CHRISTO-CENTRIC HERMENEUTICS

If you wouldn’t mind, please turn to 2 Peter again with me, chapter 1. As we work through these sessions, one of the things that I strive to articulate is a Christ-centered hermeneutic. You will hear me repeat many of the passages we have spoken of before. These passages help us build a framework of theology. This particular subject has not been easy to explain because every Christian religious tradition claims to be Christ-centered. I saw a banner that said “Christ-Centered” on the chapel wall while watching some of my Alma mater’s chapel services. As such, the school tried to express that they were centered on Jesus.

            However, when I say Christ-centered, I do not just mean a core value of my faith. It is my theological position and how I interpret my bible. To clarify my point, I believe Jesus walks with me through the bible, expounding the Scriptures in line with His character and teaching. As Jesus walked with the two on the Road to Emmaus, I believe Jesus walks with His disciples today through the Scriptures, opening their eyes and enlightening their minds.

25He said to them, “O fools! And slow of heart to believe what the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter His glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures. Luke 24:25-27 MEV

            And when explaining to His disciples after His resurrection what He had told them many times before his passion He opened their minds:

44 He said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and in the Psalms concerning Me.”45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Luke 24:44-45 MEV

In this session, we will re-examine some of the passages we have looked at to see how the biblical authors understood theology and some of the claims Jesus made regarding His revelation of the Father.

According to Peter, The Father’s Witness of the Son is More Reliable (2 Peter 1:16-21 MEV)

16 For we have not followed cleverly devised myths when we made known to you to the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.

            Peter starts off this section with His testimony of the coming of Christ. That what was revealed by them about Christ and His coming was not something that they made up. It is accepted history that Peter was the source material for the Gospel of Mark. In that, Mark penned Peter’s testimony of the coming and ministry of Jesus. This is most likely what Peter is referring to, Mark’s gospel. The apostles’ testimony is based on their being eyewitnesses to the majesty of Christ. Then he recounts the transfiguration:

17 For He received honor and glory from God the Father when a voice came to Him from the majestic glory, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” 18 And we ourselves heard this voice, which came from heaven, when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

            Peter is doubling down that they did not just witness the miracles and teachings of Jesus but witnessed His transfiguration on the Holy Mountain. He heard with his own ears, the very witness of the Father to the Son, when the Father bestowed glory and honor on Christ and testified to who Jesus was.

19 And we have a more reliable word of prophesy, which you would do well to follow, as to a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.

            When Peter says we have a more reliable word of prophecy, he could be speaking of a few different things. I was taught that Scripture was the more reliable word of prophecy in that the bible is more reliable than even the transfiguration. This is incorrect.

            Peter is either referring to the witness that he and the other apostles gave in verse 16, in that their testimony is more reliable because they were eyewitnesses, and the prophecy of Scripture must line up with reality.

            Or Peter refers to the witness that the Father gave to the Son in verse 17, in that the Father’s testimony of the Son is more reliable because it wasn’t delivered through a human mouthpiece but directly from God the Father. A direct revelation of the Father cannot be undervalued.

            I believe the last one is correct because of the following few verses. The testimony of the Father is what we should follow until we come to an understanding of How the Scriptures bear witness to the Father’s testimony. In that, we should believe that Jesus is God’s beloved Son, with whom the Father is well pleased. And all of our interpretations should line up with that; why? Because God inspired the Scriptures, He is the one to interpret them.

20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of the Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophesy at any time was produced by the will of man, but holy men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

            The Scriptures cannot be a matter of one’s own interpretation. We must submit to the testimony of a Higher Authority. Because God is the author of Scripture and prophesy, He is the Interpreter of Scripture and Prophesy. Scripture is not a product of man’s imagination of God but God’s revelation to man through human mouthpieces. God moved holy men by the Holy Spirit to speak from Himself as the Author. As such, the Author has the authority to explain what has been written. And the Author testified to Jesus being God’s beloved Son, but I believe Peter brings up the transfiguration for a reason. Let’s visit the transfiguration.

