Strictly Literal or Natural Sense II

Strictly literal or natural sense? Both mean believing in the literal interpretation of the Bible. How do our differences work themselves out?

Several years ago, I read a book by John Owen, The Death of Death in the Death of Christ. Throughout this book, John Owen argues for the perfection of Christ’s mediatorial work and proves the doctrine of Substitutionary atonement as being Biblical and forever perfecting those who draw near to Christ and for whom Christ died.

During the book Owen spends 10 pages of argumentation on the “natural sense” of the term “world” in John 3:16. Should the term mean every single individual ever or even every person living during the church age, or does it mean both Jew and Gentile. Norman Geisler in his book, Chosen But Free, dismisses Owen’s arguments by appealing to a “strict literal” method by assuming “world” means every person ever, therefore no discussion was offered by Geisler at all.

The natural sense of the text however, leads not to every person ever. Jesus is speaking to a Pharisee who believed salvation was for only Jews. Jesus was explaining that the Jews were misunderstanding the promises that were to be fulfilled in the Messiah. Jesus was not interested in a “strictly literal” fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies by conquering Rome and taking a strip of land back from the Romans, but instead explains salvation will be worldwide.

Here is another example that Sam Waldron gives in his eschatology series. In Matthew chapter 5, Jesus quotes an Old Testament prophecy and applies it in a “literal” sense that could not be taken as “strictly literal”.

Mat 5:5 "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

Is Jesus merely speaking in a strict literal sense from the Old Testament? The original prophecy was given under a different covenant to mean that strip of land called Palestine. Jesus however is establishing a New Covenant with His people. This is not a divided (Jew and Gentile) people. They are not merely some spiritual people that have no tangible expression in this world. He is referring to the church inheriting the whole world.

Interpretational methods are important. But simply assuming a “strictly literal” method does not mean one will escape error.