The End

The Bible is a treasure chest sent from God. In order to re-

move treasures from a treasure chest, the preferred method is

to use a key and not a stick of dynamite. One has to be diligent

and careful when studying the Bible. Second Timothy 2:15

says,

“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman

that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of

truth” (KJV-King James Version)

. The words “rightly dividing”

come from the Greek word, orthotomeo. It means “straight

cut.” As one who has practiced both in the disciplines of or-

thodontics and surgery, I know the value of “straightening”

and “cutting.” Very similar to the finesse of a surgeon, one

must pay great attention to detail while “operating” on the

Word of God. I dare say this is not the way most people handle

the Bible; rather most tend to use it “cafeteria style” and pick

and choose what they want from the surface, rather than care-

fully digging deeper into its limitless truths and treasures.

INTERPRETING THE BIBLE

Proper Application

First, we must interpret the Bible by understanding God’s

overall plan and purpose through the ages. For example, if one

is to assemble a large jigsaw puzzle, he first looks at the cover

of the box in which the puzzle came, which gives the proper

perspective.

Second, we must discern to whom the scriptures are ad-

dressed. For example, this doesn’t mean that when there are

blessings for Israel they belong to the whole Church, and when

there are curses for Israel they belong only to Israel.

Third, we look at the all-important context of any given

portion of Scripture. A text without a context is a pretext. One