4:5). This passage emphasizes the unity that should exist in the body
of Christ as we are indwelt by "one Spirit" (verse 4). In verse 3,
Paul makes an appeal to humility, meekness, patience, and love—all of
which are necessary to preserve unity. According to 1 Corinthians
2:10-13, the Holy Spirit knows the mind of God (verse 11), which He
reveals (verse 10) and teaches (verse 13) to those whom He indwells.
This activity of the Holy Spirit is called illumination.
In a perfect world, every believer would dutifully study the Bible (2
Timothy 2:15) in prayerful dependence upon the Holy Spirit's
illumination. As can be clearly seen, this is not a perfect world. Not
everyone who possesses the Holy Spirit actually listens to the Holy
Spirit. There are Christians who grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30). Ask any
educator—even the best classroom teacher has his share of wayward
students who seem to resist learning, no matter what the teacher does.
So, one reason different people have different interpretations of the
Bible is simply that some do not listen to the Teacher—the Holy
Spirit. Following are some other reasons for the wide divergence of
beliefs among those who teach the Bible.
1. Unbelief. The fact is that many who claim to be Christians have
never been born again. They wear the label of "Christian," but there
has been no true change of heart. Many who do not even believe the
Bible to be true presume to teach it. They claim to speak for God yet
live in a state of unbelief. Most false interpretations of Scripture
come from such sources.
It is impossible for an unbeliever to correctly interpret Scripture.
"The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from
the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot
understand them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1
Corinthians 2:14). An unsaved man cannot understand the truth of the
Bible. He has no illumination. Further, even being a pastor or
theologian does not guarantee one's salvation.
An example of the chaos created by unbelief is found in John 12:28-29.
Jesus prays to the Father, saying, "Father, glorify your name." The
Father responds with an audible voice from heaven, which everyone
nearby hears. Notice, however, the difference in interpretation: "The
crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said
an angel had spoken to him." Everyone heard the same thing—an
intelligible statement from heaven—yet everyone heard what he wanted
to hear.
2. Lack of training. The apostle Peter warns against those who
misinterpret the Scriptures. He attributes their spurious teachings in
part to the fact that they are "ignorant" (2 Peter 3:16). Timothy is
told to "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a
workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the
word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15). There is no shortcut to proper
biblical interpretation; we are constrained to study.
3. Poor hermeneutics. Much error has been promoted because of a simple
failure to apply good hermeneutics (the science of interpreting
Scripture). Taking a verse out of its immediate context can do great
damage to the intent of the verse. Ignoring the wider context of the
chapter and book, or failing to understand the historical/cultural
context will also lead to problems.
4. Ignorance of the whole Word of God. Apollos was a powerful and
eloquent preacher, but he only knew the baptism of John. He was
ignorant of Jesus and His provision of salvation, so his message was
incomplete. Aquila and Priscilla took him aside and "explained to him
the way of God more adequately" (Acts 18:24-28). After that, Apollos
preached Jesus Christ. Some groups and individuals today have an
incomplete message because they concentrate on certain passages to the
exclusion of others. They fail to compare Scripture with Scripture.
5. Selfishness and pride. Sad to say, many interpretations of the
Bible are based on an individual's own personal biases and pet
doctrines. Some people see an opportunity for personal advancement by
promoting a "new perspective" on Scripture. (See the description of
false teachers in Jude's epistle.)
6. Failure to mature. When Christians are not maturing as they should,
their handling of the Word of God is affected. "I gave you milk, not
solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still
not ready. You are still worldly" (1 Corinthians 3:2-3). An immature
Christian is not ready for the "meat" of God's Word. Note that the
proof of the Corinthians' carnality is a division in their church
(verse 4).
7. Undue emphasis on tradition. Some churches claim to believe the
Bible, but their interpretation is always filtered through the
established traditions of their church. Where tradition and the
teaching of the Bible are in conflict, tradition is given precedence.
This effectively negates the authority of the Word and grants
supremacy to the church leadership.
On the essentials, the Bible is abundantly clear. There is nothing
ambiguous about the deity of Christ, the reality of heaven and hell,
and salvation by grace through faith. On some issues of less
importance, however, the teaching of Scripture is less clear, and this
naturally leads to different interpretations. For example, we have no
direct biblical command governing the frequency of communion or the
style of music to use. Honest, sincere Christians can have differing
interpretations of the passages concerning these peripheral issues.
The important thing is to be dogmatic where Scripture is and to avoid
being dogmatic where Scripture is not. Churches should strive to
follow the model of the early church in Jerusalem: "They devoted
themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and to prayer" (Acts 2:42). There was unity in the
early church because they were steadfast in the apostles' doctrine.
There will be unity in the church again when we get back to the
apostles' doctrine and forego the other doctrines, fads, and gimmicks
that have crept into the church.
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