The Auburn Beacon
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works
and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)

A Website dedicated to the Restoration of New Testament Christianity
 

Home | About Us | Directions | Bulletins | Sermons & Audio | Cross Of Christ Studies | Classes | Student and Parent Resource Page Dangers Facing the "Non-Traditional"


Click Here for the Latest Edition of the Auburn Beacon


To Subscribe to
the Auburn Beacon please send an E-mail to:
 larryrouse@aubeacon.com


Hear Buddy Payne 
Speak in Auburn, Alabama


All Joy and Peace in Believing 
PowerPoint
Audio

One Thing I Do 
PowerPoint
Audio

We Must Broaden Our Vision
PowerPoint
Audio

Our God He is Alive
(Evidences from DNA)

PowerPoint
Audio

Keeping Our Balance
PowerPoint
Audio



The Final Stages of Israel's Apostasy

Adult Bible Class in Progress - Sunday Morning 9:30 - Auditorium Class
Click For Outlines and Audio
 


Planning to Visit Us?

What to Expect
Current Class Information


Thoughts To Ponder

 

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God
(Ephesians 6:17)

 

 


You will need
the following viewers
to view many of the
files on this site.

 

Click here to
download
Adobe Acrobat Reader

Click here to
download
Microsoft PowerPoint Viewer


 

University church of Christ

 

Assembly Times

 Sunday

   Bible Classes (9:30)

   AM Worship (10:20)

   PM Worship (6:00 pm)

 Wednesday

   Bible Classes
(7:00 PM)

 

Location

449 North Gay Street

Auburn, AL 36830
Click Here for Specific Directions

 

Elders

Larry Rouse
1174 Terrace Acres Drive
Auburn, AL 36830

Cell:    (334) 734-2133
Home:
(334) 209-9165

Walker Davis
1653 Millbranch Drive,
Auburn, AL 36832

Cell:    (334) 703-0050
Home: (334) 826-3690


Contact Us

 University
church of Christ

449 North Gay Street

Auburn, AL 36830

 

Or directly e-mail us at:
larryrouse@aubeacon.com

 

Text, Context and Secondhand Coats
 

by Scott Smelser

 

John the Baptist would not fit in well with the custom made suit industry. In addition to his general appearance, he seemed to have little concern for the need of a tailor-made single person fit: “He that hath two coats, let him give to him that has none.” Horrors.

Yet as anyone knows who has benefited from hand-me-downs or second hand shops, a good coat that once warmed person A can generally keep person B just as warm. There are some obvious exceptions; attention should be paid to whether you’re shopping in the boys section or the girls section, and a coat from Goliath is clearly not going to fit Zacchaeus.

So it is with texts and contexts. Some texts are obviously one-size-fits-all, like the two greatest commandments (Mt.22.37-39). Some texts fit one context, but not another;  “Israel… remember that you were a slave in the land of  Egypt … therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath” (Dt 5; but cf. Col. 2.17). Some texts appear in a specific context, but certainly fit elsewhere just as well. When Paul warned the Corinthians that “bad companions corrupt good morals,” the context was an anti-resurrection influence; yet the applications fit far beyond that. Indeed, this simple statement of truth was already borrowed when Paul employed it here (it was a well known maxim among the Greeks).

Consider then please, some common mistakes regarding text & context.

Ignorance of Context

A man walks into the middle of a conversation. Everyone else understands what’s being said, while the man coming in partway is confused. People get confused by the Bible in the same way. Reading random verses from the middle of Romans or Hebrews will not give good Bible knowledge just as sampling random sentences from a stack of history books would not give good history. Context helps the text make sense. 

Misapplication of Context

Another man steps up to a conversation, hears a name, and jumps to a premature conclusion. He thinks he understands, but may discover he does not after offering congratulations or condolences to the wrong person. Likewise with the biblical texts, when attention is not paid to context people jump to flawed conclusions and end up misinterpreting the text. Consider some examples:1Cor.3.15 “If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved”

Is Paul referring to a man walking in sinful works, but being saved regardless (in contradiction to ch. 6.10,11)? Read and see the context to be the construction of the Corinthian church, with Paul, Apollos and others being workers (v.9ff.), and the Corinthian converts being the work (3.9, 9.1); with some converts enduring like gold, and others being burned up like stubble (3.12), to the reward, or loss, of the worker in the gospel (cf. Php. 2.16).

