INTERPRETING JESUS' TEACHINGS

Context is king. Take Jesus' words from Matthew 10:

* “Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles."

From these two verses, it would seem that we should allow ourselves to be persecuted for Christ's sake rather than to flee persecution, but this would not be the correct interpretation. A few verses later, we read:

* "When they persecute you in one town, FLEE to the next.” (Matthew 10:17-18, 23 ESV)
There verse show that in order to understand Jesus' teaching, we must understand them in context. For another example:

* And Jesus cried out and said, "Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me."

From this verse in John 12, it seems that we shouldn't believe in Jesus but in the Father alone. However, two verses later, Jesus makes it clear that we should believe in Him:

* "I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.” (John 12:44, 46)

How then should we interpret the first verse? It seems likely, by observing the rest of Jesus' teachings, that when we trust in Jesus, we do not trust in Jesus ALONE, but also in the Father.

VERY OFTEN, WE CANNOT TAKE HIS TEACHINGS LITERALLY.

Once again, we find that understanding Jesus requires us to understand the entire context. Sometimes, we have to take into account the entire context of ALL of His teachings:

* "And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Matthew 6:5-6)
To just read the immediate context, it would seem that Jesus means to prohibit all public prayer. However, when we observe Jesus' entire ministry, we find that He often prayed publicly.
How then are we to understand His admonition to pray in secret? We need to understand the immediate context where we find that Jesus' concern is our motivation to be seen by men rather than God.

Well, how are we to serve God? In this regard, Jesus said many perplexing things:

* “But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:3)

How can we prevent one hand from knowing what the other is doing? We can't! Instead, once again, we have to interpret this verse in light of the principle of performing our righteous deeds to please God and not to impress man.

It's primarily about our motives not our actions. Are we able to give secretly without seeking the approval of others. If we find that we are not, we need to humble ourselves by confessing our sin. In fact, we find that human pride is often Jesus' main concern.

EXAGGERATION (HYPERBOLE) TO MAKE A POINT

Likewise, Jesus commands us to cut off our hands and to pluck out our eyes rather than sin and enter hell:

“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” (Matthew 5:29-30)

Can we stop sinning if we pluck out our eyes (or even pray only in private)? No! Sin arises out of the heart not out of our hands or our eyes, as Jesus taught elsewhere (Matthew 15:19). Then why pluck out our eyes? I think that Jesus was teaching that, because of the overriding worth of going to heaven, instead of hell, if plucking out our eyes would insure heaven, such a sacrifice would be well worth it.

AWARENESS OF PARALLEL VERSES

Some verses are very perplexing until we take into account how Jesus expressed the same thought elsewhere, for example:

* "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26)

Of course, this verse seems to contradict a lot of biblical principles like honoring our parents. However, this problem is easily resolved when we observe a parallel teaching from Matthew:

* “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” (Matthew 10:37)

It is a matter of our priorities. Jesus must be our highest priority, even above ourselves and our family.

UNDERSTANDING JESUS FROM THE CONTEXT OF THE ENTIRE BIBLE

Some Christians believe in absolute pacifism and non-violence based upon a literal reading of His Sermon on the Mount. Often in support of this position they cite:

* "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.” (Matthew 5:38-39)

I had wrestled with these verses for a long time, especially as a substitute teacher. Should I allow my students to insult and even lay their hands on me? Was this Jesus' intention? I didn't want to violate His will but allowing these violent students to have their way seemed so unreasonable. It would also be a betrayal of those who hired me and would bring disrepute upon my faith.
However, I also became convinced that such an interpretation would also violate Jesus' intent. I first had to decide whether or not Jesus' teaching was meant to correct the Mosaic Covenant or the current understanding of this Covenant.

I found that the principle of an "eye for an eye" wasn't at all barbaric. Instead, this judicial principle required that penalties had to match the crimes:

* “Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe. "When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.” (Exodus 21:24-27)

Besides, I eventually perceived that Jesus never criticized the Old Testament (Matthew 5:16-19). Instead, He always quoted it affirmatively. Consequently, it became obvious that the Sermon on the Mount was not an indictment of the Mosaic legal system but of our personal behaviors.
It seems likely that Jesus was taking aim at those who invoked an "eye for an eye" to justify taking personal revenge. If this is so, then Jesus was teaching:

* It is better to allow yourself to be defrauded and insulted rather than to take revenge.
Actually Jesus endorsed self-defense in cases where legal recourse wasn't possible (Matthew 24:43-44).

Interpretation is complex but vital work. I cannot hope to do justice to this subject in a brief essay. Consequently, we are instructed to meditate on His Word day and night. There is no substitute for this. Nor is there any greater blessing (Psalm 1; Joshua 1:8).

Jesus’ Impossible Commands

Jesus’ commands are impossible to follow. Here is just one example from the Sermon on the Mount:

• "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.  But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. (Matthew 6:1-4) 

Of course, some of Jesus’ instructions are hyperbolic. There is no way that we cannot prevent the “left hand [from knowing] what your right hand is doing.” Instead, Jesus highlights the fact that our spiritual deeds should not be performed in order “to be seen by” others.

But can we ever be entirely unconcerned about what others think of us? We are social creatures and care profoundly about how we are seen. Even in the midst of my most unselfish act, I found that I was still concerned that people would see how spiritual I was. I saw an elderly woman fall down in the middle of a busy intersection. Immediately, I ran out to help her, but even before I was able to rescue her from the oncoming cars, I looked around to see how many were observing my “un-self-concerned” sacrificial act.

