Biblical Hermaneutics in a Union Meeting

So I was in a Union meeting for my job the other day.  The union rep is talking about a respectful workplace and an upcoming vote when he turns to talking about the book of rules, policies and procedures.  He said "this book is just like the Bible, its all up to interpretation and everyone reads it differently."  So of course I spoke up.  "Actually that is not what the Bible is like at all, we have a discipline called hermeneutics which is the art and science of text interpretation"  The union rep let out a groan, and said OK its not like the Bible and moved on.  But the point here is this really is how many people view the Bible which is shocking!

   We Christians do recognise the Bible as the inspired word of God, but it is very important to understand that many of the interpretations of the Bible are not.  The Bible along with most texts is not a book where you just pick it up and can fully understand it.  The Bible was not written yesterday and in our own culture and context so some extra work has to be done to get a full understanding of the text.

  Really I just want to give a quick introduction to Biblical hermeneutics, so here are a few points to consider when reading the Bible.

 1.  Who is the author of this passage?
 2.  Who is the intended audience?
 3.  What is the context of the passage?  Both directly and over the larger picture
 4.  What is the cultural context? 
 5.  Where have similar themes or quotes appeared before in the Bible?
 6.  Are there certain words that require further examination?

As I write this I'm already sure that I will edit it later on, Ill be walking down the street and remember I should add more.  But really this is just for consideration for you to dive deeper into the Bible and to know that the Bible is not a book where we can all interpret it differently.  We work together in community and follow Hermeneutics to fully understand the Bible