Over the years I have developed my own set of "rules" for studying and teaching the Word of God. They are not meant as substitutes for established sound exegetical guidelines ,  but are my own personal addendum that help guide my studies.     Rule #2: Rely Upon the Author.    The best person to tell you the meaning of any work, whether it be stories, books, works of art, songs, or poetry is the author himself. In the mid 1980s a song entitled, "Born in the USA" hit the airways. Since then this song has been a patriotic staple,  now for nearly 40 years. When most of us hear that song is prompts patriotic thoughts, but that is not the intention of the song.  "This is one of the most misinterpreted songs ever. Most people thought it was a patriotic song about American pride, when it actually cast a shameful eye on how America treated its Vietnam veterans."* Wow! That stops me in my tracks, and it probably does to you. I dare say that now that you...

   Over the years I have developed my own set of "rules" for studying and teaching the Word of God. They are not meant as substitutes for established sound exegetical guidelines , but are my own personal addendum that help guide my studies.     Rule #1: the Bible is a supernatural book.    Everyone who reads the Bible does so with some level of presupposition. It is simply impossible to approach God's Word, or any book for that matter, without some presupposition  This is not necessarily bad, and I would even suggest that some presuppositions are necessary. Think of a presupposition as a lens through which one views certain things. Everything that you see is done so through that lens. For example, those who believe that God is no longer working through the gifts of the Spirit (cessationalists) look at Scripture through that lens. Doing so will automatically cause them to see certain verses of Scripture differen...

"You shall not see your brother's ox or his sheep going astray and ignore them. You shall take them back to your brother." - Deut 22:1 (ESV)    Confession time: I am one of those weird people who enjoys reading the Torah (first 5 books of the OT). Some folks run from OT books like Deuteronomy; I run to them. It's not that I particularly enjoy reading an extensive list of "dos and don'ts", or that I am attempting to live my life "under the law".  I realize that the Law, as a means of providing grace to God's people, has been fulfilled in the work of Christ. It is unnecessary for me to offer a blood sacrifice for my sin because Jesus offered Himself for me, and permanent and better offering. However, does that necessarily mean that the Law should be thrown out and dismissed? I don't think so. There are some who look at Deuteronomy and other OT books as "irrelevant" and "not applicable for Christians." I disagree. I...

"like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word..."  - 1 Peter 2:2 (NASB)    I'm not very knowledgeable in the mechanical world (truthfully, I'm probably dangerous), but steam engines are interesting to me. Not too many years ago trains, and various kinds of other engines, were powered by steam. The power behind the massive engines was produced through a system of converting water into steam. However, to create the necessary steam some person had to shovel coal into the engine. The more coal that was fed into the grate the greater the potential power would be available. If, by chance, someone were to neglect feeding coal to the engine it would slow then stop working all together. In other words the power of the engine was directly tied to the amount of coal supplied. Actually there's more to it but you get the idea.    I see our spiritual lives as not too dissimilar to coal engines. As long as we provide a fresh supply of fuel (the Word of ...

" As I urged you upon my departure to Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines." - 1 Tim. 1:4 (NASB)   I am a teacher. I have had the wonderful privilege of conducting kids crusades, serving in youth pastoral roles, associate pastoral roles, as a church planter, and a pastor. Currently I have the privilege of serving a great church in rural Texas. In addition, I am pursuing my Ph.D in theology, and I write Sunday School curriculum and teach in a school of ministry within the fellowship that I serve. In all these things, teaching the Word of God is my passion and what I do best. Why am I giving you my resumé? Years ago my wife and I planted a church in Texas. The same message that Paul was giving to Timothy was one that the Holy Spirit implanted upon my heart. Although I pastor another location now, the calling has not changed. I am called to teach sound biblical doctrine.    The verse above is the o...

Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. (Col. 4:6, NASB) There's a song many of us sung as children in church. The third verse went like this: "Oh, be careful little mouth, what you say, Oh, be careful little mouth, what you say, For the Father up above, Is looking down in love, So be careful little mouth what you say." This was and is a kid's song, but the principle that is presented in this song is not merely one for children.  Paul stated that our speech should be with grace "as though seasoned with salt" . We often seemed to be focused more on the salt  part of Paul's statement than the grace part. Social media is a fairly new dynamic that many are still struggling with. There seems to be an air of anonymity when we stare at our electronic devices that allows us to say things that we would never say in person to another individual or to a gr...

"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession." - (Heb 4:14, NASB)    "I love the Old Testament, and I want you to love the Old Testament too." These were the first words I heard in my OT survey class at SAGU my first semester. It stuck. My professor did an excellent job, because I love the Old Testament. One reason that I enjoy the OT so much is that is helps in understanding the deeper things of God pertaining to His nature and plan for man.    Progressive revelation is a term that is not heard much in church these days. Charles Hodge describes progressive revelation nicely: "The progressive character of divine revelation is recognized in relation to all the great doctrines of the Bible... What at first is only obscurely intimated is gradually unfolded in subsequent parts of the sacred volume, until the truth is revealed in its fulness." As we move through ...