Introduction to "Let The Scriptures Speak"

I'm rich Pierce, and I'd like to welcome you to the first episode of let the scriptures speak. I am here in the dividing line studio. Well actually I'm on the other side of the glass and see we've got a new background some lighting and I've got the equipment that I use to produce the dividing line right here and as You may be aware of the reference to the rich cam that we put in quite some time back or some time back anyway and I just you know I've been walking through rehearsing for this first episode going through my notes and I've gotten to the point to where it's like you know what rich just sit down and do it just.

About My Role and Why I Use Notes

Talk to the camera talk to folks as if you're standing in front of your Sunday school class well well here we are and I you'll see me looking over this way and So what I've got is You'll see some graphics here in a minute a few tricks up my sleeve, but over here are my notes.

So as I'm looking over here. I'm not being rude I'm just looking over here to see my notes. And I've got this little clicker and it helps me walk through the slides now I will tell you when it comes to preparation presentation I am a slave to PowerPoint and so you're going to see in this in these programs that I do.

When I do them, I'd like to do them once a week. We'll see what happens. But you'll see a number of graphics as I go through the slides. But I've found a few tricks up my sleeve so about me yes I you know me from the dividing line while I'm not a scholar I have two eyes two ears and the ability to pay attention in church and in class and I've been doing that for a long time.

So my skill sets best described as that of a layman. But I've been exposed to some pretty deep scholarship along the way over the last 38 years of working with James. And I've sat under some pretty amazing sermons, not just James's and teachings.

I've.

The pastor of my churches is is pretty well Equipped in his own right and so let's go ahead and dig in. I do want to point out that my role here. My primary role is that of an administrator? I primarily do the bills and logistics.

I make sure that things keep getting Taken care of that need taken care of and that James doesn't have to be bothered with these things. That's that's my role here, but I also am a student of scripture hence the name of the program and It's been a Saying of mine for quite some time That we need to let the scriptures speak and that's what kind of came up with this program.

That I needed to actually do a program where we demonstrate that and I'm gonna go into some details on that. I do refer to myself as a biblicist and when I say refer to myself as a biblicist I know there's all kinds of people who don't like that term.

Well, it best describes The way I do things and the way I look at the Christian religion.

And.

Ultimately Sola scriptura, I believe is summed up in that word. Sola scriptura if you're not familiar with it simply means that the scriptures are the sole infallible rule of faith and practice for the church the end it just stops right there and so if it is the only infallible rule of faith and practice.

We need to actually sit back and pay attention to what that means and how that works and again this program I'd like to see that happen here and where I demonstrate that and what I call modeling it for you.

I am theologically reformed that means that I do hold and practiced the five solas. I hold to the five souls that being scripture alone. That the salvation comes by faith alone, but through grace alone in Christ alone with the result of the glory of God to the glory of God alone and So that's really who I am.

That's the the about me section of this. This is not my first program. I haven't done one in quite some time but I did do some dividing lines back in 2016 where I went through and reviewed the Romans 9 debate that James did with Layton flowers and did five episodes on that and then in 2019 if I did may have that backwards I did the Romans 9 reviews in 2016 and I did the woke church ones in 2019 two programs on that and so it's been a while since I've done this so I've got to get used to doing this but Being the one that's doing doing the continuous talking here.

And so unlike James where he can just sit down and let things flow I have to have notes. I have to have things right in front of me. I want to point out While we're here. It's kind of out of order, but that's fine.

It's it's a moment here about me and the way I learn and prepare. James is one of those guys. He can sit down and Start at the top and work his way down to the end. And so it's a linear approach in point by point by point and he can just take the subject on from start to finish.

I don't prepare that way. I I can't prepare that way. I'm just not built that way and so I shared with a friend a couple of years ago that you know When I when I sit down to prepare what I do is I will take this concept and I work it out and then I'll take that thought and I'll work it out and Eventually I get to the point to where I feel like I've got all the things I want to say written down summed up and outlined and then I put it in order and My friend looked at me he said you're a scrap was no a I see now I'm trying to blank on it.

Story border. You you're you function as a storyboard. So everything is all these different concepts and then you put in an order like in a storyboard or you put the story together. Toward the end. And so that's really how I learn.

