 Welcome back. We'll just continue. So we were talking about why it's important to look at culture. Any other thoughts on why is it important to consider the culture of that time or of the passage we're reading? So sometimes one example that's given here in our text is we might understand it from our model, like we think in a certain way. And when we read that passage, we'll interpret that passage from our way of thinking. And so we might view something as maybe oppressive to women or something that is biased in some way, because we've not understood what was that context. What does this mean in that age, in that time? And if we don't understand that, then we are understanding it based on our cultural lens. So first of all, we have to recognize that we have our culture and we have a lens through which we are viewing scripture. And then scripture has its own culture. So to be able to understand our own culture, to be able to understand what is scripture's culture and then be able to apply it to our lives, take the truth from it and apply it to our lives. So when we look at culture, there are different things that we consider to be part of every culture. There's the political environment, the religious practices of that culture. So we see, I mean, even today this is true that a specific group of people, like a nation, may have their own religion. So that is the predominant religion of that nation. So that influences the culture, how they operate, what they view as acceptable, what they view as unacceptable. So there's the military, so how did their defense system function? We see in scripture where, when it's talking about putting on the armor of faith, it's referring to what was common to the people at that time, what they were using in back. Today we don't go out with the same kind of things. We don't go out with arrows and bows and all of those things. But that to them was what they were seeing. They understood that as their way of defending their country, of protecting themselves. And so understanding that scripture passage in the context of what they were familiar with, there's a legal system in place. So how were legal cases judged? We will look at how Jesus was tried before the Roman authorities. Why was he taken to the Roman authorities? How did they try him? Even the legal system within the Jewish thing, within the Jewish kind of structure, the religious structure, how did it function there? And how can we understand Jesus' trial from that perspective of understanding how they tried cases? Was Jesus' trial fair in the first place? All of those things. So knowing what were the practices of that time, to be able to understand what we're reading in a much more realistic way. Because the readers of that day would have read it and they would have immediately understood what was happening. But we come from such a different time that we don't understand the nuances that are there in those stories. And so we have to study these things. We have to look at the background. The agriculture. Why does Jesus use so many examples of farmers of sowing seeds? Because it was an agricultural society highly dependent on agriculture for their wealth. And so when he's using these examples, that is also something that is very common to the people. They understand what he's talking about because they're seeing it all the time. They are practicing it. So another thing for us to learn is Jesus was using their everyday experiences. So when we are preaching or when we're teaching, how are we using people's everyday experiences to explain scripture? We can't use the same examples of agriculture. We can't use the same examples of shepherds. Because where do we ever see shepherds? We don't see shepherds. We don't know what the way shepherds function. Why don't we understand what is a staff? What is a rod? We go in and we study the meaning of those things because we don't see shepherds around us. We don't know what those things mean. So for us also learning from Jesus' preaching style, using the things that people are seeing in their everyday lives to communicate truths. There's a social aspect, how people related to each other, what was the different statuses in society. Also recognizing that there were so many different cultures within this Roman province. There was the Greek culture. There's the Jewish culture. There's the history that they have of Greeks ruling over this place. Understanding all of those things, how do all of these people relate to each other? How do Samaritans relate to the Greeks? All of those social structures. The economy, how the taxes that the Romans were collecting. The temple taxes that were collected by the Jews. All of those things, understanding that. Understanding the architecture when they talk about how beautiful the temple is. What was it that was beautiful about the temple? How did it compare to the architecture of that day? There are so many descriptions of things that were happening. Solomon's Colonnade. So what was that? Where was that? How was that place being used? All of those things help us better understand the context. Clothing. A classic example, women covering their head. In the Old Testament, men should not wear women's clothes. Women should not wear men's clothes. What does that mean? All of those things. Geography. So where did these things take place? Was there a sea close by? Who were the people who lived