I was sitting in Taco Bell chowing a Chalupa when a guy walks in and abruptly asks, “Is this McDonalds?” How rude, not to mention, UnAmerican!
I got to thinking, as I savored the hot sauce. Folks often complain about the Bible, that it fails to adequately address scientific matters such as dinosaurs or offer detailed history. Listen, Scripture is primarily a book about faith. Biblical writers had an agenda, and that was to tell the story of God and His redemption (albeit in a historical framework). It is unfair and unwise to expect the Bible to be a scientific textbook just as it would be unfair to demand it present detailed schematics to fix a diesel engine. Allow me to quote a specific example,
“The Bible is written for the common men of every generation, and it therefore uses their common, everyday language. The use of observational, nonscientific language is not unscientific, it is merely prescientific. The Scriptures were recorded in ancient times by ancient standards, and it would be anachronistic to superimpose modern scientific standards upon them. It is no more unscientific to speak of the sun standing still (Joshua 10:12) than it is to refer to the sun rising (Joshua 1:16).13 Contemporary meteorologists still speak daily of the times of “sunrise” and “sunset.” (Geisler & Nix: "A General Introduction to the Bible)
Scripture addresses general principles which apply to every area of life ranging from family to finance, but those principles are presented in the context of the faith journey!
This dynamic is a key factor in the matter of proper biblical interpretation, called Hermeneutics. Finding the meaning of biblical passages is not merely a matter of “hit and miss” personal opinion, or popular fad. It has distinct truths and procedure. Hermeneutics is not done in a vacuum. One key feature is to not force the Bible to speak specifically about matters it addresses generally. In other words, Taco Bell offers pseudo-Mexican food, not Gourmet Burgers. Know that when you go in and you’ll find yourself satisfied and nourished...with slight lingering heartburn.
