Welcome to our third and final article dedicated to understanding and applying Command, Example, and Inference (CENI) in a quest to better understand the Bible. CENI is not a hermeneutic in the scholarly sense. It is better to think of the historical-grammatical method (HGM) as the dominant process for understanding the Scriptures within churches of Christ. Nineteenth century biblical scholar J.A. Ernesti, explains HGM this way; “the Scripture must be interpreted grammatically by the same rules applied to other texts1.” Ernesti was dedicated to, “careful determination of what meaning a definite word had at a definite time, the usage of the word by a definite author, and, finally, the relation of the word to a definite form of speech.”
Ad a few other principles of interpretation: Understand difficult passages in light of simpler ones: God’s word does not conflict. Examine all passages dealing with a topic. Use the context of author, audience, place, time, literary style, and dispensation.
With these tools in hand, our study today will examine how CENI is used to determine our remembrance of the death of Jesus Christ.
Is There A Command?
Well, yes and no. In I Corinthians chapter eleven we are given a long discussion of problems in how the church was taking the Lord’s supper. We can see what not to do by their example and see what should be done in this apostolic correction. Paul quotes Jesus telling his disciples them to “do this in remembrance of me.”-I Corinthians 11:24-25. So, we are to “do it” but we are not told how often, on what day, or given any hint as to the elements used. So far, all we can say is that it should be done.
Is There An Apostolic Example?
Now we are starting to flesh out our interpretation. Paul keeps referring to the assembly of Christians in Corinth as the time when they, “come together as a church.” In chapters 11-14, Paul uses some version of the phrase to discuss what is done when Christians “come together.” Praying, singing, teaching, and prophecy (tongues, prophesying and working miracles were valid during the apostolic age) are all mentioned as part of this coming together.
So when did all this assembling take place? Paul wraps up his instructions on Christian worship with a brief bit of teaching on giving in chapter 16. Just use your common sense, and let me know when you think all this coming together was happening: “On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come.”-I Corinthians 16:2. Rational thought applied to the word of God, produces fairly consistent interpretation. Oh! Wait! There is more.
In Acts chapter 20, Paul is in the city of Troas. In verse seven, Luke records for us what happened on Sunday: “On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.” The plain meaning of these Scriptures is clear. Christians assembled together on, “the first day of every week.” They were instructed to give, teach, pray, sing and eat the Lord’s supper. If you are humbly looking for the answer, is it not clear that the apostles of Jesus expected local churches to share in the body and blood of Jesus weekly on what we call Sunday. They not only taught it, Paul himself observed it that way.
Are There Any Necessary Inferences?
When you visit with us at North Second Street, you may notice we use “flat” bread and wonder why. We reason from a few biblical passages with relevance to the issue and imply that what Jesus used when he instituted his supper was unleavened, or flat, bread.
I will be brief. Jesus observed the Passover. Jesus did not sin. It was sin for the Jews to have yeast (or leaven) in their houses during Passover. It was during Passover that Jesus instituted the Lord’s supper with the bread and fruit of the vine. It is more than reasonable to interpret these biblical facts and make the necessary inference that unleavened bread was used for the first communion. We also have an allusion to removing leaven to keep the festival pure in I Corinthians 5:5-8.
If we seek to teach what Jesus taught, do what the apostles did, and worship like Christians in the first century; we can see from CENI and HGM that we should teach and practice immersion of believers for salvation, sing in our churches without instruments, and take the Lord’s supper on every first day of the week.
Feel free to ask me, our elders, or other teachers if you have any questions. Praise God his will can be done!
https://www.north2ndcofc.org/command-example-and-inference-a-case-study-1-3/
https://www.north2ndcofc.org/command-example-and-inference-a-case-study-2-3/
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