Meaning: Don't Get it Twisted
Finding the Meaning of Scripture
Have you ever had your words twisted to mean something you didn’t intend? It’s a terrible feeling. Maybe someone had an agenda, or they only heard part of what you said. Perhaps they used your words against you. Whether intentional or not, being misunderstood is frustrating, but being misrepresented feels even worse.
I remember an experience that still stings. Years ago, I reached out to a well-known Christian author for advice about church planting. He’s a Black pastor who’s written extensively about race and Christianity, and I was hoping to learn from him as a white pastor planting a church in Orangeburg. During our conversation, he asked me why I wasn’t planting among rural white people. I explained, “It never occurred to me to plant a church focused on white people in Orangeburg because they are a small minority of the population. I felt called to my hometown, and I would seek to minister to white people in proportion to the population.”
Months later, I stumbled across an article in a national Christian magazine titled, “White People Need Jesus Too.” To my shock, the author had quoted me—but only part of what I said. He wrote, “It never occurred to me to plant a church focused on white people.” That was it. No context. No explanation. My words had been twisted to serve his point, and the truth of what I had actually said was lost.
But let’s be honest: we live in a world where twisting words has become the norm. In our post-truth culture, objective truth has been replaced by subjective feelings. “It’s not what you meant; it’s how I felt about it that matters.” You see this everywhere—on social media, in political debates, even in casual conversations. Oprah once said, “Sometimes it takes doing the things that people say you’re not supposed to be doing to find out what’s true for you.” But that’s a dangerous path. Truth is not something we manufacture; it’s something we receive.
When truth is subjective, evidence doesn’t matter. Reality doesn’t matter. We assign meaning to words based on how they suit us. No wonder our words get twisted. But here’s the sobering part: we often do the same thing with God’s Word. We grab a verse out of context, twist it to fit our agenda, and force it to say something it was never meant to say. We don’t search for God’s meaning; we impose our own.
But this isn’t a new problem. In 2 Timothy 3:16–4:4, Paul charges Timothy with a solemn responsibility: “Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.” Why such urgency? Because Paul knew a time was coming when people would refuse to endure sound teaching. Instead, they would gather teachers who tell them what their “itching ears” want to hear. They’d turn away from truth and wander into myths.
If we’re going to handle Scripture rightly, we need to ask a crucial question: What was the original, intended meaning of this passage? When the human authors wrote these words—under the inspiration of God—what were they trying to communicate to their original audience? What impact did they want their words to have?
Understanding Scripture requires us to respect its context. We need to pay attention to the setting, the genre, the historical background, and the type of literature. A psalm isn’t the same as a letter from Paul. A proverb isn’t a prophecy. If we skip over these details, we risk misunderstanding God’s Word entirely.
And while God is ultimately the author of Scripture, He didn’t dictate it word for word. He inspired human authors—real people, with real emotions, in real historical moments—to write His truth. To understand Scripture, we must honor both the divine and human elements of its authorship.
But as we interpret God’s Word, there are some pitfalls we need to avoid. First, we must beware of treasure hunting. Scripture isn’t a mystery novel filled with secret codes and hidden meanings. God is not a God of confusion. He wants to be understood. Yes, there are deep and rich truths in Scripture, but they aren’t buried under layers of cryptic symbolism. They’re plain and clear, even to children. Yet people are often drawn to “secret knowledge.” They flock to books about Bible codes or numerology, looking for what no one else has supposedly discovered. But the goal of good Bible interpretation isn’t to be unique—it’s to be faithful.
Second, we must beware of proof-texting. The Bible isn’t an encyclopedia of one-liners to support your argument. Every verse is part of a larger story—the story of redemption. When we cherry-pick verses out of context, we distort their meaning. History offers sobering examples, like the Slave Bible, which literally removed entire sections of Scripture that spoke of freedom and liberation. Proof-texting can be dangerous, and it often leads to tragic consequences.
Third, we must beware of time-traveling. This happens when we project our modern assumptions onto ancient texts. For example, when the Bible says the sun rises and sets, some people might ask, “Was the Bible written by flat-earthers?” No. The biblical authors were speaking from their perspective as people standing on the earth. They weren’t trying to offer scientific explanations—they were describing reality as they experienced it. If we impose our modern expectations onto ancient texts, we’ll miss their true meaning.
So how do we find the meaning of Scripture? By asking one simple question: What was the original, intended meaning? That’s where we start. And once we understand that meaning, we can begin to apply it to our lives.
But here’s the thing: we need to approach Scripture with humility. 2 Timothy 4:3–4 warns us that our “itching ears” often want to hear what suits us. Have you ever twisted God’s Word to fit your preferences? Have you turned away from truth because it was uncomfortable? There’s grace for you. God invites you to come honestly, to seek understanding through His Spirit, and to let His Word shape you.
Ultimately, the meaning of all Scripture is found in a person—Jesus Christ. He is the Word made flesh. He is the ultimate revelation of God to the world. When we open the Bible, we’re not just reading ancient words; we’re encountering the living Word, Jesus Himself. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
So don’t get it twisted. The Bible isn’t a tool to serve our agenda. It’s God’s Word to us. And it’s not ours to manipulate—it’s ours to receive.
