http://www.christiansvideo.net http://www.christiansvideo.net en http://www.christiansvideo.nethttp://www.christiansvideo.net/images/logo-main.png http://www.christiansvideo.net 60 60 ChristiansVideo.net http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-638/judge-rules-for-cheerleaders-in-bible-banner-suit.html HOUSTON (AP) — A judge ruled Wednesday that cheerleaders at a Southeast Texas high school can display banners emblazoned with Bible verses at football games. But the ruling might not have settled the issue of whether the banners are protected free speech, according to an attorney for the cheerleaders' school district. State District Judge Steven Thomas determined the Kountze High School cheerleaders' banners are constitutionally permissible. In the ruling, Thomas determined that no law "prohibits cheerleaders from using religious-themed banners at school sporting events." The Kountze school district had initially said the banners could not be displayed after receiving a complaint about them in September from the Freedom From Religion Foundation. The foundation argued the banners violated the so-called First Amendment Establishment Clause that bars government — or publicly funded school districts in this case — from establishing or endorsing a religion. Thomas ruled that the establishment clause does not prohibit the use of such religious-themed banners at school sporting events. "This is a great victory for the cheerleaders and now they're going to be able to have their banners," said Hiram Sasser, a lead attorney for the Liberty Institute, a Plano, Texas-based nonprofit law firm that represented the cheerleaders.  More--> ]]> Thu, 9 May 2013 18:00:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-637/confessing-and-repenting.html Is there any connection between confessing sin and repenting of it? Mick Alexander Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:43:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-636/sitting-on-the-fence.html "Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." (James 4:4 NIV) Mick Alexander Sun, 24 Mar 2013 23:17:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-635/the-positions-of-jesus-part-three.html The Positions Of Jesus (Part Three)   By: Curt Klingerman       And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth (Genesis 1:26, emphasis added, KJV). In the last two installments of The Positions of Jesus, we examined His position as the Son of man and the Son of God. Now we turn our attention to God the Son. We start at the beginning (creation) in order to establish a truth. In the One True God, there are three Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and Holy Spirit (see Ephesians 4:4-6). In our opening passage, we see an interesting phrase where God said, “Let us.” Often, it is the small details in Scripture that reveal the mysteries of God. Paying attention to singular and plural forms is one of those fine points. Throughout Genesis one, we see the phrase, “And God said,” which is in singular form, and points to One, yet the plural is used in verse twenty-six, “us.” This reveals the plurality of His nature. Colossians 1:12-18 shows us that Jesus is part of the “us,” as we read: “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence” (emphasis added, KJV). Therefore, we find that by Jesus, all things were created, and they were created for Him. We find that He is before all things, and by Him, all things consist. Again, we read in John 1:1-4, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men” (emphasis added, KJV). Then we read in verse 14, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (emphasis added, KJV). There are still more scriptures that could be mentioned here that plainly state that everything was created by Jesus; however, due to time restraints, they will be left to the reader to investigate. Philippians 2:5-7 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men (emphasis added, KJV). Jesus humbled Himself in order to pay for humanity’s sin, but before His coming to the earth, He had the same glory as the Father. Jesus prayed, “And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was” (John 17:5, emphasis added, KJV). This underscores what we read in John 1:1, “The Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Jesus gave up the riches of His glory so that we might be rich in Him. Thus we read, “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9, KJV). One final Scripture where Jesus makes it very plain that He is God: “Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I Am” (John 8:58, KJV). I Am is the emphatic that only God uses. Selah!     Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith Of Jesus In The Life Of The Believer (His Faith, Not Ours)," by Curt Klingerman http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8   Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:57:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-634/philippians-chapter-1-part-1-f-grace-and-peace-the-blessing-part-2.html PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1 - PART 1-F - GRACE AND PEACE - THE BLESSING - PART 2   By: MAXINE PINDER       Philippians 1:2 "Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ." GRACE AND PEACE - THE BLESSING - PART 2 In the last lesson we discussed that the statement, “Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”, was not just a salutation but a blessing that Paul gave to the Philippian church and therefore to all who read the epistle of Philippians and believe. We also discussed the physical blessings that accompany this statement. Now in Part F we will discuss the spiritual side of the blessing. As I stated in Part E the blessing, “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ”, is similar or equivalent to blessing with which Aaron was commanded to bless the children of Israel. This, along with supporting scriptures from the Old and New Testaments, is the light in which we will discuss the blessing of the Apostles from this moment on to see what are the constituents of grace and peace. I said Apostles and not Apostle because Peter also used this blessing and so did John when he addressed the seven churches in the Revelation. The word ‘grace’ in the Apostles’ blessing, which means God’s unmerited favor, loving-kindness and goodwill is equivalent in meaning to, “the Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you”, the first two parts of Aarons blessing in Numbers 6:24-26 and the word peace is equivalent to the third part of the blessing which reads, “the Lord lift up the light of his countenance upon you and give you peace”. How is this so? Let us deal with this phrase by phrase and examine it in light of the scriptures. The blessing “The Lord bless you and keep you” means may God provide you with all you need in your life such that you would be naturally sustained and may he bless you with health and divine protection thus keeping and sustaining your very life. This is dealing with natural provision only. Paul states it this way in 2 Corinthians 9:8, “And God is able to make all grace abound to you so that in all things having all that you need; you will abound in every good work”. We see then that natural provision is part of the blessing of grace. We looked at this sustenance from the point of view of Jeremiah 31 in Part E in detail so we will now move on to the next portion of the blessing that is still under the umbrella of grace. The point can be made that God keeps us supernaturally in his salvation by his grace. This is true, we are kept supernaturally by the grace of God but this is covered by the second portion of the Aaronic blessing rather than the first. The second part of the blessing, “The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you”, means may God hear your cry, show you his spiritual favor, redeem your life from destruction by granting you his love and salvation and keep you in that salvation by enlightening the eyes of your understanding in his knowledge and wisdom so that knowing his word and his fear you live in harmony with him no matter the situation. Contained in this is also protection from enemies and calamitous situations that have their root cause in the spirit realm for we “wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places”. The main meaning, however, is salvation, to deliverance from the judgment and death of Adam’s sin, from judgment and death for our own sins and from the death and destruction of the wrath to come. (See 1 Corinthians 15:22, Romans 5:12-20, Revelation 20:11-15) We learn in Psalm 31:16 and 80:3, 7, 19 that when God causes his face to shine upon us we are saved. We learn in Exodus 22:27 that when God is gracious to us he hears our cry in our calamitous circumstances and from the Psalms that he hears our cry and saves us from destruction. This is where Ephesians 2:8 comes in. God in his grace has saved those of us who believe when we cried out to him from our hearts requesting salvation. However, since the saints have this salvation why would the Apostle Paul bless thusly? Because constituent in the blessing is God’s supernatural keeping of the believer in the way of salvation. Included in this is every gift and blessing that accompanies our salvation: ministry gifts, the gifts of the spirit, knowledge, wisdom, insight in the Word of God and much more. In 2 Corinthians 1:21 we are instructed that it is God who makes us stand firm in Christ. This he does by his grace. Peter tells us in 1 Peter 1:5 that we are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time and Ephesians 2:8 informs, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith….” We understand then that God saves us and keeps us by his grace and this is the second portion of the blessing of grace. Now to the third part of the blessing, “The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace”. This presents a picture of the Lord lifting you as a baby above his head and looking into your face and you looking into his. This is a blessing of uprightness that brings peace. In other words may you live such a righteous and upright life before God that his peace would be yours forever. Psalm 11:7 states, “For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness, his countenance doth behold the upright” and Psalm 37:37 educates us, “Mark the perfect man behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace”. This is the peace that arises from sonship. Sonship is not automatic but John 1:12 states, “But as many as received him, to them gave he the power to become the sons of God even to them that believe on his name which were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man but of God” and Romans 5:1-2 informs, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. If God is lifting his countenance upon you in essence holding you in this manner it means that you are living an upright life, a life that is pleasing to the Lord and his peace rests upon you. The KJV New Testament Greek Lexicon gives one of the meanings of peace as “the tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God, and content with its earthly lot of whatever sort it is. There is so much more to grace and peace than I am able to discuss in this forum. The grace and peace of God cannot be fully experienced in this earth. Therefore there is a part of this blessing that takes place in the eternal only. The blessing in its entirety, the temporal, the spiritual and the eternal is what we share with the Philippian church and all the Church of God.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit, The Holy Scriptures, The KJV Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon, The KJV New Testament Greek Lexicon, Strongs Exhaustive Concordance   Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:54:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-633/james-31-410-part-1-of-2-parts.html James 3:1-4:10, Part 1 (of 2 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       These two articles were taken from my paper titled "1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:10" that is on my internet site (Google to Karl Kemp Teaching). The original paper was published in March, 2000. I was able to use bold, italics, underlining, and footnote in the original paper and in the version on my internet site. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless otherwise noted. Sometimes I will use double brackets [[ ]] or quotation marks (( )) to make them more obvious. This entire passage is important, but the main reason I wanted to discuss these verses is that James 3:2 is frequently cited as a verse that supposedly proves that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin. If we limit ourselves to the first words of James 3:2 ("For we all stumble in many ways"), James seems to be saying that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin. However, when we consider what James went on to say in the rest of this verse and some of the things he said in other parts of this epistle, and when we consider the writing style of James, I don't believe he meant to say that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin. If James was saying that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin, he was making a statement out of sync with the rest of the New Testament. Also, even if James actually meant to say that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin, his words ("For we all stumble in many ways") would not have the power to modify to any appreciable extent what the New Testament so clearly teaches in so many places about Christians being called, and enabled, to walk in the righteousness and holiness of God, with the victory over all sin. Admittedly, many Christians think that there are quite a few other verses in the New Testament, besides James 3:2, that prove that Christians are not able to stop sinning in this life. As I have discussed in my previous writings, I don't believe that any of these verses actually teach that Christians cannot live above sin. ((I had a footnote here in the original article: For a start see the section titled "A Discussion of the Three Most Important Passages Often Used to Try to Prove that Christians Cannot Walk in Victory Over Sin During this Present Age," which starts on page 194 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." The three passages are Rom. 7:14-25; 1 John 1:8; and Gal. 5:17. Also see the section titled "What is Sin?" starting on page 214 of my book. There I discussed 1 Tim. 1:15 (with 1:12-16), which is another verse frequently used (see page 219). I also discussed Rom. 14:23 there (page 215). (For a verse-by-verse discussion of Rom. 14:1-23 see pages 91-95 of my "A Paper on Faith" on my internet site.) Philippians 3:12, which is another verse frequently used to try to prove that we cannot stop sinning during this age, is discussed in an article on Philippians chapter 3 that is available on this Christian article site.)) From my point of view, these verses are being misinterpreted. Although I don't believe that James meant to say that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin in 3:2a, I acknowledge that it is not totally impossible that he meant to say that. Even if James did mean to say that (and, again, I don't believe he did), the other things that he said in this epistle would greatly qualify how far he would go with that idea. The most common view is that this epistle was written by the apostle James (cf. Mark 6:3; Acts 12:17; 15:13-21; 21:18; 1 Cor. 15:7; Gal. 1:19; and 2:9, 12), not one of the twelve apostles, a (half) brother of the Lord Jesus Christ, and that it was probably written in the mid 40s (though it could have been written as late as AD 60, or so). "Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment." [[Ultimately it is up to God who should become teachers (and in what capacity they should be teaching) in the body of Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 14:12, 28; Eph. 4:11). If God is calling a person to become a teacher, they must answer the call, but James' warning here is appropriate. James undoubtedly knew that some were becoming "teachers" who had not been called by God to teach. It is hazardous to call ourselves into the ministry. If God has not called and equipped us, we are going to be ministering in the flesh, and we are certain to mess things up to one degree or another. (Things like a high IQ or a good education are not sufficient to qualify a person to become a teacher in the body of Christ.) We are all going to have to answer to God. The more authority we have in the body of Christ in areas like teaching, the more potential we have to harm (or to bless) God's people. With authority comes responsibility! This is serious business! And we certainly must refrain from teaching in the body of Christ from any motive of self-glory (which we must all carefully guard against since it is relatively easy for Christians to walk after the flesh instead of the Spirit).]] (2) For we all stumble in many ways. [[(This double bracket continues for more than two pages.) These words deserve our careful attention. Stumbling need not involve sin (there can, for example, be innocent mistakes), but when James says here that "we all stumble in many ways" right after the words "we will incur a stricter judgment," he is speaking, at least for the most part, of sin. This point is also confirmed by the use of the verb stumble in James 2:10. Did James really mean to say that all Christians (including the twelve apostles, Paul, James himself, and all those in leadership in the church) will necessarily continue to sin in many ways? I don't believe he did. I'll list several factors that lead me to the viewpoint that James did not intend to communicate the idea that all Christians will continue to sin in many ways: 1. James says a lot in this epistle about the need for Christians to walk in faith and live in righteousness, including the need to persevere in righteousness during difficult times, and he says these things in very strong ways - he takes a very strong stand against Christians having any sin - the epistle is literally packed with such teaching and exhortation (see James 1:2-8, 12-27; 2:1-26; 3:9-18; 4:1-17; 5:7-12, 16, 19, 20). ((I had a footnote: James 1:2-8 are discussed on pages 56-68 of my "A Paper on Faith." James 1:12-15, 21, 22; and 5:19, 20 are discussed on pages 8, 9 of "Once Saved, Always Saved?" James 2:14-26 are discussed on pages 58, 59 of "A Paper on Faith." James 1:18-2:13 are discussed on pages 17-19 of "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism," and James 4:11, 12 are discussed on pages 19, 20 of that paper. All of these papers are available on my internet site. James 3:9-4:10 are discussed later in this present paper.)) Many of these verses are quite powerful regarding the need for Christians to live in the center of God's will with total devotion and total loyalty to Him. Such teaching/exhortation by James is very relevant to the question as to whether he meant to communicate the idea (in the first words of 3:2) that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin in many ways. 2. It is very significant that James goes on with his very next words (in James 3:2) to speak of those who do not stumble in what they say. (Compare Matt. 12:33-37.) It seems that James intended these following words to greatly qualify what he had just written. He says that such Christians are (relatively) perfect, able to control the whole body (in other words, they are able to always live in righteousness, in the will of God) in that they are able to control the tongue, which, according to James, is the hardest to control. ((I had a footnote: In 1:4 James speaks of Christians becoming "perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." On being relatively perfect, see under Phil. 3:12, 15 in my paper on Philippians chapter 3 on this site. The word "perfect" in James 1:4 and 3:2 (as in quite a few other verses of the New Testament [see under Phil. 3:12, 15 in my paper on Philippians chapter 3]), includes walking in righteousness and holiness (by the grace/Spirit of God) with the victory over sin.)) It is very significant that the statement "If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is able to bridle the whole body as well" is a class-1 condition in the Greek. That is, the if clause ("If anyone does not stumble in what he says") is assumed to be true by James. (See, for example, A. T. Robertson, "Word Pictures in the New Testament," Vol. 6 [Broadman, 1933], page 39.) But how could James seriously say here in 3:2 that Christians can refrain from stumbling (in any sinful ways) in what they say? In James 3:8, for example, he says that no one is able to tame the tongue. The all-important answer, the new-covenant answer, is that what man in the flesh cannot do, he can do by the "greater grace" (spoken of in James 4:6) which God makes available to His born-again children. It is very significant that James has already informed us in 1:26 that Christians are able to control/bridle their tongues: "If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle [control] his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless." On bridle/control, see below, still under James 3:2. In 1:19 James said "But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger." 3. It fits a pattern found elsewhere in the New Testament for a writer to make a sweeping generalization (like "we all stumble in many ways"), then to follow with a statement that greatly qualifies what he just said (like "if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well"). Let's consider John 1:11, 12a: "He [the Word/Logos, the Son of God, by and through whom all things (including all persons/beings) had been created (cf. John 1:1-4)] came to His own [He came to His own when He came to the earth (cf. John 1:9, 14) through the virgin birth.], and those who were His own did not receive Him. [[The Son of God came to His own (mankind), which was part of that which had been created by and through Him; they owed Him everything; nevertheless, they rejected Him. The Greek rather strongly supports the idea that the Son of God came to those who had been created by and through Him, in that the Greek words translated "His own" are neuter plural, viewing mankind as part of that which had been created by and through Him. Some think "His own" refers to the Jews. Even if "His own" did refer to the Jews, John 1:11, 12a would still serve well as an example of making a sweeping statement and then greatly qualifying it, but John 1:11 says so much more, and fits the overall context of John 1:1-18 so much better, if we see mankind, not just the Jews, rejecting Christ. For one thing, there is widespread agreement that John wrote his Gospel especially for Gentile Christians.]] (12) But as many as received Him...." After just being told that His own/mankind did not receive Him, we now learn (thank God!) that some (even many) did receive Him. They submitted to Him in faith. They became born-again Christians (John 1:12, 13). 4. In this epistle James sometimes makes sweeping negative statements that at first seem to be spoken to (or apply to) all his readers but which clearly do not refer to all his readers (see James 4:1-10; 3:5-12; these verses will be discussed as we continue). Furthermore, James makes sweeping statements that lump together and condemn all the rich, which undoubtedly need substantial qualification (see James 1:10, 11; 2:6, 7; and 5:1-6). 5. Even if James intended to communicate the idea that all Christians will continue to stumble/sin in many ways with the first words of 3:2 (and I don't believe that he did), he made it very clear in the verses we are discussing (3:1-4:10), and in other verses of this epistle (see numbers 1, 2 above), that this ought not (must not) be. Especially relevant is what James said about God's "greater grace" in 4:6. Many commentators agree that James was speaking of the enabling grace of God that would meet the need to rise above the sinful state pictured in 4:1-5, and they agree that James was saying that God demands a whole-hearted, one-hundred percent, total allegiance from His people. I have included quite a few excerpts from commentators under James 4:4-6 in this paper to help demonstrate these points. Based on what many commentators say under James 4:1-6 you wouldn't expect them to understand James 3:2 in a way that proves that Christians will continue to sin in many ways, but some of them do. I am sure that one of the main reasons they have no difficulty understanding James 3:2 that way is that they believe that other verses (especially 1 John 1:8 and Rom. 7:14-25) have already proved once for all that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin as long as they live in this world. Many commentators mention 1 John 1:8 when they discuss the words "for we all stumble in many ways" of James 3:2. On 1 John 1:8 see the footnote that I included in the fourth paragraph of this article. I'll quote part of what Adam Clarke (AD1760-1832), an associate of John Wesley, said under James 3:2 ("Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible," abridged by Ralph Earle [Baker, 1967], page 1293): "In many things we offend all [KJV]. 'We all stumble or trip.' Some have produced these words as a proof that 'no man can live without sinning against God; for James himself, a holy apostle, speaking of himself, all the apostles, and the whole Church of Christ, says, In many things we offend all [we all stumble in many ways].' This is a very bad and dangerous doctrine; and pushed to its consequences, would greatly affect the credibility of the whole gospel system." Clarke (in agreement with the early Methodists and many others) believed that Christians can and should live above sin by the grace of God in Christ. (We continue now with James 3:2b.)]] If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. [The meaning of these important words is discussed above (under number 2). The Greek behind "to bridle" is an infinitive of the verb chalinagogeo. This infinitive could also be translated "to control," or "to keep in check." A participle of this same Greek verb was used in James 1:26, which is an important cross-reference that is quoted above (under number 2). The reader should also know that this Greek verb was derived from the Greek noun chalinos, which is the noun translated "bits" in James 3:3. (A plural form of the noun is used in James 3:3.) This noun can also be translated bridle.] (3) Now if we put the bits into the horses' mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. [Compare Psalm 32:9. In the Greek this is another class-1 condition (the if clause in assumed to be true). By this illustration, James backs up the point that if we can control the tongue (control what we say) - which we can by the grace/Spirit of God in Christ - we can control our entire being.] (4) Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. (5) So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. [James compares the tongue with the rudder on a ship. Even though the tongue is small compared with the body, as the rudder is small compared with the ship, the tongue has great power to work for evil (or for good), even as the rudder has power to control the direction of the ship.] See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! (6) And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. [Compare Prov. 16:27; Matt. 15:18-20. Even as a very small flame can set the entire forest on fire, so too the tongue, though it is quite small, can set the course of our life on fire (and the fire typically spreads to damage other lives, sometimes many other lives). This evil fire certainly does not originate with God; it is inspired by hell (that is, it comes from Satan and his kingdom [cf. James 3:15, 16]).] (7) For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. (8) But no one can tame the tongue [Fallen man (man in spiritual death and in bondage to sin), cannot tame the tongue. That is why all men need the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. I'll quote from Walter W. Wessel ("Wycliffe Bible Commentary" [Moody Press, 1962], page 1436): "But certainly God can tame it! ...the Lord has controlled it in the lives of many to bring great blessing to mankind."]; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison [cf. Psalm 140:3; Rom. 3:13]. (9) With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God [cf. Gen. 1:26; 9:6]; (10) from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. [[James doesn't mean to say, I don't believe, that all Christians "curse men" (or continue in other sinful behavior). "These things ought not to be [they must not be] this way," and they will not be this way for those who have been given birth/been born again ((James 1:18 [I had a footnote: The NASB has, "In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures." The Greek verb translated "He brought [us] forth" in James 1:18 could just as well be translated "to give [us] birth" with the NIV.])) and who walk in the wisdom of God (James 3:13-18), fully appropriating the "greater grace" that God gives to the humble (James 4:6). (I had a footnote: It isn't enough to be born of the Spirit, we must walk in/by/after the Spirit by faith - which we can do [cf., e.g., Gal. 5:16-25; Rom. 8:12-14]. These passages are discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin.") They bridle their tongues (James 1:26), and "PURE AND UNDEFILED RELIGION IN THE SIGHT OF OUR GOD AND FATHER IS THIS: TO VISIT ORPHANS AND WIDOWS IN THEIR DISTRESS, and TO KEEP ONESELF UNSTAINED BY [the sin of] THE WORLD" (James 1:27). The problem of Christians having a double tongue (speaking both good and bad) relates directly to the problem mentioned in James 1:8 and 4:8, the problem of being "double-minded." The Greek adjective ("dipsuchos") translated "double-minded" was formed from a word meaning twice/double and the word for soul. The double-minded man is divided in his heart/soul/spirit/mind/inner man instead of having the heart fixed on God. Christ came to renew the hearts/souls/spirits/minds/inner man of men, and when Christians walk after the Spirit through faith, a faith that is based on what the Word of God actually says (which is far from automatic), their hearts will be right, and their speech will be right (Matt. 12:33-37).]] (11) Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? (12) Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh. [[These two verses expand on the fact that blessing and cursing (sin and righteousness) ought not (and in some ways and to some extent must not and cannot) come from the same person/heart (cf., e.g., Matt. 7:15-20; 12:33-37). I'll quote part of what John MacArthur said under James 3:2-12 ("James" [Moody Press, 1998]). First I'll quote part of what he said under James 3:2b-5a. This first excerpt deals with the very important words of James 3:2b ("If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well"). "But the term [perfect] can also mean complete, or mature [we could say relatively perfect]. If that is the sense intended here, the idea is that a person who does not stumble in what he says gives evidence of a purified and mature heart, which is the source of his righteous speech. ... We could never be perfect in the sense that Jesus is perfect, in speech or in any other way, but we can, in the Holy Spirit's power, have a spiritually mature and sanctified heart that is expressed through mature, sanctified, God-honoring speaking and teaching. ... James then makes a remarkable claim, declaring that a Christian who can bridle his tongue is able to bridle the whole body as well. In this context, body seems to refer to the person in general, to his whole being. In other words, if we can control our tongues - which respond so readily and limitlessly to sin - then controlling everything else will follow. If the Holy Spirit has control of this most volatile and intractable part of our being, how much more susceptible to His control will the rest of our lives be" (pages 151, 152). I'll also quote part of what MacArthur said under James 3:10, "... The idea is that there should be no place in a Christian's life for duplicitous speech. It is an unacceptable and intolerable compromise of righteous, holy living. When God transformed us, He gave us the capacity for new, redeemed, holy speech, and He expects us, as His children, to speak only that which is holy and right. ...." (page 161). I appreciate what MacArthur said in these excerpts, but it would not be fair to him or accurately reflect what he believes if I did not discuss further what he said under these verses. On page 151, when discussing the meaning of James' words "we all stumble in many ways," MacArthur mentioned several verses (Prov. 20:9; 2 Chron. 6:36; Rom. 3:23; and 1 John 1:8; cf. 1 John 1:10) to back up the idea that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin in many ways. On page 158 he added Rom. 7:18 and Gal. 5:17 to the list. The first two verses are not very relevant regarding whether new-covenant believers can walk in victory over sin in that they come from the Old Testament, from the days before the sin problem was solved through the atoning death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The next verse listed by MacArthur, Rom. 3:23, doesn't say that Christians will continue to sin; it only says that all have sinned and need salvation in Christ Jesus. Regarding 1 John 1:8; Rom. 7:18; and Gal. 5:17, see the footnote that I included in the fourth paragraph of this article.]] (13) [[In 3:13-4:10 James goes on to speak of the need for Christians to live right, in agreement with the wisdom that comes from God and by the enablement of His "greater grace" (James 4:6). These verses are not totally disconnected from the verses we have been discussing that deal mostly with the need for Christians to control their tongues and always speak right, as Christians can and should and must do. Our speech is part of our behavior, and the victory over all sin comes from the same source - full salvation in Christ Jesus, by God's sufficient grace through faith. In James 3:13-18 there is a strong emphasis on the need for peace, gentleness, divine order, etc. These necessary things, James says, go with (are part of) the wisdom and truth (and salvation) of God.]] Who among you is wise [Greek "sophos"] and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds [works] in the gentleness of wisdom [that is, in the gentleness that comes with (is part of) the wisdom that comes from God; the NIV translates, "the humility that comes from wisdom"]. [[The Greek noun "sophia," which is translated "wisdom," was derived from the Greek adjective ("sophos"), which was used earlier in this verse. There is a strong emphasis on wisdom in James 3:13-18. For one thing, the word wisdom is used again in verses 15 and 17. The wisdom that comes from God (James 3:13, 17; cf. James 1:5) is contrasted with the worldly, demonic "wisdom" (which is not real wisdom) that is pictured in 3:14-16. ((I had a footnote: James 1:5 says, "But if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him." In this context (James 1:2-8), James was speaking (at least for the most part) of Christians asking God for wisdom that will facilitate their knowing and living in the center of His will by His grace.)) The wisdom that comes from God goes with "the truth [of God]" that is mentioned in 3:14. Ephesians 4:24 shows that righteousness and holiness go with (are part of) the truth of God. James 3:13-18 show that righteousness and holiness (including the "good behavior" and "gentleness" of James 3:13 and all the good things that are listed in 3:17, 18) go with (are part of) the wisdom that comes from God. It should be noted that all the good things that come with (are part of) the wisdom of God can be considered fruit that is produced by the Holy Spirit. (On the fruit of the Spirit, see Gal. 5:22, 23. Note "gentleness" and "gentle" in James 3:13, 17 and "gentleness" in Gal. 5:23; "peace" and "peaceable" in James 3:17, 18 and "peace" in Gal. 5:22. Many other good things, being "pure" (James 3:17), for example, could be considered fruit of the Spirit.) Also, the wisdom of God itself comes to us through the Holy Spirit (including the wisdom contained in the Holy Scriptures) as do the righteousness and holiness of God. These things are all part of the full salvation offered to mankind in and through Christ Jesus. I'll quote part of what Douglas J. Moo ("James" [Inter-Varsity Press, 1985], page 132) said under this verse. "... [The way we think in our hearts determines the way we will live.] ...James is true to the Old Testament conception of wisdom as a way of life, the attitude and conduct typical of a godly person. ... In the meekness [or, humility] of wisdom is to be taken as qualifying the works; they are to be done 'in meekness' that characterizes, or springs from, 'wisdom'.... ... ...Jesus, who was himself 'meek' (Matt. 11:29), pronounced a blessing on those who were meek (Matt. 5:5). This Christian meekness involves a healthy understanding of our own unworthiness before God and a corresponding humility and lack of pride in our dealings with our fellow-men."]] We will continue this study of James 3:1-4:10 in Part 2 with James 3:14. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors.   Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:50:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-632/holiness-and-victory-over-sin-2.html Holiness and Victory Over Sin #2   By: Karl Kemp       Holy Father we humble our hearts before you. We admit that we are totally dependent on your grace. We want to rightly divide your Word; we want to understand it; we want to live it. We want to be fully ready for the return of the Lord Jesus Christ and to stand before you. We pray in His mighty name. Amen. I consider it a great privilege to be able to study these things and to share them with you. I consider these things to be infinitely important. We are talking about the heart of the message of the gospel of new-covenant salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ. Man has one primary problem, the sin problem, and Jesus Christ is the only answer, and He is the full answer. I realize that many Christians are doing a lot of sinning, but it is not OK. To be living in sin is a dangerous place to be. The good news is that we are called to stop sinning, and God's grace is sufficient, even if it's not always easy. This is good news, isn't it? The first passage we began to look at last week was Gal. 5:16-25. We didn't finish our discussion of the first verse, verse 16, which is a super-important verse. I'm trying to be thorough and to explain the details that will enable us to understand this verse. First I'll read Gal. 5:16. I'll read it from my book, which uses the New American Standard Bible (NASB), 1977 edition. I'll read the verse and make a few comments. Then we'll go back to where we stopped last time. Frequently I'll make comments in the middle of quotation using brackets [ ], and sometimes I will use double brackets [[ ]] to make the brackets more obvious. "But I say [the apostle Paul writes to the Galatian Christians] But I say walk by the Spirit [the Holy Spirit], and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh." As I mentioned last time, I would translate, "But I say, walk by the Spirit and you certainly will not carry out the desire of the flesh." The desire of the flesh is to sin, all sin. Walk by the Spirit on a continuous basis, and you certainly will not carry out the desire of the flesh. In other words, you will not sin. The desire of the flesh is to do the works of the flesh, which equals all sin, and not just sins especially associated with the physical body. For example, in Galatians 5:19-21 the apostle lists many works of the flesh, and he includes idolatry and sorcery, which are clearly sins of the heart/inner man. Walk by the Holy Spirit all the time (by faith) and you will be walking above sin. Now doesn't that sound good? And who gets the glory. Our holiness, our victory over sin comes 100 percent by the grace of God in Christ, and He gets all the glory, as it must be. Now a walk by the Spirit is not automatic. A walk in faith is not automatic. We must understand God's Word, commit ourselves to it in faith, and live it by God's sufficient grace. The victory is far from being automatic. We could be born again, but still quite fleshly and worldly. The New Testament demonstrates this point, but it also makes it clear that this is a dangerous place to be. The only secure place to be is in the center of God's will, walking by His Spirit, walking in His righteousness, walking in faith based on what His Word says. Walk by (or after, or in) the Spirit, and you certainly will not carry out the sinful desire of the flesh. Galatians 5:16 is one of the most important verses in the New Testament which shows that we can, and should, have the victory over all sin. Part of God's definition of what it means to be a Christian is to walk by the Holy Spirit all the time. This is not an optional matter. When we become Christians, we sign a contract (so to speak) agreeing to the terms of God's new covenant, which includes the requirement to walk by the Spirit all the time. But this is a great privilege! This is a great blessing! This isn't bondage! This is liberty! And God wants to transform us, not to condemn us. Praise God! When we truly repent, He is quick to forgive, but we need to make it top priority to walk in His righteousness and holiness, with the victory over all sin. We need to be aiming at that target, not making room for sin in our hearts and lives. Now I'm going to turn back to where we stopped last time, on page 197 of my book. First I'll reread a few sentences. We are under the heading, "The Meaning of 'The Flesh' as These Words Are Used in Galatians 5:13-25." It is common for the apostle Paul (and others in the New Testament) to use the words "the flesh" to speak of fallen man (man in spiritual death, man separated from the Spirit of life, the Holy Spirit). "The flesh" is not at all limited to the physical body. (The NIV has "the sinful nature" instead of "the flesh" throughout Gal. 5:13-25. The Amplified Bible at Gal. 5:16 defines the flesh as "human nature without God.") Often, as here, there is a contrast between "the Spirit" (the Holy Spirit) and "the flesh." The contrast that Paul is concerned with here is not the contrast between our spirit and our body (as some Christians think), but the contrast between the Holy Spirit and man in the flesh. Last week we looked at two of the cross-references I listed here. We looked at John 6:63 and Rom. 7:5, 6. The next passage I listed is Rom. 8:1-14, and I listed some other verses too. We will just take the time to look at Rom. 8:3, 4 here. Later we will go through Rom. 8:1-14 verse-by-verse. These verses are extremely important. I'm turning to Rom. 8:3, 4; I'm using the NASB, 1995 edition here, which I always use unless I mention otherwise. "For what the Law could not do [Paul was speaking of the Mosaic Law. What was it that the Mosaic Law could not do? It was from God and it was good, but it wasn't designed to dethrone spiritual death and sin and to give people the new birth and victory over sin.], weak as it was through the flesh [The Law could not solve the sin problem for man in the flesh, for man in spiritual death, for man without the Spirit of God, because man in the flesh doesn't have the power to fully keep God's Law. Rather than solve the sin problem, the Law intensified the sin problem in some ways.], God did [How did He do it?] sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh. [Sin, which used to reign over us, has been condemned and dethroned through the atoning death of the Lamb of God. Sin will still reign over us to the extent we allow it to, but sin has no legal right to reign over us now, and as we walk by the Holy Spirit on a continuous basis, according to the terms of the new covenant, we will walk in the righteousness and holiness of God with the victory over all sin.], (4) so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit." This is the bottom line of Christianity, "so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us." Instead of breaking God's Law and sinning, now we keep the requirement of His Law in our daily lives as we walk by the Spirit of God, who enables us to walk in the righteousness and holiness of God, with the victory over sin. We are not required to keep the ceremonial law of the Old Testament, but we are required to keep God's moral law in our daily lives. God hates sin, and His moral laws cannot change. Sin goes against God and His divine order. God hates sin. I'll read Rom. 8:4 again: "So that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit [the Holy Spirit]." We fulfill the requirement of God's Law as we walk by the Holy Spirit through faith, having been born again and raised above the realm of the flesh/the old man. Now I'll turn back to page 197 of my book and go on to the next paragraph. For a Christian to walk according to the flesh is to walk according to the old man, but this ought not (need not) be [[And I listed several verses here. We'll stop to look at a few of them. These verses are quite important. First we'll look at Rom. 6:6, but before I turn there I'll read that last sentence again. "For a Christians to walk according to the flesh is to walk according to the old man, but this ought not (need not) be." Romans 6:6 says, "knowing this, that our old self [I would rather translate "our old man"] knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with [In other words, after we become born-again Christians, we should no longer have a body associated with sin; it should be a body associated with righteousness], so that we would no longer be slaves to sin." That sounds good, doesn't it? It is good news, very good news! Throughout Romans chapter 6 the apostle Paul repeatedly says that we used to be slaves of sin, but now (through new-covenant salvation, in union with the Lord Jesus Christ) we are slaves of God and of His righteousness. The saving grace of God in Christ enables us to stop sinning. This is a great privilege. We are united with the Lord Jesus Christ in His death, His burial, His resurrection, and in His present life. I'll read Rom. 6:6 one more time, "knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin." We will go through all of Romans chapter 6, verse-by-verse, when we finish Gal. 5:16-25. Now we'll look at another verse which demonstrates that born-again Christians are no longer to walk according to the flesh and do the sinful works of the flesh. Let's look at Eph. 4:22. I'll start to read the verse. "In reference to your former manner of life [your life before you became born-again Christians], you lay aside the old man [and then Paul continues, but these are the primary words we need for our present discussion]." For Christians to lay aside the old man once-for-all, and completely, is the same thing as crucifying the old man, which is spoken of in Rom. 6:6, which we just read and in Gal 5:24, for example. As we walk by the Holy Spirit by faith, in accordance with the terms of the new covenant, the old man/the flesh, will not be able to manifest itself in sin. We'll look at one more verse here, Col. 3:9, which is similar to Eph. 4:22. Colossians 3:9 says, "Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old man with its evil practices." Do not lie to one another, or do any other sin, since you laid aside the old man once-for-all, and completely, when you became born-again Christians. In the ideal case we would never sin again after we become born-again Christians. The apostle Paul and other writers of the New Testament repeatedly speak of this glorious ideal. God hates sin, and no true Christians want to sin, so this is very good news. But the New Testament also makes it quite clear that there is intense warfare against us from the world, the flesh/the old man, and the devil and his hosts, and that a victorious walk by faith and by the Holy Spirit is far from being automatic, or always easy. Now I'll continue to read from page 197 of my book.]] The Christian is to be dead to the old man; he has crucified the flesh (the old man who wants to live in sin) with its passions and desires. Where did I get that? From Gal. 5:24, which we haven't read yet. I'll read Gal. 5:24. "Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." In the ideal case we would crucify the flesh when we become born-again Christians, and we would never sin again. But that doesn't mean that we won't be tempted, or have wrong desires, or that we cannot sin. The world, the flesh (the old man who wants to live in sin) and the devil and his hosts are waging intense warfare against us. In Gal. 5:17 the apostle makes it clear that born-again Christians can have wrong desires, even strong wrong desires, but that isn't sin. Wrong thoughts and wrong desires are not sin if we resist them by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will always give us the power to resist wrong thoughts and desires as we walk after the Spirit on a continuous basis by faith (faith in God and His word, knowing that His Word teaches that victory over sin has been provided in new-covenant salvation). Christians are to be dead to the flesh/the old man; they have, as Gal. 5:24 says, "crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." The flesh and the old man are equivalent in meaning in verses like Gal. 5:16 and 24. We can speak of the old man being crucified with Christ (see Rom. 6:6, which we read above; also see Gal. 2:20; that is the verse where the apostle Paul said "I have been crucified with Christ....") We can speak of the old man being crucified with Christ, and we can speak of crucifying the flesh. To crucify the flesh and to crucify the old man means the same thing. The only way we can do this is by grace through faith, in accordance with the gospel. The old man, however, will still live and manifest itself in sin to the extent that Christians do not walk by the Spirit on a continuous basis, appropriating God's grace by faith. Only the Holy Spirit has the power to keep the old man/the flesh from manifesting itself in sin. These things we are talking about are extremely important. A primary reason why the flesh is such a formidable opponent for Christians is that Satan and his horde of demon spirits are very active in the realm of the flesh. Satan is the god of this world (see John 12:31; 16:11; Eph. 2:1; 2 Cor. 4:4). Fallen man could probably sin in all the ways listed in Gal. 5:19-21, where the apostle gives a partial listing of the sinful works of the flesh, without the involvement of demon spirits, but demon spirits work in each of these areas, greatly intensifying the sin problem. This reality makes it all the more necessary for Christians to walk by the Holy Spirit on a continuous basis and to not give the devil any place. Ephesians 4:27 says "and do not give the devil an opportunity." As the margin of the New American Standard Bible shows, a more literal translation would be "place" instead of "opportunity." Don't give the devil any place in you! Paul wrote these words of Eph. 4:27 in a context of exhorting Christians to walk in righteousness and holiness, having laid aside all sin. In Rom. 13:14 the apostle Paul says, "But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts." Make no provision for the flesh. Don't leave any room for the old man (including the work of demon spirits) to have any place in you. The flesh/the old man hasn't been annihilated yet, and it still wants to manifest itself in sin. The world, the flesh/old man, and the devil and his hosts are against us, but the saving grace of God in Christ is much greater than our opponents. Let's go on to Gal. 5:17. First I'll read the verse and make some comments; then I'll read part of what I said under Gal. 5:17 in my book. "For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit [the Holy Spirit; it's very important to see that the apostle is speaking of the Holy Spirit here], and the Spirit against the flesh." [The Holy Spirit is always for the righteousness and holiness of God. The flesh/the old man is always for sin.]; for these are in opposition to one another [The verb used here for being in opposition to one another can be used of two armies being arrayed against one another], so that you may not do the things that you please." Now it is an amazing thing to me, a sad thing, that many Christians (something like one-half of evangelical Christians) think that the apostle Paul was saying in this verse (Gal. 5:17) that we can never quit sinning in this life. I'm totally convinced that they are totally wrong in that interpretation. For one thing, that interpretation contradicts what the apostle Paul just said in Gal. 5:16, not to mention what he said many other places. All of us have the all-too-real potential to misunderstand God's Word. But how sad it is when we think God sent the apostle Paul to teach us that we cannot have the victory over sin in this life. The devil won a mighty victory with that interpretation. Our faith must be based on the Word of God, and we certainly cannot adequately wage warfare against sin if we believe the New Testament teaches that the victory is unattainable. It's no wonder we have problems with sin in the body of Christ. I'll read Gal. 5:17 again, "For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." The apostle speaks of warfare between the Spirit and the flesh in this verse, but he certainly doesn't think in terms of the Holy Spirit losing any battles to the flesh. The Spirit of God is well able to win every battle against the world, the flesh/the old man, and the devil and his hosts, and we will always win the battle against sin if we always walk by the Holy Spirit through faith, which we are called, and enabled, to do. Remember what the apostle just said in Gal. 5:16, "But I say, walk by the Spirit and you certainly will not carry out the [sinful] desire of the flesh." Let's discuss the meaning of the last words of verse 17, "so that you may not do the things that you please." "The things that you please" speaks of the sinful things Christians may be tempted to do. Paul had just spoken of the fact that Christians can have sinful desires with his words at the end of verse 16, where he spoke of the sinful "desire of the flesh/the old man." But Paul made it very clear in verse 16 that new-covenant salvation gives Christians the victory over sin. He showed that Christians are called, and enabled, to always walk by the Holy Spirit, so that they will not carry out the sinful desire of the flesh/the old man. At the end of verse 17, the apostle tells us that we must not yield to the sinful desires of the flesh/the old man that we may have on occasion, since we are engaged in intense warfare with the world, the flesh/old man, and the devil. The Holy Spirit always makes the victory over sin available, and we appropriate that victory by walking in faith and by the Holy Spirit. Let me repeat an important point, "the things that you please" at the end of verse 17 means the same thing as "the desire of the flesh" at the end of verse 16. The desire of the flesh/the old man is to sin, but the Holy Spirit is always against sin, and He doesn't lose battles to the world, the flesh/old man, or the devil, or anybody else. If we walk by the Spirit by faith (which we are called, and enabled, to do), we will never sin. Now isn't that good news? God hates sin, and He paid an infinite price to set us free from sin and give us the victory over sin. Now let's consider the wrong interpretation of this verse. They typically assume that verse 17 means something like the following: Intense warfare against us is taking place, with the result that, even though we are born-again Christians and want to do what is right and to not sin, we are not always able to do to good that we want to do. We will necessarily lose quite a few battles and sin. This verse is frequently used by many Christians to try to prove that Christians cannot stop sinning in this life. (Martin Luther and John Calvin, for example, who were both very influential, interpreted Gal. 5:17 that way in their commentaries on Galatians.) I am thankful that I can say with great assurance that they are misunderstanding what the apostle Paul said in Gal. 5:17. As I mentioned, that view contradicts what the apostle just said in verse 16, Walk by the Spirit and you most certainly will not carry out the desire of the flesh, the sinful desire of flesh/old man. Galatians 5:17 is quite important in that it shows that the victory over sin is not always easy and it certainly is not automatic. And it is important for us to know that sincere dedicated born-again Christians can have wrong thoughts and wrong desires, even strong wrong desires. These things, though undesirable, are not sin if we resist them by the Holy Spirit. Many Christians have gotten discouraged when they found themselves having wrong thoughts and desires, and the devil has convinced some Christians that they must not be true Christians, and he has convinced other Christians that they might as well go ahead and sin since they are already in sin through their wrong thoughts and desires. I'll read Gal. 5:16, 17 one more time; then I'll read part of what I said on verse 17 in my book. "But I say, walk by the Spirit and you certainly will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things [that is, so that you may not do the sinful things] that you please." I'm going to turn to page 198 of my book and read just about all that I said under Gal. 5:17. This is so important, and it is so controversial. As I mentioned, many Christians disagree with what I am saying here. I am not attacking those Christians. Many of them are very sincere, very solid Christians, but I believe they are making a serious mistake here. You need to decide. Does Gal. 5:17 really teach that we cannot have the victory over sin in this life? This is a question of key importance. First I discussed the meaning of the word "For" at the beginning of verse 17. I said, This conjunction ties verse 17 to verse 16. In verse 17 the apostle expands on the absolute necessity for Christians to walk by the Spirit. To the extent we do not walk by the Spirit, sin (the desire of the flesh of Gal. 5:16) will be the inevitable result. In other words, we will yield to the sinful desire of the flesh, and we will sin; we will do sinful works of the flesh. We'll discuss the words, "the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit." The Amplified Bible has "For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the Holy Spirit." The NIV has, "For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit [the Holy Spirit]." The Greek noun "epithumia," which is the noun translated "desire" in Gal. 5:16, was derived from the verb "epithumeo," which is translated "sets its desire" in Gal. 5:17. As I mentioned under Gal. 5:16, "the desire of the flesh" embraces all sin. All sin is against the Holy Spirit. He is called the Holy Spirit for a reason, and we could also call Him the Righteous Spirit. We'll discuss the words, "and the Spirit against the flesh." The Holy Spirit is, of course, against all the sinful desires of the flesh. All those who walk by (or, after/in) the Holy Spirit will walk in victory over sin. Is the Holy Spirit able to keep us in the righteousness and holiness of God with the victory over all sin? Is God's saving, sanctifying grace sufficient to enable us to do God's will? There is no doubt about these things, but we must do our part, and faith is our part. We must appropriate God's grace and walk by the Spirit all the time, by faith, in accordance with the gospel. If we don't understand these things and are wavering in faith, wondering whether we can stop sinning, or not, we cannot stop sinning. We need all the grace that God has made available, and to the extent we are wavering in unbelief, we will be defeated by the world, the flesh, and the devil. We'll discuss the words, "for these are in opposition to one another." Like two armies, the Spirit and the flesh are arrayed against one another. However, the Spirit of God and the flesh (even when Satan and his evil angels and demons are included as part of the flesh) are not equally powerful contestants. The Spirit of God is well able to overpower the flesh in every encounter. Christians will, therefore, always walk with the victory over sin when they walk by the Spirit. And as I have tried to emphasize, nothing can keep us from always walking by the Holy Spirit through faith. It is the will of God for us to always walk by the Spirit, and we can always walk by the Spirit. This is good news! This is a great privilege! I didn't say, however, that it would always be easy, or fun. Warfare is not easy, or fun, but it comes with the salvation package we signed up for. We'll discuss the words, "so that you may not do the things that you please." I'm sorry to say that many Christians have understood these words to teach that Christians cannot have the victory over sin during this present life. They understand the apostle to say something like the following: "so that you may not [always] do the [righteous] things that you want to do." In other words, the flesh (the old man) is certain to win some battles. In the light of Gal. 5:16 (also see Gal. 5:24, where the apostle Paul speaks of the fact that Christians have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires), I'm surprised by this interpretation. In Gal. 5:16 the apostle has just exhorted his readers to always walk by the Spirit so that they will not carry out the sinful desire of the flesh, so that they will not do the sinful works of the flesh; so that they will not sin. The apostle did not write Gal. 5:17 to deny that Christians can always walk in victory over sin. He wrote this verse to emphasize the need for Christians to always walk by the Holy Spirit, since the flesh is an active and formidable opponent. I'm quite sure that the apostle's words mean something like the following: Although you as a sincere Christian may, at times, have desires (even strong desires) to sin (because the flesh has not been annihilated yet), you may not (must not) do the sinful things that you (as far as the flesh/the old man is concerned) may want to do (namely the sinful works of the flesh); the Holy Spirit will always enable you to have victory as you walk by Him (which you are called to do as Christians). "The [sinful] desire of the flesh" of Gal. 5:16 is the equivalent of "the sinful things that you please" of Gal. 5:17. I should mention that sinful desires, though very undesirable, are not in themselves sin or defeat. It's time to stop. We'll come back to Gal. 5:16-25 in the next article. God bless you! kkemp7753 at sbcglobal.net   Author Resource:-> http://www.karlkempteachingministries.com I recommend your reading my papers, "Once Saved, Always Saved?"; "Paper on Faith" and "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism," on my internet site. I really tried to give the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches in each of these foundational papers. Read more: handy orten see you   Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:47:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-631/james-31-46-part-2.html James 3:1-4:6, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       We will finish this study of James 3:1-4:10 here in Part 2, starting with James 3:14. (14) But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition [or, strife] in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. [Compare Rom. 2:8; James 3:16; and 5:19. All sin lies against the truth. Things like bitter jealousy and selfish ambition (or, strife) do not come from God, and they are in opposition to His truth (and wisdom, and righteousness).] (15) This wisdom is not that which comes down from above [It does not come from God (cf. James 1:17).], but is earthly [cf. 1 Cor. 2:6; 3:19], natural [Compare 1 Cor. 2:14; 2 Cor. 1:12; Jude 1:19. The Greek behind this word ("natural") is the feminine adjective "psuchiche," agreeing with the noun for wisdom in the Greek, which is feminine. This adjective was derived from the Greek noun "psuche," which is typically translated "soul" or "life" in the New Testament. When it is translated life, it is the life of this world, as contrasted with the life of God (spiritual/eternal life by the Spirit of God). The BAGD Greek Lexicon gives "unspiritual" as the meaning of the adjective here in James 3:15 (unspiritual in the sense of being devoid of the Holy Spirit). The NIV and the margin of the NASB have "unspiritual."], demonic [The NIV has "of the devil." Note "set on fire by hell" in James 3:6.]. (16) For where jealousy and selfish ambition [or, strife] exist [cf. James 3:14], there is disorder and every evil thing. [These things are "earthly, natural/unspiritual, demonic"; they do not come from God/the Spirit of God; they are not associated with the wisdom of God.] (17) But the wisdom from above [from God/the Spirit of God] is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. (18) And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. [The "fruit" that results from God's people walking in His wisdom (by His grace/Spirit) is "righteousness" (living in accordance with His will/Word). One major point that James makes here is that righteousness will not be the result if God's people do not walk in peace. As I mentioned, there is a strong emphasis in James 3:13-18 on the need for peace, gentleness, divine order, etc. These things are important, and some Christians, very much including some in positions of leadership, often need to be reminded of these things. James 1:20 illustrates this point, "for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God." To the extent that God's people are walking in the wisdom/truth of God and in the Spirit of God there will be peace (peace with God, peace among God's people, peace in the heart of God's people) and there will be righteousness.] (4:1) What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? [[As I mentioned, you could get the very wrong idea from James 4:1-10 (as with other statements by James) that James intended these words of James 4:1-10 to apply to all his readers, even to all Christians. Some Christians understand these verses that way. I am confident that James had no such intention. It is important to see that James would not have considered people who continued in that sinful state (without repentance) to be true Christians. In James 4:4 he says that such people are hostile toward God and enemies of God, not children/people of God.]] Is not the source [of quarrels and conflicts among you] your pleasures [The NIV has "desires."] that wage war in your members? [[The warfare originates in the heart (cf., e.g., Mark 7:20-23). All Christians know something of an inner warfare in that the old man has not been annihilated yet. (It will not be annihilated until we are glorified.) Galatians 5:17 is one of the most important verses that mentions this warfare (also see Rom. 8:12-14). But Gal. 5:17, when read in context with Gal. 5:16, shows (as do Rom. 8:12-14) that Christians are enabled by the Spirit to win every battle and not sin (not that the warfare is always easy or enjoyable, or that the victory is automatic). Galatians 5:16 clearly shows that when Christians walk in/by/after the Holy Spirit (which they can do, and are required to do, on a continuous basis by faith), they will not sin. We must fix our hearts on God, on His Word, and on His righteousness. God does not tolerate a divided heart/double-mindedness (see under James 4:8). I was surprised, pleasantly surprised, that many commentators often made this point, and in strong, unambiguous ways.]] (4:2) You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. [Most agree that James was not speaking, at least not for the most part (cf. James 5:6a), of literal murder. All Christians have wrong desires at times, but wrong desires do not constitute sin as long as the Christian resists them in the power of the Holy Spirit (e.g., Gal. 5:16, 17; Rom. 8:12-14). (These super-important verses are discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," for one place.)] You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. [God wants His people to look to Him and to ask Him for all the things they need (e.g., Matt. 6:25-33), but Matt. 6:33 shows that asking will not yield the desired results if His people do not seek Him first (not things) and His kingdom and His righteousness, which includes living right before Him by His grace through faith. First John 3:22 confirms that we must live right before God (by His grace through faith) if we want our prayers to be answered. First John 5:14, 15 teach us that we must ask in accordance with the Father's will. James 1:5-8, along with many other verses, show that we must pray in faith, without doubting in our hearts.] (4:3) You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. [The things that are asked for in such prayers would not be in accordance with God's will or His righteousness.] (4:4) You adulteresses [cf. Matt. 12:39], do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God [cf. Rom. 8:7]? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world [cf. Matt. 6:24; John 15:19; James 1:27; 1 John 2:15-17; and 4:1-6] makes himself an enemy of God. [[James certainly did not mean to say that all his readers (or all Christians) were "adulteresses" against God. (I had a footnote: D. Edmond Hiebert ("Epistle of James" [Moody, 1979], page 250), speaking of the word adulteresses here in James 4:4 says, "the plural here implies that James is directing his rebuke at those individuals who were unfaithful to their covenant with Christ as the Bridegroom of the church.") My point is confirmed by many verses throughout this epistle. If they actually were "adulteresses" against God, they would have made themselves "enemies" of God. There is a big difference between being a child of God and being an enemy of God. Some of the people that James called adulteresses probably had never become born-again Christians; such people could repent and submit to the gospel in faith and become true Christians. Some probably were totally backsliden Christians; they could repent. (I had a footnote: I believe that we can always counsel backsliden Christians who are wondering if God will accept them back into fellowship that the answer is yes. The fact that they have a desire to repent demonstrates that God hasn't given up on them.) And some probably were Christians who had a serious problem with a less-than-total commitment to God and His righteousness. James spoke to those he called adulteresses in powerful terms to help wake them up that they might repent from their unacceptable state of Christianity. I'll quote part of what George M. Stulac said regarding James 4:4 ("James" [Inter-Varsity Press, 1993], page 144). He is commenting on the seriousness of the need to choose between friendship with God and friendship with the world. "...the seriousness of the one alternative is made clear with the shocking terms: you adulterous people, hatred toward God, and enemy of God. It all sounds so offensive that we are tempted to think that he must be addressing non-Christians rhetorically.... Here, however, he must be addressing his Christian readers [I would say he is addressing some of his "Christian" readers; to the extent the shoe fits, they must repent], for his immediate message is still too closely connected to the hypocritical wisdom and the fights and quarrels among you from 3:13 and 4:1. But he is again warning those who call themselves Christians that they may be false Christians who are really enemies of God. James simply writes with a stronger conviction of the seriousness of sin than most of us are willing to hold. In fact he writes with a sense of moral outrage. ... We should accept James terms [e.g., adulteresses], learn from his acute sense of moral right and wrong, and apply it to ourselves in fear of the judgment that comes to any who are not true Christians. Harboring bitter envy and selfish ambition, with the actions of fighting and quarreling, makes us adulterous people who are treating God with hatred and enmity." I'll quote part of what Peter H. Davids said here ("Commentary on James" [Eerdmans, 1982], page 161). "Two diametrically opposed pairs are presented: friendship and enmity are used to underline the polar opposition between God and the world. Here is a radical ethical dualism of the type found in 1 John 2:15-17 and elsewhere in the Johannine corpus [written by the apostle John]. The world is not the created order or the earth, but the whole system of humanity (its institutions, structures, values, and mores) as organized without God. [The god of this world is the devil.] ... There is no middle point, no compromise. One is either God's friend or his enemy.... This is precisely the point Jesus made (Matt. 6:24; Luke 16:13): one must be '100 percent.' Even the attempt...to cultivate the world is disastrous, for that inner disposition constitutes...one not just a compromiser or a poor Christian, but an enemy of God!" I'll quote part of what Douglas Moo said here ("James," page 144). "James use of 'adulteresses' thus serves to characterize his readers as the unfaithful people of God. ... Certainly James readers were not overtly disclaiming God and consciously deciding to follow the world instead. But their 'jealousy,' 'selfish ambition' and 'unrestrained passion,' exhibiting as they did 'earthly, unspiritual and devilish' attitudes (3:15), amounted to just that. God will brook no rival, and when the believer behaves in a way characteristic of the world, he demonstrates that, at that point, his allegiance is to the world rather that to God. By drawing out the ultimate consequences of worldly behavior in this way, James seeks to prick the consciences of his readers and to stimulate their repentance. They need to recognize that their selfish, quarrelsome behavior is a serious matter indeed." I'll also quote part of what Ralph P. Martin said under this verse ("James" [Word, 1988], page 148). "No room for compromise is permitted, as James concludes in the final sentence of the verse: 'Anyone who is determined to be the world's friend sets himself at enmity (lit. 'as an enemy') with God.' ... Those who go this way 'constitute themselves'...as opponents of God. Not that they intend to fall away from God; but rather James is pointing out that such worldly behavior borders seriously on apostasy. He is suggesting that some of the readers do not appreciate that their deliberate choice to befriend the world is actually an action that sets them against God. So he has to summon them to repentance. ... While James seems to be suggesting that the Christians of 4:4 are not without hope (though woefully misguided) [they can still repent], he is quite clear when he says that their present conduct is deplorable and ranks them with the ungodly."]] (4:5) Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose [In that the following "quotation" does not come directly from any verse in the Old Testament, I agree with the many commentators who believe James was referring to an important theme that is found in several verses in the Old Testament. (I'll list some verses that present this theme as we continue.)]: "He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"? [[This verse is not easy, as demonstrated by the differing translations and interpretations. There is only one view that satisfies me. That view is given, for example, in the BAGD Greek Lexicon: Under "epipotheo," the Greek verb translated "He...desires" by the NASB. BAGD says the meaning probably is, "he (God) yearns jealously over the spirit." The translation of the NASB would be satisfactory, in my opinion, if "Spirit" were changed to "spirit." The Greek noun pneuma is the same whether the Holy Spirit or the human spirit (or an evil spirit) is meant. The context in which the word is used typically shows how the word is to be understood; here there is much difference of opinion, but I believe the human spirit is meant. The point is that God jealously desires/yearns jealously over the spirit/heart of His people in the sense that He demands that His people love Him and be faithful to Him with all their spirits/hearts/lives. The Bible, from the beginning to the end, demonstrates that God will not tolerate His people's unfaithfulness through worshiping other gods, or through other forms of rebellion/sin. The Bible frequently says that God is a jealous God (e.g., Ex. 20:5; 34:14; Deut. 4:24; 5:9; 6:15; and 32:16, 32). Hebrews 12:9 says, "Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?" The view that I have presented regarding the meaning of James 4:5 is a common view, probably the most common view found in the commentaries. Stulac, for example, favors the view that the human spirit is spoken of here, and he says, "the meaning is that God jealously desires us to belong wholeheartedly to him" ("James," page 146). I'll also quote part of what Moo said here ("James," pages 146, 147). "If...verse 5b depicts the jealousy of God for us [and this is the viewpoint that Moo favors], verse 6a will emphasize that God's grace is completely adequate to meet the requirements imposed on us by that jealousy. Our God is 'a consuming fire' and his demands on us may seem terrifying. But our God is also merciful, gracious, all-loving, and willingly supplies all that we need to meet his all-encompassing demands. ....' " It is interesting that James did not mention the Holy Spirit in this epistle, assuming, as I do, that the human spirit is referred to in this verse. The all-important work of the Holy Spirit is included, however, in the "greater grace" that God gives, and we can see His work other places in this epistle (including the new birth of James 1:18).]] (4:6) But [or, "And" (Greek "de")] He gives a greater grace. [[In the Greek of this verse, the word translated "greater" comes first, which puts some emphasis on this word. Greater than the power of sin (the sin that wants to reign over us; the sin pictured, for example, in James 4:1-5) is the transforming/sanctifying grace of God made available to us in Christ Jesus. This is a big part of what the gospel is all about. Forgiveness for our sins is a very important part of the gospel, but far more important is the transformation to righteous and holy living through union with Christ Jesus in the power of His blood and the power of His Spirit. In other words we must truly love God and be faithful to Him from our hearts (by His grace through faith) with top priority. God hates sin! I'll quote part of what Donald W. Burdick said under this verse ("Expositor's Bible Commentary," Vol. 12 [Zondervan, 1981], page 194). He is giving the viewpoint he prefers for James 4:4-6, "...God has set a high standard for wholehearted love and devotion on the part of his people, but he gives grace that is greater than the rigorous demand he has made. ... The reference to the gift of grace looks back to God's demand for loyalty (vv. 4-5). God in grace gives his people the help they need to resist the appeal of the world and to remain loyal to him." I'll also quote part of what Walter W. Wessel said under James 4:5, 6 ("Wycliffe Bible Commentary" [Moody Press, 1962], page 1437). "There are a number of possible translations of the words that follow, but it is in keeping with the context to follow the RSV, which makes God, not spirit, the subject of the verb: He yearns jealously over the spirit which he has made to dwell in us. God is a jealous God [Wessel listed some verses to back up this point], and hence he will not tolerate divided allegiance. No specific OT passage contains the words of this verse, but many passages express a similar sentiment. The difficulties of living wholly for God in a wicked world are many, but he giveth more grace, which here seems to mean 'gracious help.' And this gracious aid God makes available, as Prov. 3:34 declares, not to proud, self-sufficient persons, but to humble, dependent men." I'll quote part of what David P. Nystrom said here ("James" [Zondervan, 1997], page 228). "In verse 6 James holds out a lifeline to those who have apparently been ignorant of the gravity of their situation. God's grace, he says, is still available and abundant for them. God's demands can be harsh, but he always provides the means to follow him. ... James probably has in view a panoply of gifts, such as wisdom, the Holy Spirit, forgiveness, salvation, Jesus Christ himself, and many others." I'll also quote part of what James H. Ropes said under this verse ("Epistle of James" [T. & T. Clark, printed in 1978], page 265). "God makes rigorous requirements of devotion, but gives gracious help in order that men may be able to render the undivided allegiance which he exacts [requires/demands]. ... The comparative [greater] is most naturally taken as meaning 'greater grace in view of greater requirement.' [The grace must be sufficient to meet the need.] ... The context seems to require that [grace] be understood of the 'gracious gift' of aid to fulfil the requirement of whole-hearted allegiance." (Now back to James 4:6.)]] Therefore it says, "GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE." [James quoted from Prov. 3:34 (the Septuagint); compare Matt. 23:12; 1 Pet. 5:5. Based on what these quoted words say, all who call themselves Christians must humble themselves before God, and they must appropriate and continuously walk in His sufficient, transforming/sanctifying grace. What a privilege!] (4:7) Submit therefore to God. [Cf. 1 Pet. 5:6.] Resist the devil and he will flee from you. [[Compare Eph. 4:27; 6:10-18; and 1 Pet. 5:8-10. All Christians must "submit...to God." This is not optional (those who aren't submitted to God aren't true Christians), but it is a great privilege to be submitted to God, and it yields great blessings. This is what we were created for; this is what we were saved for. Part of what is involved in submitting to God is resisting the devil, who is an enemy of God and the ruler of the kingdom of sin, and who is (in some ways) behind all sin (cf. 1 John 3:8-12). Again, this is not optional, but it is a great privilege and a great blessing to be able to resist the devil. The devil (or sin) never does anything that is really good for man; his work always leads toward darkness, death, and destruction. It is true, however, that the things the devil (and sin) offers men look good - through deception and lies. To the extent Christians submit to God and resist the devil, they will not sin.]] (4:8) [In this verse James further deals with what is involved in submitting to God and resisting the devil. These words (along with the words of 4:6, 7, and much other Scripture) make it clear that Christians have their part to play as they submit to God in repentance and faith and resist the devil - God does not just make all things work for the good of His people while they are passive. Faith is active!] Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. [Compare 2 Chron. 