Lesson 3 - Present Covenant Community Influence & Meaning

Question 1

Why must we think of interpretation as a community enterprise?

Answer 1

1. ) The Bible is infallible and the Church’s theology/practice is not. The Bible has ultimate authority
2. ) The Church’s theology/practice is very useful (Creeds, Presbytery, etc.) – Psalm 87:2 - we should love the church and its theology because God loves the churchSo, Students ought to love the Church and her theology. God wants the Church to influence us (teachers, sacraments, corporate worship, multiplicity of gifts, etc.)

Question 2

What two communities help believers understand Scripture? What are two advantages and disadvantages of involvement with each community?

Answer 2

2 Communities:

1. ) Heritage (Past) Covenant Community
   - - Advantages: Provides guidance by giving possible answers to biblical questions; Don’t need to reinvent the wheel
   - - Disadvantages: hasn’t interacted with present problems (technology, etc.); can’t impart aspects of think/feel/do applications because it is a different time/culture/context
2. ) Present Covenant Community
   - - Advantages: only the present community has interacted with truly modern problems; there are true advances in understanding the Bible better
   - - Disadvantages: fads that we get caught up in; lose the wisdom of the church throughout the ages

Question 3

How should Biblical and Systematic Theology relate to each other? What is the danger of giving priority to R-H analysis over ST analysis?

Answer 3

Due to Reformed Theology’s long emphasis on the OT and its emphasis on covenant theology, what are now called RH themes have always been to varying degrees part of traditional Reformed ST. These go together.

• • Dialogical Relationship =
• • Start with exegesis - look inside the paragraph
• • Then go with Biblical Theology - look into the book
• • Redemptive Historical - look into the entire Bible/Timeline
• • Then look at systematic Theology - look at those areas in light of what the whole Bible says
• • It’s not just on a line, but you bounce around between all of these.

ST Anaylsis provides a good structure to prevent you from going into error doctrinally through your interpretation of that specific scripture.

Question 4

What distinctions does Pratt make among “original meaning,” “Biblical elaborations,” “legitimate applications,” and “full value”?

Answer 4

The original meaning of the OT narrative is the guide to the full value of a text. Although elaborations and legitimate applications may go beyond the author’s intended meaning, they will never contradict it. Therefore if we hope to understand the full value of OT stories, we must being with investigating the original meaning.

Question 5

Why is the formula “one original meaning – many partial summaries” important?

Answer 5

1. Meaning is a circle, not a dot
2. There is one meaning of the text, but many modern applications/meanings
   - - Example Gen. 19

Question 6

Give one advantage for interpretation that the present covenant community has that the heritage covenant community does not have.

Answer 6

a. ) Only the present community has interacted with truly modern problems.
b. ) There are true advances in understanding the Bible better today

Question 7

Which of the following are NAPARC churches? Reformed Church US, Orthodox Presbyterian Church, United Methodist Church, American Renewal Presbyterian

Answer 7

1. ) Reformed church US

2. ) OPC

Question 8

Explain the so-called R-H vs. ST debate in Reformed circles. In practice, where does your home church stand in this debate? Give some examples to justify your conclusion about your home church.

Answer 8

Home Church – R-H

i. Big emphasis on narrative/old testament over epistles. Big emphasis on Christ only preaching, not exemplary exegeses, “ST is too mechanical/too white/too classical/too European.”
b. My complaint is that many in Reformed circles (1) over-emphasize R-H themes and (2) tend not to note that many R-H themes are in traditional-Reformed ST. On the other hand, I believe that R-H themes are very important, and I am a big promoter of them.

Question 9

According to Cara, is the full meaning/sense/value of a biblical text exhausted by the human author’s intention?

Answer 9

No because, Cara: “one big meaning in which the meanings to the variety of audiences are organically related.” Meaning is a circle.

You have to:

• • Distinguishing between author’s conscious and unconscious intention
• • Distinguishing between meaning and significance
• • Christ in the OT
• • OT quote in NT

Question 10

To which of the following would Cara agree? (1) meaning = God’s intention, (2) meaning is found solely in the reader, (3) there is only one true and full sense of any Scripture

Answer 10

1. ) Meaning = God’s Intention (Agree)
2. ) Meaning is found solely in the reader (disagree)
3. ) There is only one true and full sense of any Scripture (Disagree)