All posts by AttilaDimedici

Daily Bible Study

December 24, 2017 Bible Study

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 1 John 1-5.

    The thing which makes this such a key letter for understanding living a Christian life are the two related, but seemingly contradictory, ideas which it contains regarding sin in our lives. First, John writes that if we claim not to have sinned we are fooling ourselves and calling God a liar. Later, he writes that if we live in Christ we will not sin. Now, the easy way to reconcile these two things is to say that we sinned before we were saved, before we experienced Christ’s saving grace, but once we are saved we will not sin again. However, if that is the case, I know few, if any people, who qualify as saved. It also seems contradictory to things written elsewhere in the New Testament. In addition, that reading seems contrary to what John says when he writes that his purpose in writing was that we do not sin, but if we do, we have an advocate who pleads our case with the Father. So, what do I think John means here? First he is telling us that we will sin. From time to time we will give in to temptation, but when we do God will forgive us if we confess our sins. Important point here: we need to admit that what we did was indeed a sin. Second, he is telling us that even though we know that we will sin we cannot just accept sin as part of our lives. If we are truly living in Christ we will feel pain and shame each time we do sin. We will strive to purge our lives of the desires which lead to sin.

    John offers us instruction on how we can overcome sin. We become susceptible to sin when we love the pleasures of this world. We become ever more able to overcome temptation to sin as we love the things this world offers less and less and desire the things which God offers more and more. This world offers material goods, achievements, and honors. God offers the opportunity to make other people’s lives better, to know that we have done His will. There is another point which John makes which I do not see how to connect to these other points, although I believe that it is connected. John tells us that there is not a singular individual who is The AntiChrist. Rather he tells us that there are, and will be, multiple antichrists. Again and again, people will rise up who will offer salvation in competition with that offered by Christ. Anyone who denies that Jesus is the author of our salvation, or who offers himself as our savior, is an antichrist.

Daily Bible Study

December 23, 2017 Bible Study

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 2 Peter 1-3.

    Peter starts off by reminding us that God has freely given us everything we need to please Him. There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation. However, he immediately follows this by telling us that because of God’s free gift we need to make an effort. I really like the way Peter puts this. Everything starts with faith. From there we add goodness. We can try to be good, but without faith in God, and the help that He will give us, it will be nothing but empty posturing. Once we follow up on our faith with attempts at doing good, we soon realize that we do not really know what is good. So, we need to seek knowledge and ask God’s Spirit to teach us what we need to know. As we learn God’s will for us we need to develop self-control in order to do both the good which God wants from us and to not do the evil which He wants us to leave behind. Self-control is not a once and done thing, we need to work day after day to improve our self-control, we need to learn to persevere. As we persevere in doing good we discover that there is a holiness, a godliness, beyond doing good which allows us to change lives (or, allows the Holy Spirit to work through us to change lives). However, if we stop there we will quickly fall back. That godliness cannot be sustained unless we genuinely care for others, and allow them to care for us. Finally, we must love others, not just those who care for us but all of God’s creatures. If we ever think we have enough of any of these (faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, mutual affection, and love) and no longer need to work to have more we will become ineffective in serving the Lord. Making this effort provides confirmation of our salvation. If we have received salvation from God by His grace through faith that salvation will result in our working to do the above things, thus confirming that we have indeed been saved.

Daily Bible Study

December 22, 2017 Bible Study — Living Our Lives To Contradict The Bad Things People Believe About Christians

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 1 Peter 1-5.

    This is the third day in a row where the passage instructs us to rejoice in the suffering we experience. However, we should strive not to do anything which would justify that suffering. The suffering we should seek is the suffering for doing good. We should be proud to suffer for doing good. There is nothing to our credit if we suffer for doing wrong, but if we suffer for doing good we are to be commended. Peter connects his instruction to rejoice in our suffering to his further instructions for us to live holy lives. The process for living such lives is to live sober lives, ridding ourselves of malice and deceit. When Peter says that we should remain sober, I do not think that he is referring to abstinence from alcohol (although I do not believe he would condone getting drunk either). Rather he is referring to not becoming irrationally exuberant. On the other hand, I do not believe that he means for us to be somber, considering that he just wrote that we should rejoice.

