The Importance of Context

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

(2 Timothy 3:14–17, NIV)

“Never read a verse of the Bible.” This was one of the principles emphasized at our Bible Conference this past weekend. You may need to read it again, thinking through what it is actually saying. It sounds wrong, until you put the emphasis on the word “a”.

Let us not be people who read one verse of the Bible and work to apply it alone to our lives. We cannot understand one verse without reading the verses and the book around it; we cannot understand one verse of the Bible without understanding the overall structure and trajectory of the scriptures as a whole. Too often we are guilty of taking the promise of one verse and living by it even thought we have understood it incorrectly; too often we insert our meaning on that verse without truly seeking out what it is God is saying.

It is essential that we dive into God’s Word, but it is essential we approach the whole counsel of God. As the passage above portrays, scripture is useful and effective not only in correcting but in bringing us to salvation and in discipling us to maturity. May we together be people of the Word, working together to understand it, listening to the Spirit’s voice and living in spiritual community with one another so we come to understanding together.