The Way To Interpret the Bible Exampled in Luke 24:13-27
” All Scripture is given to persuade us to live in a specific way of faith concerning the promised Messiah, who is also our returning Lord.”
– The Ostensive Hermeneutical Principle
This principle applies to both the Old Testament (Tanakh) and New Testament.
Jesus is the Star in the Star Prophecy
- The introductory article on understanding Balaam’s last prophecy in Numbers 24:15-19, which is about Jesus, is here. This post and series is entitled “Jesus is the Star in the Star Prophecy.”
- The second post, concerning the hermeneutic behind my exegesis, is here. This post is titled, “The Ostensive Hermeneutical Principle: Unlocking the Power of Fee’s Axiom.”
- The third post is here. A short story, is meant to help clarify the context in Luke 24:13-32 by putting us in Jesus’ conversation with Him and His disciples.
- Luke 24:13-27 as our hermeneutical signpost is the fourth post here. This post is titled, “The Way to Interpret the Bible Exampled in Luke 24:13-27.”
Resurrection Sunday Conversation
In our last post, we inserted ourselves into Jesus’s conversation with two of his disciples as they walked to the village of Emmaus in Luke 24:13–27. On Resurrection Sunday, two of Jesus’ disciples are deep in conversation as they walk to Emmaus. A seven-mile walk – a three-hour walk if one tarry. A man catches up to them as they walk.
They have heard that Jesus is alive. They are trying to understand what they have heard about the promised Hero from ancient times. The Messiah is the primary pursuit and hope of the Jewish people from The Creative Narrative in Genesis 1-3 and forward. These two travelers are in a depressed, perplexed state.
Luke 24:15–17
[15] While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. [16] But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. [17] And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. (ESV)
There is a pause. They are standing still, but not like a young child trying to coax a treat from you with those big, beautiful, and sad eyes. Cleopas and his companion do not just look sad. They are sad. Have you ever been at a loss for words after witnessing a calamity? What just happened? What am I to think?
Americans knew that feeling on September 11, 2001. The world knew that feeling in the early months of 2020 when all boundaries of physical interaction were cut off. In both instances, I asked myself many questions I could not answer. One of them was, “What is the bigger picture that I’m missing?” These two disciples are standing there asking the same questions.
They are trying to produce a way to communicate to this 1st-century Luddite the current events of their day. Consider:
- The most important and influential person in all of history just died. Being at the epicenter of this event that makes Jesus this person of influence must have been disorienting for everyone involved.
- This man just lived a miraculous and perfect life.
- The Jewish Messiah was murdered.
- His tomb is empty.
- His body is missing.
- Women associates of Jesus claim he is alive and have seen him.
Luke 24:18–19
What Things?
It deserves repeating. “What things!?!” The most impactful events in all of history happened that weekend. Not just Jewish history, not just human history, but all history. The day Jesus redeemed the world is greater than the day of creation because Jesus and his atoning work’s dividends have begun to birth a new creation while upholding this creation.
Luke 24:19-24
“O Foolish Ones, and Slow of Heart”
Luke 24:25-27
25 And he said to them, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?" 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. (ESV)
There is a picture Jesus paints with the words “foolish ones” and “slow of heart.” It is a picture of a person looking in the wrong places with lackluster effort. The implication is they are not searching rightly for answers. Where should they be searching? Scripture. That is the easy part of the answer. But how should they be searching?
Jesus guided his disciples through the correct way to interpret the Bible. The summary of his teaching and the act of breaking bread in the context of Passover becoming communion, He expected them to discern from the Old Testament that the Messiah had to:
- be fully man and God,
- be perfect,
- suffer and die,
- Yet live
in order to be the Messiah. “In order to be the Messiah” is no redundancy.
Navigate Scripture Correctly
How are we to understand “O foolish ones, and slow of heart”? This sentiment expressed by Jesus tells us about his expectation for those who follow him. He expects us to begin with Moses (Starting with Genesis) and navigate Scripture correctly.
But what does “correctly” mean? That brings us back to hermeneutics. The value of tools that come with the science of hermeneutics is that everybody has equal access to them. The point here is that we are looking for skills we use in any reading. News articles, Pop Novels, Street Signs, and watches. But these tools are designed to be employed in skilled precision in searching Scripture for Jesus.
One of the primary applications of Luke 24:13-27 is that you and I are to attempt to do the same. The purpose of this portion of Luke 24 is to grow your faith by encouraging you to go back and search the Old Testament now with the interpretative key – Jesus. One reason the other person is anonymous in Luke 24 is that we are to be the other person in the conversation.
Time to Join His Conversation
God wants you to go to Him in this conversation. He wants you to include Him as you seek Scripture in wonder and awe of how it all leads to Jesus. We are called in our pursuit of God to seek out how Jesus is in all of Scripture. Do not seek out your trusted biblical authority first. But seek God first through prayer and Scripture intake. Let God become your trusted biblical authority.
Does this scare you? We nip our wings in walking in faith because we do not trust God enough to teach us personally, although that is what God promises and challenges us to do.
“And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:33-34 ESV)
The characteristics mentioned here intersecting with hermeneutics is this: Because Jesus is our perfect Mediator, we are taught directly by God. God being our Teacher does not mean we dismiss God’s other instructions on submitting to biblical authority and teaching. God being our Teacher does mean we start our relationship with Him. But to do otherwise is to submit to a covenant broken and abandoned.
This is Jesus’ Hermeneutic
Following our Perfect Mediator’s exampled hermeneutic, there is freedom in our pursuit of seeing how all Scripture points to Jesus. Let me give you a word of encouragement in this pursuit. Perhaps you feel completely overwhelmed and underqualified to take on such a momentous task. This feeling is a type of fear you are experiencing. The proof is your immobilization.
Scribalphobia
There is a guilt common among the faithful. This guilt gets its fuel from “scribalism.” What is scribalism? Scribalism is the thinking that you are unqualified because you have not earned a degree in pursuits of Holy Scripture. Again – wrong covenant. It is time to realize you are free in your search for Jesus in Scripture. Free! Toss the fear that comes with feelings of inadequacy and trust your Heavenly Father to provide.
Will you get it wrong? Absolutely. God does hermeneutical alignments in me all the time. Should I then be silent until I obtain “expertise?” God forbid. God’s way is not Americanized Testing. It is Fatherly Partnership in life to make life beautiful, good, and true.
It is time to live in faith by letting God teach you. This hermeneutic is displayed in other portions of Scripture also. If God gives me the opportunity, I will pursue this hermeneutic in Scripture in detail in another series, but for our current series, this is sufficient evidence.
Jesus helps me understand the world. I am Iz. My goal is to share my daily fight in the hopes of being an example. An example of what exactly? Of someone who is trying live victoriously in Jesus. I fail often. Just as often, the Holy Spirit provides comfort as Jesus advocates for me before God the Father’s throne. It is my constant reality. It is a liberating reality.
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