Right Weeping

In Nehemiah 1:4 we read: “When I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days; and I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

When I read this, my first question was, “Do I weep over what causes the Lord to weep?”  Is what moves me to tears important to Him?  I don’t think He cares much about Hallmark movies.  I rather doubt that He is concerned about the outcome of the football games I watch.

On the other hand, I read that He wants us to abide in His Word.  I read in Jeremiah 23 (Here at Bible Gateway), that when the leadership of Israel did not abide in His Word, He was moved by that – seemed angry – wept?

In Matthew 28:18 – 20 (Here at Bible Gateway), He wants us to make disciples of all the nations, when we are not focused on that, it would seem that He would respond much as He did with the leaders in Jeremiah.

Nehemiah takes it up a notch in 1:6b: "…I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have sinned against You; I and my father’s house have sinned."  Nehemiah knew that the nation had drifted away from what God wanted them to do.  His response was to pray, confess, not just once, but day and night.  He took it seriously.  

How are we doing as a Church?  Either globally or locally?  Are we abiding in His Word?  Are we obeying His commission?  Are we representing Him well to the lost?  Or are we more interested in pleasing ourselves, making ourselves comfortable in our meetings and events?

Nehemiah ends with this in 8 – 9: “Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them…”  Note that Nehemiah is basing his petition to the Lord on the Word of God, the promise of God.  

It seems that if we are to follow Nehemiah’s example, we will pray not just for ourselves or our needs but for the Church both globally and locally to do what the Lord wants done.  Further, when we see that the Church is not following what the Lord commands, then we will with Him weep.

Responding to the Call

Most mornings the first thing I do is open my Bible program Logos.  A while back I did and when the program opened, Deuteronomy 32:18 (here at Bible Gateway) was in the middle of the screen and caught my eye.  It is a powerful passage.  Even more so, when you read the context.  

Tonight, I went with my brother to his church in Houston.  A pastor I had shadowed while taking a leadership course in seminary was leading a class on John 15 (here at Bible Gateway).  It was interesting to see how what he said in the 90 minutes that we spent together aligned with what I saw when Logos opened to 32:18.  One of the points he made was that Jesus gives us three callings:

• Come to Me
• Come after Me
• Abide in Me

He pointed out the density of the repletion of the word abide (Greek, μένω) in John 15.  Then he pointed out that John uses the word even more densely in 1 John (here at Bible Gateway).  I just checked, abide shows up 24 times between 1 John 2:6 and 4:16 (here at Bible Gateway).  The speaker’s point was that more people respond to the first two calls than those who respond to the third.

That mirrored my response to Deuteronomy 32:18.  In my journal I wrote, “People who do not choose to abide in His Word are those who have forgotten Him and neglected Him.  Lord, show me how I have neglected you?”

This morning I was talking to a pastor at our church.  I was sharing some quotes from the book, These Words upon thy Heart, I had shared with him that I searched for this book on the recommendation of Prof for 40 years.  It was  worth the search.  Here is one of the quotes we discussed:

“…we truly inherit nothing except what we also discern.  Nothing is ever really ours, however it may be presented to us except we discover its truth and except it prove itself again in our experience…mere acceptance of the conclusions of others… is not the way which we…lay broad and deep foundations.  With eyes bandaged in formulas we see only the aspect of life the formula allows…they grow accustomed to the half light…and with all the colors of it toned down to suit the somber hues of a twilight soul.” (Kuist, Howard Tillman. These Words upon thy Heart.  Richmond, Virginia: John Knox Press, 1947, P 56.)

The point is, we must respond to Christ’s third call.  To not do so is to lead a anemic, muted, colorless, Christian life. 

Joints – Summary

For the past four days we have been looking at Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway) in some detail.  The reason we did this stems from a recent study in which I participated.  In that study I realized that I had misunderstood the passage which caused me to misapply the content.

In the first post I alluded to the error I had made.

In the second post we looked at Ephesians 4:11 – 12.

In the third we considered Ephesians 4:13.

Yesterday we examined Ephesians 4:14 – 16.

I have lost count of the number of times I have studied Ephesians.  I have been in at least two studies in the letter this year.  I have translated the book from Greek to English.  I have used portions of it in studies with men on the believer’s position in Christ more times than I can count.  Suffice it to say that Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus is one of my go to books in the Bible.

That in of itself is a problem.  When we come to the Word in study the method we should be using is inductive.  We first observe the text.  Second, we begin the process of interpretation.  At the same time, we are correlating the passage with other places in the Word that deal with the same topic.  Much of Paul’s writing is parallel with Ephesians, but Colossians is almost a sister book.  Lastly, we apply the scripture.  All four of those steps are needed and essential.

When we are very familiar with a passage, as I am with this book, we can tend to short circuit the observation portion of the study.  After all, we know the passage.  So, it is easy to see what we have seen before.  In fact there are some who once they have studied a book in depth, find no need to return to that book.  

It takes discipline to slow down and look as if for the first time.  That is the mistake I made with Ephesians in the past.  The thing I missed in doing so, is that it is not the individuals that cause the growth of the Body, but the joints.  The joints are the interactions between different groups of individuals or individuals with groups of people, as per the chart yesterday.  It is still absolutely necessary to equip individuals so that their gifts will be engaged.  But it is when those gifts are engaged in relationship in the Body that growth occurs.

It seems to me that the implications of this are far reaching.  How do we as leaders of Bible studies engage the gifts of all of those in the study?  If we are leading a class, how do we engage all of the gifts that are in the class?  Not to do so seems to be ignoring the thrust of Paul’s exhortation.

The lesson for me is that regardless of how well I know a passage, I need to slow down and make good observations.  I feel much like the Psalmist in Psalm 119 (here @ BibleGateway).  I need to spend much more time asking the Lord to help me understand His Word.

Joints – Part 4

We are looking in detail at Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway). Yesterday we looked at one verse, one sentence, verse 13. Today we look at the last sentence in the passage 14 - 16. 

Tomorrow we will summarize what we have seen. I would like to hear what you have seen in this. Please comment on any of the posts. 

Spoiler alert, this is long.

4:14

ἵνα μηκέτι ὦμεν νήπιοι, κλυδωνιζόμενοι καὶ περιφερόμενοι παντὶ ἀνέμῳ τῆς διδασκαλίας ἐν τῇ κυβείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἐν πανουργίᾳ πρὸς τὴν μεθοδείαν τῆς πλάνης,

As a result, (or “in order that”) we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;

Effect Temporal iEnd Locative Locative iMeans General iMeans iMeans iMeans iMeans

One result of equipping is that a member of the community can determine false teaching. That would seem to imply that they have developed sufficient skill in Bible study to validate objectively, biblically something that is taught. When one looks in detail at the fourfold assignment of leadership in the body it become obvious why the result of the leadership engaging would be the ability of the body to withstand false teaching.

 

4:15a

ἀληθεύοντες δὲ ἐν ἀγάπῃ

but speaking the truth in love,

Contrast iEnd iMeans; in Love 1:4, 3:17, 4:2, 4:15a,4:16g, 5:2

Starting with this clause, Paul connects this line of thought to the thread of in love that started in 1:4 (here @ BibleGateway). Therefore one of the results of the equipping of the saints is that they are living more completely out of love. The interactions as they individually engage are spoken and presented in an attitude of love for one another as Christ commanded in John 13:34 – 35 (here @ BibleGateway). 

NB “Speaking the truth in love,” in a real sense is a umbrella statement that covers all of the interactions, joints, and individuals regardless of their level of engagement in the Body. The contrasting elements are being carried about by every wind of doctrine as opposed to growing up in all aspects into Him. This would seem to summarize the effect of the fourfold assignment of the leadership of the community.

 

4:15b

αὐξήσωμεν εἰς αὐτὸν τὰ πάντα,

we are to grow up in all aspects into

iEnd Emphatic

The intention is that we are to grow into Christ. The emphatic all is strengthened by the word order in the Greek, literally, “we are to grow up into Him the all”, the neuter all indicates the idea of aspects. All aspects of Christ life and character is the goal. It is not just a partial growth that is imagined but a growth into all of Him. Again this is imagined by Paul to be done in a manner that is consistent with speaking the truth in Love.

 

4:15c

ὅς ἐστιν ἡ κεφαλή,

Him who is the head,

Locative; cf. 4:13 fullness of Christ

Note that the metric is Christ. We are to grow up into Him, ὅς ἐστιν ἡ κεφαλή, Χριστός, (which is the head, Christ) mirrors εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ (into the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ) in 4:13. Thus we are measured not by any man but by how much our character and our actions are similar or different from Christ. 

 Not to be overly repetitive here but the overarching context is love. Each of our interactions, equipping actions – for lack of a better label – is to be under the umbrella of love. This removes equipping from the academic realm and places it in the arena of relationship. Relationship that is defined below as a joint, and one that is intentionally created by the Lord. Each encounter we have with one another is an opportunity to properly work in love. 

Further, considering the sovereign providence of God, each interaction we have with other people whether they are believers or not, literally each person we encounter is intentionally placed on our path, scrutinized by the Lord. He has sovereignly placed them on our path. If that is the case, and it seems to be so, then our ability to engage with one another intentionally, diligently, in the body becomes the crucible wherein we learn to engage with each individual with which we come in contact intentionally, with love, for the purpose of increasing their love for Christ and others.

 

4:15d

Χριστός,

even Christ,

Emphatic

The "even" is supplied by the committee because of the use of Christ here. It is not necessary for clarity; the use of the title here emphasizes the goal.

 

4:16a

ἐξ οὗ πᾶν τὸ σῶμα

from whom the whole body,

Locative Emphatic 2:21a, 4:16

Christ is the one that is driving, or the source of what Paul is about to declare. Note the mirroring of "all" in 15b with "whole" here. This is not imagined to be a partial engagement or result; all the body is to grow in all aspects into the fullness of Christ 

NB. The theme of all or whole runs through this chapter. This seems to grow out of or be an extension of the theme of unity in 1 – 6 (here @ BibleGateway). Consider the inclusive and unifying terms:

Verse	Term(s)
1	you
2	All, one another
3	Unity
4	One, one, you, one
5	One, one, one
6	One, all, all, all
7	Each, one, us
12	Saints, body
13	All, unity, fullness
14	We
15b	We, all
16a	Whole body
16c	Every
16e	Each
16f	Body

4:16b

συναρμολογούμενον καὶ συμβιβαζόμενον

being fitted and held together

iEnd

Christ is the one who is acting. He is fitting and holding together the Body. These are both present passive participles so, ongoing action. 

   

4:16c

διὰ πάσης ἁφῆς τῆς ἐπιχορηγίας

by what every joint supplies,

iMeans Emphatic

16b is the end, the means is the contribution of the joints. Joints are the junction or meeting of one or more members of the body or of a mechanical device. It is the relationship between the members that is in mind here?

I have always read these two clauses as emphasizing the importance of the individual.  While that is certainly in mind. The growth happens at the junction of, the joint, the intentional interaction between the members of the Body, again in the context of Love… 

Proverbs 27:17 (NASB95) Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another. 

Proverbs 27:19 (NASB95) As in water face reflects face, So the heart of man reflects man.

 

4:16d

κατ᾽ ἐνέργειαν ἐν μέτρῳ ἑνὸς ἑκάστου μέρους

according to the proper working of each individual part,

Criteria Emphatic Emphatic Emphatic

An implication is that the contribution of the joint, is dependent on each of the members of the joint, at the joint, properly functioning. 

An implication of this would have to be that one of the results imagined by the equipping of the saints is the identification, activation, and diligent engagement in operating in one’s gift in the body. 1 Timothy 4:14 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway) is a crucial passage on this result: Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery. Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you. 

If this exhortation is given to a leader, it is also applicable to those under his shepherding, or the command to make disciples and its element of teaching all that Christ commanded, is of no consequence. 

All of this results in raising the importance and intensity of what is done in the local body. 

Key implication: a joint is the relationship between two or more members of the Body.

 

4:16e

τὴν αὔξησιν τοῦ σώματος

causes the growth of the body

iEnd

The supply of the joint causes the growth of the Body. For years I have read this incorrectly as the contribution of each individual part. True, the proper working of each part, affects the supply of the joint. 

The verb αὔξησιν (growth) here in 16e is in the same word group as the verb αὐξήσωμεν (we are to grow up) in 15b. This ties these two clauses together tightly. We are to grow into Christ in all His fullness, that is caused here by the interaction of the members working intentionally and properly in those interactions. 

As there are differing types of joints in the body, there are differing types of relationships in the body.

Member	Member	Type of Meeting
Pastor	Congregation	Worship
Teacher	Class	SS or class
Team leader	Team	Team Meeting
Leader	Group	Small Group, Bible Study
Disciple Maker	Growing Christian	One on One
LDM	DM	Man to Man
Pastor	Elders	Elder Meeting
Pastor	Staff	Staff Meeting

I have typically viewed the two highlighted on the list as the only effective joints. However, if the illustration is to hold that cannot be the case. We must view all these as important. Further, we must work to equip all the individuals to work properly.

 

4:16f

ποιεῖται εἰς οἰκοδομὴν ἑαυτοῦ

for the building up of itself

Purpose/Substantiation iMeans

The purpose of this process and arrangement is the building up of the Body of Christ… 

This is a repetition and emphasis on the building up of the individual and by extension the Body in the fullness of Christ. NB. The equipping of each individual is required in order to insure the proper working and thus the contribution of each of the joints to this building.

 

4:16g

ἐν ἀγάπῃ.

in love.

Locative iEnd; in Love 1:4, 3:17, 4:2, 4:15a, 4:16g, 5:2

…the end of the building is love. Note that this sentence started with speaking the truth “in love”. Which would imply that all of this is done in an atmosphere of love. Note that this aligns with Paul’s exhortation to Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:5 (here @ BibleGateway).

Joints – Part 3

We are looking in detail at Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway).  Note that this passage is three sentences.  We looked at 11 and 12 yesterday which is one sentence.  We will look at 13 today, again one sentence.  Tomorrow we will finish with 14 – 16, also one sentence.  We will then summarize what we have seen.

4:13

μέχρι καταντήσωμεν οἱ πάντες εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῆς ἐπιγνώσεως τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ, εἰς ἄνδρα τέλειον, εἰς μέτρον ἡλικίας τοῦ πληρώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ,

until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to [of JMC] the fullness of Christ.

Temporal Emphatic Purpose Essentially one cf. 4:3, 4:13 Purpose Purpose Emphatic Colossians 2:9 – 10

This passage sets the parameters for the ministry of the leaders.  The first clause tells us the length of time that the leaders will be engaged in the process, that is described as until unity is attained.  The implications of that at least include that job is ceaseless.  Further the scope of the leader’s ministry is emphatic.  The leaders are to engage with all the saints, not some, all.  The expected outcome, the result of this engagement by the leaders is rather daunting.  There are at least four metrics that are expected results:

1. Unity of the faith.
2. Unity of the knowledge of the Son of God
3. To maturity
4. To the fullness of Christ

Each of these deserve significant description on their own.  It would be incumbent on leadership in a body to define these.  It would seem that the leadership of a body as stewards of the grace of God would be held accountable for their engagement in this.

Joints – Part 2

Yesterday, I confessed to having misunderstood a passage that I have used in our ministry for years. I asked you to take a look at Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway) and then compare it to what I have seen today. I just spent a few minutes reviewing my study and have concluded that I need to share all of it here. That will take more than one post. As you look at the study you will see why fairly quickly.

Here we go:

4:11

καὶ αὐτὸς ἔδωκεν τοὺς μὲν ἀποστόλους, τοὺς δὲ προφήτας, τοὺς δὲ εὐαγγελιστάς, τοὺς δὲ ποιμένας καὶ διδασκάλους,

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,

Purpose Purpose Purpose Purpose

He works through the gifts of His people therefore we must put value on the gifts of the people and engage in equipping them to gain the benefit He intends from those gifts.

4:12

πρὸς τὸν καταρτισμὸν τῶν ἁγίων εἰς ἔργον διακονίας, εἰς οἰκοδομὴν τοῦ σώματος τοῦ Χριστοῦ,

for the equipping of the saints for the work of service,  to the building up of the body

Purpose Substantiation Purpose Substantiation Purpose; Building up the body: 4:12, 4:16f

The purpose of the gifts given by Christ is to equip the saints. The saints are the members of the community. The saints are to be equipped to do the work of service. 

 Part of the Great Commission, Matthew 28:18 – 20 (here @ BibleGateway), is that part of making disciples is to teach those that are led to Christ all that He taught. That would seem to include all of these points. We expose people to the idea of following Christ through the presentation of the gospel which would be supplemented by exposure to the community. They would be able to experience the love and unity of the body through that exposure. 

 The next step would be to engage them in some facet of the community, a small investigative Bible study, a small group, or in a church setting some form of service or project that increases their exposure to the community. Behind the scenes the community is praying for their salvation. 

 Should they trust Christ the next step would be to establish them through the process of follow up. The Seven topics would be appropriate here, these should be done one on one. After one is established, which would entail some level of consistent personal input of the Word and growth in prayer. By the way, the idea behind Establish is that the individual would be able to stand on their own in their walk with Christ. This does not suggest that they are independent of the body but that they have developed personal habits and disciplines that will help them sustain a personal walk with Christ. We should then begin to Equip these individuals. 

 The purpose of the equipping is to enable them to serve the Body of Christ, in this case their local community and beyond. This would entail helping them to discover and develop in their gifts.  1 Timothy 4:14 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway) seems to indicate this type of effort. This equipping would necessarily include significant time in the Bible, engagement with a group of men as well as man to man. There should be sufficient opportunity for both ministry opportunities as well as observation of the individual engaged in the ministry. There should be training in each of these opportunities consisting of instruction, observation, and critique. 

 It will be the case that not all of those who are established will be equipped. That will be because of several reasons some due to the choice of the individual and others due to the choice of the one who will be doing the training. 

The importance of following this type of model, in some form, cannot be over emphasized. To not do this ignores both the command of Christ and the engagement of the Holy Spirit in the lives of these individuals. To do so also diminishes the effectiveness of the gifts that the Lord has, by His grace given to the Body. To not equip those to use their gifts robs the body of the impact of those gifts utilized. 

The last step in this process is to entrust the ministry to those who have been equipped. Entrusting implies that they are focused on serving others and exposing others to the riches of a relationship with Christ and His community.

Stay Tuned - More tomorrow...

Joints

Have you ever realized that you got something wrong in your understanding of the Bible?  I have.  I have in the past few months.  One of the realities we face in Bible study is that anytime we approach a text we come with a preconceived notion of what we will see.  (I have written about this several times, this post was the first.)  It is one of the struggles in Bible study to look past what we expect to see and allow the text, the prime data, speak to us.

Tuesday mornings I am in a study with men whom I have known for over 40 years.  We were in Ephesians a few months back.  We are following the same pattern we follow in each book or topic we study.  We do an overview of the book or topic, study the details or sections, and then summarize what we have seen.  We move from the whole to the parts and then back to the whole.

During the study, we invested about 4 weeks in Ephesians 4 (here @ BibleGateway).  I have used Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway) to validate the need for communities of faith to intentionally engage in equipping each of their members for years.  While that is true, in the process of focusing on the need to be intentional to equip each person in the fellowship, I missed something vitally important.

Consider Ephesians 4:14 – 16 (here @ BibleGateway).  Read through it yourself and notice what is repeated and how Paul describes the purpose of the gifts, what they are supposed to do, and what should be the outcome of the successful deployment of the gifts in a body.  If you have time write down your observations and compare them to what I am going to share tomorrow.

Abundant, Overwhelming Grace

On May 12th last year I started chemo for the cancer I have, Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia.  I had no idea how it was going to impact me.  The first infusion was two days, 3 hours on the 12th and 5 hours on the 13th.  

On the evening of the 13th my diaphragm began to spasm.  It was like having hiccups on steroids, which I had both days.  They calmed down by 10 PM but started back up again at 12:30 the morning of the 14th.  They kept me awake until 5 AM.

In my journal the evening of the 14th I recorded a passage that had really encouraged me, 2 Corinthians 12:7 – 10 (here @ Bible Gateway).  I was struck yet again by Paul’s attitude.  He was well content with weakness, with insults, with distress, with persecutions, with difficulties, for it made him dependent on Christ.

As mentioned in my last post part of my Quiet time for the past year or so has been to read and reflect on one of the entries in The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions (VOV).  This is what I read the morning of the 15th.

The voyage is long, the waves high, the storms pitiless, but my helm is held steady, thy word secures safe passage, thy grace wafts me on ward, my haven is guaranteed. (VOV, Voyage, page 202 - 203) 

Those words reminded me of what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 12:7 – 10 (here @ Bible Gateway).  However, that is not what was the greatest comfort.  I started reading VOV because of a conversation I had with one of the small group leaders in our church.  He mentioned that the men in his group spent some time looking at it and discussing some of the entries.

Out of curiosity, I got a copy and a few weeks later incorporated it into my time with God.  That was months before May 15, 2020.  Yet the timing of this sentence was perfect.  What stunned me, and I should know better by now, was the Lord using an off hand comment by a Christian brother months before, to supply encouragement to me when I was in need.

Psalm 139 (here @ Bible Gateway) tells us that He knows our path in detail, He encloses us behind and before and lays His hand on us.  He knows what I need before I need it and supplies it just in time.

Further, this morning before I started my time with Him, I prayed that He would meet me and in our time together, He would through His Spirit increase my love for Him.  But this morning nothing really stood out in what I read.  As I am writing this, I am overwhelmed with His love and care for me.  He answered the prayer in His own time.

His grace and kindness are overwhelmingly abundant.

Digging Deeper, Part 2, Finally…

Tomorrow was more like next year…  Sorry, my wife had her right knee replaced and that has taken up a lot of bandwidth over the past weeks as well as two rounds of maintenance chemo for me.

So back to 1 Peter 2:1 – 3 (here @ Bible Gateway).  I mentioned that one of the things that looking at the passage suggested as a good step would be to investigate the usage of the word “tasted”.  Why?  Well, there are several reasons.  The implications of that verb have significant impact on how we understand what Peter is telling us.

Looking at the data, the word γεύομαι (geuomai) that is translated “tasted” in 1 Peter 2:3 (here @ Bible Gateway) shows up 15 times in the New Testament and 13 times in the Septuagint (LXX), the Greek Old Testament excluding the Apocrypha.  Looking at the way the word is used in the New Testament, Peter only uses “tasted” here.  So we do not get any direction from his other usage.  The next closest for us to consider would be other epistles.  We find “tasted” in both Colossians and Hebrews.  In Colossians (2:21) (here @ Bible Gateway) the usage is ambiguous.  It could mean either sample or eat.  In Hebrews we get some better help.  In Hebrews, the writer uses “tasted” three times twice it seems ambiguous (6:4, 5) (here @ Bible Gateway), but in one instance it seems to indicate consumption (2:9) (here @ Bible Gateway).

The other usages of “tasted” are in the gospels and Acts.  There we find clear usage of the term, in Matthew 16:28 (here @ Bible Gateway), Mark 9:1 (here @ Bible Gateway); Luke 9:27 (here @ Bible Gateway); and John 8:52 (here @ Bible Gateway), Jesus uses the phrase “taste death”.  It seems from that usage that it means to experience death, to die.  The implications would seem to be that one who “tastes” has entered into the experience completely.  The other two places the word appears are in Matthew 27:34 (here @ Bible Gateway) and John 2:9 (here @ Bible Gateway).  In both of these it deals with tasting or drinking a liquid.  Again, that is consumption.

The last three instances in the New Testament are in Acts 10:10 (here @ Bible Gateway); 20:11 (here @ Bible Gateway); and 23:14 (here @ Bible Gateway).  In each case the word is used to describe eating food.

In the LXX, our word is exclusively used to describe consuming food and beverages.

While there is more that we could do, do you see the pattern here?  The sense of γεύομαι, taste, is to consume something to take it into your body or to enter into an experience wholly.  

In 1 Peter 2:1 – 3 (here @ Bible Gateway), Peter uses this word in the first part, the if clause, of a conditional statement the structure of which indicates Peter assumes the reader has, in fact, tasted.  The then clause is complex.  It is the first part of the sentence.  It is also in contrast to the kindness of the Lord.  Putting this together, if we have fully consumed and entered into the kindness of the Lord, then we are to put away malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander which things are the polar opposite of kindness.  Then we are to long for the pure milk of the Word.  Note that the word γεύομαι that Peter uses here suggests that we are consuming, tasting that milk.  Consuming, tasting that milk then becomes that which causes our growth in salvation.

In that paragraph we used what we found out about the use of the word γεύομαι and the structure of the sentence that Peter penned to unwrap what he wanted us to know.  There is more there, but that is enough for now.

Hope that makes sense and is helpful. 

Digging Deeper

It has been a while since I posted here.  Reason, chemo.  During the 21 days of the round I get about 4 or 5 days that I can be productive.  The rest of the time I am in a thick fog or just do not have any energy.  However, I have stayed in the Word for the most part.  I want to share some thoughts that I mentioned briefly in the video in the May 12th post here on 1 Peter 2:1 – 2 (here @ Bible Gateway).

This is one of the passages to which Prof always referred when he was talking about the importance of being in the Word for ourselves.

1 Peter 2:1–3 (NASB95) 

1 Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, 

2 like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation, 

3 if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord. 

Note that those three verses are one sentence.  When we study a passage in the Bible, we tend to follow the versification.  Problem is that the verses many times break up sentences and paragraphs.  Some of the chapter divisions break up the continuation of a thought, the division between 2 Timothy 3 and 4 and the division between 2 Peter 1 and 2 are prime examples.

I have begun to bracket sentences in my study, so I do not break up the intent of the author.  I would recommend that practice.

Consider this passage.  Peter compares what our attitude toward the Word of God should be to the attitude of an infant toward his meal.  If you have the slightest bit of experience with babies, you are aware that when they want something, you know, in no uncertain terms.  The noise is only mitigated when their demands are met.

But, note at the beginning of verse 3 the clause starts with “if”.  “If” is a structural marker.  I have highlighted all of the structural markers in the sentence.  It is not the purpose here to explain how to use all of them if you search this blog for structure you will find more info.  Or if you have questions do not hesitate to ask.  The point here is that 1 Peter 2:1 – 3 (here @ Bible Gateway) among other structural elements is a reversed conditional statement.  That is the if clause is preceded by the then or in this case “therefore” clause which, in fact is also connected to 1:22 -25 (here @ Bible Gateway).  The old fisherman is presenting a fairly complex argument here (and we have found yet another chapter division that breaks up the flow of the argument).

The condition is that we have tasted the kindness of the Lord.  This raises a number of questions.  In what sense is Peter using “tasted” here?  What does he mean by the “kindness of the Lord”?  There can be several answers to this.  These questions should prompt us to do a Word study on how Peter has used these words or concepts in other places.  Then we should investigate how Paul, James, John, Jude, the writer of Hebrews used these concepts, then we should look at the use of these concepts in the Gospels, and finally Revelation.  To be thorough we should then see how the concepts were used in the Septuagint and the Classics and how did the early Church Fathers use these words and concepts.  Kind of sounds like work does it not?  I will do this but I am not going to share all of the detail of the study here.

We will continue to look at this tomorrow.

Introduction to Dads Teach the Bible

Last Monday night, Entrusting Truth hosted an online introduction to Dads Teach the Bible, our core seminar.  Click here to watch and listen.  The presentation starts at 2:31.  Let me know what you think in the comments.

Diligence

Just now I was reviewing the past few days of journal entries.  For three days the word “diligence” was repeated.  Both in the passages to which the Lord directed me, and in some of my reactions to those passages.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines diligence as, “Constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken; persistent application and endeavour; industry, assiduity.”

Diligence appears numerous times in our Bibles.  One of those places is Deuteronomy 4:9 – 10 (here @ Bible Gateway), there we are exhorted to keep our soul’s diligently.  In that same passage we are challenged to not forget, but remember, what the Lord has done.

Diligence appears earlier in Deuteronomy 6:4 – 7 (here @ Bible Gateway).  We are to engage with equipping, teaching our sons, diligently.

Then in 2 Peter the words diligent and remember are joined yet again.  Consider:

• 2 Peter 1:5 (here @ Bible Gateway)
• 2 Peter 1:10 (here @ Bible Gateway)
• 2 Peter 1:15 (here @ Bible Gateway)
• 2 Peter 3:1 (here @ Bible Gateway)
• 2 Peter 3:14 (here @ Bible Gateway)

Then again in 2 Timothy 2:15 (here @ Bible Gateway).

What do we make of all of this?  Perhaps, being a Christian is not easy.  Perhaps, it takes effort?  Perhaps it is more than just showing up at a church once a week.

There are two very interesting quotes that I have found in the last few months.  I will share them tomorrow.  They may shed some light on this as well.

Abiding in Sin

This is substantially a continuation or a further development of yesterday’s post.

In the time with the Lord this morning one of the passages to which I was directed was Jude (the reading plan I use had Jude yesterday but I misread it and jumped into Revelation, oops).  In Jude 4 (here @ Bible Gateway) we read that there are those in the community who turn grace into licentiousness.

Thinking through that, and there is much to which that applies, more than I want to explore in this post, several other passages came to mind.

Romans 6:1 – 2 (here @ Bible Gateway): Paul emphatically states that we are not to claim the grace of God as a covering to remain, continue, or abide in sinful behavior.  Which would, it seems, be what Jude suggests is turning grace in to licentiousness.  Interestingly, the word that is translated “continue” (NASB) here is in the same word group as the word that is translated “abide” in John 8:31 – 32 (here @ Bible Gateway).  Galatians 5:13 (here @ Bible Gateway), echoes the thought here in Romans 6:1 – 2 (here @ Bible Gateway).

James 4:17 (here @ Bible Gateway): James reminds us that if we know what is right and do not do it.  That is sin.

John 8:31 – 32 (here @ Bible Gateway): Jesus said that if we are going to be His disciples, we will abide, continue, in His Word.

Luke 6:46 (here @ Bible Gateway): Jesus asks a significant question.  Why are you calling me Lord if you are not doing what I tell you to do?

All of these together would seem to suggest that if we claim to be followers of Christ – note that in Acts 11:26 (here @ Bible Gateway), those who are called Christians were first disciples – one of the distinguishing marks of a Christian, a disciple, is that they are those who abide, remain in, continue in, His Word.

That would seem to be the right thing to do, would it not?  So, if we are not, are we not abiding in sin?

Change?

Six years ago, the Lord allowed me to study Jeremiah four times in a row.  Four different Bible studies with four different groups of men.  One of the major lessons, was that the leadership of Judah had abandoned the Word of God and began to proclaim to the people their own dreams and ideas.  Since most of the people did not have YouVersion on their phones, they were not exposed to the Word of God and had no access to it.

One of the applications from that study is I began asking men who were in leadership, “What is the Lord teaching you from the Word these days?”  It has gotten to the point that many now anticipate the question and tell me before I ask.

A few weeks back I was praying through the Church’s (note that is big C the entire body of Christ not a specific congregation) engagement with the Word of God.  I was reflecting on Isaiah 55:11 (here @ Bible Gateway) and Hebrews 4:12 (here @ Bible Gateway).  I was asking God why if His Word does not return void and if it is living and active and sharper than any two edged sword, why then, have so many of His people abandoned it?  Why have entire Christian organizations chosen to ignore it?  Why have Bible publishers worked with secular publishers to make it more “attractive” to this generation?  Why does the Lord not draw people to Himself through His Word.

As I considered these, I will admit that I was struggling with some level of despair.  I am deeply troubled by the seeming lack of hunger for God’s Word in many professing Christians and equally disturbed by what is considered “good” Christian literature.  Thinking through this another question, really a subset of the first began to form.  I’m still working on the precise language, but it goes something like, “How has the Word challenged what you believe or how you live out your walk with God recently?”

If it is the case that Isaiah 55:8 – 9 (here @ Bible Gateway) is true (it is), then if I am in the Word, abiding in the Word as Christ said that His disciples would do (John 8:31 – 32 (here @ Bible Gateway)), then it would be a continual experience that my thinking and knowledge of Him would be challenged and corrected.  My world view would be continually being shaped, transformed, as Paul describes it in Romans 12:2 (here @ Bible Gateway), by my exposure to God’s nature and character as revealed in His inspired Word.

So, “How has the Word challenged what you believe or how you live out your walk with God recently?”  How has it caused you to change?  How has it transformed you?

Is Jesus Enough?

Learning to deal with the reality that my capacity has been greatly limited, at least for the next several months, has surfaced several issues that I have needed to process.

In the past 13 years the Lord has given me the opportunity to serve believers in 11 countries on 4 continents.  It has been a privilege.  He has given men and women in those places tools to understand the Bible in ways they have not done before.  He has refined the process and the message.  The material has been translated into four languages.  He has given me lasting relationships with significant people.  I have been asked back to most of the places He has allowed me to serve.

I was scheduled to leave this Friday for the second trip to a sub Saharan country.  The treatment canceled that trip along with a three-week vacation to South Africa and a large game reserve in eastern Africa in July.

While I still meet with three Bible studies and our small group at church online, and talk to men on the phone, I have not been able to meet with anyone in person since the middle of March.

As I was praying about this a sentence in a devotional I use from time to time stood out:

Thy goodness has been with me during another year, leading me through a twisting wilderness, in retreat helping me to advance, when beaten back making sure headway. (The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions, page 204)

Reflecting on that sentence, I wrote in my journal, “This describes well my life, Lord please – don’t shunt me aside…”  As I wrote that down it became clear that I valued serving Christ more than Him.  It was a clear rebuke.  Two passages came to mind, Luke 10:18 – 20 (here @ Bible Gateway) and Luke 10:38 – 42 (here @ Bible Gateway).  The question for which I do not have a good answer yet is, “If all I have is my relationship with Jesus, is that enough?  Is He enough?

I know what the answer should be…

Long Lead Items

I am learning to deal with the effects of the chemo – not very well, yet – thus, the blog is sporadic.  Please pray Ephesians 5:15 – 16 (here @ Bible Gateway) for me.

I worked, while in seminary, and for a time afterwards, in project controls, or management, or scheduling – a combination of all the above.  There were several different types of projects from significant infrastructure projects, to large automated warehouses, to technical development of software.  While all of the projects were different, they all had similar pieces that had to be tracked and managed.

One of the more impactful items in any of those projects were “long lead items”.  These are critical materials or functions that require a significant amount of time to either produce or acquire.  They vary from project to project, but their delay of one day, will delay the project by one day, they are that critical.

In the past several years, it seems like the Lord has identified several “long lead items” in my life.  Things I need that seem to be taking an inordinate amount of time to appropriate into my life.

As we were starting to put together this ministry from scratch, the thing that I kept hearing from the Lord was, “Trust me.”  When I prayed about any issue, whether financial, spiritual, opportunities to serve – whatever, the answer was always the same, “Trust me”.  I found that was easy to write in my journal.  To acknowledge as a direction from the Lord.  It was and is a whole lot harder to actually live.

Shortly thereafter, and currently, there has been another message that is similar.  Isaiah 40:31 (here @ Bible Gateway) tells me that if I wait on Him, He will give me strength.  Paul, echoes this in 2 Corinthians 12:9 – 10 (here @ Bible Gateway).  There he reminds me that Christ’s power is perfected in weakness.  So the message was I needed to rest in Him and live and serve out of His strength.  I have no idea.  Again, easy to record in the journal.  I can make observations about the text, even delve into the Greek or Hebrew – but to live it?  I struggle.

This morning the Lord took me on an extended journey through several passages on prayer.  Some of that I will possibly share in a later post.  But the “long lead item” that stood out for me this morning was the admonition in Ephesians 6:18 (here @ Bible Gateway) to “pray at all times in the Spirit.”  Confession, I do not think I know how to pray at anytime in the Spirit.  I pray.  I cling hard to Romans 8:26 – 27 (here @ Bible Gateway).  I do not know what else to do.  From where I am now in this journey, it seems I am completely dependent on His lavish grace to do any of this.  Which aligns very well with what I read in John 15:5 (here @ Bible Gateway).

There seems to be a lot in this journey with which I struggle.  A lot that I seem to understand but do not apply very well.  It is more than amazing that in spite of all that floundering, He loves me, died for me, and is working to perfect me, even when I can’t manage the “long lead items.”

Equipping Priests

What is equipping?  That was the question posed yesterday.  Is it simply teaching, or a message given from a pulpit or lectern?  How are people prepared to serve as engineers, accountants, doctors, pilots, financial planners, teachers, etc.?  For that matter how are pastors prepared to lead a church?

I would suggest that it is more than hearing a lecture or a message.

I have firsthand experience in three of those professions and have closely observed three of the others.  I was an Air Force instructor pilot, I have a degree in engineering and was involved in starting and running an architectural, engineering, and construction company, and I have graduated from seminary.  I have observed my oldest son become a CPA, I watched my middle son go through the process of becoming a doctor, my youngest son was a teacher and is now in the process of becoming a financial planner, and my wife was a special ed teacher for many years.

While lectures and messages were certainly a part of all of the firsthand experience in the three I finished, that was not all. In every case there was instruction followed by observation of my application of the instruction with critique of whether and how my application was adequate and or could be improved.

In seminary, one is tested over the material in class.  One’s papers are both graded and marked up with notes on how they can be improved.  One is given assignments to share a message on a passage of scripture and that is evaluated and critiqued.

I know for certain that all the other professions listed above go through some semblance of that experience.

We have examined Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ Bible Gateway).  From my perspective it is a crucial text in describing what should happen in a local body.  The leaders are to equip the saints for the work of service.  Note that they are not just to do the ministry, they are to equip those in their care to do so as well.

Is that happening?  Do people regularly get instruction on how to accomplish something in ministry, then be observed doing that task, and subsequently get critique on how they fared?

If not, why?

A bit more on this in the next post.

Priests, Part 4

Last time we said that it was important, very important that we not only study the Word for ourselves as priests, but we also apply it to our lives and then share it with others.

This is a key concept.  Ephesians 4:11 – 16 (here @ Bible Gateway) tells us that leaders, and as priests we are all leaders, are to equip other members of the body.  That is not just the job of the professionals.  In fact, it is hard to validate the model of church we practice today with professional leaders.  Note that in Ephesians 4:13 – 16 (here @ Bible Gateway), Paul’s expectation is that every member of the body will engage in building up the other members of the body.

One implication of that is that when we are in our communities, we should be considering how we can build those around us up in their faith.  It is not enough, nor was it Paul’s expectation, that we would simply show up on Sunday and be entertained.

Note that if the body is not committed to equipping, that it may be that an individual’s gifts will not be energized or engaged in the body.

That raises another question.  What is equipping?  Is equipping the same as teaching?  If not, how is it different?  The next post will unwrap that question.

Priests, Part 3

The last couple of posts have started to explore the implications of all of us who are believers being priests.  In the last post we observed that we are to be engaged in the Word of God, intentionally, consistently, with a commitment to apply it to our lives.

Priests also proclaimed the Word of God to the people.  So it would seem reasonable to assume that as priests we are to do the same.  That seems to be the thrust of Matthew 28:18 – 20 (here @ Bible Gateway), 2 Timothy 2:2 (here @ Bible Gateway); 2 Timothy 4:1 – 2 (here @ Bible Gateway), and other passages.

We are not only to emulate Ezra, as suggested in the last post, but we are to share, proclaim to those in our family, our workplace, and our community that which we have discovered in the Word of God.

This is a key concept.  It is so important that we will expand it in the next post.

Priests, Part 2

Yesterday I asked what were some of the implications of all believers being priests.  Hopefully you gave that some thought.  It seems to me that reality is mostly ignored in our communities.  Chuck rightly observed that in the Old Testament the priests were leaders.  They led in worship through the sacrificial system and taught the Law, the Word, to those in their charge.

If we are priests, as the passages referenced yesterday seem to indicate, then shouldn’t there be some correlation to what the priests that are described in the Bible did?

The priests were engaged personally in the Word of God, the scrolls that they had, the Old Testament.  They did not simply listen to messages that others gave.  Ezra is a good example of this.  Read Ezra 7:10 (here @ Bible Gateway).  Note the order of Ezra’s engagement with the Word of God, study, practice, teach.

As priests shouldn’t all of us be engaged in the Word of God like this?  If not, why?  If we are not, why?