κηρυσσων την βασιλειαν του θεου και διδασκων τα περι του κυριου ιησου χριστου μετα πασης παρρησιας ακωλυτως. The underlying meaning of this blog is this: the essential unity of Christians worldwide regardless of race, nationality, or religious denomination. There are real disagreements among us but there is a small remnant in every authentically Christian gathering. The Holy Spirit is leading His remnant into deeper understandings of the "meat" of the Gospel and not just the "milk."
Laughter is the best medicine is a popular saying in English. The origin of the phrase is believed
to have come from Proverbs 17:22 (NIV): "A cheerful heart is
good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." (שָׂמֵחַ sameach joyful, gleeful,
happy, merry: Strong’s 8056)
לֵב שָׂמֵחַ יֵיטִב גֵּהָה וְרוּחַ נְכֵאָה תְּיַבֶּשׁ־גָּרֶם
The Bible is not afraid to use sarcasm and biting irony to mock false gods, expose hypocrisy and doctrinal error, and to call out spiritual arrogance. The scriptures use sarcasm while also warning us against being malicious, mean-spirited, or seeking personal revenge.
In 1 Kings 18:27 the
prophet Elijah laughs at the priests of Baal who prayed for hours for their
deity to start a fire. Baal seems to be uninterested in and unresponsive to
their prayers. The English Standard Version (ESV) translates Elijah as perhaps
suggesting that Baal is busy relieving himself (urinating). Other translations are a little more demure
but it is probable that Elijah meant to insultingly mock Baal as a false deity.
The original Hebrew phrase, : שִׂיחַ
וְכִי־שִׂיג (siach wachi-sig), is a hendiadys (two words
joined by "and"). The word siach ( שִׂיחַ Strong’s
7879) usually means "speak," or "meditate" but can be used
as a euphemism for bodily urination. The second word, sig (שִׂ֛יג
Strong’s 7873) usually means "to
turn aside" or "withdraw".
The linking word for siach and sig
is wachi (וְכִֽי־ Strong’s H3588). Depending on its surrounding context
it can mean any of the following: and, but, now, even, that, for, because,
when, or if.
An interesting discussion of this occurs here: https://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/20670/was-baal-relieving-himself
In his book, Yes Lord, I Have Sinned, but I
Have Several Excellent Excuses, James W. Moore, discusses the one real sin
from which all other sins flow; idolatry of the self, and the numerous excuses
we offer to God in our feeble attempts to explain why we are really OK and not
to blame for our failures. We can convince ourselves, but not God, that we have
good reasons for what we have done or what we are planning to do. Luke
14:15-24. The title of this book is a quotation of a line of dialogue from
Tolstoy’s War and Peace.
ἁμαρτία (amartia: sin, missing the mark). Strong’s
Greek Concordance says that this word derives from a (not) and meros
(a part or a share of). The word is associated with archery and carries the
idea of loss because of a failure to hit the mark, the target of the standard
set by God.
Some of the sins discussed in this book include:
talking a good game, half-heartedness, spiritual arrogance, deception,
overreaction, hostility, and presumptuousness, all of which reduce down to the one
sin, worship of self.
___________________________________________________________________
As with most books such as this, what you get from the
book depends on what you bring with you. You may not agree with everything the
author says. Luke (see below) advises you to think for yourself. Read
your Bible and to listen to what it says. Do not believe anything
just because someone else told to believe it; let the Holy Spirit guide you to
the truth.
A general caution: books may give you wonderful new
insights and explanations of subjects, but you should never base your Christian
beliefs on any one book or the teachings of one person, no matter who they are.
All teachings must be consistent with scripture. Read as the Bereans did, with
discernment. “… for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the
Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” Acts
17:11 NASB
Any doctrines must be consistent with the historical
full body of Christian thought. Doctrines or teachings inconsistent with
scripture in any way must be rejected. You would not eat cheese which had a
fuzzy fungus growing on it.
Information you will need to search for this book: Moore,
James W., Yes Lord, I Have Sinned, but I Have Several Excellent Excuses (Nashville,
Tn., Abingdon Press, 1991)
In
the city in which I live, one of the local television stations carries a weekly
broadcast of the Sunday morning worship services of a large local church. Every
week, immediately after the church service broadcast ends, a commercial begins
for a local gambling casino. The world is always ready to pour in if the Church,
the ἐκκλησία, is
not present as a restaining influence.
The word, “restrainer, “ is from the
Greek word Κατέχον (Strong’s 2722) which is used in the Bible
to express ”hold down,” “hold back,” “detain,” “restrain,” and other similar
meanings.
2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 says that “the restrainer,” the one who holds back the world, will continue to do so until he is taken out of the way. To modern readers, it may not seem to be clearly stated who this restrainer is. A literal translation of the Greek of verse 6 into English is "And now that which is restraining, you know, for to be revealed him in his time."
Many believe that the restrainer is the Holy
Spirit who indwells all the Christians who make up the Church. The removal of
the restrainer could reference the removal of the Church at the time of the
Rapture. The Antichrist is to be
revealed when the one who hinders his presence is removed.
These concepts are involved in
controversy among theologians over how to interpret eschatological doctrines. I
will not tell you what you should believe but I will say that we should, at
least, discuss it and not ignore it. Paul assumed that his contemporary readers understood what he was referencing ("you know"). Paul was talking to us also.
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