We are searching the scriptures for the pattern of the New Testament church of Christ, seeking to imitate the non-denominational body of believers who are blood-bought by our Lord Jesus Christ, inaugurated on the day of Pentecost, and called Christians first in Antioch.
"I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it," (Mt.16:18);
"...and the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved," (Acts 2:47).
"...why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? " (Lk.6:46).
"If ye love me, keep my commandments," (Jn.14:15).
When approaching the Word of God, we should always give it the utmost respect, and revere properly-harmonized scripture as the final authority in all religious matters. If everyone would observe the following basic principles when studying God’s word, they would achieve the best analysis, and increase the potential for unity among the brotherhood, (Jn.17:17ff; 1 Cor.1:10ff; Eph.4:1ff).
1) Recognizing the correct dispensation of time (Patriarchal – pre-Exodus; 10 commandments – Law of Moses; New Testament – law of Christ), i.e., which law was in effect or being referred to;
2) The best overall picture or view of any given subject is obtained by harmonizing all available accounts or passages dealing with a particular topic, e.g., comparing all four of the gospel accounts so as not to omit certain details;
3) Interpret difficult-to-understand passages in the light of simple-to-understand scriptures;
4) Speak where the Bible speaks, and remain silent where the Bible is silent;
5) Recognize the chronological order of events in the Bible;
6) Scripture interprets scripture. The Bible is its own best interpreter, dictionary and commentary;
7) Observe the basic rules of grammar and sentence structure;
8) Recognize that the Hebrew & Greek rules of grammar and sentence structure supersedes that of the English;
9) Context is king! Without it, a person can make the Bible say virtually anything.
10) The Bible student must realize that the New Testament is the Old Testament come to fruition.
11) We must acknowledge that "truth," be it the sciences, archaeology, or secular writings, "truth" will always harmonize with the scriptures.
There is a plethora of false doctrines which have evolved through the centuries due to man’s failure to follow one or more of these fundamental principles when studying the word of God. Sadly, there is also much division and disunity within the body of Christ itself. The Preacher said, "Only by pride cometh contention..." (Prov.13:10), and unless we realize that pride and ego must be dismissed, these principles will have little impact on promoting knowledge in the student's heart, and unity among brethren. Our goal is to create the atmosphere conducive to the increase of scriptural knowledge, not going beyond what is written in the apostle's doctrine, and to awaken a situational awareness of the image we project as His children.