Hard Sayings - Introduction

Evangelical Christians are told that we need to place the highest value on a literal interpretation of the Bible. By that we are most often told to "take it at face value". If someone dares to question the face value of the passage in question, they are viewed as "denying the Word of God", a curse worse than death.

Many passages, however, cry out for a closer examination. There are two basic reasons for this. In some cases, the passage is hard to understand. The language used is odd, or the idea isn't clear. In other cases, the text is clearly understood, but there is as problem with taking a passage at face value. Sometimes it's just hard to accept. Sometimes it will plainly contradict another passage taken at face value. Since the Bible is the Word of God, and God cannot contradict Himself, we are at an impasse. How are we to understand apparently nonsensical statements?

When the Reformers cried, "Sola Scriptura!", they intended a literal reading of the Bible. However, by "literal" they didn't mean "at face value". They meant "as written". Sometimes these two terms are the same; sometimes they are not. When we read, for instance, that Cain slew Abel, we take it "at face value". Why? Because the text is written in historical narrative style, suggesting that if we are going to take it "as written", we are going to take it "at face value". Sometimes, these two terms are not synonymous. When Jesus said, "I am the door", we understand that He was speaking in metaphorical language. We don't take it "at face value". He's not a door with hinges and door knob. He is using one thing, a door, to illustrate something else, that He is the access point. So we take it "as written", not "at face value."

I am going to examine a few of these "hard sayings", statements in Scripture that bear a second glance. Since I believe what I believe, I'll also offer my own take on the passage in question. Feel free to discard my view. But please, don't simply ignore the situation. These passages need to be examined.

I'll do one quickly so you get the idea. It is commonly held that we are to "Abstain from all appearance of evil" (1 Thess. 5:22). We all nod and agree with that because, after all, that's what our Bibles say. But does it mean to avoid all appearance of evil, or does it mean something else? I ask because if you think it through, it makes no sense. We live in a diverse world. It is unlikely that anything that you can imagine would be viewed universally as "good" or "evil". We are commanded, as an example, to share the gospel. Many people consider that evil. You shouldn't be foisting your beliefs off on others; that's wrong. So we are in a dilemma. If we are to obey this command in Thessalonians, then we must ignore the command to share the gospel. What are we to do?

I would suggest a second look. The popular rendition that I quoted above comes from the King James. It probably worked just fine in the 1600's. But what does the original text say? The word for "appearance" is eidous. It literally means "form". Can "form" mean "appearance"? Absolutely. But, may I suggest that it doesn't fit well in this verse? The idea in this verse is not to avoid appearing evil, but to avoid evil in all its forms. That's why the same verse in the New American Standard Bible reads, "Abstain from every form of evil." Now that makes sense, doesn't violate logic, and doesn't require the dilemma of which command to obey.

As I said, feel free to discard my view, but please don't simply ignore the situation. These passages need to be examined. If we are to be diligent students as we are commanded, it will take, at times, a longer look at some hard sayings.