Tag Archives: Understanding scripture

Understanding scripture: How many times must I forgive?

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During a recent ‘on the spot interview’ my wife and I were asked, “What advice would you give to someone considering marriage?” My wife quickly responded that you have to be willing to forgive, sometimes repeatedly; that marriage is a 100/100, not a 50/50 deal. (Hmm, I wonder why THAT came to her mind right away?)

 

Of course, she’s right. Marriage, and all close relationships, requires repeated forgiveness. You’ve been in this situation, haven’t you? You said or did something or you DID’NT say or do something that ended up hurting someone else.

 

Forgiveness is not only vital to the health of a marriage, it is essential to genuinely following Jesus. He not only talked the talk, He walked it too! In Matthew 6, He gives us an example of how to pray. We call it The Lord’s Prayer.

“And forgive us our debts (sins), as we also have forgiven our debtors (those who sin against us)” V12

 

To emphasize His point He quickly adds a promise and a warning:
“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Vs 14-15

 

Later…

“Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” Matthew 18:21-22

 

So to keep on the right side of things all we have to do is run the math, 7 X 70, and forgive someone up to 490 times, right? After that we can write the transgressor off and say, “No more buddy! I’m done with you!” Actually, that wasn’t what Jesus was saying at all. Rather, He was saying that forgiveness, like loving and believing, is an ongoing process that we keep on repeating. It has no end. It becomes who we are.

 

Whoa, you might be thinking no one deserves that many chances! From a human perspective, I might agree…EXCEPT, when I consider how many times I’VE had to come to God asking forgiveness for MY sins. How about you? Talking about running the math, what if you and I sin only once a day; 365 times a year?  I don’t know about you but that’s a pretty low estimation for me! Over 10 years, that is 3,650 times; over 20 years, 7,300 times; over 40 years, 14,600 times.

 

But the point isn’t the number of times we sin or ask forgiveness. The real understanding of these passages is that forgiveness is a continuous and integral part of being like Jesus. In fact, if we choose to NOT forgive someone, we are really choosing to NOT be like Jesus. To disobey Jesus is to set ourselves up as the Lord of our life. I know how that isn’t working well for me…how about you? Ask God to search your heart and reveal where forgiveness is needed. Then clear the path for restoration in your life.

 

 

Understanding “I can do all things”

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We cling to favorite verses, especially those that offer us comfort, strength, and hope. But real comfort and strength come from right understanding. To borrow from the field of photography, there are two ‘tools’ that help us understand scripture. One is a ‘wide angle lens’ that allows us to see the bigger picture. Another is a ‘zoom lens’ that allows us to examine a verse close up in more detail. Both look at verses in the context of their setting. As a single sentence fits within a paragraph, and a paragraph within a chapter, the single verse that we carry as a banner has contextual meaning that might be different from what you think it does.

 

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

 

Have you sometimes been tempted to think this means you will have supernatural abilities to accomplish impossible tasks on your to-do list? Or that, with enough faith you won’t be troubled by the excruciating pressures of life?  God might grant you supernatural strength to lift a car off an injured person or to achieve some other formidable task. But this is not the general meaning of this verse.

 

Looking at the bigger picture through our wide-angle lens, we see this verse set in the context of Paul’s letter to his beloved church in Philippi. The theme of his letter is of living in the joy of following Jesus. A sub theme in chapter four where we find this verse is encouragement to remain steadfast in faith and to pursue unity with others. Looking closer with our ‘zoom’ lens, we find the context of this particular verse, found in the verses that precede it:

 

“I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

 

Paul gives thanks to the church for their gifts and concern. He also explains why he is not in need: Because he has learned the secret of being content, regardless of having plenty or nothing. The secret is that his circumstances do not determine his outlook. He can maintain this outlook because he regards all things as loss compared to knowing Jesus. (Chapter 3)

 

None of us will ever be fully content pursuing our own personal gains and ambitions. But we can learn and apply the secret of being content in difficult circumstances by pursuing Jesus above everything else, with the very strength He gives through His Spirit who lives in you. Being able to be content in all things is a measure of faith in God verses faith in self. Got the “secret?”

 

 

Understanding “For I know the plans I have for you”

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‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.’ Jeremiah 29:11

 

The bible is about you. But it’s not all about you.

 

Be assured, the Word of God IS applicable to your life. But it really about God, the history – His Story – of love and redemption, the story of who God is and how He reveals Himself to us and through us. It is indeed the unfolding of His great plan to save the world for His glory.

 

When we inscribe this ‘famous’ verse from the book of Jeremiah onto every greeting card, let’s think about what it means.

 

One interpretation could say, whatever problem you are facing, don’t worry. Got cancer? No worries; God will heal you. Are finances in distress? No problem; God will make it better. Going through a difficult or uncertain chapter of your life? He will ‘prosper’ you with a happy ending. The problem with this interpretation is that Jeremiah 29:11 had nothing to do with our temporary trials.