And I am not alone in this. We are self-absorbed with what others think of our appearance and everything about us. How then can we fulfill Jesus’ command to not perform our “acts of righteousness” to be seen by others?

We can’t! Well, if we can’t, why does Jesus command this? It will merely depress and discourage us, won’t it?

Perhaps that’s the point. Certainly, we should be guided by the right motives, but we also need to be humbled. Jesus told a parable about two men praying at the Temple. One thanked God that he was better than others; the other knew he wasn’t and humbled himself accordingly:

• "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 18:14)

Those who humble themselves by admitting their spiritual unworthiness will be exalted. This means that the way up is the way down. When we humble ourselves by admitting that we are spiritual failures who cannot keep Jesus’ commands, He will lift us up. He already knows our frailties and failures.

Following Jesus is always a humbling experience, as it should be. Consequently, to follow is to be humbled and then to be exalted. However, this process requires obedience to His commands.

Instead, many of us believe that by following spiritual or physical disciplines, we directly exalt ourselves. However, Jesus warns us that this is impossible:

• Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."  When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." (Matthew 19:24-26)

While all things are possible with God, they are not with us, as Jesus taught:

• “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:4-5) 

This should be comforting. It allows us to take the attention off of us and place it upon our Lord, where it belongs. Nevertheless, we must be obedient to His commands. We must follow.

Are Christians Hypocrites: Jesus’ Parables

“You Christians love to tell others how they’re messing up, but you too refuse to follow Jesus!” he charged.

I asked Bob what he meant. He responded, “Jesus taught you to turn the other cheek, but you want to bomb the snot out of ISIS. Jesus taught you to give to anyone who asks, but you won’t give me a miserable $20!”

This is a serious charge. If Bob is right, then we are hypocrites, telling others to follow Jesus, while we refuse to follow him.

I wanted to answer Bob, but I knew that the answer would not be satisfying. It required more than a one verse rebuttal. Besides, Luke did write:

• "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. (Luke 6:27-30)

Admittedly, this is a difficult set of verses to interpret. One reason that it is difficult is because it seems to contradict many other verses. Paul had instructed that we shouldn’t give to everyone who asks. If someone refuses to work, we would be doing wrongly to support him (2 Thess. 3:10). Even Jesus taught that there are occasions when we shouldn’t give. We shouldn’t waste our pearls of wisdom on those who will turn against us (Matthew 7:6). Even Jesus did not give to all who ask. James and John requested Jesus to make them His co-regents once He’d set up His kingdom. However, He turned them down!

Do we then have a contradiction, or is there a way to resolve this apparent contradiction? Yes! Jesus spoke in parables, often using hyperbole (exaggerated language):

• And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell. (Matthew 5:30)

No one takes this literally. If we did, the church would be filled with handless people. Likewise, no takes Jesus’ command to “pluck out your eye” literally. However, His hyperbolic language makes a powerful point: “If cutting of your hand could keep you from sin and hell, then it would be a small price to pay!”

For years, I had struggled with Jesus’ elusive teachings. Should I turn my cheek when my students were misbehaving, even to the point of threatening other students? Fortunately, I decided against this kind of turning the other cheek. It would have brought utter disrespect upon me and upon the church.

It eventually became apparent to me that if I took Jesus literally, I would violate other biblical commands. If my friend asked to borrow my gun so that he could shoot his wife, such giving would violate the law of love. Perhaps, a ridiculous looking interpretation of giving is ridiculous and wrong-headed.

I began to ask, “Does the context of this teaching give me the justification to take Jesus’ teaching hyperbolically.” I dreaded the idea of misapplying His teaching merely to enable me to live with it. However, I did find grounds in the following verses:

• “Do to others as you would have them do to you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:31-36)

Often, Jesus gives us the key to unlock the interpretation. It seems that He had in this case. When I began to see His teaching on giving in the light of the over-arching principle of love and mercy, it began to make sense.

I had to be ready to give to others in love. If giving isn’t in the best interests of the other person, then I shouldn’t give. I had to learn the difference between destructive, disempowering, indulgent giving and giving that would empower. Paul had argued against the church supporting certain widows because this would enable them to sin. Instead, he argued that the younger widows should marry and that the widow’s family should support her where necessary (1 Tim. 5:3-8).

Jesus argued that our mercy should reflect the wisdom of God’s mercy (Luke 6:36). What does that look like? It looks like what’s been written in the Hebrew Scriptures, what else! There, we find giving accompanied by accountability. God displayed a major interest in the welfare of the poor and needy but in a loving way. He wouldn’t de-motivate them with handouts but instead required that the fields be available to the poor to glean the remains.  

We have a weighty responsibility for the poor, but it must be exercised wisely, lovingly, and Scripturally. Also seen from the point of view of God’s revelation, “turning the other cheek” was not a command to fire every policeman and tear down every jail. Instead, it was a warning against taking the law into our own hands to seek revenge. (Watch out, ISIS!) Instead, it reflects the Bible’s emphasis on the civil magistrate (Romans 13:1-4) as opposed to vigilantism.

Bob would not sit still for this explanation, but at least I can assure myself that I am not a hypocrite.