there? There were fishermen. There were shepherds. There were Samaritans or Jews. There were Gentiles. Who were the people? So understanding the geography. And then understanding the family and home. So the father as the head of the home. The most senior male member having authority. Some of those things may still be part of our culture, but some things may be very different. So understanding how all of these familial relationships happened and also how did the family operate. There's so much teaching in the New Testament about how husbands and wives should relate to each other. How parents should relate to their children, children to parents. How slaves should obey their masters. All of these things that we don't see. We don't see slaves. We're not directly exposed to it. It's definitely there in existence, but we don't see it in our everyday lives. So understanding all of these things and then interpreting the passage based on how was it functioning in that culture. Okay. So some of the questions we need to ask when we recognize that there is a cultural gap. There are things that were done so differently in those days than is done here in our present time where we are. How do we read scriptures? Do we take everything in scripture and we just practice it exactly as scripture talks about it? Or do we try to differentiate between what is cultural and what is a principle that we need to still follow today? That is one aspect. The other is how much does culture influence scripture? So when we are reading scripture, we have to always be worried that there's some cultural aspect I'm missing. Maybe I'm misunderstanding this passage. So how much of it is relevant just to be taken and followed and how much of it needs to be interpreted correctly and for us to differentiate between culture and what is the truth that we need to follow? And then how do we determine which teachings we need to transfer and which teachings we don't need to transfer? What is just a cultural thing and what is something that is normative, something that we still need to be following today? So we're going to look at a few examples from our textbook. So this is just a list of different verses and we need to decide whether it's a permanent practice that is something that we still need to follow today of its temporary that something that was followed in that culture we don't need to do the exact practice. Maybe we need to look at what was the truth underline that practice and follow that truth but we don't need to follow the exact practice. So if it's something we don't need to follow exactly it's considered as temporary. If it's something that we need to follow exactly then it's a permanent practice. So greet one another with a holy kiss. Is that permanent or temporary? Temporary. Everyone agrees? Yeah, online as well please. Okay, so that was a temporary practice limited to that culture, right? That was their standard way of saying hello to one another or like how some people will hug, some people will shake hands, some people will fold their hands whatever a way of showing respect, of acknowledging one another showing love towards one another. Abstain from meat sacrifice to idols. Temporary, permanent? Okay, temporary? Okay, let's see. Any other thoughts? Who are saying temporary? Who are saying temporary? Okay, and permanent? Okay, we'll decide when we click on this. Okay, so it's a permanent teaching in that the truth of it is don't participate in that worship of idols, don't participate. So when Paul talks about it specifically he's saying when you eat that meat you may cause somebody else to fall because somebody believes that that idol is God, right? And so they believe that there is some significance to that food and so if you're participating in it they believe that you are participating in their worship. So for another person who is not so strong in faith you may be a stumbling block to them. But for yourself you know that that idol is not God and so when you're eating that meat there is no significance to that meat. It's just good food and you've prayed and you've blessed it in Jesus' name. So we understand those teachings of why was he saying abstain from it is because it may cause somebody else to fall. He's not saying abstain from it because there's something wrong with the meat itself. So from that perspective it is a permanent teaching. Be baptized. Permanent. So be baptized is permanent. Wash one another's feet. Just because you don't want to do it. Wash one another's feet is temporary, limited to that culture. A way of welcoming, showing respect to your guests. That kind of thing. So especially an act that a servant would do. So when Jesus does it it's really like he's really lowering himself to do that. Yes. If you know these things, let's say that if you do that. John chapter 13, 17. The commanding disciples to wash one another's feet. So is it more in relevance to how humble and you need to be not like Lord of all as a master but as a master you have to serve. Yes. There are still some practices that are not mistaken like you know, I'm not sure it can be quite wrong but there are some places where they actually do that. They wash people's. Yes. I don't know about like places where it's practiced regularly but I know that people do it in certain like sometimes when they are... What's that? I'm not sure there's one pope who are actually done it in the recent... Okay. Yeah. So I think they are taking that like following Jesus's example literally which there's nothing wrong with it. It's just to say that we don't need to start doing that all the time. That doesn't need to become a regular practice within the church. We understand what the purpose was. Yeah. So to take that truth, the underlying truth and follow that. So what does it mean to have the heart of a servant even though you are the leader of a certain place? How do you still serve the people with that kind of humility? So what might that look like in your culture? It may be something like just adding chairs, setting them out for a meeting. You don't need to do that because you're the leader but you do it because you recognize that you are also serving people. So those kinds of things where you lower yourself, you don't allow people to put you in this on this platform and always be serving you rather you choose to do things that will also serve others. Okay. Anyone else has any questions, thoughts? Okay. Extend the right hand of fellowship. Permanent or temporary? Permanent? Okay. Everyone agrees on permanent? Everyone's a little bit confused. Okay. So again it's a temporary practice because the principle behind it is that you warmly welcome people into your gatherings. You extend love, so you extend brotherly or sisterly love to people. That is the, so you do it in whatever way is app for that culture, that situation. So some places the men and women don't shake hands. So if you're saying we all have to extend the right hand of fellowship that means we all have to stretch out our right hand and welcome somebody. Someone may not be comfortable with that. So how do we show the same kind of love and acceptance of people in a way that is culturally relevant or in that setting what is, how do you express fellowship? How do you express love towards one another? Ordain by the laying on of hands. You want to read the passage, Acts 13.3. Acts 13.3. Then after fasting and praying they lay their hands on them and send them off. Okay. So this is where Paul and Barnabas are being sent on their first missionary journey before that that's their commissioning or they're sending out. So any thoughts? Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Big thoughts. Anyone online? Okay. So if we look at Hebrews 6.1 and 2, we'll just open to that. Elementary principles of Christ. Let us go on to perfection. Okay. So here we see laying on of hands as included in one of the basic things of faith, right? All the other things are things we continue to believe, right? Fundament. So they're saying things of fundamental importance, repenting from evil deeds, placing our faith in God, baptism, resurrection of the dead, eternal judgment. All those things are things that we continue to believe in. So laying on of hands is something we continue to follow as part of that as something that's included as one of the fundamental practices of fundamental beliefs in our faith. So in that regard, it's considered as permanent. Okay. Prohibit women from speaking in a church assembly. Temporary. Okay. Okay. Yes, it's temporary because it is about that specific context that Paul was talking about and we'll actually be looking more into it later on. So we won't go into it now, but it's within the context of that church, what was going on there, all of those things that he's giving that teaching. Have fixed hours of prayer. Permanent. Okay. Everyone thinks permanent. You can pray anytime. Okay. What's it? It's also have a fixed prayer. We can pray anytime, but we should also have a fixed prayer time. Yeah. So the verse that's given you is Acts 3-1. So it says, Peter and John went to the temple one afternoon to take part in the three o'clock prayer service. Okay. So they had a prayer service at three o'clock. Should we continue to have a prayer service at three o'clock is the question. Do we need to follow that practice? Okay. So yeah, from a perspective of discipline, and this is personal or even as an organized prayer thing, we have to have a fixed time to meet, right? We're going to have our church service. We have to have a time, but we don't have to have three o'clock. We don't have to continue to follow that. Oh, we will have to have our church services at three o'clock because they had their church service at three o'clock. So from that, so we are taking that principle and we follow it, but we don't take the exact practice. So it's temporary from that. So to understand where we are following the exact practice and where we are taking something that is good, like the principle or the truth and following the truth without the exact practice being followed. Okay. So this will be temporary. Colossians 316 sings songs, hymns and spiritual songs or sing songs. Permanent. Okay. Permanent. Okay. Yeah. One line of the permanent. Okay. Yeah. We continue to do that in our services and we continue to do that as part of expressing our faith to God and all based on scripture. So it is permanent. So how do we decide that something is permanent or temporary? It's not based on, okay, we are seeing it today happening today. So it's permanent. We're not seeing it today. So it's temporary. We're not basing it on what we are seeing. Yeah. Yeah. We base it on what scripture says. So we look at some of the ways in which we can discern whether something should be considered as a temporary