Before I continue I felt it was pertinent to talk briefly about hermeneutics. I am reprinting a short portion of a work from Robert Van Kampen which was published by his daughter Kirsten Wisen after his death. Here is a link to the study.
For those who are familiar with the PreTrib position they will discover that there is a glaring inconsistency with what is taught in scripture, and what is taught by evangelical churches who teach the Pre-Trib position. However, don’t take my word for it, I challenge you to set aside your presuppositions and do the study, you will find it accurate, and illuminating. Before you do I simply ask that you pray, seriously, and ask God to reveal truth to you, and to blind you from false doctrine. Ask him for discernment, ask him for the Holy Spirit, it is not mankind that does the revealing, but the Holy Spirit.
Before we begin this study on the basics of End Times theology, I want to make sure we are all on the same page with our hermeneutics. Hermeneutics is just a big word that means method of interpretation or study. There are four basic rules you should follow when you study the Bible:
1. Take the Bible at face value – in its natural, normal, customary sense.
In other words, don’t make the Bible say something it isn’t saying. If you say to your friend, “I have a dentist appointment today,” she will take that at face value and understand that you have plans for the day. You expect her to accept what you say at face value. You don’t expect her to think, “Hmmm…dentist appointment? She must be trying to tell me that she is struggling with her self-image because the ‘dentist’ represents someone who can make your teeth whiter, therefore, she is down about her image and is crying out for help!” Take the Bible at face value.
2. Make sure you understand the context of the passage.
Don’t just take one verse and run with it. Read the verses before and after. Understand what the author was teaching at the time. Remember that chapters and verses were not in the original texts. For example, Luke 12:19 says, “And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.’” If I only read that verse, I would determine that once my debt is paid off and I have some savings, that I can rest, relax and just enjoy life. But the context of that passage is not supporting retirement, but the fact that accumulation of wealth is folly and something that man should not put his hopes in (Luke 12:13-34 is a discourse on greed).
3. Make sure you let scripture interpret scripture.
Always compare passages. Sometimes a passage can seem unclear, but other passages on the same topic can give clarity. For example, Christ is going to point to a specific event in the heavenlies – He will talk about the sun darkening and the moon and the stars losing their light. If you look up other passages where the sun, moon and stars are mentioned together, you will get a better understanding of the event Christ is talking about. Scripture can elaborate on itself if you do some study!
4. The Bible never contradicts itself.
If you find an apparent contradiction, you need to do more studying. Dig deep. The answer is in there, but a contradiction is not possible, since He is God and He can’t say one thing in one place and the opposite in another. Studying the Word was never meant to be easy, per se. It takes work, but with the complete revelation of God in written form and the Holy Spirit, you can find the Truth! Just to make sure you’ve got it, write the four rules of study below:
1.____________________________________________________
2.____________________________________________________
3.____________________________________________________
4.____________________________________________________
Now that I have set these four simple ground rules I feel I can continue.
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