The Father Testifies to Jesus as the Highest Form of the Revelation of Himself (Matthew 17:1-8 MEV)

After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother and brought them up to a high mountain alone, 2 and was transfigured before them. His face shone as the sun, and His garments became white as the light. 3 Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him.4 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If You wish, let us make three tabernacles here: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him.”6 When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were filled with awe. 7 But Jesus came and touched them and said, “Rise, and do not be afraid.” 8 When they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

Moses, here, represents the revelation of the Law. Elijah, here, represents the revelation through the prophets, and Christ is the revelation of God in the Son. Like all of us, Peter wants to hold all three revelations at the same level. This is a lesson that Peter needed to learn, too. “We will build a sanctuary for law, and we will build a sanctuary for the prophets, and we will build one for you, Jesus,” essentially leveling off the revelations of God. The problem is that it denigrates the supreme revelation of the Son of God. Moses was a holy man whom the Holy Spirit inspired to write from God. Elijah and the prophets were holy men filled with the Holy Spirit to write from God. But this is God’s Son—a wholly altogether supreme revelation of the Father. If you don’t believe me, heed the majestic witness of the Father- this is what Peter is saying in 2 Peter 1.

• This is my beloved Son– separating him from the other inspired writers.
  • Moses and Elijah were holy men, but Jesus is the Son of God.
  • He was not a mere man filled with God, but God wrapped in the flesh.
• This is He with whom I am well pleased– Christ is perfect, perfectly representing the character, mind, and person of God.
  • Not men that God filled.
  • He is the Son, the perfect radiance and expression of God.
  • He is the only One whom the Father is well pleased.
• Listen to Him! The Father elevates the Son to a supreme place of revelation above the inspired writers.

            The question is, is this interpretation cohesive with the other inspired writings? John 5:39-40 Jesus said to the Jews:

39 You search the Scriptures, because you think in them you have eternal life. These are they who bear witness of Me. 40 Yet you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.

• If you remember, in John 1:18, Jesus is portrayed as the Interpreter or Expounder of the Father as a supreme revelation of God.
• Also, According to the Hebrews 1:1-3, God, Who inspired the Old Testament, has spoken to us today by a more perfect Revelation in His Son.
• According to Colossians 1:15&2:9, Jesus is the image of the invisible God, In whom the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily.
• According to 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 The light of the knowledge of the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ.
• According to Jesus in the Gospel of John, He speaks the words, does the works, and fulfills the will of the Father in heaven (John 1:18, 5:19-47, 6:38, 7:16, 12:47-50)

            He is the Arbiter of Truth, Explainer of the Divine, the Exegete of the Father, and the Declarer of God. I cannot truly understand Scripture without the divine witness of the Son of God.

Christ Esteemed His Own Words to The Disciples

I want to give you a list of times Jesus referred to the inseparability of Him from His Words and His esteeming of the revelation given through Him.

Matthew 28:18-20 MEV

18 Then Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Luke 6:46-48 MEV

46 “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I say? 47 Whoever comes to Me and hears My words and does them, I will show whom he is like: 48 He is like a man who built a house, and dug deep, and laid the foundation on rock. When the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, but could not shake it, for it was founded on rock.

Luke 9:23-26 MEV

23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 For whoever will save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His own glory and in the glory of His Father and of the holy angels.

Luke 21:33 MEV

Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

John 5:24 MEV

Truly, truly I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has eternal life and shall not come into condemnation, but has passed from death into life.

John 8:31 MEV

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you remain in My word, then you are truly My disciples.

John 8:51 MEV

Truly, truly I say to you, if anyone keeps My word, he shall never see death.”

John 12:48 MEV

He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him. The word I have spoken will judge him on the last day.

John 14:10 MEV

Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own authority. But the Father who lives in Me does the works.

John 14:23-24 MEV

Jesus answered him, “If a man loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words. The word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me.

John 15:7 MEV

If you remain in Me, and My words remain in you, you will ask whatever you desire, and it shall be done for you.

Evangelicalism tries to divide Jesus from His Words in three ways:

1. Some try to divide the church from the words of Jesus by believing Jesus was only speaking to the Jews or a separate age. (Kingdom age vs. church age)
2. Some try to divide Jesus from his own words by dividing His ministry before the crucifixion from his ministry post-resurrection. (By making the resurrection the climaxing event and dividing the line between Jesus’ Words before the resurrection and the teachings post-resurrection instead of seeing the entire advent of Christ as the climaxing event of History.)
3. Some try to dilute the words of Jesus by lumping them all together with the rest of Scripture, believing Jesus’ referral to “His words” as generically referring to all Scripture instead of Scriptural revelation climaxing in the person and words of Jesus.

If it sounds confusing, it is because these are unnatural breaks not defined in Scripture.

So, How should I read the rest of the New Testament?

