What should the believer do with passages in the Bible that seem to contradict?
For example, consider the following verses:
Genesis 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Genesis 9:3 Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.
Leviticus 11:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
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These verses teach different doctrine.
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Genesis 1:29 instructs man to follow a vegetarian diet.
Genesis 9:3 allows man to eat anything that moves in addition to plants.
Leviticus 11:2 teaches that only certain animals may be eaten.
Which of these instructions should be observed? All three? None? Just one of them? If so, which one? Why?
These questions and other similar questions are answered below.
For example, consider the following verses:
Genesis 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Genesis 9:3 Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.
Leviticus 11:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
___________________________________
These verses teach different doctrine.
___________________________________
Genesis 1:29 instructs man to follow a vegetarian diet.
Genesis 9:3 allows man to eat anything that moves in addition to plants.
Leviticus 11:2 teaches that only certain animals may be eaten.
Which of these instructions should be observed? All three? None? Just one of them? If so, which one? Why?
These questions and other similar questions are answered below.
What is rightly dividing the word of truth?
The Bible is the believer’s final authority in all matters of faith and practice. Therefore, if the Bible tells us that we are to study it in a particular way, we should obey those instructions. There is no room for our own preferences and opinions. If God gives us specific instructions on how to study the Bible, then that is what we must do. One of God’s instructions on how to study the Bible is the following: 2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Since God has commanded us to divide the word of truth, there must be divisions in the Bible for us to divide. Rightly dividing the word of truth is simply recognizing the divisions that God has placed in the Bible. These divisions are commonly called dispensations or ages.
What is a dispensation?
Webster’s Third New International Dictionary defines dispensation in the following manner:
Dispensation (1) ORDERING, ADMINISTRATION, MANAGEMENT; specif: a divine ordering and administration of worldly affairs (2) : a system of principles, promises, and rules divinely ordained and administered (3) a period of history during which a particular divine revelation has predominated in the affairs of mankind.
Put succinctly, as the term is used in the scriptures, a dispensation is a God-revealed body of information given for man’s obedience during a certain period of time.
Dispensation (1) ORDERING, ADMINISTRATION, MANAGEMENT; specif: a divine ordering and administration of worldly affairs (2) : a system of principles, promises, and rules divinely ordained and administered (3) a period of history during which a particular divine revelation has predominated in the affairs of mankind.
Put succinctly, as the term is used in the scriptures, a dispensation is a God-revealed body of information given for man’s obedience during a certain period of time.
Is there an easier word than dispensation?
There are lots of easier words than dispensation, but dispensation is the word that God chose. For example: 1 Corinthians 9:17 For if I do this thing willingly, I have a reward: but if against my will, a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me. The word “dispensation” may not be familiar, but it is a word specifically chosen by God with a precise meaning that is important. The above verse refers to God entrusting a particular gospel to the apostle Paul.
What is dispensationalism?
Again, we consult Webster’s Third New International Dictionary:
dispensationalism: adherence to or advocacy of a system of interpreting history in terms of a series of God’s dispensations.
Dispensationalism is simply recognizing the different dispensations in the Bible.
dispensationalism: adherence to or advocacy of a system of interpreting history in terms of a series of God’s dispensations.
Dispensationalism is simply recognizing the different dispensations in the Bible.
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