Devotional: John's Christmas Story

The book of 1John is not a book one thinks of when they think about the Advent season. Yet, the beginning of the book states much about Jesus' incarnation, the reason that we celebrate Christmas.

1John was written to combat the heresy of Gnosticism, a false teaching that stated that one had to have secret knowledge of God in order to be truly saved. In particular, a branch of that was called Doceticism, which John specifically addressed in this short epistle.

Doceticism claimed that the flesh was all evil in contrast with the spirit being all good. As a consequence they taught others that Jesus could not have had a body. If He would have had a body He Himself would have been evil. John's opening statement of seeing, hearing, and touching Jesus denies their damnable teaching and shows John's audience that Jesus was indeed fleshly, yet sinless at the same time.

In our devotional this week we will consider the reason why Jesus was manifested. We know He came to take away our sin. But His taking away our sin was for our joy!

Johns Christmas Story The Word Becomes Incarnate for Our Joy
by Steven Long
A Biblearc published page

Scripture in Context: Phiippians 4:13

Can Philippians 4:13 be claimed as a promise to do anything? Most times the verse is seen on some kind of inspirational meme, like that below.

While the sentiment is understood this verse is one of the most abused. The verse is so abused that MMA fighters have used it on their fight posters.




Unfortunately, most people claim this verse as a promise from God to do anything without ever considering the context. They assume that the phrase, "all things," just means anything they themselves can apply it to. But the phrase has a context and it's time to take a look.

(Philippians 4:10-17) I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit.

Paul is not claiming he can do all things without exception. When he states he can do all things he qualifies the word 'all' with the following statement of being content in wealth, poverty, sickness, or health. His secret is contentment––the contentment that understands that his only source of real peace comes from Christ.

This verse cannot and should not be claimed as a promise for victory to beat another person's brains out or to pass an exam that one has not studied for. Instead, it should be applied as a promise that contentment through Christ will give a person the peace they need when facing a difficult circumstance.

5 Benefits of Using Bible Software for Study

When computers were first introduced to the world I thought they were the coolest things. I still remember working on a computer in my seventh-grade class. It was a Commodore 64 and the black screen with the green print still sticks in my mind.

Better still, my best friend’s parents bought him a computer when we were in high school. It was the dawn of AOL and my parents could never have afforded the $2.00 a minute or so cost that came with internet access at that time.

But technology has come a long way and people have invented new and creative ways to use this technology. One of these is Bible study. A library of multi-volume resources are at a person’s fingertips and the excuse that there are not enough commentaries, dictionaries, exegetical works, etc., owned will no longer suffice.

There are five benefits of using software for Bible study that I hope will encourage everyone to either seriously consider exploring their options of software or jump right in and start using it immediately.

NOTE: clicking on each Giphy will take you to the site where you can view it in full-screen.

1. Bible software saves time.. It's no secret that if you're scratching your head trying to figure out where you saw that particular verse concerning that particular topic that all software practically has the capability of doing a search and coming up with what you're looking for, as per example using Logos software.
   



2. Bible software allows for quick analysis. Sometimes you want to see how your word is used throughout the Bible or how many times its used in a particular book. Many Bible software programs come with tools to allow you to view graphs or charts of this very thing.



3. Bible software keeps everything clutter free. Software allows a user to create panes and tabs to keep everything tidy. You can view a Bible, commentary, map or other items simultaneously. There's no more need to spread a half dozen books on the table in front of you.
   
   



4. Bible software can aid in the learning of the original languages. This is where some of the software reall shines! I use Logos and they have a Greek and Hebrew tutor built right in. While this is meant to only learn the basics and not grammar and syntax, it certainly goes a long way in helping you to read the original text.
   
   



5. Bible software means a better over all study experience. Instead of searching for books in your library or trying to remember where in a book you saw a particular sentence about a verse, Bible software keeps track of everything, including your highlights and notes. One of the greatest things about Bible software is the ability to take notes and then attach them to a particular verse so that you don't forget where you "saw" that life-changing comment. Logos is useful in this area. They have a feature called 'Clippings' that allows the user to clip a piece of text and create a file from that.
   
   

Bible software is one of the greatest technological advances for study. Many seminaries partner with Bible software companies and give big discounts for the software. And while most lay people won't go to seminary there are still a lot of great free software packages that can enhance your study of Scripture. I encourage you to begin to explore all of the software available for your use.

Bless the Blesser

When God blesses us we are joyful. Oftentimes, we tend to focus more on the blessing than the One who blessed us. In contrast, Paul begins the book of Ephesians by blessing God first and then spends twelve verses expositing all the blessings a believer has in God through His Son, Jesus Christ. 

Click on the link to be taken to this week's devotional. 

This advent season let us focus on the Blesser rather than the blessing.

Bless the Blesser An Overview of
by Steven Long
A Biblearc published page

Scripture in Context: Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (NIV).

This week's Scripture in Context focuses on another popular verse. I have used the NIV purposely because it seems to be the most popular translation I have heard quoted.

The Common Interpretation 

The majority of interpretations I have encountered understand this verse to be a promise from God to bring forth His plan and purpose for the individual's life. In other words, "God has a wonderful plan for your life because this verse says so. Just hang in there!"

The context of this verse is far different than God's plan for a person's life. It actually begins in verse 4 and continues past verse 11. Therefore, we need to consider then entire context rather than just a single verse.

The Context

This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the LORD. This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

The context is actually God's promise to those who were carried off into the Babylonian exile. The promise for the hope and the future that is spoken of is not a promise of fulfilling God's plan for their lives, but rather for God's promise to His people to bring them back to Israel after the seventy year chastisement for their sins was completed.

The Application

The application is for God's people under His chastisement. God's chastisement would not last forever and He would still be faithful to them despite the seemingly difficult circumstances. When God chastises it if for the good of His people, not to bring them harm. When they call upon the Lord in repentance He shows Himself faithful and restores them to a right relationship.

Word Studies in Hermeneutics

Since the Bible was written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek it is necessary to consult the original languages when studying Scripture. While most English translations do an excellent job of giving the laity a work in their own tongue, it often falls short of really conveying the special nuances found in the original words and syntax.

Take Jesus' address to the Pharisees in Mark 7:11-13, for example.

But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban” ’ (that is, given to God)—then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

While the ESV uses the word 'Corban' the NLT and the NET rightly translate the phrase, "a gift for God." But what exactly does this mean? This is where doing a good word study could help. Word studies, like any other part of hermeneutics, is a process. You don't simply look up a definition of a word in a Strong's concordance and then fly with it.

Words have context and part of that context needs to be examined in light of the culture. For our example above most of the meaning lies within the cultural context.

According to the New International Greek Testament Commentary (NICOT) Corban was,

scribal tradition had found a way of relieving a son of the responsibility of ‘honouring’ father or mother, not in the area of disrespectful speech but at the more practical level of financial support (which was assumed to be inherent in the ‘honour’ required by the commandment), by means of the qorbān provision. No doubt this provision, once introduced, would then be justified by the scriptural principle of not breaking an oath or vow (Nu. 30:2; Dt. 23:21–23), without enquiring whether the vow had been an appropriate one in the first place. (Mark, p. 286)

In short, the son would dedicated whatever means he had to take care of his parents to God through the temple. In doing this he shirked the responsibility to take care of them during their elderly years, thus disobeying the God's original commandment to honor his father and mother. Jesus rebuked them for this action. 

The cultural context was critical in the importance of understanding the concept of Corban. This isn't always the case, but the context of all aspects of a word, and especially the syntax, needs to be considered in order to perform proper word studies. The aim of this post is to inform you how to conduct word studies. Like every other part of hermeneutics word studies also have steps. We're going to go through these steps together and hopefully by the end you will have a firm grasp on how to do word studies. 

Before we start there are some necessary materials that you will need handy or have access to. I strongly recommend some kind of Bible software. The two most popular free softwares are E-Sword and the Word. Both are excellent. In my opinion, the Word is superior, so I would recommend that one over E-Sword. If your system can't handle the space needed to install these then I would recommend the following online study software:

• Bible Gateway
• Study Light
• Blue Letter Bible
• Bible Hub
• Bible Study Tools
• Biblia.com (sign up for other free resources)

All of these sites should have most of what you need to do a word study. There is one more thing that I highly recommend: critical commentaries. These will only be available through software. E-Sword and the Word have a number of them that can be downloaded for free and run within the software itself. Critical commentaries focus on the language and would be most helpful in word studies. 

Now that the preliminaries are out of the way let's get started with our sample word study. I'll be using Logos Bible software. The free version can be downloaded here. 

James 1:2 will be our example text

 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,

We will be focusing on the word 'count.' Your preferred translation may use the word 'consider.' To make this easier to follow I'll take it in steps.

1. Step 1 – find the basic definition of the word. At this point we only need to establish a simple definition. A basic definition consists of how the word might be translated into different English words. Below is a screenshot from Logos with the basic definition of our word.


As can be seen our word has multiple ways it can be translated. It is even translated as 'leaders' in a few places.


2. Step 2 – Examine how the word is translated in every occurrence. This can give us a better sense of the word in its different contexts. Since context is always the key to discovering what a word means then we must be careful and take our time on this step.
   
   
   
   
   There are twenty-eight occurrences in which our word is found. We need to examine all of them before we move forward. Again, I encourage you to take your time with this step.
3. Step 3 –  Determine how many times the word is used by the author of the passage you are studying.
   
   
   
   James only uses the word one time. However, we should note two things: The Greek word is translated as 'count' (it may be 'consider' or 'reckon' in your translation) nine out of the twenty-eight times. This is nearly a third of all times this word appears. A second observation is that the word is used by Paul five times, all occurring in the book of Philippians and three times by Peter, all in the book of 2Peter. This can be very helpful in gaining more insight. This will be our next step.
4. Step 4 – Consider the broader context of the word. If your passage's only use of the word doesn't yield much then it's time to look at other contexts. This should be done anyway, if possible, but especially when use is limited to a particular author and you need a little more information. Let's look at how this word is used throughout the entire New Testament. We'll start with a pie chart to map out the word and then consider the passages where the Greek word is translated the same as our word in James 1:2.
   
   
   

   

   Pie Chart of Lemma usage in the New Testament

   
   
   
   
   Doing a quick search on the lemma of the passage in in the New Testament shows that the book of Philippians, Acts, Hebrews, and 2Peter use the word most frequently. We are only concerned about the times the word is translated as 'consider' so Acts and Hebrews can be left out. A close surveying of how the word is used when translated 'count' in Philippians and 2 Peter gives us some insight. The word seems to indicate an evaluation of a situation or to regard or disregard something.

   

   Translated as 'count' in Philippians & 2Peter

   
   We seem to be nailing down how James is using this word to his audience. But there is one more crucial step that we need to do before making a final interpretation. This step comes in three parts, which we will label as 5a, 5b, and 5c
   
   5a. The first part of this step is to understand how the word is used in its immediate context. From all the information we've gathered thus fare we can determine that the word is to think carefully and evaluate a person's given circumstances during a trial of faith brought on by God.
   
   5b. Now we should consider the tense of the verb. Using our software we can quickly ascertain that this is an aorist imperative. We know an imperative issues a command but we want to know if there is any significance to the aorist tense being attached to it. 
   
   NOTE: the tense of a verb should NEVER be the deciding factor on how it is translated. Always consider the context of the word.
   
   Often times verbs will have a different nuance outside of their regular moods, namely the indicative mood. Doing a search in our Greek grammars gives us some information on the aorist imperative.

   

   Interpreting Commands in the New Testament

   
   Note carefully the underlined and bold text. Other grammars reinforce these same notions. Since the imperative is a non-indicative form we need to consider that the command as something as specific or something as a single event without reference to time or frequency (Element of New Testament Greek, p.49)
5. c The very last part of the word study before application will be to consider any special syntax. If you don't have access to Bible software the previous step may be the last step unless you are familiar with the languages. Using Bible software, such as Logos, we can search for any specific grammatical or syntax nuances. This is performed by highlighting a phrase and right clicking. 

   

   Grammatical Construction search using Logos 7

   
   
   The only thing that comes up is an obligatory directive. Clicking on the Speech Acts Dataset will yield a brief definition.

   

   Definition of Obligatory Directive 

   
   The definition is simply a desire or wish that the author wishes his audience to perform. 

Now that we have gathered all relevant information about our word it's time to boil it all down to our context in James. We know from a previous step that the word in context means to evaluate or think about a situation. This was determined by surveying all the ways that the New Testament translates and uses the same Greek word in other contexts. 

We also know that the word is a command and obligatory directive. This is not a command to simply do something but to do something specific; in James' context it is to consider (or evaluate) trials as joy. We know this is an imperative but because it is an aorist, a non indicative mood, it is to be regarded as having no time value. However, the context of James 1 gives us that timeframe. It is "whenever we meet trials of various kinds." The context also gives us the purpose of those trials. They are brought about to make us mature and complete Christians in our walk with God.

Putting it altogether we see that whenever God brings trials in our lives we are to be joyful as we evaluate that trial and consider what the outcome is to be. In other words, we are to look beyond the circumstances of our current situation and understand with fullness that the end result will bring us into maturity so that we will not lack any spiritual endurance to our faith. 

This is a comforting thought knowing that which happens to us is not happenstance but designed by God Himself to complete in us what is needed in our faith. 

I hope this post has been an encouragement to you to perform your own word studies. As you can see, it can yield much fruit in its application. 

Devotional: The Resurrection Hope

The resurrection is the cause for the believer's undying hope. Without it we are still dead in our trespasses and sins (1Cor 15:12-19). This week's devotional focuses on our hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ!

The Resurrection Hope
by Steven Long
A Biblearc published page

Scripture in Context: Matthew 18:20

Every Sunday this blog will feature the segment titled Scripture in Context. I will be dealing with a popular passage of Scripture that most have heard and always assumed its meaning. We will look at the context of the passage and discern what it actually means. This week we will examine Matthew 18:20.

I grew up in church. I wasn't a Christian until I was almost twenty-six years old but I was very familiar with the Bible. Most of the passages presented in this segment are ones I heard growing up and even after becoming a Christian.

When I learned hermeneutics and how to interpret Scripture these verses began to make a little more sense, given the context. I pray that it will be the same for you.

(Matthew 18:20) For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

At first glance this verse seems to be talking about believers gathering together to worship Jesus. His very own words indicate that He promises to be with them, in the midst of them as the KJV translates. And so the meaning, application, and "promise" (I put that word in quotes purposely) have always prevailed in our recent Evangelical culture.

But a closer look at the context may surprise you. Jesus is not talking about worship at all but something entirely different. The immediate context begins way back in verse 15.

(Matthew 18:15-20) “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

I've underlined and bolded some key words within the text. The context follows on the heels of Jesus' teaching of the lost sheep (vv. 10-14). As an example, Jesus uses verses 15-20 to demonstrate how one is to care for those who have wandered away like sheep. We know these two pericopes are connected because of the use of the conditional (If...then). The conditional sets the stage and connects verses 15-20 back to verse 14. The New International Greek Commentary seems to support the idea of this connection.

A brother or sister who sins is equivalent to a ‘little one’ who has been caused to stumble (v. 6), or a ‘little one’ is likened to a sheep that has been led astray (vv. 10–14). The motif of behaviour in the ‘royal family’ through this discourse means that ‘brother or sister’ here should be taken as fellow disciple of Jesus as in 12:49–50, and not as fellow Israelite as in 5:22 and other passages. Though Matthew frequently uses the nouns ‘sin’ or ‘sinner’, this is his first use of the verb. Except for v. 21, he will use the verb again only of Judas’s sin (27:4). Sinning is understood here as separating the perpetrator from the people of God. Matthew‘s topic is sin for which there has been no repentance (NOLLAND, JOHN: The Gospel of Matthew: a commentary on the Greek text, New International Greek Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI; Carlisle : W.B. Eerdmans; Paternoster Press, 2005, p.745).

In reality the context is not speaking about worship but rather exercising discipline on an unrepentant person within the church. Jesus' statement about the "two or three" refers to those witnesses mentioned previously, not worshipers at a church service. 

We must always take great care in interpreting God's word. This goes not only for those teaching but also for the laity. 

Join us next Sunday as we discuss another popular and misinterpreted verse, Jeremiah 29:11. Have a wonderful Lord's Day! 

Coming Soon: Interpreting Different Genres

In the coming weeks I will be adding a new section to the navigation menu. The entire portion will deal with the methods in interpreting the different genres of Scripture. Since different authors wrote with different intents and different styles, care must be taken when dealing with these genres. You wouldn't interpret poetry in the same way you would interpret apocryphal literature or visa versa. 

Be looking for this in the very near future. When it is added you will see it in the menu bar. I will be adding different genres at different intervals. I truly pray this site will be an encouragement for you to rightly divide the Word of truth!