“The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. The king spoke, saying to the wise men of Babylon, ‘Whoever reads this writing, and tells me its interpretation, shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold around his neck; and he shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.’ Now all the king’s wise men came, but they could not read the writing, or make known to the king its interpretation” (Daniel 5:7-8 NKJV).

The packet of long slender bread rolls purchased in a supermarket in Khulna, Bangladesh was clearly labeled “hot duck bread.” After searching in vain for some hot ducks with which to eat it, we came to the conclusion that what was intended was “hot dog buns” (or bread). As is so often observed, much is often lost in translation.

Our understanding of the Bible is undeniably affected by the necessity of translation. Even those who have the opportunity and ability to learn the original languages in which Scripture was written (primarily Hebrew and Greek) labor with the hardship of working with a “second language,” with which relatively few become truly fluent. The vast majority of Bible readers must think in a language other than that in which the concepts of Scripture were first revealed.

This is not an insurmountable difficulty. Jesus and the apostles, whose native tongue was almost certainly Aramaic, seem to have worked primarily with the Septuagint – the Old Testament translated into the Greek language. The great theologians of the early centuries of Christianity were primarily Latin speakers, though some were obviously multi- lingual. Some great preachers and Bible scholars of modern times are limited in fluency with the Biblical languages. These facts have not denied us access to revealed truths, nor have they made the Bible any less the Word of God, written for us (Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:11).

The necessity of translation however does introduce possibilities of misunderstanding that we must acknowledge and work diligently to avoid. Words in different languages rarely have the identical range of meanings. Idiomatic phrases, grammatical constructions peculiar to a particular tongue, and other idiosyncrasies produce disparate meanings.

How does the sincere seeker of truth deal with these difficulties? There are many tested methods which give assurance of sound interpretation. First, choose a standard, well-established translation, which begins with the text in its original languages. For serious study of difficult passages, read and compare multiple translations, not just to choose which meaning one likes best, but to assure that all possible interpretations are presented. Only after determining this may one then compare other passages of the Bible and one’s knowledge of the overall Biblical purpose to determine the true interpretation.

Someone has said that the most important translation of the Bible is that into one’s life, rather than into one’s language. Here, too, there may be difficulties of expression. Each one’s efforts to apply Scriptural truth will be to some degree imperfect. Each will make mistakes. Does that invalidate the “translation”? Not at all. God has promised his patience and mercy, forgiving us of our sins, if we continue to repent and strive for perfection (1 John 1:8-2:2).

Just as I can find hot dog buns in a strange country, in spite of imperfect labeling, so can we see the influence of Jesus in imperfect Christians. Let us continue to work to achieve perfection, but let us also rely on the grace of God, and the patience of other Christians. “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).

–Michael E. Brooks @ forthright.net

In the book “The Hobbit” by JRR Tolkein, Bilbo Baggins meets Gollum for the first time. Bilbo is lost and needs to find his way out of Gollum’s cave. Gollum will show him the way out if he can answer a riddle.  The riddle is this:

This thing all things devours,
Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;
Gnaws iron, bites steel;
Grinds hard stone to meal;
Slays king, ruins town,
And beats high mountain down.

Bilbo is stumped.  Do you know the answer?  Take a moment to try to figure it out before looking at the answer below.

The answer to the riddle is “time”.  It’s so true.  Time will devour all living things, as well as everything else.  If you live long enough, you can see some of the effects of time.  Drive through a rural area sometime and take a look at the barns, sheds and possibly even houses that are deteriorated with time.  What you see there is taking place all around you.  Some things perish quickly (maybe even were designed to do so).  Other things, like the great Egyptian pyramids, seem to stand the test of time.  But, given enough time, everything will crumble.  And when Jesus returns, we’ll be made aware of just how temporary the the things of this life are.

“All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass.  The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the LORD endure forever.” (I Peter 1:24-25).

Alan Smith

I’m thinking about debt, specifically America’s debt.

The United States currently spends 3 million dollars every 60 seconds. Our national indebtedness now exceeds $14 trillion dollars. No, not million, not billion, but trillion. That’s a thousand billion; that’s a one followed by 12 zeros times 14. Try to visualize the amount, then take three Tylenol and lie down./1

It’s impossible for me to wrap my brain around this figure. Politicians evidently don’t have that problem. They pass out, hand out, and give away tax dollars like doggy treats in an overcrowded kennel. That’s not intended as a political statement; it’s simply fact.

The one question that haunts me and many of my fellow- citizens is, “How do we pay this off?” I mean, do we have a big, national yard sale? Should all of us work a couple of extra jobs to earn extra cash? Should we start a new national diet plan of rice and beans? Exactly how do we pay off $14 trillion dollars? Forgive my sarcasm.

Jesus talked about a man who had a serious debt problem. Study the following:

“…The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. But..he was not able to pay…” (Matthew 18:23-25) [emphasis mine-mb].