practice or something should be considered permanent. So a few more examples, abstain from eating blood. So this, okay, what was it? Temporary. Okay. What's that? Permanent. Okay. And online. Permanent. Okay. So this is a little confusing because we earlier looked at abstain from meat sacrifice to idle abstain from eating blood is can be considered as part of that. Now it's considered as temporary because of how blood was viewed in that culture. Blood was viewed as carrying the life of the animal. So when you sacrifice the animal, if you're eating the blood, you're kind of like consuming something that is part of their life, but also because of health purposes of how it was, especially in Jewish culture, we see that. But so that's something we see in Jewish culture. And then acts 1529 connected to idol worship. You must abstain from eating blood, but eating blood separate from idol worship from sacrifices offered to idols is part of some people's diet. So we see when God, when Peter has the vision of all animals are clean. The truth that's revealed in that is what you consume cannot in any way make you unclean. Right. So if you're eating blood, which is not sacrificed to idols, then it is just something that is part of your culture that is not wrong. So when we read, let's just read acts 1529. If someone can read that for us. That you obtain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what has been stangled and from section immorality. If you keep yourself from these, you will do well farewell. Okay. So this is written to this is the letter that's written to the Gentiles because there was some teaching coming to the Gentiles that they have to follow Old Testament law. They had to be circumcised, all of those things. And then the Jerusalem church writes this letter to them saying, don't eat food sacrificed idols. Don't drink the blood of animals. Don't eat strangled meat. So it's in the context of animals that are sacrificed. Okay. So if it's just some other animal and it's part of your diet in your culture, it's a different it's not considered wrong as per scripture. Okay. Slaves obey your earthly masters. Okay. Okay. Okay. So most countries now it's illegal to have slaves. So that's one side of it. But we again, so we in the church, how do we take this teaching? What do we understand from it? We understand the principle of it that as people who work for work under authority, we will walk in obedience, but we don't have the same practice of slavery. So in that sense, it's a temporary thing. Okay. So we won't follow the practice of slavery, right? Within the church or within our culture at least this and I think most places it's illegal. We don't follow that practice of slavery. But we follow the principle of obeying your authority. Okay. Understood that. So that's what we are saying. Anything we're taking, we'll take that principle. So what is the principle is reverence to Christ who is our master and to respect the authorities that he has given in our lives. So it may be our employers, whatever. But the practice of slavery is not permanent. So that is the difference. Observe the Lord's Supper. Permanent. Okay. Permanent. Thank you. Do not make any oaths. Permanent. Okay. Everyone agree online also. Do not make any oaths. Yeah. Permanent. Be circumcised. Temporary. Right. So these things are the ones that are simple. That's clear. So why do you all say that be circumcised is temporary? Okay. Christ was circumcised on Abihab. Okay. Anything like specific from scripture that you can point to why is being circumcised a temporary? Yeah. So scripture in the New Testament teaches that we are no longer under the covenant of the law, but we are under the covenant of grace. Right. We see clear teaching from even the passage we read in Acts 15, where the Gentiles are being taught to, some people are saying Gentiles should be circumcised. But the leaders of the church say it's not necessary for you to be circumcised. These are the only things you need to continue to follow. Right in the New Testament, it's making a change in the rule for new believers. New believers no longer need to be circumcised. They need to, but there are some certain things from the Old Testament that they still need to follow. Or there are some things that they still need to continue to practice. So that is going to be one of the principles that we will take into consideration when we are deciding whether something is cultural or something is temporary or something is permanent. Has the New Testament said something specifically saying you no longer need to follow this? Some things we, it's like this we already know intuitively. We know that the New Testament teaches this. We know it's a temporary thing. So that's one way to discern. Wear sandals, but not an extra tunic. Temporary. Yeah. Yes. Temporary. And then cast lots for church officers. Temporary. Okay. So, yeah. So we know a lot of these things. We'll just look at why we consider some things as permanent, why we consider some things as temporary. What are the principles we use when we make that decision? So, yeah. There are two tasks we need to decide whether how was, how was a certain text to be looked at in that cultural setting? And what does it mean in our context today? Okay. So in that culture, how were they reading the text? How were they receiving the teaching? And how does this apply to us in our context? Those