Thinking to Believe

For many years this proverb has been misinterpreted, probably because the KJV translates it “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” What we typically hear preached from this verse is that a church must have a long-term goal and plan if they wish to thrive rather than perish. That may be good advice, but that’s not the meaning of this proverb.

The word vision does not refer to one’s ability to formulate future goals and plans, but is a synonym for the prophetic word which comes from God’s prophets.

“Perish” has also been misunderstood.  It’s not referring to churches that will cease to exist if they don’t have a vision, or to the spiritual perishing of unbelievers who will perish in hell if the church does not get a vision for the lost.  The word means “to cast off all restraint.”  The point of the Proverb, then, is that when there is no prophetic word from God to guide the people, they will cast off all moral restraint and follow their own evil devices.

Keep it in context….

Let the peace of Christ be in control in your heart (for you were in fact called as one body to this peace), and be thankful. (Colossians 3:15)

We have often interpreted this verse in an individualistic fashion to mean that each Christian should have peace in our heart.  This verse is even appealed to in support of the teaching that intrapersonal peace in our heart is a means by which we discern God’s will for our life.  Is this what Paul was conveying?  Let’s look at the context. (more…)

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God… (1 John 4:1a)

… for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:4b)

Portions of 1 John 4:1-6 are often cited in discussions of spiritual warfare.  John’s admonition to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God” (4:1) is cited as evidence that we need to exercise spiritual discernment to distinguish between angelic and demonic spirits, or even good and bad human spirits.  “Greater is he who is in you than he who is in the world” (4:4b) is typically quoted in the context of overcoming the Devil.  But are these passages being interpreted correctly?  Are they referring to spiritual warfare?  To find out, let’s look at the context. (more…)

I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

Some have called this the Superman verse.  People invoke it to say that they can do anything and everything, as long as Christ is giving them the ability to do it.  It’s a great motivational verse.  As great as that message sounds, it’s not what Paul meant when you read the verse in its context.

I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. ¹¹ Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. ¹² I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. ¹³ I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:10-13)

Ben Witherington observes that the Greek does not say “do.” The only verb in the Greek is ischuo, which means “to be able, strong, healthy, valid, powerful.”  A literal rendering of the verse is “I am able all things in Him who empowers me.”  Read literally, it doesn’t make any sense.  Able to do what?  The helping verb is missing, and can only be supplied by the surrounding context.

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See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled. (Hebrews 12:15)

The way I have typically heard this verse explained, the author is warning against the spiritual danger of harboring personal bitterness.  Indeed, the Contemporary English Version interprets it this way in their “translation”: “Make sure that no one misses out on God’s wonderful kindness. Don’t let anyone become bitter and cause trouble for the rest of you.”  Is that what the author meant to convey?  Let’s look at the context. (more…)

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)

This passage is typically used to teach that God will use the bad things that happen to us in life to bring about some future blessing (financial, relational, ministerial, etc.).  Some go so far as to teach that each instance of suffering has a corresponding blessing attached to it.  Let’s look at the context.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. ²⁹ For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. ³⁰ And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (Rom 8:28-30)

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See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:8)

On its face, these words of Paul to the church at Colossae appear to denigrate philosophy.  For that reason, this verse has been one of the favorite verses by anti-intellectuals and those opposed to the study of philosophy.  Philosophy, they say, is the not just worthless, but dangerous to the Christian faith.  This would be a gross misreading of the text, however.  We must pay attention to the qualifications Paul made concerning his indictment of philosophy. (more…)

[A]nd you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:32)

This phrase adorns the buildings and statues on many college campuses.  The message is that knowledge of the truth will liberate one’s mind.  While that may be true, is that what Jesus was trying to communicate in John 8:32?  Let’s take a look at the context. (more…)

Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead. (Philippians 3:13)

If I had a dollar for every message I heard using this verse to encourage people to forget the bad things that have happened in their past and to look forward to what God will do in their future, I would be rich.  While there is wisdom in this approach to life, that was not Paul’s point in this passage.  Let’s look at the context. (more…)

There are four passages in the OT that speak of God “visiting the iniquity of the fathers unto the third and fourth generations of those who hate God”: Exodus 20:5; 34:7; Numbers 14:18; Deuteronomy 5:9.  Deuteronomy 5:9 is probably the most familiar:

You shall not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.

Many interpret these passages to teach “generational curses”: curses on the children resulting from their fathers’ sins. There are whole ministries dedicated to helping people break free from these generational curses over their lives, many of which they may have no knowledge of. Is this the point of the passage? Does it really mean to convey the idea that God punishes the children for the sins of their fathers?  There are three good reasons to think not.

