1

Bible Class– August 27, 2003

Lesson 19b - Addendum – Why Was I Created?

Grace Apparatus for Perception(GAP)

Promise:Col 1:9 “For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.” (NIV)

The Exclusion of Human IQ from Grace Apparatus for Perception (GAP)

To consider the human IQ to be a factor in learning Bible Doctrine implies that God is unfair because there are varying degrees of human intelligence. According to the Doctrine of Divine Essence, God is absolutely righteous and just and therefore impartial. Eph 3:18 “…may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ…”

Every believer is designed to respond to doctrine, but not on the basis of human IQ. GAP is a grace system all the way!! Deut 29:29 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed (Bible doctrine) belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law (Scriptures).”

Grace and faith eliminate human IQ as a handicap. Open your Bibles and read1 Corinthians 1:19 through 2:16which demonstrates the failure of the other systems of learning: empiricism and rationalismthe tools of the “worldly wise” in understanding divine phenomena. 1 Cor 2:9 “However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him…”

The eye-ear concept is the system of perception under empiricism, the pursuit of knowledge by observation and experimentation. Neither God nor doctrine nor any spiritual phenomena is understandable to the human eye. John 4:24 “God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in Spirit and in Truth." Furthermore, empiricism is a works system of perception which requires human ability and is therefore incompatible with the grace of God.

The same is true for the ear as a means of obtaining knowledge. It is a works system. Since God no longer speaks directly to mankind, the ear cannot hear God. People who think they hear the voice of God are either hallucinating or have an imagination that’s gone wild. He or she may be highly emotional and need experiences with God to feel like they are close to God. This is NOT possible in the Church Age of today because the Bible is completed and in writing and is the only way God communicates with the believer today.

1 Cor 2:11 “For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” In this verse we see the failure of the learning system of rationalism in grace perception. While empiricism emphasizes sensory perception (eye-ear etc.) or experimentation apart from reason or thinking, rationalism relies on reason and thinking as the standards for reality. Under rationalism one’s knowledge and opinions are based upon what the mind dictates rather than upon what is visible. Rationalism is a thought process and totally a human works standard also.

The “thoughts of man” are human phenomena. “Spirit” (Greek word PNEUMA) has both technical meanings (the Holy Spirit and the human spirit) and general meanings as well (such as wind, breath, and the immaterial part of man). In this verse, PNEUMA is used in its literal sense before it became a Koine Greek word in the New Testament. Since it originally meant “breathing” and represented air taken into the human body, the Greeks used it as a human system of understanding based on the function of the “breathing apparatus” of the soul. It carried the concept of inhaling and exhaling information. In the New Testament when PNEUMA was used along with the word for man (ANTHROPOS) it referred to man’s systems of understanding. Man has the ability built into him by God at birth to understand and categorize human information but NOT divine or spiritual knowledge.

The last phrase in the above verse clearly shows that there is a big difference between the “spirit of man” and the “Spirit of God.” Again we have the same word PNEUMA, but there is a difference: the first PNEUMA, used with the word for “man” is merely human understanding; the second PNEUMA, used with the word for “God” refers to the Holy Spirit. The unbeliever understands material information through “human works” systems of perception (rationalism and empiricism) based on his own IQ or intellect. The believer however, understands Bible doctrine (“the thoughts of God”) through FAITH based on a NON-human works basis through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The first involves human apparatus, the latter, grace apparatus. What causes the human system of understanding to function? Human IQ. What activates the grace system? The ministry of the Holy Spirit through the filling of the Spirit (spiritual IQ)!

Receptive Comprehension

Everything you learn goes through a process in your soul. This process is related to the two frontal lobes connected with the mentality of the soul in your brain. The soul resides in the brain of every human being who is alive. The essence or makeup of the soul includes:

  1. Self-consciousness.
  2. Mentality with two lobes.
  3. Emotion.
  4. Volition.
  5. Old sin nature.

The left lobe or the perceptive lobe is called the NOUS (mind) in the Greek and is designed for receptive comprehension…that is, to understand various types of data and to absorbobjective information. This is the first goal of GAP. The right lobe (KARDIA) in the Greek is translated “heart” in the Bible and is the dominant lobe and contains five areas:

1. A frame of reference with a memory center (the final place of storage for all knowledge and the basis for advanced future knowledge).

