How To Study The Bible | Lenses of Context Pt 1 - Historical | EP144

In the first episode of our new six-part mini-series Lenses of Context, Walking The Text founder Brad Gray shows us how understanding the historical context of a passage can amplify its meaning. The Bible is filled with subtle clues that reveal the state of the world at the time the passage was written. From a historical perspective these clues include things like: Who’s in charge? What’s their rule or reign like? What else is happening in the world? And what sort of implications do these things have for the world at the time of this particular passage?

For instance, in Revelation 3:1-6, Jesus has a message for the church in Sardis. Located in Western Asia Minor (present day Turkey), one of the unique features of Sardis was the towering, impenetrable walls of the acropolis. When attacked, the citizens of Sardis would flee to the top of the acropolis and simply wait out their enemies. Unfortunately, the height of their walls made them overconfident in ways that would prove devastating.

Consequently, in the sixth century BC, the Persians laid siege to Sardis. During the siege, a Persian observed a Lydian soldier retrieve a fallen helmet from a secret place in the wall. Later, the Persians attacked this location and caught the city by surprise. Hundreds of years later, the city would be conquered in a similar fashion. Sardis has a history of being asleep and overconfident. And when Jesus addresses the church at Sardis, he likens their faithfulness to the overconfidence of Sardis. If we don’t understand that history, we’ll miss what Jesus was saying. By the end of this first episode in Lenses of Context: Historical, you’ll be equipped with a set of five questions to ask any passage you’re reading in order to understand its historical context.

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[FireItUpGarage]

Thank you for taking the time to make these videos and for offering them to the public. You are making a great investment in the kingdom.

[karlb]

Wow! Paul instructed Timothy right! Study! The Sardis example blew me away! I never connected it historically. Thanks!

[Keholy]

This was so informational it was exactly what I was looking for. Thank you

[teamturnertravels]

I absolutely love what is being taught through this series! Thank you.

[sherynhoward]

This is awesome and how I like to study the word. Thank you for this. Looking forward to more

[TheChrissyClassic]

As someone who is really into history, this helped a whole lot! Thank you and keep up the good work :)

[mambamentality]

What's the frequency of these videos? I would like to follow this teaching

[BlackSmithWolf]

I can't seem to find the 3rd edition, unless there is a mistake in this video, I could only find the 2nd edition.

[Magicglasses]

Ok I get it but how do we find out the history for ourselves how do we learn the history

[JoseContreras-fvfe]

Test a Mr. Leesr ay Dios to two test saying que evaluation!

[jesuschristsaves]

The Gospel of salvation of our souls: what I received I passed on to you as of [first importance]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,   that he was buried,  that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,  and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.  After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time,