            The apostles centralized their theology on the teachings of Jesus and further built from the Cornerstone of Christ. Jesus’ Words are the Cornerstone of the Rest of New Testament Revelation: John 14:23 MEV

  23 Jesus answered him, “If a man loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our home with him. 24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words. The word which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me.

Jesus promised to further reveal through the Holy Spirit: John 16:12-15 MEV

  12 “I have yet many things to tell you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 But when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own authority. But He will speak whatever He hears, and He will tell you things that are to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will receive from Me and will declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is Mine. Therefore I said that He will take what is Mine and will declare it to you.

Paul said that the teachings of Jesus were central: 1 Timothy 6:2b-4a MEV

Teach and command these things. 3 Anyone who teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, to the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to godly doctrine he is conceited and knows nothing.

John said Jesus’ commands are vital to those who say they know God. 1 John 2:3-6&5:3 MEV

3 By this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 Whoever says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever keeps His word truly has the love of God perfected in him. By this we know we are in Him. 6 Whoever says he remains in Him ought to walk as He walked.

For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome,

            So, we build our understanding of New Testament theology from the Cornerstone of Christ and His teachings. Christ, being the climax of the revelation of God informs and anchors our interpretation of the rest of the New Testament. Let’s examine how a Christ-centered hermeneutic affects how we read the Old Testament.

So, How does this impact How I read Old Testament?

Let me give you some perspectives regarding the Old Testament. As we have learned in the last few days, the Old Testament is inspired by God. It is the special revelation of God before the incarnation of Christ.

Jesus treated the Old Testament as authoritative against Satan.

• Matthew 4:4 Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3, saying that man lives by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.
• Matthew 4:7 Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:16, saying that you shall not tempt God.
• Matthew 4:10 Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:13, saying you shall only worship and serve God.

Jesus treated the Old Testament as historical.

• Mark 10:1-12 Jesus referred to creation in that God created male and female.
• Matthew 24:37-38 Jesus referred to the time of Noah.

Jesus treated the Old Testament as the revelation of truth.

• Matthew 22:37–40 with the two greatest commandments.
• Matthew 19:16–20 with the ten commandments.

Jesus treated the Old Testament as Prophetic

• Luke 4:17–19, 21 In reference to His ministry.
• Luke 22:37 In reference to his being numbered with the transgressors.

Jesus treated the Old Testament as Scripture

• Matthew 21:42- In reference to Him being the Cornerstone.
• Matthew 22:29- In reference to the resurrection.

Jesus did not do away with the Old Testament; He gave us the lens to understand it.

We should treat the Old Testament as:

• Historical (like the creation account, Abraham, nation of Israel, deliverance from Egypt, world empires)
• Revelation from God (God inspired it), and it’s about God.
• Prophetic (about Christ and future events)
• Eternal Principles of righteousness that are not limited by covenant but reveal the character of God.
  • Like the offering of sacrifices now leads us to offer ourselves as living sacrifices to the service of God our King (Romans 12:1-2)
• Promises of God to be Spiritually fulfilled in His people. (names of God)
• Wisdom literature and revelation of Truth and God.
• Insight into the mind and plan of God.
• Much of the New Testament only makes sense in light of the Old Testament.
• The New Testament writers quoted the Old Testament regularly.
• Sometimes parabolic in types, symbols, and shadows pointing to Christ.
  • Seed of the woman, ram in the thicket, Isaac being sacrificed, the religious ceremonies, etc.

            As Paul says: For whatever was previously written was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Romans 15:4

The early church believed in a universal standard of goodness and righteousness that was manifested in the Old Testament, was perfected in Christ, and is true for all people for all time.

Conclusion

However, we must understand the OT Scripture in its context so as not to think it all applies to us. We are given an Arbiter as a supreme revelation of God, to which we must place the Old Testament in subjection to Him.

• He is the supreme revelation of God.
• He is the expounder of God.
• He is Authoritative.
• He is the Author and Mediator of a New Covenant.
  • We are under that New Covenant, which fulfills and supersedes the Old Covenant, so the Old Testament must be subject to New Testament Revelation. We will start tomorrow with the Priority of the New Covenant. So, just because God tolerated violence in the Old Covenant doesn’t mean it is part of His New Covenant plan for His people. Just because God prescribed animal sacrifices doesn’t mean we offer them today. Things changed with the coming of Jesus, and He brought a New Covenant.
• Jesus’s commands Supersede Old Testament commands. 6 times in Matthew 5, Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said…but I say to you…” Jesus’s revelation supersedes Old Testament revelation. Jesus’ teachings are the cornerstone for the rest of the New Testament.