Element Christian Church
Never Read A Bible Verse* - For Us, Not To Us
Welcome to part 2 of our series: Never Read A Bible Verse* *without context
Locations & Times
Element Christian Church
4890 Bethany Ln, Santa Maria, CA 93455, USA
Sunday 9:00 AM
Sunday 10:45 AM
Welcome to Element
We strive to ensure the biggest thing people think when they hear about Element is Jesus! We are a Gospel centered community who finds our identity in Jesus.
Mother Daughter Soap Making
This is the second event in our series of parent-child events taking place throughout the 25-26 school year. We are inviting all moms and daughters to come participate in a soap making workshop on Saturday October 18th at 3:30pm.
https://ourelement.churchcenter.com/people/forms/1027573Father Son Nerf War
This is the first event in our series of parent-child events taking place throughout the 25-26 school year. We are inviting all dads and sons, no matter the age, to come participate in a Nerf War Competition on Saturday October 11th at 3:30pm.
https://ourelement.churchcenter.com/people/forms/10275654th Friday Film and Fun
Save your child's spot for October's 4th Friday Film & Fun night here:
https://ourelement.churchcenter.com/people/forms/844019Save the Date - Pumpkin Killin is Coming!
Join us Sunday, October 26th, for an afternoon of pumpkin carving, painting, eating, and of course, shooting out of canons! More details coming.
Download Missions Update
Download our Missions Update with corresponding links.
https://ourelement.org/downloads/2025/2025_7_24_MissionsUpdate.pdfSubscribe to Email Update
Get a recap of all the important dates and information we think you want to know every Wednesday.
https://ourelement.org/contact-us/Start serving at Element
If you are looking for a way to meet more people at Element or feel more connected, one of the easiest ways is to start serving. From once a month for 15 minutes, to helping in our classrooms for a longer time, we have needs to fit your gifts.
https://ourelement.churchcenter.com/people/forms/395779Download the Church Center App
Stay in the loop with Element's calendar of events, group sign ups, online giving, and other links all in one app!
https://ourelement.churchcenter.com/setupThis week's song list
Interested in looking for some of the songs we sang this week? Here's the titles and original artists:
Mighty Warrior - Elevation Worship
Sweetness Of Freedom -
Behold The Lamb -
This Is Our God - Mercy Hill
Build My Life - Pat Barrett
Awesome Is The Lord Most High
Mighty Warrior - Elevation Worship
Sweetness Of Freedom -
Behold The Lamb -
This Is Our God - Mercy Hill
Build My Life - Pat Barrett
Awesome Is The Lord Most High
Never Read A Bible Verse* Part 2 *without context
Week 3 - For Us, Not To Us
Today we re-start a series addressing how Christians and non-Christians alike misinterpret Scripture by reading verses out of context. Many of our issues with the Bible stem from cultural misunderstanding rather than textual problems.
Week 3 - For Us, Not To Us
Today we re-start a series addressing how Christians and non-Christians alike misinterpret Scripture by reading verses out of context. Many of our issues with the Bible stem from cultural misunderstanding rather than textual problems.
There are 4 foundational principles we must understand:
1. Faith (pistis) means trust based on evidence, not blind belief.
2. The Bible is a library of 66 books written over 2,000 years by 40+ authors in different genres, not a single book with uniform style.
3. Scripture was written "for us" (universal application) but not "to us" (not in our language/culture), requiring understanding of original context.
4. The entire Bible's storyline points to Jesus, as demonstrated when Christ explained to the Emmaus disciples how all Scripture testified about Him.
Proper Biblical interpretation requires reading the Scriptures in context, understanding historical setting, and seeing how each verse fits within the larger redemptive narrative.
1. Faith (pistis) means trust based on evidence, not blind belief.
2. The Bible is a library of 66 books written over 2,000 years by 40+ authors in different genres, not a single book with uniform style.
3. Scripture was written "for us" (universal application) but not "to us" (not in our language/culture), requiring understanding of original context.
4. The entire Bible's storyline points to Jesus, as demonstrated when Christ explained to the Emmaus disciples how all Scripture testified about Him.
Proper Biblical interpretation requires reading the Scriptures in context, understanding historical setting, and seeing how each verse fits within the larger redemptive narrative.
Discussion Questions
• Biblical faith is trust based on evidence, not belief despite lack of evidence. How do you distinguish between "reasonable faith" and wishful thinking in your own belief systems?
• What areas of life do you operate with "apprehensive knowledge" (knowing enough to trust) rather than comprehensive (a full understanding)? When is this appropriate versus dangerous?
• How does viewing the Bible as a diverse library rather than a single book change your approach to difficult passages?
• How do we determine which Biblical principles are universal versus culturally/historically specific? Where do we draw those lines?
• What preconceived ideas about life, success, or spirituality might prevent us from seeing larger truths? How do our expectations shape what we're able to perceive?
• Is there value in finding personal meaning in texts beyond their original intent (Jeremiah 29:11), or does this always lead to distortion?
• How can we balance scholarly expertise with personal spiritual insight?
• Biblical faith is trust based on evidence, not belief despite lack of evidence. How do you distinguish between "reasonable faith" and wishful thinking in your own belief systems?
• What areas of life do you operate with "apprehensive knowledge" (knowing enough to trust) rather than comprehensive (a full understanding)? When is this appropriate versus dangerous?
• How does viewing the Bible as a diverse library rather than a single book change your approach to difficult passages?
• How do we determine which Biblical principles are universal versus culturally/historically specific? Where do we draw those lines?
• What preconceived ideas about life, success, or spirituality might prevent us from seeing larger truths? How do our expectations shape what we're able to perceive?
• Is there value in finding personal meaning in texts beyond their original intent (Jeremiah 29:11), or does this always lead to distortion?
• How can we balance scholarly expertise with personal spiritual insight?