A Wrong Interpretation

Have you ever heard someone give a wrong interpretation of a Bible verse or passage? I’m sure many of you have. If you noticed it and were bothered by it, did you approach the speaker later and discuss it with him/her? I remember as a new Christian I depended a great deal on more mature Christians to help me understand the Bible. I sat under some pastors who taught a wrong doctrine concerning a Christian losing salvation. It always bothered me because I couldn’t reconcile it with anything in the Bible. The verses used just didn’t add up or appear to present a clear meaning of how the pastor had used it. As I matured in the Lord and furthered my study of the Bible, I soon discovered all that teaching was wrong and a misinterpretation of the scripture.

Some may ask, “Why would someone teach these things if they’re not true? Why would they want to teach these things?” The answer is simple; either they have an agenda to intentionally teach these false doctrines or they simply haven’t learned how to properly interpret scripture. It’s so easy to pull verses out of context and give a wrong meaning or a false interpretation. Maybe the teacher or pastor has been taught this false meaning or doctrine so he forces a verse or passage to support his false doctrine. I have witnessed this practice and it can be very difficult to get these people to accept they are wrong even when the evidence is crystal clear when presented to them.

Allow me to give an example of how this might be done concerning water baptism as a requirement for salvation. Let’s look at Mark 16:16,

He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

A simple cursory look at this scripture tells us in order to be saved, we must believe and be baptized. That is what this verse says. But does the Bible tell us this anywhere else? Can we support this idea or false claim by using another verse, passage or anything elsewhere in scripture? The answer would be no. This is not found anywhere else in the Bible concerning salvation. As a matter of fact, Eph. 2:8-9 tells how we are saved.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God  not of works, lest anyone should boast. 

These verses tell us we are saved by God’s grace and our faith in Him but says nothing about baptism. Another verse which is used to refute this idea is the thief on the cross next to Jesus. He believed Jesus was the Son of God, the Messiah, and Jesus told him,

Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.  Lk 23:42-43

Even in the anguish which Jesus was suffering, he knew the sincerity of the man’s heart and saved him. Jesus said nothing to him concerning his lack of water baptism. Can you imagine what that would have sounded like?

“Well, I’m sorry sir but I can’t save you today from the fires of hell. If only you had been baptized prior to your death sentence and time on this cross. Then, I could have saved you.”

So, why would the gospel writer make this statement in scripture? What did he mean? This is how the Bible is misinterpreted. The verse says, “whoever believes and is baptized” and therefore, many just assume the meaning to be we need both of these for salvation. But that is wrong. The emphasis here is first to believe and following salvation, be baptized. It also says that he who does not believe, and there's the bottom line, will be condemned. It doesn't say he who does not believe and fails to be baptized will be condemned. Baptism is the outward display of what has happened on the inside. In Acts 10:44-48, Gentiles at Caesarea were saved and later baptized. Paul told the Corinthians,

  For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.   1 Cor 1:17

Paul, probably the greatest evangelist/pastor and Bible teacher to ever live (except Jesus), said he was sent to preach the gospel and not baptize. If water baptism was a requirement for salvation, why would God send Paul to only preach the gospel and not baptize? So, if a proper study and research is done concerning water baptism, it is easy to see that is not what MK 16:16 is saying as far as it being required for salvation.

Alright, I think you get what I’m saying about how scripture is wrongly interpreted. This is just one example and there are so many others. If you listen to some of the stuff that comes out of Bethal Church, Kenneth Copeland Ministries and those like them, you will hear some crazy things said concerning the Bible. The money and prosperity preachers have for many years taught a twisted scripture meaning to get you to send them your money and lie about how you can get rich. And many have fallen for it and believe it.

Finally, you might be scratching your head and wondering why people buy into these lies and believe them. The answer is simple; they don’t read and study the Bible. Being prepared through prayer and yielding to the Holy Spirit for His help, will enable any Christian to read, study and rightly know what the Bible is saying. It takes discipline, determination and the wisdom of God. But in too many cases, it’s easier to just sit and listen and believe everything that is said. The thinking can be something like this, “Well, he’s the pastor, he must be right. Why would he say things that are not true?” 

Those who think this way need to know about the Bereans in Acts 17:11. After listening to the Apostle Paul preach the gospel to them, they went to the scriptures and checked to see if he was telling them the truth and what the scripture says. If you’re listening to a pastor or Bible teacher and you hear something that doesn’t sound right, you should check your Bible and if it doesn’t add up, go talk to him. If the pastor is unapproachable, find another church. If he’s preaching false doctrine, run to another church.

So, the biggest problem on the teaching wrong doctrine end is a lack of understanding the scripture, laziness in study or bad study habits or just an outright attempt to intentionally teach a false doctrine. And a person who has been taught wrong his entire Christian life will use scripture wrongly to fit his wrong beliefs. For the Christian who buys into these wrong teachings, it’s what they have always heard and so they continue to believe it. They haven’t been taught why it’s wrong and shown from the scripture why it’s wrong. So, they continue to buy into teachings such as, you can lose your salvation, or you must be baptized to be saved and so many others. I was misled for years and even taught the wrong interpretation. (Concerning a different doctrine than losing your salvation)

But someone took the time to explain to me and show me from scripture where and why I was wrong. And that is what has to be done. An argument over doctrine or interpretation will not educate and allow the person to see and understand how and why they are wrong. I’m referring to essential doctrines such as salvation, the resurrection, heaven, hell and eternal security and others. Take them to scripture and passages in context so they can see and understand for themselves. Pray, educate and encourage; don’t argue. They will probably want to argue but keep the situation calm and kindly explain with God’s word how they can see and understand the truth. 

For me, I wanted to argue. I knew I was right, and I wasn’t going to accept their ‘wrong interpretation.' But the man who showed me used scriptures to show me how and why my beliefs didn’t add up. And then I knew. It was like a light bulb went on and it was all clear to me. It was then that I knew why those teachings didn’t add up or why I couldn’t get the verses to make sense.

Do it in love and kindness. Don’t raise your voice or type in all caps. Just simply explain the truth with God’s word. If you might have been exposed to a wrong teaching and are having doubts, pray and also ask for help from a trusted source and not someone who might be caught up in the same teaching. Don’t just sit and listen. Study and know what God’s word says. It is the document which we live our Christian lives by. Don’t just take someone’s word for it. Check it out in the Bible. Can it be systematically proven, or be threaded through the Bible, as scripture interprets scripture? Or does it fall apart.

Bill Petite