LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2019, Page 254

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254

II. THEOLOGICAL DOCUMENTS­­—COMMISSION ON THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS

The way questions are framed has an impact on the answers discovered. Christians may
sometimes ask the wrong questions. For example, they may search the book of Revelation for the
exact timing of Christ’s return. God’s two books have the same Author and His truth is to be
sought in both books, but for many people this common ground no longer exists because science
and theology are viewed as “non-overlapping magisteria” (NOMA), and the two books are
thought to be in conflict. Does science have the last word as to what we can really know?
Theologian and author Francis Schaeffer comments:
When we face apparent problems between present scientific theories and the teaching of
the Bible, the first rule is not to panic, as though scientific theory is always right. The
history of science, including science in our own day, has often seen great dogmatism
about theories which later have been discarded. Thus there is no inherent reason why a
current scientific theory should immediately be accepted. And there is no inherent reason
why a Christian should be put in a panic because the current scientific theory is opposite
to what is taught in the Bible.
When we come to a problem, we should take time as educated people to reconsider both
the special and general revelations; that is, we should take time to think through the
question. There is a tendency among many today to consider that the scientific truth will
always be more true. This we must reject. We must take ample time, and sometimes this
will mean a long time, to consider whether the apparent clash between science and
revelation means that the theory set for by science is wrong or whether we must
reconsider what we thought the Bible says. 38
Read Philippians 3:4–11. According to these verses, what does the apostle Paul know? What
impact does this knowledge have on his life?
Paul speaks of another kind of knowing, of knowing someone, a person—Jesus Christ—as his
Lord. Knowing Christ changes everything for the apostle. This kind of knowing is of greatest
importance for Christianity. Science is not the final judge of all knowledge. “At the same time,
however, it is important to confess that reason or rational arguments are not the ultimate basis
for the knowing that Christianity claims for itself. Rather, Christians know that the wisdom of
God confounds all human wisdom (1 Cor. 3:19). How do we know this? These truths flow out of
knowing Christ Jesus, who is God’s very truth made flesh (John 1:14), God in the nature of a
man (Phil. 2:6; Heb. 1:3), and the very wisdom of God (1 Cor. 1:24).” (101)
No knowledge is more certain than knowing Christ by faith. Human imagination cannot rightly
know Christ; He can only be known through the revelation of the Word. The clarity and
authority of God’s Word, centered in Christ and the Gospel, is greater than God’s book of nature.
Read John 5:39–47. What did the Jews hope to find in their study of the Old Testament
Scriptures? What particular knowledge was missing in their search? Read Luke 24:44–49. What
Francis Schaeffer, No Final Conflict in The Complete Works of Francis A. Schaeffer, vol. 2, (Wheaton, IL:
Crossway, 1985), 130, at https://reformedreader.wordpress.com/2013/05/15/francis-schaeffer-on-science-andscripture/.

does Jesus say here concerning the relationship between Himself and the Scriptures? Read John
20:30–31. What does the evangelist John want us to know and believe about Jesus through
reading his gospel?
Just as we hold to Christ, we hold to the Scriptures, knowing them to be the Word of God.
“Therefore it is important to state clearly that even as the church confesses its faith in Christ, so
also its conviction of the complete trustworthiness of the Holy Scripture is a confession of faith”
(102). The authority of Scripture is bound up with the authority of God Himself (2 Pet. 1:16–21;
2 Tim. 3:16–17).
In our culture, many people assume that science has the authority to trump the claims of any
other source, including Scripture. To them, Scripture is a human document full of fallible,
revisable claims. Yet God knows all truths (Ps. 147:5; John 21:17; Heb. 4:13). He can do what
he intends (Ps. 115:3; Jer. 32:17; Matt. 19:26; Rom. 11:36). “Thus He can communicate
truthfully through human language and the words of mortal men. God is holy and he cannot
deceive us, and indeed, by His very nature, He cannot do so (Num. 23:19; Ps. 25:8; Is. 6:3; Heb.
6:18). Thus God’s Word is infallible (trustworthy and reliable; incapable of mistake) and
inerrant (without error) because He is completely trustworthy and without error” (104–105).
Some contemporary theologians claim that Scripture is reliable only in spiritual matters, but not
in secular matters such as history and science. That claim “drives a wedge between God’s work
as Creator and His works of redemption and spiritual renewal. Orthodox Christianity holds the
spiritual and the physical together as two spheres in which God is equally at work” (105). The
Bible bears witness to the acts of God in human history to accomplish our salvation. Paul asserts
that the truth of the Christian faith depends on the historical fact of Jesus’ resurrection (1 Cor.
15:17–20).
Read Acts 2:22–23, Acts 26:19–29 and 2 Peter 1:16–18.What is said in these texts concerning
eyewitness accounts of historical events? Read Acts 1:21–22. What particular requirement was
necessary for the person who would take the place of Judas among the apostles?
Reading God’s Word—basic principles of interpretation
(In Christ, 106)
Christians must keep Christ and Scripture together. “The crucial point to emphasize here is that
this orientation toward the centrality of the Gospel of Christ and His justifying work for the
world is presented by Scripture itself as the way it should be read. Our whole approach to the
interpretation of biblical texts is guided by this important orientation. This is the central
interpretive principle for the Christian reader of the Bible” (106).
The following principles that guide us in our reading of Holy Scripture are helpful and generally
accepted. These principles are not arranged in order of importance, but as they are actually used
in the task of interpretation. 39

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In Christ All Thing Hold Together, 107. The seven principles are adapted from Lane A. Burgland, How to Read
the Bible with Understanding, 2d ed. (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 2016).

