Articles
Common Sense Bible Study (1)
There has been a lot of criticism in the past few years of the way conservative Christians determine Bible authority. The acronym CENI is used both for convenience and derision: Command, Example, and Necessary Inference. The charge is made by those with more liberal ideology that this is a man-made method of study that finds its roots in 17th and 18th century rationalism. This is said to result in legalism which produces a rigid, lifeless and flawed interpretation of Scripture.
But is it not true that CENI merely reflects the way in which normal human beings communicate regardless of the setting of the conversation? In other words, do we not in the course of human interaction convey and deduce meaning in these ways?
1) A father heading off to work tells his son, “By the time I get home, I would like the yard mowed.” That is a clear command, though stated in a mild form (“I would like” instead of “You will do”).
2) A mother says to her daughter, “I want you to learn to bake a cake. Pull up a stool and watch carefully everything I do.” This is an example that teaches the principle of exact reproduction.
3) A mother hands a $10 bill and car keys to her son and says, “We need two bell peppers, some tea bags and a bottle of salad dressing for supper.” Should the son conclude that he should drive the car? Yes, the keys so indicate though no express command was given. Should he go see his friends, drop by Best Buy and come home with the items at 8:30 pm? No, his mother indicated the items were needed for supper though she did not specify a return time. Can the son pick up thousand island, honey mustard or pecan vinaigrette dressing? Yes, unless other circumstances had indicated a specific dressing (knowing that his little brother has a potentially fatal allergy to pecans should lead him to conclude the pecan vinaigrette is an unacceptable choice).
Basically, CENI itemizes the way humans normally communicate. We look to the Scriptures to see where God’s commands apply to us, what Christians did based on inspired sources (apostles) and what is necessarily inferred though not expressly stated. (More to come.)