15:2; Zech. 1:3; and Mal. 3:7. As James continues he tells his readers (speaking to those who have not been living fully for God but who have been living in sin to one degree or another) what is involved in drawing near to God. Both of the things that James goes on to mention in this verse also fit in the category of resisting the devil (and sin and this world system).] Cleanse your hands, you sinners [Compare Job 17:9; Isa. 1:16; and 1 Tim. 2:8. James is not speaking of Christians asking for forgiveness here, as important as that is. He is speaking of the need for Christians to stop sinning (by the grace of God in Christ). The Greek verb translated "cleanse" here is often used in the New Testament, as it is here, of a sanctifying type of cleansing/purifying. (I had a footnote: For a start see the discussion of 2 Cor. 7:1 on pages 182, 183 of my book "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." Other important cross-references are listed there.)]; and purify your hearts [cf. Jer. 4:14; 1 Pet. 1:22; and 1 John. 3:3], you double-minded. [[The sin problem originates in the heart, so it is obvious that the solution to the sin problem must first and foremost purify the hearts of men. To understand James' words here we must see the connection between having a sinful heart and being double-minded. Many Christians would not see the connection because they (wrongly) think only of the head when they hear the word mind. See above under James 3:10 for some important information regarding the meaning of the Greek adjective that is translated "double-minded" here. Being double-minded is mostly a problem of the heart. Christians do not have the power in themselves to purify their hearts, but they must take some initiative to learn what God's word teaches regarding the need to be pure and how to appropriate and cooperate with His sanctifying/purifying grace. The fact that we are sanctified by God's grace does not mean that we can be passive - again, faith is active. God must receive all the glory for our being transformed/purified, but He will not be glorified to the extent that we do not walk in faith (a faith that is based on what God's Word actually teaches) and appropriate His sufficient grace. I'll quote part of what Moo said here ("James," pages 148, 149). "...the term [double-minded/two-souled] brings forcibly to mind the 'doubleness' of the Christian who seeks to become 'a friend of the world' (4:4). ... To allow 'the world' to entice us away from a total, single-minded allegiance to God is to become people who are divided in loyalties, 'double-minded' and spiritually unstable." Moo goes on to speak of their need to repent.] (4:9) Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. [These words (of James 4:9), spoken in context with what else James said, were aimed (at least for the most part) at his readers who needed to do some serious repenting; they were not aimed at all Christians.] (10) Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you [[I prefer the translation of the NIV here, "and he will lift you up"; the KJV and the NKJV have essentially the same thing, "and He shall/will lift you up."]. Compare Job 5:11; James 4:6. If James readers who had not totally given their hearts to God would now humble themselves before Him, they could begin to receive (and to cooperate with) His "greater grace," as discussed in James 4:6-8. God would then lift them up from their sinful state to where they should be, and must be, as Christians. I'll quote part of what Stulac said under James 4:4-10 ("James," pages 147-151). "Altogether, the paragraph of 4:4-6 emphasizes God's requirement of Christians: 'a total, unreserved, unwavering allegiance' to God rather than to the world (Moo ["The Letter of James"] 1985:144). It equally emphasizes that this requirement is not an achievement by which the proud can earn God's friendship, for the call to devotion is based on God's extension of grace [including His transforming/sanctifying grace] to the humble. ... Steps to Be Taken Toward God (4:7-10). ... [James] has a prescription for them: repentance. That is what his ten imperatives provide [speaking of the ten imperatives (commands) contained in James 4:7-10] - a forceful call to repentance as the requisite to love and peace in the community [and to get rid of all the other sin]" (pages 147, 148). Later in his discussion of James 4:7-10, Stulac discusses the meaning of God's lifting up (James 4:10) of those who heed James' exhortation to turn to God in repentance: "From the context of the intervening imperatives, James would be telling us to expect that God will come near to forgive sin, to restore joy and to strengthen the repentant sinner to live in purity and righteousness. Seeing the requirement of radical life changes in 4:7-10 expands our appreciation for that preceding promise in 4:6 - he gives us more [greater] grace. ["More grace" is the translation of the NIV, which Stulac is using.] ..." (pages 150, 151). When we begin to see that God's grace is sufficient, we can begin to think in terms of His grace being sufficient for us to stop sinning. It is true, of course, that we were spiritually dead and sinful before we became Christians. When it comes to victory over sin, the key issue is what does God's Word say about His new-covenant salvation in Christ Jesus? Does it say that His grace is sufficient for His people to be holy and stop sinning? If it does, and I believe it clearly does (as I have tried to show in much of my teaching), then we ought to start thinking, praying, talking, and walking this way (by grace through faith). One last comment, everything I have said in this paper and other writings is aimed at a sanctifying transformation, not condemnation - we don't need more condemnation in the body of Christ, but we do need a lot more understanding of the fullness of the salvation provided for us in Christ Jesus, with the emphasis on holiness and victory over sin. We look to you Father! Your will must be done in us, in the church, and (ultimately) throughout the earth! May God's will be fully accomplished through this paper! © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com On the topic of righteousness, holiness, and victory over sin, see my book "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." The book is available on my website and at Amazon.com. And see my 28 articles titled "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" on this Christian article site.             Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:39:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-630/philippians-chapter-1-part-2-a-be-partners-in-the-gospel-and-grace-of-god.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 2 A - Be partners in the Gospel and Grace of God   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:3-7 I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. BE PARTNERS IN THE GOSPEL AND GRACE OF GOD Most of the apostles were not wealthy and they therefore deeply appreciated the financial support that they received from the churches they founded. Such was the case of Paul with the Philippian church. Although he was not with them often because of an incident that had taken place in that city, see Acts 16:11-40, the Philippian church provided for Paul financially not just with money but possibly clothing and other things he needed. They also sent Epaphroditus to deliver their gifts and to be of service to Paul for as long as necessary while he was in prison. He was the one who penned the Epistle to the Philippians for Paul. (See Philippians 2:25, 4:18, 4:23) This is why he said they were his continual partners in the gospel and no matter what state he was in, whether “in chains or defending and confirming the gospel,” all of them shared in God’s grace with him. What can we learn from this? How can an individual share in the gospel and grace of God indeed? In this nation we are glutted with messages about supporting those who feed us with the gospel and so on and many already do so, so I am not going to speak about that, but see Galatians 6:6. Rather, what I do want to talk about is an area that is somewhat neglected that is the ministry of giving and helps to our neighbors, needy brothers and sisters in the faith and the poor and destitute around us and abroad. Matthew 25:21-46 indicates that how we treat our fellowman is of extreme importance. The ones who did nothing to help their fellowmen were told, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire…. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me”. They queried Jesus as to when they did not do all this. The response is shocking, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these; you did not do for me”. Jesus stressed giving to the poor and needy and the scripture evidences that he had a money bag from which the poor and needy were supplied. James the Apostle said in James 1:27, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. Many will be rewarded based upon what they do for the people of Jesus. Matthew 10:40-42 states, “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward and if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth he will certainly not lose his reward.” Knowing this, therefore, let us follow the example of the Philippians. The saints at Philippi teach us how not to overlook these areas of worship that we so often get too busy to be participatory in. We mean to send but get busy and never get around to sending, we mean to give in a particular area but get distracted, we may mean to do something for a neighbor but get bogged down with our own issues and never get around to it. Taking care of each other is an act of love and worship. Remember what the Apostle James said in James 2:14-16, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? This, the ministry or giving and helps is very important for us to do and is the responsibility of every believer who is enabled to do so, when the opportunity arises, and should never be overlooked. It is overlooked because we get caught up in the busyness and the business of living our lives and ignore those around us who need us most. Or we start giving and begin to feel that the people have become steady on their feet through other support, whether government or otherwise, and our support dwindles. There may be people in your community or in communities near you who are in need. Utilize whatever avenue is available for helping, once you are able to do so. In the words of Galatians 6:9-10, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers”.   Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit, The Holy Scriptures             Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:35:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-629/philippians-chapter-1-part-2-b-he-who-began-a-good-work-in-you.html PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1 - PART 2 B - HE WHO BEGAN A GOOD WORK IN YOU   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:6 Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. HE WHO BEGAN A GOOD WORK IN YOU Life meanders. Joseph’s dreams, interpreted, showed that he would become an important leader and the leader of his brethren but they sold him into slavery and sometime later his master threw him into prison for a crime he did not commit. Life meanders. Regardless of the meandering in Joseph’s life God’s plan and purpose was realized. Such is the power of God. “He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.” Life meanders. God promised Abraham a son from his wife through whom all the nations of the earth would be blessed but she was barren. Her barrenness was so protracted that she gave her husband her maid to produce an heir only to find out that was not the promised heir. Life meanders. Again in spite of the meandering God gave Abraham the son he intended by his wife in his old age and after she died he had other sons by a new wife such was God’s renewal in his life. Such is the power of God. “He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.” Life meanders. Peter was the apostle who answered all Jesus’ questions correctly. It seemed the Holy Spirit was with him in a wonderful way. He was one of the disciples in Jesus’ inner circle. He was never absent. When Jesus was in the garden he rose to his defense by cutting off Malchus’ ear. However, when Jesus submitted to the brutality and questioning of his captors Peter feared that he would be arrested and denied the Lord three times. Life meanders. This should have dismissed his discipleship but it didn’t. This should have denied him ministry and access to the throne but it couldn’t. The blood was shed that paid for his fault, Jesus reinstated him beautifully in love in John 21:18-25. Peter used the kingdom keys given to him to open the church officially. His first unrehearsed message brought three thousand souls. God’s purpose was realized. Such is the power of God. “He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.” Life meanders. What is happening in yours at this time? What will happen to yours eventually? Only God has the answer. Trust him that after the bitter there will be sweet. Trust him that he will keep you in temptation. Trust him that he will forgive your sins. Trust him that he will heal your diseases. Trust him that he will redeem your life from destruction. Trust him that you will walk in the city not made with hands. For “we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed. Life meanders. “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Jesus Christ our Lord.” Such is the power of God. For “the Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” “He who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.”   Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit and The Holy Scriptures             Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:31:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-628/perfect-perfection-personified.html Perfect Perfection Personified   By: Curt Klingerman       Hebrews 1:3 Who (Jesus) being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high (emphasis added, KJV). In our opening text, “the expressed image” means the exact copy or representation, and here it means the exact image of God’s essence. Whatever the Divine Essence is, Jesus is its perfect expression. There is only One Who ever walked perfectly before the Father. His Name is Jesus. He is the only One Who expressed the very essence of God in the Flesh. While on the earth Jesus did not attempt to do His Own thing, but submitted to the will of the Father. His only agenda was to accomplish the desires of the Father. By complete surrender to His will, Jesus finished the work the Father gave Him. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus is able to bring many into an eternal relationship with God. Hence, “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29, emphasis added, KJV). Jesus manifested God’s love, hence, He is Perfect Perfection personified. One who is not perfect is incapable of perfection in of himself. He cannot make himself perfect; that requires someone Greater than himself -God. It is good to aspire to walk perfectly before the Father as Jesus did; in fact, we are to conform to His image. It is not a question of whether we are to walk like Jesus; it is a question of methodology. That is to say, it is the way we do things that make the difference. It is one thing to do a “good thing”; it is another to do the right thing. The former is based upon self-righteous acts, while the latter is based upon the faith of Jesus. What we do does not make us righteous; it is who we are in Christ Jesus. True righteous acts are the result of the true righteous work accomplished in us, just as it is written, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8-10, emphasis added, KJV). It is God Who conforms us to the image of Jesus; we do not conform ourselves. Rather, we surrender to the process He takes us though to accomplish it. Otherwise, we will be swallowed up in pride as we yield to self-righteousness. We will be trapped into comparing ourselves to others, while still falling short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23). Remember, acts of self-righteousness only glorify the self, which has nothing to do with glorifying God. In the Kingdom of God, there is no such thing as “the self-made man”; there is only the new man given to us through Jesus Christ our Lord (see Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10). If we attempt to conform ourselves into the image of Jesus, we may fall into Satan’s trap: “I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:14). That is not a good place to be. If we want to conform to the image of Jesus, we simply need to surrender to the One Who does the conforming. It takes a lot of pressure off us, and keeps us from telling the Father, “I’ll do better next time,” when we fall flat on our face while trying to do things our way. Remember, “He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6, KJV).     Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith Of Jesus In The Life Of The Believer," by Curt Klingerman http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8             Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:27:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-627/philippians-chapter-1-part-1a-being-a-saint-is-being-married-to-jesus.html PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1-PART 1A-Being a saint is being married to Jesus   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:1-2 "Paul and Timothy servants of Christ Jesus To all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi together with the overseers and deacons." BEING IN CHRIST. As I began to read I had to stop at verse 2 and consider the statement “saints in Christ”. What does it mean to be in Christ, how does one get there, how does one know that he is there and how does he stay there. This is a lot to ponder. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE IN A SAINT IN CHRIST? The first thing to understand about being a saint in Christ is that we are married to Jesus. This is a puzzle to most believers but they would not admit it. If we don’t know or understand a biblical precept or concept we are silent on it until we get more information and that is the right thing to do. You certainly do not need to know everything in the bible or be correct in everything to be a Christian. The grace of God is wonderfully efficacious but we have to learn the preliminaries and most don't know them. The fact that we were married to Jesus puzzled me for a long time. How could we be married and no wedding ceremony had taken place? Some thought maybe it is an engagement because the language in the King James Version reads that Joseph was espoused to Mary but we never understood what it meant when it said that he wanted to put her away privately. How could he want to divorce a woman that he was not married to? This confusion exists only in the non Jewish mind. When Christianity was taken over by the Roman Empire, after the early Christians were killed, there was a significant absence of knowledge about the Jewish traditions. When these traditions are explained the cloudiness that exists about certain events in scripture vanishes. An example of this is why Jesus had a Passover seder with his disciples and yet it is reported that there was a Passover seder on the night of his death. The report is correct if you understand the Jewish traditions regarding Passover. Since the wedding ceremony is prophesied to take place at the return of Jesus in the future how could we be said to be married? God modeled his marriage to his people after the marriages of the old Jewish world not the kind of marriages that we have today. There were three stages to this marriage: the Shiddukin, the Kiddushin and the Nisuin. SHIDDUKIN In this stage, the groom sent a representative called a shadkhan to the father of the bride to make a proposal. Negotiations of the bride price paid to the bride’s father by the groom, called the ‘mohar’, and the money and articles of value that the bride would bring into the marriage, called the dowry or ‘nadan’, were discussed and determined after the acceptance of the proposal. Women were not married to anyone against their will. They had to agree to marry the individual. In the Old Testament God’s shadkhan was Moses and in the New Testament it was John the Baptist. This is why John speaks of himself in John 3:29 as being the friend of the bridegroom or as we would term it today Jesus’ best man. KIDDUSHIN The second step and first official stage of marriage is the ‘Kiddushin’ or betrothal. Although the term betrothal is used this is materially different from an engagement. In order to break kiddushin a rabbinic divorce was necessary because the man and woman were deemed man and wife. During the betrothal ceremony the marriage contract or Ketubah was read and signed by both parties, was given to the father of the bride who then handed it to the bride. In this contract the groom outlined how the woman would be provided for financially in the marriage, what her duties and his duties were, what happened if the marriage covenant was broken and any other stipulations he wanted to include. Our ketubah is the Holy Scriptures. It goes so far as to describe the dwelling place that God has for us. Our contract is signed when we give our lives to God and covenant to do what he says, that is, when we accept Jesus as our Savior. Once the marriage contract was signed, the groom paid the bride price to the father of the bride. I Peter 1:18 tells us that we were purchased with the precious blood of Jesus Christ that was the price he paid to the father for us. This blood was paid to the father and not to Satan as some stipulate. The heavenly Father set the price for the remission of sins and required it of his Son, the Messiah, who was the only one capable of paying such a price. His was the only sinless life. After the signing of the ketubah the groom made a verbal declaration that the woman was his wife. The Apostle John announces Jesus as the one who is the bridegroom in John 1:29 and John 3:26-36. Jesus announces himself as Messiah in Luke 4:18 and in Matthew 16:13-20 he fully reveals himself to the Apostles as the Messiah the bridegroom. After the announcement they both drank wine from a cup. He drank first and then gave it to her. Jesus does this also. In Luke 22:20 in the middle of the Passover seder he marries his people through the Apostles. He drank the wine from the cup then he gave it to them and said, “This is a new covenant in my blood” indicating that he had married them and was about to pay the price to the father. Before he left the groom also gave his bride a gift, which had to be something of substantial value not frivolous or trivial. She accepted the gift signaling that she accepted the groom as husband including the contract and all its terms. The gift given by Jesus to his own is the Holy Spirit, a priceless gift. In John 20:22 he breathed on the Apostles and they received the Holy Ghost and then in Acts 2, in the upper room, the Holy Spirit fell upon them. He is still received by believers to this day. This is a good gift from the Messiah that truly keeps on giving. Once all of this was over she took a ritual bath signifying that she had now left her old way of living and was now entering the higher life of being a wife separated to her husband, wholly consecrated to him. The baptism or mikvah, as the Jews would call it, that is taken, after one accepts the Lord Jesus, is signifying the same, that the believer has entered a higher life, one of being separated to God, wholly consecrated to him. This is why it is essential for Christians to get baptized. It is not for purpose of membership into the place where they gather but to signify that their status has changed and that they are married to Jesus. After this the bridegroom returned to his father’s house for a year or two to prepare a bridal chamber in his father’s house and or build a house for his bride. It was during this Kiddushin stage that God joined the man and the wife even though they spent this time apart. Sexual relations were forbidden between them neither could they have sexual relations with others that would be adultery. In like manner we must be faithful to God this is why God has a problem with idolatry and his people. If we worship another we are in spiritual adultery and that is what idolatry is. The church is in kiddushin with Jesus. This is a period of sanctification as the word kiddushin itself suggests when the groom and bride are sanctified in each other and for each other. It is a mystery and something that is only performed by God himself. God sanctified them for each other and in each other. Our kiddushin with Jesus is described in John 17:17-23. He speaks of our sanctification through the word and states that he would sanctify himself also and also speaks of the oneness that would exist between us and him and the Father. Before the groom departed, he said words to the effect, “I am going to prepare a place for you to live: then, I will return again to you and bring you there in full marriage." This is what Jesus said in John chapter 14:1-4, “let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am there ye may be also and whither I go ye know and the way ye know.” NISUIN The nisuin is the actual wedding ceremony and consummation of the marriage, the completion of the kiddushin. In our ketubah we were given a picture of our dwelling place by the Apostle John in the book of Revelation. It is beautiful isn’t it? Our minds cannot comprehend the beauty, wealth and awesomeness of this city and its temple. Even our garment is beautiful. Therefore, we understand that a saint in Christ is someone that is married to Jesus. Armed with that knowledge we can now discuss the other parameters of being a saint in Christ that are mentioned in the beginning of this study.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit, The Holy Scriptures, The Babylonian Talmud             Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:24:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-626/philippians-chapter-1-part-2c-he-who-began-a-good-work-in-you-ii.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 2C - He who began a good work in you II   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:6 Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Last time we discussed “he who began a good work in you will be faithful to complete it”, from the perspective of special purposes that God may want to accomplish in the believer’s life and used Joseph, Abraham and Peter as examples. In this study rather than discuss special purposes we will talk about the eternal work that God has begun in the life of every believer. Christianity is a marriage. As we learned in the article, ‘Philippians Chapter 1-Part 1A-Being a Saint is being married to Jesus’, this marriage has three stages a Shiddukin or proposal stage, a kiddushin or sanctification stage and a Nisuin or wedding ceremony. The Shiddukin stage of our marriage took place in Israel in the days of John the Baptist, the shadkhan or best man, and the disciples—see the above mentioned article for details—but is completed by the believer when he accepts Jesus as his savior. After baptism every believer enters the kiddushin or sanctification stage of this marriage. Baptism or the ‘mikvah’ is a symbol that you have left your single life and have entered a higher stage of living that of a wife separated for and unto her husband. That is why it marks the entrance into the kiddushin stage of the marriage. The word kiddushin is a Hebraic term which actually means sanctification or holiness. This is what God has begun in every believer and is in the process of completing, our sanctification. In essence God is preparing us for our wedding ceremony or Nisuin with Jesus through the work of sanctification after which we will live eternally with our husband. During the Kiddushin the man and woman are sanctified for each other and in each other by God. Sexual relations are forbidden between the couple nor can they have sexual relations with others. This is the time when God mysteriously joins the man to his wife, a joining which is completed when they have intercourse during Nisuin. Kiddushin is an especially holy time for a couple in God’s sight. Paul shows us this joining between the man and woman in 1 Corinthians and Jesus alludes to our joining in John 17. The Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 7:14, “For the believing husband hath been sanctified in the wife and the unbelieving wife hath been sanctified in the husband…” Jesus said in John 17:17-23. Sanctify them by the truth: your word is truth… For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one. Father just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be one in us that the world may believe that you sent me.” At this stage in our relationship with the Lord we are being spiritually joined to him becoming bones of his bones and flesh of his flesh. Ephesians 5:25-33 speaks of this mystery. Gods work in believers, then, is kiddushin or sanctification for the purpose of making us a chaste bride, cleansing us by the washing with water through the word, to present us to himself as a radiant church, without spot or wrinkle or any other blemish but holy and blameless and joining us to Jesus so that we become his body in the same way the man and wife become one body—see Ephesians 5:25-33. This is a profound mystery. This is why we, the bride, cannot live the way that we want to live. This is why in the scriptures we are told to live exclusively to God, give up the sins of the flesh and walk in the fruit of the spirit. Hence we are instructed in Titus 2:11-14, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world, looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our savior Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works”. We are the bride of Christ and he is in the process of purifying us for himself. Titus 2:11-14 is not the only text of its kind, the entire cannon of scripture is filled with instructions on living righteously so that we can be ready for our wedding, our Nisuin, and what we can expect if we do not. This is why we find texts like 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5, “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor not in the lust of concupiscence even as the gentiles who know not God. 1 Corinthians 6:19 tells us why we are to flee sexual immorality and not sin against our body it says, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were brought at a price, therefore, honor God with your body”. That price is the bride price or ‘mohar’ which Jesus paid, his precious sacrificial blood. We are a purchased bride who is under obligation to obey the terms of our Ketubah, our marriage covenant—the bible—which contains the commands and stipulations of our groom. This is why Jesus said if you love me keep my commandments. He also says in John 15:9-10, “As the Father has loved me so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands you will remain in my love just as I have obeyed my fathers and remain in his love. God is sanctifying his church to bring us to a place of holiness where our spiritual garment of righteousness will be fully ready for our wedding to Jesus. When we are ready and our home is ready he will return. He delays because he does not wish any of us to perish but that all should come to repentance. Peter tells us this in 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise as some understand slowness but is patient with you not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance”. Knowing now what the work is that God is seeking to complete in our lives, our sanctification, and that he will be faithful to complete it. Let us submit to the process so that we may come to our wedding ceremony and from that moment live eternally with our savior. “For God so loved the world that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved”. For more information on the wedding of God and his people read, Matthew 25, Revelation19:1-10, Revelation 21 and 22, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, 1 Corinthians 15:50-58.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit and The Holy Scriptures   Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:19:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-625/philippians-chapter-3-part-1-of-2-parts.html Philippians Chapter 3, Part 1 (of 2 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       This two-part article was taken from the internet version of my paper titled, "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:10, which was published in March, 2000. In the original paper and in the internet version of this paper that in on my internet site (Google to Karl Kemp Teaching) I was able to use bold, italics, underlining, and footnotes. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless otherwise noted. Sometimes I will use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) in this article to make them more obvious. This entire chapter of Philippians is quite important, but one primary reason I wanted to discuss this chapter is Phil. 3:12, which is often listed as a verse that supposedly proves the widespread (but I believe wrong) viewpoint that the New Testament teaches that all Christians - starting with the apostle Paul - necessarily continue to sin to some extent as long as they live in this world. I don't believe this verse says anything whatsoever about Paul (or any other Christian) continuing to sin. All that Paul says in Phil. 3:12 is that he has not arrived - he has not finished the race - and he must, therefore, press on in faith (which includes disregarding the things of the past and the things of the flesh), as required by the new covenant in the blood of Christ, until his race is finished and he ends up in eternal glory. In Phil. 3:12 (with 3:7-15), Paul used himself as an example of what all Christians can, and should, and must, do in order to instruct/exhort those Christians at Philippi who needed to make some changes. Rather than refer to his life in Christ to prove that Christians cannot stop sinning, Paul referred to his life in Christ to illustrate that Christians can live above sin. Compare, for example, Acts 23:1; 24:16; 1 Cor. 4:4, 16; 11:1 ("Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ"); 2 Cor. 1:12 ("For our proud confidence is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you"); 2:17, 18; 4:1, 2; 6:1-10; Gal. 2:20; 6:14; Phil. 1:20, 21; 3:7-10, 15, 17; 4:9; 1 Thess. 2:10-12 ("You are witnesses, and so is God, how devoutly and uprightly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers; (11) just as you know how we were exhorting and encouraging and imploring each one of you as a father would his children, (12) so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory."); and 2 Thess. 3:7-9. Much more important than the verses cited in the last paragraph, where the apostle spoke of his walk in Christ, are the large number of verses where he taught that walking in righteousness, holiness, and victory over sin (by the grace of God in Christ) is a big part of what Christianity is all about. (The gospel that God gave the apostle Paul to proclaim must be our primary standard, not the life of the apostle Paul.) Equally significant are the many similar verses in the New Testament that were not written by the apostle Paul. Many of those verses (from Paul and other writers) are discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," especially in the last three chapters of that book. And many such passages are discussed in my subsequent papers, especially "A Paper on Faith," "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism," "Verse-by-Verse Studies of Ephesians Chapters 1 and 4; and Romans 8:16-39" and "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 2 Peter." I will mention quite a few key verses where the apostle Paul taught the full victory over sin as we continue with this paper. The New Testament does, of course, make it clear that Christians can sin and that they will sin to the extent they do not know and/or do not walk in the full truth of the gospel on a continuous basis by faith, being enabled by the Holy Spirit. Even though the church at Philippi was a solid church (as this epistle shows), there was room for improvement (cf. Phil. 1:9-11, 25; 2:1-5; 3:11-15; and 4:2), not that all such room for improvement would be classified as sin. God does not use the word sin in a loose way; it is a serious word. Everything short of total, absolute perfection does not constitute sin. I'll quote Phil. 2:12-16, verses that do not fit well with the idea that Paul taught the Philippians that Christians cannot live in righteousness and holiness with the victory over all sin. "So then, my beloved, JUST AS YOU HAVE ALWAYS OBEYED, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence [Paul was not there to help them], work out your salvation with fear [[I had a footnote: Although many Christians in our day reject this concept, the Bible (both Old and New Testaments) makes it quite clear that God's people are supposed to fear sinning against Him. See the discussion of Phil. 2:12-16 on pages 28-30 of my paper titled "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism" on my internet site.]] and trembling; (13) FOR IT IS GOD WHO IS AT WORK IN YOU [His enabling grace is sufficient, but God does not force Christians to learn the full, balanced truth, to have faith in the truth, or to live in the righteousness and holiness of the truth (cf. Eph. 4:24)], BOTH TO WILL AND TO WORK FOR HIS GOOD PLEASURE. (14) Do all things without grumbling or disputing; (15) SO THAT YOU WILL PROVE YOURSELVES TO BE BLAMELESS AND INNOCENT, CHILDREN ABOVE REPROACH IN THE MIDST OF A CROOKED AND PERVERSE GENERATION, AMONG WHOM YOU APPEAR [or, SHINE] AS LIGHTS IN THE WORLD, (16) HOLDING FAST THE WORD OF LIFE, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain." Paul would have toiled in vain (at least in one sense) if the Christians he ministered to rejected the truth, chose sin instead of righteousness, and were not ready to stand before God on the day of judgment. "(Phil. 3:1) Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord [cf. Phil. 4:4]. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you. (2) Beware of the dogs [cf. Psalm 22:16, 20; Rev. 22:15], beware of the evil workers [cf. Psalm 22:16], beware of the false circumcision [The "false circumcision" is to be contrasted with the "true circumcision" mentioned in the next verse. I assume, in agreement with most commentators, that Paul was referring to the Judaizers here (throughout verse 2). The Christians at Philippi, who were (at least for the most part) Gentiles, would have been a target for the Judaizers.] (3) for we are the true circumcision [cf. Rom. 2:28, 29; Col. 2:11, 12.], who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus [cf. Gal. 6:14] and put no confidence in the flesh [Some of the Judaizers probably had become born-again Christians, but their faulty doctrine, which required Gentiles to be (physically) circumcised and to submit to other ceremonial works of the Mosaic Law in order to be accepted by God, significantly distorted the gospel and detracted from the work of the Spirit. To put confidence in the flesh, as Phil. 3:4-6 demonstrate, includes putting confidence in ceremonial works (like circumcision) and things like physical lineage instead of relying totally on the all-sufficient, new-covenant salvation freely given in Christ Jesus.], (4) although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more [[Compare 2 Cor. 11:13-12:13. Paul's point here in Phil. 3:4-9 is that if he, with his high-level credentials in Judaism, needed to disregard Judaism and the things of the flesh (especially referring to the ceremonial laws) and to be totally faithful to Christ and the new covenant in His blood, all the other Christians need to do the same thing. According to the gospel that Paul proclaimed, no one could legitimately "put confidence in the flesh"; all men need to be saved through the grace of God in Christ Jesus, who lifts us above the flesh by giving us the Holy Spirit to regenerate us, to dwell in us, to sanctify us, etc. Some of the Judaizers undoubtedly were quite sincere, but they were in serious error. Following the doctrine of the Judaizers could cost a person their salvation (e.g., Gal. 5:2-4). Gentiles can also be guilty of putting confidence in the flesh (in things like works of the flesh, the family name, riches, worldly fame, intelligence, education, will power, etc.).]]: (5) circumcised the eighth day [cf. Gen. 17:12; Lev. 12:3; Luke 1:59; and 2:21], of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin [cf. Rom. 11:1], a Hebrew of Hebrews [[Compare 2 Cor. 11:22. I'll quote part of what William Hendricksen said on the meaning of these words ("Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon" [Baker, 1979], pages 158, 159). "...that is, 'purest of the pure.' The idiom stresses at least the purity of his lineage: Hebrew son of Hebrew parents; hence definitely a Hebrew, a Hebrew if there ever was one!" In a footnote Hendricksen mentions that "Many are of the opinion that the phrase 'Hebrew of Hebrews' also calls attention to the fact that the apostle was a Jew not only by race but also by language and customs," and he says the possibility of this viewpoint must be granted.]]; as to the Law, a Pharisee [cf. Acts 23:6; 26:5]; (6) as to zeal, a persecutor of the church [cf. Acts 8:3; 22:3-5; and 26:9-11]; as to the righteousness which is in the Law [see Phil. 3:9], found blameless. [Paul may have kept (to some reasonable extent) the righteousness required by the Law (especially when it came to the external, ceremonial requirements of the Law), but it is quite clear that he was not saying that he had fully kept the Law in his pre-Christian days. If he had been able to fully keep the Law, he would not have needed the Lamb of God to save him. Compare, for example, Acts 22:16; Rom. 3:9, 19-30; 6:14; 7:5-8:17; Gal. 2:16, 21; 3:10, 11, 13, 17-32; and 4:5.] (7) But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. [[It would be easy to misunderstand what Paul said here with this translation of these last words, "for the sake of Christ" (which is also the translation of the NIV). You could get the (wrong) idea that Paul did what he did for the benefit of Christ. As Paul continues, it becomes clear that what he did he did for his own sake. He did what was required of him by the terms of the new covenant; he was concerned (and rightly so) for his salvation. The Greek might be better translated something like "on account of (or, because of) Christ," with the understanding that Paul was setting aside the things of the past (and the things of the flesh), which he spoke of in Phil. 3:4-6, "on account of/because of [his need to fully appropriate new-covenant salvation in] Christ." Gordon D. Fee translates "because of Christ" ("Paul's Letter to the Philippians" [Eerdmans, 1995), pages 312, 313].]] (8) More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord [On knowing Christ/God, cf., e.g., John 17:3; Eph. 4:13; Phil. 3:10; and 2 Pet. 1:2, 3.], for [The same Greek preposition ("dia") is used here that was translated "for the sake of [Christ]" in Phil. 3:7. I prefer a translation like "on account of/because of [whom]" here too. (Fee has "because of whom.") I am not denying, of course, that in some ways Paul did what he did for Christ, but in this context the emphasis is on what Paul was required to do to meet the terms of the new covenant in order to gain salvation in Christ - if we miss salvation, we miss everything. We are required to take up our cross and follow Christ! We are required to die to the old man!] whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ [The apostle did not merely set aside the things of his pre-Christian past in which he used to put confidence (the things he spoke of in Phil. 3:4-6), he also set aside everything that could interfere with his being a fully faithful Christian in union with Christ Jesus. He set aside his rights, even his right to keep on living, in order to fully submit to the will of his Savior and Lord. For one thing, he knew that the rewards would infinitely outweigh all the difficulties he had to face as he lived in faithfulness to Christ as the apostle to the Gentiles (cf., e.g., 2 Cor. 4:16-5:10; Heb. 11:25, 26).], (9) and may be found in Him [Paul wanted to make sure that he, at all times (but especially when it would be time for him to stand before God in judgment), would be found in Christ, and fully in Christ and in His righteousness.], not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law [[Compare Rom. 10:5; Phil. 3:6. There was a time when Paul, before he heard and understood the gospel, thought in terms of having his own righteousness before God (especially on judgment day) because he had (in some ways and to some extent) kept the (Mosaic) Law. (It is not true, as you sometimes hear it said, that Jews like Paul [speaking of his pre-Christian days] didn't leave any room for the grace and mercy of God under the old covenant. Being the people of the covenant(s) with God, they believed they benefited from His grace and mercy.) Now, as a new-covenant believer, he understood that righteousness, the very righteousness of God, is given to believers through and in Christ Jesus, and only through and in Christ Jesus. It is very important to understand that this righteousness (the very righteousness of God) is both imputed and imparted. See the section titled "Christians are Enabled, and Required, to Live/Walk in Righteousness, Which Means Living/Walking in the Will of God, According to His Word/Law/Commandments," in my paper titled "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism," including the cross-references to my book "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" and my "A Paper on Faith." To receive and to walk in the righteousness of God in Christ, Paul had to set aside his own very inadequate "righteousness." Significantly, as we discussed under Phil. 3:6, Paul came to understand that his own "righteousness" was not at all adequate (it would not suffice to open the doors of heaven for him when he stood before God in judgment). And he came to understand that this was not the plan of God (who, before the creation of the world, planned to sacrifice His Son to make His people righteous, which is a big part of what salvation is all about. We needed to be set free from the spiritual death and bondage to sin that has been with all the descendants of Adam since the fall (see Romans chapter 5, which is discussed in "Holiness and Victory Over Sin"). Paul discovered that he had no other reasonable option than to receive and to walk in "the righteousness [of God] which comes from God on the basis of faith [faith in Christ and the One who sent Him]" (see the next verse).]], but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, (10) that I may know Him [Compare Phil. 3:8. Paul is speaking of knowing Christ in a way that includes the experiential dimension through literally being united with Him through the indwelling Holy Spirit. This knowing Christ includes experientially knowing "the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death" (see verse 10).] and the power of His resurrection [See Rom. 6:1-11; Eph. 1:19-2:6 (especially 1:19, 20; 2:5, 6); Col. 2:9-15 (especially 2:12, 13); and 3:1-11. Here in Phil. 3:10 (as in all the references just cited), the apostle is thinking, at least for the most part, of the power (the resurrection power that has spiritually resurrected/raised Christians through union with Christ by the Holy Spirit) that enables them to live in the truth, righteousness, and holiness of God as born-again Christians.] and the fellowship of [or, "participation in" (Greek "koinonia")] His sufferings, being conformed to His death [[(This double bracket continues for more than three pages.) We participate in (have fellowship with) Christ's sufferings and are conformed to His death to the extent we truly die to the old man in union with Him and live in faithfulness to Him. (Christ's "sufferings" centered in His atoning death; He was bearing our sins with the guilt and the penalties (including the major penalties of spiritual death and bondage to sin); He died in our place.) Even as young Christians, we can, and we should, be dead to the old man (e.g., Rom. 6:1-11; 8:12-14; Gal. 5:16, 17, 24; Eph. 4:22-32; Col. 2:11, 12; and 3:1-11 [especially 3:2, 3, 5-9]; most of these super-important verses are discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin; Full Salvation Through the Atoning Death of the Lord Jesus Christ," and many of them are discussed in my papers). (I had a footnote: To be dead to the old man (to the flesh) includes not doing the sinful works of the old man/of the flesh [cf. Rom. 8:12-14; Gal. 5:19-21, 24]. To the extent Christians really are dead to the old man [to the flesh] they won't be sinning. This is good news!) To the extent we are not conformed to Christ's death (to the extent we are not dead to the old man), our lives are not consistent with the new covenant established on the blood of Christ. Several of the cross-references just cited make it clear that the death of the flesh/old man is not automatically achieved, nor automatically maintained; we must deny the flesh/old man and walk after the Spirit (based on what the New Testament teaches) on a continuous basis by faith. What I said in the last paragraph is a big part of the gospel that Paul preached (as confirmed by the cross-references to his epistles that I listed). It also serves as a necessary foundation for what I will say in this paragraph and in the next three paragraphs. Because of the order of Paul's words here in Phil. 3:10, with "the fellowship of/participation in [Christ's] sufferings, being conformed to His death" being mentioned after "that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection," Paul apparently intended a different emphasis on the meaning of "the fellowship of [participation in] His sufferings, being conformed to His death" than I gave in the last paragraph. ((I had a footnote: What I said in the last paragraph is more foundational and more important than the issue the apostle is dealing with here. Paul has already incorporated what I said in the last paragraph into this discourse by speaking of having the righteousness of God in 3:9 and by speaking of knowing Christ and the power of His resurrection here in 3:10, and he will say more about the sanctified life as he continues with this epistle. He also discussed these things to some extent in chapters 1, 2, and Paul knew that his readers understood these things because he had taught them these things.)) Paul apparently was thinking here, at least to some significant extent, of the sufferings that came to him because he was a faithful Christians and faithful to the ministry that had been assigned to him. Paul was imprisoned when he wrote this epistle, for one thing (Phil. 1:7), and he knew that the Philippian Christians were facing opposition too (Phil. 1:27-30). (See, for example, Acts 14:22; and Rom. 8:17-39. I had a footnote: These verses from Romans are discussed in some detail in a paper on my internet site.) He was faithful to be conformed to Christ's death, which included his being dead to sin and his willingness to suffer with Christ (as he frequently did), or even to literally die for Christ (as he ultimately did). For Paul to live was Christ and to die was gain (cf. Phil. 1:21); he had renounced all for Christ (which is required of all Christians). God's grace is sufficient for each of us to do what we are called to do, but we must appropriate and cooperate with His grace by faith. Romans 8:17 says, "and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him." This verse (Rom. 8:17) is doubly significant in that it speaks of our suffering with Christ (which corresponds with "the fellowship of/participation in His sufferings" spoken of in Phil. 3:10), and it also speaks of our ultimate glorification (which corresponds with the "resurrection from the dead" spoken of in Phil. 3:11). Some suffering comes with the salvation we have received in Christ; we cannot allow such suffering to cause us to back off from pressing on (by grace) in faithfulness to Christ. Second Corinthians 4:7-18 (especially 4:10, 11) are another important cross-reference for Phil. 3:10, 11. In 2 Cor. 4:7-18 the apostle was speaking about himself (and his ministry team), which is directly applicable to Phil. 3:10, where Paul is speaking of himself. ((I had a footnote: Even though Paul was speaking of himself (and his ministry team) in 2 Cor. 4:7-18, as being distinct from the Christians at Corinth to whom he ministered, the words of 2 Cor. 4:10, 11, 16-18 have some application for all true Christians. It is important to understand that Paul, even at the time of his conversion, was shown that his call would involve much suffering, much more than the suffering that comes to most Christians (cf., e.g., Acts 9:16). The New Testament confirms that those words regarding Paul's suffering for the sake of the gospel came to pass, but also that God's grace was/is sufficient.)) Second Corinthians 4:10, 11 say, "always carrying about in the body [the physical body] the dying of Jesus [which corresponds with "the fellowship of/participation in His sufferings, being conformed to His death" of Phil. 3:10], that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh." (Cf., e.g., 2 Cor. 12:9, 10.) Second Corinthians 4:14, 17, 18 go on to speak of Paul's (and his ministry team's) ultimate resurrection and glorification (which corresponds with the "resurrection from the dead" spoken of in Phil. 3:11). Compare 1 Cor. 15:30, 31; 2 Cor. 1:5, 8, 9; and Col. 1:24. Did Paul include any idea of his progressively dying more and more with the words "being conformed to His death" (Phil. 3:10)? Verses can be cited from Paul to show that we are improved through trials, assuming that we rightly respond to them (e.g., Rom. 5:3, 4; cf. James 1:2-4) and that we will continue to grow in Christ throughout this age (e.g., 2 Cor. 3:18). ((I had a footnote: The Bible also shows that God chastens His children, as required, to help motivate them to repent, etc. (e.g., Heb. 12:5-11); but if His people walk in His righteousness and holiness, they will not need to be chastened, and I don't believe the apostle meant to include the idea of chastening here in Phil. 3:10. Paul is speaking of "the fellowship of [Christ's] sufferings, being conformed to His death" here, and Christ certainly never sinned so that He needed to be chastened. He did, however, learn about obedience through suffering (Heb. 5:8).)) But we need not necessarily understand Paul to be including the idea of progressively dying with Christ (or of our growing in Christ) here in Phil. 3:10. What I especially disagree with is the idea of some that Paul was saying here that he was progressively dying to sin, which would mean that he was confessing that he was still living in sin to one degree or another. (See under Phil. 3:12-15.) If we are dead to the old man and are living in the will of God in union with Christ Jesus (walking in the righteousness of God spoken of in Phil. 3:9) by the enablement of the Holy Spirit - which includes suffering with Christ as the need arises - then we are living in a state (an abiding state) consistent with "being conformed to His death." The apostle certainly was not saying that he had to live a long life full of suffering so that, when he had finally been conformed to Christ's death (Phil. 3:10), he could be taken to heaven (Phil. 3:11). Above, in the first paragraph under the words of Phil. 3:10 that we are discussing ("and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death"), I listed some key verses that show that Paul's typical viewpoint was that we are to be dead (not just gradually dying) to the old man and to sin. (I had a footnote: This viewpoint was not at all limited to the apostle Paul; this is the typical viewpoint presented in the New Testament .) I'll quote another relevant verse from the apostle, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh [speaking of the life he was still living in this world in a physical body] I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me" (Gal. 2:20). I'll quote from three commentators on the meaning of the words, "being conformed to His death." First I'll quote from Robert P. Lightner ("Bible Knowledge Commentary - New Testament" [Victor Books, 1983], page 660). "As Christ died for sin, so a believer has died to sin (Rom. 6:2, 6-7; Col. 3:3). He should exhibit that cutting off from his former way by daily being set apart from sin (Rom. 6:1-4, 11-14) and living a new life by means of Christ's resurrection power (Rom. 6:4)." I'll also quote from Henry Alford ("New Testament for English Readers," Vol. 3 [Baker, 1983 reprint], page 1271). "It does not appear to me that St. Paul is here speaking, as Meyer and others maintain, of his imminent risk of a death of martyrdom, but that his meaning is general, applying to his whole course of suffering and self-denial, as indeed throughout the sentence. This conformity with Christ's death was to take place by means of that perfect self-abjuration [giving up rights] which he here asserts of himself - see Rom. 8:29; 2 Cor. 2:14; 4:10ff.; 1 Cor. 15:31; and especially Gal. 2:20." Lastly, I'll quote from Ralph. P. Martin ("Philippians" [Inter-Varsity Press, 1987], pages 152, 153), "Conformity to Christ's death is best explained in the light of Romans 8:29 and Philippians 3:21. It involves the teaching and experience of Romans 6, where the death and resurrection of Christ are representative acts in which his people share. His death for sin, and to sin, carried the implication that in him we likewise die to the dominion of the old nature and rise to newness of life. When he died at Calvary our death was involved; but its outworking requires the exhortation of Romans 6:11 ["Even so consider (reckon) yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus"], which is another way of saying, 'Be conformed to his death.' Death, however, is the gateway to life. Paul dies to himself that he may live to God (Gal. 2:20). Self, represented by his past life as a Pharisee (see vv. 4-6), is dethroned - indeed, crucified (Gal. 5:24; 6:14) - that Christ might be enthroned as supreme Lord."]]; (11) in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. I'll quote verse 11 again, and we will discuss this important verse and the rest of Philippians chapter 3 in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis Univ. and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek, using the textbooks that were used in seminary.   Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:16:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-624/about-repentance.html About Repentance   By: Curt Klingerman       Acts 26:17-20 Delivering thee (Paul) from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance (KJV). Is the cessation of sinful behavior the definition of true repentance? Repentance includes the cessation of sinful behavior, but it is only a byproduct. Until this truth is brought to bear, some will continue to have a difficult time discontinuing unwanted behavior. By definition, repentance is a change of mind, to think differently, or to reconsider. In relation to sin, it means that one changes his view to coincide with God’s point of view. As a result, he turns away from sin by turning to God. Until a person changes his point of view, sin will remain. Just because a person does not do something, it does not mean sin is not in his heart. That means there has to be a change of heart. As long as one filters sin through human reasoning, one will live a life of compromise. Rationalization undermines the changes necessary for holy living. Human reasoning will make concessions at every turn, especially when it comes to pet sins. If one is going to repent in the truest sense of the word, one is going to have to possess a Biblical worldview; otherwise, one will determine for oneself of what is right and wrong. Jesus said in Matthew 16:24, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me (KJV). Denying the self means that we will not determine what is sin and what is not sin; God does. That means we will have to believe God when He says, “Be ye holy for I am holy.” We cannot change Scripture to fit our liking; rather, we need to conform to His Word. Like it or not, maintaining the sin of unbelief will keep a person in bondage to sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9, KJV). When we confess that we have sinned, we have agreed with God by not trying to hide it from Him. Affixing blame for our shortcomings reveals that we have not truly changed in the way we view sin. We can say we hate sin all day long, but unless we are honest in our approach to sin, we are not walking in the truth. Repentance requires complete surrender. Jesus said, “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32, KJV). When we surrender to Him and His Word, our minds will undergo a renewing process whereby our way of thinking begins to conform to God’s way of thinking. Galatians 5:16 puts it this way, “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (KJV). Repentance means walking in the Spirit, and conforming to the image of Jesus. If we are walking in the Spirit, we will not even be conscience of sin, because we are walking in freedom from sin. As it is written, “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Corinthians 3:17, KJV).     Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith Of Jesus In The Life Of The Believer (His Faith, Not Ours)," By Curt Klingermanhttp://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8   Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:19:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-623/philippians-chapter-3-part-2.html Philippians Chapter 3, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       Part 2 begins where Part 1 ended. (Philippians 3:11) in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. [[The apostle is speaking here of the yet-future, bodily resurrection into the glory of the fullness of eternal life that will take place when Christ returns. In Phil. 3:20, 21 he speaks of our resurrection into the glory of heaven, our true home ("For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself"), and in Phil. 4:5 he says, "The Lord is near." Other translations of these words at the beginning of verse 11 (and the literal translation of the Greek contained in the margin of the NASB, "if somehow," instead of "in order that") seem to better communicate what Paul said here; they make the outcome seem far-less-certain than the translation of the NASB. The NKJV has, "if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead," and the KJV is similar. The NIV has, "and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead." I don't believe that Paul was wondering whether he would make it to glory, or not (cf., e.g., Phil. 1:21, 23). He did, however, understand that it was necessary for him to press on in faith until the end of the race, and he knew that he was committed in his heart to finish the race by the sufficient grace of God in Christ. The apostle undoubtedly spoke as he did here, with his far-less-than-certain tone, in an attempt to wake up some Christians at Philippi that he knew were not adequately conformed to the death of Christ and pressing on in Him. I assume he could have named some Christians at Philippi, even though this was one of the more solid, healthy churches. (Even Christians that are quite sincere and committed can miss the center of God's will in one direction or another. There are many forces at work trying to keep us from, or get us out of, the center of God's will. That is one reason we must stay humble, open, and teachable before God, and before our brothers and sisters in Christ.) In verses 12-15 Paul goes on using himself as an example of what must be done; he puts most of the emphasis on the need for Christians to press on in Christ until the end of the race. If the great apostle to the Gentiles had not arrived and needed to press on, the Philippians did too, and so do we. By using himself as an example, he avoided giving offense as much as possible (but some will always take offense).]] (12) Not that I have already obtained it [[Paul had not yet finished his race and obtained resurrection glory. (The great apostle has now finished his race, but he must still wait for the return of Christ to obtain the full resurrection glory of the age to come.) Until he finished the race, he - and all Christians, very much including all the Christians at Philippi - needed to press on. As an example of how Christians can miss God's will, consider 1 Cor. 4:8, "You are already filled, you have already become rich, you have already become kings without us; and indeed, I wish that you had become kings so that we might reign with you." It is not hard to imagine that those Christians who overstated the extent to which they had arrived were not adequately pressing on in Christ. I do not believe that the Philippian Christians were as far off as some of the Corinthian Christians (as pictured in 1 Cor. 4:8), but we all have all-too-much potential to miss the center of God's will. First Corinthians chapter 15 shows that some at Corinth went so far as to deny the future resurrection of the body (cf. 1 Cor. 15:12). Somewhat related, if not directly related to this serious problem that surfaced at Corinth, was the viewpoint of two Christian leaders Paul mentioned by name in 2 Tim. 2:17, 18, "men who [had] gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection [had] already taken place," thereby, for one thing, denying the future resurrection of the body. It is not hard to imagine that those who believed that the resurrection was past might be failing to adequately press on in Christ. I don't believe that the doctrinal problems at Philippi were this serious. If they had been, Paul would undoubtedly have said more than what he said in this epistle to the Philippians to straighten them out. The problems at Philippi that Paul was dealing with (by using himself as a example of what should be done) probably did not go beyond a failure on the part of some to adequately press on in Christ, which included the need to disregard the things of the past/of the flesh and to be fully faithful to the new covenant, even when it involved suffering with Christ. All Christians are called (and enabled) to press on with a single-hearted commitment until the race has been completed and the prize has been received.]] or have already become perfect [[(This double bracket continues for about three pages.) This becoming perfect (or however we translate the Greek verb here), as the words are used here in Phil 3:12, is speaking of something that will come to pass when Jesus returns and the resurrection from the dead (and glorification) takes place. (I had a footnote: It is also true, of course, that for those Christians who die before Jesus returns, like the apostle Paul, their race is over and they go to heaven, but they still must wait for the time of the resurrection and full glorification.) Those believers who are still living on the earth when Christ returns will be transformed and caught up into eternal glory at that time; they will become perfect/complete in a final, absolute sense. Many think that with these words the apostle Paul was confessing that he still did not have the victory over sin, even though he was nearing the end of his life. (I had a footnote: The most common view is that Paul wrote this epistle to the Philippians while a prisoner at Rome about AD60-63. He had been converted some thirty years earlier, about AD32, and he apparently was martyred in Rome about AD65-67.) And it follows, of course, that IF the great apostle to the Gentiles did not yet have the victory over sin (that is, IF he confessed that he was still living in sin to some extent), we certainly could not expect (have faith) to have the victory either. I don't believe, however, that Paul confessed here (or anywhere else in his writings) that he had not been walking in righteousness and holiness with the victory over all sin. ((I had a footnote: I'm not saying that Paul would necessarily say that he had not sinned since he became a Christian [cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 4:3-5], but he certainly didn't confess that he continued to sin, quite the contrary. And he consistently taught that all Christians have been called to be dead to sin and walk in the imparted righteousness and holiness of God, by grace through faith. See the third and fourth paragraphs at the beginning of this study of Philippians chapter 3 (in Part 1). What I am especially concerned about is the widespread, but mistaken, idea that the apostle Paul taught that all Christians will necessarily continue to sin to some extent. That viewpoint makes it impossible for Christians to have faith for victory over sin.)) All he said here was that he had not already become perfect/complete (or, we could translate "have already reached my goal") in the sense that he had not arrived yet at his goal of resurrection perfection/completeness. He (and all the Christians at Philippi and everywhere else) must, therefore, keep running the race; they must keep pressing on until they arrive at that goal (or at least until their assigned race on the earth has been completed). The Greek lexicons confirm that the Greek verb used here ("teleioo") includes the meanings of completing and bringing to a goal. A translation like "have already been made complete," or "have already reached my goal" (note the use of the word "goal" in Phil. 3:14) would also be quite acceptable, along with the translation of the NASB. ((I had a footnote: The translation of the NASB ("or have already become perfect") is acceptable as long as we don't understand Paul to be saying that he was still living in sin to some extent. We'll discuss this point as we continue.)) In the article on this Greek verb in the "Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament" (edited by H. Balz and G. Schneider, Vol. 3 [Eerdmans, 1993], page 344) under Phil. 3:12, H. Hubner translates, "not as if I already had reached my goal." The NRSV has, "or have already reached the goal"; the New American Bible has, "or have already finished my course"; and the New Testament in the Language of Today by William F. Beck has, "or am already at the goal." It is quite clear that Paul had not been made complete/perfect or reached his goal in the full and final sense of being glorified and taken to heaven. He (and all Christians) must, therefore, keep running the race, keep pressing on as long as he lives, or until Jesus returns. With the translation of the NASB (which is essentially the same as the KJV, NKJV, and NIV), we can rightly understand what Paul meant: He had not yet become perfect in the full and final (absolute) sense of glorification. Whichever way we translate the Greek verb here, I don't believe that Paul was confessing that he still did not have the victory over all sin - that idea was not inferred at all. (It is true, however, that those who are still running the race still have the all-to-real potential to sin.) To help substantiate the important point that the translation "Not that I...have already become perfect" need not, and should not, be understood to mean that Paul was confessing that he was still sinning to some extent (if we translate Phil. 3:12 that way, with the NASB), see Heb. 2:10; 5:9; and 7:8, where the NASB, NIV, and NKJV all translate this same Greek verb "to perfect, make perfect" (or the equivalent). All these verses from the book of Hebrews refer to the Lord Jesus Christ, and no Christian will suggest that Jesus was sinning in the days before he was made perfect. He was made perfect/complete only after His death on the cross and His resurrection and glorification, in the sense He was then able to be our great high priest, having defeated sin, Satan, and death (including spiritual death) in His atoning death. It will be instructive to consider the Greek adjective "teleios," from which the verb teleioo was derived. For one thing, this adjective is used in a significant way in Phil. 3:15, which we'll discuss as we continue. This adjective is used in 1 Cor. 13:10 of our yet-future perfected/completed state in heaven. (The NASB translates "perfect.") The New Testament uses of this adjective that are the most important for our present purpose are those uses where we are told that all Christians are (enabled and) expected to be (relatively) perfect (see, for example, Matt. 5:48; 1 Cor. 2:6 with 3:1-3; Phil. 3:15; and Col. 4:12). (The NASB translates "perfect" in Matt. 5:48; Phil. 3:15; and Col. 4:12, but "mature" in 1 Cor. 2:6. We could translate perfect in 1 Cor. 2:6 too, with the King James Version.) Christians who are (relatively) perfect certainly walk with victory over sin; to be (relatively) perfect is rather parallel in meaning with saying (as the New Testament frequently says) that Christians are enabled and required to be righteous, holy, and blameless as they walk on a continuous basis in/by/after the Holy Spirit through faith. 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 demonstrate that the Corinthian Christians (at least some of them) were anything but spiritual (by the Spirit); they were fleshly, living (at least in some ways and to some extent) like mere men (like non-Christians). That is why they were not (relatively) perfect as they could, and should, have been (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 11:1; 2 Cor. 7:1). The apostle made it very clear that it was not acceptable for them to remain in that fleshly state. It was, and is, a dangerous place to be. The verb teleioo is also used of a (relative) perfection of Christians in Heb. 10:14 and 11:40. I'll quote Heb. 10:10, 14; and 11:39, 40: "By this will [the will of God spoken of in the preceding verses] WE HAVE BEEN SANCTIFIED through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (10:14) For by one offering HE HAS PERFECTED for all time THOSE WHO ARE SANCTIFIED. (11:39) And all these [the people of faith spoken of throughout Hebrews chapter 11], having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised [New covenant salvation had been promised.], (40) because God had provided something better for us, SO THAT APART FROM US THEY WOULD NOT BE MADE PERFECT." On these super-important verses from the book of Hebrews, see pages 157-159; 166, 167 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." Also, see the subsection titled "A Discussion on the Overall Teaching of the Book of Ephesians Regarding How Long It Should Take for Christians to Become Holy/Spiritual (by the Spirit)/(Relatively) Perfect" on pages 41-43 in the internet version of my paper that includes Ephesians chapters 1, 4 (Google to Karl Kemp Teaching). I'll quote a paragraph from what Ralph Earle said on the meaning of the verb here in Phil. 3:12 and on the meaning of the adjective in 3:15 ("Word Meanings in the New Testament" [Baker, 1986], page 343). "On the basis of the same Greek root in verses 12 and 15 it would seem that KJV and NASB were more consistent in using 'perfect' in both places. But since Paul denies perfection in verse 12 and seems to claim it in verse 15, it may well be that one is justified in using 'perfect' in verse 12 and 'mature' in verse 15 (RSV, NEB, NIV). A. T. Robertson [a noted Greek scholar] comments on verse 15: 'Here the term teleioi [a plural form of teleios] MEANS RELATIVE PERFECTION, NOT THE ABSOLUTE PERFECTION SO POINTEDLY DENIED IN VERSE 12' (WP ['Word Pictures in the New Testament], 4:455). The context suggests that IN VERSE 12 PAUL IS DENYING RESURRECTION PERFECTION. We may say that IN VERSE 15 HE CLAIMS WHAT JOHN WESLEY CALLED CHRISTIAN PERFECTION [my capitalization for emphasis]."]], but I press on [This verb, which is of key importance in this discourse, is repeated in verse 14. As I mentioned, Paul was undoubtedly using himself as a example of what all Christians must do, because he knew that some at Philippi were not adequately pressing on (and the problem, of course, was not limited to ancient Philippi).] so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. [Paul had not yet laid hold of the yet-future eternal life/eternal glory to which he (and all Christians) had been called (cf., e.g., 1 Tim. 6:12, 19). This includes the resurrection from the dead (for those who die before the Lord Jesus returns) and the ultimate perfection/completeness (or, reaching the goal) spoken of in the first part of Phil. 3:12. The apostle had been laid "hold of by Christ Jesus" in a rather dramatic (and merciful) way (cf. Acts 9:1-19; 22:3-16). The Lord also asked quite a bit of Paul in his ministry as the apostle to the Gentiles (cf., e.g., Acts 8:16; 2 Cor. 6:4-10; 11:23-12:10).] (13) Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet [The Greek verb ("katalambano") translated "having laid hold of it yet" here was used twice in verse 12. Paul is speaking of laying hold of resurrection glory (resurrection perfection).]; but one thing I do: forgetting [[I believe a translation like "disregarding [caring nothing about]" for this Greek verb ("epilanthanomai") would better communicate what Paul intended here. The translation "forgetting" fits better with the idea of forgetting the sinful things of the past. A translation like disregarding fits better with the idea of disregarding the things of the past to which we might cling (cf., e.g., Luke 9:62) and/or in which we might wrongly boast, which seems to fit this passage better. We do, however, have the privilege of disregarding/forgetting all the sinful and negative things from our past too - thanks be to God! Serious runners cannot afford to be distracted by looking back for any reason - with total devotion we must press on until the race is over (cf., e.g., Heb. 12:1, 2). ((I had a footnote discussing the translation "forgetting" here: See the BAGD Greek Lexicon. Gordon Fee ("Paul's Letter to the Philippians") translates "disregarding" on page 339, and on page 347, in a footnote, he says (in part), "Although the word can sometimes mean 'forget' in the sense of 'not remembering,' in figurative usage such as this one it more likely means 'to pay no attention to, be unconcerned about'...." The New American Bible has, "I give no thought to what lies behind." The New Testament in Modern English by J. B. Phillips has, "I leave [the past] behind." This leaving the past behind goes with having died to the old man and being conformed to Christ's death.))]] what lies behind ["What lies behind" includes the old man in its entirety, very much including the things of the flesh in which Paul used to boast (cf. Phil. 3:3-8) and in which some still were boasting (cf. Gal. 6:12-16). It is also true (whether Paul was thinking of these things here, or not) that we cannot rest on our past accomplishments/victories in Christ (even if our past life in Christ was all that it should have been) - we must continue to press on in Christ until the race is over.] and reaching forward to what lies ahead, (14) I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. [[Compare 1 Cor. 9:23-27. The "prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" refers to the prize of being caught up into the glory of eternal life when Christ returns. We could include the idea here of "the upward call" that initiates the rapture/catching up into the eternal glory of heaven (cf. 1 Thess. 4:16, 17; Rev. 11:12). Throughout Phil. 3:11-14 the apostle repeatedly speaks of the same ultimate goal for all Christians, using different terminology that expresses the same basic reality. If we miss that ultimate goal, we miss everything. In Phil. 3:11 he mentions the "resurrection from the dead"; in 3:12a he mentions obtaining it (eternal resurrection glory) and becoming perfect/complete (or, reaching the goal); in 3:12b he mentions laying hold of that for which also he was laid hold of by Christ Jesus (which speaks of the same basic reality, the eternal glory of heaven); in 3:13 he acknowledges that he has not laid hold of it yet so he must continue to reach forward to what lies ahead (the same prize of eternal glory); and finally, in 3:14 he says he presses on for this same prize. The apostle certainly belabored the point. He must have known that it was important to include this emphasis. There can be no denying that the yet-future glory is extremely important (this is what we are saved for: to enjoy the presence of God and worship and serve Him forever), and there can be no denying that Christians must make pressing on toward that goal top priority. These verses make all the more sense if, as I have suggested, Paul knew that some of his beloved brethren at Philippi were not adequately pressing on, for whatever reason(s).]] (15) Let us therefore, as many as are perfect [[(The KJV has "perfect"; the NIV and NKJV have "mature.") One reason that these words are so important is that they help steer us away from the wrong interpretation of the words "or have already become perfect" of Phil. 3:12 (if we translate the Greek verb that way in Phil. 3:12; see under 3:12). Here in Phil. 3:15 Paul speaks of those who are (relatively) perfect, very much including himself. This use of the word perfect is rather common in the New Testament. (See under Phil. 3:12. As I mentioned there, the verb used in Phil. 3:12 was derived from the adjective used here in 3:15.) All Christians can, and should, be perfect in a relative sense (or you could translate "mature," but I prefer the translation "perfect" here and in quite a few other verses), which is rather parallel in meaning with saying that they can, and should, and must, walk by/in/after the Holy Spirit through faith (based on the Word of God) and be righteous and holy. This is consistent Christianity, consistent with what we are called to in the new covenant. When the apostle wrote these words, he was probably thinking of some Christians at Philippi who thought of themselves as being perfect, but who were not really thinking and living that way, not by Paul's definition of perfect. What they must do if they really want to be (relatively) perfect (as they should be), the apostle has been telling them, and he will go on telling them with the next few words of this sentence. Based on what Paul has been emphasizing, their primary problem must have been that they were not adequately pressing on toward the ultimate goal. Christians who are clinging to the things of the flesh and/or Christians who overstate how much they have arrived will not be motivated to press on as they must.]], have this attitude [[I would translate "think this way," or the equivalent. The KJV has, "be thus minded"; the NKJV has, "have this mind"; and the NIV has, "should take such a view of things." The way they must think is the way Paul thought, which he has laid out for them in the preceding verses, using himself as an example of what all Christians must do. They must press on in Christ with a whole-hearted devotion, disregarding the things of the past/of the flesh. When I mention thinking, I am speaking, for the most part (as the Bible typically does), of the high-level thinking we do in our hearts (which includes our attitudes, motives, and priorities), not of thinking that is limited to our heads. ((We are called, and required [we have the privilege] to think by the Holy Spirit. See Rom. 8:5-8; Eph. 4:17, 23 [with the translation, "be renewed by the Spirit in your mind/thinking"]; and Rom. 12:1, 2. On these verses see under Rom. 8:5-8 in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" and see under Eph. 4:17-24 in my paper that includes Ephesians chapter 4 on my internet site.)) I have noticed over the years that there is a widespread (but wrong) viewpoint around the body of Christ (but not with the scholars) that the words "thinking" and "mind" are to be limited to the thinking we do in our heads. Very often, for example, when a pastor or a teacher mentions the mind he points to his head. This may be a common use of the words mind and thinking in popular English, but what we need to know is what Paul meant by the word(s).]]; and if in anything you have a different attitude ["you are thinking differently"], God will reveal that also to you [To those Christians at Philippi who were not adequately pressing on, which included clinging to, or boasting in, the things of the past/the things of the flesh, Paul said that God would reveal those things to them. Paul was assuming that the Christians at Philippi were submitted to his ministry and, more importantly, that they were committed to God and to His truth, including what Paul has been saying to them in these verses.]; (16) however, let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained. [We must continue to maintain the things that are right while making any and all necessary adjustments as God reveals the need to us (through His Word, directly by His Spirit, or through another Christian, especially His ministers) to bring our lives into divine order.] (17) Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us. (18) For many walk [[It doesn't seem that Paul includes any of the Philippian Christians (his beloved brethren at Philippi) among those he goes on to speak of in an extremely negative way. Many "Christians" would show up in Philippi from other places. (For one thing, Philippi was located on a major east-west Roman highway.) Furthermore, although (at least some of) the Judaizers that Paul spoke of in Phil. 3:2 could be included in the "many" of Phil. 3:18, the many are not at all limited to them. The Christians at Philippi (and all Christians everywhere and at all times) must be careful regarding who they fellowship with and especially who they submit to as ministers. "Ministers" that are not walking as they should walk (or "ministers" that are peddling false doctrine; false doctrine and sinful living often go together) can cause great damage to the Christian church.]], of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ [They claim to be Christians, but they are "enemies of the cross of Christ" in that they have not submitted to the sanctifying power of the cross of Christ. Their hearts are fixed on the things of the world, and their lives are characterized by sin. "They profess to know God, but by their deeds [works] they deny Him" (Titus 1:16a).], (19) whose end is destruction [Even though they think of themselves as Christians, their citizenship is not in heaven (contrast Phil. 3:20) - they will not end up in heaven (unless they repent).], whose god is their appetite ["Literally, belly." Compare Rom. 16:18. Putting the priority on the things of the body like what we eat goes with living for the world instead of living for God's kingdom (cf. Rom. 14:17). I'll quote part of what Craig S. Keener said under this verse ("Bible Background Commentary - New Testament" [Inter-Varsity Press, 1993], page 564). "Graeco-Roman philosophers and non-Palestinian Jewish writers (especially Philo) repeatedly railed against those ruled by their passions, often remarking that they were ruled by their 'belly' (KJV, NRSV) or their (sexual or culinary) 'appetite' (NASB), disdaining their neglect of eternal things. Gluttony especially became part of Roman culture, and its practice by the aristocracy was a frequent butt of satirists' humor. But being ruled by one's 'belly' meant more than gluttony; it was used to mean any fleshly indulgence...."], and whose glory is in their shame [Instead of pressing on to enter the glory of heaven (cf. Phil. 3:7-16), these worldly-minded "Christians" gloried in the shameful things they were doing.], who set their minds on earthly things [instead of setting their minds on (thinking on) heavenly things (cf. Rom. 8:5-8 [See pages 118-120 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" on these verses.]; Col. 3:2). The same Greek verb ("phroneo") that is translated "set their minds on" here in Phil. 3:19 (actually it is a participle formed from this verb) is translated "set their minds on [the things of the flesh]" in Rom. 8:5 and is translated "set your minds on [the things above]" in Col. 3:2. This verb could just as well be translated "think on" instead of "set the mind on." This same Greek verb was used twice in Phil. 3:15. Instead of thinking like Paul did (see under Phil. 3:15), these worldly-minded "Christians" thought on earthly things. As I noted under Phil. 3:15, thinking (and the mind) in the Bible typically includes the thinking we do in our hearts.]. (20) For our citizenship is in heaven [Even now we are citizens of heaven in a preliminary sense (cf., e.g., Luke 10:20; Eph. 2:6; Col. 3:1; Heb. 12:22, 23; Rev. 13:8; and 17:8).], from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior [cf. 1 Cor. 1:7], the Lord Jesus Christ; (21) who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory [Compare 1 Cor. 15:42-53. There is a whole lot more involved here than the transformation/glorification of the physical body. Our entire being and existence will be glorified (cf., e.g., Rom. 8:29; Eph. 1:19-21; Col. 3:4; 1 John 3:2; and Rev. 22:3-5).], by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself." Compare 1 Cor. 15:23-28. May God's will be fully accomplished through this paper and His people be edified! © Copyright by Karl Kemp     Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. On the topic of righteousness, holiness, and victory over sin, see my book "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." The book is available on my website and at Amazon.com. And see my 28 articles titled "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" on this Christian article site.                 Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:16:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-622/philippians-chapter-1-part-2-d-he-who-began-a-good-work-in-you-iii.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 2 D-He who began a good work in you III   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:6 Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. HE WHO BEGAN A GOOD WORK IN YOU III Last time we discussed the work that God is completing in the life of every believer. Is there ever a time when this work is begun and not completed? If God’s purposes cannot be thwarted how can this occur? It is true that God is sovereign and a large part of our living the Christian way is dependent upon him. He is the one that has equipped us with the Holy Spirit who enables us to stand against sin and wrong and do what is right and good. 2 Peter 1:3 tells us that God has given us everything that pertains to life and godliness. So he has armed us with what we need to be able to stay on the path so that he could bring our sanctification to its completion. How then is it possible for us to stop the completion of the work of God in our lives? Like Judas we can choose to do wrong and never return to the Savior in repentance. Jesus said that Judas was the only disciple who was lost. This happened because he chose to kill himself rather repent and rely upon the shed blood of the Savior. While he was sorry for what he did he never brought that sorrow to the Lord for forgiveness. It didn’t seem that he believed that he could be forgiven for his sin. There are those who may want to participate in whatever arena of sin they are in so much that they completely reject the way of the Lord and refuse to repent. Sinning and not repenting or turning away from God altogether can halt the completion of the sanctification process in our lives. This does not reflect badly upon the sovereignty of the Lord but rather on the individual that has chosen, of his own free will, to reject the salvation plan of God. We can also halt God’s work in our lives by living in a state of habitual, consistent sinning. Someone might ask, “What is living in a state of habitual consistent sinning?” An example of this would be someone that has spent months to years involved in a fornicating or adulterous relationship. Fornication or adultery is the most common sin of this type but there are others. It could be any work of the flesh or any sin that an individual consistently commits without truly breaking off the habit. They may stop for a month or so and then go back to it. There is no excuse for this kind of behavior and an individual in this state is not in a right relationship with God but is in a backslidden condition or may have chosen to leave the path of salvation altogether. Such a one needs to return and or repent. True repentance means that they are so sorry for their sin that they stop sinning in that manner altogether. It is true that the scripture indicates that God is married to us even when we are in a backslidden condition. However what is his instruction? Jeremiah 3:14 reports, “Return Oh backslidden children for I am married to you”. We have to understand that the backslider will not make it to Nisuin, to the wedding ceremony because at he is separated from God. Their garment will not be right and they will be cast out, see Matthew 22:11-14, 25:8-13, Psalm 1:5-6, Revelation 20:11-15, Revelation 21:6-9. An individual might say, “Everyone sins from time to time and repents, if I repent each time I fornicate is that not okay? The answer is no. That would be practicing sin and frustrating the grace of God. We are told in 1 John 3:9, “No one who is born of God will continue to sin because God’s seed remains in him: and he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God”. Those who truly have submitted to God become spiritually mature, they do not sin often and are not likely to continue in any transgression for a protracted length of time. Besides God said we should not allow sexual sin to be named among us even once. In Ephesian 5:3 it states, “But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints”. In addition to this Roman 6:1-2 states, “So then are we to say, “Let us keep on sinning, so that there can be or grace”? Heaven forbid! How can we who have died to sin still live in it? What do you do then if you have sinned? Peter denied Jesus but he trusted the Lord and was reinstated in his relationship with Jesus. Such was the reinstatement that it seemed like he never lost any ground at all. God having prayed for him that during his sifting process his faith would not fail and when he would turn back again he would strengthen his brethren. God saved Peter because Peter’s faith never failed. He trusted Jesus not only to rescue him but to save him completely because in John 14:1-4 Jesus said to him, “Let not your heart be troubled you believe in God believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions, if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you and if I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am there you may be also and whither I go you know and the way you know”. These words are similar to the words the husband says to the wife before he departs during the Shiddukin stage of the marriage. Peter and the disciples understood what he meant by what he said. His words indicated that he was the Messiah and he had married his people. Though the scripture does not specifically tell us we can adjudicate that Peter’s faith rested on these words because he did not leave the company of the disciples as they waited for the Lord to appear nor did he flee from him when he appeared. In John 21 before his reinstatement we see Peter going towards the Lord dragging the net to the shore rather than fleeing his presence in shame. He trusted. If you have sinned trust God and flee to him for protection and for forgiveness like Peter did. After you have repented and have been assured of God’s forgiveness you must not repeat the transgression but live a life that is pleasing to God. This is positive proof that you are obeying the stipulations of your marriage covenant, the bible, and are submitting to the sanctification process. Paul instructs in Romans 6:12-14, “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you should obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin as instruments of wickedness but rather offer yourselves to God; as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law but under grace. Let us therefore submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and his sanctification process knowing that he who began a good work in us will be faithful to complete it. II Peter 3:9 states, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance”.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit and The Holy Scriptures   Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:14:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-621/1-corinthians-chapter-10-part-1-of-2-parts.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 10, Part 1 (of 2 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       This two-part article was taken from the internet version of my paper titled, "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:10, which was published in March, 2000. In the original paper and in the internet version of this paper that in on my internet site (Google to Karl Kemp Teaching) I was able to use bold, italics, underlining, and footnotes. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless otherwise noted. Sometimes I use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) in this article to make them more obvious. 1 Corinthians chapter 10 contains important teaching regarding the need (and the ability) for Christians to live in righteousness and holiness. In this chapter the apostle Paul powerfully warned the Christians at Corinth that they must flee from sin. In the middle of this exhortation to the Corinthians, Paul wrote these significant words, "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it [without sinning]" (1 Cor. 10:13). This verse is one of the most important statements in the New Testament that demonstrate that Christians are enabled to always walk in righteousness and holiness with the victory over all sin, not that the victory is automatic, or is always easy. "For [[This word ties 1 Cor. 10:1 back to 1 Cor. 9:24-27, where the apostle Paul told how he was making every effort to be faithful to Christ to the end of his race/contest (to the end of his life, or the return of Christ), fully doing the will of God (including his assigned ministry) unto the end, lest he be disqualified, which in the worst case scenario would mean being denied a place in God's eternal kingdom. As 1 Cor. 9:24, 25 demonstrate, at least part of Paul's reason for speaking of himself as he did in 1 Cor. 9:25-27 was to illustrate what is required of all Christians. He knew that some of the Christians at Corinth needed to be exhorted to repent and make many changes in their Christian walks. He continues to teach and exhort them here in chapter 10 and in the following chapters, and he has already exhorted them quite a bit in the preceding chapters of this epistle.]] I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea [The apostle is speaking of the people of Israel on their way to the promised land, after being liberated from slavery in the exodus from Egypt (cf. Ex. 13:21, 22; 14:15-31; and Psalm 105:39).]; (2) and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea [[In the first four verses of this chapter, Paul emphasizes the similarity of the state of the people of the old covenant on their way to the promised land with the present state of the people of the new covenant on their way to heaven. The main point Paul makes in 1 Cor. 10:1-22 is that just as many of the Israelites fell in the wilderness and did not make it to the promised land because of their sins, even though they had a covenant with God, many of the Corinthian Christians, even though they have a covenant with God, are in very real danger of falling away and being removed by judgment because of similar sins. The new covenant does not allow Christians to continue in rebellion against God and His covenant any more than the old covenant allowed the Israelites to continue in rebellion against God and His covenant. We have no right to boast of our covenant with God while violating the terms of the covenant through rebellion. It is not enough to have a good beginning (as Israel did at the time of the exodus); we must stay faithful to the end and have a good ending, arriving at the promised destiny (heaven). The writer of Hebrews makes the same point in Heb. 3:5-4:16. When Paul says "all were BAPTIZED INTO MOSES in the cloud and in the sea," he is building on the fact that his readers have been BAPTIZED INTO CHRIST, referring to water baptism (cf. Rom. 6:3, 4; Gal. 3:27). The people coming out of Egypt were (in a sense) baptized into the old covenant under the leadership of Moses. Paul is showing that water baptism and a good beginning are not sufficient: They must live in faithfulness to their covenant to the end (to the return of Christ, or the end of their lives). The ancient Israelites had their counterpart to new covenant water baptism, but most of them failed to enter the promised land.]]; (3) and all ate the same spiritual food [[Paul is alluding to the manna from heaven (cf. Ex. 16:4-36), which, in some ways, corresponds with our daily provision from heaven, referring especially to that which we receive from/through the Holy Spirit. Ancient Israel knew something of the presence of God (see under verse 4) and of the work of the Spirit, providing everything they needed (included with food and drink were things like guidance, protection, and clothing), even though the new covenant work of the Spirit (including the all-important new birth and the new covenant dimension of the sanctifying work of the Spirit) was not available under the old covenant. God requires a higher level of righteousness and holiness from new-covenant believers. When Paul says "all [the ancient Israelites] ate the same spiritual food" and "all drank the same spiritual drink" (1 Cor. 10:4), he is making the point that even though God was in their midst, making available to all of them everything they needed under the old covenant, most of them were unfaithful. And as 1 Cor. 10:5 says, "Nevertheless [that is, even though they had a covenant with God, and He was in their midst providing everything they needed], with most of them God was not well pleased [because of their sins, some of which are spelled out in 1 Cor. 10:6 10]; for they were laid low in the wilderness [and did not make it into the promised land]." Then, starting in 1 Cor. 10:11, the apostle warns his readers that they are in very real danger of being rejected by God for committing similar sins if they don't quickly repent. See my paper titled, "Once Saved, Always Saved?"]] (4) and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. [[There is an apparent allusion here to the literal water (that flowed from a rock) which God miraculously provided for ancient Israel on more than one occasion (cf. Ex. 17:1-7; Num. 20:2-13; and Psalm 78:15, 16). Paul wants his readers to understand that God's presence was clearly with the ancient Israelites and He was providing everything they needed. Specifically, Paul says that Christ (God the Son) was with them. He was with them in His preincarnate state; in the Old Testament He was often called the Angel (or Messenger) of the LORD (Yahweh in the Hebrew), not that they had enough information (revelation) back in the old-covenant days to fully understand that Person. On the Angel of Yahweh, see, for example, Gen. 18:1-19:1; 22:9-19; 31:11-13; Ex. 3:1-12; 14:19 (with 13:21, 22); Josh. 5:13-6:2; Jud. 2:1-5; and 6:11-24. It is significant that some of these references show that the One called the Angel of Yahweh is also called Yahweh, in that He is deity, being God the Son. This is the same Person as the Logos/Word of John 1:1-5, 14. For more on the Angel of the Yahweh, see pages 165-177 (including the Notes) of my book, "The Mid Week Rapture" and my paper titled "The Name Yahweh and God the Father and God the Son." On God as a/the Rock, see Deut. 32:4, 15, 18, 30, 31; 1 Sam. 2:2; 2 Sam. 22:2, 3, 32; Psalms 18:2, 31; 19:14; 61:2; and 62:2. Paul's unusual choice of words about Christ's being a spiritual rock that followed them apparently alluded to a popular Jewish legend (that came in several forms) which spoke of a literal rock that followed Israel throughout the wilderness wanderings and provided water for them to drink. I'll quote part of what John MacArthur said under these verses ("1 Corinthians" [Moody Press, 1984], pages 220, 221). "The Jews had a popular legend, still known and believed by many in Paul's day, that the actual rock that Moses struck followed Israel throughout her wilderness travels, providing water wherever they went. I believe the apostle may have been alluding to this legend, saying, 'Yes, a rock did follow Israel in the wilderness. But it was not a physical rock that provided merely physical water. It was a spiritual rock, the Messiah (the Hebrew term for Christ)...who was with our fathers even then.' ... That supernatural rock protected and sustained His people and would not allow them to perish. Old Testament believers did not have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but even during the Exodus they had the sustaining presence of the preexistent Christ, caring for and fulfilling the needs of His people."]] (5) Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well pleased; for they were laid low [or, struck down, killed; the NIV has, "their bodies were scattered over the desert."] in the wilderness. [Compare Num. 14:1-38; 26:64, 65; and Jude 1:5. See above under 1 Cor. 10:2, 3.] (6) Now these things happened as examples for us [[See 1 Cor. 10:11. The rebellious sins of ancient Israel with their consequent intense judgments serve as "examples" and intense warnings for Christians that they must make it a top priority to stay away from rebellion/sin against God. Paul was aware that some of the Corinthian Christians were guilty of similar sins when he wrote these verses; he was doing every thing he could do to wake up the Christians at Corinth who needed to repent.]], that we should not crave evil things, as they also craved. [Compare Num. 11:4-34; Psalm 106:13-15.] (7) And do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written, 'THE PEOPLE SAT DOWN TO EAT AND DRINK, AND STOOD UP TO PLAY.' [See Ex. 32:1-35.] (8) Nor let us act immorally, as some of them did, and twenty three thousand fell in one day. [There is widespread agreement that Paul was referring to Num. 25:1-18. Numbers 25:9 mentions that 24,000 died by the plague. It is not clear where Paul got the number 23,000.] (9) Nor let us try [or, test] the Lord, as some of then did, and were destroyed by the serpents. [See Num. 21:4-9.] (10) Nor grumble, as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. [Grumbling was a common occurrence with ancient Israel, as were God's judgments against the grumblers, but Paul apparently was referring to the incident recorded in Num. 16:1-50.] (11) Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. [See 1 Cor. 10:6.] (12) Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall. [[The apostle does not say here that Christians cannot or should not have a solid assurance of salvation. We can and we should have the assurance that we have been born again and have eternal life (in a preliminary sense), and that if we were to die, or if Christ were to return, we would immediately enter the heavenly dimension to be with the Lord. (See, for example, John 5:24; 2 Cor. 5:8, 9; Phil. 1:21, 23; 3:20, 21; 1 Thess. 4:14; 1 John 2:28-3:3; and 5:13.) My last three sentences assume that we know the truth of the gospel, that we have submitted to this truth from our hearts, and that we are making it a top priority to live in line with the Word of God in righteousness and holiness by grace through faith. We must submit to the new covenant on the basis of the terms spelled out in the new covenant. Furthermore, Paul certainly does not say here that Christians are to doubt whether God calls and enables them to walk in righteousness and holiness on a continuous basis. That would contradict what the apostle consistently teaches in his epistles, including what he says in this epistle, very much including what he says in the next verse. If we should slip into sin, we must be quick to repent and ask for forgiveness; and we must make sure that we are making God and His righteousness top priority. God knows if we are sincere in repentance and if we are making Him, His Word, and His righteousness top priority (which is required of all Christians). Here in 1 Cor. 10:12 (in context with all of 10:1-22), the apostle was dealing with the fact that some of the Christians at Corinth, who were misinformed, fleshly, and proud, and who were convinced that they were quite secure in Christ and would certainly continue to stand, were, in fact, in serious danger of a great fall. (In the worst case scenario, their fall would mean the loss of their salvation.) As the following verses show, a primary sin that Paul had in mind when he wrote this verse was the serious sin of idolatry, but we should not limit Paul's concern to that particular sin. Verses 6-11 are not limited to the sin of idolatry, and verse 13 speaks of God's provision for victory over all sin. Those being tempted with idolatry (some at Corinth were apparently already involved in that sin) must seriously consider the fate of the idolaters spoken of in 1 Cor. 10:7. The idolatry that the Christians at Corinth were being tempted with did not involve a direct, full scale rebellion against God (at least not for most of those involved). Their problem was mostly in the category of being fleshly, misinformed, stupidity; however, if they did not follow Paul's command to flee idolatry (1 Cor. 10:14), their sin would become all the more serious. It is not clear how much Paul had dealt with this topic in the past; the more he had dealt with it, the more rebellious and serious would be their present sin. Christians who think they are automatically secure in God and do not fear sinning against Him and are not making it a top priority to live in righteousness and holiness and and think that they can just continue to live in sin had better "take heed that [they do] not fall." There is no room under the new covenant for flagrant sin/rebellion against God/Christ - there should not be any sin. Those being bombarded with temptation (and all Christians are at times) must make it top priority to take God's "way of escape" (1 Cor. 10:13); those being tempted with idolatry, and much more so for any who have already become involved with this sin, must "flee from idolatry" (1 Cor. 10:14). One major problem in the body of Christ is that many Christians are not making it a top priority to find and to take God's "way of escape" from all sin. Most Christians do not think it is possible to avoid sinning, and, significantly, they think the New Testament confirms this viewpoint. I'll quote part of what Charles Hodge (a Calvinist) said under this verse ("1 & 2 Corinthians" [Banner of Truth, 1983 reprint of the 1857 edition], page 181). "False security of salvation commonly rests on the ground of our belonging to a privileged body (the church), or to a privileged class (the elect). ... Neither the members of the church nor the elect can be saved unless they persevere in holiness; and they cannot persevere in holiness without continual watchfulness and effort." I'll also quote part of what Simon J. Kistemaker (another Calvinist) said under this verse ("1 Corinthians" [Baker, 1993], pages 334, 335). "He directs his application to all the readers but especially to those people who proudly think they have the freedom in Christ to do anything or go anywhere. He implicitly refers to the Corinthians who visit pagan temples (8:10)."]] (13) [[This is one of the more important of the large number of verses in the New Testament that clearly teach that Christians are called, and enabled, to walk in victory over all sin - there always is a way to avoid sin. God hates sin! And He paid an infinite price to save us from spiritual death and bondage to sin! But this verse, in agreement with the consistent teaching of the New Testament, also makes it clear that victory over sin is far from being automatic. Christians must understand and do (by faith) the things required of them by their covenant with God (the new covenant) in order to cooperate with, and to walk in, the sanctifying grace of God in Christ (which always is sufficient). This verse (in context with 1 Cor. 10:1-22) showed the Corinthian Christians that there was no excuse for any of them to be overcome by any temptation. (This is good news!) God had provided "the way of escape" for them. The truth of God that Paul communicated to the Corinthians in 1 Cor. 10:1-22 should have been more than sufficient to convince any Christians who were open to God (and if we are not open to God, we should not consider ourselves to be Christians/His people) that they must take God's "way of escape" before they are subdued by temptation/sin and taken captive and (in the worst-case scenario) forfeit their salvation. God did not have his apostle write these things to condemn His people, but that His people might be warned and might repent and fully submit to His sanctifying power provided in Christ Jesus. God's will for us is transformation, not condemnation!]] No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man [The Christians at Corinth did not have to face temptations of a sort unknown to God's people throughout the ages, including the temptations to idolatry; the temptations they faced were common to man.]; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able [[These significant words make it clear that God will never allow Christians to face temptations that they cannot successfully resist (one way, or another) by the sufficient grace of God in Christ. In other words, Christians can, and should, always live in righteousness and holiness with the victory over all sin. The apostle is assuming that Christians know the truth of the gospel, that they truly have been born-again and are indwelled by the mighty, holy Spirit of God, and that they, in obedience to the truth, are walking by/in/after the Holy Spirit on a continuous basis by faith. Paul, who had founded the church at Corinth, knew that his readers (at least most of them) had been correctly taught the all-important foundational truths of Christianity, and he knew that they (at least most of them) had received the Holy Spirit and knew something about walking in/by/after the Spirit through faith. He also knew that there was much fleshiness among the Christians at Corinth (e.g., 1 Cor. 3:1-4). There was no excuse for them to remain fleshly. To the extent that Christians do not know the truth, or are not walking in the truth by faith (but are walking in the flesh instead of the Spirit), they will frequently face temptations that they cannot handle. It is totally mandatory that Christians know and understand (and that they be totally committed in their hearts to) the basic truths of Christianity. For Christians to become grounded in, and committed to, the basic truths of Christianity will solve most of the problems we have in the Christian church of our day, and there is no viable alternative. We must know the truth (the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches) and walk in the truth through faith (faith in God and in His Word), being enabled by His grace/Spirit, and for His glory. Fleshy Christians (e.g., 1 Cor. 3:1-4) - they often think that they are quite spiritual - frequently cooperate with the devil by going places and doing things that are sure to bring temptations they cannot handle. Paul was not saying that God will always enable Christians to overcome temptations that they should not have faced in the first place, and that they would not have faced if they were living for God in accordance with His Word and being led by the Holy Spirit. Very often the way to avoid sin is to avoid places of temptation - to flee places of temptation. On those occasions when we must, in the will of God, be in places of temptation (and sometimes we must be in these places for lengthy periods of time), His grace will be sufficient to keep us from being overpowered by the temptation.]], but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also [The NIV has, "he will also provide a way out."], that you may be able to endure it. [[This significant verse shows that God will always provide a way for His people to escape falling into sin as we appropriate His sufficient grace. (That's far better than falling into sin and then looking for the way of escape.) There never is, therefore, a legitimate excuse for sin. Again, this is good news! However, in the case of the church at Corinth, some had already fallen into serious sin. See 1 Cor. 5:1-6:20; 11:17-34; and 15:12. Also, some of the Christians at Corinth had apparently already become involved in the sin of idolatry (even though they did not consider what they were doing to be idolatry). Those in sin must repent. Those being tempted must do what is necessary to avoid falling into idolatry (or any other sin). In the following verses (10:14-22) the apostle demonstrates that for a Christian to participate in feasts/meals where sacrifices were being offered to pagan gods involved idolatry. In the next verse (10:14), the apostle exhorts them to "flee from idolatry." (They must flee from all sin. In 1 Cor. 6:18, Paul exhorted them to "flee immorality." Also see 1 Tim. 6:11; 2 Tim. 2:22.) I'll quote what Leon Morris said regarding the "way of escape [way out]" ("1 Corinthians" [Inter-Varsity Press, 1985], page 142). "Believers can always count on [God's] help. He will always make a way out. This [Greek] word ("ekbasis") may denote a mountain defile [a narrow passage through which troops must march in single file]. The imagery is that of an army trapped in rugged country, which manages to escape from an impossible situation through a mountain pass." Whether Paul was thinking in such terms, or not, this illustration seems helpful to me. Instead of being surrounded, overpowered, and defeated by temptation and sin, we can be confident that God always provides a way of escape/a way out for us. Quite a few commentators make the point that the Greek favors the idea that God has a corresponding "way of escape" for each temptation (not that He is limited to one specific "way of escape" for each temptation). I'll quote part of what Craig Blomberg said regarding 1 Cor. 10:1-13 ("1 Corinthians" [Zondervan, 1995]). "Verse 12 summarizes the significance of these warnings [of 10:1-11] for the Corinthians.... After all, the pagan temple feasts in Corinth involved similar idolatry, sexual sin, and trying God's patience. ... Nevertheless, verses 1-12 are all balanced by the marvelous promise of verse 13. The circumstances that tempt us to sin are never qualitatively different from those which God's people of every era have experienced, and we never have to give in to them. There is always an escape-hatch, which is defined as a way to persevere without sinning in whatever difficult situation we find ourselves" (page 193). "Tolerance to temptation varies widely from one person to the next. Clearly we can also choose to reject the 'way out' and yield to temptation, but it is precisely that freedom which makes us accountable before God when we do sin. And it is important to stress that the way out is not necessarily the removal of the difficult circumstances but the ability to 'stand up under' them" (page 196). "We never have to give in to temptation; no one makes us sin. Certain factors may generate greater temptations for some individuals than for others, as with the exponential increase in dysfunctional families in our day, but ultimately we are accountable for our own free choices. And for believers, one of those choices remains to accept God's escape-hatch from sin. Our culture would rewrite the end of verse 13 so that it said, 'But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you don't have to stand up under it any longer,' but that of course is the opposite of what God actually inspired Paul to write" (page 199). In that Paul followed the words "way of escape" with words about enduring, it is clear that sometimes (frequently) God's way of escape involves resisting temptation over long periods (cf. James 1:12) and pressing on in faith. I'll quote part of what W. Harold Mare said regarding this verse ("Expositor's Bible Commentary," Vol. 10 [Zondervan, 1976], page 250). I had quite a few classes with Dr. Mare, who was a professor at Covenant Seminary when I was there). "Verse 13 is one of the most helpful verses in the NT and presents the great antidote to falling into sin through temptation. ... The temptations that come to the Christian are those all human beings face - they are unavoidable. But, says Paul, God is right there with us to keep us from being overwhelmed by the temptation. ... He will provide a way out, not to avoid the temptation, but to meet it successfully and to stand firm under it." I'll quote what David K. Lowery said under 1 Cor. 10:13 ("Bible Knowledge Commentary," New Testament edition [Victor Books, 1983], page 527). "After kicking out the props of false security [in verse 12], Paul pointed toward the One on whom the Corinthians could rely. The temptations that seized [the NIV has, "No temptation has seized you"] the Corinthians were like those people had always faced. They could be met and endured by depending on God, who is faithful. Part of the Corinthians problem, of course, was that some in the face of temptation were not looking for a way out by endurance, but for a way in for indulgence." I'll quote part of what A. T. Robertson (a Southern Baptist Greek scholar) said under this verse ("Word Pictures in the New Testament," Vol. 4 [Broadman Press, 1931], page 154). " 'The way out' is always there right along with (Greek "sun") the temptation. ... It is cowardly to yield to temptation and distrustful of God." I'll quote part of what Raymond D. Brown said under this verse ("Broadman Bible Commentary," Vol. 10 [Broadman Press, 1970], page 347). "God Himself does not lead men into temptation (cf. James 1:13); while he permits it, he provides the spiritual maturity to overcome it. The believer is not preserved from temptation, but he is preserved in it and through it. It is God who gives him the power to endure. Our faith depends on his faithfulness. The word translated 'way of escape' is ekbasis. ... It suggests an army that is surrounded and needs a route to safety. God provides a way to victory, rather than defeat." I'll also quote part of what Donald S. Metz said under this verse ("Beacon Bible Commentary," Vol. 8 [Beacon Hill Press, 1968], page 408). "...if they fail they have no excuse. Paul also declares that God acts consistently and always provides strength for those who trust and follow Him. As Alford writes: 'He has entered into a covenant with you by calling you: if He suffered [allowed] temptation beyond your power to overcome...He would be violating that covenant.' God is fully aware of the circumstances surrounding every temptation and will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."]] We'll start with verse 14 and finish this verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 10 in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors.   Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:06:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-620/1-corinthians-chapter-10-part-2.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 10, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       The verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 10 is completed here in Part 2. (14) Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. [["Therefore" refers to the warnings of the preceding verses coupled with the teaching of the preceding verse, which demonstrates that there always is a way of escape from all temptation/sin. As the following verses (10:15-22) and 8:10 show, the particular form of idolatry that Paul was concerned with was the attendance at sacrificial feasts/meals, where sacrifices were being offered to the gods (demons). It seems that the Christians involved in this idolatry did not think of it as idolatry. They were proud of their "knowledge" (cf. 8:1-13), but their knowledge was faulty. (A little knowledge can be dangerous - we need the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches.) They were right that the idol gods being worshipped did not really exist (cf. 10:19), but they did not know (at least they did not adequately understand) that demons were behind these religions - they were being worshipped in the sacrifices (see 10:19-22). I'll quote part of what Leon Morris said in the article on 1 Corinthians under the subheading "Sacrifices to Idols" ("International Standard Bible Encyclopedia," Vol. 1 [Eerdmans, 1979], page 778). "To us it seems axiomatic that the believer can have nothing to do with idol worship. But in the 1st century practically all social life involved some contact with idolatry. Celebrations calling for men to eat a communal meal, whether public or private, would be the very kind of occasion when the offering of a sacrifice seemed most appropriate. Christians who claimed to be mature reasoned that an idol means nothing. 'What harm can it possibly do,' they asked, 'to eat one's meat in front of a block of wood or stone? What if the heathen do think of it as a god? We know better, and know that bringing meat before a piece of wood cannot defile it.' " I'll also quote a few sentences from what F. L. Godet said under verse 13 ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Zondervan, 1971 reprint of the 1886 edition], page 71). "Hoffman [another Bible commentator] rightly observes that nothing rendered the breach of the converted heathen with his past and with his surroundings so conspicuous as his refusal to take part in the sacrificial feasts. [Few people want to be conspicuous when it can lead to ostracism, persecution, loss of employment, etc.] And so, many Corinthians sought to persuade themselves that they might harmonize this participation with their Christian profession. Had they not declared the nothingness of idols? Such a feast, therefore, had no longer for them the character of a sacrifice; it was a purely social act...." Most people (including Christians) are rather good at looking at things from their own vantage point and arguing that what they are doing is not sinful. But God is the one who determines what is sinful, and what is not. The apostle informed the Corinthians of God's viewpoint. For those that were submitted to the ministry of the apostle Paul, and most of the Christians at Corinth apparently were (cf., e.g., 2 Cor. 6:5-16), it would have become obvious what they must do, in accordance with his instructions. The epistles to the Corinthians show that there were some at Corinth who did not submit to the apostle; some wrongly thought that they knew more than Paul did - that was dangerous thinking.]] (15) 1 speak as to wise men; you judge what I say. (16) Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing [or, participation (Greek "koinonia")] in the blood of Christ? [[I'll quote part of what Leon Morris said here ("1 Corinthians," page 143). " 'The cup of blessing' (NIV thanksgiving) is the name the Jews gave the cup at the end of a meal, over which a thanksgiving was said.... ... 'Bless'...means that a prayer of thanksgiving was said over [the cup] (hence the translation of the NIV). Among the Jews the usual form of thanksgiving began, 'Blessed art Thou, O Lord,' after which came the matter for thanksgiving. Paul is referring then to the prayer of thanksgiving said over the cup at Holy Communion."]] Is not the bread which we break a sharing [or, participation (koinonia)] in the body of Christ? [[(This double bracket continues for more than a page.) The apostle is speaking of the Lord's Supper. For one thing, he wants to demonstrate that there is all too much similarity between this covenant meal, which commemorates the all important sacrificial death of the Lamb of God, and the sacrificial feasts of the pagans. New covenant believers certainly cannot be faithful to God and be involved in demon worship. One of the most grievous sins on the part of some of the ancient Israelites was the attempt to worship the gods of the nations along with the God of Israel. In the Lord's Supper (see Matt. 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:14-20; and 1 Cor. 11:17-34), we focus on, and we reaffirm, that which is at the heart of, and which is the basis for, our covenant with God, the sacrificial death of the Lamb of God. As the old covenant was ratified with blood (Ex. 24:8), so was the new covenant. Christ, the Lamb of God, was slain at Passover: "for Christ our Passover has been sacrificed" (1 Cor. 5:7). The Lord's Supper was initiated at Passover; the Lord's Supper of the new covenant replaces Passover of the old covenant. His sacrifice also replaces all the other old covenant sacrifices, including the very important sacrifices of the Day of Atonement. His sacrifice (unlike the old covenant sacrifices, which foreshadowed His One Sacrifice) was able to fully solve the sin problem forever (cf., e.g., Heb. 9:11-10:31). The Christians of the early church, unlike the Jews and the pagans, did not have sacrificial offerings, but they had the Lord's Supper, and they lived their entire lives in the light of, and on the basis of, the One Sacrifice of the Lamb of God. "In the same way He took the cup also, after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes" (1 Cor. 11:25; also see Matt. 26:28; Mark 14:24; and Luke 22:19, 20). As we remember the Lord and "proclaim [His] death until He comes," we consider, with praise and thanksgiving, our glorious covenant with God. For one thing, we consider the provisions and benefits of the covenant (e.g., forgiveness; death and burial for the old man; the new birth and indwelling Holy Spirit; healing (very much including holiness) for spirit, soul, and body; and having a place in God's eternal kingdom, reigning with the Lord Jesus in a never ending reign, starting at the time "He comes [returns]"). These things are all part of what it means for us to share/participate in the blood and body of Christ; in union with Him, we share/participate in His death (He died in our place, bearing our sins) and in His resurrection life. First Corinthians 1:9 says, "God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship [Greek koinonia] with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." The Greek noun translated "fellowship" in 1:9 is used twice in 10:16, translated "sharing" (or, participation). (This Greek noun is also used in 2 Cor. 13:14 of "the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.") It is also instructive to note that the Greek noun koinonos, from which koinonia was derived, is used in 10:18, 20, translated "sharers." The Lord's Supper is an appropriate time for us to renew our covenant with God. We consider what is required of us in this covenant, and we examine ourselves (cf. 1 Cor. 11:28) to make sure we are being faithful to the covenant. If required, we ask for forgiveness; and we commit ourselves to do everything we can do to repent and bring our lives into divine order (by God's grace). We share in the blood of Christ and His body when we come to the "altar" spoken of in Heb. 13:10. In Heb. 13:8-16 we see that for us to come to this altar is for us to walk in the all-sufficient grace of the new covenant, staying faithful to God, as required by the covenant. This is something we are required to do on a continuous basis. When we celebrate the Lord's Supper in faith, in truth, and in the Spirit, it is anything but a dead ritual. Christ is very much present with His people, even as the demons are present at the pagan sacrificial feasts.]] (17) Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body [cf. Rom. 12:5; 1 Cor. 12:12-27; Eph. 4:4, 16; and Col. 3:15]; for we all partake of one bread. [[The "one bread" refers to the literal bread used in the Lord's Supper, but since the bread represents the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, we can also say that the "one bread" refers to Him too. Under verse 16, we briefly discussed the fact that we share/partake in the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, in union with Him. All those who truly partake of the "one bread," are, by definition, "one body." (This is true for the church worldwide, which is made up of all true Christians, not just for the local church.) The church is one body, and it must be understood that the members of this body cannot be united with other religious bodies or activities, where other gods are being worshipped. All true Christians are united with the Lord Jesus Christ (in/by the Holy Spirit), and through Him we are united with one another in the one body of Christ. We worship the God of the Bible, Him and Him alone. (We do, of course, worship the Lord Jesus Christ [God the Son] and the Holy Spirit along with God the Father.) In the Lord's Supper we are communing with God (not that we just do this at the Lord's Supper). He is our God; we trust Him; we obey Him; and we look to Him for all things (as He instructed us to). One last issue: Do we literally partake of the body and blood of Jesus Christ when we partake of the bread and of the fruit of the vine at the Lord's Supper? Many Christians think so, but to me this idea confuses the issue; it puts the focus the wrong place and detracts from God's intended purpose in the Lord's Supper. (I am not suggesting that all who disagree with me on this issue miss the proper focus of Christianity. Many such Christians know and believe the basic truths of Christianity, they have been born again by the Spirit of God, and they are walking in the truth, righteousness, and holiness of God by the grace/Spirit of God.) I agree with the many who point out that the fact that Jesus was present with the apostles when He initiated the Lord's Supper should suffice to show that He did not intend for us to take His words literally about the bread being His body and the fruit of the vine being His blood. The Lord Jesus frequently used figurative language. Furthermore, it seems clear to me that the words of John 6:52-58 (which speak of eating Christ's flesh and drinking His blood), when read in context with all of John chapter 6 (and the rest of the New Testament), are to be understood in a non-literal, spiritual/Spiritual sense. If there is any reference at all to the yet-to-be-initiated Lord's Supper in John chapter 6 (and I doubt that there is), it is very limited. It is impossible to think, for example, that the bread of the Lord's Supper "gives life to the world" (John 6:33). John chapter 6 (and the rest of the New Testament) makes it clear that the work of the Spirit (who comes to us through the Lord Jesus Christ and His atoning death, as we submit to God and His Word through faith) is what gives life to the world (cf., e.g., John 6:35-40, 63).]] (18) Look at the nation Israel; are not those who eat the sacrifices sharers [plural of koinonos] in the altar? [In Paul's day Israel was still sacrificing in the temple at Jerusalem. It was understood that those who were sharers in that altar could not be sharers in other altars. The apostle is reinforcing his point that Christians, who have their altar, cannot be sharers in other altars, the altars of demons.] (19) What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? [cf. 1 Cor. 8:4] (20) No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons, and not to God [cf. Deut. 32:17; Psalm 106:37; and Rev. 9:20]; and I do not want you to become [or, be] sharers [plural of koinonos] in demons. [I prefer the translation "be" instead of "become," with the NIV and other translations. For one thing, this translation fits better with the fact that some of the Corinthians were apparently already involved with this idolatry (1 Cor. 8:9-13). Because of their inadequate (fleshly) understanding, however, they did not realize that they were involved in idolatry. Now that the apostle has informed them that their attendance at the sacrificial feasts in the pagan temples (or at other locations) involves communion with demons, they will have to repent or face very serious trouble with God. I assume that some did repent and that others who considered joining them gave up their misguided plans, but I would not be surprised to learn that some rejected what Paul said here (at their peril).] (21) You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. [cf. 2 Cor. 6:16] (22) Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? [Compare Deut. 32:21. Many verses of the Bible point out that God is a jealous God - He will not tolerate His people's being unfaithful to Him (see under James 4:4 in my verse-by-verse study of James 3:1-4:10).] We are not stronger than He, are we? [Cf. Eccl. 6:10; Isa. 45:9.] (23) All things are lawful, but not all are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. [[See 1 Cor. 6:12-20; 8:1-13. Some of the Corinthians were pushing the idea that all things are lawful to ridiculous extremes. It is true, however, that when it comes to indifferent (ceremonial) things, like whether we eat meat, or certain kinds of meat, or do not eat, all things are lawful. For one thing, we are not under the ceremonial laws of the old covenant. The apostle, in the following verses, will go on to speak of meat sacrificed to idols. He will show that it is OK to eat this meat, assuming that you know in your heart/conscience that it is OK (not that it is ever OK to be involved in the sacrificial feasts devoted to pagan gods; see 10:14-22), but that occasions may arise where you would waive your right to eat this meat for the sake of a weaker brother, who was not yet convinced in his heart that such eating would be OK before God. See Rom. 14:1-23. (This chapter of Romans is discussed in some detail in my "A Paper On Faith.") We are to "edify" and seek the good of (cf. 10:24) the weaker brethren, not contribute to their stumbling.] (24) Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor. [Compare Rom. 15:2; 1 Cor. 10:33; and 13:5.] (25) Eat anything that is sold in the meat market [Some of this meat had been sacrificed to idols.], without asking questions for conscience' sake [Compare 1 Cor. 8:7. As Paul will go on to show, he is speaking of the conscience of the weaker brethren, who are not yet convinced in their hearts that it would be OK to eat meat sacrificed to idols.]; (26) FOR THE EARTH IS THE LORD'S, AND ALL IT CONTAINS. [The apostle quotes Psalm 24:1 to help substantiate the idea that it is OK to eat all things. Compare 1 Tim. 4:3-5; Mark 7:19.] (27) If one of the unbelievers invites you [That is, he invites the strong Christian (at least he is strong with respect to his knowledge that it is OK to eat all things) to a meal at his home.], and you wish to go, eat anything that is set before you, without asking questions for conscience' sake. [Compare 1 Cor. 10:25, 28, 29. As Paul explains in verse 29, he is speaking of the conscience of the weaker brethren.] (28) But if anyone says to you, "This is meat sacrificed to idols," do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you [The one who informed the Christian regarding the status of this meat would apparently be one of the brethren who did not believe it was OK to eat such meat.], and for conscience' sake; (29) I mean not your conscience, but the other man's; for why is my freedom judged [condemned] by another man's conscience? (30) If I partake with thankfulness, why am I slandered concerning that for which I give thanks? [[The "other man" would be a weak brother, who would judge/condemn you for eating meat sacrificed to idols. This same Greek verb is used in Rom. 14:3 and 4 (cf. 14:10) of the weak brethren judging/condemning the strong brethren for eating meat (not just meat sacrificed to idols). Also, the verb translated "slandered" here in 1 Cor. 10:30 is used in Rom. 14:16 in a similar way. It will not work for good, or for the glory of God (cf. 10:31), for the strong to "give thanks" and exercise their "freedom" and go ahead and eat the meat sacrificed to idols if it results in their being judged/condemned and slandered. It is clear that the weak brother would be wrong (sinful) in judging/condemning and slandering his brother, but Paul does not take time to make that point here - he is speaking here to the strong brethren. The key point Paul makes here is that the strong need to waive their right to eat meat sacrificed to idols in a situation like this. That way they can avoid giving offense (cf. 10:32). Also, there is another, more-important issue that he raises in 1 Cor. 8:7-13 and Rom. 14:1-23. That is, the strong need to do everything they can do to avoid putting pressure on the weak to go ahead and do something (here, specifically, eat meat sacrificed to idols) before they are convinced/have faith in their hearts that it is OK before God. If they go ahead and eat before they are convinced in their hearts (efore their conscience is satisfied), it will be sin for them (even though in itself it is not sinful) - all sin is a serious matter.]] (31) Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. [Compare Col. 3:17; 1 Pet. 4:11.] (32) Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God [We should do everything possible to try to avoid giving offense. Some will always take offense, even as they took offense at Jesus.]; (33) Just as I also please all men in all things [The apostle tried to please all men in all things (that is, he did everything that he could reasonably do and still put God first, always doing His will), but it is very clear that many men, both Jews and Gentiles, including many Christians, took offense at him (not that their offense was justified).], not seeking my own profit, but the profit of the many, that they may be saved." [Compare 1 Cor. 9:19-23.] May God be glorified through this article and His people be edified! © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. On the topic of righteousness, holiness, and victory over sin, see my book "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." The book is available on my website and at Amazon.com. And see my 28 articles titled "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" on this Christian article site.   Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:54:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-619/1-corinthians-chapter-11-part-1-of-2-parts.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 11, Part 1 (of 2 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       This article was taken from the internet version of my paper titled, "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:10, which was published in March, 2000. In the original paper and in the internet version of this paper that in on my internet site (Google to Karl Kemp Teaching) I was able to use bold, italics, underlining, and footnotes. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless otherwise noted. Sometimes I use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) in this article to make them more obvious. In the first half of 1 Corinthians chapter 11, the apostle Paul dealt with the need for women to have their heads covered (as a symbol of submission) when they were praying or prophesying in church. We will discuss the relevance of this instruction for our day. The second half of the chapter contains some very important teaching regarding the Lord's Supper. Paul wrote these words to address a serious abuse of the Lord's Supper by some of the Christians in the church at Corinth. In 1 Corinthians 11:1-16, Paul dealt with the need for Christian women to cover their heads when praying or prophesying in church. The primary point that Paul made in these verses was that God's divine order requires the submission (not inferiority or inequality) of women. Covering the head was a symbol of submission to God's order at that time, but in our day this particular symbol is not recognized by many, whether Christians or non-Christians (at least not in our country). In the second half of this chapter (11:17-34), Paul dealt with the sinful manner in which the Lord's Supper was being conducted by some of the Christians at Corinth. The primary problem that Paul dealt with in these verses was that at the common meal, which was part of (or at least closely associated with) the Lord's Supper, some of the Christians who had plenty were not sharing their food and drink with their brethren that had little or nothing. The apostle made it clear that this behavior was totally inappropriate, even sinful. At the Lord's Supper the saints are called to remember with thanksgiving the new covenant established on the blood of Christ, the new covenant that was given to save them from sin, the new covenant that made all believers one in the body of Christ. These verses contain some very important information regarding the Lord's Supper. "Be imitators of me [cf. 1 Cor. 4:16; Phil. 3:17], just as I also am of Christ. [There is widespread agreement that this significant verse goes with chapter 10 and that the chapter division (which was added later) is unfortunate here. To say words like these, the apostle Paul had to be walking close to Christ in truth, righteousness, and holiness (by the grace/Spirit of God through faith). This certainly is a good testimony - to the glory of God!] (2) Now I praise you because you remember me in everything, and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I delivered them to you. [Compare 1 Cor. 4:17; 11:17, 22; 2 Thess. 2:15; and 3:6. The contents of this epistle show that Paul was being rather generous with the words of this verse. He could have been responding to something the Corinthians had said to him in a letter.] (3) But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman [The NIV has, "the head of the woman is man." Compare Gen. 3:16; Eph. 5:22-24. In Col. 1:18 Paul said that Christ is the "head of the body, the church." In Eph. 1:20-22 he spoke of Christ being the head over all things (including His having authority over Satan and his hosts).], and God is the head of Christ. [[In 1 Cor. 3:23 Paul said "and you [all true Christians] belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God." As we discuss these controversial verses in 1 Corinthians chapter 11, we must humble our hearts before God and seek Him for the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches. That is what we want, is it not? His will must be done in our lives and in the church! In some ways, according to God's prescribed order for this present age (based on what the Bible teaches), the man (in his role assigned by God) has authority over (is head of) the woman, both in the home and in the church. (Apparently there won't be any differences in the roles for men and women in the eternal age to come, cf., e.g., Luke 20:27-38.) This does not mean that women are inferior, or that they have a demeaning role. The Lord Jesus Christ is not inferior to God the Father, and He does not have a demeaning role. It is true, however, that even though the Son of God is fully deity with God the Father (and the Holy Spirit), He does, in some ways, (willingly and happily) have a role subordinate to that of God the Father, and not only for this age, but also for the age to come (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 15:27, 28); but lest we go too far and miss the balance, also see Rev. 21:22, 23; 22:1, 3, for example. See my paper, "Who Do We Pray To?" We are not saying that women do not have the same full salvation and the same full access to God the Father through Jesus Christ and in/by the Holy Spirit that men have (cf., e.g., Gal. 3:28). Nor would I say that women can never, in any way, exercise authority over men in the church. I believe we must leave room for God to be God (cf., e.g., Jud. 4:1-5:31; Acts 18:26). It is clear that women can pray and prophesy in church (1 Cor. 11:4; Acts 2:17; and 21:9), and it is clear that God has important roles for all Christians (including all women) to fulfill (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 12:12-31; Eph. 4:7, 16; and Rom. 12:3-8). I wouldn't say that a ministry like Kathryn Kuhlman's, for example, was out of order; it seems to me that her ministry was (for the most part at least) effective by the enablement of God and glorified Him. I wouldn't tell God that He cannot call a woman into a ministry where she will exercise authority over men. We must acknowledge, however, that the apostle Paul (at least as a general rule) did "not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man" (1 Tim. 2:12). Sometimes, as we will discuss further below, we need to take into consideration that some things, like the "practice" of women having their heads covered while praying or prophesying (1 Cor. 11:16), are culturally conditioned and not necessarily always applicable (or, fully applicable) for other/subsequent cultures. A practice/custom appropriate for one culture or generation could be totally misunderstood and counterproductive in another culture or generation. In Paul's day for women to even be involved in the theological discussions at church (even asking questions) was considered out of order. (See 1 Cor. 14:34, 35.) In our day this is commonly done, and I assume quite appropriately. Such activity today need not be viewed as a manifestation of an improper, unsubmissive attitude. I definitely want to see every woman be, and do, everything they possibly can, as long as it is done in the will of God. We must guard against trying to bend God's Word and His will to suit our fleshly desires and/or to fit the viewpoint of the world in our day. Our primary goal as men and women of God must be to please Him, to get our lives in divine order and keep them there. This will always work for good, but it may well go against some of our desires, and it will often go against the viewpoint of the world. Men must not think of their authority from God as something to boast about in the flesh, but as a responsibility before God to be faithful and to humbly fulfill their obligations. (This applies to women too, in the areas where they have authority.) Men must be concerned lest they abuse their authority. If husbands, for example, put the emphasis on pleasing God in all things (instead of demanding their rights), including loving their wives as Christ loved/loves the church (cf. Eph. 5:25), it will always work for good, and no godly wife will be complaining. God's ways are always right, and they always work for good, including our good. I am confident that God will lead us to the balanced truth and to His will (divine order) for each of us and for the church as we humble ourselves before Him and His Word. I'll quote a paragraph from what John MacArthur said under 1 Cor. 11:11, 12 ("1 Corinthians" [Moody Bible Institute, 1984], page 260). "Far from oppressing women, the [Christian] church has been their greatest liberator. In Greek and Roman societies most women were little more than slaves, the possessions of their husbands, who often virtually bought and traded their wives at will. It was largely because of this inhumane treatment of women that feminism became so popular in the Roman empire. In many Jewish communities the woman's situation was not much better. Divorce had become easy and commonplace, but it was almost entirely the prerogative of the man. Some Jewish men held women in such low esteem that they developed a popular prayer in which they thanked God that they were not born a slave, a Gentile, or a woman." I'll also quote some similar words from Simon J. Kistemaker ("1 Corinthians" [Baker, 1993], page 379). "Christianity has been and remains a force that liberates women from oppression and servitude. In many other religions, women are owned from birth by their fathers and on marriage by their husbands. They lack freedom, are in bondage, and never acquire equality. Even in ancient Israel, a female was secondary to any male. ... Women were not considered worthy of studying the Scriptures and were denied an education."]] (4) Every man who has something on his head while praying or prophesying disgraces his head. [[The practice of Jewish men wearing head coverings seems to have begun, at least for the most part, at a later date. Many believe that the words "his head" at the end of this verse refer to the man's literal head. So too for the second use of the words "her head" in the next verse. The fact that Paul continues in verses 5, 6 with the words "for she is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head" supports this viewpoint, and I assume this was Paul's viewpoint. The man and the woman would both be disgracing their literal heads by being out of divine order - the man by wearing a symbol that tended to deny that "he is the image and glory of God" (1 Cor. 11:7) and the woman by not wearing the symbol of submission to God's order for this age. It is possible, however (and many commentators favor this viewpoint), that by the use of the words "disgraces his head" at the end of verse 4, Paul meant to include the disgracing of Christ as the head of the man (see verse 3). If so, then the words "disgraces her head" in verse 5 probably also include the idea that the woman disgraces the man/men (see verse 3).]] (5) But every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying [It is clear that the apostle believed that it is proper for women to pray and prophesy in the church. Compare Luke 2:36; Acts 21:9.] disgraces her head [See under 11:4.]; for she is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved. (6) For if a woman does not cover her head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head. [That is, let her cover her head while praying or prophesying in the church (see 1 Cor. 11:5, 13).] (7) For a man ought not to have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man. [It is clear, however, that both male and female were created in the image of God. See Gen. 1:26, 27; 5:1, 2; 9:6; and James 3:9.] (8) For man does not originate from woman, but woman from man [See Gen. 2:21 23; 1 Tim. 2:13.]; (9) for indeed man was not created for the woman's sake, but woman for the man's sake. [Paul is referring to the fact that the woman was created to be a "helper suitable for [the man]" (Gen. 2:18-23). It is also true that, in God's eternal plans, woman was created for God (not for the man), and every Christian woman (along with every Christian man) will be with Him and reigning with Him forever (cf., e.g., Rev. 3:21; 22:3-5).] (10) Therefore the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head [[That is, as 1 Cor. 11:5, 6, and 13 show, when she prays or prophesies where the saints are gathered, she should have a covering on her head, which is "a symbol of [submission to] authority." In Paul's day, the covering symbolized her submission to God's prescribed order "of authority." The covering consisted of some sort of veil. Such coverings in the early church could take several forms, but typically they were a cloth covering; it could consist of a part of the garment (e.g., a kerchief/shawl) that was raised to cover the head when praying or prophesying. The most important thing, of course, was for the woman praying or prophesying to have an attitude of submission, without which the symbol of submission would be an empty, worthless ritual. However, at least at that time, as far as the apostle to the Gentiles was concerned, the symbol was required; it was not optional.]], because of the angels. [The idea is that when the saints gather, some of God's angels are present, which makes it all the more necessary for things to be in divine order.] (11) However, in the Lord, neither is woman independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. (12) For as the woman originates from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God [cf. Rom. 11:36]. [These two verses bring some balance to the picture, but Paul did not write these two verses to negate what he says in the other verses.] (13) Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? [It is clear that the apostle did not think so, and it clearly was the "practice" (1 Cor. 11:16) in the church at that time for the women to pray (or prophesy) with the head covered.] (14) Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him [Paul does not mean that a man's hair must be short, but his hair would be short relative to the woman's hair. There is some room for differences in what would be considered acceptable in different cultures.], (15) but if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her for a covering. [The apostle does not mean, as some believe, that if/since the woman has long hair, she does not need any other covering while praying or prophesying.] (16) But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no other practice, nor have the churches of God. [[In other words, the apostle required the Christian women at Corinth to submit to this church- wide accepted practice of having their heads covered while praying or prophesying. In our day, in our culture, few women wear a covering for their head, including while praying or prophesying. I am not sure exactly what God thinks about this (it is easy to speak for Him, and it is easy to be wrong too), but I am confident that it is a relatively minor issue with Him (if an issue at all) when compared with the major areas where many Christians are out of divine order in our day. I am speaking of things like the widespread need for an adequate understanding of the basics of the gospel, for righteousness and holiness, and the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22, 23). I am sure that God is concerned that each Christian (men and women) be humble before Him and in divine order. I have to assume that God's order for men and women (as pictured, for example, in 1 Cor. 11:3) is applicable for this entire age, but, as I mentioned, I believe there is some room for changes in what submission means for women in different cultures. Today for many women to begin to cover their heads while praying or prophesying would probably prove to be more of a curious novelty than a sign of submission. There are cases in our day where some women (sometimes with persuasion from men) come to the conviction that they should wear a covering. If that is their conviction, they certainly should wear a covering. I believe it is very important, however, that these women (or men) do not try to force their conviction on the other women in their church or in other churches (as it sometimes happens), insisting that for them to not be covered is rebellion against God. I'll close this section with the prayer that His will be done in this area, as in every area.]] We will finish this verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 11, starting with verse 17, in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek in a Bible college and churches using the texts that were used in seminary.   Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:43:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-618/1-corinthians-chapter-11-part-2.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 11, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       We will finish this verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 11 here in Part 2. (17) [Throughout the rest of this chapter, the apostle deals with the sinful abuse of the Lord's Supper at Corinth. The Lord's Supper, as these verses show, included, or was closely associated with, a communal meal (sometimes referred to as the agape/love feast).] But in giving this instruction, I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. (18) For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. [Compare 1 Cor. 1:10-12; 3:3, 4 with 4:6.] (19) For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved [by God] may have become evident [or, manifest] among you. [To the extent that some of the Corinthian "Christians" were not for real, or were extremely fleshly (cf. 3:1-5), factions/divisions had to manifest in the church at Corinth. I am not suggesting that fleshly Christians are rejected by God, but it is a dangerous place to be, and it certainly leads to factions (divisions) in the church, which is a major problem in our day. We must make it a top priority to rise above fleshiness by walking in/by/after the Holy Spirit on a continuous basis (cf., e.g., Gal. 5:16).] (20) Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper [Many of the Corinthians undoubtedly considered it to be the Lord's Supper, but Paul says that some of them were so far out of order that he did not consider it to be a legitimate observance of the Lord's Supper. As he continued, the apostle dealt with one primary abuse of the Lord's Supper that had surfaced at Corinth. This one abuse is spelled out clearly in verses 21, 22 and 33, 34 (also see verse 29); the apostle was also concerned with this one abuse in the intervening verses (verses 23-32), but it is not nearly so obvious in those verses.], (21) for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. (22) What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing [cf. James 2:6]? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you. [[The problem was that, as 11:21, 22, 33, and 34 show, some of those in the church at Corinth that had an abundant supply were not waiting for, or sharing with, those who had very little, or nothing. (With "takes his own supper first" [verse 21], compare "wait for one another" [verse 33].) Not only were some of the Christians poor, some were slaves (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 7:21, 22; 12:13). While some did not have enough to eat and drink, if anything, some of those with an abundance were drinking too much, enough to become intoxicated, and some were undoubtedly overeating too. The apostle asks, "This is how you celebrate the Lord's Supper? This is how you remember the Lord and His atoning death (11:24, 25). This is how you proclaim His death until He comes (11:26), the very death that saved you and made you part of the family of God, the death that made you one with every other true Christian?"]] (23) For I received from the Lord [The apostle received the gospel, including his teaching on the Lord's Supper, directly from Christ (cf. Gal. 1:11, 12).] that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread [See Matt. 26:20 29; Mark 14:17 25; and Luke 22:14-23.]; (24) and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.' [[I'll quote part of what Gordon D. Fee said here ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Eerdmans, 1987], page 550). "The identification of the bread with the body is semitic imagery in its heightened form. (Fee has a footnote here, "Compare 1 Cor. 10:4, 'the rock was Christ,' and Gal. 4:25, 'Hagar is Mount Sinai.' ") ...he means 'this signifies/represents my body.' (Fee has another footnote, "The presence of Jesus with them as he spoke these words would have made any other meaning impossible. Compare Moffatt ["First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians"], page 168.") ... [The view that some actual change took place in the bread] could only have arisen in the church at a much later stage when Greek modes of thinking had rather thoroughly replaced semitic ones."]] (25) In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood [cf. Luke 22:20; 1 Cor. 10:16; and Ex. 24:6-8]; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.' [On "remembrance," cf. Ex. 12:14; 13:3; and Deut. 16:3.] (26) For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes. [See under 1 Cor. 10:16, 17 in the article on 1 Corinthians chapter 10 for a discussion on the meaning of the Lord's Supper.] (27) Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. [[When Paul spoke of eating the bread or drinking the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner in this context, he was undoubtedly thinking of the sinful abuse of the Lord's Supper spelled out in verses 21, 22, 29, 33, and 34. It is also true, however, that if we partake of the Lord's Supper, which commemorates the new covenant established on the basis of the atoning death of the Lamb of God, while violating the terms of the covenant in any way, we are partaking "in an unworthy manner." Compare Heb. 10:29. The problem would not be solved by refraining from partaking of the Lord's Supper, nor did Paul suggest that option. What we must do is ask for forgiveness and repent of any, and all, violations of our covenant with God. There is no other acceptable answer for unresolved sin. I'll include two excerpts from what John MacArthur said under these verses ("1 Corinthians," pages 266, 269). "Jesus transformed the Passover meal into the celebration of the infinitely greater deliverance He came to bring, of which the Passover was only a foreshadow. When we eat His body and drink His blood [MacArthur does not believe that the elements actually become His body and His blood], we remember the spiritual and eternal redemption that He bought with the sacrifice of that body and the offering of that blood. The Passover celebrated the temporary, physical deliverance of the Old Covenant. [There was, of course, a very important spiritual dimension of the old covenant too.] The Lord's Supper celebrates the permanent and spiritual deliverance of the New. 'This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood' (Luke 22:20). The Lord's Supper reminds us of the cross of Jesus Christ" (page 266). "[The Lord's Supper] was a genuine meal, where the church congregated to eat the 'love feast,' a meal followed by the Communion. The Communion was connected to this supper in the Corinthian church, but abuses were obscuring its divine purpose and destroying its sanctity. In the early church the love feast and Communion customarily were held together, but abuses such as those in Corinth eventually forced the two to be separated in order to protect the Communion. The love feast soon disappeared altogether" (page 269). "Eventually, so many problems accompanied these [agape] feasts that at the Council of Carthage (A.D. 397), they were strictly forbidden" (Daniel R. Mitchell, "1 Corinthians," "Liberty Bible Commentary, New Testament" [Old-Time Gospel Hour, 1982], page 448).]] (28) But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. [Although Paul was dealing with one particular sin in this context, these words (like the words of verse 27) fit well with the fuller sense of examining ourselves to make sure we are living in faithfulness to the new covenant in every way. We should not wait for the Lord's Supper to examine ourselves and to make things right (cf. 2 Cor. 13:5); however, just before partaking of the Lord's Supper is a very appropriate time to examine ourselves.] (29) For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself, if he does not judge the body rightly. [[Instead of "not judge [the body] rightly," we could translate "not discerning the body." (The KJV and NKJV have, "not discerning the Lord's body.") As we have discussed, Paul was zeroing in on the abuse of the Lord's Supper at Corinth. "The body" here refers to the body of Christ, the church. (First Corinthians 10:16, 17 are an important cross-reference; these verses demonstrate that those who share in the Lamb of God and His sacrificial death become/are "one body"; also see 1 Cor. 12:13; Col. 1:18.) To not judge (rightly/discern) the Lord's body is comparable with "[despising] the church of God" (1 Cor. 11:22). I'll quote a sentence from Fee here ("1 Corinthians," page 559). "The 'unworthy' eating of verse 27 that brings judgment is now described as eating 'without discerning the body,' meaning the church (as in 10:16-17; this, after all, is the point of the whole section)." In 1 Cor. 11:30-32 Paul expanded on what he meant by "judgment" here in 11:29. A graphic illustration of taking words out of context and misunderstanding the Scriptures (there are many such interpretations around the body of Christ, very often coming from sincere Christians) is provided by those who understand this verse to teach that the sicknesses at Corinth resulted from their not recognizing that healing had been provided for them in the atoning death of the Lamb of God. I believe it is true that healing is provided in the atonement (see the chapter dealing with this topic in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin: Full Salvation Through the Atoning Death of the Lord Jesus Christ"), but that is not what they needed to hear at Corinth to solve the sickness problems mentioned in verses 30-32. THEY NEEDED TO REPENT, as this passage clearly shows. Many today are praying (standing in faith for healing) in cases where repentance is required.]] (30) For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. [[That is, because of their sin (and as I mentioned, Paul was zeroing in on their sin of abusing the Lord's Supper [not that that was the only sin, or the greatest sin, that was taking place among the Christians at Corinth]), some judgment had already fallen on the Corinthians, with some even experiencing premature death (i.e., they "sleep"). As Paul will go on to show, God's motive in sending/allowing such judgments was/is to help motivate those in sin to repent. Compare 1 Cor. 5:5; 1 Tim. 1:20. For more on God's judging His people, see John 5:14; Luke 13:1-5; and see the chapter titled "A Study to Show that Under the Old Covenant Sickness Was Typically Considered To Be Part of the Punishment/Penalty/Chastisement for Sin" in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin.") It doesn't seem (in the context of 1 Cor. 11:27-32) that Paul considered those Christians who had died a premature death at Corinth by God's judgment to be in the category of those that had lost their salvation, though for some of them this could have been the case - God is the Judge. It is also possible that some who had died by God's judgment at Corinth had never become born-again Christians.]] (31) But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. [For us to judge ourselves rightly, which goes with examining ourselves (cf. verse 28), we must not only ask for forgiveness, we must also repent and do what is required to make things right.] (32) But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord [cf. Heb. 12:5-13] so that we will not be condemned along with the world [at the final judgment]. [The idea here (and in 1 Cor. 5:5; 1 Tim. 1:20; and Heb. 12:5-13) is that God's discipline/judgment is designed to bring us to repentance, righteousness, and holiness (cf. Rev. 3:19). There is no guarantee, however, that those in sin will repent when disciplined/judged; some, instead of repenting, get bitter and angry with God and go deeper into sin and rebellion.] (33) So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat [at the meal associated with the Lord's Supper], wait for one another. (34) If anyone is hungry, let him eat at home [That is, if some say they are too hungry to "wait" for the others at the meal associated with the Lord's Supper (such persons would be associated with those who have plenty), let them eat at home.], so that you will not come together for judgment. [As discussed above, some Corinthian Christians had already experienced judgment because of their abuse of the Lord's Supper (and other sins). These last two verses, along with 1 Cor. 11:20-22, confirm that the sin Paul was dealing with in this passage was their sin against the body of Christ by disregarding and shaming some of the members of this body at the Lord's Supper.] And the remaining matters I shall arrange when I come." May God's will be accomplished through this article and His people be edified! © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. kkemp7753 at sbcglobal.net. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek in a Bible college and churches using the books that were used in seminary.                 Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:39:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-617/what-the-word-says-about-entitlements.html What The Word Says About Entitlements   By: Curt Klingerman       In some of the more affluent places in the world, the entitlement mentality has crept into the Church. People have come to believe that they have rights, and have a right to have more. Somehow, God owes them more than they deserve, even though everyone on the planet deserves the wrath of God. For some reason, the Blood of Jesus Christ just is not enough, and His grace is not sufficient anymore. Even though Jesus said, “In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:2-3, KJV), they want a mansion on earth as well. Whether it is the fancy home or a fancy church building, anything less is not good enough for them. They try to acquire things that fulfill their lusts by misapplying Scripture, while calling it “spiritual.” The bottom line is they want God to serve them. The question is: what does the Word say about our rights, and the right to have more? Before going any farther, lets be clear: there is nothing wrong with having a mansion or a nice church building in of itself. The very thing behind having it may be the issue. We begin to address the first question with 1Corinthians 6:19-20, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's” (emphasis added, KJV). Perhaps a better question to ask is: what rights? If we are no longer our own, but belong to God, how can we demand anything? Our so-called rights are subject to what God says they are. The truth is that we do not have rights; we have privileges. We have blessings, but they are not something we can rightfully demand. Furthermore, those blessings are not intended to fulfill our lusts; rather, they are intended to glorify God. He gives us blessings because He loves us, and so that we in turn can be a blessing to others. In essence, our “right” is to glorify God. Some might say, “I’m a son of God and can possess the land.” Okay, you are a son of God, but how is a son or daughter of God suppose to act? What attitude is he or she supposed to possess? If you can possess the land, what are you supposed to do with it? Jesus modeled what that looks like, and made Himself subject to the Father, even though He did indeed have rights! As a son or daughter, you can have what Daddy says you can have. Perhaps our “rights” looks more like this: “Father, not my will be done, but thine.” What does God’s entitlement program looks like? Lets start with Hebrews 13:5, Let your conversation (manner, or character) be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee (KJV). 1Timothy 6:6-8 says, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content” (KJV). Regardless of what we possess or do not possess, we are supposed to be content with what we do have. Being content does not necessarily mean that we have to do without; it means we are not going to covet more. Paul puts things in perspective in Philippians 4:11-13, “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (KJV). Paul knew what it was to have much, and to have little or nothing. Regardless of his condition, he learned to be content, and did so through Jesus Christ. Believe it or not, some need to learn to be content with much, just as those who need to be content with little. If one ever comes to believe he is owed a living, consider 2Thessalonians 3:7-10, “For yourselves know how ye ought to follow us: for we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you; Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you: Not because we have not power, but to make ourselves an ensample unto you to follow us. For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat” (emphasis added, KJV). Paul lived a life of service, and even though he could have demanded support from different churches, he did not. Everyone who is able should do his or her part. While compassion is as a subject in of itself, here is a question: is it compassionate to reward bad behavior? When someone is able to supply for himself, but refuses to do his part, is it a good thing to keep bailing him out of trouble? Perhaps the most compassionate thing would be tough love. That is to say, let them hit bottom, so they will do their part, and in so doing move upward. This is not talking about those who are going through a tough time and need a hand up; this refers to those who are being slothful. We will experience greater joy when we are more concerned with God’s desires, and serve Him as faithful sons and daughters. If we demand our own way, our joy will dissipate because our relationship with God will diminish. One final question: will we freely serve Him out of love, regardless of our circumstances? When it comes to entitlements, perhaps it would be good to remember Psalm 24:1, “The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein” (KJV). www.perfectfaith.org   Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith Of Jesus In The Life Of The Believer (His Faith, Not Ours)," by Curt Klingerman.http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8   Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:36:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-616/philippians-chapter-1-part-2-e-dissecting-paul039s-prayer-i.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 2 E - Dissecting Paul's Prayer I   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:9-11 And this is my prayer; that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. Dissecting Paul’s Prayer I This is one of the most potent and powerful prayers in the scripture. Its goal is the cemented salvation of the Philippian church. Paul is praying that the Philippian church would have access to more knowledge and insight on love and that their obedience to that knowledge would perfect them to the point where they could never be seen as impure, unrighteous or blemished in any way before God or man and in this way they would bring great glory to the name of Jesus. In this lesson we will examine this prayer and list what Paul wanted the Philippian church to know. In order for Paul’s prayer to make sense we have to understand several things about the era he lived in and the gentile churches of his day. Firstly, the New Testament scriptures had not yet been compiled. Secondly, in their teaching the Apostles taught from and profusely quoted the Old Testament in addition to their own God inspired writings. Thirdly, gentile churches did not have copies of the scrolls but relied upon the testimony, teaching and letters of the Apostles and other disciples in addition to the knowledge of the word given to them through the gifts of the Spirit like the Word of Wisdom, the Word of Knowledge and Prophecy. Paul’s prayer is evidence that the Philippians were not schooled in the Old Testament commandments on love that Jesus affirmed in the New Testament. They probably knew that Jesus had said that we should love one another but did not know what God had commanded by Moses regarding love in the Old Testament and if they knew of it they were not trained in it nor did they know it by rote. Inherent in Paul’s prayer is a desire for the Philippians to possess that knowledge which would only come by having the Old Testament scrolls. He also desired for them to possess the training and additional spiritual knowledge that would reveal the layers of meaning in these commandments. There is evidence that Paul’s prayers were answered. Polycarp, the bishop at Smyrna, alluded to this in his 110 AD letter to them, he wrote in Polycarp 12:1, “For I am persuaded that ye are well trained in the sacred writings, and nothing is hidden from you. But to myself this is not granted. Only, as it is said in these scriptures, be ye angry and sin not…” It was exceptional that a gentile church was well versed in the Old Testament scriptures not even Polycarp himself had been trained in a Jewish sense in these scriptures. His wording “trained in the sacred writings” indicates teaching like the Jewish teaching that Paul would have had at the feet of Rabban Gamaliel. This teaching would have uncovered at least three layers of meaning in the text. It is possible that Paul taught this to them or their ancestors because Polycarp confirms Paul as their teacher in Polycarp 3:2. I have chosen to do a study within a study with respect to these love commandments so that some may refresh themselves and others may come to know these commandments and their teaching so that what Paul prayed for the Philippians may be grasped by us also. Following is a listing of the commandments that the Apostle Paul wanted the Philippians to know. I have chosen to list them here and discuss them in the next study. Deuteronomy 6:5 states, "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might". This, called the primary or most important commandment, is commanded approximately 14 times in both the Old and New Testaments and is referred to on many other occasions. It is affirmed by Jesus in the New Testament in Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27. The secondary commandment on love is found in Leviticus. Leviticus 19:18 states, “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. Again Leviticus 19:34 speaking about the same thing, “But the stranger that dwells with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God”. The third commandment on love is found in John 13:34 and it states, “A new command I give you; love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another, by this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. This is also found in John 15:12, 15:17, 1 Peter 1:22, 1 John 3:23 and 1 John 4:7. This commandment refers to love of the Christian brethren. These are the commandments on love in the scriptures that the Apostle would have wanted the Philippians to know and remember.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit and The Holy Scriptures             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:51:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-615/philippians-chapter-1-part-2-f-dissecting-paul039s-prayer-ii.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 2 F - Dissecting Paul's Prayer II   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:9-11 And this is my prayer; that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. Dissecting Paul’s Prayer II In the last lesson we listed the love commandments of the scripture to demonstrate the knowledge that the Apostle Paul wanted the Philippians to have. In this study we will continue to learn about the meaning of these commandments and the additional depth of insight that Paul wanted the Philippians to see in them. Even though love is not the primary topic of the text I could not resist discussing the love commandments. Now we get to the depth of insight portion of the study. Before we study this let us look at the meaning of the commandments. What, then, does it mean to love the Lord with all your heart, your soul and your mind? God demands that love be demonstrated tangibly not just spoken or felt in the emotions. In John 14:15 the Lord says, “If you love me keep my commandments”. This is how we remain in his love according to John 15:9-10 which stipulates, “…If you keep my commands you will stay in my love – just as I have kept my Father’s commands and stay in his love”. However, loving God with all your heart, soul and mind does not only rest upon keeping the commandments but also in our faithfulness to him and the faith. He warns us in Revelation 2:10, “Be thou faithful unto death and I will give you a crown of life”. This is why some believers have endured persecution and others even death so as not to recant their beliefs. What does it mean to love your neighbor as yourself? Your neighbor ranges from members of your immediate family to strangers that live among you to anyone you may meet at any moment in time in your life. If you love your neighbor as yourself you will treat him as you treat yourself, you will help him whenever the occasion arises and you have the ability to do so, you will never do anything to cause him pain, shame or harm and you will behave toward him in a manner that demonstrates that measure of love. In Romans 13:10 it says, “Love does no harm to its neighbor”. In 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 Paul explains the behavior of love. In Luke 10:25-37, in the parable of “The Good Samaritan” Jesus explains how loving our neighbor as ourselves should work. The Samaritan did not know the Jew but went out of his way to pick him up from the roadside, attend to the wounds that he got from the thieves, clothe him, take him to an inn and pay for his care and attention until he got better. Neither the Priest nor the Levite responded with love. They saw their own countryman lying by the roadside with his wounds and crossed the road and went their way without offering him any assistance or sending him any afterward. The love of the Christian brethren demands no less. John said in 1 John 3:16-18, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth”. Again he said in 1 John 4:7-8, “Beloved let us love one another for love is of God and everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God for God is love”. The other apostles also speak about loving the brethren. James speaks of it in terms of faith in James 2:14-19, Peter gives instructions about it in 1Peter 1:22, and Jude briefly mentions it, he directs in Jude 1:21, “Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life”. Let us look at depth of insight by uncovering a hidden meaning in the parable of The Good Samaritan. The Samaritan and Jews were enemies. This means that the Samaritan took care of his enemy. We understand from the text love you neighbor as yourself but never think that you are to love your enemy as yourself, therefore if your enemy hungers feed him, if he thirsts give him drink and be like your father in heaven who causes the rain and sun to fall and shine upon the evil, good, just and unjust. The motive for feeding your enemy then should not be to heap coals of fire on his head, though this will happen, but to love him “for if I give all my goods to feed the poor and have not love it profiteth me nothing”. Every act of piety is unprofitable if love is not the basis for it. If we must love our neighbor as ourselves and this includes family members, people who live in our vicinity, strangers and even our enemies mustn’t our love of our brethren in Christ be more potent? The answer is yes. Our love of our brethren in Christ should be akin to our love of God for we are one body belonging to one husband. “No one ever hates his own body but feeds and cares for it”. This is why John said we ought to lay down or life for the brethren. We are one with each other and one with the Lord—one body—a wife—and one husband, the Lord. This leads to the greatest love of all our love for the Lord God. We are to love him more than we love our very lives. He said’ “Be thou faithful unto death…”. Our love for God is to transcend our love for all that is dear to us, our wives, husbands, children, siblings and friends. Jesus said, “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. Neither a wife nor a husband can put the love of their family above their love for each other. “A man leaves his father and mother and cleaves unto his wife”. She leaves her father and mother and becomes the daughter of her husband’s parents. We are Jesus’ bride and the Father in heaven’s daughter we cannot love anything or anyone above him. This is what enables an individual to discern what is best for him and what is the best decision to make about circumstance and situations in life. If his actions are guided by love he will not choose or do that which displeases God and he will walk in love toward his neighbor thus remaining pure and blameless before God and man. This is indeed righteous living. Such an individual would prove that he is filled with Jesus Christ and that he understands that Love is the key to our salvation, our relationship with God and our very eternal existence. Does this preclude error, mistakes or occasional sin? The answer is no. Solomon says in Ecclesiastes 7:20 that there is no righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins. This is not talking about blatant, habitual, God resistant, sinning but occasional error because of depth of circumstance or situation or position. However, even in the case of habitual, God resistant sinning the love of God points us to restore such a one in a spirit of humility lest we also be tempted. Love cannot condemn its brother when he sins nor can it cause him to sin. (See Galatians 6:1-2. This is what true love is all about. By this we shall be “filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God”. “By this shall all men know that we are his disciples”.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit and The Holy Scriptures   Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:48:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-614/1-corinthians-chapter-12-part-1-of-3-parts.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 12, Part 1 (of 3 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       This verse-by-verse study on 1 Corinthians chapter 12 was taken from my paper titled "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:6. In the original paper and the version on my internet site I was able to use bold, underlining, italics, and footnotes. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless I mention otherwise. Sometimes I will use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) to make them more obvious. In 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14 the apostle Paul taught about charismatic gifts to address a misuse of the gifts by some in the church at Corinth. 1 Corinthians chapter 12 contains important teaching about the church being like a human body, with each member having different, important functions to perform for the good of the body, by the enablement/gifts of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians chapter 13 is located between two chapters that deal with charismatic gifts, and it deals with the gifts to some extent, but it is known as the great love (Greek "agape") chapter. The apostle demonstrates that love is more basic and more important than charismatic gifts (not that the gifts are not important for this age) and shows that our entire Christian walk, very much including the use of the charismatic gifts, must be characterized by love. When discussing 1 Corinthians chapter 12 in the original paper, I devoted some ten pages to the topic of baptism in the Holy Spirit, which is a very important, but controversial, topic. It is very important for us to come to a balanced understanding of what the apostle Paul meant by the words, "For by [in] one Spirit we were all baptized into [resulting in] one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and were all made to drink of one Spirit" in 1 Cor. 12:13. The words baptism in the Spirit (or very similar words) are also used six other places in the New Testament, in the Gospels and Acts. Most Pentecostals and charismatics believe that baptism in the Spirit is separate from (it does not include), and is typically subsequent to, the all-important life-imparting work of the Spirit (the new birth). As I have discussed in previous writings (I'll include the references to those discussions as we continue), it seems clear to me that the words baptism in the Spirit, as these words are used in all seven of their occurrences in the New Testament, include the new birth, the all-important sanctifying work of the Spirit, and the charismatic dimension of the work of the Spirit. It seems to me that Pentecostals and charismatics could modify their viewpoint regarding baptism in the Spirit without giving up anything essential. Even though the New Testament presents the entrance into the charismatic dimension as part of the initial baptism in the Spirit at the time we become Christians (along with the new birth and the sanctifying work of the Spirit), this modified viewpoint leaves room for born-again Christians to enter the charismatic dimension of the Spirit's work as a second experience, as it often happens in our day. (And there always is room for subsequent experiences as God increases our measure, giving us new gifts, etc.) The ten pages dealing with baptism in the Spirit in the original version of this paper include extensive excerpts from three scholars, one a Pentecostal, one a charismatic, and one who is at least sympathetic to the charismatic renewal. As the quotations demonstrate, we (those three and myself) are all in essential agreement on this topic. In the internet version of this paper that is on my website and in these present articles, I greatly reduced the extensive excerpts that I had included from the three scholars in the original paper. (I had received permission to quote extensively from those other writings for the original paper, but not for the internet version of the paper. You could get a copy of the original version of the verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 12 by contacting me.) When Pentecostals and charismatics adopt (what I believe is) a more accurate viewpoint regarding the terminology baptism in the Spirit, they are removing a major source of division in the evangelical Christian community, which will help open the door for Pentecostals and charismatics to share with their brethren what they have learned about the very important charismatic dimension of the work of the Spirit. The primary topic that the apostle Paul dealt with in 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14 was the gifts of the Spirit (charismatic gifts). We learn quite a bit about the gifts in these chapters, but we must understand that these chapters (like so many other chapters in the epistles of Paul) were written in a specific context. The apostle wrote these chapters to deal with misunderstandings about and a misuse of the gifts, especially the gift of tongues, at Corinth. He didn't tell us everything we would like to know, but God reveals everything we need to know. (1 Cor. 12:1) "Now concerning spiritual gifts [[The NASB has "gifts" in italics. "The things of the Spirit" would be a more literal translation of the Greek. However, "the things of the Spirit" here is comparable in meaning with the "gifts [of the Spirit]" mentioned in 12:4 (and with the "manifestation of the Spirit" mentioned in 12:7). The (neuter gender, plural number) Greek adjective translated "spiritual" here in 12:1 (which was derived from "pneuma," which is the Greek noun typically translated Spirit/spirit) is also used in 1 Cor. 14:1).]], brethren, I do not want you to be unaware [or, ignorant]. (2) You know that when you were pagans [The apostle is referring to the pagan background of the Gentile Christians at Corinth.], you were led astray to the mute [cf. Psalm 115:5; Isa. 46:7; Jer. 10:5; and Hab. 2:18, 19] idols, however you were led. [Compare 1 Thess. 1:9; 1 Pet. 4:3. Instead of being "led" by the Holy Spirit, they were formerly being "led astray" to the mute (dumb) idols, idols that could not speak. Much of their former guidance came from demon spirits, who were/are actively involved in pagan religions (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 10:19-21).] (3) Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by [or, in] the Spirit of God says, 'Jesus is accursed'; and no one can say, 'Jesus is Lord,' except by the Holy Spirit. [[In these first three verses of chapter 12, the apostle Paul somewhat insulted the Corinthians. He was trying to wake them up (those who needed to be awakened) so that they might humble themselves and repent, where repentance was required. I don't believe Paul thought that the Christians at Corinth needed to be taught that the Holy Spirit doesn't lead people to say "Jesus is accursed." Furthermore, I doubt that these words were ever spoken in a prophetic utterance in the church at Corinth, and even if they were spoken, I don't believe that any real Christian seriously wondered if it was the Holy Spirit behind this utterance. The Holy Spirit is here to lead people to Jesus Christ (and through Him to God the Father) and to exalt Him in every way. There is perfect unity and harmony between the work of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit (see 1 Cor. 12:4-6). The work of the Spirit exalts Jesus Christ and perfectly harmonizes with His work. All the charismatic gifts that are distributed, and wrought, by the Spirit in and through the body of Christ exalt Christ Jesus, and they work for the good of God's people. But more must be said: When you observed the manifestation of the charismatic gifts in the church at Corinth (and this problem was not at all limited to the ancient church at Corinth), you might have thought that the gifts of the Spirit were given to promote disunity and confusion in the body of Christ. The problems, of course, did not originate with the Spirit; they came from a fleshly misuse of the gifts. One last point here, I don't believe the apostle was saying that it would be impossible for a non Christian, including one inspired by a demon spirit, to speak the words "Jesus is Lord"; these words are sometimes spoken apart from the Holy Spirit in a deceptive way, or just in a way that does not include faith in Jesus as Lord.]] (4) Now there are varieties of gifts [[The Greek has "charismata," a plural form of the Greek noun "charisma." The noun charisma (though not derived directly from) traces back to "charis" (grace); a charismatic gift is a manifestation of God's grace. There are nine charismatic gifts listed in 1 Cor. 12:8-10, but in the New Testament the word charisma is used in a fuller sense, including many other gifts that the Spirit distributes to the saints, enabling them to fulfill their roles in the church. (See Rom. 1:11; Rom. 12:6 [See the discussion of Rom. 12:1-8 in my "A Paper On Faith."]; 1 Cor. 1:7; 12:9, 28, 30, 31; 1 Tim. 4:14; and 1 Pet. 4:10; all these verses use charisma; also compare Heb. 2:4.)]], but the same Spirit. [[Several places throughout 1 Cor. 12:8-13, the apostle mentions the "same Spirit" and the "one Spirit." He is emphasizing the point that since all the charismatic gifts originate from the one and the same Spirit, we can be sure they will all work together for the common good (unless they are misused by Christians); they are not coming from various sources that are disorganized or are in competition/strife with one another. The confusion and strife associated with the charismatic gifts at Corinth resulted from a fleshly misuse of the gifts. Of course chaos, even greater chaos, would have resulted if the source of some of the gifts at Corinth had been demonic, but (although that potential is always real) there is no indication that Paul attributed any of the problems with charismatic gifts at Corinth to counterfeit, demonic gifts.]] (5) And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. [[The "ministries" undoubtedly include the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers, elders, and deacons (cf. 1 Cor. 12:28-30; Rom. 12:3-8: Eph. 4:11-16 [As I mentioned, Romans 12:1-8 are discussed in my "A Paper on Faith" and Ephesians chapter 4 is discussed verse-by-verse in a paper on my internet site.]; Acts 6:1-6 (note "ministry" in 6:4); 1 Tim. 3:1-13; 2 Tim. 4:5 (note "ministry"); and Titus 1:5-9. Using the word "ministries" in the fullest sense, we could say that all Christians have a ministry since all Christians have important functions to perform in the body of Christ - each Christian has a "measure." (See 1 Cor. 12:14-27; and see the discussion of Romans 12:1-8 in my "A Paper on Faith." For one thing, the word "measure" is used in Rom. 12:3. Also see the discussion of Eph. 4:1-16 on my internet site. For one thing, the word "measure" is used in Eph. 4:7, 16.) However, the New Testament typically uses the word ministries in a more limited sense, and I believe we should understand ministries in a more limited sense here. As this verse (1 Cor. 12:5) shows, the LORD Jesus Christ (note "the same LORD") is directly associated with the ministries in the church. Ephesians 4:11 says, "He (Christ Jesus) gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers." (Many Christians speak of the five-fold ministry based on Eph. 4:11.) Since all the ministries are under the same Lord, they will be perfectly unified and working together for the common good (except to the extent the ministers are not following Christ, but are doing their own thing in the flesh). It is obvious that the work of God the Son and the work of God the Spirit overlap here: Much of the enablement to fulfill these ministries comes by/through the work of the Spirit, very much including the charismatic gifts. As I mentioned, we certainly need not be concerned about any lack of unity and harmony between the Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit.]] (6) There are varieties of effects [or, workings], but the same God who works all things in all persons. [[Compare Rom. 11:36; Eph. 4:6. God the Father is spoken of here; in 1 Cor. 12:4-6 Paul mentions God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. God the Son and God the Spirit are fully deity with God the Father, but they are subordinate to God the Father in their roles. The "effects [workings]" of God the Father include the gifts given by the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:4) and the ministries given by the Son (12:5). As the apostle demonstrates in this chapter, we need all the members of the body of Christ with their different functions/measures/gifts/ministries. As I mentioned, each Christian has important and necessary contributions to make to the proper functioning of the body of Christ. It is not just our gifts/ministries, however, that contribute to the proper functioning of the church. Even more important is our living in the truth, righteousness, and holiness of God and our manifesting the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22, 23), as we humbly walk/live in the Spirit by faith. Starting in 1 Cor. 12:31b and throughout chapter 13, Paul emphasizes the need for Christians to continuously walk in love (a fruit of the Spirit). Without love, the gifts can do more harm than good.]] (7) But [Now] to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. [[The words "each one" need not be understood here to include every single Christian. Sometimes Paul uses these words (actually it is one word in the Greek) in a way that does not include everyone (cf. 1 Cor. 1:12; 11:21; and 14:26). I do not believe that Paul says here that each Christian will be given, and used on a regular basis in, at least one of the nine charismatic ministry-gifts listed in 12:8-10. For one thing, not all Christians will have a ministry, using the word ministry in the more limited sense discussed above. Some, quite wrongly I believe, teach that we should all expect to be used on a regular basis in all nine gifts. We should all be open to be used in any gift at any time; we do not want to limit God in any way. However, if I understand Paul here, and I believe I do, he is speaking (at least for the most part) of Christians being used (according to the plan of God) on a regular basis in particular gifts/ministries. That way we can become proficient (specialists) in the use of our gifts/in the fulfillment of our ministries. This enhances order in the church, with each minister having their recognized roles to fulfill and being proficient at them. The key point the apostle makes in this verse is that whatever manifestations of the Spirit are given, they are always given FOR THE COMMON GOOD (and the glory of God); they are not given to exalt individuals or to cause strife, competition, pride, inferiority complexes, or things like these; and they never will lead to such things unless they are misused in fleshly/sinful ways. I'll quote a sentence from what F. Godet said under this verse ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Zondervan, 1971 reprint of the 1886 edition], page 193). "And as the Spirit is one (verse 4), it follows that all the gifts, however different, must tend to a common end, the good of the whole, and not to the selfish satisfaction of the individual on whom they were bestowed." We are different because, for one thing, in the will of God, we are given differing gifts, but this will not lead to strife and disharmony (unless we misuse the gifts) any more than it causes problems for a human body to have different members like eyes, ears, hands, and feet (see 12:12-27). We need all the gifts, and we really do need one another. This is part of God's plan. I'll quote part of what D. A. Carson said under 1 Cor. 12:4-11 ("Showing the Spirit" [Baker, 1987], page 32). "Doubtless the church is in some sense like a mighty army, but that does not mean we should think of ourselves as undifferentiated khaki. We should be more like an orchestra: each part making its own unique contribution to the symphonic harmony. Dictators of the right and left seek to establish their brand of harmony by forcefully imposing monotonous sameness, by seeking to limit differentiation. God establishes his brand of harmony by a lavish grant of highly diverse gifts, each contributing to the body as a whole."]] (8) For to one is given the word [[The Greek noun translated "word" here (and later in this verse) is "logos." Much of the popular teaching I have heard around the body of Christ regarding "logos" and "rhema" (another Greek noun normally translated word, which is not used nearly as often as logos) is wrong. (Logos is used 332 times in the New Testament; rhema 67 times.) You often hear that logos is used (or is always used) for the written word and rhema for the spoken word and that the rhema word is revealed, alive, understood, powerful, effective, etc., but that the logos word isn't. This is a serious error regarding logos. The two uses of logos here in 1 Cor. 12:8, for example, demonstrate that logos isn't always used for the written word (in fact it is only used for the written word in seven percent of its uses in the New Testament) and the "word of wisdom" and "word of knowledge" are some of the best examples in the New Testament of words that are revealed, alive, etc. I'll list some other examples where the logos word is quite the opposite of being dead, ineffective, etc.: Matt. 8:8, 16; Mark 13:31; Luke 4:32, 36; John 1:1, 14; 5:24, 38; 8:31; 12:48b; 14:23, 24; 15:3, 7; Acts 12:24; 15:32; 19:20; 20:32; Rom. 15:16; 1 Cor. 1:18; 2:4, 5 (first use of logos);14:19b; 15:1, 2; Eph. 1:13; Phil. 2:14-16; Col. 3:16; 1 Thess. 2:13; 1 Tim. 4:6; 2 Tim. 2:9, 15; Titus 2:5; Heb. 4:12; James 1:18, 21, 22, 23; 1 Pet. 1:23; 2:8; 3:1; 2 Pet. 3:5, 7; 1 John 1:1, 10; 2:14; and Rev. 19:13. God's Word (His Logos/Rhema), as it is recorded in the Bible, the Word of the gospel of the new covenant, for example, is personal, alive, powerful, and effective (by the Spirit) for those who submit to it in faith (see, e.g., 1 Thess. 2:13). We need to come to the Bible with this attitude; it is mandatory for us to understand and to submit (in faith) to God's written Word. Second Corinthians 3:6 is often seriously misunderstood: "who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." When the apostle Paul wrote "the letter kills," he was speaking, as the context shows, of the letter of the Mosaic Law (which was the foundation for the old covenant). He was showing that we need the new covenant because the sin/spiritual death problem, which is solved by the new covenant through the atoning death of the Lamb of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, was not solved by the Mosaic Law/old covenant. God did not give the Mosaic Law/old covenant for that purpose; He always planned to send His Son to save His people. The letter of the Law intensified the sin problem for those under the Law. In that sense it "kills." (See, for example, 2 Cor. 3:7-9; Rom. 4:15: 5:13; 7:5, 6, 8-13; 1 Cor. 15:56; and Gal. 3:19-21.) Paul certainly was not saying (in 2 Cor. 3:6) that the letter of the New Testament (which includes God's moral law) "kills." For one thing, born-again believers are enabled to keep God's moral law (cf., e.g. Jer. 31:33; Ezek. 36:26, 27; Rom. 2:26-29; 8:4 [see on these verses from Romans in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," start under Rom. 8:4 on page 118] and see my paper titled, "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism). I have heard it said many times that Paul taught here that the letter of God's Word is dead (some say, in a disparaging manner, "it is only a logos word") and that we need to put all the emphasis on the Spirit. For one thing, God's written Word is alive by the Spirit. For another thing, the Spirit, who gave us the written Word of God (the Bible), does much of His work through the written Word. We are dependent on the Word of God to learn the basics of the gospel, to learn what God has provided for us and what He requires of us, etc. Those who are trying to be led by the Spirit without making the Word of God a top priority in their hearts and lives typically get into big trouble. For more details on logos and rhema, see my thirty-seven page paper titled, "Logos and Rhema: An Exaltation of Logos" that was published in April, 2012. It is available on this Christian article site in five-parts.]] of wisdom through the Spirit [[In defining these gifts, I am aiming to say the minimum. For one thing, I don't want to limit God by my definitions. There is quite a bit of room for variety in the working of the charismatic gifts. It is not especially important for us to always be able to categorize what gift a particular manifestation of the Spirit was. Sometimes a combination of gifts is manifested, for example, a combination of a word of knowledge and a word of wisdom. (One thing that is especially important is to make sure that we avoid manifestations of the flesh or manifestations of demons, which is a far greater problem. Demons are active in the supernatural, and we must be very aware of that fact.) I believe (in agreement with many) that the "word of wisdom" is the most important of the nine gifts listed in 1 Cor. 12:8-10, but all of them are important or God would not have given them to us. In this gift God reveals something of His purposes and plans and gives direction to His people by His Spirit. One major role for the word of wisdom is to help us understand and rightly apply the Scriptures. The word of wisdom can answer questions like "What does God want us to do in this situation?" or "How are we going to solve this problem?" For an example, consider the revelation (including directions for Peter to go to the house of Cornelius) that God gave Peter concerning His plans to save Gentiles (Acts 10:9-35).]], and to another the word [logos] of knowledge according to the same Spirit [In the word of knowledge, the Spirit reveals knowledge/information such as "What is the cause of this problem?" or "Where is the lost item?" There is almost no limit to the kind of information that God can reveal through this gift. He is interested in every area of our lives, but some areas are more important than others, like our living in the center of His will with the victory over all sin.]; (9) to another faith [cf. 1 Cor. 13:2] by the same Spirit [This gift enables God's people to do things and to handle situations and deal with problems in a manner that would not be possible without this special enablement by the Spirit. This is a charismatic gift given to Christians (to those who already have faith in God and saving faith in Christ); it can be considered an amplification of faith that enables the believer to do what would be impossible without this gifting.], and to another gifts of healing by [or, in] the one Spirit [Compare 1 Cor. 12:28, 30. As the margin of the NASB shows, "healing" is plural (healings) in the Greek. (The NASB has the plural "healings" in 1 Cor. 12:28, 30.) The fact that gifts of healings has the plurals apparently includes the often-observed fact that some healing ministries are especially effective with certain types of sicknesses/problems: Some are very effective with eye/sight problems; others with ear/hearing problems; others with types of growths; etc.], (10) and to another effecting of miracles [or, "workings of powers"; cf. 1 Cor. 12:28; Gal. 3:5], and to another prophecy [[Here "prophecy" apparently speaks of Spirit-inspired utterance through Christians (the Christian speaks out messages that come from the Spirit, under the anointing of the Spirit). Sometimes the Bible uses the words "prophecy/prophesy" of Christians sharing a revelation that the Spirit had given them (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 14:29-32). We will discuss prophecy/prophesy/prophets further as these words come up in the rest of chapter 12 and in chapters 13 and 14.]], and to another the distinguishing of spirits [[This gift can enable Christians to distinguish between the working of the Spirit of God and the angels of God, and the working of the spirits of Satan's kingdom. It is very important for us to be able to be able to discern Satan's works, including counterfeit gifts and ministries. We cannot be very effective in our warfare against Satan's forces (cf. Eph. 6:11, 12) without being able to discern their activities. This is extremely important because Satan and his hosts have their supernatural works too, and many Christians have been deceived by them, thinking they were from God.]], to another various kinds of tongues [[Compare Mark 16:17; 1 Cor. 12:28, 30; 13:1; 14:2-39. This verse (12:10) and 1 Cor. 12:28 are the only places in the New Testament where we read of "kinds of tongues." In the context of this chapter (especially note 12:28-30), it seems clear that the apostle is speaking of a ministry-gift here. He is not speaking of a personal, devotional use of tongues, and he is not dealing with the experience of individuals speaking with tongues at the time they entered the charismatic dimension (as in Acts 2:4; 10:44-47; and 19:6). This ministry-gift, when coupled with the gift of interpretation, is comparable with the gift of prophecy in its results (cf. 1 Cor. 14:5). We also should leave room for those occasions where God speaks to a person(s) in a language they know, but which is unknown to the person(s) speaking in tongues, as on the Day of Pentecost. I have heard of quite a few occasions where this has happened in our day.]], and to another the interpretation of tongues. [Compare 1 Cor. 12:30; 14:5, 13, 26-28. Since the tongues are typically unknown to the speaker and to the others who are listening, the tongues are to be interpreted so that the Spirit may reveal what was said in tongues. Paul deals extensively with the need for the interpretation of tongues that are spoken in church in chapter 14. The interpretation of tongues is a gift of the Spirit; we are not dealing here with a translation by someone who knows the language.] (11) But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. [Compare 1 Cor. 12:4. This does not mean that the Spirit distributes the gifts "as He wills" independently of God the Father and God the Son (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 12:5, 6). On the words "one" and "same," see under 12:4. I am very thankful that it is God who determines what gifts each Christian is to receive. We can trust Him for ourselves and for our brothers and sisters; He does not make mistakes. We cannot complain about His decisions (at least we had better not complain); our job is to be faithful, and as we are faithful, He may well increase our measure.] (12) For even as the body [referring to the human physical body] is one and yet has many members [with each different member having different functions to perform, each of them being important to the proper functioning of the body], and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. [Compare Rom. 12:4, 5; 1 Cor. 10:17; and 12:13-27. "So also is Christ" means so also is the body of Christ, the church. The apostle is emphasizing the unity of all Christians (in union with Christ and by the Holy Spirit) in the one body (by the plan of God), as he does in the following verses.] We will continue this verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 12 with verse 13 in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.                 Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:46:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-613/1-corinthians-chapter-12-part-2.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 12, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       We continue the verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 12 here in Part 2. (13) For by one Spirit [I would translate "For in one Spirit," with the margin of the NASB. The Greek preposition "en," which Paul used here, is most often translated "in." There are six other verses in the New Testament that speak of baptism in the Spirit (Matt. 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33; Acts 1:5; and 11:16). All these verses use "en," and I would translate "in" for each of these verses.] we were all [all true Christians] baptized [or, immersed] into [or, better yet, "baptized (or, immersed) resulting in"] one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free [[Compare Gal. 3:28; Eph. 2:13-18. I believe baptism (immersion) in the Spirit here, as with the other six uses of this terminology in the New Testament, includes the new birth, the sanctifying work of the Spirit, and the charismatic gifts. The more typical viewpoint among Pentecostals and charismatics is that baptism in the Spirit is a second experience that is separate from, and does not include, the new birth. It is true that in our day many Christians do enter the charismatic dimension as a second experience, but one of the main reasons this happens is that so many Christians (including many evangelicals) have omitted the charismatic dimension from Christianity. When we finally learn that this dimension is still part of the new covenant (often we learn this many years after we were born again), we enter this dimension through a second experience, an experience that could, and should, have been part of our becoming Christians in the first place (according to the New Testament pattern). ((I had an important, lengthy footnote here: See footnote 30 on pages 135-138 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," starting with the last paragraph on page 137. There I also discuss the fact that many Christians learn long after their conversion that the Bible teaches that Christians are called and enabled to walk in righteousness and holiness with the victory over sin. Such persons may then enter (by faith) this dimension of the work of the Holy Spirit through a definite second experience that could be called a baptism in the Spirit. It is also true that some Christians, although they have known what the Bible teaches about righteousness and holiness, do not submit (in faith) in any full sense to this dimension of the Spirit's work until later. Holiness is a big part of what baptism in the Spirit is all about. (Holiness is a big part of what Christianity is all about!) What we need is the end result of Christians walking in holiness on a continuous basis, whether there is a definite second (crisis) experience, or not. Many holiness churches teach holiness as a second work of grace (of the Spirit) that is separate from, and typically later than, becoming a born-again Christian. From my point of view, they are making a mistake similar to that of most Pentecostals and charismatics. Holiness is a big part of what Christianity and baptism in the Holy Spirit is all about. We should not think of Christianity apart from holiness (or apart from the charismatic dimension). Anyway, I am thankful that holiness churches help us see that Christians are called and enabled to walk in holiness (an abiding state of holiness) by the grace/Spirit of God, even as I am thankful that Pentecostals and charismatics help us see that the charismatic dimension of the work of the Spirit is still for us today.)) What we need is an abiding walk in the charismatic dimension, not just an experience we had in the past that we can talk about. We don't need to worry that we might receive and walk in too much of the righteousness and holiness of God or too much of charismatic dimension of the work of the Spirit of God. Entering the charismatic dimension is part of what baptism in the Spirit means in the New Testament, an important part, but the new birth and the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit are more important parts of what baptism in the Spirit means in the New Testament. It causes confusion to speak of a second experience where Christians enter the charismatic dimension the baptism in the Spirit. It seems to me that it should not be very difficult for Pentecostals and charismatics to modify their viewpoint regarding baptism in the Spirit. They would not really be giving up anything. It is true, of course, that they must first be convinced that this modified viewpoint more accurately reflects what the Scriptures teach. As a young Christian and charismatic, I spent a lot of hours over a ten-year period considering this topic, seeking God for the balanced truth. We will further discuss baptism in the Holy Spirit as we continue with this discussion of 1 Cor. 12:13. ((I had a footnote: I have already commented on this topic in previous writings; most of what I said there is not repeated here. Start with the section titled "Meaning of the Words Baptism [or, Immersion] in the Holy Spirit" in my "A Paper on Faith," which starts on page 96; read on through to the end of the paper. As noted in the first sentence there, that discussion builds on the preceding study of Acts 15:1-11; you should first read what was said under Acts 15:8, 9, starting on page 94 (these page numbers are for the internet version on my website). It will be necessary to read the pages in my book. "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" that are cited in "A Paper on Faith" to adequately cover this topic.)) Also, at the end of this study of 1 Corinthians chapter 12, we will further discuss this important (but also controversial) topic. The apostle's emphasis here in 1 Cor. 12:13 is clearly on unity in the one body of Christ. Even those who are far from being united in the natural - Jews and Gentiles; slaves and free; etc. - are united in Christ. It is true, of course, that this unity will not be manifested to the extent that Christians do not know and submit in faith to this gospel truth; we must walk after the Spirit through faith for this reality to be manifested. The apostle emphasized this aspect of gospel truth to the church at Corinth because they were lacking in unity; there was much strife and disunity, as this epistle to the Corinthians demonstrates.]], and were all made to drink of the one Spirit. [[Compare John 7:37-39. We all receive/drink of the one life-giving, sanctifying Spirit, and we all receive/drink of the charismatic gifts that are made available to us in the one Spirit. On the word "one," see under 1 Cor. 12:4; with this word Paul is again emphasizing the unity we are to have in the one body of Christ. I'll quote part of what Gordon D. Fee (who is a Pentecostal; his father was an Assembly of God minister) said under this verse ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Eerdmans, 1987], pages 605, 606). In his discussion of this verse, Fee has already stated that he believes that baptism in the one Spirit, which was spoken of earlier in this verse, means essentially the same thing as being made to drink of the one Spirit here at the end of this verse. (We at least begin to drink of the one Spirit at the time we are immersed in the Spirit.) Fee then says, "...the emphasis in this context, which is not on a special experience in the Spirit beyond conversion, but on their common reception of the Spirit. Most likely [with the expressions baptism in the one Spirit and being made to drink of the one Spirit]...Paul is referring to their common experience of conversion, and he does so in terms of its most crucial ingredient, the receiving of the Spirit. Such expressive metaphors (immersion in the Spirit and drinking to the fill of the Spirit)...imply a much greater experiential and visibly manifest reception of the Spirit than many have tended to experience in subsequent church history.... If this is the correct understanding of these two clauses, and the full context seems to demand such, then the prepositional phrase 'in the Spirit' is most likely locative [meaning the Greek preposition "en" is to be translated "in," as Fee goes on to show], expressing the 'element' in which they have all been immersed, just as the Spirit is that which they have all been given to drink. Such usage is also in keeping with the rest of the NT."]] (14) For the body is not one member, but many. [Compare 1 Cor. 12:20. The apostle is speaking here in 12:14 of the human body, but in this verse and the following verses, he also applies these truths to the body of Christ. The human body and the body of Christ both have many different members, and the members have different functions to perform - all the members and all the functions are important to the proper functioning of the body, by the design of God. Part of what makes us different in the body of Christ is the different callings and giftings of God.] (15) If the foot should say, 'Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,' it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. [[The foot insults God and His plans for the body of Christ if it thinks of itself as being inferior because it is not a hand. God's plans are always right, and complaining is always wrong. Besides that, the feet really are quite important to the proper functioning of the body. If you listen to the devil, you will become discouraged no matter what your role is. He even convinced Eve that she was being deceived by God and being denied that which was good and necessary for her while she was in the Garden of Eden. We cannot afford to, and we have no right to, listen to the devil. Jesus said "he is a liar, and the father of lies" (John 8:44). Learning the truth, submitting to the truth, and clinging to the truth will solve most of our problems. How precious is the truth!]] (16) And if the ear should say, 'Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,' it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. [Again, if the ear should think this way, it would be totally wrong, and it would be insulting God and His plans.] (17) If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? [We need all the members with all their God-ordained functions in the human body and in the body of Christ.] (18) But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body [This is true for the human body and for the body of Christ. As Paul continues, the body of Christ becomes predominant in his discussion and the human body fades into the background. See under 1 Cor. 12:28.], just as He desired. [And He does all things well!] (19) If they were all one member, where would the body be? [The human body would be in big trouble if all its members were eyes or ears; there would not be a body. In a similar way, the body of Christ could not begin to function as a body if all the members had the same function.] (20) But now there are many members [having many different functions, all of them important], but one body. [Compare 1 Cor. 12:12, 14. The words "one body" again emphasize the need for unity and harmony in the one body of Christ, in accordance with God's design and by His grace.] (21) And the eye cannot say to the hand, 'I have no need of you'; or again the head to the feet, 'I have no need of you.' [It is clear that the hands and the feet are quite important to the proper functioning of the human body. Similarly, in the body of Christ, there is no room for any member to have a superiority complex. By God's plan no Christian can completely fulfill his assignments apart from the other members; we are dependent on one another, whether we like it or not - but it is good.] (22) On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. [With the human body, we think of members like the internal organs. They may be weak in some ways, and they may not get much glory, but they are indispensable. With the body of Christ, we can think, for example, of the elderly, or the handicapped. God has ways to make such persons indispensable to the proper functioning of the church. For example, He can use such people in powerful ministries of intercession, healing, etc.]; (23) and those members of the body, which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, (24) whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked [For the human body, we think of those parts of the body that are covered. When applied to the body of Christ, God can, for example, make a slave a prophet, or use him (or her) in gifts of healings, etc.], (25) so that there may be no division in the body [especially referring to the body of Christ], but that the members may have the same care for one another. [[As we have briefly discussed, God has ways to make things always work right. By His plan, every Christian really is important to the proper functioning of the church - we don't have to fake it. To the extent that we walk in the Spirit and do things God's way (knowing His will by His Word and being led by His Spirit), it will be obvious that all the members really are important. However, to the extent that we are not living in the will of God and doing things His way; we will not adequately fulfill our assignments in the church; we will not glorify God as we should; we will not be a blessing to the other members of the body of Christ that we should be; we will not be the good witnesses for Christ that we should be; we will not be satisfied in our hearts; and we will not be fully ready to stand before God. Let's make it top priority to do everything God's way; there is no reasonable alternative.]] (26) And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. [We will experience this reality in the body of Christ to the extent that we understand and submit to God's plan and walk by the Spirit, setting aside the things of the flesh, like pride, jealousy, competition with one another, and self pity.] (27) Now you are Christ's body [cf. 1 Cor. 12:12; Eph. 1:23; 4:12; and Col. 1:24], and individually members of it. [When we speak of the church as Christ's body, the picture is not (as I have heard it said) that we are a body without a head, with Christ being the head. When the Bible speaks of Christ's being the head of the body (as, for example, in Col. 1:18 and Eph. 5:23), it speaks of the fact that Christ is over the church (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 1:22, 23; 5:22-24; and Col. 2:10). Note that some of the members of the body Paul mentions in 1 Cor. 12:16, 17, and 21 (eyes, ears, and nose ["sense of smell"]) are parts of the head.] (28) And God has appointed [or, set/placed; the Greek verb used here was also used in 1 Cor. 12:18] in the church [cf. 1 Cor. 10:32], first apostles [[See Eph. 4:11. Some ministries are more important than others, but all are important. The apostle is the most important ministry, as Paul says here, "first apostles," and especially when speaking of the twelve foundational apostles and the apostle Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles (Gal. 2:7, 8). For one thing, they played a major role in laying the foundation for the new-covenant church, including giving us most of the New Testament. Others, however, besides the twelve and Paul, were called apostles in the New Testament: see Acts 14:14; 1 Cor. 9:5, 6 (Barnabus); 1 Cor. 15:7; Gal. 1:19 (James, the Lord's brother); 1 Thess. 2:6 with 1:1 (Silvanus/Silas and possibly Timothy [cf., e.g., 2 Tim. 4:5]); and apparently Rom. 16:7 (Andronicus and Junias). The fact that Paul spoke of "false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ" in 2 Cor. 11:13 helps demonstrate that quite a few others beyond the twelve and Paul must have been known as apostles. Should we have apostles today? I assume we should, but they would not be foundation-laying apostles in a class with the twelve and Paul. Whether we use the label apostle, or not, they would have the call from God and the greatest authority and anointing to help get the church in order, and to keep it in order, very much including what we believe (based on the Bible). There will undoubtedly be major differences in the ministries of apostles depending on their particular call and giftings from God, and on their assigned field of ministry with its particular needs, etc. (This was also true for the first apostles.) If the apostles function as they should, in the will of God, they will be a great blessing to the body of Christ, and they will not be a threat to the other ministers - they will be a blessing. However, to the extent ministers are functioning in the flesh (and there is a lot of flesh around in our day), other ministers tend to be viewed as a threat. One last thing, just because someone calls himself an apostle (or some other ministry) does not necessarily mean that it is so (cf. Rev. 2:2). And just because a minister does not call himself an apostle does not necessarily mean that he is not an apostle. God is the one who determines such things.]], second prophets [[In this listing, Paul is apparently referring to five-fold ministry prophets, which is a ministry that includes more than the use of the charismatic gift of prophecy listed in 12:10. For one thing, in 1 Cor. 14:29-32 Paul speaks of prophets receiving revelations, which are to be shared with the church, and judged. Not all such prophets (as the word is used in 14:29-32) would be considered five-fold ministry prophets. I assume that some of them, at least at their present level of ministry, were not fully in this category, and that some of them (in the plan of God) never would become five-fold ministry prophets. Words like prophet can be somewhat flexible in their usage, and God can be quite flexible in the way He uses people. What matters is that His will be accomplished in the church, and in each individual Christian. Some other verses that refer to New Testament prophets are Acts 11:27; 13:7; 15:32; 21:10; Eph. 2:20; 3:5; and Rev. 11:10.]], third teachers [[On teachers, cf. Acts 13:1; Rom. 12:7; 1 Cor. 14:26; Eph. 4:17; and James 3:1. I assume that Paul was speaking of five-fold ministry teachers here. Not all who teach in the body of Christ are five-fold ministry teachers. For one thing, all five-fold ministers and most elders (cf. 1 Tim. 3:2) will do some teaching. What about the five-fold ministry pastors? Why didn't the apostle list pastors here? (The same question could be asked regarding evangelists.) For one thing, it must be understood that Paul is not giving an exhaustive analysis of charismatic gifts and of ministries in this chapter, nor does he give an exhaustive analysis in any other passage. Even when we look at all that the New Testament says on these topics, we don't get the answer to every question; we must remain somewhat flexible before God, flexible when it comes to some of the details regarding ministers, charismatic gifts, and the overall structure of the body of Christ. I'm sure the Bible tells us all we need to know, as we allow the Holy Spirit to lead us into the balanced truth on these topics and into the details regarding what God would have us do in our day. When the apostle Paul wrote 1 Corinthians (about AD 55), some things were still very much in a state of flux, and not fully established. This really was quite early in the history of the Christian church. (At the end of Paul's life, some ten years later in the mid-sixties, the church was still far from being fully established. And, as I mentioned, even in our day, we still need some flexibility.) The apostle Paul did not go on his (so-called) first missionary journey (Acts 13:1-28) until about AD 47. And he did not arrive at Corinth, on his second missionary journey (Acts 15:36-18:22), until about AD 50. Very often Paul did not have people (who had been called and prepared) to install as five-fold ministry pastors in the many churches he was associated with. He and his ministry team often appointed elders over those churches (see Acts 14:23; 20:17; and Titus 1:5.) Some of those elders would eventually become five-fold ministers, including five-fold ministry pastors, but not all of them would. Some of those elders may have been considered five-fold ministry pastors from the time they were appointed as elders. The word "elder" is used with some diversity in the New Testament, as a concordance will demonstrate. Paul did not list the pastor here in 12:28, but he did list "administrations." The pastor typically heads up the administration of the local church, and the elders are involved with this function too. Also, the "helps" listed in this verse would often be closely associated with, and under the authority of, the pastor/elders of the local church. All five-fold ministry pastors will do some teaching, and some five-fold ministry pastors are also five-fold ministry teachers. As I understand it, the five-fold ministry apostles and, typically, the five-fold ministry prophets and (at least some of) the five-fold ministry teachers were not limited to the local churches, as the pastors/elders were. In the local church the pastor has the highest authority, but, as I understand it, in the greater church (the body of Christ), the pastor is, in some ways, under the other five-fold ministers. However, the pastor of the local church certainly has the authority and responsibility to protect his people from some so-called apostles, prophets, evangelists, and teachers. Every minister (every Christian) has the authority and responsibility to humbly fulfill their assignments before God. This is not about defending our turf and maintaining our rights, but about humbly fulfilling our responsibilities (by the grace/Spirit of God) for the glory of God and for the common good. All Christians (including ministers) are required to "be subject to one another in the fear of Christ" (Eph. 5:21). By the plan of God, we all (including ministers) need one another. Every minister is going to have to answer to God for what they have done (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 3:10-17). To the extent that ministers walk in the flesh (and that is not all that hard to do, even for ministers; all they have to do to be fleshly is to do what comes naturally to man), they will compete with one another, and there will not be much harmony - but there's no excuse for this; it is a serious problem. It is a serious responsibility to be a minister in the body of Christ; it is not something to boast about. Whatever our calling is in the body of Christ (and all of them are important by the plan of God), we can do it well by the grace of God in Christ if we make it a top priority and humbly walk by the Spirit in the righteousness and holiness of God. It is, of course, a privilege to be called into the ministry; compare, for example, what Paul said regarding the deacon in 1 Tim. 3:13. One of the most important things each minister (each Christian) must do is to stay within his measure assigned by God. Based on my observations, however, many ministers do not understand this concept. (See the discussion of Rom. 12:1-8 in my "A Paper on Faith.")]], then miracles [cf. 1 Cor. 12:10, 29], then gifts of healings [Compare 1 Cor. 12:9, 30. After mentioning three (five-fold) ministries (apostles, prophets, and teachers), the apostle now mentions two of the nine charismatic gifts that were listed in 12:8-10; however, as 1 Cor. 12:29, 30 help demonstrate, he is thinking of those who minister (apparently not limited to the five-fold ministry).], helps [[The NIV translates, "those able to help others." The Greek word translated "helps" here is not used anywhere else in the New Testament. There is widespread agreement that the idea is of helping those in need and that the ministry of deacon (cf. Acts 6:1-6; 1 Tim. 3:8-13) fits here. Surely it is to be understood that those who minister in the areas of "helps" and "administrations" do so by the enablement of the Holy Spirit. Such enablements could apparently be considered charismatic gifts, but these gifts are in a somewhat different category than the nine charismatic gifts listed in 1 Cor. 12:8-10. Compare Rom. 12:6-8. (Romans 12:6 mentions "[charismatic] gifts [plural of charisma]." With "administrations" of 1 Cor. 12:28, compare "he who leads" of Rom. 12:8.) Also note that helps and administrations are the only two items listed in 1 Cor. 12:28 that are not mentioned in 12:29, 30. "Helps" is especially applicable for the local church and is typically under the authority of the "administrations" (pastors/elders).]], administrations [As I mentioned, the administration of the local church is typically headed up by the pastor, if there is one (as there typically is in our day), and it includes the elders.], various kinds of tongues. [By listing this gift here, the apostle confirms that he is speaking of a ministry-gift. On this gift, see under 1 Cor. 12:10.] (29) All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not workers of miracles, are they? (30) All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they? [All are not apostles, prophets, teachers, workers of miracles, those who have gifts of healings, those who are used in a ministry of kinds of tongues, or other ministries that could be listed.] (31) But earnestly desire the greater gifts [plural of charisma]. [[The verb translated "earnestly desire" is plural in the Greek; Paul was speaking to the members of the church at Corinth. (The Greek verb used here is also used in 1 Cor. 14:1, 39.) The apostle is speaking to all the members of the church, but he is not saying, I do not believe, that each Christian has a right to expect to be used in the greater gifts. We should all earnestly desire all the gifts that God makes available to us, and especially those gifts that are the most important. One reason Paul mentioned "the greater gifts" was that some at Corinth were out of balance, overusing and misusing the gift of tongues while not sufficiently desiring, and making sufficient room for, the other gifts. Note that Paul listed tongues last in 1 Cor. 12:8-10 and 12:28-30. We will discuss the overuse and misuse of tongues at Corinth as we continue with 1 Corinthians chapters 13 and 14. If we do not earnestly desire the gifts (which very much includes the need to believe they are available for our generation), we will not see much of the gifts; God will not force them on us; we must cooperate with His Spirit/grace. It is also true, of course, that we must make it a top priority to understand and rightly use the gifts. Many have heard horror stories (and some of them are true) regarding the devastation that resulted from a misuse of charismatic gifts, or supposed charismatic gifts.]] And I show you a still more excellent way. [These words serve as an introduction to chapter 13 (the verses and chapter divisions were added at a much later date; they did not derive from the apostle). Paul does not go on to say that we are to choose love instead of the gifts, but he does go on to say that love is more basic and more important than the gifts, and that it is necessary for the gifts to be accompanied by love.] In Part 3 we will go on to a lengthy section titled, "Further Discussion on the Meaning of the Words Baptism in the Holy Spirit in the New Testament." © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. I recommend taking a look at the papers, articles, and other items available on my website, including some audio recordings on the topics of holiness and victory over sin and the mid-week rapture and some information about my two books, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" and "The Mid-Week Rapture."                 Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:44:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-612/1-corinthians-chapter-12-part-3.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 12, Part 3   By: Karl Kemp       This is Part 3 of the three-part verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 12. Further Discussion on the Meaning of the Words Baptism in the Holy Spirit in the New Testament. Above, under 1 Cor. 12:13, we discussed this topic to some extent, and I referred the reader to rather thorough discussions on this topic in my other writings. Here I'll make a few additional comments, but this section consists mostly of excerpts from two Christian scholars. There have been some changes in the past thirty years, but most Pentecostals and charismatics still hold the viewpoint that (the) baptism in the Spirit refers to an experience completely separate from (and typically subsequent to) the new birth. As noted above, I believe baptism in the Spirit, as these words are used in the New Testament (and the other expressions that are used in the New Testament that have essentially the same meaning, like receiving the gift of the Spirit) very much include the new birth and the sanctifying transformation wrought by the Holy Spirit. The excerpt that I included above under 1 Cor. 12:13 from Gordon Fee (a Pentecostal scholar who is well respected as an expert in New Testament exegesis) shows that I am in essential agreement with him on this point. There are at least two reasons why Pentecostals and charismatics need to reconsider this topic. For one thing, it always is important for Christians to seek God for the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches. I have observed over the years that if we do not make finding the balanced truth a top priority item, we probably will not find it. The world, the flesh, and the devil are against us; if we do not make God and His truth a top priority, we will frequently fall short of the balanced truth. (The same thing is true regarding His righteousness, holiness, etc.) One major problem is that most Christians assume they already have the balanced truth. How could they possibly fall short of the balanced truth? Has their church not taught it this way for a long time? Surely their church could not be wrong. Has God not blessed them? Has God not used them to help many? Just because God has blessed us and used us is no guarantee that we have everything right. If God only blessed and used those Christians that have everything right, He would not be using many Christians, or blessing many. A second reason why Pentecostals and charismatics need to reconsider this topic is that the most common viewpoint among us is one of the most divisive issues in the body of Christ in our day. Unnecessary divisions in the body of Christ are a serious problem, but it is also true that this inadequate viewpoint regarding baptism in the Spirit tends to close the ears of the rest of the body of Christ to the important things they can and should learn from us. I'll include several excerpts from the 1988 book "Treasures Old and New: Interpretations of 'Spirit-Baptism' in the Charismatic Renewal Movement" by Henry I. Lederle (Hendrickson Publishers). I found this book to be informative and helpful. Dr. Lederle (who taught at the University of South Africa at the time he wrote this book) informs us in the Preface that his "vivid charismatic experience" in 1980 overturned his doctrinal apple-cart in that he was a seminary graduate "with a Reformed [Calvinistic] background with both evangelical and ecumenical roots." I am substantially abbreviating the quotations from Lederle for this internet version of the paper. (As I mentioned, you could get a copy of the original version by contacting me.) I'll include an excerpt from the Introduction. "In the sixties and seventies...a new religious awakening made its influence felt in Christianity. [I became a born-again Christian in the spring of 1964. Later that year I became aware of the Pentecostal/charismatic viewpoint, and by the spring of 1966 I had become involved in the charismatic renewal. Between 1967 and 1973 (and some later) I did a lot of teaching among Roman Catholic charismatics.] The charismatic renewal movement spread across the globe in less than a decade reaching all five continents, most Christian denominations of Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox heritage, and the lives of some sixty million people. ... The focus of this study is on...the doctrine of Spirit-baptism" (page xi). I'll quote a small part of what Lederle says on page 31. He mentions that Gordon Fee (I quoted from Fee above under 1 Cor. 12:13) had argued in 1972 that the words baptism in the Spirit in the New Testament do not refer to an experience subsequent to salvation. "Fee states that experience generally precedes hermeneutics [interpretation of the Bible] among Pentecostals [The Pentecostals are not the only ones who have this problem]: 'In a sense, the Pentecostal tends to exegete his experience [instead of the New Testament]. For example, the doctrine of Spirit-baptism as distinct from and subsequent to conversion did not flow naturally out of his reading of Scripture.' ... Fee considers the crucial point to be the experiential, dynamic quality of life in the Spirit: 'Everywhere for Luke [who wrote Acts] it is the presence of the Spirit that signifies the "real thing." ... Furthermore, in Acts the recurring pattern of the coming (or presence) of the Spirit has a dramatic, or dynamic element to it. It was experienced....' " Lederle's two quotations from Fee were taken from "Hermeneutics [Interpretation] and Historical Precedent: A Major Problem in Pentecostal Hermeneutics," in "Perspectives on the New Pentecostalism," ed. R. P. Spittler [Baker, 1976], pages 122, 131. On page 32 Lederle mentions that Fee was influenced by James Dunn, a "Reformed New Testament scholar...who is a sympathetic critic with participant-observer experience in charismatic groups in England." (I'll quote from Dunn later in this section.) "My basic contention [I'm quoting Lederle, page 66] is that the term [baptism in the Spirit] is being incorrectly applied and used today [in Pentecostal and charismatic circles], but the experience it refers to is a perfectly valid experience." On page 65 Lederle commented that he is "not against speaking of various 'entries' or 'comings' of the Spirit once the two-stage grid has been disposed of." This is important. On page 216, "...this study contends the heartbeat of the charismatic contribution to Christianity at large is not Spirit-baptism but the acknowledging of the dimension of the Spirit which is experientially manifested in spiritual gifts or charisms. ...." On page 230, "[The basic intention of the charismatic renewal] lies in vibrant, expectant faith; openness to the Holy Spirit and the wide range of his gifts; and a refusal to deny the experiential aspect of Christianity in order to appease rationalistic Western culture. [For many "Christians" it very much includes coming to an understanding of the gospel and salvation (including the new birth) through Christ Jesus for the first time. Many see for the first time that the Bible really is God's Word and that it is alive.] ... The charismatic renewal is a revival, a spiritual awakening, which needs to revitalize, energize, disturb and renew the contemporary expressions of the faith of the church. There are attempts in some circles to domesticate the charismatic renewal - to 'tame' it so that it amounts to roughly the same as traditional Christianity. ...." Now I'll include several excerpts from James D. G. Dunn, who is a New Testament scholar from England ("Baptism in the Holy Spirit" by James D. G. Dunn. SCM Press, Ltd. 1970, published in the U.S.A. by the Westminster Press). It was mentioned above that Gordon Fee was influenced by Dunn. I do not know much about Dunn, and I do not agree with everything he says in this book, but I consider the overall teaching of the book to be quite important and quite perceptive, and I highly recommend this book. Throughout this book Dunn analyzes the many passages of the New Testament that are relevant to his topic(s). I am substantially abbreviating the quotations from Dunn for this internet version of the paper. First I'll include an excerpt from the Introduction. "I hope to show that for the writers of the NT the baptism in or gift of the Spirit was part of the event (or process) of becoming a Christian, together with the effective proclamation of the Gospel, belief in ([Greek preposition]) eis) Jesus as Lord, and water-baptism in the name of the Lord Jesus; that it was the chief element in conversion-initiation so that only those who had thus received the Spirit could be called Christians; that the reception of the Spirit was a very definite and often dramatic experience, the decisive and climatic experience in conversion-initiation.... We shall see that while the Pentecostal's belief in the dynamic and experiential nature of Spirit-baptism is well founded, his separation of it from conversion-initiation is wholly unjustified.... ... We shall see that the baptism in the Spirit from the start was understood as an initiatory experience.... The Pentecostal doctrine is built chiefly on Acts, but a detailed study will reveal that for the writer of Acts [Luke] in the last analysis it is only by receiving the Spirit that one becomes a Christian..." (pages 4, 5). I'll include an excerpt from his chapter titled "Conversion-Initiation in the Acts of the Apostles." "... What the Pentecostal attempts to separate into two works of God is in fact one single divine act [not that all the ingredients of this "single divine act" come together instantaneously]. ... Faith would not justify [Dunn is using the word "justify" in the (very important) full sense that includes the transformation to righteousness by the Spirit. See the chapter of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," that deals with the meaning of the words justify/justification in the New Testament.] if God did not give his Spirit. Faith is only the reaching out of an empty hand to receive; it is what is received which alone ultimately counts" (page 96). I'll quote from pages 135, 136 of Dunn's chapter XI, in which he deals with Paul's Corinthian letters. Dunn is commenting here on the third chapter of 2 Corinthians. I'll quote part of what he said under verse 8. "Christianity exists in a completely new dispensation; Christians live in a time that is wholly different and miraculous - the time of the End. ... This is also the dispensation of righteousness (v. 9), which confirms what we have already concluded from Gal. 3: that possession of righteousness and possession of life = the Spirit, are synonymous (Gal. 3:21)." I had a footnote: I discussed Gal. 3:21, which is a very important verse, on page 39 of my paper, "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism" and on pages 103, 104 of my paper "A Paper on Faith." I agree that the heart of new-covenant salvation is having life by the Spirit, and that those who have life by the Spirit are enabled (and required) to live in righteousness by the life/Spirit of God through Christ Jesus and His atoning death, which is what Dunn is saying, if I understand him. In his following paragraphs Dunn discusses water-baptism, which he deals with quite a bit in this book since it is part of conversion-initiation as it is presented in the New Testament. Dunn argues that in the New Testament water-baptism, which was (typically) preparatory for receiving the Holy Spirit, was not optional. "The NT writers would to a man reject any separation of the decisive moment of faith...from [water] baptism...by way of putting the act of faith prior to [water] baptism, thereby reducing [water] baptism to a mere symbol.... Baptism properly performed is for the NT essentially the act of faith and repentance..." (page 227). That is, Dunn is saying that water-baptism is the appropriate occasion, according to the New Testament, to complete the transaction of entering into salvation, through union with Christ Jesus and His atoning death, through repentance and faith. Dunn is not suggesting that there was no faith before being baptized in water, but that the faith transaction is not completed (based on the typical New Testament pattern) before submitting to the Lord Jesus Christ and His atoning death in water baptism. Most Christians I know do not agree with Dunn's viewpoint, but I believe he is mostly right (right, that is, in explaining what the New Testament says) on water-baptism. Most Christians I know hold the viewpoint that the faith transaction is completed with a sinner's prayer (asking for forgiveness, inviting Christ into the heart, and, hopefully [sadly, this (along with repentance) is often skipped in our day], submitting to His Lordship). They believe that, at that time, the most important work takes place - they become born-again Christians (before they are baptized in water). Most of them believe that the convert should eventually be baptized in water, in obedience to Christ, but they do not expect anything significant to take place at that time in that the all-important transformation has already taken place (their sins have been washed away; they have been born again; the Spirit of God has come to dwell in them; and they have the power to begin to live for God [sadly, many skip telling converts about the enablement, and requirement, to begin to live for God in His righteousness and holiness]). I am quite sure that this procedure can (and often does) produce acceptable results (this is pretty much what happened to me and to most of the Christians I fellowship with), assuming that the converts really understand the basics of the gospel and really submit to the gospel in faith (including repentance), and assuming that they are committed to press on in faith (by the grace of God), building their lives on the Word of God and truly being committed to the Lordship of Christ. It is, of course, also very important that the convert be part of a church that is committed to God and His Word. I am also quite sure that we will achieve better results if we come into better alignment with the balanced truth of what the New Testament teaches regarding water baptism. Furthermore, Christians can unite around the balanced truth. I discussed water-baptism on page 126 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" (see the footnotes too) and under 1 Cor. 15:29 on pages 6, 7 of my paper on 1 Corinthians chapter 15 on my internet site. I'll quote part of what I said there: "It's clear to me that the Bible teaches a much higher view of [water] baptism than that held by many Christians today. I'm not bringing this up because I think this is one of the biggest problems we have in the Body of Christ. (I believe we have much greater problems to deal with in the Body of Christ, especially dealing with the basic truths of the gospel and the need to live in God's will - in righteousness and holiness - by grace/the Spirit through faith.) Furthermore, I'm not bringing up water baptism because of some special interest in this topic, or because of some special experience I've had; I'm not emotionally involved regarding this topic, and I'm not obligated to any particular viewpoint (we are obligated to God and His truth). I'm bringing it up strictly based on what the Bible seems to rather clearly say on this topic. I'm certainly not suggesting, nor do I believe, that people can't be saved or sanctified apart from water baptism. God has been very generous with His people (in blessing us in spite of our errors), but that's no excuse to maintain our viewpoints when they're wrong/when they don't line up with the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches. The more we do things God's way, the more He'll be glorified, His will will be accomplished in the church, the more He can bless us and use us, and the more we can unite around the balanced truth. It seems that many have formed their view of water baptism mostly in reaction to someone else who was out of balance in a different direction (for example, against the viewpoint of baptismal regeneration or the viewpoint that it is impossible to be born again before being baptized in water). We need the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches in this area, as in every area. The following points are quite significant: The Bible mentions forgiveness/washing away of sins at water baptism (Acts 2:38, 22:16). It mentions becoming united with Christ in baptism, including being united with Him in His death on the cross (cf. Gal. 3:27; Rom. 6:3). He died an atoning death in our place; we are to die to sin and to the old man in water baptism, and the old man is to be buried (Rom. 6:3, 4; Col. 2:11, 12). John 3:5 seems to speak of water baptism as a preliminary to being born of the Spirit. I believe, in agreement with many, that the words "born of water" in John 3:5 refer to water baptism, which was quite prominent in that setting. Not only was John the Baptist baptizing (even Jesus was baptized by him), but Jesus (through His disciples) was also baptizing in water (John 1:25-34; 3:22-26; 4:1, 2). The baptism of John 3:5 is a baptism of repentance and faith. Regarding the Biblical pattern that the life-giving, sanctifying, gift-dispensing Spirit typically comes to believers immediately after, and in close association with, water baptism, see pages 126, 127 in "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," including the notes. That reference also discusses Titus 3:5, which is another verse that apparently views water baptism as a preliminary to receiving the Spirit (not that there isn't room for exceptions to this pattern, cf. Acts 10:44-48). ((If God hadn't made it obvious that He fully accepted those Gentile believers by giving them the Holy Spirit, as on the day of Pentecost, it is totally unlikely that Peter would have baptized them. He knew it would be very controversial to baptize and accept those who were not circumcised: "Those who were circumcised took issue with [Peter]" [Acts 11:2]. See Acts 10:44-11:18.)) And 1 Pet. 3:21 even speaks of baptism saving us. As I mentioned, I'm not suggesting that these things (like forgiveness, dying to the old man, etc.) can't be received apart from water baptism, but baptism seems to be the most appropriate (Biblical) occasion to complete these transactions. We must continue to walk in the Spirit by faith (based on what God has said in His Word) throughout the rest of our lives on the earth, which is far from being automatic or always easy. I believe it's necessary for us to understand that water baptism is meaningful and effective only if it's accompanied by the following indispensable things: We must hear the gospel and understand it (we must at least understand the basics of the gospel); we must repent and submit to the gospel (and God Himself) in faith; and we must have all the necessary work of the Holy Spirit (like His drawing, convicting, revealing, regenerating, and sanctifying work). Without these things water baptism is nothing more than another dead ritual. Some other verses to consider on water baptism are Matt. 3:1-12, 13-17; 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:41; 8:36-39; 9:18; 19:5; and Eph. 4:5. May God's will be fully accomplished through this study of 1 Corinthians chapter 12! © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.                 Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:42:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-611/1-corinthians-chapter-13.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 13   By: Karl Kemp       This verse-by-verse study on 1 Corinthians chapter 13 was taken from my paper titled "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:6. In the original paper and the version on my internet site, I was able to use bold, underlining, italics, and footnotes. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless I mention otherwise. Sometimes I will use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) to make them more obvious. I'll quote part of what Paul W. Marsh said as an introduction to this chapter ("New Layman's Bible Commentary" [Zondervan, 1979], page 1449). "It is hardly correct to refer to this chapter as a digression, providing as it does that cardinal Christian quality without which all the charismata [plural of charisma; gifts] are worthless. Moreover, the theme of 'gifts' as it is continued in chapter 14 proceeds to unravel its many practical problems under the all prevailing plea, MAKE LOVE YOUR AIM. It is the essential link between the principle expounded in chapter 12 and the practice explained in chapter 14. Love is a specifically Christian revelation. The Greek language with all its richness, incapable of expressing this deep reality, provided an obscure word [agape] to be invested with an entirely new connotation by the NT writers. While Greeks praise wisdom and Romans power, Paul pens a psalm in praise of love which stands alone, by-passed in a world of hate." I'll also quote part of what Gordon D. Fee said as the introduction to his discussion of 1 Cor. 13:1-3 ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Eerdmans, 1987], page 630). "... For Paul [being spiritual] meant first of all to be full of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, which therefore meant to behave as those 'sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be his holy people' (1 Cor. 1:2), of which the ultimate expression always is to 'walk in love.' " Fee mentioned here that some of the Corinthian Christians tended to equate being spiritual with being used in spiritual gifts. Many Christians of our day make the same serious mistake. "If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels [[The plural form of the Greek noun "glossa" that is translated "tongues" here (and often) could also be translated "languages." The NIV, for example, translates this noun as language(s) seven times in the New Testament (all seven uses are in the book of Revelation). The Bible does not mention the tongues/languages "of angels" anywhere else, but it is reasonable to assume that such tongues/languages do exist. (I had a footnote: I heard a testimony [I assume it was accurate] that confirms that a person speaking with tongues can (as God wills) speak the/a language of God's angels.) At least some of the tongues/languages spoken on the day of Pentecost were the languages of men (Acts 2:4-11).]], but do not have love [Greek agape], I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. [[The apostle's point is that tongues being used without love will not prove to be a blessing to the body of Christ. Being "a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal" hardly qualifies as a blessing. Paul said what he did here knowing that tongues were being misused at Corinth (as chapter 12 suggests and as chapter 14 clearly demonstrates) and knowing that there was a shortage of love in manifestation at Corinth because of their sin/fleshiness. (The flesh cannot produce genuine agape.) Throughout this chapter the apostle emphasizes the need for Christians to always walk in love (the Spirit of God enabling them to do so). That is the dominant message of this chapter. I'll quote part of what Fee said here ("First Epistle to the Corinthians," page 631). "... To 'have love'...means to be toward others the way God in Christ has been toward us. Thus...for those who 'walk in the Spirit' the primary ethical imperative is 'love one another.' [Christians will love one another to the extent they walk in the Spirit.] This is found at the heart of every ethical instruction (In a footnote Fee said, "See 1 Thess. 4:9; Gal. 5:13, 22; 12:9; 13:8; Col. 3:14; Eph. 5:2"), and the other exhortations are but explications of it." It can also be said that without the underlying attitude/motivation of love, charismatic ministry-gifts like tongues or prophecy (genuine gifts) can do more harm than good. Chapter 14 of 1 Corinthians shows that much of the public tongue speaking being done in the church at Corinth was not edifying the church. Even if the Corinthians who were misusing tongues in the church at Corinth thought that they were edifying the church before Paul instructed them otherwise (in chapter 14), they were not edifying the church. It seems rather clear that they were more interested in themselves, their gifts, and their personal edification than they were interested in edifying the church (by love) through their gifts.]] (2) And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge [[The Greek favors the interpretation that "the gift of prophecy" here includes the potential of "[knowing] all mysteries and all knowledge." The NIV has, "If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge." First Corinthians 14:30, which (in context with 14:29-32) is speaking of prophets and prophesying, speaks of receiving revelations from God (which is something more than speaking prophetically under the anointing of the Spirit). On "the gift of prophecy," see under 1 Cor. 12:10, 28 in the three-part article on 1 Corinthians chapter 12, and see the two-part article on 1 Corinthians chapter 14.]]; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains [Compare Matt. 17:20; 21:21; and Mark 11:23. On the charismatic gift of faith, see under 1 Cor. 12:9 in the article on 1 Corinthians chapter 12. I am not suggesting (nor do I believe) that mountain-moving faith always fits in the category of being a charismatic gift.], but do not have love, I am nothing. [The apostle certainly makes the point that charismatic gifts (genuine charismatic gifts) being manifested without love do not constitute an acceptable ministry, one that glorifies God and accomplishes His intended purposes.] (3) And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor [See Matt. 6:1-4. Compare the charismatic gift of giving in Rom. 12:8. Again, I am not suggesting (nor do I believe) that all the giving in the body of Christ fits in the category of being a charismatic gift.], and if I deliver my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. [[These things do not profit those doing them (before God) because they are not being done for the right reasons if they are not being done in/by love (including love for God and love for the neighbor). Such works are not acceptable before God, and He will not reward them. It must be understood that Christians are enabled to walk in love by the indwelling Spirit of God; love (agape) is the first fruit of the Spirit mentioned by Paul in Gal. 5:22. But Christians do not just automatically walk in love; we must cooperate with the Spirit and walk after the Spirit through faith, based on what God says in His word.]] (4) [Paul undoubtedly wrote (under the inspiration of the Spirit) these characteristics of love contained in 13:4-7 with the shortcomings of the Corinthians (their manifestations of fleshiness) in mind.] Love is patient, love is kind [Patience and kindness are also listed by the apostle along with love as fruit of the Spirit in Gal. 5:22.], and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant [I somewhat prefer the KJV's more literal "not puffed up" instead of "not arrogant." The same Greek verb is also used in 1 Cor. 4:6, 18, 19; 5:2; and 8:1.], (5) does not act unbecomingly [The NIV has, "It is not rude."]; it does not seek its own [cf. 1 Cor. 10:24; Phil. 2:21], is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered [The NIV has, "it keeps no record of wrongs." This does not mean that we are to overlook obvious sin being committed by Christians - that would not be love (cf., e.g., Matt. 18:15-20; 1 Cor. 5:1-13; 6:1-11; and 2 Thess. 3:6-13).], (6) does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth [[If, for example, a minister is involved in fleshly competition with other ministers, he might rejoice if another minister fell into sin, including the sin of teaching false doctrine, as if that somehow elevated him. The fall of another minister might make him look a little better (by comparison with the fallen minister) from the point of view of the flesh, but the reality is that the fall of Christians always hurts the body of Christ, including each of its members, not to mention the fact that God is robbed of glory that He should have received. "Unrighteousness" is always against "the truth." THE TRUTH includes RIGHTEOUSNESS (cf., e.g., Eph. 4:21-24 [Eph. 4:24 speaks of the "righteousness and holiness of the truth"]; 2 Thess. 2:12; Titus 1:1; and James 5:19, 20). Christians must always rejoice with righteousness and with the truth. Both ultimately come from God.]]; (7) bears all things [[I prefer this translation ("bears") for the Greek verb ("stego") used here (cf. 1 Cor. 9:12; 1 Thess. 3:5; both verses use the same Greek verb); however, as the margin of the NASB shows, this Greek verb can also be translated "covers." The BAGD Greek Lexicon gives "bear, stand, endure" as one set of meanings for this verb and "cover, pass over in silence, keep confidential" as the other set. BAGD does not offer an opinion regarding which of these two meanings was intended by the apostle here. The NIV translates, "It always protects." (Protection is related to covering.)]], believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. [[I believe the NIV's "always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres" better communicates Paul's intended meaning, but I prefer "always believes, always hopes, always endures (or, perseveres)." With the first verb of this verse included, it would read "always bears, always believes, always hopes, always endures (or perseveres)." (Instead of "always" we could translate "in everything.") Apparently the idea is that no matter what happens (in and through all things), love (and the Christian who walks in love) keeps on bearing, keeps on believing, keeps on hoping, and keeps on enduring (or, persevering) - it does not stop or turn aside for anything; it keeps pressing on. The apostle apparently includes the idea here, which he will expand upon in the following verses, that love is enduring, never-ending, eternal. This is true because it is God's love. Christians are enabled to walk in this love through the indwelling Holy Spirit; however, as it was obvious at Corinth, Christians can still walk after the flesh instead of the Spirit, not that this is acceptable Christianity. To say that love is eternal and that the charismatic gifts will come to an end (as Paul will go on to say in the following verses) is, for one thing, to further demonstrate that love is more important than the charismatic gifts (not that we have to choose between love and the charismatic gifts, but we must always walk in love and operate the gifts in love).]] (8) Love never fails [[These words do not teach, as I have often heard it said, that our walking in love will always eventually result in the repentance of the other person. Some people never will repent. The love of God does not win over all people. The most literal translation here, which I prefer, is "love never falls." I believe Paul's intended meaning is rather clearly established by the rest of this verse and the following verses. His primary point is that love (unlike tongues and prophecy) is a never-ending thing that will not pass away, it will never fall/fail. In the light of verse 7, when I say love is a never-ending thing, I am including the idea that those who walk in the love of God (by His grace/Spirit) will endure/persevere through all things and forever. (All good things come from God, including love, truth, life, righteousness, and holiness.)]]; but if there are gifts of prophecy [cf. 1 Cor. 13:2], they will be done away; if there are tongues [cf. 1 Cor. 13:1], they will cease; if there is knowledge [In this context, Paul is speaking of knowledge that is received by revelation, like with the word of knowledge (1 Cor. 12:8). Now "we know in part" (1 Cor. 13:9; cf. 13:12). In the eternal age to come we will have full, complete knowledge (see 1 Cor. 13:12).], it will be done away. [[Prophecy, tongues, and knowledge (knowledge in the limited sense just mentioned) are only for this age; they will cease/be done away with when the eternal age arrives. Some Christians seem to be desperate to find a verse to back up their idea that the charismatic gifts (gifts like tongues and prophecy) ended with the first-generation apostles and the completion of the New Testament. They say that the words "when the perfect comes" of 1 Cor. 13:10 refer to the completion of the New Testament. ((I had a footnote: I'll quote what Paul Marsh ("New Layman's Bible Commentary," page 1450) said regarding the idea that " 'the perfect' refers to the completion of the Canon of Scripture." "Such an interpretation exists only by virtue of the need to explain the absence of certain charismata in many churches today." I'll also quote part of what D. A. Carson ("Showing the Spirit: A Theological Exposition of 1 Corinthians 12-14" [Baker, 1987], page 71) said regarding this topic. "As Turner ["Spiritual Gifts Then and Now," "Vox Evangelica" 15 (1985):7-64] remarks, the reference to the parousia [we will be glorified at the time of the parousia] is 'so sure that Calvin was able to say: "It is stupid of people to make the whole of this discussion apply to the intervening time [before the coming of Christ]." However much we respect the New Testament canon, Paul can only be accused of the wildest exaggeration in verse 12 if that is what he was talking about.' ")) I do not believe there is any possibility that this is what Paul meant. (See under 1 Cor. 13:10.) This verse (13:8), when read in context with 13:7-13, does not offer any support for the idea that the charismatic gifts are not for us today, and I do not know of any other verses that support that idea. Will I admit that much damage has been done through a misuse of charismatic gifts or supposed charismatic gifts? Emphatically yes! But that does not give us the right to try to eliminate charismatic gifts from the body of Christ.]] (9) For we know in part [Compare 1 Cor. 13:12. We can only know the part that God reveals to us.], and we prophesy in part [We can only prophesy the part God gives us to prophesy.]; (10) But when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. [[The Greek prepositional phrase that is translated "the partial" here is exactly the same as the Greek translated "in part" twice in 1 Cor. 13:9 and once in 13:12. For Paul to say "the partial here in 13:10 [which includes knowledge and prophecy according to 13:9] will be done away" is essentially a repetition of what he said regarding prophecy and knowledge in 13:8, even using the same verb for "will be done away." The Greek adjective translated "perfect" here could just as well be translated "complete." Paul is speaking of that which is perfect/compete in contrast with that which is partial/in part. Whether we translate complete or perfect, the apostle is speaking of the eternal state that will start for us when Christ returns and we are glorified. The Greek behind "the perfect [or, complete]" is neuter in gender, which confirms that Paul is not referring specifically to Christ Himself. (If Paul were referring to Christ as the Perfect One, he would have used the masculine gender.) It is true, however, that at the time Christ returns (comes), we will enter eternal glory (the completed/perfected state).]] (11) When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. [Throughout this present age we are like children in comparison with our future glorified state, which is likened to adulthood. In the eternal, glorified state, we will no longer need things like gifts of prophecy; all such things will have been put away, being beneficial only for our present childhood-like state.] (12) For now [throughout this present age] we see in a mirror dimly [[With our present limitations we are not able to directly look at, or to fully know, God, or the things of God. We see, as in a mirror, only an imperfect and incomplete reflection (at least in some ways it is like a reflection) of the glorious reality. I'll quote what Craig S. Keener said regarding ancient mirrors here ("Bible Background Commentary - New Testament" [Inter-Varsity Press, 1993], page 480). "Mirrors were often made of bronze, and given the worldwide reputation of Corinthian bronze, would perhaps strike the Corinthians as a local product (also cf. 2 Cor. 3:18). But even the best mirrors reflected images imperfectly (some philosophers thus used mirrors as an analogy to describe mortals' searching for the deity)...."]], but then face to face [Compare 2 Cor. 5:7; Phil. 3:12-14. Then, in the glorified state, we will see directly, fully, and clearly (instead of a partial, imperfect reflection). With the words "face to face," the emphasis seems to be on our being able to see and to fully know (at least in one sense) God Himself (cf. 1 John 3:2; Rev. 22:4).]; now I know in part [Compare "we know in part" of 13:9; in the Greek "in part" is the same in both verses.], but then ["Then" here, as earlier in this verse, refers to the time starting with our glorification.] I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. [God fully knows us now (cf. 1 Cor. 8:3), but we will not fully know Him (which includes experiential knowledge of Him), including knowing fully the things associated with the glory of His eternal kingdom, until we have been glorified. Even if He were to reveal all things to us now, we would not be able to receive the revelation. This full knowledge is contrasted with the knowing in part mentioned in this verse.] (13) But now faith, hope, love, abide [or, "remain," NIV] these three; but the greatest of these is love. [[The idea here is not that faith, hope, and love abide [remain] now, though it is true that they do abide [remain] now. The BAGD Greek Lexicon has the following heading under "nuni" (the Greek word translated "now" here): "with the idea of time weakened or entirely absent," and it lists 1 Cor. 13:13; Rom. 7:17. English sometimes uses "now" in a similar, non-temporal sense, as in "now hear this" or "now since that is true, this must be true also." The Greek word translated "now" in 13:12 is a different word. The idea is that faith, hope, and love abide (remain) forever (they are eternal), unlike the charismatic gifts (like prophecy and tongues). Faith, hope, and love will play a vital role in God's eternal kingdom, but the charismatic gifts are just for this present age. Once we know fully (1 Cor. 13:12), we will not need the partial knowledge provided by the charismatic gifts. It is easy to see that love is of foundational importance and is eternal; for one thing, "God is love" (1 John 4:16). And it should be easy enough to see that love is more important than charismatic gifts, not that the gifts are not important for this present age. Remember that Paul's main point in this chapter is that love is essential and Christians must walk in love, including in their use of the charismatic gifts. Love, according to this verse, is even greater than faith and hope. (In a different context, if we were discussing how to be saved, for example, I would say that faith is more important than love. We cannot begin to love as we should without the enablement of the Spirit who comes to us through salvation BY FAITH in Christ Jesus.) It is not difficult to see how faith and hope can be considered eternal. When we think of faith in the basic sense of an attitude of the heart where we put God first, trust Him, believe Him, and obey Him, it is easy to see how faith will continue forever. And hope is appropriate for God's people in heaven in the sense of our having infinite confidence regarding the future.]] I'll quote part of what Raymond D. Brown said regarding agape under 1 Cor. 13:1-13 ("Broadman Bible Commentary," Vol. 10 [Broadman Press, 1970], pages 369, 370). "The fourth [Greek] noun for love is agape. It appears most striking that this word occurs only rarely among the Greeks. Yet it is the word most widely used for 'love' in the New Testament and in the LXX [Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament)]. The verb agapan [agapao] occurs approximately 200 times in the LXX. The noun agape is used there 19 times. The verb agapan [agapao] is used 130 times in the New Testament and the noun almost 120 times. ... Christians were aware of its presence [agape] in the LXX to express different kinds of love (cf. Jer. 2:2; Deut. 4:37; Hos. 3:1; 11:1; Gen. 22:2). Paul uses the word, partly, because it is used widely in the LXX. ... The other Greek words for love had distinctive connotations among Greek-speaking people. Since the word agape was not used widely by them, it could be filled with Christian meaning. And it is employed to express various kinds of love in the New Testament (cf. John 17:26; Rom. 8:37; 1 Cor. 2:9; 2 Thess. 2:16; Matt. 5:43-48). Agape is used to express the spontaneous, creative, caring love that is expressive of God's nature and that extended to undeserving men in Christ. Men who accept God's love are empowered by the Spirit of God (Gal. 5:22) to live thankfully and obediently in response to God's love and thereby live by the love that redeems them in Jesus Christ. ... It comes not through self-assertion but through self-surrender. ... Love is centered in concern for others. Moreover, love is the principle that controls the exercise of all gifts: love creates unity, not division. To follow the way of love is to follow the very nature of God himself. Agape is the most excellent way because it is grounded in God. ...." May God's will be fully accomplished through this verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 13. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek (lasting one or two years), using the textbooks that were used in seminary. Verse-by-verse studies of 1 Corinthians 10-15 are available on this Christian article site.             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:40:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-610/fighting-racism.html Fighting Racism   By: Curt Klingerman       By fighting racism in the natural, we promote racism. It falls under the concept of persecute it and it will grow. Secondly, we are still minding the flesh, and still promoting division instead of unity. If we preach the Gospel and love people, regardless of who they are, racism will be defeated. The reality is there is only one race –the human race. Every genealogical line traces back to one set of parents –Adam and Eve. After the flood, everyone’s bloodline goes back to Noah and his family. Racism declares God’s Word is not true. It is a subtle plan of the enemy to discredit the Word of God, and cause division. With division comes hatred and destruction, which leads to bondage. Because fallen man is in bondage to sin, he seeks to enslave others. It is a byproduct of the fall. The desire to dominate others is innate in the fallen nature. Man has been enslaving man throughout all history because that is what his father the devil does. Enslavement takes many different forms, but its roots are still found in sin. One subtle form of slavery that is not so recognizable is manipulation. Anytime a person manipulates another to do his bidding, he has enslaved that person. It may not be called slavery, but that is what it is. Anytime a person uses his position to lord over another, he is placing that person in bondage. In the Kingdom, people freely serve one another out of love, and submit to one another without coercion. Therefore, preaching the Gospel brings freedom, and freedom destroys slavery. Keep in mind that the things of Light always overcome the things of darkness. Hence, freedom will always defeat slavery, and love will eradicate racism. The desire for freedom is innate in all humanity because the Lord desires us to freely love and serve Him. Furthermore, He desires that we freely serve one another, which is another reason people hate to be manipulated. If we are going to defeat racism, which is another form of hatred, we are going to need to walk in love. Ironically, some who combat racism risk becoming racist or they already are. The problem lies in becoming a segregationist in the approach –“us versus them.” They become more concerned about their own “rights” that in essence take away or infringe upon the rights of other people groups. Instead of bridging the gap, they burn bridges. Love employs the Biblical principle of, “Deny thyself, take up thy cross, and follow me” (see Matthew 16:24). Jesus went about doing good to all. Love is equal. Racism rests upon unforgiveness. It holds a grudge and never forgets. As long as people focus on the past, they maintain the mindset of the past, and harbor bitterness. It is one thing to learn from history; it is quite another to live there. One quality of God that we need to adhere to says, “Their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more” (see Hebrews 8:12). As long as people hold others in unforgiveness, they will never move forward; therefore, forgiveness plays a major role in defeating racism. Racism is a stronghold that holds people’s mind captive. It will always cause them to see others from a tainted viewpoint. They never really see “them” for who “they” really are because the preconceived notions have blinded them to the truth. They carry the “don’t confuse me with the facts, I’ve already made up my mind” syndrome. Conversely, if one sets out to combat racism, even out of pure heart, he may become too concerned about what “the others” think about him. For example, Don’t they realize that I am not a racist? The propensity may be to prove one is not racist, and in some cases practice reverse discrimination. If he simply walks in love, it will be evident that he is not. It is a moot subject at that point. Love makes no differentiation. It is unconditional and without respect of persons. This is not to say racism should not be fought; rather, it is the way we fight that will make the difference. If we walk as children of Light, loving God and people, racism will never enter our minds and hearts. We will be too busy loving others to even consider it. Jesus said, “Go ye into the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15); not, “go and fight racism.” As we are busy about the Father’s business, we will tear down walls of racism. Love will meet people where they are at, and minister their needs in the process. www.perfectfaith.org   Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith Of Jesus In The Life Of The Believer (His Faith, Not Ours)," by Curt Klingermanhttp://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:38:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-609/philippians-chapter-1-part-3-a-what-happened-to-paul-still-happens-today.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 3 A - What happened to Paul still happens today   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:12-13 Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happen to me has served to advance the gospel. As a result it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. Since the details of what had happened to Paul are not mentioned in the book of Philippians. I want to fill in some of those details as to why he was in chains in Rome and also mention the plight of persecuted Christians in some of the earth’s nations today. Paul had visited the house of Philip the Evangelist in Acts 21:8-15, there he was met by a prophet called Agabus who told him that the Jews in Jerusalem would bind him hands and feet and hand him over to the Gentiles meaning the Romans. Paul wanting to witness for Jesus before Caesar decided to go to Jerusalem anyway. When he arrived in Jerusalem, Jews from Asia stirred up trouble for him by shouting to the crowd, “This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against our people and our law and this place, besides he has brought Greeks into the temple area and defiled this holy place.” With this Paul was seized and they began to beat him. When the Roman commander heard of it he took some soldiers and arrested Paul and ordered him to be bound hand and foot in chains. He would have examined Paul by scourging but Paul told him he was a Roman citizen and that was preempted. After this Paul was allowed to address the crowd, in Acts 22:1-21. When they heard his defense the mob raised their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of such a fellow he is not fit to live!” Since it looked like the crowd was beginning to riot the commander ordered Paul to be taken into the barracks and the next day released him so that he could be brought before the Sanhedrin. Paul’s defense before the Sanhedrin was that he was in chains because he believed in the resurrection. This caused an uproar between the Sadducees who do not believe such and the Pharisees who do and since it appeared to the centurion that they would tear Paul to pieces “he ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force and bring him into the barracks". Since there was a plot by some forty or more Jews to kill Paul and the centurion learned of it through Paul’s nephew he transferred Paul to Caesarea to Felix the Governor. Read about this and the letter the centurion sent to Felix in Acts 23. Felix ordered Paul kept under guard in Herod’s palace. Paul had a trial of sorts before Felix in which Ananias the High Priest and the elders along with a lawyer called Tertullus presented their case against him but the proceedings were adjourned without a decision pending the arrival of Lysias, the Roman commander. Several days later Felix along with his wife Drusilla sent for Paul who spoke them about righteousness, self-control and the judgment to come. Felix being afraid when he heard this dismissed Paul and told him he would send for him at a more convenient time. Although he spoke with Paul often he kept him imprisoned and never rendered a decision hoping that Paul would offer him a bribe. “When two years had passed Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, but because Felix wanted to grant a favor to the Jews, he left Paul in prison. Three days after arriving in the province. Festus went from Caesarea to Jerusalem where the chief priests and Jewish leaders appeared before him and presented charges against Paul. They urgently requested Festus …to have Paul transferred to Jerusalem, for they were preparing an ambush to kill him along the way”. Paul made his defense before Festus and would have been freed but the Jews objected and demanded that he be sent to Jerusalem, therefore, Paul appealed to Caesar because he knew of the Jewish plot to kill him and because God had told him that he would testify for his name in Rome, see Acts 25:9-12, 26:30-32, 28:17-20. Paul was sent to Caesar in Rome. Read about the perils of Paul’s journey to Rome in Acts 27. Read how he survived a snake bite in Malta and arrived safely in Rome in Acts 28:1-16. Paul was allowed to make his case to the Jews in Rome three days after he arrived there. “Some were convinced by what he said, but others would not believe. They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made his final statement.” When Paul saw this he told them, “The Holy Spirit spoke the truth to your forefathers when he said through the Isaiah the prophet, “Go to this people and say, “You will be ever hearing but never understanding…”. Therefore I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles and they will listen.” Paul remained a prisoner in chains but was allowed to live in his own rented house for two years under guard and welcomed all who came to see him where he “boldly and without hindrance” preached the word of God. Read the full account regarding Paul’s imprisonment by Romans in Acts chapter 21 through chapter 28. What happened to the Apostle Paul and worse is happening to many believers today, especially to those in Islamic and Buddhist nations. They are beaten, their services are broken up, their churches are destroyed, they are arrested at their wedding ceremonies, services and houses, their possessions are seized or destroyed, both men and women are imprisoned, they are thrown out of their native countries, in some countries the women are raped and the men and children are enslaved and many are killed. You can go to www.persecution.com to read about persecuted Christians and the nations and governments involved. This information comes from the Voice of the Martyrs. Here is a list of 16 primary nations, according to the Voice of Martyrs where persecution is occurring today: 1. Burma 2. China 3. Eritrea 4. Iran 5. North Korea 6. Saudi Arabia 7. Sudan 8. Uzbekistan 9. Egypt 10. Iraq 11. Nigeria 12. Pakistan 13. Tajikistan 14. Turkey 15. Turkmenistan 16. Vietnam Here is a list of secondary nations where persecution is also occurring: 1. Afghanistan 2. Belarus 3. Cuba 4. India 5. Indonesia 6. Laos 7. Russia 8. Somalia 9. Venezuela Truthfully speaking Christians are persecuted in every nation of the world today where they exist though those persecutions in nations with religious tolerance and freedom are subtle and unapparent. In the nations on the two lists, however, persecution is egregious. Pray for the saints in these nations who are undergoing tremendous loss and suffering every day and then pray for all the saints. I have chosen not to mention any one of the persecuted in particular because of the countless numbers who are unknown and are enduring tremendous persecutions also. Let us include all in our prayers but you may read of specific accounts of particular persecuted Christians on The Voice of Martyrs website at www.persecution.com.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit and The Holy Scriptures www.persecution.com             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:30:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-608/god039s-sovereignity-over-the-heavens-and-earth.html God's Sovereignity over the Heavens and Earth   By: Paul George       God's Sovereignty over the Heavens and Earth Genesis 1:1 Prior to Genesis 1:1, the universe was unborn and creation existed only in the mind of God, who was there to resist His will? If God determined to call into existence a million different creatures and endow them with the same faculties and placing them in the same environment; or, create a million creatures each differing from the others, and possessing nothing in common who was there to challenge His right? It was His Sovereign right to create, on the one hand, the exalted seraphim, and on the other hand, the tiny insect that dies the same hour that it is born, who was there to question His Sovereign pleasure? Consider the birds as they fly through the air, the beasts as they roam the earth, the fishes as they swim in the sea, and then ask, who was it that made them different? Was it not their Creator? In the heavens, there is the glory of the sun, the glory of the moon, and the glory of the stars. Why should the sun be more glorious than all the other planets? Why should there be stars of the first magnitude and others of the tenth, why such inequalities? Why are some of the heavenly bodies more favorably placed than others in their relation to the sun? Why should two thirds of the earth be covered with water, and why should so much of its remaining third be unfit for human cultivation or habitation? Why should there be vast stretches of marshes, deserts and ice fields? Why should one country be so inferior, topographically, from another? Why should one be fertile, and another almost barren? Why should one be rich in minerals and another own none? Why should the climate of one be congenial and healthy, and another uncongenial and unhealthy? Why does one nation abound in rivers and lakes, and another almost devoid of them? Why should one area of the earth be constantly troubled with earthquakes, and another almost entirely free from then, the answer, because it pleases the Creator and Upholder of all things? Consider the animal kingdom, what comparison is possible between the lion and the lamb, the bear and the kid, the elephant and the mouse? Some, like the horse and the dog, are gifted with great intelligence; while others, like sheep and swine, are almost devoid of it. Some animals are designed to be beasts of burden, while others enjoy a life of freedom. Why should the mule and the donkey live a life of drudgery while the lion and tiger are allowed to roam the jungle at their pleasure? Some animals are fit for food, others unfit; some are beautiful, others ugly; some are endowed with great strength, others are quite helpless; some are fleet of foot, others can scarcely crawl; some are of use to man, others appear to be quite valueless; some live for centuries, others a few months at most; some are tame, others fierce. Why are there all these variations and differences? What is true of the animal kingdom is equally true of the vegetable kingdom. We might ask, why do roses have thorns, and lilies grow without them? Why should one flower emit a fragrant aroma and another has none? Why does one tree bear fruit that is wholesome and another poisonous? Why should one vegetable be capable of enduring frost and another wither under it? Why is one apple tree loaded with fruit, and another tree of the same age and in the same orchard almost barren? Why should one plant flower a dozen times in a year and another bear blossoms but once a century? In Psalm 135:6, the psalmist answers the questions. What about the angelic hosts, why are some higher in rank than others, more powerful than others, and nearer to God than others. Scripture reveals a definite and well-defined ranking in the angelic orders, from archangel, seraphim, cherubim, and “principalities and powers” (Ephesians 3:10), and from principalities and powers to “rulers” (Ephesians 6:12). Again we ask, Why this inequality, this difference in rank and order, all we can say is “Our God is in the heavens; He has done whatsoever He has pleased" (Psalm 115:3). That brings us to the question, if the Sovereignty of God is displayed throughout all creation, why should it be thought a strange thing if we behold it operating in the midst of the human family? Why should it be thought strange if to one God is pleased to give five talents and to another only one? Why should it be thought strange if one is born with a robust constitution and another of the same parents is frail and sickly? Why should it be thought strange if Abel is cut off in his prime, while Cain is permitted to live for many years? Why should it be thought strange that some should be born black and others white; some born with low I.Q. and others with high I.Q; some born constitutionally lethargic and others full of energy; some born with a temperament that is selfish, fiery, egotistical, others naturally self-sacrificing, submissive and meek? Why should it be thought strange if some are qualified by nature to lead and rule, while others are only fitted to follow and serve? Heredity and environment cannot account for all these variations and inequalities; God makes one different from another. In an anti-authority society we need to learn this basic truth, the Creator is absolute Sovereign, executing His own will, performing His own pleasure, and considering nothing but His own glory (Proverbs 16:4), and He has a perfect right to do what He does. Since God is who He is to challenge His prerogative, murmur against Him is rank rebellion. To question His ways is to question His wisdom. To criticize Him is a sin. Have we forgotten who He is? Behold, “All nations before Him as are nothing; and they are counted to Him less than nothing, and vanity. To whom then will you liken God” (Isaiah 40:17, 18). Suppose the opposite was true. Let us say that God created the world, designed and fixed certain laws, and that He then left the world to shift for itself. In such a case, we should have a world over which there was no intelligent, presiding Governor, a world controlled by nothing more than impersonal laws, gross materialism and atheism. A very superficial observation of the laws of nature reveals the fact that they are not uniform in their working. The proof of this is seen in the fact that no two seasons are alike. Since the laws of nature are irregular in their operations, what guaranties have we against some dreadful catastrophe striking our earth? The wind blows where it pleases, meaning that man can neither harness nor hinder it. Sometimes the wind blows with great fury, gaining in volume and velocity until it becomes a hurricane. If there is nothing more than the laws of nature regulating the wind, then, perhaps tomorrow, there may come a terrific tornado and sweep everything from the surface of the earth. What assurances have we against such a calamity? Let us pursue a similar course of reasoning, let us assume that God has delivered over the control of the affairs of humanity to His creatures and see where such a supposition leads us. Consider the will of humans. Every man and woman enters this world endowed with a will that is free, and that it is impossible to compel or even coerce him or her to bend to the will of another human without destroying his or her freedom. Let us say that every man possesses knowledge of right and wrong, that he has the power to choose between them, and that he is left entirely free to make his own choice and go his own way, then what? Then it follows that man is sovereign, for he does as he pleases and determines his own destiny. However, in such a case we can have no assurance that before long every man will reject the good and choose the evil. In such a case, we have no guaranty against the entire human race committing moral suicide. Let all Divine restraints be removed and man left free, and all ethical distinctions would immediately disappear, the spirit of barbarism would prevail universally, and pandemonium would reign supreme. Having shown, in brief, the imperative need for God to rein over our world, let us now observe still further the fact that God does rule over the world, and that His government extends to and is exercised over all things and all creatures. In the land of Egypt at His bidding the light was turned into darkness and rivers into blood; hail fell, and death came down upon the godless land of the Nile, until even its haughty monarch was compelled to cry out for deliverance. Note particularly how the inspired record here emphasizes God's absolute control over the elements, “Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky; and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. In addition, the Lord rained hail on the land of Egypt. Therefore, there was hail, and fire flashing continually in the midst of the hail, very severe such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. The hail struck all that was in the field, through all the land of Egypt, both man and beast; the hail also struck every plant of the field and shattered every tree of the field. Only the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail” (Exodus 9:23-26). The same distinction was observed in connection with the ninth plague (Exodus 10:21-23). At God's decree, fire and brimstone descended from heaven and the cities of the Plain were destroyed, and a fertile valley was converted into a loathsome sea of death. At His bidding, the waters of the Red Sea parted asunder so that the Israelites passed over dry shod, and at His word, they rolled back again and destroyed the Egyptians who were pursuing them. A word from Him, and the earth opened her mouth, Korah, and his rebellious company was swallowed up. The furnace of Nebuchadnezzar was heated seven times beyond its normal temperature, and into it, three of God's children were cast, but the fire did not so much as scorch their clothes, though it slew the men who cast them into it. The greatest demonstration of the Creator's governmental control over the elements was when He was asleep in a boat. A storm arises. The disciples, who are with Him, fearful lest their little craft should founder, woke Him saying, Master, do You not care that we perish, and He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, peace, be still, and the wind ceased and there was a great calm (Mark 4:39). The Weather Bureaus may attempt to give forecasts of the weather, but God frequently mocks their calculations. Sun spots, the varying activities of the planets, the appearing and disappearing of comets, atmospheric disturbances, are merely secondary causes, for behind them all is God Himself. Truly, God governs inanimate matter. Earth and air, fire and water, hail and snow, stormy winds and angry seas, all perform the word of His power and fulfill His Sovereign pleasure. Two alternatives confront us, either God governs, or He is governed; either God rules or He is ruled; either God has His way, or men have theirs. Is our choice between these alternatives hard to make? In man, do we see a creature so unruly that he is beyond God’s control? Has sin alienated man so far from God that he is outside God’s jurisdiction? On the other hand, God endowed man with moral responsibility and must leave him entirely free, at least during the period of his probation. Does it necessarily follow because the natural man rebels against the authority of God, God is unable to fulfill His purpose through him? Is every action of the natural man entirely under the control of God? Whether he knows it or does not know it, every action of the natural man is under the control of God. Jesus’ betrayal by Judas was under the control of God. If then the arch-rebel was performing the counsel of God is it too difficult to believe the same of all rebels? The faithful angels are God's servants, His messengers; they are in subjection to the will of their Creator and perform His bidding. The same is true of evil spirits; they, too, fulfill God's Sovereign decrees. God sent an evil spirit to stir up rebellion in the camp of Abimelech (Judges 9:23). He sent another to be a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahab's prophets (1 Kings 22:23). The Lord sent an evil spirit to trouble King Saul (1 Samuel 16:14). In the New Testament: a whole legion of the demons did not go out of their victim until the Lord gave them permission to enter a herd of swine. The good news in these troubled days is, the Lord God omnipotent reigns. His government is exercised over inanimate matter, over the animal kingdom, over humanity, over angels good and evil, and over Satan himself. No revolving world, no shining of star, no storm, no creature moves, no actions of men, no errands of angels, no deeds of Satan, nothing in all the universe can come to pass other than that which God has ordained. The Sovereignty of God is a foundation of faith, the resting place for the intellect, an anchor for the soul, both sure and steadfast. God and not Satan or man is ruling the world, ruling it according to His own good pleasure and for His own eternal glory.   Author Resource:-> New American Standard Bible             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:25:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-607/controlling-the-affairs-of-earth.html Controlling the Affairs of Earth   By: Paul George       Controlling the Affairs on Earth Who is controlling the affairs on this earth today-God, or Satan? It is generally conceded that God reigns supreme in heaven; that He does so over this world, is almost universally denied, if not directly, then indirectly. More and more men in their philosophizing and theorizing are pushing God into the background. Take the material realm. Not only is it denied that God created everything by personal and direct action, but few believe that He has any immediate concern in regulating the works of His own hands. Everything is supposed to be regulated according to the impersonal and abstract “laws of nature.” From the pew to the pulpit, we hear references to “mother nature” or “mother earth.” Thus, the Creator is banished from His own creation. Therefore, we should not be surprised that men, in their degrading conceptions of the heavens and earth, exclude Him from the realm of human affairs. Throughout Christendom, with an almost negligible exception, the theory is held that man is in control of his fortunes and the determiner of his destiny. While there are those who claim Satan is behind much of the evil that is in the world little or nothing is said about the responsibility of man. Who is responsible for much of the evil that is in the world, God, Satan, or man? The task of placing responsibility is very difficult. Sin is rampant; lawlessness abounds; evil men and seducers are waxing “worse and worse” (2 Timothy 3:13). There is unrest, discontent, and lawlessness everywhere and no one can say how soon another great war will be set in motion. Men's hearts are “failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth” (Luke 21:26). Do these things look as though God has full control in the affairs of humanity? After nineteen centuries of Gospel preaching, Christ is still “despised and rejected of men.” Worse still, the Christ of Scripture, in the majority of modern pulpits is dishonored and disowned. Despite frantic efforts to attract the crowds, the majority of the churches are being emptied rather than filled and the great masses of non-church goers, in the light of Scripture, are on the broad road that leads to destruction, and only a few are on the narrow way that leads to life. Many are declaring that Christianity is a failure, and despair is settling on many faces. Not a few of the Lord's own people are bewildered, and their faith is being severely tried. Moreover, what of God, does He see and hear? Is He impotent or indifferent? A number of those who are regarded as leaders of Christianity tell us that God cannot prevent the destruction coming upon the earth or end it. It is said openly, that world conditions are beyond God's control. When sinful men and women are fed the false viewpoints of men and women claiming to be the called ministers of the Lord what impression is made upon the minds of those who occasionally, attend a Gospel service? From what is heard from the average evangelist today, is not any serious hearer of the false viewpoints of God obligated to conclude that a God who is filled with benevolent intentions, yet unable to carry them out. What option does the average hearer of the false viewpoints of God have, except that Satan has gained the upper hand, and that God is to be pitied rather than blamed? However, do the conditions in the world reveal that Satan has far more to do with the affairs of humanity than God has? Before we consider the response to this question, we need to be aware of what the Scriptures have to say about what we now see and hear. In Jude verse 8, we are told the false viewpoints of God are those of men who “defile the flesh, reject authority, and revile angelic majesties.” Ours is an age of irreverence, and as the consequence, the spirit of lawlessness, which is rapidly engulfing the earth like some giant tidal wave. The members of the rising generation are the most flagrant offenders, and the disappearing of parental authority, we have the forerunners of the abolition of civic authority. Therefore, in view of the growing disrespect for human law and the refusal to render honor to whom honor is due, we should not be surprised that the majesty, authority, Sovereignty of the Almighty law-giver should recede more and more into the background, and the masses have less and less patience with those who insist upon them. Moreover, conditions will not improve; instead, the surer Word of Prophecy makes known to us that they will grow worse. Nor do we expect to be able to stem the tide, it has already risen much too high for that. All we can now hope to do is warn our fellow man of the consequences of the spirit of the age, and thus seek to counteract its influence upon them. Who is controlling the affairs on this earth today-God, or the Devil? What says the Scriptures? If we believe their plain and positive declarations, no room is left for uncertainty. They affirm, repeatedly, that God is on the throne of the universe; that the scepter is in His hands; that He is directing “all things” after the counsel of His own will.” They affirm, not only that God created all things, but also that God is ruling and reigning over all the works of His hands. They affirm that God is the “Almighty,” that His will is irreversible, that He is absolute Sovereign in every realm of all His vast dominions. Who is controlling the affairs on this earth today-God, or the Devil? Present-day conditions call for a new examination and new presentation of God's omnipotence, God's sufficiency, God's Sovereignty. From every pulpit in the land, it needs to be proclaimed that God still lives, that God still reigns. What is needed now, as never before, is a full, positive, constructive setting forth of the Godhood of God. Drastic diseases call for drastic remedies. People are weary of platitudes and mere generalizations; the need is for something definite and specific. Without a doubt, a world-crisis is at hand, and everywhere men are alarmed. However, God is not. He is never taken by surprise. It is not an unexpected emergency which now confronts Him, for He is the One who “works all things after the counsel of His own will” (Ephesians 1:11). Although, the world is panic-stricken, the word to the believer is, fear not, all things are subject to His immediate control; all things are moving in accord with His eternal purpose, and therefore all things are working together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. Yet how little is this realized today even by the people of God. Many suppose that He is little more than a far-distant Spectator, taking no immediate hand in the affairs of earth. It is true that man is endowed with power, but God is all-powerful. It is true that, speaking generally, the material world is regulated by law, but behind that law is the lawgiver and law-Administrator. Man is but the creature. God is the Creator, and endless ages before man first saw the light the mighty God existed, and before the world was founded, made His plans; and being infinite in power and man only finite, His purpose and plan cannot be withstood or frustrated by the creatures of His own hands. We readily admit that life is a mystery and is filled with problems. However, we are not like the beasts of the field that are ignorant of their origin, and unconscious of what is before them. Unlike the beasts of the field we have the sure Word of Prophecy, of which it is said you do well that you “take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19). In these troubled times it is to this Word of Prophecy that had its origin in the mind of God and not in the mind of men. In the Word of Prophecy, we discover a fundamental principle that must be applied to every problem. Instead of beginning with man and his world and working back to God, we must begin with God and work down to man. If we begin with man and work back to God there seems to be no connection between God and the world. However, when we begin with God and work down to man much light, is cast on the problems existing in the world. Because God is holy His anger burns against sin; because God is righteous His judgments fall upon those who rebel against Him. Because God is faithful, His solemn promises are fulfilled. Because God is omnipotent, no one can successfully resist Him, still less overthrow His counsel. Because God is omniscient, He can solve the problems existing in the world. It is just because God is who He is and what He is that we cannot expect anything other than what is now happening in the world. However, it is important we understand that we can only enjoy the blessed truth of the absolute Sovereignty of God as our faith is exercised. Faith enables us to endure the disappointments, hardships, and heartaches of life by recognizing that all comes from the hand of Him who is too wise to err and too loving to be unkind. When we receive all that enters our lives as from God’s hand, then, no matter what may be our circumstances we shall be enabled to say, "The lines are fallen to me in pleasant places” (Psalm 16:6). However, if instead of walking by faith, we follow the evidence of our eyes, and reason, we shall fall into a quagmire of atheism. On the other hand, if we are controlled by the opinions and views of others, peace will be at an end. Granted that there is much in this world of sin and suffering that appalls and saddens us; granted that there is much in the providential dealings of God which startle and stagger us; that is no reason why we should unite with the unbelieving world who says, “If I were God, I would not allow this or tolerate that.” Better far, in the presence of our present situations to say with the psalmist, “I have become mute, I do not open my mouth, because it is You who have done it” (Psalm 39:9). Scripture tells us God's judgments are unsearchable and His ways “past finding out” (Romans 11:33). It must be so if faith is to be tested, confidence in His wisdom and righteousness strengthened, and submission to His holy will nurture. There is a difference between the man of faith and the man of unbelief. The unbeliever is of the world and judges everything by worldly standards, views life from the standpoint of time and sense, and weighs everything in the balances of his own carnal making. However, the man of faith looks at everything from God’s standpoint, estimates values by spiritual standards, and views life in the light of eternity. Doing this, he receives whatever comes as from the hand of God. Doing this, his heart is calm in the midst of the storm. Doing this, he rejoices in hope of the glory of God. Conclusion, because God is God He does as He pleases, His greatest concern is the accomplishment of His own pleasure and the promotion of His own glory; He is the Supreme Being, and therefore Sovereign of the universe. God’s Sovereignty with all its effects contradicts the opinions and thoughts of the natural man. In his natural state man is unable to form a proper estimate of God's character and ways, and it is because of this that God has given us a revelation of His mind, and in that revelation He plainly declares, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8, 9). In view of this Scripture, it is only to be expected that much of the contents of the Bible contradict the sentiments of the carnal mind, which is enmity against God. Our appeal then is not to the popular beliefs of the day, nor to the creeds of the churches, but to the Law and Testimony of God. In these troubled times, let us, “prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thessalonian 5:21).   Author Resource:-> New American Standard Bible             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:22:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-606/god-is-light.html God is Light   By: Paul George       God is light. Light defines His activity. 1 John 1:5-7, “This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not tell the truth; but if we walk in the Light, as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son, cleanses us from all sin.” Light and darkness are spiritual forces in this world, but it was not so from the beginning. In the beginning, only light was a spiritual force. God's first act of creation was to speak light into the formless, empty earth and into the darkness that lay on the face of the deep (Genesis 1:3; Psalm 119:130). He then separated the light from the darkness, bringing the first order into the world, calling the light day and the darkness night (Genesis 1:4-5). Though God is creator and fills all things from beginning to end, order did not come to creation until he made Himself active in it by bringing His light into it, absolute darkness never again existed in all creation after He released his light into it. The darkness of night is only a relative darkness, there is less light visible at night than during the day, it is not absolute darkness such as existed before God spoke light into creation. From the beginning, then, light was a spiritual force, but darkness was not, it was merely the relative absence of God's activity. Darkness was not associated with evil. God saw that day and night, light and darkness was “very good” (Genesis 1:31); when sin entered the creation that darkness became an evil spiritual force. The entry of sin into the world made the darkness into an evil spiritual force. Man learned to know evil and fear God's light, and the whole creation was subjected to futility. While it is true that Lucifer's sin was pride, his pride really began when he denied God's eternal power and deity (Isaiah 14:12-14; Ezekiel 28:12-17; Matthew 13:14-15; Romans 1:18-23). Lucifer chose to pursue his own glory apart from God and thus to walk in the darkness. This brought a spirit into darkness, which now became a place where God's light was unwelcome, and the darkness became a spiritual force. An unknown number of angels followed Satan into the darkness. Sin entered the world of men in much the same way. Although the serpent's question to Eve was meant to make her doubt God's goodness and the desires of her flesh and mind made the forbidden fruit seem attractive, the serpent’s underlying lie was this; “You surely shall not die. For God knows that in the day you eat from it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:4-5). When Adam ate the forbidden fruit, he followed Satan into the darkness, and brought with him all of his descendants, who would be born with eyes blind to God and a fear of the light. Because God had given Adam dominion over the earth, when Adam departed into darkness, he took the earth with him, making the whole creation subject to futility and appointing Satan as the god of this age by his obedience to Satan’s words (Genesis 1:28, 3:17-18; Romans 8:19-23; 2 Corinthians 4:3-4; Ephesians 2:2). However, the power of darkness is not like the power of light. Light is a person, God himself. Darkness is impersonal, the rejection of the light. The devil is not darkness in the same way that God is light; instead, while he claims usurped authority in the realm of darkness, he is only one of many spirits there each of which is in rebellion against authority. While the devil maintains a chain of command in his kingdom, his power depends entirely upon his ability to deceive those who recognize his authority into continuing to do as he suggests. Because the premise of his kingdom is that every member of it may be his own god, Satan has no true subordinates. The angels who followed do not have the option of returning to God, they are incapable of accomplishing anything on earth. Instead, to accomplish anything, the devil must have men and women who will do his will, and every human who has ever lived has had the capacity to see and return to the light if he would but open his eyes. The difference between light and darkness is, light possesses its own real power, darkness only illusory power. Light is living, darkness is dead. Light overcomes darkness. The light, which is self-existent, possesses its power in and of itself, the power of darkness exists when men close their eyes and has only the power given it by the spirits that walk in it. Light is a living force, the light of life but darkness is dead. Light grows and produces living fruit, goodness, righteousness and truth (Ephesians 5:8-10). Darkness produces only dead, unfruitful works (Romans 13:12; Ephesians 5:11). Light and truth are allies, as are darkness and the lie (Psalm 43:3; I John 1:5-7). Light overcomes darkness but darkness cannot overcome light. Even today, light overcomes darkness through the Gospel in those who are being saved (2 Corinthians 4:3-6). Ultimately, light will overcome darkness completely, giving the whole world light through Jesus directly (Revelation 21:23-24). In that day, the realm of darkness, and all who walk in it, will be given for all eternity exactly what they sought in the present age, a place where God is inactive, the outer darkness or lake of fire. Since it is God who maintains the order of nature and those who walk in darkness are not the true gods they believe themselves to be, they will find the outer darkness to be something they had not imagined, a place of intense heat, complete darkness and complete loneliness, where painful decay continues unabated without ever consuming the person (Mark 9:42-48). However, God does not make the judgment that leads to hell judicially, in a human sense. There is no crime, followed by trial, conviction and a judicial sentence to punishment. No, the judgment is a single step, and every person for himself decides it. Jesus said, “I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in the darkness. If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects Me, and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day” (John 12:46-48). “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light; for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God” (John 3:19-21). In this life also, whether we follow the light or ignore it is the difference between blessings and curses. God provides light to those who seek, believe and follow Him. With this light come blessings from God. However, the entry of God's light is gradual. The way of the righteous is like the first beam of dawn, shining ever brighter until the full light of day. When we open our eyes to the light, a process begins which ultimately banishes the darkness. By contrast, God told Job, a righteous man, that light is withheld from the wicked (Job 38:15). It is noteworthy; however, that God did not say that He withholds light from the wicked. No, today God always says, come out to those captive in darkness. Though the wicked choose darkness, God remains light. He gives light forever to those whose eyes are open.   Author Resource:-> New American Standard Bible             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:20:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-605/god-is-love.html God is Love   By: Paul George       Love defines God's character forever. God revealed himself most of all as one who loves and keeps his covenant of love (Deuteronomy 7:6-13). As the God who keeps His covenant of love, He chose Israel from among the peoples to make them His own, redeemed them, sustained them and patiently sought their hearts and their love. God chose Israel because He loved their forefathers (Deuteronomy 4:37; Romans 1:13). Because He chose them, He set His love upon them, and drew them to Himself with love. He brought Israel out of Egypt and carried them “on eagles' wings” to the place He had prepared for them (Exodus 19:4). He offered to walk among them and make them into a kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:5-6; Leviticus 26:11-12). Moreover, when Israel followed God in their own land, He showed them the blessings He had promised, increase in numbers, long life, peace and abundant prosperity. He defended Israel from their enemies, protected them and guarded all that they possessed. However, Israel declined to be a kingdom of priests. Although God had treated them with great kindness, their fear that God would kill them was so great that they begged God not to speak to them directly, instead asking him to tell Moses what things they should do (Exodus 20:18-20; Deuteronomy 5:4-5, 22-25). It should be noted that, when Israel made this request, God was speaking to them directly and they were not dead. The perception that God desired to kill them was erroneous. Nevertheless, God honored their request and gave Israel the Law, the Tabernacle, the human priesthood and prophets. All of these institutions together were designed to permit any individual Israelite who was not a priest to maintain a relationship with God without ever seeing Him, hearing Him or speaking to Him personally. The Law, which if any man do these things He shall live, permitted the individual to know God's will in thousands of individual situations. The tabernacle permitted the people to perceive God as walking among them, yet at a safe distance, God did not dwell in every Israelite's tent, but only in the Tabernacle, behind veils, where they would never be required, or even permitted, to look at Him. The priesthood gave Israel representatives who would appear before God in their place and offer on their behalf sacrifices to appease God's anger, greatly reducing the need to speak to Him directly. The institution of the prophets permitted God to speak to the people when necessary without speaking to them directly. In this matter, God gave His people what they asked for, the means to live in covenant with Him, receiving His love without ever speaking with Him directly. However, throughout God’s covenant with Israel there were Israelites who knew the secret behind the law that God had always desired that each of His people know Him. Perhaps the best example of these Israelites who knew God was David, who is called a man after God's own heart. David was not a priest, yet he often spoke to God directly, as many of the Psalms attest. Moreover, David was not one of the prophets, yet God sometimes spoke to him directly in answer to his prayers. Nevertheless, David loved the Law as the means of knowing both God and how to live. Further, while David never administered a ritual sacrifice, he understood that the sacrifice God truly desired of His people individually was a broken and contrite spirit, a spirit that rejoices to be in His presence. David is only one example of many individuals during this period that also had personal relationships with God. Although God had promised His protection to Israel, throughout their history there have been times when He removed a portion of His protection and let them do their own thing. The results of doing their own thing resulted judgment by fear, famine, disease, violence, war and exile (Jeremiah 6:16-19). These judgments were not what God intended for Israel; He told them to choose life and the blessings of obedience (Deuteronomy 30:19-20). However, God had spoken blessings on their obedience and curses on their disobedience, and the people had voluntarily taken these blessings and curses upon themselves. Nevertheless, God was patient with Israel, protecting them for the sake of His covenant for some time after they had rejected Him and sending prophets to warn them of the consequences of their way. However, because Israel had the right to choose whom they would serve, after warning them, God withdrew part of His unwanted protection and let them bear judgment. However, God never withdrew all of His protection. He always preserved a remnant who served Him. He never ceased pursuing Israel, seeking to win the heart of His unfaithful people. He always restored Israel after their times of judgment, and always will. God keeps His covenant of love with Israel to this day. Jesus, who gave himself for us, dying for our sins so that anyone who believes in him may be saved, reveals to us and to the world God’s love (John 3:16-18). God's love is also revealed to us and to the world in the way the natural world which he created provides for human needs in spite of human sins (Matthew 5:44-48). God reveals his love to the world in our love for each other (John 13:34-35; 17:20-23). Because of His great love for us, God made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our transgressions. God's love is revealed to us because He gave us His Spirit. God pours out His love in our hearts through His Spirit that lives in us. God's love in our hearts produces peace, joy, hope, confidence in God and freedom from fear. Because of His love, God gives us eternal encouragement and good hope and strengthens us to do every good work. He directs our hearts into His love and perfects His love in us. God's love is also revealed to us in His discipline and correction of us as His children.   Author Resource:-> New American Standard Bible   Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:18:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-604/god-is-father-son-holy-spirit.html God is Father Son Holy Spirit   By: Paul George       How can God be three, yet one? God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, yet one, is clearly declared in 1 John 5:1-12, 20 (KJV, NASB). In verse 20, both God and His Son are called “him who is true” and “the true God.” In verse 7 the Spirit is called “the truth," and in verses 8 through 10 the testimony of the Spirit, the testimony of the water and the blood by which Christ came and the testimony of God are regarded as one. In Colossians 2:2 the Apostle Paul speaks of a true knowledge of God’s mystery, “that is, Christ Himself.” In 1 Corinthians 12:3-6 the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives is identified as God's work, and is identified as the only power by which we can say “Jesus is Lord.” The Apostle John tells us Jesus' words are God's words because God gives the Spirit to him without measure (John 3:34-35). God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and power (Acts 10:38). Jesus promises to send His followers the Holy Spirit from the Father, to comfort, teach and empower them and to guide them into all truth (John 14:16-17, 26; 15:26; 16:7). In John 16:14-15 we are told, all things that the Father has belong to the Son, and Jesus promised to send the Spirit to show them to his disciples. After His resurrection, the scriptures indicate that Jesus kept this promise, receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit from the Father and pouring it out on his followers who were gathered together (Acts 2:33). The Apostle John tells us, the Word, was with God and was God in the beginning, and without Him, nothing was made that has been made (John 1:1-3). In Genesis account of the creation God, the Spirit of God, and the words God spoke to bring things into existence were present (Genesis 1:1-3). In Luke 1:29-38 we are told God first sent an angel to Mary, and the Holy Spirit came upon her and she conceived in her womb, resulting in the conception of the Son of God as Son of Man (Luke 1:29-38). Moreover, while the angel told Mary that the baby she would bear would be the Son of God, her cousin Elizabeth, when filled with the Holy Spirit called Mary's unborn baby her “Lord” (Luke 1:32, 35, 41-42). Likewise, Elizabeth's husband Zechariah, “filled with the Holy Spirit,” prophesied that his son John, as a “prophet of the Most High,” would “go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,” exactly as John later did for Jesus (Luke 1:76; Mark 1:1-3). Thus, all three members of the Godhead are seen to have been active both in the creation and in the events that led to the human birth of the Son of God. The central mystery of the Gospel cannot be understood without an understanding of the mystery of the Trinity. The Son is always seen to come forth from the Father, the “firstborn over all creation,” the radiance of the Father's glory and the exact representation of His being, and is the one by whom the Father creates and sustains all things (Hebrews 1:1-3, 8-12; Colossians 1:15-17). While equal with the Father, He submits to the Father and does only what he sees his Father doing (John 5:19; Philippians 2:5-6). Though He submitted to be made human, a little lower than the angels, to bring salvation and understanding friendship to humanity, in substance He is one with His Father. However, God is spirit (John 4:24). Therefore, it can be no surprise that the substance that the Father and the Son share is spirit. Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). John the baptizer attested that God gives the Spirit to Jesus without measure (John 3:34-35). As it is only the spirit of a person which truly knows that person's mind, so it is only the Spirit of God which searches even the deep things of God and knows God's mind (I Corinthians 2:10-11). The Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ the Spirit of Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of holiness, the Spirit of life, the Spirit of Him who raised Christ from the dead and simply the Spirit are regarded as one in Acts 16:6-7, Romans 1:3-4 and Romans 8:1-17. Further, in 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, the Spirit of God and the Holy Spirit are identified with the same Spirit who gives gifts, the same Lord who receives our service and the same God who works in each of us. The spiritual substance that the Father and the Son share is not an impersonal substance or a mindless force, but is throughout scripture attributed a separate personality. For instance, in Genesis 1:1-2, God speaks out his Word while the spirit of God hovers over the waters. At the Incarnation, the angel spoke the words of the Father and the Holy Spirit came upon Mary to conceive the Son (Luke 1:29-38). The Holy Spirit has spoken to people, and continues to speak, directly and personally. The Holy Spirit also, as a distinct person, has a mind and experiences emotions. A nearly perfect picture of the Trinity was Adam and Eve in their originally created innocence. This picture was imperfect in only two respects. First, because the first man and woman were temporal, created beings, Adam had to be created first for Eve to be created out of him. By contrast, the scriptures are clear that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are equally eternal and none existed before any of the others. From eternity, the Son comes out of the Father, without implying that either one is limited to time or had a beginning in time. Second, where the Son does only the Father's will and the Father and Son are eternally loyal to each other, the loyalty of Adam and Eve to each other, though complete in their innocence, had never been tested (Philippians 2:5-11; John 5:19-23). When tempted by the serpent, the first couple departed from their loyalty to God and to each other. By contrast, when tempted by the devil, the Son remained loyal to the Father, and when the Son took the sin of the world upon himself on the cross, the Father remained loyal to the Son. A second picture of the Trinity is marriage, particularly between believers. However, marriage has been marred by sin and is no longer the nearly perfect picture presented by the first couple in their time of innocence. Nevertheless, husband and wife, though distinct individuals, become joined by God as one flesh in a manner analogous to Adam and Eve, who were distinct persons though literally created from the same flesh (Matthew 19:4-6). Neither mate owns his or her own body; that body belongs to the other mate, to them both jointly (I Corinthians 7:4). Further, it remains true that a married couple joined by God, to a large degree shares a single, merged spirit (Malachi 2:15). However, the New Testament also clearly states that Christian marriage is a picture of the relationship between Christ and the Church (Ephesians 5:22-33). The Church is the body of Christ, and every believer is a member of that body (I Corinthians 12:27). The Church exists only because Jesus the Son died to bring it into existence and the Father and the Spirit raised Him from the dead to empower it to live. Christ is the Head of the Church, His Body, and the Church is growing out of its Head, just as the Son eternally comes out of the Father (Ephesians 4:15-16; Colossians 2:19). Yet, the Church is also the Bride of Christ, and Christ is now perfecting His Bride so that He can present it to Himself without spot or wrinkle (Ephesians 5:25-27; Colossians 3:22). The Son and His Bride are, thus, distinct persons, yet a single body, just as the Father and the Son are distinct yet one. Moreover, the Son and His Bride share a single Spirit, that same Holy Spirit which the Father and the Son share.. The relationships in the Trinity, in marriage and between Christ, His Church and individual believers are analogous to each other, and point to the unity of the individual believers and the Church with Christ and with the Father. Just as Father and the Son, though distinct, are one substance and man and wife are one flesh, the Son and His Body are one and are mutually one with each member of that Body. Similarly, as the Father and the Son share one Spirit, and a man and wife are one spirit, the Son, His Church and each member of his Church share one Spirit, the same Holy Spirit which the Father and the Son share. Moreover, that Spirit is a distinct personality from the Father, the Son, the Church and each of the members of the Church in which He resides, yet He perfectly represents the Father and the Son to each other and to the Church. While God's Word gives us much instruction concerning this mystery, only one who is personally a part of the mystery, a member of Christ's Body, can ever hope to understand it. The doctrine of the Trinity is beyond human understanding.   Author Resource:-> New American Standard Bible   Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:16:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-603/1-corinthians-chapter-14-part-1.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 14, Part 1   By: Karl Kemp       This two-part verse-by-verse study on 1 Corinthians chapter 14 was taken from my paper titled "A Verse-by-Verse Study of 1 Corinthians Chapters 10-14; Philippians Chapter 3; and James 3:1-4:6. In the original paper and the version on my internet site I was able to use bold, underlining, italics, and footnotes. I always use the New American Standard Bible, 1995 edition, unless I mention otherwise. Sometimes I will use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) to make them more obvious. One reason I feel a need to teach on this chapter is that I believe quite a few of these verses are often misunderstood by many Pentecostals and charismatics. All errors of interpretation lead to confusion and disunity in the body of Christ, and some errors lead to worse results. Some of the Christians who do not believe the charismatic gifts are for today torture 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14. "Pursue love [These words complete the apostle's important discourse on love that he began in 1 Cor. 12:31b. Compare 1 Cor. 16:14.], yet [or, "and" (Greek "de")] desire earnestly spiritual gifts [1 Corinthians 12:31a says, "But earnestly desire the greater gifts." The Greek verb behind "desire earnestly" here in 1 Cor. 14:1 is exactly the same as the Greek behind "earnestly desire" in 12:31a. The NASB has "gifts" in italics here in 14:1. A more literal translation would be "the things of the Spirit, but I believe "spiritual gifts" communicates the apostle's meaning well. (See on 1 Cor. 12:1.)], but [I would translate "and" (Greek "de")] especially [I prefer the KJV's "rather."] that you may prophesy. [[I believe we would better understand Paul if we had a comma after "that you may prophesy" instead of a period. (We don't have Paul's original punctuation.) If we miss the strong linkage between what Paul says here in the second half of 1 Cor. 14:1 and what he says in 14:2 (this linkage is demonstrated by the "for" at the beginning of 14:2), we probably will misunderstand 14:1. We will probably end up thinking (as many do) that Paul teaches here in 1 Cor. 14:1 that prophecy/prophesying is the greatest gift. I don't believe Paul intended to say that prophecy/prophesying is the greatest gift. He certainly didn't intend to say that the charismatic gift of prophecy (understanding prophecy in the sense of speaking messages under the anointing of the Spirit [see under 1 Cor. 12:10]) is the greatest gift. (The word "prophecy" is used in 1 Cor. 12:10; 13:2, 8; and 14:6, 22.) And even if we understand the prophesying spoken of here in 1 Cor. 14:1 (and in 14:3-5) in the fuller sense pictured in 14:30, 31, which we probably should do, I still don't believe Paul intended to say that this is the greatest gift. (Understanding prophesying in the fuller sense pictured in 14:30, 31 would include speaking forth revelations that were received from the Spirit. I assume that these revelations could include words of wisdom, words of knowledge, and distinguishing of spirits; these three gifts were listed in 1 Cor. 12:8-10.) All that Paul intended to say here, if I understand him, was that prophecy/prophesying is, in some ways, greater than speaking with tongues. Compare 1 Cor. 14:39, "Therefore, my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy, and do not forbid to speak with tongues." We will discuss this point further as we continue. With the words "[and] especially [rather] that you may prophesy," the apostle begins a lengthy discourse designed to contrast prophecy/prophesying with the misuse of the gift of tongues in the church at Corinth (a primary concern was the public use of tongues without interpretation). In this chapter Paul contrasts prophecy/prophesying with the misuse of tongues at Corinth; he does not compare prophecy/prophesying with the other gifts. Throughout this chapter, Paul uses prophecy as an example of a gift that edifies. Prophecy is greater than tongues without interpretation because prophecy edifies those hearing it, whereas speaking with tongues without interpretation doesn't (see 1 Cor. 14:3-5). (In this chapter Paul demonstrates that speaking with tongues without interpretation is not appropriate for church gatherings.) He repeatedly hammers away at this point throughout the rest of this chapter. It is almost unbelievable how much time he takes to demonstrate that speaking with tongues without interpretation doesn't edify the church. He must have known that some at Corinth were rather obstinate regarding their misuse of tongues. There was too much public speaking with tongues; the attitude/motivation of at least some of those speaking with tongues was far from (the required) love; and, significantly, the tongues (at least much of the time) were not being interpreted.]] (2) For one who speaks in a tongue [cf. Mark 16:17; Acts 2:4, 11; 10:46; 19:6; 1 Cor. 12:10, 28, 30; 13:1; 14:4-39] does not speak to men but to God; for no one understands [[It is good to speak to God, but it is not appropriate to speak out loud in a tongue in a church gathering unless it is interpreted because no one will understand what was said (even if God does). There is room for exceptions to this rule. (There is room for exceptions to most rules.) God could, for example, speak a word through a Christian in a tongue to someone in the church, knowing that that person understands the language (like on the Day of Pentecost). In a case like that the interpretation of the tongue would not be required, but in such cases it would be appropriate to inform the church regarding what had taken place when it becomes known. Paul's words here have sometimes been wrongly understood to teach that all words spoken in tongues are words directed to God. Acts 2:11, for example, demonstrates that tongues can be words directed to people, not God. This is confirmed by many examples from our day, examples where God has spoken to people through tongues in a language they understood and examples where the tongues were interpreted.]], but in his spirit he speaks mysteries [cf. 1 Cor. 13:2]. [[The word "his" is in italics in the NASB; in the margin it has, "or, by the Spirit." I prefer "by the Spirit," or "in the Spirit," but it is also a fact that the spirit of the Christian is involved when speaking/praying in tongues (see 1 Cor. 14:14). No Christian can speak with tongues without the enablement of the Holy Spirit (I'm speaking of a genuine manifestation of the charismatic gift of tongues), but it is also true that Christians are very much involved in speaking with tongues. Christians must cooperate with the Spirit of God to speak with tongues, as with prophecy, and with most other aspects of the Christian life. We are not impassive robots that God uses like a ventriloquist uses a dummy. The Holy Spirit doesn't take over and force Christians to speak with tongues, and most Christians who speak with tongues in our day testify that they can speak with tongues at any time. If they wanted to they could speak out loud during a church service, but as the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets (14:32), and those prophesying are not compelled to speak or to keep on speaking; so too for those speaking with tongues, including a devotional use of tongues. This chapter of 1 Corinthians seems to clearly show that those who spoke with tongues at Corinth could, and sometimes did, speak at inappropriate times; the Spirit didn't stop them (but He did correct them through Paul, and He probably tried to correct them directly and/or through others), and there is no indication that the tongues being spoken in the church at Corinth were not genuine. The words "speaks mysteries" at least include the idea that no one (except God), including the speaker, understands what is being said.]] (3) But the one who prophesies speaks to men for edification ["Edify" and "edification" are key words in this chapter (see 14:4, 5, 12, 17, and 26; and note the similar ideas of profiting in 14:6, instructing in 14:19, and learning and being exhorted in 14:31.] and exhortation [The NIV has "encouragement."] and consolation [The NIV has "comfort."]. [[Many Pentecostals and charismatics use this verse (wrongly from my point of view) to teach that what is often called the simple gift of prophecy (supposedly the gift mentioned in 1 Cor. 12:10) has no revelation content at all. (For one thing, as I mentioned under 1 Cor. 14:1, prophesying here probably should not be limited to speaking messages under the anointing of the Spirit.) I'm quite sure that Paul didn't intend to exclude revelation from the prophesying that he was speaking of here in 14:3 (whether prophesying is limited to speaking messages under the anointing of the Spirit, or not). His point was to show that prophecy, unlike the misuse of tongues at Corinth (public tongues without interpretation), would bless the others with edification, exhortation (encouragement), and consolation (comfort). To the extent that there would be no revelation in prophecy, it would hardly deserve the name prophecy. By revelation I mean a revealing of something God actually says/reveals to His people. If God just wanted to speak to one person through prophecy and tell them of His love for them, that would be a revelation. (The Bible, of course, is full of revelation, and we are to take it personally.) Such revelations could cover a wide range of topics. God could, for example, call an individual, or a church, to repentance; He could warn the church of a tornado coming to their town and direct them what they should do about it; He could confirm that He has called a particular person into a particular ministry; etc. I have frequently heard Pentecostals and charismatics use this verse to try to prove that prophecy is out of order and not authentic if it contains any rebuking of people for their sin and calling them to repentance. They say (quite wrongly I believe) that 1 Cor. 14:3 excludes any such content. In the first place this verse is not giving a complete definition of prophecy. Also, words like exhortation include calls for repentance, and calls for repentance, if needed and heeded, will certainly result in the edification of the church. The more serious the message from God, however, the more we would expect the message to come through proven ministers. Essentially all Pentecostals and charismatics that I am familiar with agree that any revelation given by God today would not be on the level of Scripture and would not be permitted to compete with Scripture. Significantly though, God can help us understand the Bible through revelation gifts.]] (4) One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church. [[It is important to know that speaking in a tongue does edify the one speaking; it is a good thing for Christians to be edified. Paul's primary point here, however, is that it is wrong for the one speaking in tongues in church to be concerned for his own edification in a setting where he should be concerned for the edification of the church. It does not make sense (and it certainly is not being motivated by love) for one person to be edified at the expense of the others. For one thing, while he is speaking in tongues and is the center of attention, other necessary things (like prayer, worship, preaching, teaching, ministering to those who have needs, and prophesying) cannot be done.]] (5) Now I wish that you all spoke in tongues [[This wishing by Paul does not change the reality that it is God who determines how the charismatic ministry-gifts are to be distributed. Paul, of course, had no desire to go beyond the will of God. The verb "wish" is sometimes used in a rather limited sense; see 1 Cor. 7:7; cf. Num. 11:29; 1 Tim. 2:4 ("[God] who desires [using the same Greek verb translated wish here in 1 Cor. 14:5] all men to be saved"). It seems probable to me that devotional tongues are available to all Christians in our day (I'm certainly not being dogmatic on that point), but Paul was not speaking of a devotional use of tongues here; he was speaking (at least for the most part) of tongues that would be spoken in the church and interpreted (a ministry-gift of tongues). (See under 1 Cor. 12:10, 28, 30 in the article on 1 Corinthians chapter 12.) Although speaking with tongues was widespread in the early church ((I had a footnote: See Mark 16:17; Acts 2:4-42; 10:44-48; 19:5-7; and 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14; also to be considered are Eph. 6:18 and Jude 1:24, verses that speak of praying in the Spirit, which includes tongues (cf. 1 Cor. 14:14-16). Many agree that it seems rather clear that they spoke with tongues in Acts 8:15-19 even though Luke doesn't clearly state that they did. Also, Paul probably first spoke with tongues when he was filled with the Spirit (mentioned in Acts 9:17; we know that he did speak with tongues, a lot [1 Cor. 14:18].)) The New Testament certainly doesn't clearly show that all Christians will speak with tongues when they are filled with/baptized in the Holy Spirit or that devotional tongues are available to all Christians. I am not saying, by the way, that the apostle made a clear distinction between a charismatic devotional gift of tongues and a charismatic ministry-gift of tongues, but there is a difference between speaking with tongues in a person's devotional life and speaking with tongues in church, tongues that are to be interpreted.]], but even more that you would prophesy [[Many Pentecostals and charismatics believe that these words, and the words of 1 Cor. 14:1, and especially the words of 1 Cor. 14:31, teach that all Christians can, and should, prophesy. I believe this widespread teaching that all Christians can, and should, prophesy has caused substantial damage to the body of Christ. If we tell Christians (especially immature Christians) that the Bible teaches that all Christians can, and should, prophesy, and it is not really so - and I do not believe the Bible does teach this - we are in for some big trouble. We have opened a big door for the flesh, or even for demon spirits. Based on what I have observed, I believe that at least half of that which goes under the name of prophecy in some circles is not really prophecy. There is a lot of flesh, and I am afraid there are some demonic counterfeits too. I believe there are demonic counterfeits for tongues too. We must humble ourselves before God and let Him lead us to the balanced truth and keep us in the center of His will. We have a dedicated, subtle enemy who wants to lead us astray and to destroy us. 1 Corinthians chapter 12 does not fit the idea that all can prophesy (and this is true whether we think of prophesying as speaking forth under the anointing of the Spirit [see under 1 Cor. 12:10] or of prophesying in the fuller sense discussed under 1 Cor. 14:1). God distributes the ministry-gifts as He wills. What I said above regarding Paul's wish that all spoke in tongues applies equally to prophecy. Regarding 1 Cor. 14:1, I have heard Christians say that Paul would not tell Christians to desire earnestly the things of the Spirit, especially (rather) that they might prophesy, unless prophecy was available to all. However, in 1 Cor. 12:31a, Paul told the same people to earnestly desire the greater gifts, and it is clear in chapter 12 that this does not mean that each gift is available to each Christians for the asking. Regarding 1 Cor. 14:31, which says, "For you can all prophesy one by one," I stand somewhat amazed by how often I have heard this verse used to supposedly prove that all Christians can, and should, prophesy. It has always seemed clear to me that when you read these words in context with 14:29-32, Paul was speaking to the prophets - these words (of 14:31) were not addressed to all the Christians at Corinth.]]; and greater is one who prophesies than one who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets, so that the church may receive edifying. [These words continue Paul's contrasting prophesying with speaking with tongues without interpretation that continues throughout this chapter. Based on these words, we can see that tongues, when they are interpreted, are the equivalent of Spirit-inspired prophetic utterances. The one who speaks with tongues need not be the one who interprets (cf. 1 Cor. 14:27, 28).] (6) But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking in tongues [[For one thing, it is important to know that the great apostle did speak with tongues. Not only that, in 1 Cor. 14:18 he said, "I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all." But in 1 Cor. 14:19 he said, "however, in the church I desire to speak five words with my mind [in other words, five words in a common language], that I may instruct others also, rather than ten thousand words in a tongue." The apostle could edify them by speaking five words they understood, but he could not edify them by speaking ten thousand words they did not understand. Paul could, of course, have spoken in tongues and then interpreted the tongues, but he did not suggest that option here. The point he is making here is that when he is with the Corinthians he communicates with them in words they can understand (in Greek) so they can be edified. It seems clear that tongues with interpretation were not part of Paul's public ministry; at the most tongues played a very minor role in his public ministry. Paul must have done his extensive tongue speaking as part of his devotional life. Why did he do it? For one thing, he was edified, and I assume the Spirit used this gift to substantially enhance his time spent in prayer and worship.]], what will I profit you, unless I speak to you either by way of revelation or of knowledge or of prophecy or of teaching? [There is much overlap in meaning between the four items listed here. For example, the apostle's "teaching" was saturated with "revelation." "Prophecy" here could be limited to speaking messages under the anointing of the Spirit] (7) Yet even lifeless things, either flute or harp, in producing a sound, if they do not produce a distinction in the tones, how will it be known what is played on the flute or on the harp? (8) For if the bugle produces an indistinct sound, who will prepare himself for battle? [There can be no music without a proper distinction in sounds, and the bugle cannot communicate the intended message without producing the required, predetermined sounds.] (9) So also you, unless you utter by the tongue speech that is clear [The NIV has, "intelligible words."], how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air. [Unless you speak words understood by the hearers, very little detailed communication takes place through your words, and that is exactly what happens when you speak to/before others in tongues.] (10) There are, perhaps, a great many kinds of languages [The Greek noun behind "language(s)" here in 1 Cor. 12:10, 11 is different than the Greek noun translated "tongues" in this chapter. The Greek noun (glossa) that is translated tongues in 1 Corinthians chapters 12-14 can also be translated languages.] in the world, and no kind is without meaning. (11) If then I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be to the one who speaks a barbarian, and the one who speaks will be a barbarian to me. [Men cannot directly communicate with one another in a detailed sense unless they use a common language. These two verses were just a small part of Paul's lengthy discourse aimed at convincing the Corinthian Christians (those who needed to be convinced) that it was inappropriate for them to speak out loud in tongues in church unless the tongues were interpreted.] (12) So also you, since you are zealous of spiritual gifts [As in 1 Cor. 12:1 and 14:1, a more literal translation would be "the things of the Spirit," but the translation of the NASB communicates the intended meaning well.], seek to abound for the edification of the church. [It is good to be zealous for the gifts/things of the Spirit (cf. 14:1), but the charismatic ministry-gifts must be used for the edification of the church. This is a dominant message in this chapter; see under 14:3.] (13) Therefore let one who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. [[When the tongue is interpreted, the church will be edified (cf. 1 Cor. 14:5). In context Paul was dealing with a public use of tongues. (It is far less important to interpret devotional tongues, but that can be done as God wills.) Paul was addressing a situation where (often at least) no one was interpreting the tongues. If others had been interpreting, it would not have been nearly so important (if required at all) for the one speaking with tongues to pray for the gift of interpretation.] (14) For [[I would omit this word in the English translation. If we include "for" it tends to (wrongly I believe) force the words "pray with the mind" of the next verse to mean interpreting what was prayed in tongues. The Greek conjunction "gar" that is translated "for" here is included in brackets in my Greek New Testament (United Bible Societies, Fourth Revised Edition). The brackets show that there is doubt regarding whether the word was included in the original Greek text written by Paul. Gordon D. Fee argues against including for here ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Eerdmans, 1987], pages 667, 669). In a footnote on page 667 he says: "This gar (not found in p46, B, F, G, 0243, 1739, 1881, pc [referring to ancient Greek New Testament manuscripts; the next two listings refer to ancient Latin manuscripts], b, sa) is by all counts not original. Its omission [if it had been in Paul's original manuscript] would be almost impossible to account for, either accidentally or deliberately - even more so independently across two early [Greek New Testament manuscript] traditions (Egyptian and Western). One can easily account for the [later] addition [of gar in some later Greek manuscripts], given both the frequency of this conjunction [gar] in this letter and the apparent awkwardness of the asyndeton [the practice of leaving out the usual conjunctions between coordinate sentence elements]...."]] if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays [The "Amplified Bible" has, "my spirit [by the Holy Spirit within me] prays."], but my mind [The KJV has "my understanding."] is unfruitful. [[What the apostle apparently means here (in context with 1 Cor. 14:15-19) is that my mind/understanding (using the word mind/understanding in the sense that I speak words with my mind/understanding before others in a common language) is not bearing fruit in others if I pray in a tongue before them (since they don't understand what I said). It is not true, as I have heard it said, that this verse shows that man's mind (understanding, thinking, and knowing) is something totally separate from his spirit; I don't believe Paul intended to communicate any such idea here. See my paper titled, "Some Things We Should Know About the Meaning of the Words, 'Spirit' and Soul,' " published in April, 2012.) The spirit of man is involved with the mind (understanding, thinking, and knowing). The Holy Spirit is also very much involved with the mind/thinking of the Christian as the Christian walks after the Spirit by faith. The Holy Spirit enables us to think right. He is especially interested in the thinking we do in our hearts/spirits/inner man. (See pages 118-120 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" on Rom. 8:5-9; and see note 32 on page 138 of that book.)]] (15) What is the outcome then? [I prefer the NIV's "So what shall I do?"] I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also. [[To "pray with the spirit" here means to pray in tongues, by the enablement of the Holy Spirit. To "pray with the mind" here means to pray in our own language, the way we normally speak. (Some say that to pray with the mind here means to interpret the tongues.) For us to pray in English, with our mind (understanding, thinking, and knowing) involved, does not mean that the Spirit is not involved. He is involved as we walk after the Spirit (not the flesh). The primary point the apostle makes here, as 14:16-19 confirm, is that there are occasions where we should "pray with the mind," that is, there are occasions where we should not pray with tongues. To "sing with the spirit" means to sing with tongues (by the Spirit); to "sing with the mind" is to sing, as we normally do, in languages we know. The "spiritual songs" of Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16 may refer to (or at least include) singing in/with the spirit/Spirit. It does not follow that the Spirit is (necessarily) excluded from our worship if we sing before God with our minds (in English). We are called to walk by/in/after the Spirit all the time (cf. Gal. 5:16).]] (16) Otherwise if you bless in [or, with] the spirit [in tongues by the Spirit] only [[I would omit this word, which the NASB supplied in italics. The translators apparently assumed (wrongly I believe) that Paul was referring to the need to interpret the tongues after blessing (praising/giving thanks) in/with tongues. I assume that Paul brought up this topic because he had learned that some were blessing with tongues at Corinth. I believe Paul was saying here that there are times, like with such a blessing, that it should typically be spoken in the language of the people to begin with (and all the more so, when there are people there - including those who haven't become Christians yet - who don't have any idea what is happening). The NIV has, "If you are praising God with your spirit."]], how will the one who fills the place of the ungifted [In the margin the NASB has, "unversed in spiritual gifts." Instead of "one who fill the place of the ungifted," the margin of the NIV has, "one who finds himself among the inquirers." The Greek noun translated "ungifted here is "idiotes."] say the 'Amen' at your giving of thanks, since he doesn't know what you are saying? [[It is not clear exactly what persons the apostle was referring to by the "ungifted" here (or however we translate this Greek noun), nor is it very important for us to know. (The plural of the Greek noun that is translated "ungifted" here is translated "ungifted men" in 14:23, and the singular is translated "ungifted man" in 14:24.) People cannot give a wholehearted Amen if they do not know what was said. Even those who have received the Spirit and are well-versed in spiritual gifts could have trouble giving a wholehearted Amen with such blessings (thanksgivings). How much more so for those who are somewhat on the outside regarding these things. There probably would be occasions when they would not even have any idea that an Amen was appropriate (until they heard the others say Amen), much less would they be able to give a wholehearted Amen.]] (17) For you are giving thanks well enough [by giving thanks in tongues]], but the other man is not edified [and that is not acceptable]. [[I find these words, "you are giving thanks well enough," to be extremely interesting and informative. If the Spirit will enable Christians to give thanks in tongues (though we typically would not give thanks that way in a public gathering), it seems a reasonable deduction that He will help us pray in other areas, for example, about specific problems where we hardly know how to pray; in praise and worship; in intercessory prayer; etc. I am speaking, of course, about praying in our personal times of prayer (devotional tongues), not about speaking out loud in church gatherings.]] (18) I thank God, I speak in tongues more than you all [The NIV has, "I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you."]; (19) however, in the church I desire to speak five words with my mind [[On the interpretation of these verses, see under 1 Cor. 14:6, 15-17. It certainly is interesting and informative to know that the apostle Paul viewed the use of tongues in his prayer/devotional life so highly. As in 14:14, the KJV has "understanding" instead of "mind." Paul is referring to speaking five words the way men typically speak to one another, in a common language. As I mentioned, the fact that he is speaking "with [his] mind" does not mean that the Spirit is not behind what is being said (and especially when a person like the apostle Paul is speaking).]] so that I may instruct others also [and the saints be edified], rather than ten thousand words in a tongue [and Paul be edified, but not the saints]. We will continue this verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 14 with verse 20 in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.   Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:13:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-602/1-corinthians-chapter-14-part-2.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 14, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       The verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 14 continues here in Part 2. (20) Brethren, do not be children [The NIV has "infants." Compare Eph. 4:14.] in your thinking [Some of the Corinthian Christians were quite immature (fleshly) in their thinking, including their thinking about spiritual gifts.]; yet in evil be infants [That is, do not permit any evil - be innocent (cf. Rom. 16:19).], but in your thinking be mature. [The Word of God, backed up by the enabling grace of the indwelling Spirit of God, enables Christians to think right. On having a renewed mind (by the Word of God and) by the Spirit, see under 1 Cor. 14:14.] (21) In the Law it is written, 'BY MEN OF STRANGE TONGUES AND BY THE LIPS OF STRANGERS I WILL SPEAK TO THIS PEOPLE, AND EVEN SO THEY WILL NOT LISTEN TO ME,' says the Lord. [[Here "the Law" is used in a fuller sense than the Mosaic Law (as in John 10:34; 15:25; and Rom. 3:19). Paul is quoting part of Isa. 28:11, 12. If we do not understand Paul's use of this quotation, we will never understand the following verses. These prophetic words of Isaiah were quite negative; they spoke of the coming invasions (of Israel) by the victorious Assyrian and then Babylonian armies, who would speak with "strange tongues" (that is, they would speak their own languages, languages strange to the Israelites; cf. Isa. 33:19; Deut. 28:49). These armies came, as judgment from God, because His people would not repent and be faithful to Him. This quotation (in the form "quoted" by Paul) stated that the people would not repent and listen to God even after this judgment.]] (22) So then tongues are for a sign, not to those who believe, but to unbelievers [[unbelievers who aren't about to repent and become believers. As we discussed under 14:21, Paul is speaking of a negative sign, a sign appropriate for a rebellious, unrepentant people. The apostle takes it for a fact that the body of Christ is not characterized by rebellious, unrepentant people. Even at Corinth, where there was a lot of fleshiness and quite a bit of sin, the church was not characterized by unrepentant rebels. And, as Paul shows in this epistle, where there was sin at Corinth, there was discipline/chastisement from God to deal with it (see on 1 Cor. 11:28-32 in the article on 1 Corinthians chapter 11; and see 1 Cor. 5:1-13). It would not be appropriate, therefore, for God to send such a negative sign (a sign like the one pictured in 1 Cor. 14:21) to the church at Corinth, nor did God send such a sign; however, and this is Paul's point, the misuse of tongues at Corinth (including the excessive amount of tongues and especially the fact that the tongues were not being interpreted and understood by the church) had all too much similarity with the "strange tongues" of Isa. 28:11. The apostle was still trying to wake up the Corinthians (those who needed to be awakened) that their misuse of tongues was a serious negative - it was time for them to stop this foolish behavior. Many misunderstand Paul here because they wrongly assume that he was speaking of a positive sign, like what happened with tongues on the Day of Pentecost. For one thing, there is nothing positive in 1 Cor. 14:21. Furthermore, seeing tongues as a positive sign for unbelievers here would lead to a contradiction with what Paul says in 1 Cor. 14:23, where he asks if the unbelievers will think that they mad/crazy.]]; but prophecy is for a sign, not to unbelievers but to those who believe. [[The words "is for a sign" are in italics in the NASB because these words were not included in the Greek. I would just as soon skip the added words "for a sign." (The verb "is" must often be supplied in the English when it was not included [or required] in the Greek. The comma after sign would also be omitted. We don't have Paul's original punctuation.) Paul's meaning is simply that prophecy (where God speaks to His people in a language they can understand) is appropriate for a believer's meeting, whereas tongues/languages that are not understood by those hearing them (as in 14:21) are not appropriate for a believer's meeting, but for a group of unrepentant rebels (for an unbeliever's meeting). If we leave in the words "for a sign" (which is reasonable), the sign would be positive, a sign appropriate for a gathering of the believers at Corinth. By speaking of a positive sign, I do not mean to say that God's prophetic word to Christians or to a church could not contain any negative elements like a call to repentance (see under 1 Cor. 14:3). It is a loving, positive thing for God to call His people to repentance when such a call is needed (cf., e.g., Rev. 3:19, 20).]] (23) Therefore if the whole church assembles together and all speak in tongues, and ungifted men or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are mad? [[On "ungifted men," see under 1 Cor. 14:16. Paul's point here was that the ungifted men and even the unbelievers (those who had not yet become believers in Christ) would be enough in contact with reality to see that it did not make sense for God to continue to speak to His people (whom He supposedly loved as His born-again children) in languages they did not understand. It was time for the Christians at Corinth who were doing all the uninterpreted tongue speaking in the church to wake up. When Paul said, "all speak in tongues," he was picturing an exaggerated case where uninterpreted tongues were all that was being spoken throughout the church service. (Some of the Christians at Corinth may have desired a meeting close to this.) The picture was not, as I have heard it said, that Paul was concerned that they were all speaking with tongues at the same time. Note that in the next verse Paul spoke of a meeting where all prophesy. It is clear that he was not thinking of all prophesying at the same time. That would have caused chaos, and it would not have led to the positive results pictured in 14:24, 25. It would, of course, have been out of balance to have nothing but prophecy throughout the meeting (cf. 14:26, 29), but there still would be much good fruit, unlike a meeting in which there was nothing but uninterpreted tongues. One last comment, and I am not being dogmatic on this point, I do not believe that Paul (or, much more importantly, God) would have considered it inappropriate for all the saints to pray and/or worship and/or sing in tongues together for a period of time (it would necessarily be without interpretation, except as God chose to give some special interpretation) as long as no one was being left out or needlessly being offended. I am not making a big deal out of this concept, but I do not believe that this practice by some in our day violates the guidelines set down by Paul in this chapter. Paul did not give a complete teaching on tongues or prophecy in this chapter; what he said was designed to meet the immediate needs of the church at Corinth.]] (24) But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all; (25) the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you. [[See under 1 Cor. 14:23. If an entire meeting consisted of prophecy, even though the meeting would be out of balance, it would still make sense, and the truths of the gospel could go forth. The idea here is not of a specific prophetic word spoken to an unbeliever or an ungifted man (though that could happen, as God wills); note that "he is convicted BY ALL, he is called to account BY ALL." (There is no guarantee, of course, that unbelievers will respond to the gospel no matter how much things are in order. Many never will repent; they willfully reject God and His gospel.) This certainly is a lot better result than the result mentioned if all speak with tongues: "will they not say that you are mad?" (14:23). As I mentioned, the apostle contrasts uninterpreted tongues and prophecy (using prophecy as an illustration of a charismatic gift that edifies) throughout this chapter.]] (26) What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. [The apostle is calling for a proper balance in the church service. On "each one," see under 1 Cor. 12:7. On "edification," see under 1 Cor. 14:3.] (27) If anyone speaks in a tongue, it should be by two or at the most three, and each in turn, and one must interpret [[The apostle Paul limits the public speaking in tongues to two or three in a service. He does not specify how long a person would be permitted to speak with tongues, but it would definitely be limited. Throughout this chapter Paul insists that public tongues must be interpreted. I do not believe that Paul meant to say that all the interpreting must be done by one person; cf. 1 Cor. 14:13, 38. I'm sure the apostle would leave room for a message in tongues that was directed (by God) to a person(s) in the congregation who could understand the language, like on the day of Pentecost. Such a message would not need to be interpreted, but typically the rest of the people in the congregation would be informed what had happened when it became known.]; (28) but if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God. [Compare 14:2. To speak to himself and to God here includes not speaking out loud (that is, keeping silent in the church, so as not to distract others).] (29) Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment. [[As with tongues and interpretation, prophesying is also to be limited to leave room for other ministries and activities. On prophets, see under 1 Cor. 12:28; 14:1, 3. Does the word "prophets," as it is used here, include the Christians who speak with Spirit-inspired utterance (cf. 1 Cor. 12:10) but do not receive revelations like in 14:30? It is possible; for one thing, such Spirit-inspired utterance is comparable with the interpreted tongues just spoken of in 14:27, 28 (cf. 14:5). It is important to see that the word prophet can be used in flexible ways. Who are the others that are to pass judgment? Paul probably was thinking especially of the other prophets; however, I am sure he would agree that all Christians have some responsibility to judge what is spoken (cf., e.g., 1 Thess. 5:21, 22), and especially the other ministers that are present. For one thing, all prophecies must be tested against the Scriptures. In the days before the New Testament was completed, they would be tested against the accepted apostolic foundation of the new covenant (including the epistles of Paul that were available). Compare, for example, 1 John 4:1-6. They would also be tested, where applicable, against the Old Testament. Although Paul didn't mention it here, revelation received through tongues with interpretation (along with every other revelation or teaching) must also be tested. Prophets (and all ministers and all Christians) must also be tested by how they live (cf., e.g., Matt. 7:15-23).]] (30) But if a revelation is made to another who is seated [The one prophesying is pictured standing.], the first one must keep silent. [It is clear that Paul was speaking here of something beyond Spirit-inspired utterance, though that is probably included in what Paul means by prophesying in 14:31. The idea here is that the one prophesying must yield to the other prophets, not to mention the other ministries.] (31) For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all may be exhorted [[This verse is often used to support the idea that all Christians can, and should, be prophesying; however, it seems clear to me that Paul addressed these words to those who were gifted to prophesy, not to all Christians. See under 1 Cor. 14:5. If we exhort all Christians (especially those young in the faith) that the Bible says they should be prophesying (and this happened to me as a young charismatic), we are opening the door for potential big trouble if the Bible doesn't really say that (and I don't believe it does say that).]; (32) and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets [[Paul's point here is that it will not do for the prophets to say the Spirit made me prophesy, or that He made me keep on prophesying so that I could not stop and share the floor with the other prophets (and other ministries). The same thing is true for those speaking in tongues. The Spirit does not force us speak with tongues; He does not force us speak out loud during church services; He does not force us to keep on speaking; He does not force us to us stop speaking; and He does not force us to not speak at inappropriate times (for example, interrupting another person). Demon spirits, on the other hand, do tend to drive/force people to do things.]]; (33) for God is not a God of confusion [The NIV has "disorder."] but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. [God is a God of peace, and His people and the gatherings of His people will be characterized by peace to the extent His people cooperate with Him and do things His way. The NIV (and others) takes the last words of this verse with the next verse; the NIV has, "As in all the congregations of the saints, women...." I prefer the translation of the NASB.] (34) The women are to keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but are to subject themselves, just as the Law also says, (35) If they desire to learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is improper for a woman to speak in church. [[In the first place, I should mention that Paul was undoubtedly addressing a specific problem that he had learned of; this applies to much that the apostle says in this epistle (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 1:11; 5:1; 7:1; 11:18; 15:12; and 16:15-18). Secondly, we must recognize that the apostle was not requesting complete silence by women in church, but of their refraining from speech that was considered improper (out of order). First Corinthians 11:5 made it clear, for example, that women could pray and prophesy in church, but in 1 Cor. 11:2-16 the apostle dealt with the need for women to be submissive in church (which included having the head covered, as a symbol of submission, while praying or prophesying). See the discussion under those verses in the article on 1 Corinthians chapter 11. As discussed there, there is room to see some difference in what submission means in different, subsequent cultures. In Paul's day for a woman to be involved in the theological discussions in church, even asking questions, was considered to be out of order and manifesting a lack of submission. First Timothy 2:11, 12 say, "Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet." In our day women asking questions, etc. is commonly done, and I believe (in most cases at least) it is proper.]] (36) Was it from you that the word of God first went forth? Or has it come to you only? [The answer to these questions is obvious. The gospel did not originate at Corinth; it came there through the ministry of the apostle Paul. That being the case, it was time for the Corinthians to submit to the Word of God as it was delivered to them and stop trying to change it. They also needed to be submissive to the present ministry of the apostle Paul. I assume these words apply in a general way, and not just back to 14:34, 35.] (37) If anyone thinks he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord's commandment. [These words (and many other words) demonstrate that Paul took his apostolic authority very seriously. I assume he wrote these words with some particular people in mind, who at least thought they were "prophet(s) or spiritual." It is clear there were some "Christians" at Corinth who were sure they did not need to submit to the ministry of the apostle Paul; surely they knew more than he did, and surely they were above him in the Lord, they thought.] (38) But if anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized. [The NIV has, "if he ignores this, he himself will be ignored." In other words, as far as the apostle Paul was concerned, those who did not recognize (who disregarded/ignored) his apostolic authority were not to be recognized (they were to be disregarded/ignored by the church).] (39) Therefore, my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy [cf. 1 Cor. 14:1], and do not forbid to speak with tongues. [This verse somewhat summarizes the message of this entire chapter; however, as Paul emphasizes in this chapter, the tongues must be interpreted if they are spoken out loud in church.] (40) But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner. [Amen!] May God's will be fully accomplished through this study of 1 Corinthians chapter 14. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. I recommend that you take a look at the other papers, articles, audio recordings, the information dealing with my two books, Holiness and Victory Over Sin: Full Salvation Through the Atoning Death of the Lord Jesus Christ and The Mid-Week Rapture, etc. that are available on my website.                 Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:11:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-601/train-up-a-child-before-birth.html Train Up A Child - Before Birth   By: Steve Wukmer       The Bible instructs parents in Proverbs 22:6 “To train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old; he will not depart from it.” Training or instruction by the parents a necessity in a child's life for proper development sociably, mentally, and physically. The question that arises is “where or when do we start as parents?” The best advice found is before a child is born through Stimulation. There are three basic areas of Stimulation: sound, touch, and proper care. The first area of Stimulation that a parent encouraged to use is sound. Sound according to many studies has a great effect on the child's development while in the womb and will also have lasting effects on the child once the child is born. What types of sounds should the parents use? The first sound is talking to the child, both mother and father. Using wholesome words when speaking to the child has a proven effect on the child's ability to bond and relate to each parents once born. The second sound which is related to the first is reading to the child while in the womb. As Christian parents the best reading material is the Bible. Both parents are encouraged to take time reading to a child, which will develop their baby's mental ability to speak and learn as well as creating a positive relationship with each parent. The third sound is music that is calm and soothing to the child. Parents are should avoid loud music or music that may cause irritation to the baby. One suggestion for the use of music is to take a set of head phones and place them on the mother's stomach to allow the child to develop their thoughts and response to the music or the parents may choose to sing to the child. As Christian parents it would be wise to use good Christian music and develop their spiritual growth even before they are born. Sound simulations that should be avoided are extreme loud noises such as screaming, yelling, banging, or noises that will cause the child to be restless once born. An example of this a child that was exposed to Firecrackers before birth may become very afraid and agitated after they are born in response to hearing a firecracker. Parents will need to learn to avoid certain noise because of the effects it may have on the child after they are born. The goal of using positive sounds is for the baby to be able to develop properly, especially mentally. The second area of Stimulation is touch. Again, both parents are encouraged to use touch to stimulate the child in the womb. While the parents are using the first area of Stimulation, sound, they should take turns rubbing the Mother womb when they are speaking, signing or reading to the child. When there is movement of the child in the womb is a good time to use the Stimulation of gently patting or rubbing the tummy. When parents receive an ultra sound of the baby this will help them know where the head of the child is located so can gently rub that area of the tummy. This type of stimulation has also proven effect on the way the child will bond with the parents once born. The third area of Stimulation is proper care. Proper care is the result of the mother's physical, mental, and emotional well being. Both parents can play an important roll in this even though it is mainly the mother's responsibility for herself and the child.. Physically the mother should take time to eat right as well as exercise to maintain her strength and physical fitness. Mentally the mother should take some time to focus on herself and the baby's needs. Reading and relaxing will help both the mother and the child. Also, take time to counsel with some Godly women who have been through what you are going through. Proverbs teaches that there is wisdom in the multitude of counselors, Proverbs 11:14, 15:22. Emotionally the mother again should take time to relax and meditate on the Word of God which will provide strength and encouragement. The Husband's responsibility is to Love, Nourish, and Cherish their wives, Ephesians 5:25-33. Husbands should be the positive encourager and strength to his wife and child during the pregnancy. Husbands can eat right and exercise with their wives. They can provide for her mental and emotional needs also. The husband can and should be his wife's support through out her pregnancy by allowing some free time for relaxation and helping around the house with the chores. Husbands should have a daily goal to read the Bible and pray with his wife. Parents should allow this time of pregnancy to draw each of them closer one to another. A positive and loving relationship will have a great result on the child once born. In conclusion Stimulation of sound, touch, and proper care will provide lasting effects on the child's growth once they are born. Studies have proven that a child will be able to communicate better with their parents if the principles of sound was developed in the womb. The sound Stimulation has also proven that a child has a better chance to develop their speech earlier and easier. A child will respond to parents better emotionally when the Stimulation of touch was practiced when the parent hugs the child or provides for their physical needs. Last, proper care teaches parents to work together, love one another (even trough difficulties), and be their for each other. Building a happy, positive, (Christian) home will be the best for the development and training up a child in the way he should go. Parents should strive to keep Jesus first in the marriage and home for the benefit and well being of the child and their marriage. As a word of encouragement parents should seek out some good material on training their child before birth and after Birth. The best tool though is the word of God itself for raising a godly family.   Author Resource:-> I have been in the ministry for 30 years helping Families and their children. I have been a Pastor, Youth Pastor, Christian School Teacher, and worked in Homes for Troubled Teens. I have a degree in Bible and education. I also, have a Master degree in Pastoral counseling. My desire is to help Parents and their children. To be able to help families; I have dedicated web site for this purpose : http://www.babiesjoyful.com             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:05:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-600/1-corinthians-chapter-15-part-1-of-2-parts.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 15, Part 1 (of 2 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       This two-part article was taken from the verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 15 on my internet site that was originally part of my paper titled, "A Verse-by-Verse Study of Six Important Eschatological Chapters of the New Testament: 1 Corinthians 15; Matthew 24, 25; and Revelation 20-22" that was published November, 1998. As I prepare this two-part article to put on this Christian article site, I am incorporating a few corrections and some improvements. All Bible quotations were taken from the 1977 edition of the NASB unless otherwise noted. Sometimes I use double brackets [[ ]] and (( )) to make them more obvious. "Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, (2) by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you [[It's true, of course, that we must continue to "hold fast the word" of the gospel (in faith), which includes living in line with the truth of the gospel as well as holding correct doctrine. However, that isn't the primary issue the apostle Paul is dealing with here; he assumes (at least for the sake of discussion) that they are holding fast the gospel; the if clause is a class-one condition in the Greek (assumed to be true). What. Paul is getting at here, as the following words show, is the issue whether the gospel they had received from Paul is true (not that Paul ever doubted it).]], unless you believed in vain. [[Compare "if Christ has not been raised...your faith...is vain" (15:14) and "your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins" (15:17). As Paul will go on to show, they would have believed in vain if there is no resurrection of the dead. The resurrection of the dead is an important part of the gospel. Throughout this chapter Paul deals with the resurrection, because some in the church at Corinth were denying the resurrection of the body (15:12). If they are right, Paul says, then the gospel isn't true, and we have believed in vain. Paul, of course, wasn't doubting the resurrection; he was trying to wake up some Corinthians to the seriousness of their unappreciated modification of the gospel. God doesn't need any help! Some Corinthians were denying the resurrection of the body, but they probably would have accused Paul of setting up a straw man in this chapter, easy to knock over. They probably would have said they believed in eternal glory all right, but they just didn't believe in a literal resurrection of the body. From their point of view, the idea of a resurrected body was a negative; it sounded like a Jewish myth that was beneath their dignity, being cultured Greeks (cf. Acts 17:32); they undoubtedly looked forward to being totally free from a body in the eternal age to come. It's probably true that Paul didn't give their viewpoint a fair hearing - he knew that it was wrong. The Corinthians had no right to modify the gospel, which was given by Christ to Paul (cf., e.g., Gal. 1:11, 12), to make it better fit their view of things. We had better just stick with God's view of things, the truth. Their idea fit a popular world view of that day, that physical matter, including the body, is evil. However, physical matter and the body are not evil in themselves, having been created by God. Some Corinthians Christians wanted to once-for-all be free from this evil. Their contempt for a resurrected body probably pictured this body being essentially the equivalent of the body as it exists in this age. ((Some ancient Jewish writings, including the Talmud, show that this was a common viewpoint among the Jews. See, for example, F. L. Godet ("The First Epistle to the Corinthians" [1971 reprint by Zondervan from the 1886 edition], page 401 under verses 25-58); Simon J. Kistemaker ("1 Corinthians" [Baker, 1993], page 566 under verse 35); and Archibald Robertson and Alfred Plummer ("First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians" [T. & T. Clark, printed 1982], page 368 under verse 35).)) In 1 Cor. 15:35-54 Paul deals with the glorious transformation of the present body that will make it a body designed for eternal, heavenly glory. They probably said they believed in the resurrection, but that is was strictly a spiritual resurrection. It's true, of course, that we have already experienced a spiritual resurrection as born-again Christians (cf., e.g., Rom. 6:4-11; Eph. 2:5, 6; and Col. 2:12, 13). In 2 Tim. 2:17, 18 Paul mentions two Christian leaders by name "who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place" thereby apparently denying the future resurrection of the body. Based on what Paul says in this chapter, it seems his opponents did not deny the resurrection of Jesus' body, but they probably thought of His body being different than ours; His was a unique case. (Compare, for example, 1 John 4:2, where John had to combat the Gnostic denial that Jesus really "came in the flesh.") It would have been very difficult for Christians to deny the bodily resurrection of Christ with that empty tomb, with all those witnesses of His resurrection (see 1 Cor. 15:5-8), and with His resurrection being so emphasized in the gospel. I might add that the disciples could touch Him after His resurrection (Matt. 28:9; Luke 24:36-40) and He ate with His resurrected body (Luke 24:41-43).]] (3) For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, (4) and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures [[As I mentioned, Paul received the gospel from Christ. Significantly, Paul had the Old Testament Scriptures to substantiate his gospel. On Christ's (atoning) death and resurrection, see Isa. 52:12-53:12; Luke 24:25, 26, 46; Acts 17:2, 3; and 26:22, 23. On His atoning death, see I Pet. 2:24, 25 (these verses quote from, and build on, Isa. 53:4-12); Acts 8:32-35 (Acts 8:32, 33 quote Isa. 53:7, 8). On His burial, see Isa. 53:9. On His resurrection, see Psalm 16:8-11 with Acts 2:22-32. Regarding His being raised on the third day, cf. Hos. 6:2; Matt. 12:39, 40 with Jonah 1:17; John 2:18-22; Matt. 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; Luke 9:22; 18:33; 24:7; 24:46; and Acts 10:40. I agree with the standard viewpoint that Jesus was crucified and buried on Friday and raised early Sunday morning, on the third day. Matthew 12:39, 40 with Jonah 1:17 are explained by D. A. Carson ("Expositor's Bible Commentary," Vol. 8 [Zondervan, 1984], page 296): "...if the normal sequence of Passion Week [speaking of the standard viewpoint I just mentioned] is correct...Jesus was in the tomb only about thirty-six hours. Since they included parts of three days, by Jewish reckoning Jesus was buried 'three days' or, to put it another way, he rose 'on the third day' (Matt. 16:21). ... In rabbinical thought a day and a night make an "onah" [a full day], and a part of an onah is as the whole (cf. ... Esth. 4:16; 5:1). Thus according to Jewish tradition, 'three days and three nights' need mean no more than 'three days' or any combination of any part of three separate days."]], (5) and that He appeared to Cephas [[Paul normally refers to Peter by his Aramaic name, Cephas. (See John 1:42; Gal. 2:7-9.) Compare Luke 24:13-35, especially 24:34; these verses also mention Jesus' appearance to the two men on the road to Emmaus, not mentioned by Paul here. Paul also doesn't mention Jesus' appearance to Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18; Mark 16:9) and to the women (Matt. 28:1-10). The apostles were key witnesses of Christ's resurrection (cf. Acts 1:22).]], then to the twelve [Compare Mark 16:14; Luke 24:36; and John 20:19.]. (6) After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; (7) then He appeared to James [This is James a brother of the Lord Jesus (cf., e.g., Mark 6:3; Acts 12:17; Gal. 1:19; and 2:9, 12). In Gal. 1:19 Paul calls James an apostle; he wasn't one of the twelve.], then to all the apostles [Compare Acts 1:3-12.]; (8) and last of all, as it were to one untimely born [The NIV has, "as to one abnormally born." Paul is alluding to the circumstances of his conversion; he met the Lord Jesus while on his way to Damascus to persecute some more of His people. Compare Acts 9:1-22; 22:3-21; 26:9-20; and 1 Cor. 9:1.], He appeared to me also. (9) For I am the least of the apostles, who am not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. [Cf. 1 Tim. 1:12-16.] (10) But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. [Compare, for example, 2 Cor. 3:5, 6; Eph. 3:1-13. The fact that Paul's ministry (and life) was effective by God's grace/Spirit, and the fact that God must receive all the glory, doesn't mean that Paul (and all Christians) didn't have a necessary role to play, as he cooperated with God's grace/Spirit through faith. Compare Phil. 2:12, 13.] (11) Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed. (12) Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? (13) But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; (14) and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. (15) Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we witnessed against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. (16) For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; (17) and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. [As discussed above, Paul's opponents would probably have said they believed Jesus, being a unique case (for one thing He was God the Son), was resurrected, but that they could not accept the idea of a bodily resurrection of Christians. However, as these verses show, Paul will have none of this compromise. Either the gospel is true in its entirety, or it is false, and we are still in our sins.] (18) Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. [In other words, if the gospel isn't true, those Christians who have died will not be resurrected to eternal glory when Christ returns; they have perished.] (19) If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. [[The hope of Christians is to he resurrected to eternal glory when Christ returns (cf., e.g., Col. 1:5, 27; 3:4; Phil. 3:20, 21). (At death true Christians go to heaven [cf. 2 Cor. 5:1, 8; Phil. 1:21, 23; 1 Thess. 4:14-16], but it is heaven in a preliminary sense; it is a preliminary state that precedes the resurrection and the full glory reserved for the age to come.) If we were to have this hope in Christ throughout this present life and then die and find out that our hope was based on a lie (which isn't going to happen, as Paul can assure his readers), then "we are of all men most to be pitied." Paul's point is that if the Corinthians who were denying the bodily resurrection were right, then this would be the result.]] (20) But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. [[The Lord Jesus Christ was the first man (He became a man, but He is much more than just a man) to leave death behind and be harvested into God's eternal kingdom with a glorified body. He is "the first fruits" of the coming harvest. (There is widespread agreement that Jesus was raised on the very day "the sheaf of the first fruits of [the agricultural] harvest" was presented before the Lord. See Lev. 23:10, 11. The "first fruits" look forward to, and consecrate, the harvest yet to come.) Then, as 1 Cor. 15:23 shows, at the time of Christ's second coming, His people (all true believers, which includes all the believers from old-covenant days and all true Christians) will be harvested into the glory of God's kingdom. All believers who have died will he resurrected, and those Christians still living on the earth when He comes will be transformed (cf. 1 Cor. 15:50-52; 1 Thess. 4:13-17). (Matthew 27:52, 53 show that a select number of old-covenant saints received resurrection bodies shortly after the Lord Jesus was resurrected.) The verse we are studying calls Jesus "the first fruits of those who are asleep"; Col. 1:18 and Rev. 1:5 call Him "the first-born of/from the dead." He is the first man to be born into the fulness of eternal life with a glorified body, a body that will never taste death. We will follow Him in this birth at the time of His return. Revelation 12:5 is a key verse that speaks of this end-time birth of God's people. (This verse is discussed in my book, "The Mid-Week Rapture," on pages 314-316. Three other verses that speak of this same birth are Psalm 2:7: Isa. 66:7; and Mic. 5:3. These verses are discussed in some detail in that book; separate chapters are devoted to Psalm 2; Isa. 66:1-8; and Micah 4:9-5:6. Also see my twenty-four articles titled, "The Mid-Week Rapture.") On this all-important birth (and life) by the Spirit, also see below under 1 Cor. 15:44, 45, including the discussion of John 3:5, 6.]] (21) For since by a man [Adam] came death, by a man [the last Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ] also came the resurrection of the dead. [Compare Rom. 5:12-21; 6:5; Eph. 1:19-2:10; Phil. 3:10-14; Col. 3:1-4; and I Peter 1:3-13. Christians are united with Christ in His death, burial, resurrection, ascension, etc. In Christ we are taken to a place much higher than what Adam had before the fall (cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 15:44-50). In 1 Cor. 15:45 Christ is called "the last Adam."] (22) For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. [[All true believers will be caught up into the fulness of eternal life when Christ returns. It's also true that Christians are "made alive" when they become Christians (as the references cited under 15:21 confirm), but the fulness of eternal life (including most of the glory) is reserved for the age to come. In the interpretation of these verses given so far, it has been assumed that "all" in "all shall be made alive" is limited to believers. This is reasonable, and this is a very common interpretation of these words. Paul's Rom. 5:18 fits this viewpoint, "So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness [referring to Christ's atoning death] there resulted justification of life to all men." It's clear (in context with Rom. 5:17, 19) that "all men" in 5:18 is limited to those who receive God's grace in Christ (by faith). There is, however, another way to understand the last words of 1 Cor. 15:21 ("the resurrection of the dead") and the last words of 15:22 ("so also in Christ all shall be made alive"), and I somewhat prefer this other interpretation. (Even if we go a little beyond what Paul intended with this other interpretation, it's still Biblical [and therefore true], and it will be worth our time to consider it. Whether we accept the one interpretation, or the other, doesn't affect the overall interpretation of this chapter or the Bible's teaching on the end times.) It seems preferable to understand "all shall be made alive" to refer to all mankind, and this can be done if we understand "made alive" here to speak of the resurrection of all mankind, not just the resurrection of believers. Though I have found that many Christians don't know this, it's clear that all people, not just believers, will eventually be resurrected (cf., e.g., John 5:28, 29; Acts 24:15 [This verse is significant in that the apostle Paul says, "there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked."]; Luke 14:14; and Rev. 20:5). John 5:28, 29 are especially relevant as a reference in that all the dead (not just the believers) will hear the voice of the Son of God and be resurrected. Revelation 20:5 is especially relevant because it speaks of "the rest of the dead" (which refers to those not made alive/resurrected in the first resurrection, which will be completed by the time the millennium begins) coming to life at the end of the millennium; their coming to life speaks of their resurrection. The next four verses (1 Cor. 15:23-26) fit better with the idea that "all shall be made alive" here in 1 Cor. 15:22 speaks of all mankind.]] (23) But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming [[The words "each in his own order," fit better with the idea that Paul was referring to all mankind being made alive/resurrected in 15:21, 22. With this fuller viewpoint, the "order(s)" include a third major order after the resurrections of Christ and of "those who are Christ's at His coming," that is, the resurrection of the rest of the dead at the end of the millennium. Paul doesn't specifically mention this third order here in chapter 15 (his primary topic throughout this entire chapter is the resurrection of believers), but there is further rather strong evidence for this viewpoint in 15:26, which speaks of the last enemy death being abolished. The last enemy death can't be abolished until all mankind has been raised from the dead (made alive). This is confirmed by Rev. 20:13, 14: We see the resurrection of the rest of the dead in Rev. 20:13 (cf. 20:5), then in 20:14 we are told that death and Hades (the abode of the dead) are cast into the lake of fire. We have already discussed the meaning of the resurrection/transformation of "those who are Christ's at His coming," but let's consider two more details. First, what about the resurrection (and rapture) of the two witnesses of Rev. 11:11, 12? I consider the resurrection (and rapture) of the two witnesses to be part of the resurrection/transformation and rapture of all believers that will take place at the mid-week (right in the middle of Daniel's 70th week) return of Christ with the clouds of heaven at the sounding of the seventh and last trumpet at Rev. 11:15. Their resurrection and rapture could precede the resurrection and rapture of the rest of God's people by a very short period of time, or it could be simultaneous with it. Second, many will be born again after the rapture of the church. This multitude, which can be called the end-time remnant of Israel (though it undoubtedly includes many Gentiles) will go through three and one-half very difficult years (cf. Dan. 7:21, 25; 12:6, 7; Rev. 12:6, 13-17; 13:5, 7), and there will be many martyrs for Christ. At the end of this period (at the end of Daniel's 70th week), all the believers who have been martyred during the second three and one-half years will be resurrected (Rev. 20:4), and I assume that those believers still alive will be transformed; together they will begin their never-ending reign in glory with those already resurrected/transformed in the middle of the seven-year period. (On the verses I mentioned (and for further information), see my book, "The Mid-Week Rapture.")]], (24) then comes the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. (25) For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. [["The end" cannot come until Christ has returned and subdued all His enemies in His end-time reign (reigning includes judging). Revelation 11:17 and 12:10 are two key verses that speak of this end-time reign of Christ that will begin in the middle of Daniel's 70th week. The Lord Jesus has all authority now (e.g., Matt. 28:18; Eph. 1:20-23), but He is waiting for the Father's time to return to subdue His enemies. (Throughout this age He is subduing the hearts of those who submit to the gospel in faith [cf. Rev. 6:2].) As I mentioned, the last enemy to be subjugated will be death, and we know, based on Rev. 20:14, that death will not be abolished until after the millennium, after the great-white-throne judgment of Rev. 20:11-15. (Paul didn't have the benefit of having the super-important book of Revelation, which was written some thirty years after his death. I doubt that he knew some of the end-time details that we learn from the book of Revelation.) Psalm 110 is an important reference on Christ's coming rule/reign that will subdue His enemies. Psalm 110:1 speaks of His "enemies being made a footstool for [His] feet." (Compare Heb. 10:13.) This significant psalm is discussed in chapter 19 of my book, "The Mid-Week Rapture." Psalm 8, especially verse 6 (this verse is quoted in 1 Cor. 15:27), is another important reference dealing with Christ's enemies being put under His feet. On Psalm 8, see pages 76-80 in "The Mid-Week Rapture." Also see Eph. 1:22, which also quotes from Psalm 8:6.]] (26) The last enemy that will be abolished is death. [See under 1 Cor. 15:23.] (27) For HE [God the Father] HAS PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS [Christ's] FEET. But when He [I would translate "when it says," with the NIV; "it" refers to the verse of the Old Testament that is quoted (Psalm 8:6).] says, 'All things are put in subjection,' it is evident that He [God the Father] is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him [Christ]. [Hebrews 2:5-11, which quote Psalm 8:4-6, show that Christ's people will ultimately be included with Christ in this reign. On Heb. 2:5-11, see pages 78-80 of "The Mid-Week Rapture."] (28) And when all things are subjected to Him [Christ's work of saving and judging will be finished.], then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, that God may be all in all. [[These two verses emphasize the subordinate role of God the Son to God the Father, but lest we go too far and miss the balance here, see, e.g., Rev. 21:22, 23 and 22:3, verses that help demonstrate the exalted role that God the Son will have with God the Father in the glorious, eternal New Jerusalem. Revelation 22:3-5 are key verses that show the glorious, never-ending reign of all the people of God's true Israel with God the Father and God the Son.]] (29) Otherwise, what will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them? [[The apostle refers to a practice that was evidently done on occasion in the church at Corinth (baptism for the dead) to further argue for the need to believe in the resurrection. The Bible doesn't mention this practice anywhere else. Paul wasn't necessarily in favor of this practice, but it doesn't seem that he forbade it. It certainly isn't a practice that Christians are required to do, and I'm not aware of any Christians doing it. What is the baptism for the dead? There have been many answers given to this question, but there's only one that seems satisfactory to me, and it's the most common answer. I'll give an illustration to show how this probably worked. Let's say there was a man who had been actively attending the church at Corinth for several months. He had been zealously studying the scriptures, and everyone in the church was impressed with his sincerity in submitting to God and the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. However, before being baptized in water, this man lost his life when his ship was destroyed in a storm in the Mediterranean Sea. In a case like this (at least in some such cases at Corinth), someone (perhaps a relative or a close friend in the church) was baptized in his place, by proxy. (Many have heard of a person being prayed for in the place of another person not present, by proxy.) There would surely have been very definite limits on who qualified for this baptism by proxy, for example, those who were definitely known to be believers. You couldn't begin to understand how a practice like this could have arisen if, like many Christians today, you have a low view of water baptism. It's clear to me that the Bible teaches a higher view of baptism than that held by many Christians today. I'm not bringing this up because I think this is one of the biggest problems we have in the Body of Christ. (I believe we have much greater problems to deal with in the Body of Christ, especially dealing with the basic truths of the gospel and the need to live in God's will - in His righteousness and holiness - by grace/the Spirit through faith.) Furthermore, I'm not bringing up water baptism because of some special interest in this topic, or because of some special experience I've had; I'm not emotionally involved regarding this topic, and I'm not obligated to any particular viewpoint - we are obligated to God and His truth! I'm bringing it up strictly based on what the Bible seems to rather clearly say on this topic. I'm certainly not suggesting, nor do I believe, that people can't be saved or sanctified apart from water baptism. God has been very generous with His people (in blessing us in spite of our errors), but that's no excuse to maintain our viewpoints when they're wrong/when they don't line up with the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches. The more we do things God's way, the more He will be glorified, His will will be accomplished in the church, the more He can bless us and use us, and the more we can unite around the balanced truth. It seems that many have formed their view of water baptism mostly in reaction to someone else who was out of balance in a different direction, and we typically have several verses that we emphasize. We need the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches in this area, as in every area. It is quite significant that the Bible mentions forgiveness/washing away of sins at water baptism (Acts 2:38, 22:16). It mentions becoming united with Christ in baptism, including being united with Him in His death on the cross (cf. Gal. 3:27; Rom. 6:3). He died an atoning death in our place; we are to die to sin and to the old man in water baptism, and the old man is to be buried (Rom. 6:3, 4; Col. 2:11, 12). John 3:5 seems to speak of water baptism as a preliminary to being born of the Spirit. I agree with the widespread viewpoint that the words "born of water" in John 3:5 refer to water baptism, which was quite prominent in that setting. Not only was John the Baptist baptizing (even Jesus Christ was baptized by him), but Jesus (through His disciples) was also baptizing (John 1:25-34; 3:22-26; 4:1, 2). The baptism of John 3:5 is a baptism of repentance and faith. Regarding the Biblical pattern that the life-giving, sanctifying, gift-dispensing Spirit typically comes to believers immediately after, and in close association with, water baptism, see pages 126, 127 in my book "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," including the Notes. This reference also discusses Titus 3:5, another verse that apparently views water baptism as a preliminary to receiving the Spirit, not that there isn't room for exceptions to this pattern. (See Acts 10:44-48. We can understand this exception: If God had not clearly demonstrated that He fully accepted those uncircumcised Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, as on the day of Pentecost, Peter probably wouldn't have baptized them. See Acts 11:1-18). And 1 Pet. 3:21 even speaks of baptism saving us. As I mentioned, I'm not suggesting that these things (like forgiveness, dying to the old man, etc.) can't he received apart from water baptism, but baptism seems to be the most appropriate (Biblical) occasion to complete these transactions. We will complete this discussion regarding water baptism and go on to 1 Corinthians 15:30-58 in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.             Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:03:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-599/philippians-chapter-1-part-3b-what-happened-paul-happens-today-ii.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 3B - What happened Paul happens today II   By: MAXINE PINDER       PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 1:12-13 Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happen to me has served to advance the gospel. As a result it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. I remember my niece telling me about Joseph Kony and his exploitation of children. She had learned about this on the internet, from her peers and at school, as a matter of fact, there was a discussion about it in her class. The protests rang out around the world about this man. Discussions about the persecution of Christians are not permitted in classrooms and the protests against such are scant. Although Christian persecution is rampant in Islamic and Buddhist nations, amongst others, many people are unaware of it. This is the case because the story is not continuously covered by mainstream media as the Arab Spring was, for instance, and when it is, the level of concern does not rise amongst the people because, quite frankly, Christians are too quiet about it themselves. I believe that this is something for which we, who live in free societies in the earth, will have to give an account to God. I am sure of this. We cannot and should not be silent whilst our brothers and sisters are beaten, arrested, imprisoned, ripped apart from their families, killed, their churches, homes and schools destroyed amongst other atrocities. Here is what happens in the nation of North Korea. “North Korean Christians aren't simply killed for their faith in Christ. They are pulverized with steamrollers, used to test biological weapons, shipped off to death camps or shot in front of their children, while newborn babies have their brains pithed with forceps in front of their mothers. Crimes against humanity reminiscent of Auschwitz and Treblinka to which the world declared "Never Again!" more than 60 years ago are being perpetrated today against the North Korean Christians”. This excerpt comes from the website www.northkoreanchristians.com. “Here is what happens in Eritrea. According to USCIRF’s Annual Report 2011, there are between 2,000 and 3,000 people being held hostage by the authorities on religious grounds. Prisoners face horrendous conditions, such as being kept in airless metal containers in the desert heat or herded like animals in underground cells without toilet facilities. Many contract diseases due to lack of hygiene, while others die from starvation and hunger. The ones who do survive are tortured on a daily basis”. This report comes from www.persecution.org. Though the Eritrean government permitted orthodox Christians and Catholics to worship one of the orthodox pastors who requested that the torture of Christians be stopped found himself also under persecution. The orthodox are now finding themselves in the same position of the others who were persecuted before them. There have also been other reports of Christians being jailed or killed when they marry. In my previous study I listed a total of 25 nations where Christian persecution occurs some have equivalent or worse persecutions than those 2 mentioned above. Imagine the carnage, understand the human degradation and suffering, think of the cries of fatherless children, concentrate on the need of motherless children, empathize and sympathize with the gut wrenching pain of parents whose children simply do not exist anymore and see and smell, in your mind’s eye, the persistent, continual flow of blood and stench of death which is a constant and that under horrendous conditions. What if that were you or me or your family or mine, how would we feel? Must we not be concerned about this enough to raise our voices in a cacophonous sound that covers the earth enough to bring change? We do not cry out in mass against this because we suspect that we will always be immune, that we could never have such in this nation. Remember what the bible prophesies about the world in the last of the last days, we do not know when it will begin, if it has officially begun or what will happen to this nation during those days. What we do know for certain is that it will not have a leadership role in anything in the last of the last days. Anyone who says that it will does not understand the scriptures or what it means when it says that the deadly wound was healed. That, however, is for a different bible study. The truth is that in time persecution can happen here and we can cry and find no response from others as others have cried and wondered and asked, “Where are our brothers and sisters in the earth?” The response they received was silence, emptiness, stillness, inaction and this strengthened their captors. I believe that God will call those who claim Christianity in this nation to account as far as love for our brethren is concerned. We have accepted these persecutions and have not grieved and have not exploded with protest and have not helped as much as we should. If a Pastor from an Orthodox church in one of these nations petitioned the government not to oppress Christians and found himself under house arrest, lacking medical care, in tortuous circumstances and under threat of death, then, the pastors in free nations need to issue a clarion call that marshals and awakens protesters, helpers volunteers and others in their various capacities to advocate for the freedom and deliverance of these persecuted ones. Truthfully God will call whole nations into account for what happened to his people on the Day of Judgment and if they, what about us? Will we be in the group that hears “enter into the joy of the Lord or the other group that is thrown into the darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth? What can we do as individuals? Certainly we can give to organizations that support and help persecuted Christians but there is more to be done. We can make the plight of the persecuted known by blogging about it online, by putting the information on the internet in whatever way we can and by bringing it to both religious and secular media to raise awareness. It is a worthy news story filled with more danger and intrigue than that of the Arab Spring. This is a human tragedy. This is a humanitarian nightmare. There is a point to note about this, however, the information about the persecuted must be handled with care. Reference to specific people and specific information must be shared with sensitivity for fear of capture, torture and killing of those associated with them. It is better to concentrate on the nations’ policies and in this way reveal their acts of persecution rather than reveal intimate details of the persecution of an individual in captivity which would cause them greater hardship or even death. This demands skillful writing, blogging and reporting. In addition to this we can petition our government to address these human rights violations and bring them before the world’s leadership bodies. It is said that we are a Christian nation, something I no longer believe, but others do. However, if this is the case, how can we not seek to do something to address the atrocities being perpetrated upon Christians by these nations? Any other action would be grossly inappropriate for us. These are heinous acts. The plucking out of the brain of a baby as the parents watch or the steam rolling of a human being has few rivals as far as their abominable nature is concerned. As a nation we must care! If they are doing this to their own what will they do to us if they get the opportunity whether we are Christian or not! This is more serious than we know and it is serious for the future of all who live in free nations but certainly for all who live in this country whether they are Christians or not.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit www.persecution.org www.northkoreanchristian.com The BBC News www.christianpersecution.info   Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:00:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-598/1-corinthians-chapter-15-part-2.html 1 Corinthians Chapter 15, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       We continue the verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 15 here in Part 2. I believe it's necessary for us to understand that water baptism is meaningful and effective only if it is accompanied by the following indispensable things: We must hear the gospel and understand it (we must at least understand the basics of the gospel); we must repent and submit to the gospel (and God Himself) in faith; and we must have all the necessary work of the Holy Spirit (like His drawing, convicting, revealing, regenerating, and sanctifying work). Without these things water baptism is nothing more than another dead ritual. Some other verses to consider on water baptism are Matt. 3:1-17; 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:41; 8:36-39; 9:18; 10:47, 48; 19:5; and Eph. 4:5.]] (30) Why are we ["We" includes those like Silas and Timothy who traveled and ministered with Paul.] also in danger every hour? (31) I protest, brethren, by the boasting in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. [[I believe the translation of the NIV better communicates what Paul said here: "I die every day [or, I die daily] - I mean that brothers - just as surely as I glory over you [or, boast in you] in Christ Jesus our Lord." Paul's dying daily refers to the many difficult trials he experienced in the course of his Christian life and ministry. See 1 Cor. 15:30, 32; 4:9-13; 9:19-27; 2 Cor. 1:3-11; 4:7-18; and 11:23-12:10. Paul's Christian life and ministry make absolutely no sense, he says, if there's no resurrection.]] (32) If from human motives [I prefer the NIV's "for merely human reasons." In other words, if the gospel isn't true, then Paul didn't really do these things for God, and it's all done in vain.] I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus [[Paul was in Ephesus when be wrote this epistle (cf. 1 Cor. 16:8). We don't know exactly what Paul was referring to here regarding his fighting with wild beasts, nor do we have to know (his readers undoubtedly knew more of the details), but I assume (in agreement with most commentators) he was using figurative language to speak of fierce opposition coming from some men (who were undoubtedly inspired by demons). See 1 Cor. 16:9; 2 Cor. 1:8-10 (Ephesus was in the Roman province of "Asia," which is mentioned in 2 Cor. 1:8).]], what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, LET US EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE. (33) Do not be deceived: 'Bad company corrupts good morals.' (34) Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame. [[A primary sin Paul was concerned with was the denial of the resurrection of the body; however, it's probably also true that the same people who were spreading this serious doctrinal error were living in sin and corrupting the morals of those who associated with them. (Bad doctrine often leads to sinful living, and the heresy of denying the resurrection of the body had great potential for excusing, or explaining away, sinfulness, especially sins associated with the body.) Paul exhorts the church at Corinth to stop listening to those "Christians" who don't know what they're talking about. Some of them may have been born-again Christians, but that's no guarantee they know what they're talking about. Some ministers are self-appointed; they're not from God (cf., e.g., 2 Cor. 11:13-15). We must be very careful who we listen to. We must test ministers by what they say (cf. 1 John 4:1-6), and we must test them by the way they live (cf. Matt. 7:15-20). True righteousness comes from God, based on faith in the truth of the gospel.]] (35) But someone will say, 'How are the dead raised? [The apostle doesn't spend much time answering this first question. In 15:36-38 he gives an illustration that helps demonstrate that death, rather than frustrating God's salvation plans, fits right in with His plans. How are the dead raised? By God's plan and power.] And with what kind of body do they come?' [[Throughout much of the rest of this chapter, Paul answers this question to some extent, but he doesn't give us all the answers. For one thing, it's not possible for us to fully understand the glory of the age to come while still living in this age, even though we're born again. Those who rejected the doctrine of the resurrection undoubtedly thought in terms of us having essentially the same physical body after the resurrection (see under 15:2). This viewpoint didn't take into account the transformation/glorification of the resurrected body (of believers); Paul emphasizes this transformation/glorification in the following verses.]] (36) You fool! That which you sow does not come to life [I prefer the translation "is not made alive." This translation better emphasizes the important fact that God makes it alive. The KJV has, "is not quickened."] unless it dies; (37) and that which you sow, you do not sow the body which is to be, but a bare grain, perhaps of wheat or of something else. (38) But God gives it a body just as He wished, and to each of the seeds a body of its own. [As 15:37 shows, the "body" in 15:38 refers to the plant (or a tree, etc.) that God brings forth after the sowing (planting) of the seed. There's quite a difference between the seed and the plant, isn't there? For one thing, this illustration helps demonstrate the difference between the body we have in this life compared with the transformed, glorified resurrection body.] (39) All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts [The NIV has "animals." Under the Greek noun ("ktenos"), the BAGD Greek Lexicon has, "animal, i.e. domesticated animal, pet, pack-animal, animal, used for riding."], and another flesh of birds, and another of fish. [[There are different types of seeds, and there are different types of "flesh." This verse further demonstrates the diversity in God's creation.]] (40) There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. (41) There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory. [[Paul has already mentioned that earthly bodies differ from one another (15:39), now be mentions that the same thing is true for heavenly bodies. I assume Paul thinks of the present sun, moon, and stars as representative of "heavenly bodies" (15:40). The same Greek adjective used for heavenly in 15:40 is also used for heavenly in 15:48, 49. It should be pointed out, however, that the glory of the sun, moon, and stars isn't perfect for an illustration. For one thing, the sun, moon, and stars are considered part of the second heaven, not the third heaven, where God dwells [cf. 2 Cor. 12:2]. More significant is the fact that the present heaven and earth, which includes the present sun, moon, and stars, are destined to pass away to make room for God's new heaven and new earth [cf. 2 Pet. 3:10-12; Rev. 20:11; 21:1]. I assume the elements (the matter), including those of which our glorified bodies will consist in the New Jerusalem, will be quite different than the physical elements of this present world (which were created by God), including those of our sun, moon, and stars. The glory of our present earthly bodies (and especially after the fall of man and the resultant curse on the earth) is very small in comparison with the glory of our glorified, heavenly bodies. When Paul speaks of the glory of the sun, moon, and stars, he is speaking (at least in part) of their radiance, brilliance. (That's a common use of "glory" in the New Testament.) However, when we speak of the glory that awaits us in heaven, we mean much more than radiance, brilliance. Our eternal existence will be glorified, which even includes our reigning with God forever (Rev. 22:5). On our future glory, cf., e.g., John 17:5, 21-24; Rom. 8:18-30; 1 Cor. 2:7-9; 2 Cor. 3:18; 4:17, 18; Eph. 1:18; Phil. 3:20, 21; Col. 1:27; 3:1-4; 2 Thess. 2:14; Heb. 2:10; 1 Pet. 1:7; and 5:1, 4, 10. The fact that Paul mentioned that "star differs from star in glory" fits the idea that Christians will differ from one another in glory (including differing in authority) in the age to come (cf., e.g., Dan. 12:3; Matt. 13:43; 25:21, 23; Luke 19:17, 19; 1 Cor. 3:8, 12-15; and Rev. 22:12.)]] (42) So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown [Based on the use of "sow" in 15:36, 37, the sowing here undoubtedly refers to burial (like planting a seed).] a perishable body [[The KJV has, "It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption." (Some of us will never die, or be buried [cf., e.g., 1 Cor. 15:51, 52; 1 Thess. 4:17].) Since the fall man's body has been perishable. I'll quote part of what C. K. Barrett says under this verse ("First Epistle to the Corinthians" [Harper and. Row, 1968], page 372): "Corruption is an evil power, by which the world is dominated in the old age (Rom. 8:21). It affects not only human life, but the whole of creation. Its dominion will be ended in the age to come, at the beginning of which the resurrection takes place. Thus Paul's point is not simply that we shall have a new body, no longer subject to change and decay, but that the new body will be appropriate to the new age in which God, having reasserted his sovereignty, is all in all (15:28)."]], it is raised an imperishable body; (43) it is sown in dishonor [The dishonor, which derives from sin, includes the perishableness.], it is raised in glory [Compare, for example, Phil. 3:21; Col. 1:27; 3:4. The eternal glory reserved for us (cf. 1 Pet. 1:3-9) includes the glorification of the body, but the glory will extend to every aspect of our heavenly existence.]; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power [Compare 1 Cor. 6:14; Eph. 1:19-21; Phil. 3:20, 21. It's clear that the Spirit is directly involved in the resurrection (cf. Rom. 8:11).]; (44) it is sown a natural [[The Greek adjective translated "natural" here is "psuchikos," which was derived from the noun "psuche," which is normally translated "soul" or "life" in the New Testament. Note that psuche (soul) is used in 1 Cor. 15:45. There undoubtedly is a linkage intended between psuchikos in 15:44 and psuche in 15:45, even as there is between spiritual ("pneumatikos") in 15:44 and spirit ("pneuma") in 15:45. The NASB translates psuche as life/lives forty-three times. (It is translated as soul(s) forty-seven times.) Essentially every one of the uses where psuche is translated life/lives has to do with life in this world. This life is to be contrasted with life by the Spirit (which we have as born-again Christians), and much more so it is to be contrasted with the future eternal life in glory, which also derives from the Spirit. The adjective "pneumatikos," which was derived from "pneuma" (Spirit, spirit), is normally translated "spiritual" in the New Testament. It is typically related to work/influence of the Spirit. For example, it is used of spiritual Christians, that is, those who live by the Spirit, as contrasted with those who are fleshly/worldly. (All Christians are called, enabled, and required, to be spiritual, but it doesn't always happen; we're not automatically spiritual - we must cooperate with the Spirit through faith - we must walk in/by/after the Holy Spirit on a continuous basis by faith [cf. Gal. 5:16].) The adjective is also used of gifts/things of the Spirit. I'll quote from C. K. Barrett (quoted above, under 15:42) on the meaning of spiritual in this verse: "Spiritual does not describe a higher aspect of man's life [that is, it does not refer to man's spirit]; the noun spirit (pneuma) on which it [spiritual] is based refers to the Spirit of God, and the spiritual body is the new body, animated by the Spirit of God, with which the same man will be clothed and equipped in the age to come, which he reaches (supposing him to die before the parousia [when Christ returns]) by way of resurrection." The spirit/soul of man exists forever (the words spirit and soul [of man] are typically used interchangeably in the New Testament; see my paper titled, "Some Things We Should Know about the Meaning of the Words 'Spirit' and 'Soul' "), but it is dependent on God (on the Spirit) for spiritual/eternal life. Those who lose/forfeit their souls (cf., e.g., Matt. 16:26) will not cease existing, but they will not participate in eternal life. Born-again Christians have already received the first installment of life/existence in/by the Spirit (cf., e.g., Rom. 8:11, 23). We have been born again by the Spirit, but we "cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5) in the full and final sense until we're born into the fulness of eternal life by the Spirit when Christ returns. (See under 1 Cor. 15:20 on this final [completed] birth.) John 3:6 says, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." We will not become "spirit" in the sense this word is used at the end of John 3:6 in the full and final sense until we have experienced this ultimate (completed) birth. (John 3:6 is discussed in the paper I mentioned at the beginning of this paragraph.) We will not fully leave the flesh behind and be caught up into the glory of what it means to be a son of God until this birth takes place. We will still have a body after this birth, but it will be a spiritual body, a body designed for, and fully caught up into, life in the Spirit, life in God's heavenly kingdom. In Rom. 8:23 we are told that our bodies haven't been redeemed yet; however, they are temples of the Holy Spirit now (1 Cor. 6:19). The adjective "psuchikos" is used six times in the New Testament. The NASB translates it "natural" five times (1 Cor. 2:14 [The "natural man" is contrasted with the man who is spiritual by the Spirit]; 15:44 [twice]; 15:46; and James 3:15 [The wisdom of God is contrasted with the wisdom of this world, which "is earthly, natural, demonic"]); and "worldly-minded" in Jude 1:19. Being "natural" or "worldly-minded" (for the fallen descendants of Adam) is contrasted with being "spiritual" in/by the Spirit. The primary contrast the New Testament is concerned with is that between man in the flesh/the old man and the Spirit of God (not between the flesh and the spirit). We must be born again by the Spirit and walk by the Spirit on a continuous basis by faith (cf. Gal. 5:16). That is the only way we can avoid walking in/by the flesh/old man. Here in 1 Cor. 15:44 "natural body" is used in the sense of being appropriate for this world/age, where, for one thing, the influence of the Spirit is limited, even for born-again Christians (by comparison with His influence in the age to come); the "natural body" is not appropriate for heaven: "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Cor. 15:50). As the word "natural" is used in 15:44 and 15:46, we need not necessarily include any negative ideas (though these verses are loaded with negative ideas because of the fall and sinfulness of man) since Paul uses the word here to cover Adam before the fall. Note, for example, that Adam had a "flesh and blood" body before the fall.]] body, it is raised a spiritual body. [[As the context shows, a "spiritual body" is a body appropriate for heaven. It's clear that Paul isn't speaking of a spirit without a body (cf., e.g., Luke 24:36-46). That viewpoint would be a denial of the resurrection of the body. After death (and before the resurrection) a person can be called a spirit (cf., e.g., Heb. 12:23); they can also be called a soul (cf., e.g., Rev. 6:9; 20:4); these three references deal with persons in heaven, heaven in a preliminary sense, persons waiting to receive resurrection bodies and the full glory of the age to come (cf. 1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:13-18).]] (45) So also it is written, 'The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL [with a flesh and blood body designed for life in this world]." [This quotation from Gen. 2:7 deals with Adam at the time of his creation, before the fall.] The last Adam became a life-giving spirit. [[There is, of course, a gigantic difference between the first Adam and the last Adam, the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus is deity, God the Son (e.g., Isa. 9:6, 7; John 1:1-3; Heb. 1:2, 3; Rev. 5:11-14; 21:22, 23; and 22:1-16). For Him to become a "life-giving spirit," however, in the sense the words are used here, also required Him to become a man (though not just a man) through the virgin birth, and for Him to overthrow sin, Satan, and death (spiritual and physical death) through His sinless life, His atoning death, His resurrection, and His ascension. On Christ's "life-giving", see, for example, 1 Cor. 15:20-23; John 5:21, 24-29; and Phil. 3:21. ("Life-giving" here in 15:45 is a participle of the verb used in 15:22, 36. This verb is also used in John 5:21; 6:63; Rom. 4:17; 8:11; 2 Cor. 3:6; Gal. 3:21; 1 Tim. 6:13; and 1 Pet. 3:18. Some of these verses speak of our being made alive, in a preliminary/partial sense, in the new birth.) There's no conflict between speaking of Jesus raising the dead and speaking of the Spirit raising the dead. (It's also Biblical to speak of the Father raising the dead, e.g., Rom. 8:11.) The Son and the Spirit work together in many areas. The Spirit can even be called the Spirit of Christ (cf. Acts 16:6, 7; Rom. 8:9; Gal. 4:6; Phil. 1:19; and Pet. 1:11) in that the Spirit comes to us through His atoning death, was sent by Him starting at Pentecost, represents Him (and God the Father) on the earth, was sent to exalt Him and draw men to Him, etc.]] (46) However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural; then the spiritual. [This order was part of God's eternal plan.] (47) The first man is from [or, "of, out of"] the earth, earthy [The NIV has, "was of the dust of the earth." Adam was of the earth even before the fall.]; the second man is from heaven. [The Lord Jesus Christ, being deity, is from heaven (cf., e.g., John 3:13). He also is of heaven in that He is the first man (though He is much more than just a man) to be caught up into the fulness of the eternal life of heaven. As I have mentioned, for us to he caught up into the fulness of eternal life will mean a whole lot more than just receiving glorified bodies.] (48) As is the earthy, so also are those who are earthy [Adam and mankind are earthy by creation, as Paul has just said; however, through the fall and all the subsequent sin, the gap between heaven and mankind was greatly widened.]; and as is the heavenly, so also are those who are heavenly. (49) And just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. [[What gigantic good news! Before God is done, in Christ Jesus believers will be taken to a place much higher than what Adam had before the fall. What a Savior! What a salvation! "We will be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29). (See under 1 Cor. 15:20.) It must be understood, of course, that there will be a gigantic difference between the Lord Jesus Christ and us throughout eternity. He is deity; He is worshipped; etc.]] (50) Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. [[We will have imperishable, glorified bodies that are beyond flesh and blood when we inherit the kingdom of God. (We have already entered the kingdom of God in a preliminary sense [cf., e.g., Matt. 12:28; Luke 11:20; 17:21; Rom. 14:17; and Col. 1:13].) In Lev. 17:11 we read, "the life of the flesh is in the blood." I suppose we can say that our glorified bodies will not have blood in them, and that life then will be entirely by the Spirit (see under 15:44).]] (51) Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep [The apostle can tell us this "mystery" (which was formerly hidden as part of God's plan of salvation) because it has been revealed to him. "We shall not all sleep" means that some true Christians will still be alive on the earth when Christ returns; they (we?) never will die. See, for example, 1 Thess. 4:17; Matt. 24:31.], but we shall all be changed [[All believers (those still alive and those who will have died before Christ returns) will be changed - we will be caught up into never-ending glory, with glorified bodies. Those who have died will be resurrected into glory; those still living will be transformed to the glorified state. First Thess. 4:16, 17 inform us that the dead will be raised first, just before the believers still living are transformed; we will then be raptured/caught up together in the clouds (of heaven) to meet the Lord Jesus in the air. This sounds exciting, doesn't it? "Therefore comfort one another with these words" (1 Thess. 4:18).]], (52) in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye [The apostle is speaking of the blinking of the eye, the rapid closing and opening of the eyelid).], at the last trumpet [[I believe this "last trumpet" is very important to help us understand the basics of God's end-time scenario. Significantly, this is the same trumpet as the trumpet of Matt. 24:31; 1 Thess. 4:16; and Rev. 11:15. The last reference apparently explains the meaning of "the LAST trumpet" here in 1 Cor. 15:52. (It's quite possible that we understand this last trumpet much better than the apostle Paul did; he died some thirty years before the super-important book of Revelation was given to the apostle John.) There are seven trumpets in the book of Revelation, and the trumpet that sounds in Rev. 11:15 is the seventh and last trumpet. At that time (right in the middle of the seven-year period that is sometimes called Daniel's 70th week) Christ returns, the resurrection/transformation and rapture take place, and His end-time reign (which very much includes judging) begins. We will be reigning with Him from the time we are glorified, even reigning with a rod of iron (Rev. 2:26, 27; 12:5). See my book, "The Mid-Week Rapture," starting on page 289, for a detailed discussion of Rev. 11:15-18. In that section I discuss the key reasons why I believe this trumpet will sound right in the middle of Daniel's 70th week.]]; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead [the believers who will have died before Christ returns] will be raised imperishable, and we [those believers still living on the earth when Christ returns] shall be changed. [Verses like this one and 1 Thess. 4:17 show that the apostle thought that it was possible he would live to see the coming of the Lord.] (53) For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. (54) But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory. [[Compare 1 Cor. 15:26. Isaiah 25:8 says, "[God] will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord God will wipe tears away from all faces...." This prophecy of Isaiah (see Isa. 25:6-8) apparently includes, but also goes far beyond, the resurrection of believers at the return of Christ. Revelation 21:1-22:5 are a very important cross-reference for Isa. 25:6-8. In these verses of Revelation, we see those from the nations who have been permitted to have a place in God's new earth with its new Jerusalem (sometimes called the eternal state) after the millennium. (On the people called the nations [who are distinct from the people of true Israel who will be reigning] entering the millennial kingdom, see Rev. 20:3. On Rev. 20:3, see my paper that covers Revelation chapters 20-22.) Revelation 21:4 says, "and He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there shall no longer be any death...." (Those things will be true for us believers, the people of God's true Israel, from the time we are glorified, before the millennial kingdom begins.) Both passages (from Isaiah and Revelation) show that many peoples will be saved from the nations - they will have a place in God's eternal kingdom. Revelation 21:27 confirms that all those saved from the nations are saved through Jesus Christ. On Rev. 21:1-22:5 see Note 3, which starts on page 338 of "The Mid-Week Rapture," and see under these verses in the paper that discusses Revelation chapters 20-22. Also, Isaiah chapters 24-27 are discussed verse-by-verse in a paper on my internet site (Google to Karl Kemp Teaching). I'm not suggesting that Paul was including all these ideas here by "quoting" from Isa. 25:8.]] (55) O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?" [See Hos. 13:14. Hebrews 2:14 shows that the overthrow of death also means the overthrow of Satan (and sin), "who [in some ways] had the power of death."] (56) The sting of death is sin [In this word picture, the enemy, death (like a deadly scorpion, which has a sting in its tail [cf. Rev. 9:10]) kills - it kills through sin. When death has lost its sting (and it has already lost its sting for Christians in most senses [cf., e.g., Phil. 1:21, 23; 2 Cor. 5:8]), it is powerless to harm us.], and the power of sin is the law [[The apostle Paul frequently makes the point that the (Mosaic) Law (the old covenant) could not solve the sin problem; it rather intensified the sin problem for those under the Law. For one thing, sinning against God's Law, which even specifies a death penalty for rebellion, clearly makes sin more serious. See Rom. 4:15; 5:13, 20; and 7:7-13. The death of mankind (both spiritual death and physical death) came from Adam's (and Eve's) rebellion against God's very specific commandment (Gen. 2:17; Rom. 5:12). Adam's (and Eve's) sin was all the more serious because he was totally free when he sinned, unlike his offspring who were born into spiritual death (but the death wasn't total/complete; we still have some freedom/capacity to respond to God and His grace, etc.).]]; (57) but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory [Note "victory" in 15:54, 55.] through our Lord Jesus Christ. [Unlike the old covenant established on the Mosaic Law, the new covenant in the Lord Jesus Christ fully solves the sin/Satan/death problem, and it takes us to eternal glory.] (58) Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. [On being in vain, compare 1 Cor. 15:2, 14, and 17. Our toil would be in vain if the gospel, including the resurrection, were not true. We're never wasting our time when we're doing the will of God by His grace through faith (everything else is a waste of time, or worse); it will all work for the glory of God and for our good.] May the will of God be fully accomplished through this article! © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. You can order my book, "The Mid-Week Rapture" at my website or at amazon.com or armageddonbooks.com. And you can get my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin" at my website or at amazon.com.             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:58:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-597/the-art-of-crucifixion-decisions.html The Art Of Crucifixion: Decisions   By: Curt Klingerman       Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin (Romans 6:6-7, KJV). There comes a time when a person must make a personal decision to be completely crucified with Christ if he or she is going to experience complete victory. A partial crucifixion is only a partial death, which means there is something still alive that should not be. Those things that are contrary to God’s very nature and His Word should no longer have part in us; much less be part of us. The things of the old nature are meant to be crucified along with the old man. Trying to keep those things alive is like trying to give mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a dead rat. We must quit trying to give life to something that is not supposed to survive. One decision we all must make is to allow Jesus to increase in us. This means that His very nature becomes ours. Along with it, it is the change of perspective. We can no longer look at things from fallen man’s point of view, and expect to be Christ-like. We must allow the transfiguration of our thought processes to take place in order for His thoughts to become our thoughts. Sit down and ask the Lord to show you attitudes that need to be changed. Time to be honest. How we think and what we think often determine the outcome of a given situation. It affects how we handle circumstances and how we relate to other people. It affects our attitudes, and attitude gives color to perspective. Yet perspective gives color to attitude –they reciprocate. Perspective also gives tint to our emotions. One feeds into the other. There is a huge difference between an emotional reaction and a spiritual response. A spiritual response requires a complete crucifixion! www.perfectfaith.org   Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith Of Jesus In The Life Of The Believer (His Faith, Not Ours)," by Curt Klingermanhttp://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8 Article From Christian Articles       Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:55:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-596/interpretation-of-romans-chapter-7-part-1-of-5-parts.html Interpretation of Romans Chapter 7, Part 1 (of 5 Parts)   By: Karl Kemp       I always quote from the New American Standard Bible, 1977 edition, unless otherwise noted. This paper, which was published in July, 1999, deals extensively with the interpretation of Romans chapter 7 by the early (before AD 500) Christian writers, and it includes many excerpts from these writers. I found some of these ancient writings to be quite edifying, along with being important and interesting. This paper doesn't include a verse-by-verse discussion of Romans chapter 7, but it supplements the verse-by-verse discussions of Romans chapter 7 that are included in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin: Full Salvation Through the Atoning Death of the Lord Jesus Christ" (pages 104-116) and in the "Twenty-Eight Articles on Holiness and Victory Over Sin" (see article numbers 12-14). I strongly suggest you read one or both of those verse-by-verse discussions before reading this paper, unless you are well acquainted with Romans chapter 7 and its interpretation. First I'll include the Table of Contents from the original paper. Some of the lengthy quotations that were included in the original paper are substantially abbreviated in this internet version. I had received permission to quote extensively for the original paper, but not for this internet version. You could request a copy of the original paper. CONTENTS (The page numbers listed here go with the original paper, not this internet version of the paper.) INTRODUCTION..... page 1 Douglas Moo ("Epistle to the Romans," 1996)..... 7 J. A. Fitzmyer ("Romans," 1993)..... 17 H. A. W. Meyer ("Epistle to the Romans," 1883)..... 19 James Arminius (AD 1560-1609; "A Dissertation on the True and Genuine Sense of the Seventh Chapter of the Epistle to the Romans")..... 19 Irenaeus (about AD 115-202)..... 24 Tertullian (about AD 160-220)..... 25 John Chrysostom (AD 347-407; "Epistle to the Romans")..... 27 Ambrose (AD 340-397)..... 31 Methodius (about AD 260-311)..... 34 Gregory of Nazianzus (about AD 329-390)..... 37 J. O. Buswell ("Systematic Theology of the Christian Religion," 1962)..... 37 Writers Who Are Spoken of and/or Quoted in this Paper: Irenaeus (about AD 115-202)..... 19, 24, 25 Tertullian (about AD 160-220)..... 19, 25-27 Methodius (about AD 260-311) ..... 5, 6.5, 17, 23, 34-37 Gregory of Nazianzus (about AD 329-390)..... 5, 23, 37 Diodore of Tarsus (died AD 394)..... 18 Epiphanius (about AD 315-403)..... 5, 23 Ambrose (AD 340-397)..... 31-34, 43 Chrysostom (AD 347-407)..... 6.5, 9, 10, 11, 13, 18, 19, 27-31 Jerome (AD 347-420)..... 19 Theodore of Mopsuestia (about AD 350-428)..... 17, 18 Augustine (AD 354-430)..... 4, 5, 6.5, 11, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 38-43 Pelagius (about AD 360-420)..... 11, 20, 23, 24, 38-42 Ambrosiaster (late 4th century)..... 18 Cyril of Alexander (about AD 375-444)..... 18 Theodoret (about AD 393-466)..... 8, 19, 20 Venerable Bede (AD 673-735)..... 23 Thomas Aquinas (about AD 1225-1274)..... 18, 23 Martin Luther (AD 1483-1546)..... 8, 11, 12, 18, 19, 23 Philip Melanchthon (AD 1497-1560)..... 19 John Calvin (AD 1509-1564) ..... 8, 11, 18, 19, 23 James Arminius (AD 1560-1609)..... 6.5, 19-24 August Hermann Francke (AD 1633-1727) ..... 12 Philip Jacob Spener (AD 1635-1705)..... 19 Johann Bengel (AD 1687-1752)..... 12 John Wesley (AD 1703-1791)..... 2, 12 APPENDIX AUGUSTINE AND PELAGIANISM..... 38 INTRODUCTION This paper is a modified, expanded version of the paper originally put together in 1996. It builds on, and it supplements, the verse-by-verse discussion of Romans chapter 7 on pages 104-116 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." It would be difficult to overstate the importance of rightly understanding Romans chapter 7. Many evangelical Christians in our day (about half) understand Romans chapter 7 to teach that Christians cannot walk in victory over sin (we cannot stop sinning) during this present age. This widespread viewpoint has done great damage to the Body of Christ, obviously undercutting faith for victory over sin to one degree or another. But victory over sin can only come by grace through faith, through Christ's atoning death and resurrection, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. At the outset of this paper, I want to make it clear that I know that there are many sincere, godly Christians who (from my point of view) misinterpret Romans chapter 7. It's not hard for some to misinterpret this passage when this has been the dominant view in certain segments of the Body of Christ for hundreds of years. Another factor that has lent itself to a misinterpretation of this passage is the low level of righteousness and holiness that has often existed in much of the church. I don't want to be perceived as attacking, or insulting, or showing disrespect for other Christians. I want to do everything I can to promote true unity in the Body of Christ (but unity in the truth, especially the truth of the Christian basics; and unity in righteousness and holiness, not unity in sin), and I want this paper to be a blessing to the Body of Christ. Some Christians, because they have so many other things right, and because they really are trying to make God their top priority, haven't been affected too much by their wrong interpretation of Rom. 7:14-25. Nevertheless, it stands true that the misinterpretation of Rom. 7:14-25 has done tremendous damage to the cause of righteousness and holiness in the Body of Christ. I believe it's time for many Christians to prayerfully reconsider their interpretation of Romans chapter 7. It's my prayer that this paper will help many toward that end. My primary goal for this paper is that it will help many Christians come to a fuller understanding of this important chapter of the very important epistle of Paul to the Romans. The most common view of evangelical Christians in our day regarding righteousness and holiness is that the most we can hope for is to be progressively sanctified, thereby decreasing the amount of sin as time goes by, but never gaining the victory over sin as long as we live. A major source for this inadequate viewpoint, which doesn't permit Christians to have faith for victory over sin, is the misinterpretation of Rom. 7:14-25. It's true that Christians must continue to grow throughout their lives in Christ, but the New Testament typically speaks of Christians being sanctified, abiding in a state of holiness, not of holiness being an elusive goal that is never reached in this life. I'm not talking about some way-out absolute perfection; I'm talking about Christians, including Christians young in the faith, walking according to God's Word and by His Spirit in a reasonable way, and living for God as His born-again children in faithfulness, by His sufficient grace through faith. Tremendous damage to the cause of righteousness and holiness in the Body of Christ has also come through the widespread misinterpretation of 1 John 1:8. Based on my studies, some eighty to ninety percent of Christians (including evangelicals) understand 1 John 1:8 to teach that Christians cannot stop sinning in this life. More misinterpret 1 John 1:8 than Rom. 7:14-25 (about fifty percent), but the misinterpretation of Rom. 7:14-25 is quite a bit more serious, since it spells out the "Christian's" supposed bondage to sin in much more powerful terms. Galatians 5:17 is another verse that has often been misinterpreted, but it hasn't caused as much damage as the misinterpretations of Rom. 7:14-25 and 1 John 1:8. (These verses are all discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," starting on page 194.) Many Christians who don't understand Rom. 7:14-25 to teach that Christians cannot quit sinning have, nevertheless, been significantly influenced by the wrong interpretation of these verses, since it has been such a powerful force in lowering the Christian standard from any idea even close to walking in the righteousness and holiness of God. One manifestation of this fact is that whenever any Christian (like John Wesley or Charles Finney, for example) came on the scene teaching victory over sin in Christ, they were attacked with Rom. 7:14-25 and 1 John 1:8. A major, widespread capitulation to sin (to one degree or another) has taken place. The most widespread viewpoint, even among evangelicals, is that it's totally unrealistic, and unbiblical, to think of Christians not sinning. Based on what I have read of the writings of the ancient Christian church, we have lowered the standard for righteous living substantially below their standard. The quotations included in this paper from ancient writers should suffice to demonstrate that point. The standard we must follow, of course, is the Biblical standard; but we must understand what God's Word actually says. One of the major manifestations of the fact that something is wrong with our present standard of righteousness and holiness is that we so seldom hear the words repent and repentance in the Body of Christ in our day. I'm speaking of repentance at the time of conversion, and of repentance for Christians. Coupled with this is the major problem of the out-of-balance teaching about God: We hear so much about His love, but this isn't balanced out with what the Bible says about His wrath. It's no wonder there's so little fear of God in so many Christians in our day, but the Bible, very much including the New Testament, makes it clear that it's necessary for us to have a proper fear of God. We should be afraid to sin against Him. On the fear of God, see under Phil. 2:12-16 in my paper titled, "The Christian, the Law, and Legalism." I don't believe the Bible backs up the idea that we Christians can forever continue to abide in God's love if we consent to live in sin. "If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love..." (John 15:10). "He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me; and he who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I will love him, and will disclose Myself to him" (John 14:21). "Keep yourselves in the love of God [by remaining in the truth of God and the righteousness of God, by cooperating with His grace/Spirit through faith]..." (Jude 1:21). Revelation chapters 2 and 3, by themselves (and there is much other Scripture), suffice to show that there are conditions for remaining in the love of God. I discussed this topic in some detail in my paper on Ephesians chapter 1. I'm not suggesting that God just stops loving us, His born-again children, if we fall into sin, but to the extent we're living in sin, we're not fully abiding in God's love. His love calls us to repentance (e.g., Rev. 3:19), but the more we're living in sin, and the longer we continue in unrepentance, the more serious it becomes. Revelation 3:15-18 show, for example, what Jesus said would happen to the Christians at Laodicea if they didn't repent. Verses like these demonstrate that it's very dangerous for Christians to persist in sin under the mistaken, out-of-balance (Biblical balance) idea that God will forever continue to love us just the same no matter what we believe or what we do. I don't believe it's reasonable to say that those who will be excluded from God's kingdom (and His presence) will abide in His love. I'm saying these things to encourage repentance, not despair. We must do the things God requires of us (by his grace); no one can do them for us. I'm not siding in with the devil, who frequently tells Christians that God won't forgive them, that they have committed the unpardonable sin. Quite the contrary, I'm encouraging Christians to repent, where repentance is required (there is no reasonable alternative), and I'm confident that God will forgive and restore all Christians who repent. Yes, God loved the prodigal son and rejoiced over his repentance (Luke 15:11-31; cf. Luke 15:7, 10), but what if he didn't repent? Yes, God loved the Christians at Laodicea; He wanted them to repent and called them to repentance, but what if they didn't repent? There's a powerful message here for the Christians of our day that God is calling to repent and to make Him, His Word, His will, His righteousness, and His holiness top priority. I'll list several other verses relevant to this topic: Psalms 5:5, 6; 7:11, 12; 11:4-7; Ezek. 18:30-32; Luke 13:1-5; 2 Cor. 7:9, 10; and 2 Pet. 3:9 (which is dealing, at least in part, with the need for Christians to repent). We don't need more condemnation in the Body of Christ, and thank God for forgiveness, but we do need more transformation to the righteousness and holiness of God. We must be open and honest before God to recognize and acknowledge our sin; we must be quick to repent and ask for forgiveness; and we must make victory over sin (by God's grace) a top priority item - God knows our hearts. Anything that God considers to be sin in our life is a serious matter; but, on the other hand, it doesn't work for good when we call things sin that God doesn't consider to be sin (and this happens quite a bit). (See the section titled, "What is Sin," starting on page 214 of my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," for some examples. We desperately need to make righteousness and holiness a top priority item, but we must understand that we receive and walk in God's righteousness and holiness by grace through faith (a faith based on God and His Word, His Word rightly divided), otherwise we'll just be striving in the flesh. We need all the help God has made available to us to defeat the world, the flesh, and the devil with his demons (by His sufficient grace), including the help that comes through other Christians. We don't need excuses for sin derived from a misinterpretation of God's Word; that certainly won't work for good. It may make a person feel a little better about themselves for a while, but the heart/conscience of a true Christian will never be satisfied while sin continues in us, or in the church. As a Christian young in the faith, I was often confronted with Romans chapter 7 by Christians sincerely trying to help me. I was frequently informed that I must be misunderstanding Romans chapters 6 and 8 (and other passages of Scripture) if I thought that the apostle Paul was saying that Christians are called to walk with the victory over all sin. They told me that Romans chapter 7 proves that it can't be so. I couldn't begin to count all the times I have been told that Romans chapter 7 proves that Christians cannot stop sinning throughout the last forty-five years. Many Christians believe it is deception and even heresy for Christians to believe they could ever stop sinning during this age. They are saying this, at least the primary reason sincere, Bible-believing Christians are saying this, because they believe it goes against the Bible (Rom. 7:14-25; 1 John 1:8; and Gal. 5:17, for example). We often hear that all Christians sin daily, in thought, in word, and in deed. But is this what the Bible really teaches? I don't think so. Back then (starting in 1964) I got motivated to (prayerfully) study the entire topic of righteousness and holiness, very much including the interpretation of Romans chapter 7; I have been studying this topic more than any other ever since. What I've found is good news! What I'm sharing in this paper is good news, very good news! The key issue is whether the apostle Paul was speaking as a non-Christian or a Christian in Rom. 7:14-25. Was he speaking as a Christian when he said, for example, "For the good I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish" (Rom. 7:19). The dominant viewpoint of the early Christian writers up until the time the very influential Augustine changed his viewpoint (about AD 410), was that Paul was not speaking as a Christian in this passage; he was speaking of/for unregenerate mankind (those not born again through the Lord Jesus Christ). This was Augustine's earlier viewpoint, but in his later, anti-Pelagian years, he came to favor the viewpoint that Paul was speaking as a Christian in Rom. 7:14-25. Augustine had intense conflict with Pelagius in his later years. It is very significant, however, that Augustine made a very substantial qualification to this interpretation. He said that if this passage deals with Christians, it speaks only of Christians having wrong thoughts and desires, which the Christians resist and fight against by the grace of God in Christ, not of Christians actually sinning. Even though the later viewpoint of Augustine was clearly wrong - Paul wasn't speaking as a Christian in this passage, and this qualification doesn't begin to fit what Paul said in this passage - if the Christians who believe Rom. 7:14-25 deals with Christians included this qualification, their interpretation would not hinder Christians from walking with the victory over sin. Augustine mentioned that he was influenced by other Christian writers in coming to his new viewpoint. The three Christian writers that I am aware of who were early enough to have influenced Augustine included the very substantial qualification that Augustine included. Methodius (about AD 260-311) probably was one of the writers who influenced Augustine; he was the earliest Christian writer that I'm aware of who understood Rom. 7:14-25 to deal with Christians, and he clearly included the qualification. Not only did he include the qualification, but the excerpts from him in this paper demonstrate that Methodius was strong on victory over sin for Christians. The only two other Christian writers who understood Rom. 7:14-25 to deal with Christians, who were early enough to have influence Augustine that I'm aware of, were Epiphanius (about AD 315-403) and Gregory of Nazianzus (about AD 329-390). They both included the qualification. Even though those brethren from long ago qualified their interpretation that Rom. 7:14-25 was dealing with Christians, they (and especially Augustine, because of his great influence) opened a door that should not have been opened, and it was bound to happen that some would find it rather easy to drop the qualification, or greatly modify it. Many doors must be kept shut; you open them a little and eventually end up being shocked and overwhelmed with what comes into your tent/house/life. There may be some Christians in our day who understand Rom. 7:14-25 to refer to Christians who include the important qualification that Augustine included, but I'm not aware of any. I'll repeat the qualification. These early Christian writers said that these verses speak of Christians having wrong thoughts and desires which they resist and fight against by the grace of God in Christ, not of Christians actually sinning. I should mention that some Christians in our day believe it is sin for Christians to have wrong thoughts and desires. It's quite clear that these things are undesirable; they are part of the old man/fallen man/the flesh that hasn't been annihilated yet, and won't be annihilated until Jesus returns and we are glorified. But I believe the New Testament makes it clear that wrong thoughts and desires, when resisted and fought against by Christians in the power of the Holy Spirit, are not sin. They are part of the Christian's warfare, which we are supposed to win by God's sufficient grace. We win by not sinning. See Rom. 6:11-14; 8:4, 12-14; and Gal. 5:16, 17, for example. (These verses speak of Christians not sinning as they, by the Holy Spirit, deny the flesh/the old man the opportunity to manifest itself in sin. The wrong desires and thoughts of the flesh/old man may be there on occasion; that's the cause for the warfare spoken of in Gal. 5:17; but that, in itself, doesn't constitute sin. These verses are all discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin.") Some Christians believe that the Lord Jesus Christ taught that if a Christian has a lustful thought, he has already committed a serious sin, even the sin of adultery. I believe that is a serious misunderstanding of what the Lord said. Let's take a quick look at what the Lord said in Matt. 5:27, 28. I'll read from the "New King James Version," "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Jesus was speaking of a man who looks at a woman to lust for her, for the purpose of lusting for her. That is very different than a Christian having a lustful thought and turning his head rather than look at a woman with lust, very different indeed. I should also mention that Jesus spoke the words of Matt. 5:27, 28 in a context where He was making the important point that He had not come to lower the standard of righteousness that God had established under the old covenant, but rather to raise the standard through His saving work. Another important point we should discuss further is that it isn't a reasonable interpretation of Paul's words in Rom. 7:14-25 to say that he is speaking of a person only having wrong thoughts and desires. In Rom. 7:14b Paul says, "But I am of flesh [to be of/in the flesh is to be in spiritual death, without the Spirit], sold [better yet, "having been sold," referring back to the rebellion and fall of Adam (Rom. 5:12-21)] into [the abiding state of] bondage to sin." These words, and the following words, speak of a state of bondage to sin, a state far more serious than a person having an occasional wrong thought or desire. In the verses that follow (Rom. 7:15-25), Paul powerfully illustrates the fact that fallen man truly is in a state of slavery to sin by using for exhibit A the predicament of a very sincere Jew, one who is totally convinced that the Mosaic Law is from God and true and that it must be obeyed from the heart (he may have even memorized the Law and frequently meditated on it), but, nevertheless, his life frequently demonstrates that he truly is a slave of sin. Paul's primary point in these verses is to show that all mankind is so fallen that the Mosaic Law (even though it's from God and is good) isn't able to save fallen man from sin and spiritual death (it wasn't given by God for that purpose) - all mankind, therefore, needs new-covenant salvation in Christ Jesus. Romans 6:14 is a verse of key importance to understand Romans chapter 7; it says, "For sin shall not be master over you [These words were spoken to Christians, those who had been introduced to the victory over sin through salvation in Christ Jesus], for you are not under law [speaking of the Mosaic Law], but under grace [the saving grace of God in Christ]." In Romans chapter 7 the apostle elaborates on the important point made in 6:14, that if we were still under the Law instead of being in Christ, sin still would have dominion over us. There are some Christians in our day who understand Rom. 7:14-25 to speak of a Christian(s), but who don't believe Paul is speaking of the normal Christian life in these verses. One such view is that Paul was speaking of an immature Christian, who hadn't yet learned to walk after the Spirit. This view is far from what Paul was dealing with in context, but it is a great improvement over any viewpoint that understands Rom. 7:14-25 to teach that Christians continue in bondage to sin, that they cannot stop sinning as long as they live, that they must necessarily fulfill their daily quota of sin. I'm not making an attempt in this paper to equally present the different interpretations of Romans chapter 7 that have been held by various Christians. I'm putting most of the emphasis on what I'm sure is the correct interpretation, that Paul was not speaking as a Christian in Rom. 7:14-25. Also, I'm putting much of the emphasis on the interpretation of this passage for the first few hundred years, up until the time Augustine changed his viewpoint (about AD 410). After the Introduction, this paper consists mostly of excerpts from others, but I'll make many comments too; my comments are typically enclosed in brackets. (A look at the Contents will enable the reader to see where we're going.) In the original paper I quoted extensively from Douglas Moo's recent commentary on Romans, because I agree with him so much, and because he was so thorough. I also quote extensively from Arminius's dissertation on Romans chapter 7; I found this work to be very helpful. His dissertation is about two-hundred pages. Arminius lived from AD 1560 to 1609. The Arminians are named after him. I also quote extensively from John Chrysostom (AD 347-407). His ancient homilies (sermons) on Romans chapter 7 convince me that he understood this chapter very well. I also quote extensively from Augustine (under Arminius) and from Methodius. I'm writing this Introduction last. May God's will be fully accomplished through this paper, and may His people be edified! A primary goal for this paper is to help bring about transformation in the Body of Christ, where it's needed; as I mentioned, we don't need more condemnation. Thank God for His mercy and grace toward us! But let's make it a top priority to do everything we can do to refrain from abusing His grace, for His full glory, and for our full good. His will be done! Amen! I'll conclude this Introduction with the prayer the apostle Paul prayed for the newly-founded church at Thessalonica, "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely [in the very near future]; and may your spirit and soul and body [having been sanctified entirely] be preserved [or, kept] complete [or, sound], without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." Amen! Douglas Moo (professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois; "Epistle to the Romans," [Eerdmans, 1996]). (I could have quoted much of the same information from Moo's "Romans 1-8" of the "Wycliffe Exegetical Commentary" series [Moody Press, 1991].) I'll quote extensively from Moo because I agree with so much that he says (he has fifty-nine pages dealing with Romans chapter 7). I have respected and appreciated his writings for many years. (For the record, I had reached a conclusion on most of the details of the correct interpretation of Romans chapter 7 long before Douglas Moo, who was born in 1950, was writing Bible commentaries.) I'll make extensive comments in brackets throughout these excerpts, very often agreeing with Moo, but sometimes disagreeing. I'll only quote a small part of what I quoted from Moo in this internet version of my paper. (page 423) "The History and Experience of Jews [NOT CHRISTIANS] Under the Law (7:7-25). [This heading covers pages 423-467.] In 7:1-6 Paul teaches that people must be released from the bondage of the Mosaic law in order to be joined to Christ because life under the law brings forth only sin and death. ... The law, Paul affirms, is 'God's law' (v. 22) [Rom. 7:22] and is 'good' (vv. 12, 17), 'holy' (v. 12), 'just' (v. 12), and 'spiritual' (v. 14). How, then, could the law come to have so deleterious an effect? How could the good law of God 'work wrath' (4:15), 'increase the trespass' (5:20), and 'arouse sinful passions' (7:5)? This Paul seeks to explain in 7:7-25, pointing to sin as the culprit that has used the law as a 'bridgehead' to produce more sin and death (7:7-12) and to the individual 'carnal' person, whose own weakness and internal division allows sin to gain the mastery, despite the 'goodness' of the law (7:13-25). ...." We'll continue with quotations from Moo and my extensive comments in brackets in Part 2. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Romans chapter 7 is discussed in some detail in a verse-by-verse manner in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin; Full Salvation Through the Atoning Death of the Lord Jesus Christ" and in article #s 12-14 in the 28 article series titled, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." 1 John 1:8 is discussed in its context in some detail in my book and in article #s 15-18 in the 28 article series. The book is available on my website and at amazon.com. The 28 articles are available on this Christian article site.   Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:52:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-595/interpretation-of-romans-chapter-7-part-2.html Interpretation of Romans Chapter 7, Part 2   By: Karl Kemp       Part 2 continues where Part 1 ended. I am still quoting from Douglas Moo and making extensive comments (typically) in brackets. (pages 424-427) "The autobiographical direction. ... [[All the interpreters I'm familiar with who take this viewpoint (the viewpoint that Paul was referring to himself as a very young man when he spoke in Rom. 7:9a of being alive once) go on to interpret Rom. 7:14-25 of Paul's pre-Christian state. One major problem with this view is that it isn't able to adequately explain the switch to the present tense verbs at 7:14. As far as I know, this view isn't found in the early Christian writings. I appreciate the fact that this view doesn't leave the very wrong understanding that the apostle Paul, as a Christian, testified that he still was a slave of sin. If he had testified to such a state of affairs, and especially since he was right in the middle of a doctrinal teaching of key importance (where he was instructing the Roman Christians, and all of us, what the new covenant and Christianity is all about), we would have to assume that none of us could hope to do better than the great apostle to the Gentiles. Paul's testimony in Christ, by the way, was quite different (cf., e.g., Acts 23:1; 24:15, 16; 1 Cor. 4:4; 11:1; 2 Cor. 1:12; 4:2; 6:1-10; Phil. 3:17; 1 Thess. 2:1-12; and 2 Tim. 1:3).] ... Moo also includes another viewpoint under the autobiographical direction, the viewpoint that Paul thought he was alive until just before he became a Christian.]] The Adamic direction. ... [(I'm quoting part of what I said in a bracket on pages 8, 9 here.) I don't believe we should think of Adam in 7:7-11, but, as Rom. 5:12-21 demonstrate, the fall of Adam does explain how mankind, including those under the Mosaic Law, came to be "of flesh [having been] sold into bondage to sin" (Rom. 7:14).] ... The Israel direction. ... [[(I'm quoting part of what I said in a bracket on pages 9, 10 here.) These verses (Rom. 7:7-25) speak, for the most part, of those who were under the Mosaic Law (the people of Israel), but it seems that Paul intended his "I" (and "me") to have much application for all mankind, for all the descendants of fallen Adam. I believe it would be accurate to understand Rom. 7:7-25 under a heading like "Fallen man confronted with the Mosaic Law - It can't save us! - We desperately need a Savior! - He has come!" Gentiles can read this passage and see themselves, that is, if they would have only the Mosaic Law to save them - no matter how devoted to the Law we are, it can't save us. All Christians, whether from Jewish or Gentile backgrounds, must understand that the Mosaic Law (or any other law) is not able to save men from sin and spiritual death. The Law, in fact, as Paul shows in Romans chapter 7, and other places, intensifies (rather than solves) the sin problem. Chrysostom's discussion of Romans chapter 7 recognizes that Paul's "I" extends, in some ways, beyond the people of Israel (those under the Law). What he says under Rom. 7:9, for example (which I'll quote later in this paper; under Chrysostom), fits the idea that the "I" of 7:9a embraces all mankind (not just the people of Israel) before the Mosaic Law was given. Then under 7:13, discussing the words, "Was then that which is good [the Mosaic Law] made death to me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin," Chrysostom says, "That is, that it might be shown what a great evil sin is, namely, a listless will, an inclinableness to the worst side, the actual doing, and the perverted judgment. For this is the cause of all evils; but he amplifies it by pointing out the exceeding grace of Christ, and teaching them what an evil He freed the human race from [the evil of being carnal (fleshly) slaves of sin], which, by the medicines used to cure it [the Mosaic Law], had become worse, and was increased by the preventives. Wherefore he [Paul] goes on to say: 'That sin, by the commandment, might become exceeding sinful.' ...." Also, what Chrysostom says under 7:14 (quoted later; under Chrysostom) is very much slanted to show the state of all mankind (not just the people of Israel) since the fall. Almost everything Chrysostom says in that quotation is relevant to this point.]] ...." Now I'll quote part of what Moo said from page 10 of my paper. We are still under pages 424-427 of Moo's book. After adding a fourth heading, "The existential direction," Moo is commenting on what he considers to be the correct way to interpret Romans chapter 7. "Paul is describing his own, and other Jews' experience with the law of Moses: how that law came to the Jewish people and brought to them not 'life' but 'death' (vv. 7-12); and how that law failed, because of the reign of the flesh, to deliver Jews from the power of sin (vv. 13-25). Since the ground-breaking study of Kummel, it has been widely assumed that ego (or the first person singular verb) could be used as a rhetorical device, without any personal reference being intended at all. And Kummel is certainly right." (In a footnote Moo says, "See, e.g, Rom. 3:7: 'But if the truth of God through my...lie abounds to his glory, why am I...still being judged as a sinner?' ") Moo goes on to argue that "it is impossible to remove autobiographical elements...from ego in Rom. 7:7-25." It seems to be more confusing than helpful to bring in the autobiographical direction here. For one thing, it is important to see that this passage incorporates Paul's later Christian understanding, and would not adequately express his pre-Christian (autobiographical) viewpoint. As we'll see, Moo agrees that the viewpoint expressed in Rom. 7:14-25 has been influenced by Paul's later enlightenment that came through salvation in Christ. The more these verses incorporate Paul's Christian, enlightened viewpoint, the less they can serve to speak for Paul himself when he was still under the Law (autobiographically). Furthermore, the more this account in Rom. 7:14-25 is somewhat theoretical and stylized for rhetorical effect, the more it doesn't qualify as autobiographical. One last point, I've already mentioned that the switch to present tense verbs at 7:14 doesn't fit an autobiographical viewpoint, that is, not if we believe Paul the Christian apostle was describing his pre-Christian experience. (pages 429, 430) "...'the coming of the commandment' in v. 9 is most naturally taken as a reference to the giving of the law at Sinai. [Yes, and this is a very important (but not widely recognized) point. (I first came to this viewpoint in 1970 while prayerfully studying Romans chapter 7 to write a paper for a class in seminary. I picked the topic of Romans chapter 7 for the paper.) This was the viewpoint of Chrysostom, as I'll demonstrate later in this paper; under Chrysostom.] ... ...I prefer to understand 'I died' [Rom. 7:9] in a theological, but relative, sense: 'though "I" had sinned, and was condemned before the law came, the coming of the commandment gave sin greater power and destructiveness than ever before, making me fully and personally responsible for my sin. The coming of the law brought to me, then, not life but death ("I died").' ...." (page 437; under Rom. 7:8) "Accordingly, 'apart from the law' [means], as in 5:13, 'before the Mosaic law existed.' In the years before Sinai, Paul asserts, sin was 'dead' to Israel. That sin was 'dead' does not mean that it did not exist but that is was not as 'active' or 'powerful' before the law as after." In a footnote, Moo says, "...for the conception, see Rom. 4:15; 5:13-14; and esp. 5:20 and 7:5." (pages 443-446) "Most of the early church fathers thought that these verses [7:13-25] described an unregenerate person. [Moo has a footnote referring to two books that include surveys of the Fathers, both in German.] This was Augustine's early view, but, partly as a result of his battle with Pelagius over (among other things) the freedom of the will, he changed his opinion and decided that the person depicted in these verses was a Christian. This interpretation was adopted by almost all the Reformers. [In a footnote Moo mentions Luther and Calvin and that Kummel notes that only Bucer and Musculus dissented from this view among the early Reformers.] None gave it more theological significance than Luther, who saw in these verses the classic statement of his view of the believer as 'at the same time a justified person and a sinner'.... ... The interpretation of vv. 14-25 in terms of 'normal' Christian experience was typical of Lutheran and Reformed theology right into the twentieth century and is still widespread. ... The most important reasons for thinking the experience depicted in vv. 14-25 is that of an unregenerate person are the following [In my opinion the first five reasons are all very significant.]: 1. The strong connection of ego with 'the flesh' (vv. 14, 18, and 25) suggests that Paul is elaborating on the unregenerate condition mentioned in 7:5: being 'in the flesh.' 2. Ego throughout this passage struggles 'on his/her own'...without the aid of the Holy Spirit. 3. Ego is 'under the power of sin' (v. 14b), a state from which every believer is released (6:2, 6, 11, 18-22). 4. As the unsuccessful struggle of vv. 15-20 shows, ego is a 'prisoner of the law of sin' (v.23). Yet Rom. 8:2 proclaims that believers have been set free from this same 'law of sin (and death).' 5. While Paul makes clear that believers will continue to struggle with sin (cf., e.g., 6:12, 13; 13:12-14; Gal. 5:17), what is depicted in 7:14-25 is not just a struggle with sin but a defeat by sin. This is a more negative view of the Christian life than can be accommodated within Paul's theology. 