Descriptive and Prescriptive

 

 

Do not confuse these two

Regarding the Holy Word,

Because Judas hanged himself,

We don’t have to concur.

 

Descriptive is the narrative;

Prescriptive is the cure,

It’s the two great commandments

We must apply more.

 

A misapplied descriptive

Can be rather dangerous

Particularly if we try to apply it

In our frenzied rush.

 

Like "breaking the Bible"

For our daily devotion

And then without due thought

Deciding on an action.

 

 

 

Judas hanged himself:

Go thou and do likewise:

That you do, do so quickly:

Thus, your demise.

 

Three scriptural texts:

All three unrelated,

Regarding the mere descriptive

Do not be fixated.

 

 

Do not a doctrine build

On biblical one-offs,

These are mostly descriptive:

Not treatment for a cough.

 

It is somewhat trite

Like a denominational fight

Between Mudites and Non-Mudites

Lacking spiritual insight.

 

Two denominations

Based on how Jesus healed:

Both were blind to the message

That was being revealed.

 

 

With mud, one sect argued

Without, the other opposed,

Neither was open to the other;

They were both closed.

 

 

Here is another example

That is: speaking in tongues,

What again had been descriptive

Was interpreted wrong.

 

It became prescriptive

For receiving the Holy Spirit

And this for a Spirit-filled saint

Is now become an edict.

 

Love ye one another

Is certainly prescriptive

But how David loved Jonathan

Is rather descriptive.

 

Herein is the difference,

Understand this much,

For whether with mud or without,

It is Jesus’ healing touch.

 

Stewart Russell © March 12, 2025

 

Read the Word!

 

 

I am beginning to appreciate

The Word can speak for itself

Far better than the commentaries

That line across our shelf.

 

We rely on commentators

To expound on the Holy Word

And depending on our preference

We may or may not concur.

 

Some we hold in high esteem

And we say their names in awe

Often forgetting they are human

And therefore, not without flaw.

 

Some are particularly brilliant

And that I must admit

But they are not nearly as bright

As the blessed Holy Spirit.

 

I mean the Spirit in the Word

That came to teach all truth:

The promised alike Jesus Comforter

And Pentecost bears the proof.

 

The Spirit illumines the Word

And fits it to our understanding

In a way that no commentary can

Regardless of name or branding.

 

Interpretation is important

But it must not be the primary goal,

Reading is the principal thing

And quite a lot will unfold.

 

 

It is what the Bible actually says

And not what someone says it says:

It’s best we begin with the explicit

And let the Spirit guide our way.

 

I am having a severe struggle

With positions I once held dear

Ever since I began reading the Word

And putting study in second gear.

 

Often, we are inclined to believe

The Word doesn’t mean what it says

And so, we put our spin on it

And hence, our interpretive ways.

 

 

If the literal literally makes sense

Then that’s good enough for me,

No need for someone’s interpretation

To tell me what I did not see.

 

Now commentaries have their place

Please don’t get me wrong,

But they are not the be all and end all:

No human is that strong.

 

So, read before interpreting:

The explicit before the implicit,

The who, the what, the when, the where

Defines a good investigative habit.

 

Be careful with denominations,

Subject them to the litmus test

Which of course is what the Word says:

This approach is always best.

 

Let Scripture interpret Scripture:

The difficult in light of the simple

And read and read and read again!

Until you solve the puzzle.

 

 

A good concordance is key

It’s more instructive than a commentary,

Trace a word right through the Word

And see what its meaning be.

 

Context always before pretext

Exegesis and never eisegesis,

Don’t let denomination get in the way

And from the Bible never drift.

 

Keep the nature of God in mind

And remember, Jesus is the Word,

The Holy Spirit is the Comforter

So, to these three defer.

 

Stewart Russell © August 18, 2021