Christ the Healer: An Analysis (part 2)
I. Interpreting the Scriptures
The process of delivering the Scriptures to us and of translating truth into life involves, to a large measure, the dynamic activity of the Spirit of God. It is He who breathed out the words set down by holy men of God, so long ago. It is He who has providentially preserved an accurate rendering of what they wrote, in spite of the assault the Bible has endured over the centuries. It is He who regenerates sinners, instilling in them the life of God, by which they have the sensitivity and power to interact with what He has said. Both in illumination and application, we are dependent upon the Holy Spirit.
That being affirmed, it is also true that the interpretation of God’s Word requires all the brains God has given us. It calls for scholarship of the highest order, and systematic study. And the process of interpreting the Book cannot be simply subjective or haphazard. Certain logical principles must be followed if we are to arrive at the Author’s intent with any consistency.
Word meanings, grammar, and customary usage must be considered. (If we have not mastered the original languages, chiefly Hebrew and Greek, it will be necessary for us to make use of all the tools for study scholars have put at our disposal.) The immediate context (the surrounding verses) colour the intent, as does the historical setting (whom the author was writing to, when, and for what purpose, etc). Lastly, the harmony of the Bible must be assumed. (The word “harmony” has been chosen with purpose. Revelation is progressive, God revealing more and more, as biblical history unfolds. And there are significant changes in God’s program along the way. So, we are not speaking of uniformity so much as unity. What God says in one place will be consistent and harmonious with what He says elsewhere. If our interpretation does not support that principle, then we must rework it.)
With care, I would add that, in the labour of interpreting what God has revealed, there is a place for the subjective – for the position held throughout history, for theological tradition, for personal testimony and experience. We must not begin with such things, and then search the Scriptures for words and phrases to support and prove the opinions of men. But we can find some reassurance in such things as a kind of secondary confirmation of what God has said, even when appealed to rather tentatively and conditionally. (If, for example, we “discover” a new interpretation of a passage, that no one has ever thought of before, that certainly does not make it wrong. But it does make it suspect! Too much effort has been expended by godly Christian scholarship for us to arrogantly (or naively) ignore what has come before.)
These things are of critical importance in any careful study of Christ the Healer. Mr. Bosworth has assuredly given us a great deal of Scripture. But we must ascertain whether he has used it properly. It is this reviewer’s contention that, many times, he has not.
Take, for example, what seems to be one of his favourite verses, Jonah 2:8. (I say that because of the frequency with which he appeals to Jonah’s words. Reference is made to this verse on pages 94, 107, 109, 130, 138, and 145!) In the Authorized Version (King James), Jonah is quoted as saying, “They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.”
And what use does the author make of the prophet’s words? He pictures Jonah, lying in the whale’s belly, crying out to God for help. His circumstances do not immediately change, but he must ignore the evidence of his senses (lying vanities) and believe that God has indeed shown mercy and heard his cry. (This is to encourage the one who has prayed for healing not to be misled by the fact that his symptoms remain.) But, whether or not the point is valid, Mr. Bosworth’s proof text says nothing of the kind. “Lying vanities” is a descriptive word for idols (compare Deuteronomy 32:16-17,21; Psalm 31:6). The New International Version (NIV) captures the thought with, “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.”
The relevance of this can be seen right in the context. During the awful storm, the sailors had cried out to their gods (Jonah 1:5) to no avail. Only the true God who “made the sea and the dry land” (Jonah 1:9) could deliver Jonah.
Some time was taken with this passage because it is typical of the writer’s tendency to lift verses from their context and use them as he sees fit. This is not a proper treatment of God’s Word.
Some further examples? Another frequently appealed to statement is that in Heb. 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (pages 29, 43, 46, 75, and 84). It is Bosworth’s assertion that this verse proves miracles may still be expected today – because Christ never changes. But, once more, is that the biblical author’s point?
Consider the historical setting of the epistle. The writer is appealing to those Jews who have turned to Christ not to turn back from following Him. Christ is the fulfillment of all the pictures presented in the Old Testament (OT) sacrificial system. They must not start looking for some other Messiah, just because Jesus does not immediately return in glory to set up His kingdom. They must not lose heart. Kenneth Wuest’s literal translation of the Greek exactly captures the point being made – “Jesus is Messiah, yesterday, today, and forever”.
That is the sense in which Christ is changeless. The Bible makes no claim that He has never or will never change some of the things He does. In John 2:11, we read that turning water into wine at Cana was the first miracle of Jesus’ earthly ministry. That means He lived on earth for about thirty years before performing His first miracle. In Romans 6:9, we read that “Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more.” There again, He does not keep on doing the same thing through history. Certain things are past, forever. Whether that also applies to miracles is not the point here. What I am saying is that to use Heb. 13:8 to show that Christ never works in any different way is a misuse of the verse. It is not saying that at all.
There are many occasions when Bosworth assures us that a particular verse refers to bodily healing, or that it includes that, that his claim finds no support in the context. This, on p. 96, 2 Peter 3:9 becomes an appeal to wait patiently for healing, whereas in the context Peter is talking of the Lord’s patience in withholding the day of judgement, giving sinners a further opportunity to repent and be converted.
And only a bold step of reading into the text could get divine healing out of Rom. 5:10, “much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” The context is supplied by verse 9, “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” Paul is speaking of the eternal preservation of our souls by the intercession of the living Christ (as in Rom. 8:34). But to the author, it assures us of the availability of bodily healing (p. 150).
Prov. 4:20-22 becomes “the most comprehensive instructions as to how to receive healing” (p. 9). Granted at at least, in this case, there is some reference to physical health. Even so, a casual reading of the passage will show that Solomon is speaking of prevention, rather than intervention after the fact. Proverbs is packed with practical wisdom which, when applied, not only promotes spiritual but also physical health.
And what are we to make of the following?
The one hundred and twenty had “made and end of praying” and were all “continually praising and blessing God” when the Spirit was poured out upon them.
Christ the Healer (p. 188)
(The quotation marks have been added by Bosworth himself.) Is the reader to assume that the quoted words have been taken from the Bible? (They certainly have been given a “King James-ish” sound.) But you will look in vain to find these words in the Scriptures. Whether intentionally or not, such tactics are misleading.
If we are to discover God’s truth, on any subject, we must let the Bible speak, applying consistent principles of interpretation. These few examples serve to show that the author has not always done that. Says he, “‘Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.’ Freedom from sickness comes from knowing the truth (p. 6, 120, 164). But is this what Jesus is saying in John 8:32? Not really. He is speaking of discipleship (vs. 31). We must carefully challenge Bosworth’s assumptions about every passage, to find the true truth that frees!
(article continued tomorrow)