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Subject: Biblical Exposition
xfrankie 16.08.17 - 07:40pm
Little Known Fact;
Did you know the word 'Christian' appears only 3 times in the whole Bible, And only in the New Testament.
Acts 11:26, Acts 26:28, 1 Peter 4:16.
And on all three occassions its used, its by unbelievers identifying believers.
Believers all through the New Testament identified each other with different words, brothers, sisters, children (if John was writing) but more importantly SAINTS.
The contrast is quite stunning when the usage is imported in today's culture
'Christian' includes pretty much all denominations related to or having some association with name JESUS CHRIST regardless of the merit of the belief, Catholics, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormons, Coptic Catholics
'Saint' If, in Catholicism means a dead person declared so by Church procedure
The ordinary or common usage is someone exceptionally humble, unreservedly good, admired.
'oh he helped that poor hungry dog, his only sandwich, he truly a saint'
the good we see people do is quite, assigns the name.
HOWEVER Biblical Context is all that matters, because true meaning must be extracted, and it's done by first appreciating historical and cultural context
'Christian' it may be debatable, but given that it was used by unbelievers referring to believers, at the time its a fair presumption, based on human history, it was intended to be derogatory,
1 Peter 4:26, says if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ASHAMED.
nonetheless it was label with ill-intent behind it that was became a term of endearment, for good later Today.
'Saint' as used then and ought to be prevalent in the same context today is, from the greek 'hagios' meaning 'consecrated to God, holy sacred and pious'
its not based on what you do but on what and Who you BELIEVE.
1 Cor. 2, Eph 1:2, 4:12, 5:3, Rom. 16:2
All who believe in the Person and Work of JESUS CHRIST as revealed in the Gospel, sanctified that is, Set Apart in Christ.
67 times used by the Apostles to Living Believers and * +
xfrankie 16.08.17 - 07:54pm
to each other as Apostles and Disciples. The Faithful in Jesus Christ, called to be Saints.
Its not to say 'Christian' should not be used, by all means please continue, however one must always alive to the original intent otherwise meaning of the author is lost in Translation,
For me, to call myself a saint today, culturally would be perceived as egotistical, and yet that couldn't be far from the truth, in my Lord's eyes, having submitted to Him, Given that God calls me a Saint for believing His Son, as such i ought to embrace what He says about me more than what others would think. man's alteration of the meaning doesn't change His.
The Knowledge of God is invaluable therefore sound exegesis of His Message is imperative. * +
xfrankie 18.08.17 - 06:29am
Discernment?
1 Cor. 12:4-11, talks of the gift of discerning spirits
Discerning, is ordinarily associated with some mystical ability that seems drawn out of some x-men movie, trying to rely on that verse.
Read on its own, apart from the complete Counsel of the Word, naturally one can infer that, then again anything read apart from context, one can infer anything.
That said, Discernment quite simply is, the ability to distinguish between truth and error. To reason critically with the Bible as the Authority
1 John 4:1 warns, 'Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they're from God, BECAUSE.. many FALSE PROPHETS have gone out into the world'
the meaning of 'spirit' is defined here, not only by the immediate verse but also by the author of whole letter written, who was trying to correct false doctrine within the Church.
'testing the spirits' is testing those persons who claim to speak for God, AGAINST the Word.
How are we to discern?
The answer is Only ONE..
2 Peter 1:3 'God has granted us everything pertaining to life and godliness through the TRUE KNOWLEDGE of Him who called us by His Own Glory and Excellence'
Jesus in His Glorious Prayer to the Father prior to crucifixion, said for the Church 'Now this is eternal life, that they may KNOW YOU, the Only True God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent'
1 Thess. 5:21-22 its the responsibility of every Christian to be discerning 'examine everything carefully, hold fast to that which is good and abstain from evil'
Otherwise, as Christian we're tossed about by every wave and wind of doctrine Eph 4:14.
Therefore let us rightly divide the word of God 2 Tim. 2:15, having the exhorted Berean Attitude Act 7:11 'who were of more NOBLE character, receiving the message with great eagerness, and EXAMINING the SCRIPTURES DAILY to see if what Paul SAID was TRUE.
Paul's admonition to Phillipi starts
Phil. 1:9 ' And this is my prayer, that your love may abou * +
xfrankie 18.08.17 - 06:30am
abound more and more, with KNOWLEDGE and All Discernment' * +
xfrankie 23.08.17 - 08:22am
Jeremiah 29:11?
For i know the plans i have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm, plans to give you hope and a future
Its called the most abused verse in the Bible.
An excerpt from https://www.gty.org/library/blog/B150925/frequently-abused-verses-did-god-promise-you-prosperity
Its the go-to-verse for many prosperity preachers, such as Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer,
Rick Warren also typifies that me-centric approach in his book, The Purpose-Driven Life:
If you have felt hopeless, hold on! Wonderful changes are going to happen in your life as you begin to live it on purpose. God says, I know what I am planning for you. . . . I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future.
They give zero acknowledgment to the Authors original intent nor original audience when the verse is ripped from its original setting
Reading Jeremiah 29:11 IN CONTEXT
The Nation of Israel had been taken into Captivity by the Babylonians, The Temple, the Entire Jerusalem city was in ruins, their king in chains with his eyes gouged out, the nation of Israel desolate,
In the mist of that God speaks through His Prophet Jeremiah
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease. Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare. For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream. For they prophesy falsely * +
xfrankie 23.08.17 - 08:25am
prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, declares the Lord.
For thus says the Lord, When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.
Because you have said, The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylonfor thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brothers who did not go with you into exilethus says the Lord of hosts, Behold, I am sending upon them the sword, famine and pestilence, and I will make them like split-open figs that cannot be eaten due to rottenness. I will pursue them with the sword, with famine and with pestilence; and I will make them a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse and a horror and a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them, because they have not listened to My words, declares the Lord, which I sent to them again and again by My servants the prophets; but you did not listen, declares the Lord. You, therefore, hear the word of the Lord, all you exiles, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon. (Jeremiah 29:420)
In context, verse 11 is clearly not meant as a love letter or a promise of blessing to individual believers in the twenty-first century.
And here are a few other points to consider: How do J * +
xfrankie 23.08.17 - 08:27am
And here are a few other points to consider: How do Joel Osteen, Andy Stanley, and Rick Warren know that God is directly speaking to their congregants in verse 11 but not in Jeremiah 29:1719, where God promises to send the sword, famine and pestilence? Have they considered that Gods soothing promises in verse 11 are delivered to Israel while He has His foot on their neck in judgment (Jeremiah 29:4)? What about the fact that those who received the promise in verse 11 would likely not live to experience its fulfillment seventy years later (Jeremiah 29:10). And in their egotistical exegesis, can they grasp the irony that Israel was in Babylonian slavery because they listened to prophets who tickled their ears (Jeremiah 29:89)?
There is something far greater and eternally significant that we learn from this story in its true context. God does not abandon His people! In spite of their sin, God was relentlessly faithful to His covenants regarding Israels future and His promised Messiah. Not even Babylonian captivity could prevent His promises from coming to pass.
Likewise His promises to us as New Testament believers concerning our calling and election are also unshakeable (John 10:2729). And they provide far more lasting comfort than Old Testament verses plucked out of context and misappropriated for modern audiences.
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