That's how I prepare and Just kind of an oddity about me. You know Oftentimes when I was growing up We had the left-handed kid and all the teachers and all the parents were trying to make him do everything right-handed.

But in the end he did his best work when he was left-handed and that's kind of me I do my best work when I'm storyboarding and so I just wanted to share that little tidbit there I am a split a plain-spoken man when I can actually spit the words out I tend to be direct.

You're gonna learn that and that means that I'm not afraid to call the balls and strikes. I pay attention to what is being said and I look at these things for myself and I'm looking at the scriptures when I'm listening to a sermon and even the best of the pastors the best of the preachers.

I'm following along and when they depart I notice and That just I think that matters. I think that matters a lot. So next I want to talk about the program objectives here the program.

Objectives.

A Christian Witness and the Need to Let Scripture Speak

First of all, I have a personal Motivation here. It is my hope that some of my old friends from many years ago That I haven't been in touch with for a long long time. I have gotten in touch with some of them through Facebook, but it's just you know, how Facebook is we.

Hi. How you doing? How's your life? It's great. Fantastic. I do this and you do that and then you move on. Well, I'm kind of hoping that through this medium here that I'll get a chance to to share. To catch up with these old friends with a Christian witness.

So yes, I have a personal motive there. And so I just even if they're curious, I really want them to watch these episodes and see a what God has done with my life and What he can do for them as well.

I.

Covered that whatever happened now, that's that's concept where people kind of you ever think about that guy whatever happened to him. It might be an opportunity. What they don't know is that through a series of adversity?

God grabbed a hold of me and he changed my life radically. I'm not the same man I was then not by a long shot. I have been changed and I can say with the Apostle that I've been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who lived but Christ who lives in Me and the life which I now live in the flesh.

I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me. This is vital. This is God's grace and mercy. He grabbed a hold of me and he changed me and this is now the life that I've been living for the last 40 years.

My.

Desire is for them to understand God's grace and his mercy that he might change theirs as well and that Understanding begins and ends with the God-breathed scriptures. We're going to talk about that in a minute.

So in this journey, we'll take together as we move forward. We will learn things like how to read the Bible. It's a simple task far too often made complex.

We.

Find finding God's truth in a culture filled with noise with religious noise. Becomes an impossible task. The world listens to the church and hears confusion contradiction and Opinion. The phrase that's your interpretation is too often Offered with the intent of shutting down discussion.

Stopping discussion because truth is seen as subjective and no one opinion is better than any other and. And that's a problem. We need to confront that we need to go to God's Word because there is an ultimate truth there.

It can't just be dismissed. God has spoken and his opinion Matters. He is our creator. Why does it matter? He's our creator and he has told us how it is that we are to live and we need to be paying attention.

A Simple Man's Bible Study and the Good Detective Approach

Next we enter into the realm of Bible study. A simple man's Bible study is what I call it. We need to take a simple approach. Understanding that sound doctrine comes from the pages of Scripture not out of thin air a fancy speech or a positive Thinking seminar disguised as a Christian sermon that Bible study.

The first step to that Bible study is Being what I call a good detective be a good detective a good detective think about it. A good detective follows the evidence where it leads and He doesn't invent it or bend it to suit his needs or his agenda.

He lets the evidence speak for itself. The Biblicist Lets the Scriptures do the same. The Biblicist follows the lead of the Scriptures where it takes him. Just like the good detective. He understands that first and foremost that the Scriptures are God speaking.

Consider a 2nd Timothy 3 16 and 17. The scripture here. It says right out all scripture is God breathed. What does that mean? Well, if you have ever heard the phrase he was breathing threats. It's the same concept as I speak.

I'm breathing out in the same way here. Paul is writing to his Disciple Timothy young Timothy and he's telling him all scripture comes from the mouth of God. It's spoken. This is God speaking and we need to understand that it's that serious and that scripture is that is God breathed.

It's profitable. It's valuable for what. For teaching for reproof for correction for training and righteousness.

Why?

It's profitable so that the result of this. That cannot clause I get the word up there or I'm put it up there. There's that him in order that. This is true in order that this will happen. That the man of God may be equipped having been thoroughly equipped for every good work.

The Scriptures supply the man of God with every tool that he needs and when I say man of God I'm not talking about some guy standing at him in a church with a collar on or or just the preacher or just the pastor.

