Objective Is Subjective

 

 

 

Objective is subjective

Synonyms they’ve become,

Ah, but it was not always like this

But today, that’s how it runs.

 

Let me make this point

Now I have got the chance

And I promise I will be objective

Re the point to be advanced.

 

When did these two

Become synonyms, you ask,

But to pinpoint a particular time

Is a difficult task.

 

I use to think and still do

That they were really opposites

But given the way we argue now

Synonymous is the edict.

 

“You are being subjective,”

One says to the other,

Whereupon the other replies,

“You are being a bother.

 

 

 

Both argue objectivity

But within a specific context

Thus, as one analyses their content,

They argue from a pretext.

 

Three plus four is seven

It matters not the base,

Is a clear case of ignoring context

For in base 5 it’s not the case.

 

The lines are now blurred

Re objective and subjective

And arguing based on such a flaw

Has become addictive.

 

“Context is what matters!”

We are great at saying this

But our practice is so at odds,

It’s this tenet we miss.

 

 

Steeped in our traditions

As passed on for years,

We will disregard a biblical text

And what it actually says.

 

Objectively we will pretend

When subjectively we are

And true objectivity will elude us

And the two will be on par.

 

So, what is objectivity?

Let the dictionary speak:

It’s based on observable phenomena

And to this we must treat.

 

Ignore personal bias

And open up your mind

To the actual therein expressed

And accept the new find.

 

Twelve verses in Revelation

Speak to a specific time,

However, we misconstrue all of these,

And void an objective mind.

 

 

 

Subjective we are

But objective pretend

And those twelve verses though clear

We not so cleverly bend.

 

Explicit is ignored

And so too, the implicit,

And sticking to denominational ideals

Become our remit.

 

Objective is subjective

Within denominational confines

And pretext trumps context

And abuses our mind.

 

Read the Bible

With an objective mind

And therein pearls of great price

You will find.

 

Stewart Russell © October 25, 2024 

 

Content and Context

 

 

Which influences which

Regarding content and context?

Turn it the wrong way around

And it becomes a pretext.

 

In the study of the Word

As it relates to many doctrines

There is an abundance of pretext

That gives rise to sin.

 

So, let’s get it right!

Which influences which?

For in so doing, my friend,

What’s wrong can be fixed.

 

Content is denominational:

This is what the Bible says,

As such, context mightn’t matter

It’s where the content lays.

 

Judas went and hanged himself;

Go thou and do likewise,

You can find both in the Bible

But content alone is unwise.

 

 

Context influences content;

As a matter of fact, it should,

It should not be taken literally

When Jesus says drink my blood.

 

 The context here is vital

In understanding the content,

Without the context influence

We lost the content’s intent.

 

With God all things are possible

This is not contextually true,

Regarding God’s nature

Some things, He will never do.

 

Some use the Bible’s content

To okay preferential practices,

If it were in fact practical

I could recount a lengthy list.

 

Suffice it to be stated, however,

That’s not this poem’s intent

But rather, ignoring the vital context

Taints the presenting content.

 

We are careful everyday

Regarding the containers we use

And the nature of the product

Decides the container we choose.

 

 

However, pertaining to the Word,

There is a critical contrast,

Context influences content

Thus, making an easier task.

 

Context influences content:

Not the other way around,

And to expostulate re the latter

Would turn it upside down.

 

Stewart Russell © September 15, 2022

 

Psalm 118:24

 

 

“This is the day,”

How we so lustily sing!

“We will rejoice and be glad in it”

And O what joy it brings!

 

It’s truly a lift

From our sunken depths

Especially after an experience

That brought regret.

 

“This is the day,”

And it doesn’t matter what,

There’s no such thing as a bad day;

God created the whole lot.

 

That’s how I viewed it

Until someone shared with me

This entire chapter

And then I began to see.

 

We sing it and enjoy it

But we miss its context,

The Psalmist saw a lot more

In this significant text.

 

We think of creation

And that God made each day,

Nothing’s wrong with that

But David had more to say.

 

 

David had a preview

Of God’s amazing grace

When the Messiah would come

And take his place.

 

And so, in God’s assurance

He could confidently say,

This is the day, prophetically speaking

Of Christ’s coming day.

 

The day of atonement!

The day of so great salvation!

Twenty-eight generations before,

David saw his redemption.

 

 

He rejoiced back then

As though the time was nigh,

“This is the Lord’s doing,” he says,

It is marvelous in our eyes.

 

More than a thousand years

To come before Christ’s time

But the glorious Gospel of salvation

Was on David’s mind.

 

“The stone the builders refused

Is become the headstone,”

“This is the day,” David said,

And in this he was not alone.