    Once more I struggle with the transition to the next thing I want to write about. Peter writes that we should live such good lives among the non-believers around us that, despite the fact that they will accuse us of wrongdoing, they will see our good deeds and glorify God. At least part of this applies to something I started advising my wife to do several years ago. I told her that when our non-Christian friends complained about the terrible things Christians do and say, she should say she was sorry, she hadn’t realized she was doing that. Her response was that they would say, “Oh not you, but other Christians are like that.” I pointed out to her, and told her to point out to them, the two of us are the only Christians most of those friends associate with. If we are not acting in those terrible ways, just exactly who is? My point here is that you are likely the only Christian, or one of only a very few Christians, your non-believer associates actually know. Peter is telling us to live our lives so that, when the time is right, we can ask them who do they trust more, the total stranger who is telling them how terrible Christians they have never met are, or their own judgment?

Daily Bible Study

December 21, 2017 Bible Study — Our Faith Is Demonstrated By Our Actions

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on James 1-5.

    James’ letter to believers starts with a theme from Hebrews which I wrote about yesterday: taking joy in facing trials and suffering. He writes that we should joyfully embrace the trials we face because those trials build perseverance and persevering in our faith in the face of trials will make us mature and complete, so that we will lack nothing of importance. James then writes that if we do not know how to endure those trials we should ask God for wisdom. We can be confident that God will grant us wisdom if we ask for it. If we do not receive wisdom from God when we ask for it, it is because we doubt the answers we receive. Later in the letter James returns to the theme of asking God for things. There he writes that the conflicts among believers are a result of wanting things we do not have, and we do not have those things because we do not ask. The main take away from where James writes about asking God for things is that God will give us that for which we ask, with a major caveat. If we selfishly ask for things we will not get them. Or to put that another way, if we ask God for things we intend to use in the worship of something other than Him (such as ourselves), He will not give us what we ask for. When we ask God for anything which will genuinely serve His purposes, He will grant our request.

    I want to write about the two themes which I think in many ways are the core of why James wrote this letter. I see them as connected to each other. James addresses a problem which comes up repeatedly; those who think that since we are saved by grace through faith and not by our actions that what we do does not matter. Writing here, James makes it clear that if our faith does not change our actions we do not really have faith. His point is really quite simple, you can tell what I truly believe by what I do. If I see someone who is hungry while I have food and I do not share with them, I don’t really believe that I should help them. We do not always do as we know, as we believe, that we ought. James acknowledges this and gives us advice on how to work on fixing it. He writes that we should start by controlling what we say. If we succeed in controlling what we say, in keeping ourselves from saying things we should not, the discipline we learn in this process will apply to everything else we do as well. Let us strive to align the words we speak with what we claim to believe. The lesson here is that we need to always choose our words to bring honor to God.

Daily Bible Study

December 20, 2017 Bible Study — Accepting God’s Discipline To Serve Him Better

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Hebrews 12-13.

    In yesterday’s passage the writer gave us examples of people who faced all kinds of hardship and suffering for their faith. Today he points out that Jesus endured suffering and death. So, we have no basis to feel hard done by since we have not yet given our lives for our faith. The writer uses the metaphor of running a race to exemplify how we should live out our faith. We should strip out of our lives anything which will hinder our living according to God’s will. As part of that process we should accept God’s discipline. We should view any suffering which we experience as an opportunity to live our lives more totally dedicated to God’s service. While becoming more disciplined is unpleasant as it happens, the results are a cause for great joy.

Daily Bible Study

December 19, 2017 Bible Study — Faith Leads To Action

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Hebrews 10-11.

    The writer reiterates a point that he made in yesterday’s passage, we can boldly enter into God’s presence. This means that we can boldly call on God’s power. In the Gospels Jesus said that His followers would do the same sort of miracles which He had performed, and more. The writer of this letter is explaining how that works. We can stand before God and ask Him to exercise His power because Jesus has, once and for all, covered our sins with His blood. The writer wrote about how we are saved by grace through faith. However, that grace does not mean that we can deliberately go on sinning. I do not believe the writer is referring to the sins we commit because we are weak humans who fail to resist temptation. Rather I believe the writer is referring to those who deliberately choose not to resist temptation. This is not about the person who, without thinking, leaves an open bottle of alcohol where a recovering alcoholic comes upon it and gives in to drink. No, this refers to the person who knowingly tempts an alcoholic with alcohol.

    The author has written earlier in this letter, in agreement with what Paul wrote, that we are saved by God’s grace through our faith. We do not receive salvation as a reward for our good behavior. It is freely given to us by God because of His grace. Having written that the author now tells us that our faith should compel us to act. He lists how the people from the Old Testament who are held up as examples for us to follow were inspired by their faith to act. By faith, Abel brought…by faith Noah built…By faith, Abraham went… All of these people had faith, but that faith did not leave them sitting there waiting for God to take them home. Because of that faith they did something. When we experience the faith the writer is talking about, we will also take the action to which God is calling us.

Daily Bible Study

December 18, 2017 Bible Study — Time To Grow Up As Christians

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Hebrews 6-9.

    Today’s passage starts with a continuation of something the writer started writing about in yesterday’s passage. If you have been a Christian for more than a couple of years it is time to move on from the basic teachings. You should no longer need teaching about repenting from sin and placing your faith in God. Baptism, laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment are all first level teachings. If you need further teaching on those things you are an infant in Christ. If, on the other hand, you have matured in Christ it is time to pay attention to more advanced concepts. All too many Churches today spend their time going over the basics of Christianity when what their members need is to be taught more advanced concepts, and all too many Christians want their congregation to focus on such things. The pastor’s weekly sermons in our congregations should not, as a general rule, be on such basic subjects because those who need to hear such messages are unlikely to be there on Sunday morning.

    The writer uses the example of Melchizedek to illustrate how Jesus supersedes and replaces the priesthood of Aaron. The writer makes a couple of points about how this new priesthood differs from the original priesthood. The priesthood of Aaron served in a system of worship which was only a shadow copy of the real one in heaven. Jesus serves as the High Priest in that system in heaven, a system which we are now able to enter in because of His sacrifice. The system administered by the priesthood of Aaron administered a system of physical regulations which was in place to serve as an example of the system which was to come. The High Priest of the order of Aaron offered sacrifices on a regular basis before he was able to enter into the presence of God in the Holy of Holies in the earthly Tabernacle and only he was able to do so. Jesus offered Himself as a sacrifice once and done in the heavenly Tabernacle in order that all of us might enter into the presence of God.

Daily Bible Study

December 17, 2017 Bible Study — Jesus Is Fully Human, Yet Greater Than Angels And The Greatest Prophet

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Hebrews 1-5.

    The writer of the Book of Hebrews starts with a refutation of the idea that Jesus was just a senior angel (or even THE senior angel). It shows us that the Mormon teachings about Jesus and angels are nothing new, but were rebutted by the leaders of the early Church. As the writer continues into chapter 2 he further distinguishes between angels and human beings. The writer teaches that while we are on earth we are a little lower than the angels, but this is only for the short time we inhabit our mortal bodies. When we leave our mortal bodies we do not become angels, because the writer clearly states that Jesus did not come to help angels. There is one other important point which the writer makes in this portion. Jesus was made just like us in every particular.

    Having addressed the issue of Jesus’ relationship with angels and shown that He was a distinctly different sort of being and further shown that we as human beings are yet a third sort of being, the writer goes on to show that Jesus was not just a prophet. The writer makes clear that Jesus was greater than Moses. A careful reading of this passage and an understanding of Jewish theology informs us that Moses was the greatest prophet that could be. There are various Old Testament passages which indicate that another prophet would come who was as great as Moses, but no prophet could be greater (I believe this prophet who was equal to Moses was John the Baptist). Therefore, since Jesus was greater than Moses, He was not just a prophet, but something more. Just as the earlier section contradicted the Mormon teaching concerning Jesus, this section contradicts the Muslim teaching that Jesus was a great prophet.

    There is one final point from today’s passage which I want to highlight. Jesus is our High Priest before God and because He experienced all that we experience, except that He did so without sinning, we are entitled to boldly come before God. Despite our complete unworthiness, Jesus will intercede for us with God so that we will receive God’s grace at those times and in those instances where we need it most. We will never be able to understand how God’s grace is able to help us through the difficult times until we experience those difficult times. God’s grace is sufficient unto the troubles we experience, but we will not experience the grace necessary to get through the difficult times until we are in the difficult times. Otherwise we might think that it was our own strength which got us through.

Daily Bible Study

December 16, 2017 Bible Study — The Qualifications For Leadership In the Church

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Titus and Philemon.

    The core of Paul’s letter to Titus is a description of the qualifications for an overseeing elder in the Church. One thing which I think is often overlooked is that all men should aspire to fit the qualifications given here. If they are married, they should be faithful to their wife. If they have children, they should attempt to raise their children to be believers and to be well-behaved. It was a tragedy of the Church when I was growing up that “preacher’s kids” were known for being wild and disobedient. To the degree that that is still true, it is a tragedy of the Church today. I am not going to list the things which Paul tells us that an overseer in the Church must not be. Instead I want to focus on the positive things he writes that we should require of them. Overseers, and all of the rest of us, should be blameless. They should be hospitable. As Christians we should freely offer hospitality to all that we can. Our leaders should make outsiders feel welcome, and we should strive to follow their lead in that. Paul writes that leaders in the Church must be self-controlled and disciplined. Since that is two different ways of, more or less, saying the same thing it gives us a good idea how important Paul thought it was. Finally, these leaders must be able to encourage others in the Gospel and refute those who oppose it.

    Paul’s letter to Philemon focuses on how a master should treat a slave who is a fellow believer. However, it can also apply to how an employer treats an employee. Paul first recognizes that under the law of Rome, Philemon has authority over Onesimus. However, he also calls to Philemon’s attention that in the Church and the Kingdom of God, Paul had authority over Philemon. However, the entire point of Paul’s letter was that Philemon should treat Onesimus lovingly and as a brother in Christ. So, rather than command Philemon to do as Paul believed that he should, Paul chose to merely ask Philemon to exercise his authority over Onesimus in a manner similar to the way in which Paul was exercising his authority over Philemon. Paul asked Philemon to respect Onesimus as his brother in Christ, just as Paul was respecting Philemon as his brother in Christ. Paul implies that he has instructed Onesimus to obey Philemon even if Philemon does not act according to Paul’s instruction.

Daily Bible Study

December 15, 2017 Bible Study — Fill Our Idle Time With Useful Endeavours

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I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 1 Timothy 5-6.

    I should have written on this passage yesterday, but I accidentally skipped ahead to 2 Timothy. So, I will study it today. Today’s passage starts with advice to Timothy which would have saved quite a few men today from grief had they followed it. We are instructed to treat those older than ourselves as if they were our parents and those our age and younger as our brothers and sisters. We should treat others with respect and purity. Paul proceeds from there to give Timothy instructions for caring for the elderly. He writes that believers should care for those of their relatives who are no longer able to care for themselves to the best that they are able. The Church should only step in when someone has no relatives who are able to care for themselves. Further, those who are able should seek out useful things to do with their time. We should seek useful things with which to fill our time because that is a positive good, but also because we will otherwise fill our time with activities which will lead us into sin.

    Paul continues with more instructions regarding those who should receive financial support from the Church and other items regarding living a Christian life. Then he warns against those teachers and leaders who teach contrary to Paul’s teachings. Paul warns us that such people have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels. They create friction between people and encourage people to believe that godliness is a path to financial gain. Paul writes that not only is godliness not a guarantee of financial success, but that godliness combined with contentment with out financial status is worth more than any amount of money. No matter how much material wealth we gain in this life none of it will accompany us into the next. If we have food to eat and clothes to wear we have all the financial wealth we should desire. Seeking after wealth is a trap which leads many to sin. The desire for money is the source of many sins. Paul follows this up in his conclusion by warning those who do acquire great wealth to remain humble and not come to believe that their great wealth is evidence of their righteousness.