Jesus spoke of the kingdom of heaven, God’s rule, in many of his parables. In the parable of the workers in the vineyard he illustrates important principles of God’s kingdom, principles that the religious leaders of his time didn’t fully understand: God’s grace and mercy on the undeserving.
With so many more people reading the Bible today, understanding of Scripture has greatly increased all over the world. But people are fallible, so errors in Bible interpretation have also increased. Here are 11 of the most common interpretation errors people make while studying the Bible today.
Wisdom is so valuable. We all need it to succeed in life and to be healthy and safe. It guides us in our daily relationships and endeavors, our quest for truth, and our relationship with the Creator. But there are barriers to acquiring wisdom, and the greatest of these are human pride and arrogance.
Romans chapter 9 is one of the most disputed chapters in the Bible. In it we find an allegory about the potter and the clay, which has been interpreted in different ways. The apostle Paul used this allegory consistent with how the Old Testament prophets used it. So, let’s find out what he meant by it.
Besides being the Son of God, Jesus was also a great teacher, probably the greatest of all time. But much of his teaching was by means of parables. So, why did he teach in a way that was sometimes difficult to understand? Was this intentional? And are there rules and standards we should follow to interpret Jesus’ parables?
Jesus’ parable of the wedding banquet illustrates some very important principles of God’s kingdom. He told it to Jewish people of the first century, but he also intended it to be for us today, as it speaks of the breadth and depth of God’s grace and the extent of Christ’s atoning sacrifice.
Life is so full of challenges and difficulties, but also many opportunities. How do we make our way through this world and choose the best path with all of the perils and obstacles in our way? God has given us intelligence to solve problems and find answers to our questions. But we need more than intelligence to succeed, flourish, and to live a safe and fruitful life that pleases God. For those, we need wisdom.
The word elect generates a lot of discussion and debate in the Christian church. Both Jesus and the apostles use the term in their teachings. So, who are the elect in the New Testament? The term “chosen” is used even more in the Bible. Are the elect and the chosen the same?
The parable of the prodigal son is perhaps the most touching of Jesus’ parables. It’s the story of a wayward son and his reconciliation with his father. Jesus told it to illustrate how a sinful person is reconciled to God. But it just rebellious and irresponsible people that need to hear this? Or does the story relate to everyone?
Many Christians stay away from the subject of predestination because they see it as controversial and think that discussing it only leads to disagreement and conflict. Others put it into the “things I will not understand until heaven” category. But predestination is an important Christian doctrine and a great consolation to believers if understood correctly. So, what is predestination in the Bible?