 

Jeremiah wrote to Jerusalem exiles who had lost everything! They were condemned to live in a foreign land where they would be exiled for 70 years. Think of it. A 70 year exile meant many of them would die in their plight. For some, their children would die there too. God’s promise of “a hope and a future” was a stamp of assurance that His will would prevail and future generations would prosper from it. It wasn’t a guarantee of the fulfillment of everyone’s personal dreams and ambitions.

 

Does this mean that God is unaware of or ambivalent to our woes? Absolutely not. God does have a plan for you and it is a good plan for your hope and future. It might not pan out exactly how you would like. Your pain might continue. Your disease might not be healed. Your relationships might not be restored. Your financial house might fall.

 

But. . .

 

He is the one who created you, who knows your heart better than you know yourself. He who gave His only Son to rescue us while we were so undeserving of such a gift. God is the author of compassions that are new every morning. It is He who offers us amazing grace and allows His Holy Spirit to live in those who believe in His Son. He is the great promise keeper and truth teller, the one who never abandons us, who strengthens and equips us. It is He who makes you more than a conqueror and who has written your name forever in the Lamb’s Book of Life if you believe in Jesus. Do you think that He who did not spare His own Son would not also give you all things?

 

God may answer your prayers exactly as you ask. But even if His answer extends beyond your life, He has a plan that give you great hope and a future…a great plan!

 

 

Understanding scripture: “The love of money”

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Is money the root of all evil?

 

We would be well advised to have our thoughts and actions transformed by what the bible says. But I wonder how often we are transformed by what we mistakenly THINK it says. For example, this verse is a frequently misquoted one. What 1 Timothy 6:10 actually says is “the LOVE of money is a root of all kinds of evils.” In this chapter Paul is telling Timothy to adhere to the sound instruction of Jesus. He warns against false teachers who seek personal gain over understanding, teachers who love to seek controversies and quarrels that end in “envy, strife, malicious talk, and constant frictions between people…who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.” (v 4-5) His beef is with preachers and teachers who use the gospel as a pretense for personal worldly profit.

 

Paul asserts that “godliness with contentment is great gain….those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.” (v 6 and 9)

 

It is in this context that Paul warns: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” (v 10)
The rich young ruler was dismayed after talking with Jesus, not because he had too much money, but that it was more important to him than seeking God.

 

But the problem is much larger than money or even the love of it. The root of evil that Paul warns against is desiring and trusting everything else more than God. We say, of course I love God, but I just NEED to have (insert your own heart’s desire). This is the root that grew out of the Garden of Eden after Adam and Eve decided to trust their own thinking instead of trusting God. Money, food, clothes, jobs… none of these things are evil in their own accord. They are each necessities to some sort and in fact, useful for the advancement of the gospel when used according to God’s plan.

 

Money is not the root of all evil. It is the love of money – and everything else we value more than our relationship with God – that is the root of all kinds of evil.

 

Enjoy the good life God intended for you, a life of contentment and freedom from the slavery to things.

 

 

Understanding “You will always have the poor”

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“You will always have the poor among you . . .” – Mark 14:7

 

I think that if a verse of scripture is short enough to fit on a bumper sticker, it is most likely to be misunderstood.

 

Sometimes I have heard this verse interpreted to say that we shouldn’t be concerned about poverty. “Why bother? There are always so many poor people that it is a winless battle!” But is that really what Jesus was saying in this passage? Real understanding comes from examining the context.

 

So what was Jesus saying in this passage? The immediate context shows us that Jesus was defending a woman criticized of anointing him with expensive perfume that could otherwise have been sold and the money given to the poor. Jesus replies, “The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them anytime you want. But you will not always have me.” His focus is on honoring her faith and worship of him, not of diminishing the importance of giving to the poor.

 

In the larger context of this passage, Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 15 which commands Israelites to cancel all debts every seven years. Some people harbored thoughts of contempt, not wishing aid the needy when all debts were about to be canceled. The writer says, “There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open-handed toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.“ (v 11) He wasn’t saying be apathetic to their cause. Quite the opposite, he was commanding the people to give generously to their plight, particularly at an ‘inconvenient’ time when there would assuredly be no repayment.

 

In vs 4-5 of Deuteronomy 15 we are told, “there need be no poor people among you. . . if only you fully obey the Lord your God.” Did you catch that? Do you believe what God’s Word says…that if we all did our part, there would be no poor among you? Edward Everett Hale said it this way:

 

“I am only one; but still I am one. I cannot do everything; but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.”

 

May our lives be living testimony that worship of the one true God compels us to obey His command to “be open-handed” to our fellow man, not just giving them a handout but rather a helping hand, in the same compassion that Jesus showed us.