All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. - 2 Timothy 3:16-17
A community for honest and authentic study or discussion of God's Scripture. This is specifically for reading and analysing the Bible, not g
Hello everyone! Happy New Year! I'd like to kick off the new year by starting up a Bible Study community here on Tumblr!
It's just its own Christian space for believers to read, analyse and discuss the different parts of the Bible together in whatever form you'd like! They can be big or small posts, and you can take part in the conversations or just observe. All are welcome! I'm hoping to contribute semi-regular posts offering passages to discuss and study together, like every 1-2 weeks, but it's pretty experimental right now!
Actually I was gonna go point by point but I genuinely think you don't really want a discussion so like. If you do we can go ahead. My point was less about who's right and more about the execution and that way. But yeah if you want to đ if not đđ
I would be very happy to have a discussion and I'm answering this ask to let you know that I've received your other ask and will answer it at a later point, but unfortunately I have some real life commitments to attend to for the next week and won't be free to answer for a little while.
I appreciate the points you're making and though I have many disagreements with them, I will address them later with the intent of respectful debate. Until then, I hope you keep well. God bless.
I've been told by multiple people recently that my blog either helped them find their faith or helped them embrace being queer and faithful at the same time. And that means so much to me, but I equally wouldn't be where I am without the amazing people I found here when I reached out into the unknown. Queer Christianity is so beautiful. We're all reaching out to each other with open palms, passing love and acceptance along the chain, enfolding each other into the body of Christ and holding each other through the hardships. I'm so grateful for the people who came before me and showed me I wasn't alone, and that humbly I can do the same for the people who come after. My heart is very full with this today. It reminds me that God is there in the love we share with one another.
âBeware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits."
Matthew 7:15-20
"But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep."
...
"These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: âThe dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.â
2 Peter 2:1-3, 17-22
"If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain."
1 Timothy 6:3-5
"Have you not read the Scriptures?"
- Jesus in Matthew 12:3+5, 19:4, 21:16+42, Mark 2:25, 12:26, Luke 6:3
"Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, âTherefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one fleshâ?"
Matthew 19:4-5
"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination."
Leviticus 18:22
"A woman shall not wear a man's garment, nor shall a man put on a woman's cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God."
Deuteronomy 22:5
"[love] does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth."
1 Corinthians 13:6
"For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Romans 1:21-27
"Jesus answered, âYou say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the worldâto bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.â
John 18:37b
"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?"
Romans 6:1-3
âNot everyone who says to me, âLord, Lord,â will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, âLord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?â And then will I declare to them, âI never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.â"
Matthew 7:21-23
Just vomiting scripture isn't enough, you also need scriptural literacy. It would take me so much more time to unpack each verse than it took you to copy and paste them, so I won't. But you took a post about love, community, and people holding onto their relationship with Christ in the face of adversity, and turned it into judgement and condemnation. I hope you're satisfied with that, and I also hope since you're casting stones you have never once sinned.
Imagine my surprise that you're reluctant to unpack the Bible, and that you would accuse me of scriptural illiteracy while you misapply the line about casting stones...
Here's some application that unpacks the verses, since you believe the post is lacking that:
God is love. God defines love. God sets the terms on what true love is. We can say we're talking about and supporting love all we like, but if it's not the truth - the light - as God defines it, then it's false love. A lie. And failing that verification test is exactly how we know the "fruits" that separate a false teacher from a true follower of God.
"This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in him. If we say, âWe have fellowship with him,â and yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth."
1 John 1:5-6
We don't define love according to the "sensuality" that makes us happy or by what sounds good in our head. We don't determine whether or not we're closer to Jesus according to what we regard as acceptable behaviour, especially if we're incorporating heresy into our belief system. All we're doing in that event is steering ourselves to towards destruction, and worse, dragging other people down with us.
"The heart is more deceitful than anything else,
and incurableâwho can understand it?"
Jeremiah 17:9
"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to fall awayâit would be better for him if a heavy millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depths of the sea."
Matthew 18:6
Disagreeing with Jesus and disagreeing with the Bible are tantamount to the same thing. Jesus regularly answered people by telling them to check the OT scriptures and also regularly quoted the OT scriptures himself (a 1/10th of his Bible quotes, to be exact). Jesus is God, the same God who gave his law to the Israelites ("I and the Father are one" - John 10:30). And hear this, nowhere in the Bible does it say that God has changed his mind about OT law. While ceremonial aspects of it have been rendered obsolete regarding the payment for sin, as described in Hebrews, and all food has been made clean, as defined in Acts, its moral authority remains absolute:
"Donât think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or one stroke of a letter will pass away from the law until all things are accomplished."
Matthew 5:17-18
Thus, Jesus himself affirms what the Bible plainly says, that men and women are made to be men and women, respectively. There is no lack of binary in God's designation of gender/sex. Crossover isn't permitted - even the idea of cross-dressing alone is rejected by God as wrong (Deut. 22:5). No aspect of gender idealogy or self-identifying is ever affirmed by the Bible. Nor is homosexuality. The act of same-sex intercourse is clearly considered a sin worthy of the death penalty (Lev. 20:13) and the desires themselves are literally laid out as an unnatural consequence of disobeying God.
There is no getting around this. 'Queer' in its many forms is a sinful practice, as clearly detailed by Scripture. Jesus's Scripture. We are not loving Jesus by denying or refusing to follow his commands. The gospel makes us right with God via grace in spite of our shortcomings, but it's not a license to sin however we please.
