonathan Soul,and on this episode I want to
talk about misunderstood Bibleverses.
These are passages of scripturethat are commonly used and can
be taken out of context,misapplied, misunderstood and
(00:33):
I've heard it many times, alsoin younger years it was probably
one who misused some of theseverses, misapplied them to, not
understanding the context.
If you've ever been in a smallgroup, maybe you've heard
someone use a verse and youstart to think I don't think
that's what that verse istalking about, or maybe even the
(00:56):
danger of you being on thatside of things and you've used
verses or passages that soundgood and might be used to
encourage, but it doesn'tactually mean what you're saying
it means, and so I want toexplore common passages of
scripture that are misunderstoodand then kind of explain what
they really mean, and the hopeis that this would better us, as
(01:22):
interpreters of God's word,understanding the Bible, because
context matters in biblicalinterpretation and there's a
danger when we would go to acertain passage of scripture and
kind of just cherry pick averse out, pull it out and not
understand what's happeningaround in and through that verse
, and so I want to look at thosedangers and explain why context
(01:46):
matters and avoid the danger ofcherry picking, and then,
hopefully, to encourage you, thelistener, to study scripture
carefully.
So what are some of these oftenmisunderstood passages of
scripture or verses?
Well, I think the first onethat comes to my mind is
Philippians, chapter 4, verse 13, which reads I can do all
(02:08):
things through Christ, whostrengthens me.
And this is a verse that'scommonly used in sporting events
for athletes.
It's used as a motivationalquote for personal success, and
the thought is that Jesus givesme strength so I can accomplish
these things.
I could get an A on this testbecause Christ strengthens me.
(02:30):
I can throw for this passingtouchdown or I can hit this home
run because Christ strengthensme.
I can do all things, I canovercome all these things.
Well, that's not what the authormeant when he shared that verse
.
Actually, what the Apostle Paulis saying there the all things
(02:51):
is contentment.
He's talking about contentmentin all circumstances, whether in
plenty or in need or in want,and he's saying that I can do
all things, I can be content inall things because it is Christ
who gives me strength.
(03:12):
So when we want to use thatverse, I can do all things
through Christ who strengthensme.
It's best used in a time whereyou're battling contentment and
use it as a reminder that theApostle Paul, though his
circumstances were tough, heremained content.
Here's another one.
Jeremiah 29, 11 reads For Iknow the plans that I have for
(03:38):
you, declares the Lord, and itgoes on plans to prosper and
this verse is I think it's thegraduation verse.
Go to a homeschool, high schoolgraduation, christian school
graduation, and you know, if yougo to a dozen of them, 10 of
them, we'll use Jeremiah 29, 11for you know plans that for the
(04:02):
students as they are graduatingand moving on, and just a
reminder to the students God hasa perfect plan for your life,
that this verse is a personalprosperity promise that you're
going to prosper because theLord has plans for you.
What was happening inJeremiah's day and what was
Jeremiah doing?
He's writing to the nation ofIsrael, the southern kingdom,
(04:22):
Judah, and the statement here isthat God is speaking to his
people and it's a promise to hispeople as they're going into
exile and during their exile,and he's saying during this time
of punishment for yourdisobedience.
During this time of exile anddifficulty, just remember I am
(04:44):
sovereign, that I do have a planfor you and that this
wilderness, this season, thistime of again being removed from
the land, is not going to lastforever.
Once again, you will flourish,but you have to go through
suffering first.
But you have to go throughsuffering first.
And so the broader applicationof Jeremiah 29, 11 isn't
(05:08):
personal prosperity plan, buttrusting in God's sovereignty,
even when things don't makesense, even when it seems upside
down and backwards.
Matthew, chapter 7, verse 1.
I've heard this one dozens oftimes Judge not, that you be not
judged.
People say, hey, you can'tjudge that person.
The Bible says do not judge.
(05:34):
Who are you to be judgmental?
Who are you to make a judgmentcall on that person's life?
Only God sees the heart.
This is the kind of speech thatcomes up often in Christian
circles and say I can't judge,and it's used to silence any
moral or doctrinal correction.
Well, that's just their lifeand that's just their.
You know, they do their thingand that's their theology.
(05:56):
The very next passage Jesus saysdo not cast your pearls to
swine.
He makes a judgment that we areto make, a judgment.
We have to judge who is swine.
Makes a judgment that we are tomake a judgment, we have to
judge who is swine.
And so what Jesus is sayinghere in judge, not that you be
not judged is do not commithypocritical judgment.
He's not saying avoid righteousdiscernment.
We make judgment calls all thetime.
(06:18):
Jesus later on, in the samechapter, talks about false
teachers and how we need to makejudgment about them.
Beware false teachers.