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There are two passages in the Gospel of Matthew where Jesus speaks of “binding” and “loosing”:

I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:19)

Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 18:18)

I have heard two different types of interpretations of these passages.  The first understands this to give power to the church leadership (whether at the level of the local pastor or the denomination as a whole) to legislate on matters not addressed (or not sufficiently clear) in Scripture.  This often gets applied to morally questionable practices.  For example, some Christians think it is morally wrong to wear jewelry while others think it is morally acceptable.  To settle the dispute, a pastor will either “bind” the issue by prohibiting the use of jewelry among his congregants, or will “loose” the issue by allowing it.  Whatever the pastor binds or looses on earth is also bound or loosed in heaven, so to disobey or contradict the pastor is to disobey God Himself.

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The go-to passage for prayer groups and prayer meetings across the globe is Jesus’ words in Matthew 8:19-20:

Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. ²⁰ For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

The common interpretation of this passage is that Jesus is present when two or three believers have gathered and agree together in prayer concerning any matter.  Even when I subscribed to this interpretation, I always had the nagging question about the implications this had for praying alone.  Is God not present when you are praying by yourself?  I resolved that perhaps God was present in a special way when more people were gathered.  The power of unity, right?

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There are few charges Americans dread more than “being judgmental.”  It ranks as one of the worst of the new “secular sins.”  But what exactly is judging?  The way it has come to be understood in common parlance is considering someone’s beliefs or behavior to be wrong.  Both Christians and non-Christians alike commonly quote Jesus saying “Do not judge lest you be judged” as their moral authority for their brand of non-judgmentalism, but did Jesus mean it’s wrong to tell others they are wrong?

If Jesus’ prohibition on judging means it’s wrong to tell others their beliefs or behavior is wrong, then Jesus Himself is both judgmental and hypocritical.  If it’s wrong to tell others that they are wrong, then Jesus was wrong to tell those people that what they are doing is wrong.  When our understanding of “judging” leads us to conclude that Jesus is a hypocrite, we ought to reconsider whether Jesus defined judging the way we do.

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“For as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”  I’ve heard this quoted many times to make the point that you are what you think.  Or shall I say misquoted?  That’s not what the text actually says, nor what it means.  Here’s the passage in context, in three different translations:

Do not eat the bread of a selfish man, or desire his delicacies; ⁷ For as he thinks within himself, so he is.  He says to you, “Eat and drink!” But his heart is not with you. ⁸ You will vomit up the morsel you have eaten, and waste your compliments. (Prov 23:6-8, NASB)

Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his delicacies; ⁷ for he is the kind of person who is always thinking about the cost.  “Eat and drink,” he says to you, but his heart is not with you. ⁸ You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments. (Prov 23:6-8, NIV)

Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy; do not desire his delicacies, ⁷ for he is like one who is inwardly calculating. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, but his heart is not with you. ⁸ You will vomit up the morsels that you have eaten, and waste your pleasant words. (Prov 23:6-8, ESV

The first thing to notice in all three translations is that it doesn’t read “a man” as in any person (as one might infer from the KJV), but rather “he.”  It has a specific kind of person in mind.  What kind of person is that?  A stingy person.  Solomon is warning against duplicitous, selfish people who have their own interests in mind, but act as if they care about you.  They are not showing you their true hand.  Their heart doesn’t match their words.  Outwardly they pretend to be generous, but inwardly are stingy.

While one may be what they think (or conversely, think according to what they are), that’s not the point of Proverbs 23:7.

Keep it in context….

A concept commonly advocated in conservative, holiness-minded churches is “dying to the flesh.”  And invariably, while preachers are advocating denying worldly lusts and choosing righteousness, they will appeal to Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 15:31 that he “dies daily” (KJV).  I’ve heard this interpreted to mean we need to make a choice every day to submit our will to God’s or to deny worldly lusts.  Some even cite it in the context of prayer and fasting (i.e. those practices will cause you to die out to your flesh desires on a daily basis).  When Paul penned those words, was he talking about sacrificing our will to God?  Did he have prayer and fasting in mind?  Let’s look at those words in context: (more…)

How many items is this verse on at your local Bible bookstore?:

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jer 29:11)

This verse is often proclaimed to be a promise to Christians.  God has a wonderful plan for our future that involves lots of blessings.  Is this truly a promise to us that we won’t experience evil and our future will be peachy?

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In Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians he writes:

“[God] has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

This verse is commonly used to argue that “spiritual” things like prayer, fasting, and spiritual gifts are more important than reading the Bible.  I’ve often heard it quoted to me by people who are opposed to formal theological education.  After all, Paul said too much focus on the “letter” will kill you spiritually.  Is this right?

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