2Ti 2:15 NRSV "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth."
Rightly dividing the word of truth is a phrase that is found in the KJV and the NKJV of the bible. It is also referred to as correctly teaching, correctly handling, and in the NRSV version posted above it is rightly explaining the word of truth. I have written a couple of blog articles on rightly defining the word of truth. They show beyond doubt that when Paul and James used the phrase word of truth, they meant the gospel and not the scripture per se. However, that is not that important to the discussion in this post because Jesus said that the entire scripture's purpose was to point to him so that the reader could find him and then by finding him find life.
So then, whether you want to think of it as rightly dividing the bible or rightly dividing the gospel I am quite happy with either conclusion. However, I think it is important that we use the above definition which is rightly explaining or rightly handling the word of truth.
First we'll discuss what I believe is the incorrect way of handling and explaining the word of truth. Many, and I would actually say most evangelicals first think of the word of truth as a legal constitutional document, handbook, or manual for Christian living. Similar in nature to the standard operations procedures manual (SOP) that you find most business have for their employees and managers. This is most definitely NOT the way to correctly handle or explain the word of truth.
So let's examine the various kinds of messages that are in the scripture. I will list them in importance as I see them. First you have what I call God's redemptive decrees. They are passages of scripture such as Ephesians 1:3-14, Romans 5:1, Romans 8:1-4, and John 3:16-18. This is by no means an exhaustive list but merely an example as there are myriads of these redemptive decrees throughout the entire scripture. Secondly, there are prophecies that point to redemption such as those by Isaiah, Jeremiah and many other prophets. Third, there are promises of God's faithful care such as can be found in the Psalms. Fourth, there are historical stories that act as metaphors for spiritual realities, such as the forty-year desert wanderings etc. Fifth, there are occasional messages that are essentially cultural in nature and to a specific audience for a specific occasion.
Common sense should let one know that not all of the messages of scripture are of equal importance. Here is Jesus priority: John 5:39-40 "You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. (40) Yet you refuse to come to me to have life." and..... Luke 24:27 "Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures." and... Luke 24:45-47 "Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, (46) and he said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, (47) and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem." It should be crystal clear from this that the important message in scripture in Jesus eyes and mind was redemption, and his redeeming mission.
When you look at the bulk of Paul's epistles you find that they all begin with the redemptive decrees. These redemptive decrees have pre-eminence in the scripture. I came up with a slogan about twenty years ago give or take a few years: it is simply this: "the only way to rightly divide the word of truth is with the cross." What that means practically is there are many passages in the Old Testament that prophesy of the time after the cross and the New Covenant, and get this, most of the gospels are written about a time before the cross about messages to Jews who were still under the Mosaic Covenant. A whole lot of doctrinal error is wound up in missing this most important point.
Common sense should let one know that not all of the messages of scripture are of equal importance. Here is Jesus priority: John 5:39-40 "You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. (40) Yet you refuse to come to me to have life." and..... Luke 24:27 "Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures." and... Luke 24:45-47 "Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, (46) and he said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, (47) and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem." It should be crystal clear from this that the important message in scripture in Jesus eyes and mind was redemption, and his redeeming mission.
When you look at the bulk of Paul's epistles you find that they all begin with the redemptive decrees. These redemptive decrees have pre-eminence in the scripture. I came up with a slogan about twenty years ago give or take a few years: it is simply this: "the only way to rightly divide the word of truth is with the cross." What that means practically is there are many passages in the Old Testament that prophesy of the time after the cross and the New Covenant, and get this, most of the gospels are written about a time before the cross about messages to Jews who were still under the Mosaic Covenant. A whole lot of doctrinal error is wound up in missing this most important point.
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