He talks about a tree will beknown by its fruits.
You must evaluate, must haverighteous discernment.
We must make judgment callsbased off of the fruit that is
(06:38):
evidence of someone's life.
And so judge, not that you benot judged is do not be a
hypocrite in your judgment, butexercise righteous discernment.
We are to judge.
We are to do it carefully andwith precision.
Here's another misunderstoodverse Romans, chapter 8, verse
28.
Read all things work togetherfor good, and sometimes it just
(07:01):
kind of stops right there andthe thought is that this is a
verse of encouragement.
And the thought is that this isa verse of encouragement.
And it absolutely is.
It is a verse of encouragement.
All things do work together forgood for those who love God and
are called according to hispurposes.
So we've got to finish theverse, and the misunderstanding
here of this passage is thateverything will turn out fine in
(07:23):
life, all things will worktogether for good, everything's
going to be okay.
Now, as a Christian, werecognize that ultimately
everything will be okay, but itmight not be in this life.
Ultimately everything is goingto be okay because Jesus died on
the cross, conquered death,rose again and is returning and
(07:46):
he's to bring us where he is, sothat in the end, the ultimate
analysis, all things will beokay in the end.
But that doesn't necessarilymean that all things will turn
out good in this life.
In this life you will havetrials and tribulations.
This is what Jesus says.
But take heart, I have overcomethe world.
So, again, our source ofencouragement is in the
(08:07):
accomplishments of Jesus Christand contextually in Romans,
chapter 8, this all things worktogether for good.
It's our sanctification, it'sthe things that are good, are
what God defines as good, and itis our growth in the likeness
of Jesus.
(08:28):
So what we need to see is thecircumstances, and the suffering
and the difficulty and thetrials of life can be and will
be worked out for good if andwhen they produce in us a
greater likeness to Jesus, us agreater likeness to Jesus.
So when we think aboutdifficulties, trials,
circumstances, all the thingsthat are tools in this life,
(08:55):
that they can be and should beused for good to promote
holiness in us.
And so sometimes the thingsthat work together for good are
suffering.
Here's another one Proverbs 22,6.
Train up a child in the way heshould go, and when he is old he
will not depart from it.
A danger, not just with thisverse but with a lot of the
Proverbs, is a misunderstandingbetween promises and principles,
(09:20):
and so the misuse of this verseis that it's used as a
guarantee that good parentingwill produce godly kids.
I want to say that that is nottrue.
It just simply isn't that weshould apply.
(09:47):
But to say that here's thepromise if a parent trains the
child exactly how and you knowright doctrine, right ethics,
right beliefs that guaranteesthe success and the growth in
godliness of the child, is afalse statement.
There are many, many parentsI'm sure some are even listening
now who have done everythingthat they possibly could to be
(10:08):
faithful in what they knew andthought was best at the time for
raising their children in agodly way, to have children walk
away from the faith, tobackslide to the point of maybe
even deniers of the faith.
And many times parents havebeen discouraged because they
have been told that this verseis a promise and there's, you
(10:30):
know, much time.
Just where did I go wrong,reevaluating everything from
parenting, to say that you knowto believe that well, I didn't
train them enough, I didn'ttrain them well.
And then the burden ofresponsibility is the parent is
shouldering it for a wayward,prodigal or even rebellious
child, and that is anunnecessary burden.
(10:51):
The proverb is a principleChildren will still make their
own choices.
I think that's important torecognize and remember.
But parents should be diligent.
Deuteronomy, chapter 6, speakingof the things of the Lord,
instilling a God consciousness,talking much about the Lord as
you go, as you lay down, by theway, as you rise, all of life
(11:14):
being consumed with all ofChrist.
And so here's another one,matthew, chapter 18, verse 20,
where two or three are gatheredin my name.
There I will be also.
And oh man, I don't know howmany times I've been in a church
prayer meeting and it might belike small in numbers, you know.
Half a dozen people show up andfacilitator of the prayer
(11:38):
meeting just says well, you know, it's okay.
I mean, where two or three aregathered, you know, there Christ
will be also, and it's like youknow.
This is fine, you know.
But what the verse isinterpreted as needing multiple
people or that invokes God'spresence.
(11:59):
Then there's something elsegoing on and it's just a common
misunderstanding of context ofthe passage and what is being
stated here.
The Holy Spirit resides inevery believer.
Therefore, the presence ofChrist in his spirit is in every
individual believer.
(12:20):
So then, why is it that if twoor three are gathered in his
name, there he will be also, ifhe is within each and every
individual believer?
Well, this is why we wouldexamine the context of the
passage.
(12:48):
And in Matthew, chapter 18,jesus is instructing his
apostles how to exercise churchdiscipline.