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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

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Father, and in the name of Jesus Christ the Son of God, Who was incarnate and died and rose
again, and in the Holy Spirit of God.” 40

Pay attention to the context, both literary and historical.
Begin with the plain meaning of a text.
Scripture interprets Scripture.
Interpret Scripture in light of the rule of faith.
Interpret Scripture in view of Christ.
Distinguish Law and Gospel, sin and grace.
Attend to the “then and there” meaning as well as the “here and now” meaning.

Read 1 Corinthians 15:3–8 and 1 Timothy 3:16. How is the rule of faith expressed in these
verses?

Concerning the first principle, we must pay attention to the context of any document, including
Scripture. For example, in reading one of Paul’s epistles, the interpreter should consider when
and to whom the letter was written. What issues were troubling the church to whom Paul is
writing? Had Paul already visited that church, or was he planning to do so in the future?
In the second principle, we take the text at face value, accepting its plain meaning. What does the
text actually say? We cannot pass judgment on God’s Word; it is God who judges us. Someone
who reads about a miraculous claim in a newspaper may doubt such unusual information. When
reading a miraculous claim in Scripture, for example, when someone is healed by Jesus, we can
accept the plain meaning—the truth of the account—because we know that Jesus is Lord of
heaven and earth. In establishing doctrines, the Church focuses on the primary and intended
meaning of Scripture, and not on symbolic readings. Figures of speech do happen in Scripture—
mountains sing for joy and rivers clap their hands—yet other accounts, such as Jesus’ healing
miracles, are assumed to mean what they say. Some readers may wrongly attempt to dismiss
scriptural texts that create scientific, cultural or personal difficulties by assigning an allegorical
or symbolic meaning to them (suggesting, for example, that Adam and Eve were not people from
history but merely symbolic figures representing humanity).

The fifth principle, interpreting the Scriptures in view of Christ, and the sixth, reading Scripture
as Law and Gospel, keep Christ and His saving work at the center of Holy Scripture. “All sound
exegesis must begin and ever return to Christ Jesus, the revelation of God (Matt. 11:27)” (110).
The twin message of the Law—to reveal and condemn sin—and the Gospel—the promise of
God’s grace in Christ—is constantly repeated throughout Scripture.
The seventh principle, paying attention to the “then and there” and the “here and now” meanings
of the text helps to prevent superficial readings of Scripture. The Bible was written thousands of
years ago in a world different from our own, but its truths, revealed in particular times and
places, are for all people of all times. This principle reminds us, for example, that when Scripture
tells us not to covet our neighbor’s ox or donkey (Ex. 20:17), this can be understood today to
forbid coveting our neighbor’s status, car or other possessions.
Biblical Exegesis and Modern Science
(In Christ, 111)
How does proper biblical interpretation relate to the discoveries, models and theories of science?
Is the Bible discredited because it sometimes appears to be in conflict with scientific knowledge?

The third principle states that Scripture interprets Scripture. For example, we read the story of
creation in Genesis 1. Throughout the Bible we find help in interpreting the creation account as
we see that God is consistently portrayed as the Creator of heaven and earth (Neh. 9:6; Is. 45:12),
who created all things from nothing (Rom. 4:17; Heb. 11:3), by speaking (Ps. 33:6; 2 Pet. 3:5)
and in six days (Ex. 31:17; Heb. 4:4).

God did not reveal Himself in Scripture in a mysterious “heavenly” language, but in ordinary
human language shaped by the world as it appears to human beings. For example, the sun
appears to move across the sky, leaving its “tent” to run its course (Psalm 19:4–5). God “inspired
fallible human beings to communicate infallibly His truth as it was spoken by prophets and
apostles and preserved infallibly in the inerrant Scriptures” (112).

Read Genesis 2:7 and 21–22, Acts 17:26, 1 Corinthians 11:8 and 1 Timothy 2:13. How does
“Scripture interpret Scripture” in these verses? What is the origin of humanity?

Scripture texts that appear to have scientific meaning should be taken as accurate reports of the
way things appear to the five senses of human beings. In Joshua 10:12–13, our interpretation
should be limited to the fact that, from our earthbound point of view, the sun appeared to stand
still. That text is not a scientific explanation of the movement of the solar system. Biblical
inerrancy does not mean that we should expect biblical writers to express themselves according
to modern scientific theories. “The text is indeed inspired, but what was inspired were human
words whose meanings are to be found in their normal usage at the time the original autographs
[the original manuscripts] were written—and that usage was not shaped by any of these scientific
theories” (113).

According to the fourth principle, we are to interpret Scripture according to the rule of faith, the
great “melody line” (110) of Holy Scripture. The rule is a summary of the story of our salvation
by God’s grace through faith in Christ Jesus. The Apostles’, Nicene and Athanasian Creeds
express the rule of faith, summarizing God’s work of creation, redemption and renewal. As in the
creeds, the truths of the rule may be communicated in a variety of ways. The early church father
Irenaeus (c. 130-c. 200 A.D.) briefly expressed the rule of faith this way: “First of all, [faith] bids
us bear in mind that we have received baptism for the remission of sins in the name of God the

It is important to remember the original language of “then and there,” realizing that the biblical
use of words was not shaped by modern scientific theories. For example, the “kinds” in Genesis
(Gen. 1:11, 21, 24) are not modern scientific categories for classifying living things. We do not
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2019 Convention Workbook

J. N. D. Kelly, Early Christian Creeds (London: Longman Group Limited, 1972), 77.

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