6. The ego in these verses struggles with the need to obey the Mosaic law; yet Paul has already proclaimed the release of the believer from the dictates of the law (6:14; 7:4-6). [I don't agree that Rom. 6:14; 7:4-6 say that believers have been released from the dictates of the law, except for the ceremonial law. As Rom. 2:26, 27; 8:4 demonstrate, Christians are enabled (and required) to keep the moral Law of God in their daily lives as they walk after the Spirit through faith. (See my paper, "The Christian, The Law, and Legalism.")] ... [(I'm quoting part of what I said on page 10 of my paper.) As I mentioned, I believe it's important to see that Rom. 7:14-25 incorporates a Christian perspective. It doesn't, therefore, adequately reflect the pre-Christian experience of Paul (cf., e.g., Phil. 3:4-6; Acts 23:1; 2 Tim. 1:3), or of the Jews in general. For one thing, as Moo points out in the next excerpt, and as I mentioned in my discussion of Roman chapter 7 in "Holiness and Victory Over Sin," the apostle Paul wasn't aiming to give a balanced presentation of the Law, but to emphasize its weaknesses and our attendant need for new-covenant salvation in Christ.] ... [[(I'm quoting the contents of a bracket I had on page 14 of my paper. I'm responding to the charge that the "I" of Rom. 7:7-25 must refer to Paul himself and that the present tense verbs of 7:14-25 can only refer to Paul speaking of his present experience as a Christian.) I believe I have fully explained the shift to the present tense verbs in 7:14-25. ... After all, most of the early Christian interpreters for hundreds of years realized Paul's "I" wasn't autobiographical. Admittedly, when you first read Paul's "I," your first thought would be that he is speaking of himself, but before you read much further you have enough information to see that what he says doesn't fit that viewpoint. Paul was speaking for all mankind, especially that part of mankind that was under the Mosaic Law. Anyway, because this is so important, and with the advantage of hindsight, I wish Paul hadn't used the "I" the way he did. It was somewhat unusual for Paul to use "I" the way he did here, but, as has been demonstrated already, it's not all that unusual. Language can be very flexible, as Paul demonstrates, for example, in 2 Cor. 12:1-10 (especially 12:2). Perhaps Paul's main motivation for this somewhat unusual construction in Rom. 7:7-25 was to minimize giving offense to the Jews, as much as was reasonably possible. Paul was discussing a delicate subject when pointing out the inadequacies of the Mosaic Law (and the old covenant) which clearly came from God. Paul's "I" is quite effective to help all mankind (especially Jews, but also Gentiles) see their need for salvation in Christ Jesus. He powerfully illustrates the inability of the Law to save fallen man, and also demonstrates why Christians must make sure they are Christ/faith/grace/Spirit oriented, not Law/works/merit/flesh oriented. Many Gentiles can see themselves to some extent in Paul's "I."]] [[(I'm quoting the contents of three brackets I had on pages 14, 15 of my paper. First, I'm responding to the charge that only born-again (regenerate) Christians could joyfully concur with God's Law [Rom. 7:22], seek to obey it [Rom. 7:15-20], etc.) [Numerous verses in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament (e.g., Psalms 19 and 119), confirm that many old-covenant believers did these things to a significant extent, even though they had not been regenerated/born-again through Christ Jesus (before the life-giving, sanctifying Spirit had been given, in accordance with God's promise(s), through the crucified, resurrected, glorified Christ; cf., e.g., Isa. 32:15-18; Ezek. 36:26, 27; John 1:12, 13; 3:3-6; 7:37-39; 14:15-17; 16:7; 20:22; Acts 1:3-8; 2:33; and Rom. 8:2-17). How many would want to argue that Daniel, for example, didn't do these things. Even in our day there are many Jews that have a zeal for the Mosaic Law. We must take note of the fact that when Paul spoke of joyfully concurring with God's law, seeking to obey it, and serving it in Romans chapter 7, he was only speaking of serving it with the "mind" (without the aid of the Holy Spirit, who comes to dwell in us through new-covenant salvation). The dominant point in this passage was that Paul's "I" wasn't free to (always) act in line with God's Law. Paul's main purpose in 7:15-25 was to powerfully demonstrate what he had said in 7:14, that fallen man truly is a slave of sin. He is, therefore, not able to keep God's Law.] [(Here I'm responding to the specific charge that Rom. 3:11 proves that the unregenerate do not seek God.) It's quite clear that Paul's quotation of Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3 in Rom. 3:10-12, and most of his other quotations contained in Rom. 3:13-18, didn't apply to all men that had ever lived. For one thing, Psalms 14:4-7; 53:4-6 demonstrate that God's faithful servants, His "people" (Psalm 14:4), the "righteous generation" (Psalm 14:5), were excluded; they were the ones being afflicted, but not forever, because salvation had been promised to them (e.g., Psalm 14:7).] [(I'm responding to another specific charge used by those who argue for the idea that the "I" of Rom. 7:14:25 must be a regenerate person.) Most of the verses cited (Rom. 1:28; Eph. 4:17; Col. 2:18; 1 Tim. 6:5; 2 Tim. 3:8; Titus 2:15 [1:15]) that speak of men having a depraved mind are spoken in a context dealing with Gentiles/pagans, who didn't have the benefit of being instructed/enlightened by the Word/Law of God or of the grace that was available to believers under the old covenant. The Bible is full of examples to demonstrate that many Jews did, at least on one level of their being, think highly of God's Law, and many of their thoughts were shaped by His Law, on which they meditated. It should be noted, as I mentioned, that when Paul spoke of "[serving] the law of God" in 7:25, he was only speaking of serving it with the mind (in other words, something inside of them knew that it was necessary to keep God's Law, and they wanted to do it), not that they actually fully served the law of God. Daniel, his three friends, and multiplied thousands of Jews did much more than what Paul claimed for his unregenerate "I" in Rom. 7:14-25. I'm sure, however, that all such persons will be quick to admit their need for salvation through Christ Jesus.] ]] (pages 447, 448) "Our conclusion [Moo says]...is that vv. 14-25 describe the situation of an unregenerate person. Specifically, I think Paul is looking back, from his Christian understanding, to the situation of himself, and other Jews like him, living under the law of Moses. Of course, Paul is not giving us a full picture of that situation; he is concentrating on the negatives because this is what he must do to prove how useless the law was to deliver Jews [or Gentiles] from their bondage to sin. We might say, then, that Rom. 7:14-25 describes from a personal viewpoint the stage in salvation history that Paul delineates in Gal. 3:19-4:3." (page 451) "Paul's characterization of the situation of Jews under the law in this paragraph [Rom. 7:14-25] describes, in personal terms, the state that resulted from the event he has narrated in vv. 7-13. This goes some way toward explaining the shift from past tense to present tense verbs [I believe this fully explains Paul's shift to the present tense in 7:14-25]; Paul first narrates past events, then depicts the continuing status of those who were involved in those events. ...." (page 454; under Rom. 7:14) "...we cannot overlook the fact that 7:5, which anticipates the argument of 7:7-25, describes the non-Christian state as being 'in the flesh.' [Yes, this is a key point. The person described in Rom. 7:14-25 had not yet become a Christian and had not yet, therefore, received the Holy Spirit (cf., e.g., Rom. 8:1-17).] But it is the additional description, 'sold under sin,' that clinches the argument for a description of a non-Christian here. ... His language points to a condition of slavery under sin's power. And I question whether Rom. 6 allows us to say that the Christian is 'under the power of sin' in this sense. In fact, Paul is saying just the reverse in that chapter; Christians have 'died to the power of sin' (v. 2) and are therefore no longer 'slaves of sin' (vv. 18, 22). ... ...7:14b asserts, in what certainly appears to be an objective assessment of status, that this ego has been sold so as now to be 'under sin.' Earlier in Romans (3:9), Paul summarizes his teaching about people outside of Christ by asserting that they are all 'under sin.' Christ delivers the believer from this condition, but the ego here in Rom. 7 confesses that he is still in that condition." [This is a very important paragraph.] J. A. Fitzmyer (a Roman Catholic scholar, "Romans," Anchor Bible, Vol. 33 [Doubleday; 1993]). (page 462) " 'Role of the Law in Human Life' (7:7-13)." This heading covers pages 462-472. Fitzmyer means the Mosaic Law, and rightly so. (pages 463-465) "The Ego has been understood in at least five different senses. 1. Autobiographically. ... 2. Psychologically. ... 3. As Adam. The ego is understood to be Adam, the father of the human race, confronted with the command of Gen. 2:16, 17. So Methodius of Olympia, Theodore of Mopsuestia [I'll quote from Methodius later in this paper. Theodore of Mopsuestia (about AD 350-428), bishop of Mopsuestia, and theologian.].... ... 4. As a Christian. ... So Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Luther, Calvin.... But then one must ask, Why all the references to the Mosaic law? ... Moreover, it is clear that in chap. 8 Paul speaks of the Christian living the life of the Spirit [the Spirit isn't mentioned at all in Rom. 7:7-25]; here it is far from clear that he is speaking of the same person. [It seems as clear as it could possibly be that he isn't speaking of the same person.] The discussion is more generic. 5. In a cosmic-historical dimension. Paul speaks rhetorically of the ego, using a figure of speech to dramatize in an intimate personal way the experience common to all unregenerate human beings faced with law and relying on their own resources to meet its obligations. He views unregenerate humanity with Jewish spectacles and depicts it faced with the Mosaic law and seeking to achieve the status of uprightness by observing such a law. So many of the Greek Fathers, especially Diodore of Tarsus...John Chrysostom...and Cyril of Alexandria...also Ambrosiaster [[Fitzmyer quotes Ambrosiaster under Rom. 7:7, "under his own quasi-person he treats of the general issue." Fitzmyer then lists some modern commentators. Diodore of Tarsus (died AD 394) founded a school near Antioch and was the teacher of Theodore of Mopsuestia and John Chrysostom. He was the bishop of Tarsus from 378 to his death. Cyril of Alexandria (about AD 375-444) was a theologian, he became the bishop of Alexandria in 412. Ambrosiaster (late 4th century) wrote a commentary on Romans. Actually this name was given to the anonymous author by Erasmus; throughout the middle ages it was assumed that Ambrose had been the author.]].... The trouble with all such interpretations is that they tend to trivialize Paul's insight. The confrontation of the Ego with sin and the law is not considered by Paul on an individual, psychological level, but from a historical and corporate point of view. Paul sees humanity as it was known to him through Jewish and Christian eyes, without Christ and in Christ (see Stauffer, TDNT ["Theological Dictionary of the New Testament" in 10 volumes] 2.340-60, esp. 358-62). ...in attempting to understand what Paul meant, it is important to keep his perspective in mind, which is that of unregenerate humanity faced with the Mosaic law - but as seen by a Christian...." As my comments indicate, I agree with most of what Fitzmyer says in this paragraph and under his #5. I believe it is better to see Paul speaking for those under the Mosaic Law, but leaving room to see a strong application for all mankind. (page 467; under Rom. 7:9) "the commandment came. I.e., when the Mosaic law 'was added' (Gal. 3:19) or entered human history...." (page 472; this is the heading for pages 472-477) " 'Complaint and Cry of Human Beings Enslaved by the Law (7:14-25).' " H. A. W. Meyer ("Epistle to the Romans," Vol. 5 of "Meyers Commentary on the New Testament" [Alpha Publications, 1980 reprint; first English edition 1883]). (page 266; under Rom. 7:7-13) "Augustine...in his earlier days acknowledged, in harmony with the Greek Fathers since Irenaeus [about AD 115-202], that the language here is that of the unregenerate man; though later, in opposition to Pelagianism...he gave currency to the view that the "I" is that of the regenerate. In this he was followed by Jerome, who likewise held a different opinion previously; and later by Luther, Melanchthon, Calvin, Beza (not Bucer and Musculus)...and many others, more, however, among Protestant than among Catholic commentators.... On the other hand, the...Arminians, as also the school of Spener [Pietists], returned to the view of the Greek Fathers, which gradually became, and has down to the present day continued, the dominant one." James Arminius (AD 1560-1609) wrote a 200 page document (that I'm impressed with) titled "A Dissertation on the True and Genuine Sense of the Seventh Chapter of the Epistle to the Romans." (It's included in Vol. 2 of "The Works of James Arminius," translated by J. Nichols [Baker, 1986 reprint]. Arminius was a Dutch theologian, originally a Calvinist. Arminians are named after him.) His main point in this dissertation is that it is a serious mistake to interpret Romans 7:14-25 as referring to a Christian. His view is that "in this passage the Apostle does not speak about himself, nor about a man living under grace, but that he has transferred to himself the person of a man placed under the law" (page 490). Arminius included quotations from Theodoret and from quite a few others, including Irenaeus, Tertullian, and Chrysostom, confirming his viewpoint. I'll include part of Arminius' quotation of Theodoret (about AD 393-466). Theodoret was a leading theologian of the school at Antioch; he became the bishop of Cyrus in 423. Later in this paper I'll include excerpts from Irenaeus (about AD 115-202), Tertullian (about AD 160-220), and Chrysostom (AD 347-407). (pages 605, 606; Arminius is quoting Theodoret from "On Romans 7.") " 'But I am carnal' [Rom. 7:14]. He introduces a man before [he has obtained] grace, who is beset with motions and pertubations of mind. For he denominates that man carnal who has not yet obtained spiritual grace. ... 'But I see another law in my members, warring....' [Rom. 7:23, 24]. ... After the apostle had discoursed on all these topics, that he might shew what sort of people we were before grace, and our condition after grace, and having taken on himself the personation of those who, before grace, had been besieged and encompassed by sin; therefore, as though he was completely surrounded by a mass of enemies, and led away into captivity and compelled to become a slave, and seeing no aid from any other quarter, he grievously groans and laments; he shews that help could not be afforded by the law, and he cries out, 'O wretched man that I am'...." I'll continue to quote from Arminius in Part 3. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:50:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-594/interpretation-of-romans-chapter-7-part-4.html Interpretation of Romans Chapter 7, Part 4   By: Karl Kemp       Part 4 continues with lengthy excerpts from Chrysostom. (pages 430, 431; under Rom. 7:24, 25) " 'O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?' Do you notice what a great thraldom [servitude, slavery] that of vice is, in that it overcomes even a mind that delighted in the Law? For no one can rejoin, he means, that I hate the Law and abhor it, and so sin overcomes me. For 'I delight in it, and consent to it,' and flee for refuge to it, yet still it had not the power of saving one who had fled to it. But Christ saved even one that fled from Him. See what a great advantage grace [the grace of God in Christ] has! Yet the Apostle has not stated it thus; but with a sigh only, and a great lamentation, as if devoid of any to help him, he points out by his perplexity the might of Christ, and says, 'O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?' The Law has not been able: conscience has proved unequal to it, though it praised what was good, and did not praise it only, but even fought against the contrary of it. For by the very words 'warreth against' he shows that he was marshalled against it for his part. From what quarter then is one to hope for salvation? Ver. 25. 'I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.' Observe how he shows the necessity of having grace [the saving grace of God in Christ] present with us, and that the well doings herein belong alike to the Father and the Son. ... For 'there is,' he says, 'now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the flesh' [Rom. 8:1]. Yet he did not say it before he had first recalled to mind our former condition again in the words, 'So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin' [7:25b]." (page 431; under Rom. 8:1) "Then as the fact that many fall into sin even after baptism presented a difficulty, he consequently hastened to meet it, and says not merely 'to them that are in Christ Jesus,' but adds, 'who walk not after the flesh'; so showing that all afterward comes of our listlessness. For now we have the power of walking not after the flesh.... ...." (page 431; under Rom. 8:2) "... For this grievous war did the grace of the Spirit put a stop to, by slaying sin, and making the contest light to us and crowning us at the outstart, and then drawing us to the struggle with abundant help." (page 433; under Rom. 8:4) " 'That the righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh.' ["so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" (NASB, 1995 edition).] What meaneth this word, righteousness? Why, the end, the scope, the well-doing. For what was its [the Law's] design, and what did it enjoin? To be without sin. This then is made good to us now through Christ. And the making a stand against it [sin], and the getting the better of it, came from Him. But it is for us to enjoy the victory. Then shall we never sin henceforth? We never shall unless we have become exceedingly supine [lying on the back; mentally or morally inactive]. And this is why he added, 'to them that walk not after the flesh.' For lest, after hearing that Christ hath delivered thee from the war of sin, and that the requisition of the Law is fulfilled in thee, by sin having been 'condemned in the flesh' [Rom. 8:3], thou shouldest break up all thy defences; therefore, in that place also, after saying, 'there is therefore no condemnation' [Rom. 8:1], he added, 'to them that walk not after the flesh'; and here also, 'that the requisition of the Law might be fulfilled in us,' he proceeds with the very same thing; or rather, not with it only, but even with a much stronger thing. For after saying, 'that the righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us that walk not after the flesh,' he proceeds, 'but after the Spirit.' So showing, that it is not only binding upon us to keep ourselves from evil deeds, but also to be adorned with good. For to give thee the crown is His; but it is thine to hold it fast [by grace] when given. For the righteousness of the Law, that one should not become liable to its curse, Christ has accomplished for thee. Be not a traitor then to so great a gift, but keep guarding this godly treasure. For in this passage he shows that the Font [of water baptism] will not suffice to save us, unless, after coming from it, we display a life worthy of the Gift [of salvation]. And so he again advocates the Law in saying what he does. For when we have once become obedient to Christ, we must use all ways and plans so that its [the Law's] righteousness, which Christ fulfilled, may abide in us, and not come to naught." Ambrose (AD 340-397; bishop of Milan; he was influential in the life of Augustine, even baptizing him as an adult convert to Christianity). C. E. B. Cranfield ("Epistle to the Romans," ICC [T & T Clark, 1975], page 345), who understands Rom. 7:14-25 of a Christian, cited Ambrose as an advocate of this viewpoint. In a footnote Cranfield quoted a few sentences in Latin from a writing of Ambrose called "De Abraham" to substantiate his statement regarding Ambrose. I don't really know Latin, but I can give a reasonable translation: "Since the flesh fights against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh, it is not a moderate [restrained] battle, when the Apostle himself a chosen vessel for the Lord says: I see the law of my flesh fighting against the law of my mind, and making me captive to the law of sin, which is in my members [Rom. 7:23]. He himself was not able to restrain this battle, and for that reason he flies to Christ saying: Wretched man (that) I (am); who will deliver me from the body of this death? [Rom. 7:24]." This quotation doesn't begin to confirm to me that Ambrose understood Rom. 7:23, 24 (Rom. 7:14-25) of Paul as a Christian being a captive of sin, and living in sin. It seems rather that Ambrose referred to Rom. 7:23, 24 to show that even Paul, though he was a chosen vessel for the Lord (REFERRING TO THE TIME BEFORE PAUL BECAME A CHRISTIAN), like every other person, needed to fly to Christ for salvation and victory over the powerful forces of sin. I was motivated to see if there were other places where Ambrose referred to Rom. 7:14-25. I found a significant passage in his exegetical work titled "Jacob and the Happy Life." (This work is in "The Fathers of the Church" series, Vol. 65, titled "Saint Ambrose, Seven Exegetical Works," translated into English by M. P. McHugh, published in 1971 by the Catholic University of America Press. The relevant passage covers pages 126-137.) I believe this work by Ambrose clearly shows that he did not understand Rom. 7:14-25 to teach that Christians live in sin, but rather that they are delivered from the state depicted in these verses, not that the victory is just automatic or always easy. I'll give some rather extensive excerpts from this writing of Ambrose to demonstrate his understanding of Rom. 7:14-25 and something of his view of the Christian life. (In the original paper I quoted some two pages. Here I'll just quote a rather small part of what I quoted there, but it will suffice to demonstrate Ambrose's understanding of Rom. 7:14-25. I had received permission to quote extensively for the paper, but not for the internet.) (page 127) "...under His [Christ's] rule servitude is precious, and freedom glorious. The servitude is precious, for it was bought at the price of blood of such worth; while the freedom is glorious, for no servitude to guilt, no bonds of sin restrain it, and no burden of guilty deeds, no traffic with crimes delivers it to the bondage of a servitude that is base." (page 127) "Don't you know that the guilt of Adam and Eve sold you into servitude? Don't you know that Christ did not buy you, but bought you back? 'You were redeemed from the vain manner of life handed down from your fathers, not with gold and silver, but with the precious blood of the Lamb,' the Apostle Peter cries out [1 Pet. 1:18, 19]. ...you owe servitude to Him as your Lord and Redeemer. ... You have received your freedom in such a way that you ought to remember your liberator, so as to realize that lawful obedience is due to Him, your patron; else freedom may be taken back from you on grounds of ingratitude. ...." (page 130) "I admire its teaching [the Mosaic Law's]; but because 'I am carnal, and sold under sin' [Rom. 7:14], I am drawn into guilt against my will. Sin indeed dominates, as if over a slave. ... In this danger the one remedy is that the grace of God should free the man whom the law could not. For thus it is written, 'Unhappy man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death? The grace of God through Jesus Christ our Lord' [Rom. 7:24, 25]." This quotation is all the more relevant because it refers to Rom. 7:24, one of the verses used above in the quotation from Ambrose by Cranfield. (page 131) "... Therefore Christ died so that we also might die to sin and rise again to God. ... We have died in the flesh, we have been renewed in the spirit [Spirit]. Let us walk in the spirit [Spirit], because we have received the spirit [Spirit] of Christ. If then Christ is in us, let our flesh be dead by reason of sin, but let our spirit live by reason of justification [again using "justification" in a typical full sense that includes the transformation to a walk in righteousness and holiness with the victory over sin]. Thus what was impossible for the law has been settled if we walk in the spirit [Spirit]. In so doing we bury the passions.... ... The law did not prevail because it did not mortify the flesh [old man]...." Methodius, about AD 260-311, bishop of Olympus and Patara in Lycia, then of Tyre, martyr for Christ ("On the Resurrection," "Ante-Nicene Fathers," Vol. 6 [Eerdmans, 1986 reprint]). Methodius is the earliest writer I am aware of who understood Paul to be speaking of a Christian in Rom. 7:14-25. It's very significant, however, that he didn't understand Paul to be speaking of a Christian actually sinning in these verses, and that he was very strong on the ability for Christians to walk in victory over sin by God's enabling grace in Christ. The quotations will demonstrate both of these important points. (page 370, 371) "For this saying of his [the apostle Paul's], 'I was alive without the law once,' [Rom. 7:9] refers to the life which was lived in paradise before the law, not without a body, but with a body, by our first parents...for we lived without concupiscence, being altogether ignorant of its assaults. For not to have a law according to which we ought to live, nor a power of establishing what manner of life we ought to adopt, so that we might justly be approved or blamed, is considered to exempt a person from accusation. Because one cannot lust after those things from which he is not restrained, and even if he lusted after them, he would not be blamed. For lust is not directed to things which are before us, and subject to our power, but to those which are before us, and not in our power. For how should one care for a thing which is neither forbidden nor necessary to him? And for this reason it is said, 'I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet' [Rom. 7:7]. [[I don't believe there is any possibility that Methodius was correct in understanding Rom. 7:7, which clearly refers to the tenth commandment of the Mosaic Law, to refer to the "law" given to Adam and Eve. This interpretation, along with much of the interpretation that follows dealing with the same topic, helps substantiate the statement regarding Methodius that is contained in the Introduction to his writings on page 307, "Methodius is known chiefly as the antagonist of Origen; although, as has been pointed out, he was himself influenced in no small degree by the method of Origen, as may be seen by his tendency to allegorical interpretations of Holy Scripture."]] For when (our first parents) heard, 'Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it; for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die,' then they conceived lust, and gathered it [lust]. Therefore was it said, 'I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet'; nor would they have desired to eat, except it had been said, 'Thou shalt not eat of it.' For it was thence that sin took occasion to deceive me. For when the law was given, the devil had it in his power to work lust in me; 'for without the law, sin was dead' [Rom. 7:8]; which means, 'when the law was not given, sin could not be committed.' But I was alive and blameless before the law, having no commandment in accordance with which it was necessary to live; 'but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death' [Rom. 7:9, 10]. ... But the devil, whom he calls sin, because he is the author of sin, taking occasion by the commandment to deceive me to disobedience, deceived me and slew me, thus rendering me to the condemnation, 'In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt die.' 'Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just and good' [Rom. 7:12].... ...but the devil; that he might be manifested who, through that which is good, wrought evil; that the inventor of evil might become and be proved the greatest of all sinners. ... Hence evil, as though besieging me, cleaves to me and dwells in me, justice giving me up to be sold to the Evil One, in consequence of having violated the law. [This then is the result for Adam and his descendants. Methodius next interprets Rom. 7:14-25 to speak of a Christian, for whom the fallenness has been so modified through salvation in Christ that now he can refrain from actually sinning, but not from having wrong thoughts and desires. At least (thanks be to God!) Methodius didn't interpret Rom. 7:14-25 in such a way as to teach that Christians cannot walk in victory over sin, far from it, but his interpretation is clearly far from what the apostle Paul intended.] Therefore also the expressions: 'that which I do, I allow not,' and 'what I hate, that do I' [Rom. 7:15], ARE NOT TO BE UNDERSTOOD OF DOING EVIL, BUT ONLY OF THINKING IT [my emphasis]. For it is not in our power to think or not to think of improper things, but to act or not to act upon our thoughts. For we cannot hinder thoughts from coming into our minds, since we receive them when they are inspired into us from without; BUT WE ARE ABLE TO ABSTAIN FROM OBEYING THEM [my emphasis]. Therefore it is in our power to will not to think these things; but not to bring it about that they shall pass away, so as not to come into the mind again; for this does not lie in our power, as I said; which is the meaning of that statement, 'The good that I would, I do not' [Rom. 7:19]; for I do not will to think the things which injure me; for this good [of never having an improper thought] is altogether innocent. But 'the good that I would, I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do'; not willing to think, and yet thinking what I do not will. ...." (pages 371, 372) "But if any one should venture to oppose this statement, and reply, that the apostle teaches that we hate not only the evil which is in thought, but that we do that which we will not, and we hate it even in the very act of doing it, for he says, 'The good which I would, I do not; but the evil which I would not, that I do' [Rom. 7:19]; if he who says so speaks the truth, let us ask him to explain what was the evil which the apostle hated and willed not to do, but did; and the good which he willed to do, but did not; and conversely, whether as often as he willed to do good, so often he did not do the good which he willed, but did the evil which he willed not? And how he [Paul] can say, when exhorting us to shake off all manner of sin, 'Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ' [1 Cor. 11:1]? Thus he meant the things already mentioned which he willed not to do, not to be done, but only to be thought of. For how otherwise could he be an exact imitation of Christ? It would be excellent then, and most delightful, if we had not those who oppose us, and contend with us; but since this is impossible, we cannot do what we will. For we will not to have those who lead us to passion, for then we could be saved without weariness and effort; but that does not come to pass which we will, but that which we will not. For it is necessary, as I said, that we should be tried. Let us not then, O my soul, let us not give in to the Evil One; but putting on 'the whole armour of God,' which is our protection, let us have 'the breastplate of righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel (of peace). Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit [Spirit], which is the Word of God' [Eph. 6:15-18], that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil; 'casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of Christ' [2 Cor. 10:5], 'for we wrestle not against flesh and blood' [Eph. 6:12]...." (pages 372, 373; I'll include this last excerpt from Methodius to further confirm that he didn't understand Romans chapter 7 to teach that Christians will continue to sin.) "... 'O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?' [Rom. 7:23] ... ...he says not that this body was death, but the sin which dwells in the body through lust, from which [the sin] God has delivered him by the coming of Christ. 'For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death' [Rom. 8:2].... For the good which 'the law' of nature 'could not do, in that it was weak' [Rom. 8:3; Paul was speaking of 'the Law' of Moses; the moral law, but not the ceremonial las], being overcome by the lust which lies in the body, God gave strength to accomplish, 'sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh' [Rom. 8:3]; so that sin being condemned, to its destruction, so that it should never bear fruit in the flesh, the righteousness of the law of nature [Paul was speaking of the Mosaic Law] might be fulfilled, abounding in the obedience of those who walk not according to the lust [or, desire] of the flesh [which hasn't been annihilated for Christians (cf., e.g., Gal. 5:17)], but according to the lust [desire] and guidance of the Spirit [cf. Rom. 8:4]; 'for the law of the Spirit of life' [Rom. 8:2], which is the Gospel, being different from earlier laws, leading by its preaching to obedience and remission of sins, delivered us [born-again Christians] from the law of sin and death, HAVING CONQUERED ENTIRELY SIN [my emphasis] which reigned over our flesh [before we became Christians]." Gregory of Nazianzus, about AD 329-390, theologian; this excerpt was included in the work cited above for Methodius. (page 370) "He [Gregory] says that it is in our power to do, or to avoid doing evil; since otherwise we should not be punished for doing evil, nor be rewarded for doing well; but the presence or absence of evil thoughts does not depend upon ourselves. Wherefore even the sainted Paul says, 'For what I would, that do I not, but what I would not, that I do' [Rom. 7:15]; that is to say, 'My thoughts are not what I would, but what I would not.' " J. O. Buswell (founding theologian of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, "Systematic Theology of the Christian Religion," [Zondervan, 1962]). I decided to add this excerpt from Dr. Buswell after being asked a question about his view on Romans 7 recently. I have great respect for this Calvinistic scholar. For one thing, he put some emphasis on the need for Christians to walk in righteousness and holiness. For another thing, he was the primary source for the mid-week rapture being taught at Covenant Seminary when I was there. (This view is included in his Systematic Theology.) I never took any classes with Dr. Buswell; he had semi-retired before I started taking classes there. (pages 115-119, Vol. 2; under the heading, "The Helplessness of the Sinner, Romans 7:7-8:4") "... It is my conviction that the 'wretched man' described by the Apostle Paul in the seventh chapter of the epistle to the Romans is Paul's picture of himself under conviction of the Holy Spirit, prior to his conversion on the road to Damascus. ... Granted that the majority of the descriptive items predicated of the 'wretched man' could apply to any person in any kind of spiritual struggle, whether regenerate or not, and granted that an uninstructed Christian might erroneously apply to himself every part of the description, yet there are certain particulars in the description which the Apostle Paul positively could not apply to a born-again individual. For example, the wretched man declares, 'I am sold [as a slave is sold] under sin' (v. 14). Paul has just said in clear language that 'We are no longer slaves of sin, for the party dying [with Christ] has been justified from sin' (Romans 6:6, 7). Further, the wretched man declares, 'To do the good is not provided to me' (v. 18b). On the contrary, Paul constantly teaches that the enablement of grace is provided to the born-again person. 'No temptation has taken you but such as is common to man. God is faithful, who will not permit you to be tempted beyond your ability, but He will make with the temptation also a way of escape so that you will be able to bear it' (1 Corinthians 10:13). 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me' (Philippians 4:13). There are other details in the description which apply much more accurately to the lost man under conviction than to the regenerate man, but these two points seem to me sufficiently conclusive." I appreciate the way Dr. Buswell interpreted Romans chapter 7 (in that he did not interpret this chapter in a way that argues for the continuation of sin in the life of Christians), but I should point out that he interpreted 1 John 1:8 to prove that no Christian can live above sin in this life. The Appendix of this paper is contained in Part 5. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:48:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-593/interpretation-of-romans-chapter-7-part-5.html Interpretation of Romans Chapter 7, Part 5   By: Karl Kemp       This is Part 5 of my paper on the interpretation of Romans chapter 7 and righteousness and holiness. APPENDIX Augustine and Pelagianism My purpose here is to help the reader understand Augustine and Pelagianism. We must see the seriousness of the error of the Pelagians in denying original sin, but it's also important to see that Augustine overstated the effects of the fall. We desperately need the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches. Regarding the concept that Augustine (who was followed by the Calvinists) overstated the fallenness of man (the total depravity of man), see my papers "Once Saved, Always Saved?" (especially see pages 20-24) and "A Paper on Faith" (especially see pages 3-12, 38-42). (The page numbers go with the internet version of the papers that are on my website; Google to Karl Kemp Teaching.) Also see my papers on Romans chapters 9-11 and on Ephesians chapter 1. In this Appendix I'll quote from three scholars who deal with Augustine and the Pelagians. The fourth excerpt deals with Augustine's pre-Christian background, which is interesting, and it helped shape his theology. First I'll quote from Justo L. Gonzales, "History of Christian Thought," Vol. 2 [Abingdon Press, 1971]. I'm quoting from his chapter 1, titled "The Theology of Augustine." First I'll quote part of what he said under the heading "Pelagianism" (pages 27-31). "...the last great controversy that contributed to shape Augustine's theology was that which he held against Pelagianism. This controversy is probably the most significant, for it gave him the occasion to formulate his doctrines of grace and predestination, which would have enormous consequences in the future. Pelagius - from whom Pelagianism draws its name - was a native of the British Isles. ... ...in A.D. 405, while at Rome, he had his first encounter with Augustine's theology, against which he reacted violently because it made everything dependent on God's grace and seemed to leave no place for human effort and participation. 'Give what thou commandest, and command what thou wilt,' Augustine had said in his "Confessions," and Pelagius had no place for such quietism. ... From a practical point of view, Pelagius was interested in leaving no place for the excuses of those who impute their own sin to the weakness of human nature. Against such persons, Pelagius affirmed that God had made man free, and that this freedom is such that through it man is capable of doing good. The power not to sin...is in human nature since its very creation, and neither the sin of Adam nor the Devil himself can destroy it. Adam's sin is in no way the sin of humanity.... Nor does the sin of Adam destroy the freedom that all his descendants have not to sin. ... As to baptism, Pelagius claimed that infants are innocent and therefore do not need it. Furthermore baptism [becoming a Christian] does not give birth to a free will where there was formerly a will under bondage of sin. It only breaks the custom of sinning and calls the believer to a new life that he himself is to build through the use of his own freedom." Gonzales goes on to point out that for Pelagius God's predestination is no more than His foreknowledge of what will be future human decisions. I'll quote a few words from what Gonzales said under the heading, "Original Sin and Natural Man" (pages 43, 44). He is giving Augustine's viewpoint. "After the fall...[Adam] had lost the gift of grace which enabled him not to sin and was free only to sin. By reason of the inheritance of Adam, natural man is in the same situation as his first forefather." Then, under the heading "Grace and Predestination," Gonzales shows that for Augustine mankind's state after the fall constitutes a "mass of damnation." The only ones who can, and will, be saved from this mass of damnation, from these people who are so totally depraved that they are free only to do evil, are the ones elected by God in some mysterious way (a fixed number) and predestined to be saved by His irresistible grace. Now I'll quote from Bengt Hagglund, "History of Theology," translated by Gene Lund [Concordia Publishing House, 1968]. I'm quoting from a section titled "Augustine's Doctrine of Sin and Grace" in chapter 11. "Sin, according to Pelagius, consists only in isolated acts of the will. If a man wills what is evil, he sins. But there is nothing to prevent him from choosing the good, thereby avoiding sin. Pelagius rejected the idea that sin should be thought of in terms of man's nature or character. Sin is not a fault of nature but of the will. As a result, he also refused to accept the teaching of original sin. Sin consists only of what man does, and because of this it cannot be transmitted by heredity, it cannot be implicit in nature" (page 133). "Here is Augustine's opposition to Pelagius. Augustine denied that man, after the Fall, continued to have free will in the true sense, the freedom to choose the good, that is. He stands rather under compulsion to sin.... Isolated good deeds can be carried out, but these do not change the evil intent of the will" (page 135). "This doctrine of the unfree will...implies that man is unable to cooperate in the interest of his salvation" (page 137). "Augustine's opposition to Pelagius was expressed most strongly in his doctrine of predestination. The grace which is the sole source of man's salvation is God's loving will; it is, at the same time, almighty. The omnipotence of this grace implies that man's salvation depends solely on God's will and decree. God in eternity chose certain men to be snatched out of the corrupted masses and to share in His salvation. ... The ultimate basis of human salvation, therefore, is not found in our merits or free will but rather in the will of God. [[For Augustine (as for the Calvinists), God's choice of individuals can have nothing to do with His foreknowing what's in their hearts or of their cooperating with His grace, because all men are so totally depraved that they cannot cooperate with His grace in the interest of their salvation. I agree that man has fallen to such an extent that God must take the initiative in our salvation, and I agree that we don't merit salvation in any way; it's all of grace; and God must receive all the glory. But I don't agree that the Bible (speaking of a balanced view of what the Bible teaches) backs up the ideas of man's total inability to cooperate with God's grace, unconditional election, God's irresistible grace, or that God just gives us faith (see my "A Paper on Faith").]] To Augustine, this meant that those who have been chosen will one day be saved. ..." (page 139). Augustine also taught that the elect could not fall away (see my paper, "Once Saved, Always Saved?") The first sentence of Hagglund's following chapter (chapter 12) is significant, "Augustine's doctrine of grace and predestination prompted widespread controversy even before he died, and it continued to occupy the center of theological discussion throughout the Middle Ages and even, in part, into the post-Reformation period" (page 143). It seems clear to me that what the so-called "Semi-Pelagians" said was right, quoting Hagglund for one last time, "the Pelagian heresy could be avoided without using the extreme ideas imbedded in Augustine's doctrine of grace" (page 144). I'll quote from Philip Schaff, "History of the Christian Church," Vol. 3 [Eerdmans, 1984 reprint of the 1910 edition]. "The true solution of the difficult question respecting the relation of divine grace to human freedom in the work of conversion is not found in a denial of either factor [Man since the fall is in bondage to sin; God must therefore take the initiative in our salvation, and it is totally of grace (not merited), but man has some freedom of the will after the fall.]...but it must be sought in such a reconciliation of the two factors as gives full weight both to the sovereignty of God and to the responsibility of man, yet assigns a preeminence to the divine agency corresponding to the infinite exaltation of the Creator and Redeemer above the sinful creature. And although Augustine's solution of the problem is not altogether satisfactory, and although in his zeal against the Pelagian error he has inclined to the opposite extreme; yet in all essential points, he has the Scriptures, especially the epistles of Paul, as well as Christian experience...on his side" (page 789). Speaking of Pelagius, Schaff says, "...the main thing in religion was moral action, the keeping of the commandments of God by one's own strength. This is also shown in the introductory remarks of his letter to Demetrias, a noble Roman nun...in which he describes a model virgin as proof of the excellency of human nature: 'As often as I have to speak concerning moral improvement and the leading of a holy life, I am accustomed first to set forth the power and quality of human nature, and to show what it can accomplish. For never are we able to enter upon the path of the virtues, unless hope, as companion, draws us to them. For every longing after anything dies within us, so soon as we despair of attaining that thing' " (page 791). What Pelagius should have emphasized was the sufficient sanctifying grace of God in Christ, not the goodness of human nature, which is fallen. Pelagius made a very serious error in denying original sin. We desperately need the balanced truth of what the Bible teaches. I should mention that Pelagius did acknowledge the grace of God in creating "the power and quality of human nature." Beyond the grace of God imparted to man in creation, Pelagius taught of a further "supernatural grace [available through Christ], which through revelation enlightens the understanding, and assists man to will and to do what is good. This grace confers...the forgiveness of sins...and the...benefit of a strengthening of the will by the power of instruction and example. As we have been followers of Adam in sin, so should we become imitators of Christ in virtue. ... When the inner law, or the conscience, no longer sufficed, the outward or Mosaic law came in; and when this failed, through the overmastering habit of sinning, it had to be assisted by the view and imitation of the virtue of Christ, as set forth in his example" (page 812, 813). The problem is, "Pelagianism...unduly restricts the specifically Christian grace to the force of instruction and example. Christ is indeed the Supreme Teacher, and the Perfect Example, but He is also High-priest and King, and the Author of a new spiritual creation. ... Moreover, He does not merely influence believers from without, but lives and works in them through the Holy Ghost, as the principle of their spiritual life" (page 814). Lastly, I'll quote from Williston Walker on Augustine himself and on his conversion to Christ, "History of the Christian Church" [Charles Scribner's Sons, 1918]. I'm quoting from his section 17. "In Augustine the ancient church reached its highest religious attainment since apostolic times. ... He was to be the father of much that was most characteristic in medieval Roman Catholicism. He was to be the spiritual ancestor, no less, of much in the Reformation" (page 175). "Africa gave three great leaders to Latin Christianity, Tertullian, Cyprian, and Augustine. Augustine was born in Tagaste, in Numidia [now in Algeria]...[in] 354. His father...was a heathen of good position but of small property, an easy-going, worldly character, who did not embrace Christianity till near the end of his life. His mother, Monica, was a Christian.... ... From Tagaste he was sent for the sake of schooling to the neighboring Madaura, and thence to Carthage, where he pursued the study of rhetoric. Here, when about seventeen, he took a concubine, to whom he was to hold for at least fourteen years, and to them a son, Adeodatus, whom he dearly loved, was born in 372" (pages 175, 176). As a young man Augustine became a Manichaean, and remained one for nine years. "Its founder, Mani, was born in Persia in [AD] 215 or 216.... Strongly based on the old Persian dualism, Manichaeism was also strongly syncretistic. It received elements from Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Judaism, and Christianity. Light and darkness, good and evil are eternally at war. Its conception of the relations of spirit and matter, and of salvation, in many ways resembled those of Gnosticism" (page 107). By the help of Manichaean friends Augustine, in 384, "obtained...a government appointment as teacher of rhetoric in Milan - then the Western capital of the empire. Here in Milan, Augustine came under the powerful preaching of Ambrose, whom he heard as an illustration of pulpit eloquence rather than with the approval of the message.... ... At his mother's wish he now became betrothed as befitted his station in life, though marriage was postponed on account of the youth of the woman. He dismissed regretfully his faithful concubine and entered on an even less creditable relation with another. ["His marriage being delayed, Augustine soon found another concubine" ("Encyclopedia of Early Christianity" [Garland, 1990], page 121).] It was the lowest point of his moral life. ... A crisis in Augustine's experience was now at hand. He had never felt more painfully the cleft between his ideals and his conduct. ... A travelled African...told him...of the monastic life in Egypt. He was filled with shame that ignorant men like these monks could put away temptations which he, a man of learning, felt powerless to resist. Overcome with self-condemnation, he rushed into the garden and there heard the voice of a child from a neighboring house, saying: 'Take up and read.' He reached for a copy of the epistles that he had been reading, and his eyes fell on the words: 'Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying; but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts thereof' [Rom. 13:13, 14]. From that moment Augustine had the peace of mind and the sense of divine power to overcome his sins which he had thus far sought in vain. It may be that it was, as it has been called, a conversion to monasticism. If so, that was but its outward form. In its essence it was a fundamental Christian transformation in nature. Augustine's conversion occurred in...386" (pages 176-178). May God's will be fully accomplished through this paper. © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. I recommend my papers titled, "Once Saved, Always Saved?," "A Paper on Faith," and my papers on Romans chapters 9-11 and on Ephesians chapter 1.             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:45:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-592/philippians-chapter-1-part-3-c-what-happened-to-paul-advanced-the-gospel.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 3 C - What happened to Paul Advanced the Gospel   By: MAXINE PINDER       Philippians Chapter 1:12-13 Now I want you to know, brothers that what has happen to me has served to advance the gospel. As a result it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. Because of my chains most of my brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the Word of God more courageously and fearlessly. Why would what happened to Paul serve to advance the gospel? One word and one word only happened, and that word is—Jesus. Having read the account of Paul’s arrest and imprisonment there is no doubt in my mind that God’s hand carefully guided and controlled the result of every situation that Paul encountered, for the advancement of the gospel. He saved Paul’s life in this ordeal at least 4 times and provided the impetus for the unusual manner in which Paul was detained in Rome. Let us observe Jesus’ masterful hand at work; he is skilled at causing that which is meant for evil to work together for good. Jesus knew that Paul would not refuse to go up to Jerusalem if he learned that the Jews would have him arrested and handed over to the Romans. Paul was sent to the gentiles and it seems that he nursed the idea of preaching the gospel to the Romans, Caesar’s court and Nero Caesar, himself. So despite the Holy Spirit’s warning that the Jews would hand him over to the Romans, Paul decided to brave the danger for the advancement of the gospel and God tremendously rewarded his efforts. Paul arrived in Jerusalem close to Pentecost, in the late spring of AD 58, as he wished (see Acts 20:16) the presence of Jews from Asia in Jerusalem indicated Pentecost was near. Shortly after his arrival he was arrested and his life was spared because at that moment the Jews were beating him to death. (See Acts 21:31-32) He was detained for two years by Antonius Felix, governor of Judea and Samaria, at Herod’s palace in Caesarea until Felix’s dismissal by Nero in AD 60. Why would God allow Paul to be held by Felix for two years when getting to Rome was the object? It saved his life—see Acts 23:12-24:27. Felix would be dismissed from his position and when Paul’s case would be heard before Festus, Felix’s replacement, the Sanhedrin’s case would be very weak. None of his accusers, the Jews from Asia, would be present. Therefore no evidence, not even false evidence could be presented. Paul would appeal to Caesar and be sent to Rome where Jesus wanted him. In addition to this, it seems Felix, though greedy for a bribe, was curious about the gospel and Jesus exposed him to it. There were reasons why Felix would be curious. He had an adulterous marriage to Drusilla, a Jewess, daughter of Herod Agrippa I. Drusilla had as her spiritual advisor one Simon the sorcerer who had advised her to leave her former husband and marry Felix who also left his former wife. Simon became a Christian through Philip the Evangelist but afterward had a difficult run-in with Peter when he tried to purchase the gifts of the Holy Spirit. (See Acts 8:9-24) Certainly Felix and Drusilla would have heard that Simon had accepted Christ. Felix called for Paul and spoke with him often but we are not privy to all that was said or to whom the audience might have been. What we can safely assume is that this also resulted in the spreading of the word to those in Herod’s palace. Festus sent Paul to Rome on the cusp of winter. Julius the commander seemed to be looking for some where to spend the winter before going on to Rome. Let us look briefly at how God garnered tremendous favor for Paul with the Romans. Paul had told Julius that their voyage would be disastrous if they sailed from Crete but instead of listening to Paul he followed the advice of the pilot and owner of the ship and sailed on from Crete since Paul was only a prisoner. After they encountered a storm and were in peril Paul said, “Men you should have taken my advice not to sail from Crete… but now I urge you to keep your courage because not one of you will be lost only the ship will be destroyed. Last night an angel of the God… I serve stood beside me and said, “Do not be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail with you”. So keep up your courage men for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me. Nevertheless we must run aground on some island”. Here is what happened during the shipwreck. Luke writes, “On the fourteenth night we were still being driven across the Adriatic Sea…. In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow. Then Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay with the ship, you cannot be saved.” So the soldiers cut the ropes that held the life boat and let it fall away. Just before dawn Paul urged them to eat some food…. “Now I urge you take some food. You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head”. Notice how everyone was now listening to Paul especially the commander Julius. It happened just as Paul predicted, they ran aground on the island of Malta but everyone’s life was spared. You may read Acts chapter 27 for the full account of the shipwreck and the storm. Here is what happened on the island of Malta. Luke reported, “Once safely on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta…. Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper… fastened itself on his hand. …But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. The people expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him they… said he was a god”. Paul healed the father of the chief official on the island. Luke wrote, “When this happened, the rest of the sick on the island came and were cured. They honored us in many ways and when we were ready to sail, they furnished us with the supplies we needed”. You may read the full details of what happened in Malta and later in Rome in Acts chapter 28. As you can see Jesus had given Paul a reputation before the Romans en route to Rome. Paul manifested the gifts of the Word of Knowledge, Prophecy, the Word of Wisdom and Healing during that journey. Through him the lives of 276 people were spared including the Roman soldiers and this served him well in Rome. By this reputation the Romans knew that he was innocent and that the Jews were only incensed against him because he worshipped Jesus. The Sanhedrin’s meritless case would most likely be dismissed. What was the result of God’s Providence in Paul’s circumstances? Paul was not imprisoned like others. He was placed under house arrest in his own rented house. Although he was in chains he was allowed to preach the Word of God to all who came to him. (See Acts 28:17-31) The testimony of Jesus was spread and advanced faster and farther in Rome for those two years than it had before. In AD 64 one and a half to two years after Paul seems to have left Rome Christianity had become the new sect in Rome and many people talked about it. It had spread tremendously. It was then that Nero blamed the fire he started on them and began to kill and persecute them. Jesus had caused, Paul, a man under house arrest, bound hand and feet in chains, to bring the most remarkable evangelizing of the heart of the Roman Empire. How incredible is that! Jesus is a master craftsman who knows how to cause everything to work together for good for those who love him who are the called according to his purpose. He can cause the same to work in your life’s situations if you believe him.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit The Holy Scriptures   Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:42:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-591/philippians-chapter-1-part-3d-is-christ-preached.html Philippians Chapter 1-Part 3D - Is Christ preached?   By: MAXINE PINDER       Philippians Chapter 1:19 Because of my chains most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the word of God more courageously and fearlessly. It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. I want to talk about preaching Christ in this lesson. What is preaching Christ? Do we hear him preached today? In my personal opinion the answer to that question is, not often. Let’s discuss. The preachers mentioned in the text were not false teachers they were preaching Christ indeed but with the wrong motives. This is why Paul rejoiced. People were hearing about the Messiah. Today man is preached and Jesus is referenced instead of the other way around. Inspect the sermons you hear and see how many truly have Jesus as the subject? Most of them deal with man’s emotional, psychological and physical needs. The spiritual need of man is very rarely addressed. What then is preaching Christ and how do we know that it is lacking today? To preach Christ is to preach his death, his burial, his resurrection, the proofs thereof, the meaning of this to the believer’s eternal salvation and the departing away from evil. (See I Cor. 15:3-8 and Titus 3:11-15) Do you get the sense that the concepts in the book of Titus and the numerous like texts are being taught today with the vehemence that prosperity and other things are being taught? Doesn’t God’s word do good to those that hear it? If indeed Christ were preached, would the divorce rate amongst believers be greater than that of atheists and agnostics? If indeed Christ were taught, would the magnitude of sexual sin that exists in the ‘Christian’ arena exist? Would so many fall while standing in the pulpit? Would people not know clearly what is sin and what is not? What is this blurriness, this cloudiness that exists in this area? Is what the scripture declares as sin not sin anymore? When did the biblical text change or God change? Many churchgoers are well off financially, many are healthy in their bodies, but they are so sick spiritually it seems hopeless. They know how to make money but don’t know the doctrines of scripture. Can money save you? Do you think that they are reminiscent of the Church at Laodicea? They are prepared to partake of the wealth in the earth but not prepared to partake of the wealth of heaven which exists here now and in eternity. If Jesus were to come right now will you be ready to go with him? Is there any sin in your life that would prevent you? Do you truly believe that you are saved? Do you know that hearing about what he has done for you and your acceptance of it builds your faith in him and your salvation? If it is not heard how can it be believed? It is a necessity to hear Christ preached indeed. He will come like a thief in the night.     Author Resource:-> The Holy Spirit The Holy Scriptures             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:38:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-590/prophecy-in-the-life-of-the-believer.html Prophecy In The Life Of The Believer   By: Curt Klingerman       Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand (Revelation 1:3, KJV). Prophesy in the life of the believer can be an excellent thing when it is properly studied and applied. Even our opening text tells us that we are blessed when we read, hear, and keep those things written in Revelation. Of course, this would also apply to the entire Word of God. When a believer approaches prophecy –written or spoken and it is truly of God, excellence will follow. However, it can move from being excellent to merely being good when it is not studied at the proper time, and/or when it is not properly applied. It is one thing to do a good thing, it is quite another to do the right thing. When everything is led of the Lord, it will be right. When we approach prophecy, we need to keep first things first. The first thing is to pray and ask the Lord His will concerning our next move. In this case, does He even want us to study it at this time? The reality is that unless we are taught of the Lord through the Holy Spirit, it will be a fruitless effort for the most part. If God wants us to focus on something different from prophecy, prophecy can become a distraction. The Lord is constantly working in our lives (see Philippians 1:6), and the more we submit to His desires the quicker He is able to bring us to maturity. That means even end time prophecy can become a diversion from those things the Lord really wants to reveal to us, which includes things about ourselves we do not want to see. In some cases, the Lord may want to build a better Biblical foundation before taking someone into the deeper things of God -first things first! Even the Apostles had to apply this principle. Acts 1:4-8 And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth (KJV). Part of end time prophecy is the restoration of the kingdom to Israel. In this passage of Scripture, we find that Jesus is giving His disciples a set of instructions –wait for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. In the midst of His instruction, the disciples ask Him about the restoration of Israel. His response was simple, that’s not for you to know at this time, receive power first, so you are able to be My witnesses. This is not to say that the disciples should never receive instruction in this area, in fact, they already had (i.e. Matthew 24; Luke 21). However, this is not the time for that. As believers, we need to consult the Lord before going any further. As we do, we will find prophecy will be an excellent thing in our lives. www.perfectfaith.org   Author Resource:-> www.perfectfaith.org "The Faith In The Life Of The Believer," by Curt Klingermanhttp://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-61566-944-8             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:36:01 GMT http://www.christiansvideo.net/articles-589/ephesians-chapter-1-part-3.html Ephesians Chapter 1, Part 3   By: Karl Kemp       This is Part 3 of the verse-by-verse study of Ephesians chapter 1. We will start with Eph. 1:18. (18) I pray that [These three words are in italics in the NASB because they are not included in the Greek. The Greek continues with the participle "being enlightened."] the eyes of your heart [With "heart" here, compare "spirit" in 1:17.] may be enlightened [cf. Acts 26:18; 2 Cor. 4:6; and Heb. 6:4], so that you may know what is the hope of His calling [[Compare Eph. 4:4. "His calling" refers to our call from God the Father. The NIV has, "the hope to which he has called you." We are called to holiness, etc. for this age (cf., e.g., Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 1:4; 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 1:9; and 1 Pet. 1:15, 16), but since Paul uses the word "hope" here, he is zeroing in on the future glory to which we are called, the glory of the age to come (cf., e.g., Eph. 2:7; Rom. 5:2 ; Col. 1:5 ["the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you have previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel"]; Col. 1:27 ["Christ in you, the hope of glory"]; Titus 3:7; and 1 Pet. 1:13). For one thing, this hope, which is based on our knowledge of the extreme glory of the age to come, will help stabilize our hearts now (in things like love for God, commitment, steadfastness, right priorities, praise, and thankfulness) and will help motivate us now (cf., e.g., Heb. 6:17-20), enabling us to be strong in faith as we face the difficulties of this present age. The things we hope for are yet future (though they are certain, according to plan and power of God), but the hope is in our hearts now.]], what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance [This speaks of the "inheritance" that comes from God the Father.] in the saints [[Compare Col. 1:12. Instead of "in," the Greek could be translated "in the case of," or "among." This inheritance is given to the saints. "The riches of the glory of [our] inheritance" looks to the future; however, "the pledge [down payment] of our inheritance" (Eph. 1:14) enables us to participate in some of this "glory" now (sufficient glory for us to live in the will of God in His truth, righteousness, and holiness). (Cf., e.g., Rom. 6:4; Eph. 1:1-14 [Note, for example, that we are called and enabled to be "saints/holy" now.]; Eph. 3:14-21 [Especially note 3:16, "that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man."]; John 17:22; and 2 Cor. 3:18.) On the "inheritance in/in the case of/among the saints," cf. Acts 20:32; 26:18; and Col. 1:12.]], (19) and what is the surpassing greatness of His [God the Father's] power [Greek "dunamis"; some other relevant verses that use dunamis are Acts 1:8; Rom. 1:4, 16; 1 Cor. 6:14; Eph. 3:7, 16, 20; Phil. 3:10; and Col. 1:11, 29.] toward [or, to/unto/for] us who believe [This power is toward/to/unto/for those who are united with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection and in His present life (cf. Eph. 2:5, 6; they are "in Christ"), through faith, by the Holy Spirit (cf. Rom.1:4).]. These are [There is no period here in the Greek; these two words were added by the translators of the NASB in italics.] in accordance with the working [compare Phil. 2:13; contrast Eph. 2:2] of the strength of His might [cf. Eph. 6:10] (20) which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand [The right hand is the place of authority; cf. Psalm 110:1. Klyne Snodgrass ("Ephesians," page 75) mentions that the picture of Christ being seated at the Father's right hand builds on Psalm 110:1.] in the heavenly places [[The very power of God that raised Jesus from the dead and seated Him at the Father's right hand will, at the appropriate time, raise us from the dead (those Christians who will have died before the Lord returns will be resurrected; those still alive will be glorified without experiencing death; cf. Rom. 8:11; 1 Cor. 6:14; 15:42, 50-53; 2 Cor. 4:14; Phil. 3:11, 21; 2 Tim. 2:18; Heb. 11:35; and Rev. 20:5, 6). We will begin to reign with the Lord Jesus (and God the Father) in a never-ending reign (cf., e.g., Rev. 3:21; 12:5; and 22:5). But here in Eph. 1:20 the apostle puts the emphasis on the resurrection power working for, and in, us NOW, those who are united with the Lord Jesus Christ through faith in the gospel. We have already been raised/resurrected with Him in a preliminary, spiritual (by the Spirit), very real sense. See, e.g., Rom. 6:1-11; Eph. 1:23-2:10, especially 2:5, 6; Phil. 3:10; Col. 2:9-15; and 3:1-11. Sufficient authority (the very authority of the Lord Jesus) and power have been made available to the church and to each believer to enable us to be "holy and blameless" and to fully accomplish God's will for the church and for each individual Christian (cf., e.g., Matt. 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-18; Luke 9:1, 2; 10:1, 17-20; 2 Cor. 10:8; 13:10; Eph. 4:27; Titus 2:15; and James 4:7). I'll quote again from John Stott ("God's New Society," pages 67, 68). "How much do we know of the power of God, which raised Jesus from death and enthroned him over evil? True, the very same power has raised us with Jesus from spiritual death, and enthroned us with Jesus in heavenly places, as Paul will go on to show in 2:1-10. But how much of this is theory, and how much is experience? It is not difficult to think of our human weakness: our tongue or our temper, malice, greed, lust, jealousy, or pride. These things are certainly beyond our power to control. And we have to humble ourselves to admit it. ... But are our weaknesses beyond the power of God? Paul will soon assure us that God is able far to surpass our thoughts and prayers 'by the power at work within us' (3:20), and he will go on to exhort us to 'be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might' (6:10). This is the power of God which raised Jesus from the dead, and raised us with him. It has put all things under his feet; it can put all evil under ours."]], (21) far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come. [[Compare, for example, Matt. 28:18; Eph. 1:22; Phil. 2:9-11; Col. 2:10; and 1 Pet. 3:22. If the Lord Jesus didn't have this total authority now, Satan might be able to frustrate God's plans for the body of Christ, or, at least, His plans for individual Christians. However, since Christ does have all authority now, no one can frustrate God's plans, and, for one thing, we can all be, and do, all that God intends. This is not to suggest that the victory is always easy, or that it is automatic (cf., e.g., Eph. 6:10-20); however, God's grace always is sufficient for those who appropriate it (which includes walking in faith and using the authority we have in Christ Jesus). We use His authority (the authority we have in Christ), when, for example, we resist temptation (or other works of the devil/demon spirits) in His name, or when we pray, or minister, in His name. The NASB, NIV, NKJV, and other translations have a period here, and that is one way to punctuate these verses, but my Greek New Testament has the symbol that takes the place of our English colon and semicolon. The KJV has a colon here; the RSV has a semicolon. The semicolon seems an effective punctuation here; this is the punctuation adopted by several commentators.]] (22) And [and] He [God the Father] put all things in subjection under His [Christ's] feet [See Psalm 8:6. Jesus Christ has all authority now, but in the plan and timetable of God, most enemies will not be totally subjugated and removed by judgment until the Lord Jesus returns at the end of this age. (See, e.g., 1 Cor. 15:24-28. 1 Corinthians 15:27 also quoted from Psalm 8:6.)], and gave Him as head over all things to [or, for] the church [[The idea here is that God the Father first gave Jesus Christ all authority (He made Him "head over all things"; cf. Col. 2:10), then He gave Him (with His total authority) to/for (for the benefit of) the church. Snodgrass, for example, says, "The point is that Christ is head of all things for the benefit of the church" ("Ephesians," page 78). As I mentioned, because of this authority, the church (including every Christian) can fully accomplish the will of God. Satan and His forces don't have the authority to stop us.], (23) which is His body [Compare 1 Cor. 12:27; Eph. 4:4, 12, 16; 5:30; and Col. 1:18, 24. To refer to the church as the body of Christ emphasizes the glorious relationship we have with Christ, and with other Christians (cf. 1 Cor. 12:12-31; Eph. 4:11-16; 5:23; Col. 2:19; and 3:15).], the fullness [[I agree with the commentators who understand "fullness" here in the sense "that which is filled," referring to the church, His body, which is filled, in a very special sense, by the Lord Jesus Christ. He is literally united with each born-again Christian through the indwelling Spirit; He sanctifies the church; He guides the church; He pours out the charismatic gifts upon the church, etc. On a practical level, individual Christians (and the church) aren't actually filled with Christ to the extent we don't know and understand the truth, and to the extent we don't submit to, and walk in, the truth by faith (cf., e.g., Eph. 3:14-19; 4:13-16). It's mandatory for us to do our part (in accordance with the measure assigned to us by God). It's also true that Christ Himself is the fullness of God (cf., e.g., John 1:16; Col. 1:19; and 2:9, 10).]] of Him who fills all in all. [[The Lord Jesus "fills all in all" in the sense that His presence and authority extend everywhere (cf. Eph. 4:10; Jer. 23:24). The apostle certainly emphasized Christ's exalted position and role and what that means for us throughout Ephesians chapter 1: In 1:10 he spoke of an administration that sums up all things in Christ; in 1:20 He is seated at the Father's right hand; in 1:21 He is far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named both now and forevermore; in 1:21 all things have been put under His feet, and it is mentioned that He is head over all things; and here in 1:23 it is mentioned that He fills all in all.]] For further study on Ephesians, Eph. 2:1-10; 3:14-21; and 6:10-20 are discussed in my "A Paper on Faith." Ephesians 1:7; 4:17-24; 5:3-8; and 5:22-33 are discussed in my book, "Holiness and Victory Over Sin." Ephesians chapter 4 is discussed verse-by-verse in a paper on my internet site and it will be on this Christian article site in the near future. FURTHER DISCUSSION AIMING FOR A BALANCED BIBLICAL UNDERSTANDING REGARDING GOD'S LOVE AND THE LOVE HE EXPECTS FROM HIS BORN-AGAIN CHILDREN This section was written to supplement what has already been said regarding this important topic under Eph. 1:4. For the most part I will not repeat what was said there or passages of Scripture that were mentioned there. I am not attempting to say everything that could be said on this topic, but I will say enough to bring some balance to the topic. We desperately need the balanced truth of what God's Word teaches. It is very important for us to know and to emphasize that "God is love" (1 John 4:16) and that He requires His born-again children to walk in love by His grace (e.g., 1 John 4:7-5:1; these particular verses, and there are many similar verses, deal almost exclusively with the need to love our brethren in Christ.) There is no danger of emphasizing the love of God too much as long as we understand what the Bible really teaches about His love and do not reject what the Bible teaches about His wrath, vengeance, and His eternal judgment, because they are supposedly incompatible with His love (which happens quite a bit in our day). And there is no danger of Christians walking in love too much as long as we do not understand love in ways that go against what the Bible teaches about love. (Some Christians are so far out of balance on their ideas of love that they think it is wrong to tell non-Christians that the day of judgment is coming and that God is calling mankind to repent and to submit to the Lord Jesus Christ and that it is wrong to confront Christians with their sin, as if such things are unloving and intolerant. Many modern ideas about love and tolerance are simply unbiblical.) It seems that a big part of the problem has arisen because many Christians have adopted worldly ideas about what love means (the world of our day loves words like love, tolerance, and peace), ideas that substantially miss, and often directly contradict, dominant themes of the Bible. The primary problem that I am concerned with - and it is a very serious problem - is the idea that since God is love, He cannot have great wrath, eternal wrath, and He certainly cannot cast people into hell. This idea contradicts the Bible; it also is one of the main reasons that there is so little repentance and fear of God among so many Christians in our day. Why take the warnings of the Bible seriously? Some Verses that Speak of God's Love for All People and/or of Our Need to Love All People: Matt. 5:38-48; Luke 6:27-38; 10:25-37; John 3:16; Acts 14:17; Rom. 13:8-10; 1 Cor. 10:31-33; 1 Tim. 2:1-6; and Titus 3:1-4. First I'll comment on Matt. 5:38-48 (what I say here has much application for many of the other verses listed). These verses are important, but there are very definite limits to what Jesus said here. These verses do not begin to say that God loves all people the same or that He will continue to love forever those who never do repent of rejecting Him and the gospel and of persecuting His people. ((I had a footnote: The age we are living in is an age characterized by the grace of God in Christ, but a major feature of the gospel is that the day of judgment is coming at the end of this age and that the only way to get ready for that day is through salvation in Christ Jesus. Forgiveness is part of the gospel, but repenting and beginning to live for God in righteousness and holiness in the light of the coming day of judgment - by grace through faith - is a bigger part of the gospel. Also, even though this age is characterized by grace, there are limits to how much sin people (and especially Christians) can (temporarily) get by with.)) Hundreds of verses show otherwise; I'll list many such verses as we continue; quite a few such verses have already been listed under the words "in love" under Eph. 1:4. Rather than continuing forever to manifest love for the evil/unrighteous/unrepentant with limited blessings like the sun and the rain (see Matt. 5:45), He will, according to Jesus, cast them into the eternal lake of fire. Instead of experiencing His love, they will experience His eternal wrath. We Christians do not know who will repent, for one thing, so throughout this life we are called to love all people (which includes treating them like we want to be treated and being concerned for their welfare, especially their eternal welfare). This does not mean that we love all people the same, or that this love will continue forever. For one thing, a large number of verses show that we are to have a special love for our brethren in the family of God. One of the most important things we must know about love is that God demands that we love Him first (before self, life in this world, family, friends, all people, occupations, things, etc.); see, for example, Luke 10:27; 14:25-33. This is one area where half-baked, out-of-balance ideas about love have often led to serious error for Christians. If we Christians do not love God (I mean the God of the Bible) with top priority, we are missing what Biblical love is all about, and we are assuredly walking in the flesh to a significant extent. The devil loves love as long as love for God is left out. Human, religious "love" (which often includes things like doing good works, emphasizing unity with everyone and tolerance for everything but the truth) as a substitute for God and His truth is as destructive as any other idol men worship and promote. If we love God, we will obey Him, and we will love His Word, His righteousness, and His people. Let's briefly consider John 3:16. This is a significant verse, but many read way too much into it and do not balance out what is said here with the rest of the verses in the passage (and in the rest of the Bible). John 3:18, 36, for example, show that those who willfully reject the gospel are condemned already (that is, they are condemned from the time that they willfully reject the gospel, unless they later repent) and that the wrath of God (not the love of God) abides on them. In a very real sense, they have already had their final judgment. (I had a footnote: John 5:24 shows that it is also true, and it is a glorious truth indeed, that those who do submit to the gospel in faith have already had their final judgment. This does not mean that they could not later reverse this judgment if they are foolish enough to turn away from their faith commitment to Christ and His salvation.) When God sent His Son, He knew what was in the hearts of all men. He knew that many were committed to evil and that they would not receive Christ or submit to the gospel in faith. He knew that Christ's coming would force such people to manifest what was in their hearts - Christ's coming to such people, or the gospel's coming to them, greatly increases their sinful status before God (see, e.g., John 3:19-21; 15:18-25). I am thankful that 1 Tim. 2:1-6 are in the Bible. It is important for us to know that God "desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:4) and that Christ died for all men (1 Tim. 2:5, 6). At the same time, we cannot limit ourselves to these verses and read into them ideas that contradict other things the apostle Paul (and other writers of the New Testament) taught. Even though it is true that Christ died for all and that God calls for all to repent and submit to the gospel in faith, it is also true that God (who knows the hearts of all men) did not choose all men for salvation and write their names in the Lamb's book of life (see under Eph. 1:4; and see on Rom. 8:28-30 in the paper on Rom. 8:16-39). Many verses show that some people are children of the devil (cf., e.g., Matt. 13:36-43; John 8:31-47; Acts 13:10; 2 Cor. 11:13-15; and 1 John 3:8, 10, 12). In at least most of these verses, the idea is included that these people never will repent. 2 John 1:10, 11 show that we should not help false ministers in their work (those who are not teaching the truth, even if they call themselves Christians), which provides another qualification to the idea that we just love everybody the same. It is true, of course, that we would be concerned for such people, especially concerned for their eternal souls - for one thing, there always is the possibility that false ministers will repent. Part 3 ends here. We will complete this study in Part 4 © Copyright by Karl Kemp   Author Resource:-> karlkempteachingministries.com. Karl Kemp received BS and MS degrees in engineering from St. Louis University and worked on various space projects throughout the 60s. He became a born-again Christian in 1964, and he left engineering behind at the end of the 60s. He has been a Bible teacher in the greater St. Louis area for 45 years. He received an MA in Biblical Studies from Covenant Seminary in St. Louis in 1972 with high honors. He has taught some ten classes in New Testament Greek at a Bible college and churches using the textbooks used in seminary.             Mon, 18 Mar 2013 23:34:01 GMT