are two decisions when we are reading scripture or two ways in which we look at the Bible. So some of the principles, one is, is it repeatable? Is it something that we see continuously in scripture? So from the Old Testament to the New Testament, do we see that practice continued? Do we see that it has not been anywhere revoked? So like we talked about the circumcision, it's clearly said you don't need to be circumcised in the New Testament. So that is an example of something that has been revoked or something that is kind of withdrawn from the things that we need to do. Okay. Then another print. So is it repeatable, continuous or not revoked? Is it a moral or theological subject? Is it something to do with a standard of right and wrong? If it's right and wrong, like this is sin, this is not sin, then it shouldn't change, right? What was considered wrong will still be considered wrong. For no reason will that change. So it's not a, is it something that is moral or is it theological? Something about God, something that has been revealed about God, won't change over time. God is one way, one time, another way, another time. Is it repeated elsewhere in scripture? So has it been repeated as something that is continuing to be followed in the church, in the New Testament, or repeated as something that we should continue to do? So some examples here. Genesis 9.6. Okay, we'll just read that passage. Genesis 9.6. Genesis 9.6. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed for God made man in his own image. Thank you. Thank you. So that has not changed. There's no other place in scripture where it says, now you will no longer, that will no longer be the punishment for murder. Right? So if somebody takes someone else's life, the punishment is that their life will be taken. Now this is also up to the justice system of that country. So the country may decide that they're not doing capital punishment or that they're doing lifetime imprisonment, whatever it may be. But scripture's teaching is a life for a life. If you've taken someone's life, your life is the payment for that crime, will be the punishment. Okay? Pauli gimme to monogamy. So in the Old Testament, we see that we don't see it in Genesis. We see Adam had was Eve was made for Adam. But after that, the cultural practice was that there were multiple wives for one person, one man had multiple wives. That was part of the cultures of the surrounding and people started to follow that. But in the New Testament, it's clearly taught that you should only have one wife. There's no teaching on you can stay faithful to all your wives. You shouldn't divorce any of your wives. There's only one wife and you shouldn't divorce. Once you've come together, you have become one. So there's no possibility of then becoming one with somebody else. So based on New Testament teaching, we don't follow Pauli gimme. Okay? Nazarite was led to grow his hair. So in the Old Testament, we see that some people who were specially set apart for God were asked not to cut their hair. So Samson was asked not to cut his hair. And John the Baptist also actually was somewhat like a Nazarite. Similar commandments to what was given to Samson. But again in 1 Corinthians 11, we see that long hair is considered dishonorable. So how do we understand that? How do we interpret that? So we understand that in the Old Testament where it was written, it was because of that culture that it was written in. Also in the New Testament, it was because of the culture in which it was written. Okay? In both places, there's no command to grow your hair. And the long hair example is used more from the context of covering their head and that kind of explanation that Paul gives. So when we are looking at the covering of the head, we look more in detail at that. But basically not everyone has to grow their hair. And long hair again is dependent on what is your definition of long hair. But it was in relation to the covering of the head. Okay? So we ask, these are two questions to ask when we are deciding if something is a cultural practice or a permanent practice. Ask if it has been revoked or replaced by some other teaching. Okay? So now we're not going to say all men have to grow their hair because you are all going to serve God now. You all have to grow your hair long. Okay? So the Nazarite, because the Nazarites in the Old Testament, we don't say that because we don't see that being commanded in the New Testament. And then what was the last command on the topic? So those are two things we'll ask. Okay? I think we can stop here. We still have some stuff left, but we can continue. But are there any questions, any thoughts? Without the scriptural reference, the mindset and the thinking goes in a different pattern. But with those scriptural references, then you really tend to understand it's temporary. Yes. So reading the actual verse in the Bible, looking at what was the context within which it was written is very important. Yeah. Okay. Sanjay had also shared one circumcision. Paul called for circumcision of the heart. That is a spiritual circumcision. Yeah. Okay. So there's no other questions. We'll take a break and come back at 11. Just Lucy said you're still not able to view with another student. Be able to help Lucy with that. Please. Okay. So I'll keep the chat open, but I'll just end the class for now. Thank you all for being here. Thanks.