Well, and it's not a, so it'snot a proof text for the
presence of Jesus at your prayermeeting because there's
multiple people there.
No, he's speaking of thecollective decision of the
church in a matter of churchdiscipline.
And so, as the people gather inthe name of Jesus, where
there's more than just oneperson exercising discipline,
(13:10):
but a gathered church, we canrecognize when there's unity and
agreement among those gatheredon a matter of discipline.
It's guided by the presence ofChrist.
So it also is a verse to tellus don't do church discipline
with one person as the authority.
(13:30):
There's to be a gathering ofJesus's people for discipline.
And so, as I think about this,these are some of the often
misunderstood passages.
Maybe another one in 2Chronicles 7, if my people who
are called by my name willhumble themselves and pray, I
will turn and I will heal theirland and it's treated like you
(13:54):
know.
America needs to turn back toJesus and all the evils of our
nation will be fixed andthere'll be this wide, sweeping
revival.
The chronicler had no thoughtof America in writing that verse
, no, but did think about thecovenant people of God in Israel
(14:17):
and the land promises to Israelof the Old Testament as he
wrote that passage and youactually see that played out
throughout the Old Testament asthe people of God turned and
repented, there was blessing,and as the people rebelled and
turned away from God, there wascurses.
It's just what was stated inDeuteronomy and it happens.
(14:41):
And so we need to be careful ofnot reading our own social,
political agendas or contextinto passages of the Scripture.
That promise is not made toAmerica.
There is no promises to Americain all of the Scriptures, but
if you are to kind of draw aprinciple out of there, it would
(15:03):
apply to the covenant people ofGod and that the covenant
people of God receive blessingas they seek the Lord, as they
are to turn from wickedness andto follow righteousness and to
pursue righteousness.
Maybe it'd be better applied,not healing the land, but maybe
healing a wayward church that isin need of restoration.
(15:27):
Maybe it's a revival of thechurch, not the nation state
that did away.
That was done AD 70, the nationstate ended, and so again,
these are just a commonmisunderstanding, verses that
are misunderstood.
That can easily be fixed if weare to carefully read the
(15:48):
passage in context, study thescriptures as we can.
This means understanding whathistorical events are taking
place at the time,distinguishing between your Old
and New Testament.
There's big things that havehappened there.
Where are you if you're in theOld Testament of the history of
(16:09):
Israel?
What covenant were theyoperating under?
Was it Abraham, moses?
Had they received the Davidiccovenant?
Also, another thing to do isunderstand the literature that
you're reading.
We don't necessarily interpretnarrative the same way we would
(16:29):
interpret a proverb, for example, principles versus promises.
Sometimes narrative isdescriptive, sometimes it's
prescriptive, and so,understanding what's happening
there and, yeah, ultimatelytheological context, where are
you in the biblical mapconcerning the Christ event?
(16:51):
We will interpret passagespost-cross, burial and
resurrection and the outpouringof the Holy Spirit than we would
necessarily in the OldTestament times in their lesser
revelation and understanding ofthe fullness of the gospel
promise.
And so I just want to encourageyou as you think through some
(17:14):
of these verses and maybe evenways in which you can be helped
to better understand and applythe scriptures.
Listen to faithful teachers,listen to people and trusted
resources and if you don't knowwhat those are, talk to your
pastors, talk to your elders.
They are your first and primarytrusted resources for helping
(17:37):
to understand the Bible better.
And let me close with giving youa challenge I want you to read.
I would encourage you to readone of the misunderstood verses
that I gave here in this episode, and I want you to read it in
its full context.
So zoom out from the verseitself and read what's happening
around it If it's Matthew 7 andjudge not to be not judged,
(18:01):
maybe read all of Matthew,chapter 7, or maybe even zoom
out and say, hey, this is theSermon on the Mount.
This is Jesus teaching aboutthe ethical implications of
living as a kingdom follower,living in the kingdom of God,
and you know.
Take it all in and then hearthat verse as you're reading
(18:21):
through and you'll start to see,oh, there's a lot of other
layers around this.
Or the letter to thePhilippians in chapter four.
Read chapter four layers aroundthis.
Or the letter to thePhilippians in chapter 4.
Read chapter 4, and then, whenyou get to 4.13, you start to
see why he says what he says.
And so pick one of the verses.
I would encourage you read itin its full context and pray
through that passage that youwould have illumination and
(18:44):
understanding as you seek tointerpret and apply God's word
faithfully to your life.
I want to thank you forlistening to the Pleasing God
podcast.
If you have any questions, I'dlove to hear from you.
You could reach out atquestions at
pleasinggodpodcastorg.
And remember 1 Thessalonians4.3,.
This is the will of God, yoursanctification.
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