2. A conscience (your norms and standards).

3. Vocabulary, in which categories are formed.

4. Viewpoint (the utilization of vocabulary, conscience and frame of reference).

5. A “launching pad” for application of Bible doctrine to your experience.

Bible doctrine in the NOUS (left lobe of soul) is called GNOSIS (Greek) (objective understanding). However, GNOSIS cannot be applied to experience. This means that the left lobe is only a staging area in learning doctrine…the information is heard and understood here.

In other words understanding doctrine is all that is required in receptive comprehension. It is not necessary that you agree or disagree. What is important and essential is that you maintain an open mind in the filling of the Spirit until all the facts are taken in. Receptive comprehension demands the accumulation of evidence before judgment is passed. You must give the passage a hearing regardless of your personal prejudices or your negative reflexes.

Receptive comprehension involves the following factors:

  1. Attendance at a local church where Bible doctrine is taught by a pastor/teacher.
  2. The acceptance of the authority of the one who communicates doctrine.
  3. The ministry of God the Holy Spirit converting the content of the message into receptive comprehension or GNOSIS.

1 Cor 2:9-16 “However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him" (10) but God has revealed it to us by His Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. (11) For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. (12) We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. (13) This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. (14) The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. (15)The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment: (16) for who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?" But we have the mind of Christ.” I John 2:27 “As for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as His anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit…just as it has taught you, remain in Him.”

GNOSIS can exist to a large degree in any believer without spiritual benefit, since it has no application of divine viewpoint to this life. To be beneficial, GNOSIS doctrine must be transferred to the human spirit and to the right lobe of the soul. In order to transfer GNOSIS from the left lobe (the understanding part of your soul) to the right lobe (the permanent place for full knowledge to reside) is to believe what you heard and understood by FAITH. If you believe the Bible Doctrine you heard and understood by faith, GNOSIS then becomes EPIGNOSIS (full knowledge). Then it counts as permanent in your human spirit and soul to be used and applied in any situation in life.

If doctrine simply goes to the left lobe and stops there, only human merit is involved…understanding by means of human intellect. Bible doctrine must be transferred to the human spirit and right lobe of the soul on a non-meritorious basis…BY FAITH. 1 Cor 2:12 “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand (EPIGNOSIS) what God has freely given us.”

The Mechanics of Grace Apparatus for Perception (GAP)

STAGE 1: OPERATION “ICE.” This is the way by which the pastor/teacher communicates the Word of God (through the power of God the Holy Spirit) to his congregation. “Operation ICE” demands that the pastor have the spiritual gift as well as adequate preparation in order to use his gift with maximum benefit.

The “I” in “ICE” stands for isagogics: the historical background of the Bible. Isagogics recognizes the basic principle of interpretation: the Bible must be interpreted within the framework of its own historical setting. A pastor must be a detective in order to reconstruct the life, the customs and the idioms of the times during which the Bible was written as they relate to the Word and the usage of the Word. In the ancient world, the meaning of a word was determined by its usage; today it is also determined by etymology (the study of words), present day literature, etc.

The “C” in “ICE” stands for categorical teaching: the organization of principles of doctrine based on the comparison of Scripture with Scripture to determine doctrinal classification. A Biblical subject may be taught in a number of passages throughout the Old and New Testaments, and these subjects or concepts are pulled together for your consideration by the pastor. Each one will increase the meaning of the others. Tracing a subject through Scripture in order to compile information about that subject is categorical teaching.

The “E” in “ICE” stands for exegesis: the analysis of each verse within its context, emphasizing grammar, syntax and etymology (study) of words from the original languages (Hebrew, Chaldean, Aramaic and Koine Greek). Exegesis is absolutely essential in order to determine exactly what concept the writer was trying to convey and what he actually communicated through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Every passage must have an exegetical approach, not simply to the verse itself, but also to the other verses in the context. Often a verse will seem to have one interpretation; but when it is taken within the framework of its context, it means something quite different.