Isa. 55.8-9  “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are my way your ways”

Clearly, we have biblical texts that focus on the omniscience of God (Job 38ff, etc.). But is that the point of this particular text?
In this text, is the point: you are not expected to be all knowing as God is
(cf. Dt. 29.29)? Or is the point: you are expected to stop being carnally minded and become godly minded (cf. Col.3.2)? Let the context tell you: “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts… For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” (Isa. 55.7-8; cf. Php.2.5).

Textual dismissal by contextual strait-jacketing

Respecting context is good Bible study. Abusing context to the point of hindering the text is not.  Perhaps you’ve heard some of these:  Acts 2:38 is not applicable to us since it was addressed to Jews in Jerusalem. 2 Thess. 3:6ff is not applicable beyond busybodies that won’t work. None of the instructions in 1 Cor.14 apply today, since the context is spiritual gifts. 1 Cor.16.1-2 ought not to be read before collection since the context was a special collection for needy saints.

Yes, Acts 2 was addressed to Jews, but doesn’t it apply to those afar off (v.39)?. Yes, 2 Thess. addressed a particular problem, but is discipline limited to lazy gossips (cf. 1Cor.5)? Yes, the context of 1 Cor. 14 is spiritual gifts (ch.12 and 13 as well). Does that negate the teachings on love, edification, maturity, gender roles, or decency and order? Yes, the instructions of giving in 1 & 2 Cor. related to benevolence. But for other works of the church, ought we to abandon them in favor of giving grudgingly, in assigned amounts, regardless of income, every time the doors are open? Or ought we to let the biblical principles, precepts and precedents be applied to more than just the details of their first application?

Let’s respect the original contexts, but let’s also not leave the word in the first century. The word is living and active, and needs to be brought into our contexts too. As the old saying goes: if the shoe fits, wear it.

 

Other Articles

Hypocrites in the Church
It Can't be Done
The Widow's Mites
A Mixed Up World
Isolationism

Why No Instruments of Music?

Seven Faces of Failure

A Matter of Choice

 

For Past Auburn Beacons go to:

www.aubeacon.com/Bulletins.htm

 

Anyone can join the mailing list for the Auburn Beacon! Send your request to:
larryrouse@aubeacon.com

  

  





 


The Christian and Money

Sunday Morning College Bible Class by Larry Rouse
Sunday Mornings at 9:30
Download the current outlines:

Lesson 1 - Money and the Revealing of Our Hearts
Lesson 2 - Earning Money
Lesson 3 - Spending Money and Debt
Lesson 4 - Money and the Family

Lesson 5 - Money and the Local Church
Click Here for Audio



The Character and Attributes of God

Download the current outlines:
Lesson 1 - Diligently Seeking God
Lesson 2 - A Holy God
Lesson 3 - A Jealous God
Lesson 4- The Wrath and Longsuffering of God
Lesson 5 - The Love and Forgiveness of God
Click Here for Audio


University church of Christ

 

Assembly Times

 Sunday

   Bible Classes (9:30)

   AM Worship (10:20)

   PM Worship (6:00 pm)

 Wednesday

   Bible Classes
(7:00 PM)

 

Location

449 North Gay Street

Auburn, AL 36830

Click Here for Specific Directions



 

Overcoming the Present Apostasy

Sermon Series by Larry Rouse

Piscataway, NJ Nov 20-22, 2009

 

 

Friday Night 7:30

Lesson1 - How Do We View the Bible?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Saturday Night 7:30

Lesson 2 - How do we View the World?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Sunday Morning 9:15
Lesson 3 - How do we View God's Order for Leadership?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Sunday Morning 10:00
Lesson 4 - How Do We View the Local Church?

Outline
PowerPoint
Audio

Sunday Morning 11:00
Lesson 5 - How Do We View God's Instruction on Fellowship

Outline
Audio

For Additional Information, Audio and Outlines Click Here

 


Recent Bulletins:

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 26, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 19, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 12, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Dec 5, 2010 Edition

The Auburn Beacon - Nov 28, 2010 Edition


Your
Questions Please
!

Do you have a Bible question that you have hesitated to ask?

E-Mail us now at:
larryrouse@aubeacon.com

Visit our question page to submit your question and to read other's questions with Bible answers!

[click here]
 

Our Adult Bible Classes

You may obtain both the current outlines and the audio of past Bible classes from our assemblies.

[click here]

 

     

Email Newsletter icon, E-mail Newsletter icon, Email List icon, E-mail List icon Sign up for our Email Newsletter

The Beacon is sent weekly

 
 
 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxzz

 

  © 2012 - University church of Christ - All rights reserved!