At first glance, ten thousand doesn’t sound too terrible. Granted, it’s a big number, but it doesn’t sound impossible–at least not like $14 trillion. But do a little background Bible study and you’ll discover how much the servant the servant actually owed.

In the ancient Roman currency system, a denarius was a small silver coin. It was the most common coin produced for circulation. In New Testament times, it was a day’s wage (Matthew 20:2) for common labor. By contrast, a talent was equal to 6,000 denarii. Now remember, the servant in Jesus’ story owed ten thousand talents.

Break out your calculator, do a little number- crunching, and you’ll discover that it would have taken him more than 164,000 years to pay off his debt to the king (that’s before he paid on his mortgage, car payment, electric bill, insurance, gas, and then bought groceries.)

No wonder the Bible says, “…He was not able to pay…” That’s like asking a modern-day factory worker, making just above minimum wage, to try to pay off $14 trillion! It’s impossible (cf. Matthew 18:26.)

Jesus really wasn’t talking so much about money in His parable as He was about sin. The truth is, each of us- like the servant-is in debt up to our eyeballs, spiritually speaking. Romans 3 says, “…all have sinned…” (v. 23), Luke 7 says that sin is a type of debt (vv. 41-42), while Romans 6 says, “…the wages of sin is death…” (v. 23.)

Brethren, pay attention–this debt is far worse than America’s financial crisis! Each of us owes an insurmountable amount (1 John 1:7-10.), and none of us can pay it off. It’s incalculable. The debt is just too high. We all have to file for spiritual bankruptcy!

The good news is that Jesus paid it all-on Calvary (Ephesians 1:7; 1 Corinthians 15:3; Hebrews 7:27; 1 Peter 1:18-19.) The entire debt has been cancelled!!

The next time you’re sitting in worship and partaking of the Lord’s Supper, remember–-THE DEBT’S BEEN PAID–IN FULL.

“He paid a debt He did not owe, I owe a debt I could not pay-I needed someone to wash my sins away. I now can sing a brand new song, ‘Amazing Grace.’ Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay.”

1/ www.pagetutor.com/trillion/index.html

—- Read this article online, write your reaction, and read others’ comments as well. Click here: http://tinyurl.com/3qbklt5

by Mike Benson

Do you use an Android smartphone?  If so, there is now a free “daily devotional app” from www.abiblecommentary.com.

This app allows users to quickly access the Monday-Friday devotional posts which you may now be accessing through a RSS feed.

You may find this new daily devotional app by looking for “abiblecommentary” or “daily devotional” in the Android market place.

with a Biblical emphasis and would like these to be distributed as widely as possible, please get in touch with me.  I now have an app in the Android marketplace that opens up a whole new field of people to reach with the gospel and am open to receiving sound materials to use in the app world.

If you would like to see this app in action, search for “abiblecommentary” or “daily devotional” in the Android market.

Frank Outlaw composed these motivating and thought provoking words:

“Watch your thoughts; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions, they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.”

What wise words.  And they are so very true.  Whatever people think about is what they will say, do, and become.  This concept is phrased very well, but this thought is not original to Frank Outlaw.

Jesus said in Matthew 12:34-35, “You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good?  For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.  The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil. ”

1 Samuel 24:13 says, “As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘Out of the wicked comes forth wickedness’….”

We see statements like these throughout Scripture (Proverbs 19:3; Isaiah 32:6; 59:7; Matthew 15:18; Luke 6:43-45; Ephesians 4:29; etc).  Clearly we need to be thinking about the focus of our thoughts.  In other words, we need to be careful what we are thinking and what runs through our minds.  Why?  Because our thoughts have such a huge impact on our lives that it could end up being the difference between remaining faithful or falling away into sin.

So often I hear people use vulgar language, tell twisted and impure jokes, talk about immoral things, and I am reminded that this is what they fill their minds with and exactly how they think.  Typically, the reason people are angry, hateful, rude, arrogant, etc, is because this is what fills their minds.  If not harnessed, this will eventually form their character and influence where they will spend eternity.

We must take the time to consider what are we thinking about.  Are they pure and kind thoughts, or are they vulgar, immoral, and hateful?  What we think about will end up being what we become.  What do your thoughts say about what you will become?  It is never too late to adjust our thinking.  If nothing else, I hope this will at least give us something to “think” and pray about.

Brett Petrillo

A young private sought permission from his Commanding Officer to leave camp the following weekend.  “You see,” he explained, “my wife’s expecting.”

 
“Oh…” said the Officer, “I understand.  Go ahead and tell your wife that I wish her luck.”

 
The following week the same soldier was back again with the same explanation: “My wife’s expecting.”

The Officer looked surprised.  “Still expecting?” he said, “Well, well, my boy, you must be pretty bothered.  Of course you can have the week-end off.”

When the same soldier appeared again the third week, however, the Officer lost his temper.  “Don’t tell me your wife is still expecting!”he bellowed.

“Yes sir!” said the soldier resolutely, “She’s still expecting.”

“What in the world is she expecting?” cried the Officer.

“Me,” said the soldier simply.

