Rightly 'Dividing'

In my experience as an instructor in the Seminary, I have seen a very faulty pattern in the way church leaders and Christians study scriptures.

Apart from pretexting, they also prooftext. They link scriptures that don't align, and have entirely different themes and contexts, and forcefully marry them together to support a point or justify their position.

It is important that we seek to analyze scriptures within their contexts. 

Never take a scripture out of its context.

Never try to make a text say what's it's not saying.

Never try to merge scriptures that are unrelated, to justify a position.

Always, again, I repeat, always:

Seek to understand the plain meaning of a text.

e.g. if a passage is talking about giving to a minister, don't use it as giving to a church project 

If scripture is talking about obeying civil authority, don't mix it up with obeying parental authority.

When a text is specifically referring to the nation of Israel, don't use it as an allusion to the church.

Always do your interpretation in the context of the passage. Context determines meaning! 

Do not isolate a passage from its immediate context. There is the immediate context of the sentence, then the paragraph, then the section, and then the book and even the author. The reader should look at all these circles of context to be able to correctly assess the meaning.

We do a lot of mix up.

What does this tell me?  It means, there's a gap in the discipleship process of our churches. People are not tutored on the basic principles of Bible study.

Paul emphasized the need to rightly (accurately) divide (explain, analyze, apply) the Word of truth.

Paul said when we do that we would be a worker approved of God, that needs not be ashamed. (2 Tim 2:15)

I think it is considered shameful when we wrongly and recklessly use or apply scriptures inaccurately.

And God doesn't approve.