I'm talking about everyone who professes the name of Christ. Everyone who is a believer is being talked about here. This is about you. This is about me this is about those who have put their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and.

So a good detective does deep study a good detective does deep study he digs in and the task of deep study has a purpose it seeks understanding it is Contextually driven. I'll define these words here.

If you're not sure what I mean In a little bit it follows references like the index modern Bibles have these Index marks where there's cross references to the concept. Okay, and it establishes context.

How does it do that step-by-step? Immediate context comes first. So the the portion that you're reading if you're reading 2nd Timothy 316 There's a context there. There's a flow of thought that the Apostle has laid out and Verses 16 and 17 are part of that so he learns that context that immediate context comes first and foremost and then he uses the tools provided like the index if The text is in all capital letters, it's an Old Testament quote look it up.

Look for context there. Understand what's being said on the whole there oftentimes New Testament quotations will be what we call invoking. He's only invoking a portion of it. Go back and look at the whole and you'll understand the bigger picture.

Then come back and see what the Apostle does with it. This is really key. Oftentimes we will see Preachers what I call preachers who play games. They have an agenda and they they want to turn the plain language in the New Testament Into something else and they'll run somewhere else and say well see this means this and this means that and they never come back and actually Measure that against what the Apostle actually had to say about it.

And so come back and see what the Apostle does with it. Next we need to understand that deep study achieves excellence in understanding. Why do I say that? This is what we talked about. The New Testament refers to rightly dividing the word of truth well there's an excellence there there is a a high bar a high view of scripture that wants to roll up its sleeve and learn and absorb and rightly understand.

And that's a level that can only be referred to as excellence. Excellence in understanding is the goal here. You know pastors I want to refer to talk to you about this for a minute in 2nd Timothy 2 15 rightly dividing the word is where that's drawn from and We need to be teaching by modeling you are teaching by modeling.

What do I mean by this when we teach and preach? We're being watched paid attention to now hopefully There may be what we call the pew sitter who's just kind of there to put their time in and do the religious thing and Go back home, and they're really not paying attention.

I would hope we don't have that I but but There's probably some in our churches in many churches many in their churches who are doing that. They're just putting their time in they haven't got a clue what you're saying up there, and they don't care What you're saying up there, but for the ones who are paying attention folks We need to recognize that they the way we handle the text is being followed so pastor if you get up there and you're Running from here and running from there running away from that text there and trying to mold and shape it into saying what your Agenda is today what your sermon topic is about today the feel-good is about that you're going after.

They're paying attention to you. They're watching how it is that you're doing what it is that you're doing and If it's okay for you to do It's okay for them to do and that goes back to that confusion that I was talking about earlier one opinion is just as good as any other because who can understand the Bible because we just listen to a preacher who was all over the road and Never actually followed what the text had to say.

It makes it easy to follow along when you show your work and that is one thing I want to do in this Series and in this program. I want to be able to show you my work so that you see how it is that I came to the conclusions that I came direct from Scripture.

Did I engage in the games. Did I Shoehorn agendas into the text. Did I come up with something that isn't there? If I show my work you can see it with click with clarity it's easy to see. So I want to show my work and make it easy for you to be able to follow along as well.

I have a phrase that I came up with in 2019. Regarding the whole woke church stuff as well as it really does apply to what? My review of the Romans 9 debate. The way that you handle the scriptures is a reflection of how you view the scriptures pastor and so pastor if you're Treating the scriptures like it's Plato to be shaped into whatever image comes to your mind and whatever Point that you want to make.

Whatever speech that you're trying to give. All right, the way that you handled that passage is a reflection of how of what you view and How you view the scriptures? Which may not be a very high thing.

If you're doing the Plato thing with the scriptures. You need to take a good hard look in the mirror pastor and understand what it is that you've been called to do. What purpose you've been there? For and so we need to put all that aside just like the cults.

We can play games with the text. But that's not what we're here to do. We're here to rightly divide the word of truth and that means being faithful To it as we take that word out to a lost and dying world or to our very own Congregation as well as we stand behind.

Think on this folks if you if you've never heard this term as we stand behind the sacred desk. That pulpit where you open God's Word and you take that out to the people to God's people. You need to take that high calling.

