When Scripture or any other exposition is taken out of context,\nthe listener only knows what the speaker says or thinks, not what the writer is\nsaying or thinking or intends for us to grasp. If we don\u2019t learn all about a\npassage, that is, why God said what He said when He said it, then all we are\ngetting is the speaker\u2019s experience of what those words mean to him. This might\nbe one way to emphasize this important step in true learning to your students:\nPrepare a detailed exposition of a passage of Scripture (refer to my columns of\nJanuary 2005 and February 2006). Don\u2019t forget the important step of comparing\nScripture with Scripture. The Bible repeats important lessons numerous times\nfor obvious reasons. Ask your students to read the passage before coming to\nSunday school. During your Sunday session, let each student present his\nsummation of what he learned reading this passage. List each response in a\ncolumn on your board. Discuss the different opinions (most will be just that)\nthe students drew from their reading. You should also let them discover why\nthere are so many variations (this will point out that personal\nopinion\/observations are the result of that person\u2019s personal experiences with\nthat subject).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now present to them the exposition you prepared of the\npassage. Do any of their personal observations of the meaning of this passage\nmatch the conclusion drawn from the expository approach? If so, congratulate\nthat student! Did that student come to the same conclusion by studying or by a\nstroke of chance? This method is an excellent way to demonstrate the importance\nof real study of any reading, whether Scripture or otherwise. To assume that a\nreader\u2019s experience is the only way to evaluate any reading is na\u00efve. To\npresent it that way is disservice at the least. To dig into the entire\nexposition of any reading is the only way to begin to uncover the real meaning.\nSometimes it takes going to numerous sources for background information and it\noften happens that new material can shed previously unknown light on passages.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"template":"","categories":[126],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7910","eutychus-article","type-eutychus-article","status-publish","hentry","category-eutychus"],"yoast_head":"\n