"If you love me, you will keep my commands."
John 14:15
The greatest love there is obeys God. It doesn't delight in wrongdoing (1 Cor. 13:6) so it isn't loving to tell people things that aren't true, to encourage them in disobeying God, to justify sinful practices and gratify sinful desires. True love for the sinner means calling for repentance, with the grace and understanding that all of us are sinners in need of salvation. It's kindness, patience and mercy, but it's not lies.
Water down the gospel all you want, but that will be on your own head and all those who follow you over God. No, the law isn't what saves us. We are justified by faith, not works, but what kind of faith doesn't seek the good works of obeying God? Our souls are at stake here. We need to deny ourselves to follow Christ - this is what that means. It doesn't matter how positively you view it, it doesn't matter who else is doing it; it only matters what God says it is.
"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can such faith save him?"
James 2:14
You can have all the friendship and fellowship you may ever seek from same-sex allies. You deserve all the care and support you could ask for if you struggle with your identity. But you don't get to take immutable truths that God has written and ignore them to suit yourself. You can't redefine marriage. You can't redefine gender. It's not easy to accept that, but it is right.
And it is also right to call this out. Correction is a necessary part of the Christian walk. Right judgment, not hypocritical judgment, is a necessary part of correction:
"Stop judging according to outward appearances; rather judge according to righteous judgment.â
John 7:24
"Brothers and sisters, if someone is overtaken in any wrongdoing, you who are spiritual, restore such a person with a gentle spirit, watching out for yourselves so that you also wonât be tempted. Carry one anotherâs burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."
Galatians 6:1-2
"Reject a divisive person after a first and second warning. 11Â For you know that such a person has gone astray and is sinning; he is self-condemned."
Titus 3:10-11
"As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality."
1 Timothy 5:20-21
"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
Even Peter got called out by Paul for his hypocrisy. There is no shortage of biblical precedence for correcting brothers, publically if need be.
"But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he stood condemned. For he regularly ate with the Gentiles before certain men came from James. However, when they came, he withdrew and separated himself, because he feared those from the circumcision party. Then the rest of the Jews joined his hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that they were deviating from the truth of the gospel, I told Cephas in front of everyone, âIf you, who are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel Gentiles to live like Jews?â
Galatians 2:11-14
So no, I am not ashamed to stand on the word of God and call out lies, especially lies that are actively leading people astray. There is a righteous place for judgment and condemnation, and this is it. The hope of the Gospel means you are free to repent of your sin and turn to Jesus no matter what you've done, but you cannot keep trying to marry darkness with light. Jesus will not stand for that. You are factually leading people away from him, not towards him.
"For whoever is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.â
Mark 8:38
And one more thing, the "cast the first stone" line applied to a scripturally inaccurate and historically illegal effort to test Jesus under the pressure of a mob execution. Jesus's response was a simple but effective way to halt an unjust killing, in such a way as to call out the universal state of sinners. It wasn't a guiding principle on all judgments of sin ever to made, as seen in countless other cases, and he tells the woman straight afterwards, "Do not sin anymore." (John 8:11)
I'm not calling for executions. I'm calling for truth. I'm calling for people to be saved by the grace of Jesus, but that can't happen if they don't acknowledge their need to be saved from the thing they're indulging and identifying in. I'm calling for people not to be among the ones who come to Jesus professing faith in him, only for Jesus to send them away for being workers of wrongdoing, which the Bible clearly defines here.
We need to repent to be saved. That calls for change and I would see people learn that so they can celebrate eternally in heaven leaving behind the old self that would have cost them everything. That's not homophobia or transphobia. That's love. Real love. And it extends to you too.
I've been told by multiple people recently that my blog either helped them find their faith or helped them embrace being queer and faithful at the same time. And that means so much to me, but I equally wouldn't be where I am without the amazing people I found here when I reached out into the unknown. Queer Christianity is so beautiful. We're all reaching out to each other with open palms, passing love and acceptance along the chain, enfolding each other into the body of Christ and holding each other through the hardships. I'm so grateful for the people who came before me and showed me I wasn't alone, and that humbly I can do the same for the people who come after. My heart is very full with this today. It reminds me that God is there in the love we share with one another.
âBeware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits."
Matthew 7:15-20
"But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep."
...
"These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. For, speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: âThe dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.â
2 Peter 2:1-3, 17-22
"If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain."
1 Timothy 6:3-5
"Have you not read the Scriptures?"
- Jesus in Matthew 12:3+5, 19:4, 21:16+42, Mark 2:25, 12:26, Luke 6:3
"Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, âTherefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one fleshâ?"
Matthew 19:4-5
"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination."
Leviticus 18:22
"A woman shall not wear a man's garment, nor shall a man put on a woman's cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God."
Deuteronomy 22:5
"[love] does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth."
1 Corinthians 13:6
"For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.
Romans 1:21-27
"Jesus answered, âYou say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the worldâto bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.â
John 18:37b
"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?"
Romans 6:1-3
âNot everyone who says to me, âLord, Lord,â will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, âLord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?â And then will I declare to them, âI never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.â"
Matthew 7:21-23
Fill in the blank! It can be anything you like, but there are (imaginary) bonus points for it being something you haven't said thanks for yet, whether that be because it happened today, or because you keep forgetting it in your prayers.
I'll start! I'm thankful for my neighbour getting home from hospital, and for all the time I've been able to spend with his dog whilst he was getting better <3
I'm going to turn this into a tag game, but you can tag anyone you like, no limits, and if you're not tagged but see it anyway you're still more than welcome to reblog or comment with your answer!