Seriously, and that means you let it do the speaking and we must be first and foremost aware of our bias. We need to be aware of our biases in studying the scriptures and in preaching the scriptures. Do you spend your time Reworking the text pastor or do you let the text speak and follow its own lead?

Honest Exegesis, Agenda-Driven Preaching, and the Limits of Philosophy

Exegesis here's a big word for you what I call the $10 words. Exegesis is the honest approach. Exegesis refers to a way of reading the text. The exe part simply means reading out of. Reading out of if I'm reading things into the text if I'm reading my biases or my preconceived notions into the text that's known as Eisegesis.

Eisegesis is bad and it's dishonest if you catch a preacher doing Eisegesis you need to take a mental note. That's not an honest approach to the text of Scripture and When we're handling God's Word. What other place is.

Our honesty measured we're standing but we're before an audience of one. How is it? We're not convicted to our very core if you do that Exegesis is the honest approach and so we need to be also aware of agenda driven conclusions.

Agenda driven conclusions undermine the message of Scripture. They start small and They grow as we encounter text after text that threatens our bias. Oftentimes folks I read so I read things in the Bible that offend me.

I don't like that. My flesh is offended, but that's what's supposed to happen. My flesh is supposed to be offended. I'm supposed to be Scandalized.

I'm.

Supposed to be scandalized by it and that's what drives me to repentance, right? That's what drives us all to repentance and that's where the grace and mercy comes in because it comes through Repentance.

So as we roll up our sleeves and do the work I'm going to drill down on this concept just a little bit back in the area of Exegesis. I explained this to you before like its cousin the more commonly known approach the expository method exegesis seeks to bring information out of and versus putting information in to it produces clarity of mission.

Exegesis first produces clarity of mission. What we believe and why we Believe it we find those answers in the text and we bring that out of the text. It produces trust in Scripture. It says what it says.

We need to learn it and we need to follow it and then it it also it produces a reliability of the method a reliability of the method if you're if your Conviction is to rightly divide the word of truth you push all the gamesmanship out and you just have an exegetical approach to the scriptures when controversies arise.

It's exegesis that brings clarity and consistency. To your understanding must say that again when controversies arise it is exegesis that brings clarity and Consistency to your understanding.

And then.

Consistent practice. What will happen as you do this? It will become a consistent practice in your Bible reading in your Bible study putting the games away. Following the quote the quotes I was talking about earlier the the all-caps letters using that index in your Bible which I think is the most neglected part of the modern Bible and understanding the root of the text.

Understand the root of the text. This exposes this process. When you do this it exposes agenda-driven Preaching. You've been through this text. You've studied this text. You know this text you've gone and followed up on the cross-references of this text and then you hear the agenda-driven sermon as he's Supposedly preaching from that text the smoke and mirrors of Agenda-driven preaching are pushed out in many cases and I'll never forget this.

Hearing a preacher a young preacher who's very excitable years and years ago talking about. He wanted the text to mean a certain thing and he and he asked James for Can you look at the meaning of these words and the way it's used and is anybody ever used it this way?

And James went and did the research for him and came back said no. No, it's not the the scholar You've looked at is is just he's alone here. He's the only one that has come up with this conclusion and Then James turned around the guy the guy went ahead and preached a sermon anyway, and when he asked him later about he's well.

They just preached so good. That's agenda-driven preaching. It just riles everybody up. It just gets you thrilled it runs Tingles down your spine. It's not the goal. That's not how the truth is arrived at it exposes philosophical hubris the philosophical undermining of theological truth.

I don't know how many times I've answered the phone here and there's a philosopher on the other side of the Phone on the other end of the phone and he wants to talk to me about all the different philosophical Systems out there and he wants to have these philosophical talks and I go I'm not interested and Then I say what he just gets so upset about and that is that philosophy is a subset of theology.

Oh My they get upset over that because in their world philosophy is at the very top. Everything else including theology comes underneath Philosophy, but you think about it when I'm talking about a philosophical discussion.

What is that centered on? The philosophical mindset the philosophical discussion the topic is all man-centered. It's all centered around you and me and Humankind, it's anthropomorphic but theology Is centered around God.

They ask God that's the Greek word for God. The study of God is theology and The study of God is supreme over all things because all truth starts with and ends with God. He's the one who put us here. He's the one who created us.

