Readings/Resources

For Module 7, we will read/review the following:

• True^North:  Chapter 10 (Application, What Does the Text Mean to Me?)
• Brief Guide to Biblical Interpretation: Chapter 4 (The Meeting of Life and Text)

This last part of our True^North journey will require a mental shift, from “then” to “now.” Your efforts during Interpretation required you to wear the hats of the original recipients of the Gospel of Mark. You were required to be historians, sociologists, and linguists of the ancient world. But now in Application I will finally set you on the path to fashion modern-day applications of the biblical truths you unearthed during your Interpretation.

A Brief Note

Now, a brief note of introduction. There are biblical issues of application that become quite complex in nature and might even create points of disagreement within the church. For example, how do we apply the passages that discuss women serving in ministry leadership roles? How about the practice of baptism; is this for infants or only adult believers? Maybe the topic of spiritual gifts; speaking in tongues or not? What about the way churches are structured; “congregational” in form where people vote on their pastor or is it “episcopal” in nature where bishops appoint pastors? Is the proper application of the Gospel today leaning more towards social justice or evangelism? In this introductory module to Application, we will not resolve these long-term issues. But I will walk you through a process by which you will be able to move the Interpretation answers you discovered from Mark 1, 8, or 15 to clear and pointed application points.