**New City Fellowship’s COMMA Bible study method is a modified version of the COMA method found in One-to-One Bible Reading by David Helm, published by Matthias Media and Holy Trinity Church in 2011.**
I remember an experience that still stings. Years ago, I reached out to a well-known Christian author for advice about church planting. He’s a Black pastor who’s written extensively about race and Christianity, and I was hoping to learn from him as a white pastor planting a church in Orangeburg. During our conversation, he asked me why I wasn’t planting among rural white people. I explained, “It never occurred to me to plant a church focused on white people in Orangeburg because they are a small minority of the population. I felt called to my hometown, and I would seek to minister to white people in proportion to the population.”
Months later, I stumbled across an article in a national Christian magazine titled, “White People Need Jesus Too.” To my shock, the author had quoted me—but only part of what I said. He wrote, “It never occurred to me to plant a church focused on white people.” That was it. No context. No explanation. My words had been twisted to serve his point, and the truth of what I had actually said was lost.
But let’s be honest: we live in a world where twisting words has become the norm. In our post-truth culture, objective truth has been replaced by subjective feelings. “It’s not what you meant; it’s how I felt about it that matters.” You see this everywhere—on social media, in political debates, even in casual conversations. Oprah once said, “Sometimes it takes doing the things that people say you’re not supposed to be doing to find out what’s true for you.” But that’s a dangerous path. Truth is not something we manufacture; it’s something we receive.
When truth is subjective, evidence doesn’t matter. Reality doesn’t matter. We assign meaning to words based on how they suit us. No wonder our words get twisted. But here’s the sobering part: we often do the same thing with God’s Word. We grab a verse out of context, twist it to fit our agenda, and force it to say something it was never meant to say. We don’t search for God’s meaning; we impose our own.
But this isn’t a new problem. In 2 Timothy 3:16–4:4, Paul charges Timothy with a solemn responsibility: “Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.” Why such urgency? Because Paul knew a time was coming when people would refuse to endure sound teaching. Instead, they would gather teachers who tell them what their “itching ears” want to hear. They’d turn away from truth and wander into myths.
If we’re going to handle Scripture rightly, we need to ask a crucial question: What was the original, intended meaning of this passage? When the human authors wrote these words—under the inspiration of God—what were they trying to communicate to their original audience? What impact did they want their words to have?
Understanding Scripture requires us to respect its context. We need to pay attention to the setting, the genre, the historical background, and the type of literature. A psalm isn’t the same as a letter from Paul. A proverb isn’t a prophecy. If we skip over these details, we risk misunderstanding God’s Word entirely.
And while God is ultimately the author of Scripture, He didn’t dictate it word for word. He inspired human authors—real people, with real emotions, in real historical moments—to write His truth. To understand Scripture, we must honor both the divine and human elements of its authorship.
But as we interpret God’s Word, there are some pitfalls we need to avoid. First, we must beware of treasure hunting. Scripture isn’t a mystery novel filled with secret codes and hidden meanings. God is not a God of confusion. He wants to be understood. Yes, there are deep and rich truths in Scripture, but they aren’t buried under layers of cryptic symbolism. They’re plain and clear, even to children. Yet people are often drawn to “secret knowledge.” They flock to books about Bible codes or numerology, looking for what no one else has supposedly discovered. But the goal of good Bible interpretation isn’t to be unique—it’s to be faithful.
Second, we must beware of proof-texting. The Bible isn’t an encyclopedia of one-liners to support your argument. Every verse is part of a larger story—the story of redemption. When we cherry-pick verses out of context, we distort their meaning. History offers sobering examples, like the Slave Bible, which literally removed entire sections of Scripture that spoke of freedom and liberation. Proof-texting can be dangerous, and it often leads to tragic consequences.
Third, we must beware of time-traveling. This happens when we project our modern assumptions onto ancient texts. For example, when the Bible says the sun rises and sets, some people might ask, “Was the Bible written by flat-earthers?” No. The biblical authors were speaking from their perspective as people standing on the earth. They weren’t trying to offer scientific explanations—they were describing reality as they experienced it. If we impose our modern expectations onto ancient texts, we’ll miss their true meaning.
So how do we find the meaning of Scripture? By asking one simple question: What was the original, intended meaning? That’s where we start. And once we understand that meaning, we can begin to apply it to our lives.
But here’s the thing: we need to approach Scripture with humility. 2 Timothy 4:3–4 warns us that our “itching ears” often want to hear what suits us. Have you ever twisted God’s Word to fit your preferences? Have you turned away from truth because it was uncomfortable? There’s grace for you. God invites you to come honestly, to seek understanding through His Spirit, and to let His Word shape you.
Ultimately, the meaning of all Scripture is found in a person—Jesus Christ. He is the Word made flesh. He is the ultimate revelation of God to the world. When we open the Bible, we’re not just reading ancient words; we’re encountering the living Word, Jesus Himself. He is the way, the truth, and the life.
So don’t get it twisted. The Bible isn’t a tool to serve our agenda. It’s God’s Word to us. And it’s not ours to manipulate—it’s ours to receive.
**New City Fellowship’s COMMA Bible study method is a modified version of the COMA method found in One-to-One Bible Reading by David Helm, published by Matthias Media and Holy Trinity Church in 2011.**
For Further Study
Click here to listen to messages from our 2022 sermon series, "The Sword of the Spirit." We dove deep into how to study and interpret God's Word.
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