Only stage 1 is the responsibility of the pastor/teacher; the following stages are the responsibilities of those who have accepted his authority.

STAGE 2: OPERATION GNOSIS. When Bible doctrine is heard it enters the left lobe of the soul through the teaching of the Word, there it is called GNOSIS…knowledge heard and understood objectively. Stage 2 occurs simultaneously with Stage 1 if and when you concentrate on what is being taught. At this point you may agree or disagree with what is taught. The danger here is in becoming tangled up with subjectivity (personal views or feelings not based on fact) and rejecting the doctrine you just heard and understood. You may be afraid that if you agree with what is being taught, it will cramp your style; or you may hear information entirely new to you and assume it is wrong even before you have fully understood it. Occasionally, rejection of doctrine is the result of failure to be filled with the Spirit; but more often it is related to some personality hang-up, such as inability to submit to authority or a sour-grapes attitude toward someone with superior knowledge. In such cases, Bible teaching never even becomes GNOSIS!

Gnosis must be achieved by means of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Without this, comprehension of Bible doctrine is not possible, except for certain principles that apply to both the believer and the unbeliever, such as those things taught in the Bible that are related to the divine institutions (volition, marriage, family, and nationalism). An unbeliever can understand the concepts of nationalism and freedom as well as the proper function of marriage and the family because God’s institutions were planned for all mankind whether believer or unbeliever. Gnosis itself cannot be applied to experience. For Gnosis to be applied in the believer’s life it must be believed (become EPIGNOSIS in the soul). Let’s look deeper.

Prerequisites for GNOSIS include three basic factors under the ministry of God the Holy Spirit:

  1. The believer must have Positive Volition. Luke 8:18 “Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has (Bible doctrine in his soul) will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken from him." Your attitude toward Bible doctrine is extremely important. Positive volition means that you must have the objectivity to set aside any distracting feature about the communicator…his speech, dress, or personality; it also means that you have enough objectivity for capacity to comprehend and to concentrate on the teaching.
  2. The believer must Recognize the Authority of the Pastor/Teacher. 1 Cor 16:15-16 “You know that the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints. I urge you, brothers, (16) to submit to such as these and to everyone who joins in the work, and labors at it.” 1Thes 5:12 “Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you.” Heb 13:7 “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” Heb 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.” The Bible teaches that the human authority in the local church is the pastor. You are commanded to OBEY and to SUBMIT to his authority. The authority of the pastor/teacher is not to be misunderstood in any way as tyranny; rather, it is his right and privilege to communicate Bible doctrine. The believer who submits to the authority of the pastor and accepts academic discipline is the one who truly learns doctrine! Pride, which rejects authority, is the greatest hindrance to learning.
  3. The believer must have Concentration. Mark 4:23 “If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear." Luke 11:28 “He replied, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.’" 2 Pet 1:18 “We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with Him on the sacred mountain.” Concentration is prolonged focus on the message or lesson. It includes good manners, control, and alertness in the classroom. Concentration is not merely your attitude toward the speaker but also by your attitude toward other people in the classroom especially someone you may be angry with or harbor resentment for. It might be the reverse. It might be someone you love dearly that can distract you. All such distractions must be handled by self-discipline and a relaxed mental attitude which is a result of the filling of the Holy Spirit. 2 Cor 10:5 “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought (concentrate) to make it obedient to Christ.” There are certain subjects which may be more fascinating to you than others. One of the greatest accomplishments will occur when you develop enough objectivity to sit tight, no matter what is being taught. What you may consider the duller subjects are still a part of the entire package: all Scripture is profitable, and your human spirit has a place for storing them. Consequently, the filling of the Spirit accomplishes that which is humanly impossible.

STAGE 3: OPERATION EPIGNOSIS. Before doctrine can be utilized for spiritual growth, divine production or Christian living, GNOSIS must be converted to EPIGNOSIS: knowledge understood must become knowledge fully possessed in the right lobe of your soul through the human spirit. EPIGNOSIS is doctrine in the human spirit and/or in the heart or right lobe of the soul. This is the critical stage and the decisive point in the assimilation of Bible doctrine. Agreement or disagreement is the basis of the third stage of GAP.