First and foremost, Jesus, my Precious, Lovely, Worthy Lord. đ I know God has so so graciously given me the Greatest Gift of His Son, and there is no deeper love and care than His. Bread of my Life, Fountain of my Life, my Savior gave Himself for me so kindly and I pray to always be thankful and treasure Him. I pray to receive every blessing from God thankfully and faithfully in fellowship with the Greatest Blessing; Abundant Life is friendship with the Good Shepherd who laid down His Life for us.
I'm thankful for God's Forgiveness. I've been so ungrateful and unfaithful yet Jesus has lovingly redeemed me by bearing the agony of my horrid sins. Caringly covered in Redemption through His Blood I'm blessed with undeserved security and purity in my Savior. I sinned badly last night, yet the Holy Spirit is guiding me graciously in repentance and in Relationship with God. And He has been teaching me a lot even when I struggle and stumble, He is Loving and always always Good.
I thank God for my chickens, how cute and sweet He created them, and for blessing me to take care of His creations and for His Care and Mercy over them. <33
It rained a lot last night and this morning the weather has been nice. :)
Had s'mores last night and will have cake later today :D (And God's Love is sweeter than everything!)
I should thank the Lord for and pray for my family and friends whom He loves so much and blesses me to love in His Love.
God is blessing me a lot through a book I've been looking forward to reading! (Come You Weary: enjoy Christâs comfort by Michael Reeves! Very recommend!)
Praising God for His Care over your neighbor, Cherry! That's awesome! â€ïž
Tagging @ghosts-and-blue-sweaters @lucylavander @minimoll7 @soychronicprocrastinator @alonelywaywardsheep @yahwmichael @4thouglory (whom I'm thankful for also and thankful for all my other friends <3)
Thank you again my beautiful sisters for the tag! @cherryflickswrites @pinestripe37
Letâs see, Iâm thankful for the modern medicine and technology that God has given and allowed us to have today.
For it is thanks to it that my family can treat my little Kitty Marshmallow. The little light fury of our home đ„č
And even the medicine whichâs keeps all pets and people healthy
Even grateful for being presented with a job opportunity recently which may be in my favor!
And in general, biggest thing, for the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus who was sent by our Father, and later by Christ the Holy Spirit came and dwelt among us.
I'm thankful for much. I'm thankful to God for every day I wake up for and every breath I take. Every meal I'm free to enjoy, every place I get to travel to and appreciate, every ounce of good fortune in my life that I can find comfort and happiness in, none of it deserved. I'm thankful to the grace of Jesus for everything.
I'm thankful to my family and church for how they've guided me. I'm thankful to good friends that I can confide in when I need support, advice and fellowship. I'm thankful for the technology that lets us connect and share with each other in ways like this!
And I'm thankful for God's word, for the daily bread it brings and the hope it continues to shine in the lives of so many, to this day!
The people I would tag have already been tagged, so I'll leave this here for anyone who reads it to join in!
Hey, I'm kinda terrified to be sending you this, but thank you. Thank you for standing up. Thank you for spreading the word. Thank you for not being a coward like me. Thank you for taking the hatred in a way I'd never be able to. Thank you so much. I nearly cried reading the hollow post and your comment on it. I love you bro. Keep at it, okay?
It's no problem; you're very welcome! I aspire to do all that I do for the Lord, to let go of my own pride and serve the spreading of his glorious gospel. There's no greater mission and my own courage doesn't come from me. The Lord God emboldens us, even in our weakness!
"Love the Lord, all his faithful ones.
The Lord protects the loyal,
but fully repays the arrogant.
Be strong, and let your heart be courageous,
all you who put your hope in the Lord."
Psalm 31:23-24
"Jesus responded to them, âDo you now believe? Indeed, an hour is coming, and has come, when each of you will be scattered to his own home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.â
John 16:31-33
I hope I can continue to encourage you and that you in turn can encourage others. God is good and he is for us; none can stand against him!
"There aren't demons flying around with horns, people are demons."
Incorrect. There's a clear distinction between demons and people, with the examples of people being demon-possessed and following the teachings of demons as examples of how the Bible distinguishes them:
"Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared,"
1 Timothy 4:1-2
Whether or not they have horns as people often like to depict them, the Bible doesn't say. But I suspect that is as immaterial to you as it is to me. I can suspect what you were trying to say with this ask, but what I hope you come to know one day is that it doesn't matter if it isn't true. How you want to define or describe demonic behaviour is meaningless. Only one authority matters:
"The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil."
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
I am unrighteous, as are you. God alone is good and he offers us a way to be at peace with him out of love for us. There's nothing more valuable, nor more beautiful than that. I pray that you are free from the demons of your own life and that you can experience God's love for yourself. Jesus died for all of us who would believe in him!
May I use the God-breathed Bible study as a reference to my class because we are studying the whole Bible in my 5th and 6th grader Sunday school class, and I think this is a good place to start to take notes from, so would I be okay if I used some of your points that you make in this Bible study
Erica
I'm so sorry I'm so late in replying to this! I've been off on a break for a while, but yes, you're very welcome to use my notes in any way that helps you!
That goes for anyone looking at any of my studies! God's glory comes first and if I've raised any truth or value from his word, then it was his first and the more people that see it, the better!