Christians are a people who live in expectation.  We’re expecting that someday all the wrongs of this world will be brought to justice.  We’re expecting that the sufferings of this life will someday be replaced by joys beyond our imagination.  But, most of all, we’re expecting our Lord to return for us and we are anxious for that day to come.  Paul seems to indicate that all of creation is earnestly awaiting the same thing (Rom. 8:19).

“Now when [Jesus] had spoken these things, while [the apostles] watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.  And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.’ ” (Acts 1:9-11)

Are you expecting? — Alan Smith

There is a new book – GAME PLAN – The Sexualization of America – that is a real eye opener.  This is especially true if you have children or grand children.

You may access one chapter of this book for free on line at this link:

http://www.focuspress.org/files/908/File/Game_Plan_Chapter_9.pdf

If you think you know what America is really like, just this chapter may challenge you to rethink your view.

The Bible tells Christians to have “elders” in every congregation (Acts 14:23) because these men provide the leadership in local congregations (1 Tim. 3:5).  The Bible does not, however, describe how these men are selected and installed.  Some of the procedures used by congregations are found below; if you have other suggestions, please use the “comment box” so they can be added for other visitors.

Elder and Deacon Selection Process

The method we have used in the past:
1.     Receive nominations from members of the congregation.
2.     Persons receiving more than 50% of respondents would be contacted to see if they are willing to serve. Any who are clearly not scripturally qualified (such as husband of one wife, or unmarried, without children) will also be dropped from consideration.
3.     A slate of those receiving enough support and who are willing to serve would be announced to the congregation.
4.     Anyone with scriptural objections about an individual could either approach that individual, approach the committee, or put their objection in writing.
5.     If none were dismissed after the objection time, all the men on the slate would be appointed as elders and deacons.

Alternative methods for consideration:
1.     Receive nominations from members of the congregation/ask the congregation to decide on the percentage of affirmation that will be used in the final selection process.
2.     Persons receiving more than 50% of respondents would be contacted to see if they are willing to serve.  Any who are clearly not scripturally qualified (such as husband of one wife, or unmarried, without children) will also be dropped from consideration.
3.     A slate of those receiving enough support and who are willing to serve would be announced to the congregation.
4.     Anyone with scriptural objections about an individual could either approach that individual, approach the committee, or put their objection in writing.
a.     All objections must be in writing and signed by the member.
b.     Objections should be directly or indirectly related to Scripture.
5.     A ballot showing the final slate of candidates will be distributed to the congregation.  The men receiving the beforehand percentage of affirmation will then be appointed as elders and deacons.

–David Owens (Liverpool, New York)

James Bales (The Deacon And His Work, p. 100f) also addressed this topic:  “The Bible does not tell us how deacons are to be selected, and so one cannot affirm that there is only one way to do it.  It should be done in such a way as to harmonize with the Bible instead of contradicting the Bible.  There are some who maintain that they are not selected in any way, but are appointed by the Holy Spirit in that they gradually develop these qualifications and do the work that deacons do.  This is also the way, they assume, that the Spirit made elders.  The Holy Spirit made the elders (Acts 20:28), but Paul here did not say how.  If the Holy Spirit did it directly, there would have been no need for the apostle to have stated the qualifications of elders; or to tell Titus to ‘appoint elders in every city.’  (Titus 1:5).  How would an individual, if he just grows into it, know when he is an elder with authority?  How would the congregation know it?  If an individual claimed that the Spirit had made him an elder, how could anyone refute his claim if the church has nothing to do with the selection and appointment of elders or deacons” (p. 100).

“The Spirit makes men elders and deacons, but He does it through His word and through the church.  First, the Spirit has revealed the qualifications of elder and deacons.  Second, the Spirit through His word enables them to grow, so that they can meet these qualifications.  Third, the Spirit has said that there are to be elders and deacons.  Fourth, since no one has the right to be a dictator over the congregation, and tell them that they must accept so and so as a deacon, regardless of whether he is recognized as being qualified, the congregation should be involved in some way in the selection of the deacons (and elders, BP).  How can deacons serve the church if the church is not convinced that they are qualified; and does not really recognize them as deacons.”

“Since a congregation cannot go to sleep one night without having thought about deacons, and awaken the next morning with deacons serving the church, there must be some way to select and to appoint deacons.  Although the Bible is not specific as to how it is to be done, it does clearly indicate that they are to be selected and appointed, or designated, for this work (Bales, p. 102).  Men must first be qualified for their prospective role as an elder or deacon; men are not installed and “get qualified” with the passing of time.  Part of the process appears to involve the members of a local congregation (see this principle in Acts 6:3).

“Although the apostles authoritatively laid down the qualifications, yet they did not tell the church by what means they were to select the men; or which individuals they were to select.  It is true that the apostles had the final word in that they appointed the men to this work.  if they knew men had been chosen who did not have these qualifications, they would have undoubtedly have rejected these men; for the men were to be selected in the light of the qualifications” (Bales, pp. 109-110).