Don’t Twist The Scripture

Paula White is a self-proclaimed pastor, the television host of Paula Today, the president of Paula White Ministries and the National Faith Advisory Board, and the leader of the White House Faith Office.

In recent post online at Christianitytoday.com contributor Carmen Joy Imes writes that White “misappropriates God’s promises to ancient Israel in Exodus as a prosperity gospel for today.”

Apparently White released a video last week “encouraging Christians to celebrate Passover in order to unlock seven supernatural blessings.”

Based on Exodus 23:14-30 White says God will (1) “assign an angel to you,” (2) “be an enemy to your enemies,” (3) “give you prosperity,” (4) “take sickness away from you,” (5) “give you a long life,” (6) “bring increase and inheritance,” and (7) “give a special year of blessing.”

Though not implicitly stated the video implies that by contributing up to $1000 to White’s ministry you will receive these blessings.

Imes refutes White’s pronouncement in great detail pointing out that God’s promises in this text are given to ancient Israel as they were leaving Mt. Sinai and beginning their journey toward the promised land of Canaan. They were not given to New Testament Christians. Nor has God promised unconditional health and wealth to those who follow Jesus.

On the contrary, we’re told that we may endure suffering, persecution, and trials for Jesus’ sake (Matt. 5:11-12; 1 Pet. 4:15-16; Jas. 1:2-4). The apostles never preached a “health and wealth” gospel. In fact, Peter was imprisoned. James was beheaded. Paul suffered “a thorn in the flesh.” And the last time we read about the beloved John, he was exiled on the island of Patmos as a “companion in the tribulation” (Rev. 1:9).

White’s outlandish assertions reminds us of Peter’s warning about false teachers who are “ignorant and unstable” and “twist the scriptures to their own destruction” (1 Pet. 3:16).

The word “twist” means “to distort.” Thayer says the word literally means “to torture” or “to put to the rack.”

Dr. Clinton D. Hamilton in his commentary offers this insightful comment on the word “twist.”

“The metaphor is graphic and descriptive. As those who would put another on the torture rack to twist it to the point of making the person say what they want to hear, so it is that these erroneous instructors twist and torture Scripture to their own ends.”

“They twist, pervert, strain or torture Scripture to make it support what it is they want to teach and do. It is not surprising that in our day there are all sorts of false teachers and cults to pervert and twist the Scripture to fit what they want to say. Never mind the fact that their interpretation contradicts the context, the language and other Scripture!”

When Dr. Hamilton was my Bible professor at Florida College, I recall him warning us preacher boys with words to the effect, “A text apart from the context is a mere pretext.” In other words don’t isolate a verse, phrase, or even an entire text from the historical setting and the circumstances surrounding it. He often talked of the importance of proper exegesis (drawing meaning from the text) as opposed to eisegenis (reading our own interpretation into the text).

Here are some simple guidelines to prevent perverting the scriptures by asking these questions:

1. Who is speaking? Who is the author?
2. To whom is the text spoken to or written to?
3. When was it written?
4. Where was it written?
5. Why was it written or spoken?
6. Is the language obviously literal or figurative?
7. What does God want me to understand? To believe? To desire? To do?
8. What is the main point of this passage?
9. What is the cultural or historical context?
10. How does this text connect or relate to other Bible passages?

These questions help us to fulfill Paul’s command to Timothy. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth” (2Tim. 2:14). To handle the word accurately is to, as other versions express it, “to rightly divide” or “correctly handle the word of Truth”

On a fundamental level this means to understand the difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament, often referred to a the Old Law and the New Law, or the Law of Moses and the Law of Christ. To realize that God has used various means and methods to reveal His Word to people through the ages, but today speaks to us through Jesus Christ, as revealed in the New Testament (Heb. 1:1-3).

Don’t be guilty of twisting the Scriptures to fit your preconceived ideas. Don’t expect God’s promises to the Exodus Israelites to be realized in your life. Oh, and don’t send Paula White any money.

–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman