Reading the Bible II ...

Wednesday, January 18, 2012. When you read the bible, there are usually some different layers of meaning in the text.

Text layers …

The first layer of biblical texts is the concrete situation in which it plays. Often, some event took place, for example there were people addressing Jesus. He answered their requests or replied to whatever they threw at him. So there is a historical situation and it is reported. We can read about the past, we can learn about a particular situation.

There is a second layer of meaning. We learn about Jesus. How did he react? How is he like? What is his personality? What is the general way he talks, he thinks, he acts …? This layer is a historical layer as well. But it is more than that.

But let us first talk about a third layer. There is the layer of the meaning of the text for us today. That assumes, of course, that this meaning exists. Many old texts have a meaning, which is obtained by looking at them today. This type of meaning is nothing special. We learn from things long ago. But the bible has a meaning beyond this trivial connection between the past and the present!

Biblical texts are different …

The biblical idea of itself is that all the texts in the bible have been influenced by the Holy Spirit, by God himself! They are inspired … in some sense which I do not want to go into details this morning. They are not written directly by God, but by his people, living with his spirit.

But this relationship of God to the texts changes their meaning. God is a God above time. He is the first and the last. His wisdom transcends all earthly wisdom. He knows the past and the future. So when he talks in the year 30, his words are influenced by all times. They have a meaning for all times. They are not just historical words, but more than that. They are also historical words, but not only historical, but they are living in every century!

It is extremely fascinating to read the biblical texts as something written for mankind, for all centuries. Of course, there is still layer one, the historical layer. There is usually the relationship layer, teaching us about God's character. And there is the personal layer: the text talks to me today, through all the time which is there between the recording of it and my current situation, but the holy spirit opens its meaning today, in my very particular personal situation. The bible is different! (Roland Potthast) ... more texts