Because
of my husband’s illness, we bought an oximeter, a gadget you snap onto your
finger to read your oxygen level. My husband’s level read 90. I then clipped the
oximeter onto my own finger and looked down. It showed 86. (Read the top number in first photo and bottom number in the second.)
That alarmed me. I had heard anything below 89 was cause to head to the emergency
room. But I felt fine, so I decided just to keep tabs on it. An hour later, I
had the same oxygen level. But that afternoon when I checked it, instead of
looking down at the back of my open hand to read the device, I turned my hand
over and folded my fingers back toward me. And my level was 98.
What
I was reading as 86 was actually 98. I had been reading the oximeter upside
down.
And
we may misread scripture as well. We live in the 21st century,
reading Scripture written almost two millenniums earlier in a very different
culture. And we read with finite minds, while God, the Author, is an Infinite
Being.
“For my
thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares
the Lord” (Isaiah
55:8).
Some
common misconceptions about interpreting Scripture exist. But we can compare
Scripture to Scripture, consult online commentaries and discuss our questions
with pastors, Sunday school teachers and mature Christians.
For
one thing, we may interpret having the abundant life Jesus spoke of as being healthy,
wealthy and smart. But we must always look at the whole of Scripture. Jesus also
said that in this life we will have trouble. But even then we experience the
abundant life because He has overcome the world (John 16:33) and He walks with
us.
Early
Christians suffered persecution, yet they rejoiced they had been “counted
worthy of suffering disgrace for the name” (Acts 5:41). God uses struggles to
build character, and we encourage others as we share how God helped us through our
personal struggles.
Many
men and women have given their very lives for the cause of the gospel. Stephen
was stoned to death. Paul and others were imprisoned and many, if not all, of
the disciples became martyrs. Hardly living the “healthy, wealthy and smart” life.
“The
blood of the martyr is the seed of the church” is attributed to Tertullian, an
early Christian author. Rather than put an end to the spread of the gospel, the
death of martyrs inspired others to take their places, and the church grew. God
uses even evil for good.
Another
way we misread Scripture is to think that because “slaves” are mentioned, God approves
of slavery. But in those days, “slaves” were well treated and cared for, almost
as members of the household. Not so with slavery as we know it.
Then
there’s the issue of women. You might say Old Testament women were considered “second-class
citizens.” Men could divorce wives for most anything that displeased them.
Traditional Jewish rabbis started their day praying, “Blessed are you, Lord,
our God, ruler of the universe who has not created me a woman.”
In
New Testament times, Jesus respected and elevated the status of women by
including them in His ministry. He allowed Mary to sit at His feet for
teaching, and women traveled with Him. After His resurrection, He appeared
first to a woman.
However,
since Paul said women should be “submissive” (1 Corinthians 16:16), some assume
women must accept ill treatment without refute. But Paul may have been using
sarcasm to correct a problem of the Corinthian church where women distracted
from sermons by calling out questions.
These examples show that just
like my incorrect reading of my oximeter, I may misread Scripture as well. From the comfort of my
easy chair, I may think the gospel is about me inviting God into my world so
that I can enjoy the good life. But the more I read, it’s really about God
inviting me to get out of my easy chair to join Him in His work. But first, I
must properly understand His Word.
We
need the whole of scripture to inform our faith instead of picking and choosing
verses that suit our purposes. When we all get to heaven, we may be surprised
at the many ways we drew wrong conclusions here on earth.
