Why this verse?

What a contrast to the “wisdom” of the world! Submission instead of selfish ambition. Godly wisdom is pure, refined and focused on one thing: whatever God has called us to do. Godly wisdom is peace-loving; not wanting a fight but wanting to serve. It is submissive, ready to see another point of view or to to see another way to do the job. This wisdom is impartial, not showing favouritism and full of mercy. It is sincere.Only by resting in our good God and His able provision to meet all our needs can we give up our own selfish ambitions and begin to understand and receive the reward of godly wisdom.

Hebrews 4:12 says “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” 

Question

I know the difference between joints and marrow, and thoughts and attitudes, but what is the difference between soul and spirit? 

Answer 

This passage is an example of one of those times when we don’t want to get too caught up in the precise words Paul uses.  In scholarly commentaries one can find all kinds of explanations as to the difference between soul and spirit.  The simplest (and most straightforward) response, however, is that Paul was simply drawing from the anthropology of his day to reinforce his point that no aspect of human life is beyond God’s knowing gaze.

Question

Sometimes when Jesus healed a person, He would instruct the person to not tell anyone (see, for example, Jesus’ healing of Jairus’ daughter in Luke 8:56). At other times, however, Jesus would instruct the healed individual to go and tell others what God had done for them (for example, Luke 8:39). Why did Jesus tell certain individuals not to tell others about their healings but gave permission for other people to talk about their healing?

Answer 

There are no direct Scriptural reasons given as to why Jesus would do this but I think there are some things we can extrapolate from the overall Scriptural examples we have.

Situational. Jesus often had very situational reasons and responses for the things He did - how and why He did them. Often times those situational reasons differed depending on the location of events and very much so on the people involved. The two miracles you provide in your question are wonderful examples of this very thing.

In Luke 8:26-39 Jesus drives a group of demons out from a man and into a herd of pigs who then run off a bank, into the water, and drown. Jesus tells him, “Return home and tell how much God has done for you.” The man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him.

This whole event took place in an area called the region of the Garasenes. Historically, this was a placed settled by the Greeks and, at the time of Jesus, was predominantly a Gentile region. The fact that a large herd of pigs were present pretty much leads us to believe this to be true because it was unlawful for Jewish people to keep and farm pigs.

Why does all this make a difference for Jesus’ response? A predominantly Gentile territory would have heard less about Jesus and even less about the need for a Savior – if anything at all. Encouraging this Gentile man to share the good news of what had happened to him probably went a long way in introducing an unknown God and an unknown Savior to a Gentile world. The gentile man’s words to other gentiles were made even more powerful because he believed so deeply that he actually wanted to devote himself to following Jesus.

In the other Scriptural example (Luke 8:40-56) we find a predominantly, if not entirely, Jewish crowd. Even more than that, a synagogue leader, Jarius. A quick telling of the story: Jarius was told that his daughter was dead. Jesus returned to Jarius’ home with him and stated that she was “not dead but asleep.” He then calls on her to stand up...she does. Jesus’ response to them after performing this miracle was to order them not to tell what had happened.

Don’t tell? What? Well, situationally, Jesus could have been thinking about how sharing such a miracle might possibly negatively affect the overall Gospel message He came to share within that predominantly Jewish community.

How so? Jewish people were waiting for a Savior but often times in the Scripture we see that who Jesus was and what Jesus did didn’t always match up to who or what they were expecting.

Jesus wasn’t simply there to gain notoriety as a great miracle worker. In certain situations, such as in Luke 8:40-56, he could have been concerned that people’s real interest would have just been in the miracles He performed and not in the greater message of salvation He came to bring (see Mark 7:32- 37 as a huge example of this). Within Jewish communities It seems that the spreading of the news about His healings often tended to hinder His primary purpose – the spreading of the Gospel and the Divine plan of His Father. So, for Jewish communities, rather than Gentile communities, that probably meant He wanted them to pay more attention to His words rather than to his actions of healing.

Those are just a couple of possibilities as to why Jesus told people to respond in different ways. I do, however, think that these examples of Jesus’ situational awareness are incredible examples to us as to how we need to be more aware, intentional, and thoughtful of how we share the Gospel with people and the world around us.

Question

1 Corinthians 11:5-7 reads: “Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man.”

On a related note, 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 reads: “Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.”

What is the significance of these passages for us today? (Question submitted by Russell Parker)

Response

Your question is a discerning one – how do we apply these verses to today? The Christian Church throughout the centuries has debated their meaning and application, with such extremes as applying them so literally that women were not even allowed to sing during worship. At the opposite extreme, some interpreters accuse the Apostle Paul of deep- seated sexism and dismiss the verses as totally irrelevant.

We need to ask whether or not these verses were meant to be applied literally to every church, everywhere, in every age and time, or to ask if they contain greater spiritual principles which were being applied to a specific situation in Corinth. I believe the second option to be more accurate.

The church in Corinth was in chaos. The members were first generation believers with no background in how a church should grow in its faith and witness. Most had been converted from paganism and idol worship. The church was mixed with Jewish and Gentile believers with distinct cultural backgrounds. Both groups were exploring the teachings of Jesus and their doctrinal and practical implications. Their faith included new freedoms which they hardly knew how to handle. Misinterpretation had led to many excesses. The Apostle was writing to solidify their faith and correct errors that had led to negative practices and tumultuous worship services that did not honor the Lord.

The city of Corinth was home to every form of moral corruption. As a port city on a major trade route, all kinds of people passed through its streets. On top of a mountain to the south of the city stood the temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. One thousand ‘sacred’ prostitutes served at the temple. Some attribute the prosperity of the city to this potent mix of trade travellers and prostitutes.

All of these factors blend together to shape our understanding of these specific verses. In 1 Corinthians 11 to 14 Paul addresses the shambles the church has made of its worship services through member excesses. It is important to note that this section begins with a call to submission. “But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.” (1 Cor. 11:3). God has blessed the church and home with structure and mutual accountability intended to spiritually prosper all. Note that in the midst of this section (chapters 11-14) we find a chapter (13) that points to the power of God’s love that is to flow through us in church, home, and beyond. We are called to act in love and to build up the fellowship.

The instruction on head-coverings included the theme of honoring God’s order while at the same time responding practically to the fact that a woman without a head covering in Corinth might be looked upon as ‘loose’ (prostitutes sometimes wore short hair or shaved their heads.) In chapter 14 the Apostle speaks directly about worship services where women who may have received the gift of tongues (and/or interpretation) were usurping the role of leadership and speaking out at will, sometimes dishonoring their husbands by openly arguing with them and others. The Apostle calls for ‘silence’ in the strongest terms to address a situation where some women were noisily interrupting the service and violating accepted rules of propriety. They were dishonoring church leadership, their husbands, and themselves. Most of all what was happening was dishonoring to the Lord.

What can we draw from these verses for today (in their wider context?) Perhaps it is to come to worship with a submissive and loving spirit wherein we help to create an environment that fully focuses on Christ as Lord and Master. In Habakkuk 2:20 we read “The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence (reverence •awe • trust) before him.” In the silence we may hear God speak.

[See The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (Eerdmans) – Vol. 1 “Corinth’ & Vol. 4 – “Silence.”]

Question

SCRIPTURE: Luke 12:57-59 says: 57. “Why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right? 58. As you are going with your adversary to the magistrate, try hard to be reconciled on the way, or your adversary may drag you off to the judge, and the judge turn you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59. I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”

QUESTION: This passage is confusing. Who is the adversary? Who is the magistrate? Who is the judge? Where or what is the prison? What is it that is owed?

Response

First, let me say this passage is more like a Proverb or a Parable, I don’t think we have to know the identity of the adversary or the magistrate or even the judge to understand it; although the answer to each of these questions is likely God. The next thing I want to say is that the context and audience is really important. Jesus is teaching the ‘crowd’ here and the crowd included Pharisees and other religious leaders. Please notice that he also talked about discerning the time of God’s coming (vs. 54-56), Jesus rebuked the people for being able to discern the signs enough to predict the weather but not well enough to see the obvious evidence (through miracles and teaching) that Jesus was indeed the Messiah and that the Kingdom of God had come among them.

Back to the passage at hand, Jesus is really saying that the Messiah had come, the Kingdom of God was at hand and the time to be reconciled to God was now. The time had come, the Gospel writers often communicated the urgency of repentance and the need of being reconciled to God now. He says in this parable is that if a person is sued the wisest thing to do is to settle out of court before the case ends up before the Judge. In other words, don’t delay, make haste, get right with God while you still have time. People who don’t make a timely decision will end up facing the Judge and God is the Judge and judgment will come to those who refuse to reconcile.

Question  

In Luke 3:1-2, we read,  “In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar- when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea & Traconitis, & Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene-  during the high-priesthood of Annas & Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.”  I’ve noticed that the Bible often mentions the rulers of the time.  It has led me to wonder if there are there any non-biblical/historical references to Jesus &/or His miracles while He was still living?

Response

It is important to understand that Jesus appeared on the scene in a part of the Roman Empire that was little more than a “backwater,” Palestine.  Roman historians & literati were primarily interested in Rome & other significant places & political figures.   This unimportant place (Palestine) & its people, including Jesus, were of little interest unless they were a political or social threat to the “pax Romana,” (Roman peace).  While the Jews were a pesky nuisance, they were not much of a real threat, & since Jesus was more a religious person that a politician, he attracted almost no attention.    

However, there were some, if only a few secular references to Jesus!  Let me quote from “Jesus Under Fire,” by Michael Wilkins & J.P. Moreland, (Zondervan, 1995, pp. 221,222). “Even if we did not have the N.T. or Christian writings, we would be able to conclude from… non-Christian writings such as Josephus (AD 93), …, Tacitus(AD 115), & Pliny the Younger (AD 112) that: (1) Jesus was a Jewish teacher; (2) many people believed that he performed healings & exorcisms; (3) he was rejected by the Jewish leaders; (4) he was crucified under Pontius Pilate in the region of Tiberius; (5) despite this shameful death, his followers, who believed that he was still alive, spread beyond Palestine… & worshiped him as God by the beginning of the second century.”  Further, all other literary sources are of suspect authenticity, & date well into the second & third centuries of the Christian era, & consists of some otherwise “unknown” sayings (agrapha- “unknown”) of Jesus- i.e. the Coptic Gospel of Thomas (about AD 140), which, in any case probably was written by an “unknown” believer.  If this was the case, then it was certainly not secular!

In the end, we are left with the four Gospels as primary sources of Jesus’s life, & the writings of John, James, Jude, Peter & Paul, all of whom are Christian believers!

Question

In Luke 24:41, following His Resurrection, Jesus asks His disciples, "Do you have anything here to eat?" He then proceeds to eat a piece of fish in front of them.  Is this because he is "human" again? This seems to contradict John 20:17 where Jesus tells Mary not to hold onto him as He has "not yet returned to the Father."  (Submitted by Faye Lutes)

Response

As in Luke 24:39, once again Jesus is proving to His disciples that He has indeed risen from the dead in bodily form for “ghosts” do not eat. In the John 20 passage, Jesus may simply be telling Mary Magdalene that, in that His ascension was some time off, Mary would have plenty of opportunities to see Him again. Alternatively, Jesus may have been reminding Mary that, now that He was resurrected, her relationship with Him would continue through the Holy Spirit. In either case, there is no contradiction between the two passages in question.

Question

In Luke 24:39, while speaking to His disciples following His Resurrection, Jesus says, “Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”  Does this mean that ghosts are a real thing or is this just a colloquial reference?

Response

 Jesus’ point in making this statement to His disciples was to confirm that He truly had risen from the dead in bodily form.  He was not a ghost, not an apparition, not a figment of a fevered or overwrought imagination; He truly had risen from the dead and was alive.  I don’t believe Jesus meant, in any way, to make a theological statement regarding the existence of ghosts.  

Question

Luke 11:31 reads, “The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with the people of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom; and now something greater than Solomon is here.”  Who is the “Queen of the South?”

Response

The “Queen of the South” refers to the Queen of Sheba who traveled a great distance to hear the wisdom of Solomon (1 Kings 10).

Question

"Regarding oaths (Matthew 5:33-37), do these verses mean that we should not be swearing an oath by placing our hand on a Bible?  Does it forbid us from saying such things as "I swear to God" or "As God is my witness"?  (submitted through questions@firstmoncton.com)

Response

Jesus’ half-brother, James, wrote something very similar in 5:12, “But most of all, my brothers and sisters, never take an oath, by heaven or earth or anything else. Just say a simple yes or no, so that you will not sin and be condemned.” (NLT). Neither passage is absolutely forbidding the taking of oaths. Not only did the Mosaic Law prescribe oaths in certain situations (Num 5:19,21; 30:2,3), both God the Father (Heb 6:13-18; Acts 2:30), and God the Son, swore oaths, (Matt 26:63,64) where an oath is strongly implied!). In Jesus’ day the religious leaders often took oaths in the name of “earth,” “heaven,” “Jerusalem,” etc., thinking that because they were not using God’s name, they were not strictly lying, and therefore not accountable to God. As John MacArthur notes, “What Jesus is forbidding here is the flippant, profane, or careless use of oaths in everyday speech.” Really, all our speech should be as if we were under an oath to tell the truth, because we really are (Deut. 5:20; Matt 5:37).

We are beginning on October 1st and will be concluding on December 31st, 2019.

If you decide to join this initiative at a later date, simply begin your readings on the date that you start, and complete your readings on schedule. It will mean your readings will spill over into 2020, but you will not be overwhelmed with catching up, and you will be on the same Scripture readings as everyone else.

Each week features a memory verse that we will be focusing on and asking you to seek to memorize. Each day you do your reading, if you read over this verse six times, you will be very likely to have it committed to memory for life. The memory verse will be printed in the bulletins each Sunday.

While our published information will normally be printed in the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible, you are free to read or listen from whatever translation you desire.

On that note, you don’t need to READ through the New Testament; you can also LISTEN through the New Testament. There are a large variety of onlineresources available such as www.thestreamingbible.com which are absolutely free!

Listen and read the New Testament simultaneously. Research tells us that the more senses that we involve in learning, the more successful that learning is.

Keep a journal or notepad handy. Write down thoughts, questions, concerns and ideas that come to you.