God's Gifts for the Christian Life

If the Word of God is our anchor in the chaos of this world, if it is our assurance that we can know the world and God its creator, we need confidence that we can understand this Word. Reading and applying the Bible is essential to every facet of Christian life and ministry, yet our ability to do so is under attack from a myriad of directions. In Postmodern philosophy, the possibility of communication is dismissed, let alone communication from God. In Biblical studies, the amount of knowledge required to, come to firm conclusions concerning the meaning and application of the Bible grows every day. However, the Bible is not so pessimistic about its accessibility. Instead, it presents itself as a clear word, sufficient to guide and encourage Christians in every area of life.

If the Word of God is our anchor in the chaos of this world, if it is our assurance that we can know the world and God its Creator, we need confidence that we can understand this Word. Reading and applying the Bible is essential to every facet of Christian life and ministry, yet our ability to do so is under attack from a myriad of directions. In Postmodern philosophy, the possibility of communication is dismissed, let alone communication from God. In Biblical studies, the amount of knowledge required to come to firm conclusions concerning the meaning and application of the Bible grows every day. However, the BIble is not so pessimistic about its accesibility. Instead, it presents itself as a clear word, sufficient to guide and encourage Christians in every area of life.Having outlined in Part 1 a method for reading the Bible in order to understand it, The Gift of Reading Part 2 addresses the issues of hermeneutics or the theory of reading. After briefly surveying the major approaches to reading the Bible throughout the history of the Church, The Gift of Reading Part 2 argues for an understanding of the role of the text, reader, and author based on a Biblical epistemology and theology.