He's the one who has ordered the way in which we are to Live. He has ordered our very being and he sustains our very being. It has been well said that God Gives you the very next breath that you breathe is a gift from him.

We need to think deeply on that it exposes interpretive Chicaneries the game playing. We'll cover more of this in the next show as I go through what I call the simple man's Bible study.

But.

Folks understand there's all kinds of interpretive chicaneries out there of game playing and and. You know guys that just want to. Again the agenda driven sermon the agenda driven interpretation the agenda driven exit of the agenda driven Bible study.

Interpretive chicaneries. So much of what is taught in the church today folks is either hearsay or hyper hyperbole. Let's say that again. So much of what is taught in the church today is either hearsay or hyperbole.

Teaching the Teachers, Clarity, and Life in the Lesson

We.

Is.

Dogmatic assertions. How many times have you heard dogmatic assertions that are practically out of thin air. But we need to be biblical. The truth is found in the pages of Scripture and this this this teaching this this method of Dogmatic assertions thin air preaching.

Oh, I don't even get started on the guy who will ram ramble around the stage as if God's Telling him sending him a message. Right then and there what's that God? What's that Lord? Don't listen to those people.

Don't listen to them. All right, go to your scriptures. That's what's God breathe that guy. He's just a charlatan. He's just a charlatan. And so remember that Teaching the teachers is what I call this section this.

This needs to change the the teachers need to have a relentless pursuit of the truth a Thirst for that which God has spoken is needed for both the teacher and the student. It is not for the teacher or the preacher to get up there in front of God's people and take liberties.

It's not for you to take liberties you need to stick with the scriptures. Sound Exegesis is needed. I already talked about that into and out of stuff set your biased interest aside. Let the word speak even if you don't like it.

Let the word speak even if you don't like it. Remember the good detective the good detective is always examining all things. Holding fast to that which is good first. Thessalonians 521. Let's see, where are we at here?

Okay, so we're about two-thirds of the way through the lesson today. Communicate with clarity teachers. Communicate with clarity now, this should be a given. You should already be here. This should already be something you desire, but remember something communication starts with understanding how you learn and how you prepare.

I'm gonna say that again. So this is what I'm talking about my storyboarding Process how you learn the method by which you learn and the method by which you prepare. You need to understand that first so that you can not constantly be fighting against your gifts and Trying to exercise your gifts in a way that somebody else who's gifted differently would exercise theirs.

So like I said, as long as I keep trying to do the linear method I can't complete the task. It just drives me crazy because my mind wanders too much and. So when I go over here and I start doing this part and I complete that then I come over here and I can complete that and once I am satisfied that I've completed all the the parts and the elements of the project.

Then I put it in order and so if you if you think that way if you function that way embrace it understand it. Linear preparation is what normal people do storyboard preparation. It's the left-handed.

It's the left-handed boy. And yeah, I'm in that camp. I'm the left-handed boy. Turn in that turn that into present. I Have a note here. Turn that into a presentation that speaks to your audience use it to your advantage.

Turn that into a preparation and a presentation that speaks to your audience. It's important to be able to spell things and have text that flows when you make notes to keeping it simple. Bring them bring them along using plain language now.

You go. Well you use the word exegesis and expository earlier. Well, yes I'm gonna define my terms as I use them because I'm not going to assume that you understand them out of outright. Theological words tend to be unique to a theological realm the religious realm and.

So as you're listening to me, I want you to understand all of what I'm saying to you. So I will define what exegesis means. I will define exposition. Exposition has to do more to do with the the preaching method rather than the teaching method, but Exposition again, it's the idea of taking the text and exposing it.

Exposing it to your audience exposing it to you the preacher first who is the the primary. The the primary. What's the word I'm looking for? He is the the the primary beneficiary of The lesson he learns more than anyone in doing this work and he is blessed by doing it.

By the way, remember that bring them along with you in plain language. Now stay on target. Hmm stay on target stay with your text. Don't wander off don't find yourself. You know, there are times when cross-references you got to follow the cross-reference.

It's a legitimate cross-reference. It's it's right there in the text. It's been referred to over in the Old Testament. You're gonna go and look at that and then suddenly you find yourself stranded somewhere else.