âMaybe youâve heard the joke about the man who was hoping to get a word from the Lord and happened to turn to Matthew 27:5 where it says that Judas âwent and hanged himself.â Not happy with this word for the day, the man flipped his Bible open to another page, where his eyes descended on Luke 10:37, âAnd Jesus said to him, âYou go and do likewise.ââ
These may be extreme examples, but they are not too far removed from how many Christians approach the Bible. Even if the answers seem thrilling in their relevance, we must not put any stock in anachronistic, out-of-context answers we read into the Bible after asking questions the Bible never intended to address.â
- Kevin DeYoung, Just Do Something, on the random verse-picking method of seeking God's guidance.
âJudge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, âLet me take the speck out of your eye,â when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."
(Matthew 7:1-5)
"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment."
(John 7:24)
"For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. âPurge the evil person from among you.â
(1 Corinthians 5:12)
"Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."
(Galatians 6:1-2)
"[Jesus is saying] don't be the kind of person who ignores sin, but also don't be the kind of person who crushed people under it."
"That's the difference between being a hypocrite who just wants to win an argument and a Christian who wants to carry a burden."
Been a while since I made a post, partly because I'm busy and partly because the next post I'm working on is a big one so I want to get it right. So I unfortunately missed the chance to make something for Easter, but I had a few scattered thoughts during my devotional this morning and wanted to share them as a late Easter post for the Christian communities that I'm a part of:
The Gospel made clear:
Now I want to make clear for you, brothers and sisters, the gospel I preached to you, which you received, on which you have taken your stand and by which you are being saved, if you hold to the message I preached to youâunless you believed in vain. For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers and sisters at one time; most of them are still alive, but some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one born at the wrong time, he also appeared to me.
(1 Corinthians 15:1-8)
The Gospel's motivation:
For you yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our visit with you was not without result. On the contrary, after we had previously suffered and were treated outrageously in Philippi, as you know, we were emboldened by our God to speak the gospel of God to you in spite of great opposition. For our exhortation didnât come from error or impurity or an intent to deceive. Instead, just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please people, but rather God, who examines our hearts.
(1 Thessalonians 2:1-4)
The Gospel's exclusivity:
I am amazed that you are so quickly turning away from him who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospelânot that there is another gospel, but there are some who are troubling you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, a curse be on him! As we have said before, I now say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, a curse be on him!
For am I now trying to persuade people, or God? Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
(Galatians 1:6-10)
The Gospel's blessings:
You foolish Galatians! Who has cast a spell on you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? I only want to learn this from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by the Spirit, are you now finishing by the flesh? Did you experience so much for nothingâif in fact it was for nothing? So then, does God give you the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law? Or is it by believing what you heardâjust like Abraham who believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness?
You know, then, that those who have faith, these are Abrahamâs sons. Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and proclaimed the gospel ahead of time to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessed through you. Consequently, those who have faith are blessed with Abraham, who had faith.
(Galatians 3:1-9)
This is God's Gospel. And all three of these documents are projected to have been written around 50AD, making them some of the earliest written New Testament documents. This has always been God's gospel. Drawing from these verses, let's just summarise a few reflections on it, shall we?
1. The Gospel preaches Christ crucified and resurrected.
This one probably seems obvious, but as we see in response to a complaint that he preached the same thing every week, a preacher responded that it's a message we need to hear every week. (Might have been Charles Spurgeon, who was vehemently against preaching a sermon that never mentioned Jesus, but I can't find the exact quote.)
Still, as insane as it sounds, some people claim faith in Christ yet don't believe Jesus was really crucified, or don't really believe he came back from the dead, or don't really live as though Jesus really did everything that's claimed about him, or in some way compromise on the notion that Jesus needs to be a saviour who died and came back because it's enough that he was just a famous guy who said to be nice to people, etc., etc...
Any Gospel that compromises on any aspect of who Jesus was, especially his mission of dying for our sins and being resurrected in glory, compromises God's gospel and therefore is not God's gospel. Paul is quick to emphasise Jesus' divinity time and time again as one proven by his resurrection, and that our salvation that the Gospel promises is contingent on his sacrifice and resurrection that we get to take part in. He stresses this a lot in the rest of 1 Corinthians 15.
2. The Gospel comes from God, not from men.
Peter and John answered them, âWhether itâs right in the sight of God for us to listen to you rather than to God, you decide; for we are unable to stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.â
(Acts 4:19-20)
This too is stressed many times. This message, mission and method of delivery is all of God. This is not a man-made mandate. The early church had no power to their name and were actively persecuted as traitors to their heritage by the Jews and traitors to their empire by the Romans. They gained nothing material for it and often died because of it. The idea that Christianity was invented by men to seize power is a false premise, something Jesus practically ensured by never himself seeking any kind of political power or influence up to his execution.
The example we follow, the morality we pursue, the love we share and the gospel we preach comes from God. We do it not for ourselves but that others might be saved. We do it that God would be pleased and good would be done. We do it because it is true.
And a critical note on that is that we only have one gospel just as we only have one God. Paul defines it, the disciples define it, Jesus defines it - the Bible defines the lines of this divine kindness. Anyone who crosses those lines and looks to redefine the sublime entwinement is a swine.
Seriously though, Paul hammers this in throughout Galatians. The Bible doesn't give us the wiggle room to change what we've been tasked with and we now have so much access to Scripture thanks to the prosperity of the Gospel (but not prosperity gospel; don't mix them up!) that it's easier than ever to cross-reference what people say with God's word. So renew yourselves with knowledge and equip yourselves with the Gospel (Colossians 3:10, 2 Timothy 3:16-17) because we may have different practices and opinions in following it, but there is still only one Gospel.
3. The Gospel is practiced by faith, not by works.
These passages express this message, but it can also be found elsewhere in each of those letters, and in the books of Romans, Ephesians, Hebrews, etc., the Bible isn't exactly subtle about this, yet people still get confused about it because it's a complex topic by nature.
After all, being redeemed by grace is a miraculous level of mercy that is hard to comprehend, and genuine faith naturally produces works, as James 2 infamously explains. And yes, if you claim to have faith but don't live for Christ, then you clearly don't have faith. You know a good tree by the fruit it produces (Matthew 7:16).
But getting mixed up on these truths should not be a stumbling block from the very clear, often repeated and incredibly unique key to salvation that we have in Jesus. We are not saved by anything we do. The most we do is answer the call with faith, which credits us as righteous (Romans 4:3-5). There's a lifetime's worth of understanding to untangle in balancing our responsibility with submission to God, but none of that is core to our beliefs as much as this simple message:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
(John 3:16)
This is God's Gospel. God's Saviour. God's Son. God's Story.
One God. One Gospel. One church, no matter what label you stick on the building you gather at. Believe this gospel and you are saved.
No matter what you've done. No matter what you'll do.
That song is a headbanging bop so classic, iconic, and memetic that it's so easy to overlook the introspective contemplation of an overwhelmingly complex topic in the chorus' opening line that's immediately double-counterbalanced by the fear of oncoming pain consequently received from getting the answer to that question wrong. The emotional crisis of flip-flopping between trying to understand the lines that should be drawn in the pursuit of love and pleading against having to go through crushing disappointment is voiced again and again, yet it's drowned out by our own love of heedless entertainment.
There's a metaphor in there, probably, but I'm not actually here to make it. I was just looking for a good opening line for a Bible study on the topic of what love is via biblical lens for a Valentines Day post and here we are. Now that we've analysed Haddaway, let's analyse God's word!
Seriously though, what is love? Is it a feeling or an action? Is its purest form romantic or platonic? Is it always selfless? And once we've pinned down our definition(s), how and when do we apply them?
These questions may not be as headbanging as a lament of unrequited affection, but they are important. I'm not going to promise to answer them all clearly here, but I am going to try and show the foundation for how we approach them. Naturally, the Bible is involved.
1. The Seven Loves
Okay, the Bible is involved, but not yet! First, let's consider how the Greek language didn't have the single word that we use called 'love' to encapsulate so many forms of deep affection and care. It divided those concepts into seven. And given that the New Testament was originally written in this language, it probably wouldn't hurt to give them a rundown:
Eros (Romantic Love) - Sometimes more interpreted as something exclusively sexual. This regardless applies to the love we have when we're attracted to someone, especially physically.
Philia (Friendship Love) - Platonic love, basically. The same love you feel when you enjoy someone's company and/or respect their ambitions. Loyalty and companionship define it.
Storge/Storgi (Family Love) - The kind of love known in a close-knit group, typically family but could also be very close friends or a very tight community. There's an unconditional factor to this love.
Ludus (Playful Love) - Puppy love, kind of. This one is actually more Latin than Greek, but it refers either way to the more childish and uncommitted love of people who flirt in passing or innocently have fun together, usually found in children.
Pragma (Long-Term Love) - Enduring commitment. Usually a marriage that's stood the test of time will have this, and it's no coincidence that it's the start of the word "pragmatic". This is a love that provides what's needed to support and endure the relationship for the very long term.
Philautia (Self Love) - This is more in line with self-esteem than self-serving; it's ultimately a love that regards one's self as worthy of confidence in who we are. Not power-seeking but self-accepting.
Agape (Self-Sacrificing Love) - This is a much more universally unconditional love that is felt not exclusively for any individual or group, but for the world as a whole. It is the most selfless form of love.
Less known and less regarded is an eight love named "Xenia" (Hospitality Love) which I won't dismiss but is less talked about. There's a lot to say about these categories (and there's some contention on how much they were actually used) but that brief rundown was just to preface the different viewpoints on love and even their multiple interpretations that exist today.
You often hear the slogan "Love is love", which, through its redundant self-defining repetition says nothing, yet is always an attempt to close conversation by effectively claiming that 'nothing' is the point - that love isn't something to define. It's just some kind of untouchable and practically unknowable concept that is never incorrect in its definition.
But this isn't the case. Even with this variety of terms, there are clear lines drawn in every case. The kind of love expressed in Ludus is very different from the kind expressed in Pragma. Only one of them doesn't involve another person in some way. Only one of them seeks sexual desire. A minimum of four of them are categorised in large part by their unconditional loyalty to the other party.
I sympathise with the frustration people have with the English language for boiling all this complexity into a single word, but I think there's something powerful about that. It can be hard to parse sometimes, hence Haddaway's song, but love simultaneously isn't an unknowable and intangible idea yet is varied and complex in its application. It's an extremely deep word as a result, perhaps the deepest word in the English language, which seems extremely fitting when you consider that everybody in the world spends every moment of their lives pursuing it in one of these forms, whether that form is healthy or not.
We live and die for love.
We write endless songs about the endless forms of love.
Love is the primary motivation in a majority of storytelling.
Love turns friends into lovers, lovers into enemies and enemies into friends. Not necessarily in that order.
Love wakes us up in the morning with a smile on our face.
Love sends us crying ourselves to sleep with a broken heart.
Love makes us think.
Love makes us feel.
Love makes us afraid.
Love makes us brave.
What is love? Yes, it's a many-splendored thing, how did you know? I think we've covered how it can be defined in usual practice and day-to-day life in various forms well enough for now. We'll circle back around to this topic later, but for now, there's a pertinent question that we need to address:
Given these forms of love, how do we apply them? We can't just say it's always good just because it's a feeling; contrary to popular belief, your feelings are not always valid. Eros is all well and good until you feel it for a cow. Or your sibling. But if we're assuming there's a moral application here, something that can be defined as healthy or unhealthy love, where do we get it from?
2. The Bible's Loves
You didn't forget this was a Bible study, did you?
How does the Bible use love? If we assume this to be God's word, we'd better be paying close attention when he breaks out the L-word. Let's look at how these forms of love are used in the Bible:
"Eros" as a specific word is not found in the Bible, but if the book of Song of Songs isn't effectively an in-depth exploration of that definition, what is?
"Storge" also technically isn't in the Bible, but its opposites "astorgoi/astorgous" to refer to 'unloving' or 'no love' appear in 2 Timothy 3:3, condemning the traits of people to be avoided, and in Romans 1:31, describing those whom God delivered over to corruption.
"Philia" appears many times throughout the Bible, largely in reference to friendship. Any time you see the term "brotherly love" in the Bible (such as in Romans 12:10 or Hebrews 13:1), it's likely a reference to this word.
Every other (NT) use of the word "love" in the Bible is "agape". "Love the Lord your God/your neighbour as yourself" (Matt. 22:37+39)? Agape. "Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13)? Agape. "Love your enemies" (Matt. 5:44)? Agape. "Love is patient, love is kind" (1 Cor. 13:4)? Agape.
Every other word for love is absent from the Bible. You can see the enduring pragma kind of love lived out by some figures, like Ruth, and verses like Ephesians 5:29 about not hating your own flesh could be read as the natural state of philautia that is also the basis of the Golden Rule. But otherwise, these versions and interpretations of love are not explored strongly by the Bible.
So what does that teach us? That only agape and philia love really exist? That they're the only forms of love that matter? No, I would never advise reading too far into what the Bible didn't say. Rather, I'd say that given the Bible's predisposition towards these two terms, especially the massive amount of emphasis on the former, we should consider the Bible's instruction regarding love (which, to recap, involved loving God, loving your neighbour, loving your friends enough to die for them, loving your enemies, valuing love as the greatest virtue and loving Jesus enough to love the whole world through our love for him) to be paramount.
In other words, love exists and is seen in many forms, but our calling is to embrace and be embraced by the universal agape love that Jesus has for us. A love so pure and all-encompassing that he called for the forgiveness of those who were killing him as he was dying. That takes priority.
Any reading of love - whether defined as four loves, seven loves, eight loves or five hundred loves - that compromises that calling is wrong. It's in opposition to God and in service of the self, so it is sin.
But what's the ultimate authority by which we answer that calling and temper our emotions to answer it properly? Why should we seek an authority on how to love at all? Why should we regard love as something good and right to pursue and therefore pursue properly? When we put aside all these Greek words and human definitions, what actually is love?
3. God's Love
God is love.
That's why we do those things. Because God is love. Love is God.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
(1 John 4:7-8)
BOOM! Brought it all back together!
But seriously, this is foundational. Whether we're pursuing a relationship with someone that we feel an eros kind of love for, flirting with a stranger we feel a ludus kind of love for, devoting ourselves to our children with a storge kind of love, or even embracing the blessings of being who we are with a philautia kind of love, we must always, always, always know the source of all true love and the definition of love in its greatest form, which we should always place above all of these kinds of love expression.
Because that love is God. And we're to love him above all other things. He loved us first, enough to die for us. We have no excuse for choosing nor right to choose our own definitions of what sinful form of love we would sooner pursue.
For one will scarcely die for a righteous personâthough perhaps for a good person one would dare even to dieâbut God shows his love [agape] for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
(Romans 5:7-8)
What is love? God is love. It's a love that rescues us from fear, is patient and kind with us and a love that gracefully sacrifices for us.
Too much of modern mindsets want to justify selfishness and dress it up as self-love, often insidiously inserted into the messaging of stories, even ones aimed at children. This is not truth. It's certainly not love. Seek the Bible's definition of love and recognise how God is calling us to sacrifice and give of ourselves selflessly for others.
I love love because I love God! It's a love we should never compromise on, not even a little, not when his Son was crucified to act on that love. If we let ourselves do that, we might end up more disappointed than Haddaway ever was.
You want the answers to those questions about what love is? Follow God. Read his word. Seek his example. There's no better way to better understand what love looks like than going to the source.
Hello! I'm a member of the Christian community on tumblr- or I was. I am so glad that someone else has begun to notice they they have pardoned sin and accepted it as if God doesn't tell us to rebuke those kinds of things. It's really sad to see people getting banned for speaking the truth of the gospel just because it doesn't serve their purposes.
I'm so sorry you (and others) have had such an awful experience.
Thank you very much! It's encouraging to hear that from you! From what I understand, it's always been like that, sadly, and it is terrible to see a community claim the name of Christ yet be so open to sin at best and outright encouraging it - if not demanding it - at worst.
But still, at the end of the day, to use a Mike Winger quote that stuck with me, "remember: the gospel isn't in danger; the person is". They can control the community as much as they want, they can deceive themselves and others as much as they can, but they cannot change God and they will never affect the truth. Blocking people for challenging them on it with Scripture only proves they'd rather hide from the truth than stand up for it.
It brings to mind these verses, which speak into that futility but also encourage us to respond with love and prayer for them:
"If anyone causes one of these little onesâthose who believe in meâto stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come!"
(Matthew 18:6-7)
"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lordâs people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for Godâs wrath, for it is written: âIt is mine to avenge; I will repay,â[Deut. 32:35] says the Lord. On the contrary:
âIf your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.â [Prov. 25:21-22]
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
(Romans 12:9-21)
"Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lionâs mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
(2 Timothy 4:14-18)
Honestly, dont be afraid to say what the gosple says. If ppl in that group get so easily offended then thats their problem, but its mot a crime to simply say what the gosple says. Afterall, last time you did it brought me to the lord! And Ive seem the fruits of that.
Thanks, friend! My conviction was and is the gospel first, which comes before any man-made law, as any commission from God naturally should. I can't tell you how glad it makes me that my witness was helpful to you on your journey!
Still, to update you, this did result in comments getting removed with no justification other than a lazy "Off-topic":
And later, despite doing nothing other than posting comments of this nature, passively posting Bible verses with a little commentary attached, I was banned from that 'Christian community' without warning:
Let me say again: I was banned from a so-called 'Christian' community primarily for quoting the Bible.
When you truly worship God, you understand the heirarchy. Like in a workplace, if you get conflicting orders from your boss and your boss's boss, and you've explained the disparity to both of them and they both double down, which one do you listen to? You listen to your boss's boss of course, the one higher up the heirarchy who has the power to fire both you and the one whose orders you follow.
You should respect the authority of your Bible teacher, but it doesn't come before God's. You should respect the authority of your pastor, but it doesn't come before God's. You should respect the authority of your Tumblr community guidelines, but they don't come before God's. Any Christian who has given their life to Jesus, who would be willing to lay their life down for him, knows this. So what does it say that the Christian community moderators don't?
"Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him." (John 12:25-26)
"Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, âThe scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice." (Matthew 23:1-3)
The Christian community on Tumblr prides itself on being the largest, but its priority for popularity is its undoing. It loosens the definition of 'Christian' in order to be as inclusive as possible, to the point of censoring the Bible and silencing actual Christianity.
Conformity to the world is not Christianity. Vengeful spite is not Christianity. Silencing the voices of your opponents is not Christianity.
That community is not a Christian community.
That was why it needed the gospel, which was why I went there and was, by the grace of God, able to be of help to people like yourself for a time! But it was also why it didn't want to hear the gospel, why I was kicked out and why, from what I've heard, there's been a crash out taking place there, furiously demanding everyone fall in line or get the same treatment.
So yeah, that's the latest! But feel free to keep up with me in one of the other Christian communities, including the Bible Study one that I run! In the meantime, I'm still praying for that community and its members! And for you as well!
"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."
2 Timothy 3:16-17, NIV
This passage is the namesake of my account, so I wanted to do (what will hopefully be) a quick devotional on it. [EDIT: It wasn't.] This is only a couple of verses near the end of what's believed to be Paul's final letter, but how crucially we take this short passage can't be understated. It affects how we read, study and understand the Bible, which by extension affects our Christian understanding and identity.
God-Breathed
Starting with the titular segment, other translations may say 'inspired' or 'breathed out', but "God-breathed" is perhaps the most straightforward way to translate "theopneustos", which appears only once in the entire Bible: this verse. It combines Theos with pneustos, the former meaning 'God' and the latter meaning 'breath/wind/spirit/etc.'
Ultimately, the meaning isn't hard - Scripture is divine. The term affirms that God didn't pen each stroke of ink or bequeath the documents from heaven like a loot drop. They were written by mankind, but their place in the Bible is no coincidence. They weren't dependent on lucky success nor limited by human error. What is communicated in the Bible is communicated by God.
All Scripture
All of it is communicated by God, not just direct quotes. We have no excuse for making exceptions. We have no right to cherry-pick the Bible. By God's authority, the entire Bible should be regarded as of his word.
It's funny, you can almost try to argue that if you make an exception for this verse, you're then free to make exceptions for the whole Bible, like God is testing us. The problem is of course that we find ourselves rejecting the word or assertion of Paul, who wrote half the NT, in his last letter when he was at his most experienced, which in the first place undermines Paul's entire reliability despite multiple records of Jesus personally stepping in to choose Paul on the road to Damascus, as well as Peter affirming the authority of Paul's letters in 2 Peter 3:15-16.
Ultimately though, this is a principle, like much in the Bible, that makes sense of the whole when applied. Jesus quoted the OT with a tenth of his dialogue in the Gospels and the NT reaffirms reliance on God's word in verses like Romans 15:4 and Hebrews 4:12. The more you see each and every book as one big story with one ultimate message for us, the more you see the full scope of God's wisdom laid out before you. Scripture is our ultimate tool for discerning truth because it has God's stamp of approval on it. All of it.
Useful/Thoroughly Equipped
Interesting word, right? "Useful". Other translations say things like 'profitable' or 'beneficial'. But not 'essential' or 'necessary' or even 'needed'. So what, the Bible is good but it's optional? Is that the takeaway?
Well, in one sense (and stay with me on this) yes, technically we don't need to read a word of the Bible to become a Christian or live life as a Christian. We can follow the faith in other ways, such as by learning and committing ourselves to the gospel at church, or by being ministered to by friends or missionaries (Romans 10:14-17). The early church used Scripture in their evagelism (Acts 17) but it wasn't the core tool of spreading the gospel as much as the message itself.
However, that isn't the point of this passage. Paul is encouraging believers to apply Scripture to various forms of growth (that we'll get onto in a second) which are all in service of being "thoroughly equipped". We're not to take this meaning as an excuse to live life without looking deeper into God's word - quite the opposite!
The Bible has no shortage of instructions on seeking what is good and/or lawful (Luke 6:45, John 15:14, Romans 12:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:21, Titus 2:1+3:1, 3 John 1:11), but how do we know what is good? How does that help us? (Romans 7 is a good chapter on this subject.)
The fact that Scripture is beneficial to us is exactly why we should seek it out, live it out and take it as seriously as if God is saying those words to us in person, directly. for our benefit. Because in a sense, he is. How else are we to be 'thoroughly equipped' in order to fight the fight and run the race that is following Jesus?
Teaching/Training
I could come up with another ten paragraphs going over why Bible study groups study the Bible in groups and why God's church gather together to study God's word, but I feel like that would be redundant, yeah?
Only thing I will say is this: be incredibly wary of anyone who tries to teach Christianity but doesn't use the Bible. The Bible stresses caution about encountering false teachers multiple times, especially in the NT, even just one chapter prior to this very passage! This is why (again, using the 'useful' wisdom we gain from Scripture) we are taught that we'll know them "by their fruit".
The Bible teaches us how people ought to teach and what fruits they ought to produce, so let's not try to determine the length of something without bringing our measuring rod.
Rebuking/Correcting
The controversial one! You hear a lot of "the Bible says 'don't judge'," which is a whole in-depth topic for another time, but it gets almost flatly rejected here with just these two words, alongside the usual caveat on that topic of *mind the authority by which you judge, or in this case, by which you rebuke or correct. That authority, as Paul says here, is the Bible.
Rebuking is sometimes necessary, as Scripture acknowledges (like in Matthew 18:15-17 or Titus 3:9-11) as is correction (such as in just about every religious argument Jesus got into or the entire letter of Galatians), and when it's needed, God's word is how we do so correctly.
This is not an excuse to pick any and all fights; some of those verses I've mentioned will make a point of saying to avoid needless conflict. But with God's word as our authority, Scripture is what we should be drawing from and should be following the instruction of to better follow God and to protect people from being misled. We can't afford to be passive. Standing for truth means standing against lies. Scripture helps us know the difference.
Righteousness/Every Good Work
There's no risk of misunderstanding the end goal of Scripture. The ways of the Bible, being God's word, are righteous. Just. True. Good. Put simply, equipping ourselves with what it teaches is spiritually healthy. It aligns us with what God approves of and against what God opposes.
It may feel like I'm stating the obvious here, but again, it cannot be understated: If there's one thing in this life that we cannot afford to do, it's get on the wrong side of God. The Bible teaches us how to avoid that.
And don't miss that last word. Ignoring the 'good' for a moment, this passage is showing how we're to be prepared for "every work". Having established that it's for our own good, let's not forget that studying the Bible is massively helpful in showing how we can apply ourselves towards service, whether it's the service of our own lives, the service of others or the service of God's kingdom.
After all, we are servants:
Servant of God
Who was this passage for in the first place? Who concerns themselves with Scripture? Who affirms the divinity of every book of the Bible? And why would that person use it to train, to teach, to rebuke, to correct or to equip themselves with that knowledge and wisdom?
Because they are a servant of God.
And the person who does not concern themselves with these things is not.
Let's be clear: rejecting the Bible's authority is rejecting God's authority. The Bible isn't the crucial ingredient of salvation but it is the core compendium of every truth a follower of the Christian faith needs to know and learn from. If you don't want to learn from it, you don't want Christ. You don't want God. You don't want to be saved. It is that simple.
So to wrap up this study, I leave you with a challenge:
Who is the God of your life?
If it's Jesus, then do you take the Bible seriously? Do you submit yourself to its authority? Do you want the things he wants, according to the Bible? Do you read the Bible often to apply the reverence that the God of your life deserves? Do you try to understand the things you find confusing or challenging? Do you listen when someone who knows the Bible well gives you an explanation? Do you make it your priority over every other law, rule or worldview that you live by?
If you don't do some of these things, do you want to? Biblical dilligence isn't a necessity, as said earlier, but would you prefer to be better equipped in your faith than not?
If you don't do any of those things, are you sure Jesus is the God of your life?
I'm Christian and bisexual. King James I was Christian and bisexual.
How do you define your bisexuality? Is it something you know is wrong and struggle with or is it something you believe is right and proudly wear like a badge? Depending on your answer, I'm sorry, but you're probably not a Christian:
"No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other." (Matthew 6:24)
"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:22-24)
Made new "in the attitude of your minds". If your attitude towards bisexuality is that it's something God approves of, it's not:
"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
"And such were some of you". These identities are things we're meant to give up as they're contrary to God's nature. Our attitude has to be one of surrender and acceptance that our old self has to die for the sake of being born again in God's new self for us.
It's okay if that's hard or a struggle; it's even to be expected. But it is something we need to push for. If we lie back and embrace sinful identities, bisexuality included, we are giving into "deceitful desires". We're compromising on the gospel by refusing to repent. Anyone who does that isn't a Christian, no matter who they are or how much they want to be one, even King James I (though I won't speak into the question of if he was saved or not - that's between him and God).
