Did God Say? (Part 2)

When you’re in the market for a new home, you have a general idea of what you’re looking for. You may want a one story with an open floor plan and lots of natural light. A minimum of 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and an office. You may find a home that isn’t “move-in ready,” but know you can make the necessary changes. Knock out a wall, install recessed lighting, change flooring and update the appliances. But there’s one thing you can’t do.

Change the location.

You must first decide where you want to live, and then find a house that checks as many of those boxes as possible.

It’s the first rule of real estate.

Location, location, location.

Where you choose to live can vary based on your season of life. When you’re young and single, a quiet neighborhood in a good school district probably isn’t at the top of your list. When you reach retirement age, school districts are irrelevant. But if you’re a parent of small children it’s probably a priority. You may in fact uncheck some of those “boxes” in order to live there.

When looking for a home there are plenty of apps available to assist. You can search by price, geography, bedroom count, lot size, and more. Can quickly see what schools are nearby, get a “walk score,” a “bike score,” and a glance at google maps and you see the proximity to grocery stores, restaurants and entertainment. See the home using “street view” as if you were casually driving by, have a photo “walk thru” and see aerial views with lot lines.

Because a home purchase will probably be the largest financial decision you will ever make, you don’t take it lightly and will commit the time needed to research.

A follower of Christ should take a similar approach in their study of scripture.

What is the first rule of study?

Context, context, context.

You may know the “address” (book, chapter and verse), but do you know the city, state, and neighborhood it’s in?

In other words, who is the author and what do you know about him? Who’s the intended audience? Why is he writing, and what is he saying? What was the culture like?

Too often we do a quick “walk thru” on a verse, and if it doesn’t “check all the boxes” we think we can “remodel” it by changing word meaning, then move it to a more desirable location.

That’s not how it works.

While I can cite numerous passages where this frequently applies, let’s look at the following.

3 John 1:2 (NKJV) “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.”

This verse is frequently taken out of context when quoted by prosperity preachers who lead you to believe it is a promise of God. In reality (context) it is a standard gretting from the Apostle John to a man named Gaius. How do we know? Because the prior verse tells us.

3 John 1:1 (NKJV) “To the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth:”

At minimum, you should always read a few verses prior, and after the verse you’re studying. I may do a video breaking down how this verse is misrepresented in the “word of faith” movement, but knowing this is a standard greeting and not a promise is a big step.

One way to help understand the context is to read the verse in multiple translations. One of my favorites is the Amplified Version because it expounds on the meaning of words used specifically in that verse.

Let’s look at the first four verses.

3 John 1:1-4 (AMP) “The elder [of the church addresses this letter] to the beloved and esteemed Gaius, whom I love in truth.
2 Beloved, I pray that in every way you may succeed and prosper and be in good health [physically], just as [I know] your soul prospers [spiritually]. 3 For I was greatly pleased when [some of the] brothers came [from time to time] and testified to your [faithfulness to the] truth [of the gospel message], that is, how you are walking in truth. 4 I have no greater joy than this, to hear that my [spiritual] children are living [their lives] in the truth.”

This is simply a standard greeting from John to Gaius, not a key to getting what you want from God.

Moving a scripture from “Greeting Street” to “Prosperity Way” is not allowed.

Learning how to exegete (interpret) scripture is imperative if you truly want to know what God said. And remember one of the fundamental rules of interpretation.

Contact, context, context.