That didn't have anything to do with either one of these. Okay, it's really easy especially for a guy like me to get completely distracted that's why I need to have these kind of notes that I put the things in order and stick to it, so.

The idea of what I call Pastor John story time with Pastor John telling quaint stories with a Bible in hand is not that. Okay, teaching and preaching is not speechifying either. Yeah, I grew up going to a United Methodist Church twice a year you can figure out which days that was and All I remember is a guy in a robe getting up there and giving a fancy speech that everybody felt really good about when they.

Left.

Well, if you're Teaching and preaching the Bible pastor There are gonna be a lot of times where people are not feeling good at all when they leave. Because they're convicted they're convicted of their sin.

That's part of the Christian message. You need to promote repentance. The sacred desk is not a place for your vain imagination. Favorites is the expository pastor who starts the message off. The expository pastor who starts the message off by reading the text and quickly departs from it.

Like in tithing season, well, you've been walking through the text. It's guiding you all along and then we get to November and it's tithing season and the pastor gets up he reads today's verses and boom the rest of the message is about tithing.

The Passage has got nothing to do with giving at all. But he's going to pound the daylights out of you for the next month. Every single text he encounters is some go somehow some way going to morph into tithing and giving and you have better.

You know squeeze that wallet real good and If you let the text guide you that doesn't happen that can't happen. See my point question. For you pastor question if you aren't following the text. Is it unreasonable to conclude that you aren't interested in the text if you're not following the text?

Is it unreasonable for your congregation to conclude that you aren't interested in it? Let's take that out a little bit because if you're not interested in it How important is it really the way that you handle the scriptures is a reflection of how you view?

Scriptures and Lastly have some life in your lesson pastor have some life in your lesson teacher. What I mean by that think about this for a second. Hebrews 4 12 says for the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword.

The Word of God as you open it, it's alive. Do you treat it so it is living and it's active. It's not just alive laying there. It's active. It's not passive. It's God Speaking in the present to you and through you it is Piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit it cuts you to the quick Both of joints and marrow as Deeply as you can imagine it and it is able.

Here's the thing folks. I Always get a kick out of judge. Not the judge not accusation. Well, it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. The Word of God is living. It's Active it's like a two-edged sword.

Cutting you right down to the very depth of your soul right down to the very depths of your soul and The result of that is that it judges your thoughts and your intentions of your heart. God knows these things.

He knows what you're thinking. This isn't Santa Claus land. This is for real and it's serious stuff. So pastors teachers have some life in your lesson because the Word of God is alive. Preach it so and teach it so.

Verse 13 and think on this you stand before an audience of one as you do this. It's not yes, you're taking it to God's people, but you stand before an audience of one. God is there he's with you the Holy Spirit is with you and he is paying attention to what you're doing and There is no creature that is hidden from his sight, but all things are uncovered and laid bare.

There's nothing you can hide from him to the eyes of him. To whom we all of us every man woman and child you want to talk about all of us. To him to whom we of him to whom we have an account to give one day.

Maybe sooner than later. One day we will all stand before the throne of God and give an account for our lives. And we will give an account especially if you're in the position of teaching and preaching.

You will give an account especially in that situation roll up your sleeves and do the work is the Essence essence of the simple man's Bible study. Roll up your sleeves and do the work we will consider next week and then the next program maybe not next week.

I this this week Friday. I'm flying to Durango. I'm going to be recording the conference that James will be doing up there and then flying back and putting the Program together and trying to put it out on the internet on YouTube as soon as possible.

But rolling up your sleeves and doing the work is what we're going to consider next time around as we look at three different ways of study. We look at understanding what it is how to understand what it is that you're reading.

Dealing with the things that offend you. How do we actually interact with that? We look at things and we go. Oh, wow. Stepping on my toes here. Well, how do you deal with that? What are we supposed to do with that?

Trying to turn the text on its head is not the answer to that the situation at hand. Context following cross-references breaking the argument down point by point. Following the situation at hand. God's ways and his characters are key to understanding.

How to understand these things. We will learn these things and there will be some surprises along the way. His holiness his justice. His grace and his mercy. Man's ways and character. This is where we get offended.

This is where we get our toes stepped on is when we we look to the scriptures and the scriptures revealed to us. Who we are and how we are. Understanding our sinful desires and how that impacts us and how that impacts how we understand the world.