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"It is with a well-considered design that the Holy Scriptures speak of God as a being
resembling man, and ascribe to Him a face, eyes, ears, mouth, hands and feet, and the
sense of smell and hearing. This is done out of consideration for man's limited power of
comprehension and the same is the case when the Bible represents God as loving or
hating, as being jealous, angry, glad, or filled with regret. This shows that God is not
indifferent to man, and his behaviour, but notices them well. Moreover the Bible teaches
that man was made in the image and likeness of God, and therefore in the Divine Being
there must be something analogous to the qualities of man, though in highest perfection
and sin excepted."
When we study the Scriptures we must always bear these facts in mind and remember
that, in them, God has graciously stooped down to our limited intelligence, using things
that we do know, to explain in a measure those that we do not, because they are infinite
and beyond us.
This accommodation is very different from the way that the liberal theologian uses the
term. The modernistic critic not only believes in accommodation of form, but of matter
and content. Thus he asserts that the atonement of Christ, as a sacrifice, was only the
manner in which the first century Christians thought of the death of Christ, but this idea is
not binding upon Christianity today. In other words the sacrificial element in Christ's
death was only the opinion of the early Christians. This sort of accommodation we
utterly reject. We might as well shut the Bible up for good if this sort of thing is true, for
we could never be sure just what is, or what is not divine revelation.
Interpretation and Application.
Although Scripture basically has one meaning, there are moral applications that can be
made. The apostle Paul wrote:
". . . . . whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that
we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope" (Rom. 15: 4).
That is, the Old Testament Scriptures, though primarily referring to Israel, can have a
message for us. The strict interpretation of them is to the Jew, but there are principles in
them that can apply to us today. In another passage (I Cor. 10: 6, 11), Paul states that the
things which happened to the Israelites during their wilderness journey were for our
examples, and in II Tim. 3: 16 we are instructed that all Scripture (and this has primary
reference to the Old Testament) is for our profit with regard to doctrine, reproof,
correction and education in righteousness. However, we must always bear in mind that
such applications are not interpretations, and must not receive that status; nor must we
ever misinterpret a passage in order to derive an application from it that appears attractive
to us. Furthermore a true application can be made only if it fits in with revealed truth for
this present age of grace; if it does not, it becomes error, however appealing it may
appear.
In the Anglican morning service, the congregation quote Psa. 51: 11, as a prayer:
"Take not Thy Holy Spirit from me." That is wrong application, John 14: 16 makes
clear: