Words

[Sue J Love]

I read Psalm 119:137-144 NIV

You are righteous, Lord,
and your laws are right.
The statutes you have laid down are righteous;
they are fully trustworthy.​

So, what are these statutes that God has laid down for us which are righteous and fully trustworthy? When we talk about the “Word of God,” what do we mean? For some people it is one thing, and for another, something else. So, who is right and who is wrong? How do we know?

Well, for one thing, it appears to me that, for most believers in Jesus Christ, the Word of God is the Bible (OT: Genesis to Malachi, NT: Matthew to Revelation). That is the Word of God for me, too, as a follower of Jesus Christ. Yet, since it has so many different translations, including in many different languages, then which translation is correct?

Well, the only inerrant Word of God was written in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic. These were the original manuscripts penned by men of God as God breathed his words into their hearts and minds. From what I understand, from the originals came many copies, and from these copies, perhaps as well as from some of the original manuscripts, the Bible was then translated into other languages. And, even from some of these translations came more translations in multiple different languages, although they may have also used copies of or the original texts themselves.

For over 400 years, the King James Version (in English) was the primary English translation of the Bible accepted by most protestant churches, it would appear. But, there were others, too. And, then, in the 1970s, I believe it was, came the NASB, then the NIV84, the ESV and many others. So, for English readers, we then have to choose which translation we believe is the closest to the original manuscripts, but how do we do that if we don’t know Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic? And, does that really matter?

Well, for me, I read the KJV the first 27 years of my life. Since it is written in 17th Century King James English, and I speak in 20th and 21st Century American English, it was like reading a foreign language, though not entirely. Still, I had great difficulty understanding what I was reading. Then, in 1977 my pastor introduced us to the NASB, and the Word of God truly came alive to me for the first time in my life. I imagine that is what it must be like for people who don’t have the Bible written in their language, and who have to rely on their leaders to tell them what it says. To be able to read the Word of God and to understand what it says is just awesome!

So, if there were all these copies of the originals, and then it was translated into other languages using these copies, or even using other translations, how can we be certain that what we are reading is completely righteous and fully trustworthy? We know it by the Holy Spirit who lives within us. And, we have to trust God that he guided even these who made the copies, and even these who made these translations, even if they were ungodly men, and trust God that they held on to the integrity of the original manuscripts, even though there will be slight variations from translation to translation. For some of you, only one translation may exist, and you have no other choice.

The bottom line in all of this, I believe, is that we have to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit of God, and trust that God’s Spirit will guide us into all truth, and that he will show us what is right and what is wrong. If we are blessed to have Bible helps which show us what the originals said, word for word, that is great, but not everyone has that. To me, having translations in my language has been a tremendous help! But, we do need to be discerning about this, because, at least here in America, we have many transliterations that are not real translations, and that do err in interpretation more so than what might happen in any actual translation. So, let the Holy Spirit lead you.

My zeal wears me out,
for my enemies ignore your words.
Your promises have been thoroughly tested,
and your servant loves them.​

So, in light of what I just shared, this brings, perhaps, some new meaning to what is being said here. When words are translated from Greek or Hebrew or Aramaic into any other language, they may not retain the exact meaning of the word because the other language doesn’t have a word or even a verb tense that quite captures the original word. So, the translators have to do their best to find a word in the other language that best captures the original meaning, and these can vary from translation to translation. So, in these cases, it does help to know something about the original languages or to have Bible helps that reveal what these original words and their meanings (and verb tenses) actually are. But, if we don’t have that, then what?

Again, this is where we have to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth. BUT, it is essential, I believe, that we read scriptures in their context, because the context, itself, gives much meaning to the words.

For example, there is a Greek verb tense, that when translated into English, word for word, ends up with “ing” on the end, but most translators do not include the “ing” at the end of these words. Thus, the word often captures the idea of a one-time event, whereas the original language intended that it capture the idea of a present and continuous event. Such as the case in John 3:16. It isn’t that he who believes (one time) in him, but it is who believing (present tense and ongoing) in him who has the hope of eternal life.

So, how do we know this fact without the use of the Greek? We know it by the context of what is being said, not just in the book of John, but throughout the New Testament. The Bible teaches, in context, that genuine faith in Jesus Christ, which results in eternal life is both present tense and it is continuous, i.e. it must endure to the end if we are to have the hope of eternal life with God. It teaches us that we, who make a practice of following our Lord in obedience, have the hope of eternal life with God, but that those who make a practice of sin, i.e. who walk according to the flesh, have a fearful expectation of eternal punishment. If, by the Spirit, we are putting (not just put one time) to death the deeds of the flesh, then we will live.

So, even if you don’t know Greek or Hebrew, that is not ever an excuse to ignore what the Word teaches, for we can know what it teaches by the Spirit living within us, and by the context in which it is written, but not just the immediate context, but the context of the whole Bible, but especially the New Testament, for that is where we find the teachings for Christians.

Though I am lowly and despised,
I do not forget your precepts.
Your righteousness is everlasting
and your law is true.
Trouble and distress have come upon me,
but your commands give me delight.
Your statutes are always righteous;
give me understanding that I may live.​

When we teach what is true, not because we have Bible helps, but because we have the Spirit of God guiding us into all truth, and he guides us to read verses in context, and to compare scripture with scripture, so that we get its full meaning, there will be people who will oppose us because what we are saying does not jive with what they have always been taught.

So, even though the Bible clearly teaches us that faith in Jesus Christ has to endure to the end in order for us to have the hope of eternal life, many will reject that, because they have been taught that if you pray the prayer to receive Christ, you are in, guaranteed, and no one can take that away from you.

Even though the Bible clearly teaches that the Lord’s followers listen to him and they follow (obey) him, and it is these who can’t be snatched out of God’s hands, still many ignore the first part of this, and only hold on to the second part of this promise, and they apply it across the board to anyone who claims to believe in Jesus Christ, especially if they prayed the prayer.

And, even though the Bible clearly teaches that genuine faith in Jesus Christ is repentant and obedient, in lifestyle, though not necessarily in sinless perfection, many will reject this, too, because they have been taught that praying the prayer guarantees their entry into heaven, no matter what they do from that moment on. They believe that they can sin as much as they want, and still have their ticket into heaven. But, that is just WRONG!

So, what is the truth which we must understand and put into practice if we want to live with Christ for eternity? It is that Jesus Christ died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness (1 Pet. 2:24; Rom. 6:1-23). It is that the righteous requirement of the law is fulfilled in us who walk (in lifestyle), not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit, for if we walk according to the flesh, we will die in our sins, but if, by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, we will live with Christ for eternity (Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Gal. 2:20; Lu. 9:23-25).

And, it is, as well, that God’s grace is not a free license to continue in sinful lifestyles, making sin our practice, but it teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions (lusts) and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for Christ’s return (Tit. 2:11-14; Gal. 5:19-21).

So, as followers of Jesus Christ, we should want to know this truth, and we should delight in this truth, and we should follow what is true, and not ignore the truth just because it doesn’t fit with what we have always been taught or have come to believe. So, know, delight and follow the truth.

My Jesus, My Savior / Michael W. Smith

My Jesus, My Saviour,
Lord there is no one like you,
All of my days, I want to praise
The wonders of Your mighty love.

My comfort, my shelter,
Tower of refuge and strength
Let every breath, all that I am
Never cease to worship You…

Wednesday, November 15, 2017, 7:06 a.m. - Thank you, Jesus, for these words which you have spoken to my heart today, and for bringing this song to my mind as I awoke this morning. I praise you, and I thank you!

 

[amadeus2]

@Sue J Love
People want a guarantee that they will make it with Jesus to the end of their road. The guarantee provided is that Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us. What is not guaranteed is that we never will leave nor forsake Him. But, God has provided us with the means to keep our part of the deal through the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately some people want a guarantee that they will not lose out because they have failed Him here and there from time to time.

Our God is merciful and if our hearts are really turned toward Him He will always forgive our indiscretions, our errors, our sins, IF we do not try to take advantage of His mercy to sin a bit because we think we "know" that He will always forgive us. Actually He will not always forgive everyone. He knows when we are playing games to get the most we can from both the carnal and the spiritual at the lowest possible cost on our part.

Ultimately the apostle Paul explains what that lowest possible cost for us is:

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Rom 12:1

In the beginning of our walk with the Lord, He is very merciful for He knows our frailty and He knows our ignorance of His Word. As time passes our strength in Him should be increasing as we move the "milk" to the "meat". If we do not do this, then eventually we will end up with nothing at all.

"He must increase, but I must decrease." John 3:30 This is talking about growth in the right direction [from milk to meat].

"Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matt 25:28-30

The one that hath not is all of us when we start on the highway of holiness. One talent was give to that one but he like all of us are only stewards of what the Lord has given us, whether it is one talent or ten talents. We will never own anything, not even Life, if we do not grow toward God as we move along that highway.

Someone who really loves God does not have to worry about losing a place with God, because he loves God. If he stops loving God that is another matter. People may say that once a person loves God he will never stop, but that is not how it works. It is not how man is. It can be, but only if he never stops growing toward God up to the point that natural breath is gone from him.

 

[Sue J Love]

@Sue J Love
People want a guarantee that they will make it with Jesus to the end of their road. The guarantee provided is that Jesus will never leave us nor forsake us. What is not guaranteed is that we never will leave nor forsake Him. But, God has provided us with the means to keep our part of the deal through the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately some people want a guarantee that they will not lose out because they have failed Him here and there from time to time.

Our God is merciful and if our hearts are really turned toward Him He will always forgive our indiscretions, our errors, our sins, IF we do not try to take advantage of His mercy to sin a bit because we think we "know" that He will always forgive us. Actually He will not always forgive everyone. He knows when we are playing games to get the most we can from both the carnal and the spiritual at the lowest possible cost on our part.

Ultimately the apostle Paul explains what that lowest possible cost for us is:

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Rom 12:1

In the beginning of our walk with the Lord, He is very merciful for He knows our frailty and He knows our ignorance of His Word. As time passes our strength in Him should be increasing as we move the "milk" to the "meat". If we do not do this, then eventually we will end up with nothing at all.

"He must increase, but I must decrease." John 3:30 This is talking about growth in the right direction [from milk to meat].

"Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.
And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matt 25:28-30

The one that hath not is all of us when we start on the highway of holiness. One talent was give to that one but he like all of us are only stewards of what the Lord has given us, whether it is one talent or ten talents. We will never own anything, not even Life, if we do not grow toward God as we move along that highway.

Someone who really loves God does not have to worry about losing a place with God, because he loves God. If he stops loving God that is another matter. People may say that once a person loves God he will never stop, but that is not how it works. It is not how man is. It can be, but only if he never stops growing toward God up to the point that natural breath is gone from him.

@amadeus2 - This is what I know. I know that God is holy, righteous and just. I know that he is also loving, forgiving, gracious and compassionate. So, how do these attributes all work together when it comes to our salvation? Jesus died that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, not just so we could escape hell and have the hope of eternity in heaven. So, God's plan for us, in saving us, is to deliver us out of slavery (bondage, addiction) to sin. What this means for us is that, if we genuinely have trusted in him as our Lord and Savior, we have died to sin that we might live to God and to his righteousness. Now, the Holy Spirit lives within us, if we truly are one of his, and he empowers and strengthens us to live holy, godly and upright lives, pleasing to God.

Does this mean we will never sin again? NO, it doesn't. But, does it mean that sin should no longer be our master? Yes, it does! For, if we go on living in sin; if we make sin our practice; if we hold on to our old lives of living for sin and self; if we walk according to the flesh, and not according to the Spirit, we will die in our sins, even IF we prayed the prayer to receive Christ. The prayer is not what guarantees us heaven or that God will never leave us or forsake us. What the Bible teaches guarantees us eternal life with God, and that he will never leave us, is our obedience, not perfection, but that we are walking, in practice, according to the ways of God and we are not living sinful lifestyles. It also teaches that what guarantees us eternal life is continuous faith (biblical faith) that endures to the end. Yes, it is the Lord who carries us through, but he doesn't do it without our cooperation. He knows, like you said, who is just playing games and who isn't. He knows whose faith never really took root, but that they just had an emotional experience. He knows who is just looking for a free ride to heaven and an escape from hell but whose hearts never were surrendered to him and who never truly were ever born again of the Spirit of God.

So, on one side you have someone say you will never sin again. On the other side someone says you can sin as much as you want and still have your ticket into heaven. The truth is somewhere there in the middle. Someone may say, then where is the line? How do I know if I have crossed it? Well, for one, we shouldn't be testing the line to see how much we can get away with. For the other, I just have to go to the word of God for my answers, and it says if we don't make obedience our practice (not speaking of perfection) that we don't really love God or know God. And, it says that if we make sin our practice, our lifestyle, and we walk in the flesh, then we don't have eternal life with God. So, if one wants to be assured of his eternal life, then he needs to remain in Christ, in his word, walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh, and endure with Christ to the end. This is what the Bible teaches. This is not saying, again, that we will never sin or that God will not be gracious to us when we do (See: 1 Jn. 2:1-2).

 

[Lanolin]

The bible says we are to abide in the vine.

I dont know if you ever pruned grapes. Well sometimes some branches stick out and come away from the vine, and these ones wont bear fruit. They need to be cut off. If a branch falls off it will die. If it grows away from the vine also it will be cut off which is why Jesus says abide in the vine. You can train branches fo stick with the vine and not go all over the ground. Sometimes you can tie them in.

With regard to words. Well KJV translates as believeth, not believes or believed or even believing. I dont get the sense its a one time thing. KJV isnt that hard to understand when you start reading it in context as you go through the bible scripture does explain itself. You dont really need to know greek or hebrew but it is a translation that was directly taken from those original tongues, unlike some other bibles that translated it from latin, which was from greek translation of the hebrew. Or the new testament, some bibles are translated from latin from alexandrian manuscripts that actually had parts missing. The translators then had to explain away the gaps. Cos when people checked in with the KJV, they saw it was different!

Its like hey acts 8:38 isnt even there! And parts of John...and some of the story of the woman caught in adultery. And hey some tribes are missing from the 144,000 in revelation! Things like that.

KJV new testament translated from greek byzantian manuscripts and what is called textus receptus.
Also the original hebrew, not the greek translation of the old testament called the septugint.

Other bibles are translated from latin or using the manuscripts used by the vatican. The vaticans bible is not reliable, although roman catholics would not agree, but then up till last century all roman catholics had were latin bibles thet nobody could read anyway cos nobody actually spoke latin. So when they releaxed thr rule they translated these latin texts into english and other languages but only last century and thats why theres all these other english translations now. Cartholics were actually banned from reading KJV.

From the catholic church there are some teachings that you can sin and get away with is as long as you attend church on sunday, so thats probably where that teaching came from, as well as their unreliable translations of the bible.

 

[Sue J Love]

@Lanolin - Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me on this subject. I appreciate your input. God bless! Sue

 

[Lanolin]

Sorry acts 8:37. Some bibles dont have it, or they put it in footnotes, claiming 'the original' or the 'best manuscript' didnt have this verse. And 1 john 5:7.

Here is a list. It seems nasb includes all these verses but puts them in brackets rather than omits them.

List of Bible verses not included in modern translations - Wikipedia

Many bibles in english are just updated versions of the kjv to make it easier to read, they are not actually new translations, as kjv has already done the translating. But because the catholics had latin manuscripts, they will choose those over the majority text and then claim they chose the 'best' or 'better text' or 'earliest manuscipt'.

KJV was not the only bible translated into english 400 years ago, there were others, but they didnt stand the test of time. The church of england at the time recognised it as the best translation, the one most true to scripture, so it was appointed to be read in their churches. King james of england at the time got it authorized, but he was not partisan to any church. He was a scot and he was a puritan bible scholar, but he just wanted a decent translation cos there were others floating around that were awful.

The catholics hated the any new translations and had tried to kill the translators eg tyndale. Because the scripture showed that many of their traditions were man made and not biblical. Tyndale was burned at the stake. Henry the eighth was king at the time and he was catholic. The kjv makes a lot of use of tyndales translation about 80% of it was used.

Anyway its a convoluted history how kjv came about..some people can be 'its the only version and you have to read it' which isnt fair as its not but people need to recognise that in english many of our modern versions are just updated versions of KJV as they didnt do away with it at all.
But many of the catholic versions are not and competing with the kjv or even anti kjv because they come from a different source...the vatican.

 

[Sue J Love]

Sorry acts 8:37. Some bibles dont have it, or they put it in footnotes, claiming 'the original' or the 'best manuscript' didnt have this verse. And 1 john 5:7.

Here is a list. It seems nasb includes all these verses but puts them in brackets rather than omits them.

List of Bible verses not included in modern translations - Wikipedia

Many bibles in english are just updated versions of the kjv to make it easier to read, they are not actually new translations, as kjv has already done the translating. But because the catholics had latin manuscripts, they will choose those over the majority text and then claim they chose the 'best' or 'better text' or 'earliest manuscipt'.

KJV was not the only bible translated into english 400 years ago, there were others, but they didnt stand the test of time. The church of england at the time recognised it as the best translation, the one most true to scripture, so it was appointed to be read in their churches. King james of england at the time got it authorized, but he was not partisan to any church. He was a scot and he was a puritan bible scholar, but he just wanted a decent translation cos there were others floating around that were awful.

The catholics hated the any new translations and had tried to kill the translators eg tyndale. Because the scripture showed that many of their traditions were man made and not biblical. Tyndale was burned at the stake. Henry the eighth was king at the time and he was catholic. The kjv makes a lot of use of tyndales translation about 80% of it was used.

Anyway its a convoluted history how kjv came about..some people can be 'its the only version and you have to read it' which isnt fair as its not but people need to recognise that in english many of our modern versions are just updated versions of KJV as they didnt do away with it at all.
But many of the catholic versions are not and competing with the kjv or even anti kjv because they come from a different source...the vatican.

@Lanolin Thank you for sharing this information.