A Faithful Reading of Scripture

How does our faith in Christ affect our interpretation of the Bible?

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Answer

Our faith in Christ affects our interpretation of the Bible in profound ways. First and foremost, we have to be regenerate, born again and indwelt with the Spirit properly to interpret Scripture and to see Christ at the center of Scripture. And then, a sense of a living, walking relationship with Christ, so that we are filled with him as we come to every text of Scripture. And then, to try to understand the proper way that perhaps the Old Testament or the New Testament teaches things about Christ. The Spirit of Christ, the testimony of Christ is a spirit of prophecy we're told. And so, how does the book of Deuteronomy point to Christ? How does Isaiah point to Christ? How do other prophetic passages or Psalms point to Christ? And so, as we're filled with the Spirit and we have good fellowship with Jesus, we can pray through the Spirit and say, "Lord, show me yourself." We think about what he did on the road to Emmaus, how with those two disciples he opened their eyes to see everything that was in Scripture concerning himself. And he did the same thing with the apostles in the upper room. I want that experience as a teacher of the Word of God. So, I want to go to Christ by the Spirit and say, "Lord, show me yourself in Scripture."

Answer by Dr. Andrew Davis

Dr. Andrew Davis is Senior Pastor at First Baptist Church of Durham, NC and is Visiting Professor of Historical Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.