Disclaimer - I am a pastor, not a theologian, but I am a student of God's Word and the answers are my best understanding from my accumulated knowledge and theologians that have had an impact on my life.
Texted question #1, "During your sermon, you mentioned the importance of hermeneutics. What are some of those principles?"
Answer: Below is a list of widely accepted hermeneutical principles. I believe they are key in understanding the book of Revelation.
1. If a document is in a foreign language, a knowledge of that language is needed, including an understanding of that language’s structure and idioms.
2. The type of literary form must be recognized—whether prose or poetry, prophecy or history, allegory or parable, etc...
3. A knowledge of the geographical factors that influenced the writer is helpful.
4. Readers must discover what Bible statements meant to the prophet’s contemporaries before focusing on what they should mean today. This will protect students from “seeing” in the Bible only what they are looking for.
5. The historical context, including the precise time of writing, must be understood before correct deductions can be made, especially if the document deals with ethics, interrelationships with contemporary civil powers, and prevailing thought patterns.
Texted Question #2, "Why is the number 7 so important?"
Answer - I will be talking about numbers in Revelation, including the number 7, this coming Saturday, January 12. The short answer is the number 3 in Revelation represents God and the number 4 represents the earth. Adding 3 and 4 together means adding God to this world. When we do that, we have perfection…the number 7! That’s the Gospel, the Good News! That's why the number 7 is considered the perfect number, and a symbol of completeness.
More later this week.
Suggested reading for this week? Revelation, chapter 1
No comments:
Post a Comment