 

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

 

Stewart Russell © August 12, 2021

 

Text out of Context Is Pretext

 

 

I am becoming increasingly amazed

How we treat to the word of God:

Some preachers, totally out of context

Yet to appreciable applause.

 

Aligning the word with their agenda

And wooing the audience support,

Such are many televangelists

When delivering their reports.

 

I caution that we should be careful

When interpreting the word of God,

That we listen to the voice of the Spirit

And not the enticement of the Fraud.

 

 

Any text that is used out of context

Tends to support someone’s agenda,

Hence, such must be seen as a pretext

That supports their propaganda.

 

Agendas must be shaped by the Word

And not the other way around,

But pretext is the dominant mood

And towards error we are bound.

 

To support the point of the theme

I must cite three relevant scriptures

And trust that by the end of the poem

We are seeing the full picture.

 

 

Let me start with the Word, himself

He is the first we ought to see,

“And ye shall know the truth

And the truth shall make you free”.

 

Jesus is speaking to his disciples

Found in John chapter 8 verse 32

And note that in the preceding verse

His word is the same as the truth.

 

We take it out of its context

When applying it to any other truths

Like getting to the bottom of a matter

In which we are requiring proof.

 

“Tell me the truth,” a parent says,

When addressing a delinquent child,

“And the truth will set you free.”

And spare him from the cowhide.

 

That’s not the truth that Jesus meant

He didn’t mean the opposite to a lie,

But he meant the truth that is himself

On which all of life rely.

 

 

Next there is the overworked text

The “go-to” when we want something fixed

“Without faith it’s impossible to please God”

How we like to quote Hebrews 11 verse 6!

 

This verse is universally used

When there is a specific agenda in mind,

From the individual to the group

To entertain aspirations of all kinds.

 

What pleases God most is our walk

A daily walk of faith in the Spirit

And, not fulfilling the deeds of the flesh

But depending on faith to accomplish it.

 

Take note of the Old Testament saints

Faith was the characteristic of their walk,

Their walk was evidence of their faith

The faith that requires more than talk.

 

 

Another text we loosely noise around

Is Proverbs chapter 29 verse 18:

“Where there is no vision the people perish”

Usually as a pretext for a different scene.

 

The scene here treats to relations

In fact, relations both good and bad,

But it also speaks of the consequences:

Some of them pleasant and some sad.

 

Where there is no law of righteousness

People’s behavior is unrestrained,

It shouldn’t be a wonder to you and me

Why our world seems so insane.

 

Blindness and disaster go hand in hand

It’s like people that have no vision,

Jesus himself is the light of the world

And his light should determine our decisions.

 

A text out of context is a pretext

It is like exchanging the truth for a lie,

At times, it may appear very trivial and light

But remember that when we perish, we die.

 

Stewart Russell © October 2019

 

Text, Context and Pretext

 

 

Text, context and pretext

Disagreement and getting vexed,

Let’s be simple, not complex,

After this verse move to the next.

 

Flurries, scurries, even stories

Personal agendas and self-glory,

Soap boxes, pulpits and rostrums

Any facility to air their theories.

 

Starting with the Holy Word

But quickly veering off

Cause if it doesn’t fit the agenda

Then it must be scoffed.

 

Observe the gymnastics

Both physical and spiritual,

Charismatic type and emotional hype

Cheered on by gullible people.

 

 

The verse carries the text

While the Word provides the context

Everything is good so far

But this changes with pretext.

 

Pretext comes in different forms

Though a lot of it is personal,

Consider too this other usage

The sectarian or denominational.

 

“O I know the Bible says,”

But the doctrine says otherwise

And if you look very carefully,

There's the cleverly concealed disguise.

 

A need to change the Word as is-

It doesn’t fit in with today,

Back then the culture was different

It was a totally different way.

 

Clearly God could not have known

How things would come to be

So we must draw this to His attention

And hope that He would see.

Text, context and pretext

With pretext holding sway,

Mixing the literal with the figurative

And coming up with my own way.

 

Yes, pretext suits me very well

I could comfortably live with that,

It is not exactly in the text

But grey could pass for black.

 

So many verses are misused,

Bearing a bent to men’s traditions,

Pretext more appealing than context

Brings a more acceptable rendition.

 

Every text is within a context

And is corroborated in the Word,

Pretext plays absolutely no part

Neither anything we have heard.

 

The Word can speak for itself

The Holy Spirit assures us,

Throughout the pages of Holy Writ

The focus is always Jesus

 

The Living Word and the written

There’s absolutely no conflict,

Pretext might be your desire

But the Word you should not edit.

 

 

Take the Word as it’s written

It’s God breathed; by now you know,

God can never make an error

I’m sure you know this is so.

 

Go with its text and context

Get rid of learned or induced pretext,

Regardless of sect or denomination

Be faithful to the biblical text.

 

Stewart Russell © February 2019