Paul’s Hermeneutical Bridge

So the Ortho Bros have no interest in talking about the Bible. ZILCH.

They want to know where in Church History an idea sprouts. If it’s not there, it’s not square.

Theo Bros (Reformers) wanna know how Pentecostals are getting from point A to point B intertestamentally. I’ll write later on how to answer the Ortho Bros (it’s actually insanely easy); answering the Theo Bros is way harder.

Since the hermeneutical bridge inspectors are still in the comments demanding permits, let me show them another one — a bridge so old the apostles carved their names into the railing.

And for the uninitiated — a hermeneutical bridge is the license with which one imports Old Testament ideas into New Testament concepts.

It’s the city approval and inspector permits you needed to open your burger joint.

Same method as last stack, straight from Tom Wright: give priority to clear apostolic teaching. Where the apostles teach on an issue, take it seriously and work around it. The Gospels give you the action; the epistles are the authoritative FIFA commentary.

Gravy?

I showed you Peter do this last week.

So let’s watch Paul do the thing I keep being told requires special paperwork — importing the Old Testament into New Covenant worship — and let’s watch him do it on camera, narrating his own technique like some insufferable Instagram chef that makes his own butter from scratch.

Turn to 1 Corinthians 10.

Paul is writing to the Corinthians — Greek pagans, mind you, fresh out of the temple districts, men whose actual fathers were sacrificing to Poseidon within living memory — and he opens like this: “I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that OUR FATHERS were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea.”

He hands a room full of Gentiles Israel’s family photo album and says, “here’s you at the Red Sea.”

That’s the whole doctrine of covenant continuation in a two word possessive pronoun. Peter told the scattered churches “you are the priesthood.” John heard Jesus say “you have become a nation of kings and priests.” Paul goes one further and retroactively enrolls Greek converts in the Exodus. What was on Israel has come upon you — including the baby pictures.

But he’s just warming up. Watch what he does with the furniture: