Here is a good question from a reader and a good answer from J.I. Packer (whom Ron quoted this weekend and whose last name makes me want football to start). If this peaks your interest, look for the class Discovering the Bible later this year.

- Rob

Q: How can I reconcile my belief in the inerrancy of Scripture with comments in Bible translations that state that a particular verse is not 'in better manuscripts'?

The New Testament books first circulated in hand-copied form, and hand-copying by monks went on till Gutenberg invented the printing press in the 15th century. Anyone who has copied by hand knows how easily letters, words, and even whole lines get dropped out or repeated. The New Testament manuscript tradition was not exempt from this.

Also, it is clear that some copyists facing what they thought were miscopyings made what they thought were corrections. Some of these copyists added in the margin amplifying words and sentences that the next copyist put into the text itself, thinking that was where they belonged. Because the copying was done reverently and with professional care, manuscripts vary little overall, except for the occasional slippages of this kind. Manuscript comparison reveals many passages that clearly need correcting at this level of detail.

The King James Version New Testament was translated from the "received text"—the dominant manuscript tradition at the time—and published in 1611. New manuscript discoveries have led to minor adjustments to that text, and where uncertainty remains about exact wording or authenticity, the margins of honest modern versions will tell us so. The New King James, for instance, while still following the received text, notes these things conscientiously as it goes along.

Other things being equal, manuscripts are "better" when they are nearer to the original—that is, earlier in date.

In the New Testament only one word per 1,000 is in any way doubtful, and no point of doctrine is lost when verses not "in better manuscripts" are omitted. (As examples, see Matt. 6:13b, 17:21, 18:11; Mark 9:44, 46, 49, 16:9-20; Luke 23:17; John 5:4; and Acts 8:37.) Such has been God's "singular care and providence" in preserving his written Word for us (Westminster Confession I.viii).

So how does all this bear on the Christian's very proper faith in biblical inerrancy—that is, the total truth and trustworthiness of the true text and all it teaches?

Holy Scripture is, according to the view of Jesus and his apostles, God preaching, instructing, showing, and telling us things, and testifying to himself through the human witness of prophets, poets, theological narrators of history, and philosophical observers of life. The Bible's inerrancy is not the inerrancy of any one published text or version, nor of anyone's interpretation, nor of any scribal slips or pious inauthentic additions acquired during transmission.

Rather, scriptural inerrancy relates to the human writer's expressed meaning in each book, and to the Bible's whole body of revealed truth and wisdom.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. - Ephesians 2:8-10

This was always one of my dad's favorite verses in the Bible because it holds the tension - the "both-and" nature - between grace and works (active faith). Clearly, we are not saved by good works nor by anything from ourselves. It is only by the gift of God which is Christ Jesus.

In this salvation we become free - but free for something, not free for just anything. We become free to be who we were meant to be. That's where the second part of this passage comes into play. We are God's workmanship made for a purpose - to do good works. Not just any good works, but those he prepared in advance for us to do and to which he calls us to join him.

Saved by the gift of grace...through faith in Christ Jesus...for good works. Blessed to be a blessing.

- Rob

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. - Galatians 5:13

Chapter 5 of Galatians is all about a paradox of freedom. We want to be free, but the truth is we human beings will be enslaved by one thing or another. Paul, in this letter, is encouraging the people of Galatia to choose Christ as master rather than sin; these really are the only two choices. Our freedom comes when we submit to Christ who in turn gives us our life and and sets us free from all unrighteousness.

In this particular verse, though, I wanted to point out Paul's prescription for us when we are tempted to use our freedom to indulge in the sinful nature; it is to serve others in love. I found that quite interesting that it is not to fight temptation by trying to "be better and more holy." No, it is very practical - take the focus off of yourself and put it on another by serving him or her in love.

Been struggling? Who could you serve in love today?

-Rob

Have you received any good gifts lately? You know, the kind that are both deeply from the heart of the giver and exactly what you wanted or needed. How about this one?

But when the kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. - Titus 3:4-7

- Rob

My small group just concluded our study of Ephesians.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. - Ephesians 6:13-18

We discussed that while we are told to "put on the armor" we are also told that it is God's armor. All the things listed as armor components are gifts imparted to us and not pieces of armor that WE must construct.

It's as if Paul is saying, "you've been given real truth, salvation, good news, righteousness (the righteousness of Christ), the Word of God, access to Him in prayer; USE IT!" So often we are preoccupied with our insistence on manufacturing our own righteousness that we never put on what God has given us. The result is our vulnerability to the schemes and arrows of our enemy; schemes and arrows intended to wound us, deceive us, and separate us from God, ourselves and one another.

God is our refuge in that he has given us armor to protect us from the harm that WILL come our way. We just need to put it on. Putting it on starts with "truth," for if we do not believe deep in our souls that God loves us, Christ died for us and we are saved, then we will not believe we have the rest of the armor to wear.

- Rob

God is building a home. He's using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he's using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home. - Ephesians 2:20-22 (The Message)

God is building something and, if you have faith in Jesus, you are a part of it. I am a part of it. Your friends here at La Croix and your friends in other Christian churches are part of it. So are the people with faith in Jesus who disagree with you about issues or generally drive you bonkers. God is building something from these various raw materials; setting them on the cornerstone of Jesus and the foundation of the apostles and prophets; the Holy Spirit acting as the mortar that holds it all together.

How do you see the church? As a gigantic, God-residing, metaphorical structure with you as one of many, many, many bricks? This is the "construction" view. Or do you see it as a brick...your brick...surrounded by a bunch of other individual bricks? This is the "deconstruction" view. I say deconstruction rather than destruction because tearing something apart is never my intent when I do this. Rather, I deconstruct the whole into the parts...with my part being the most important.

I ask that question because too often I see the church through deconstuctionist eyes. Though I would never SAY that, I behave exactly that way. When I do this, I crack the mortar and create a small hole. When a bunch of people do this, an entire section of what God is building can become destabilized and vulnerable. Destruction, though never intended, is the outcome.

I pray that God continues to show me where I'm deconstructing rather than cooperating with his construction. I pray that he reveal the same to you.

- Rob Mehner

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. - Ephesians 2:8-9

Many of you know these verses; they are incredibly important for our remembering that God's grace through Jesus Christ and nothing else - nothing we do - makes us reconciled to God. We accept that grace through faith, we don't earn it by our good works.

However, fewer are aware of the very next line of Scripture:

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Now that we have been saved by grace, through faith, we are being recreated in Christ (in his image) specifically to do the good works God intended from the beginning. By grace, through faith, we are saved in a way that moves us to good works.

So we don't earn salvation by good works, but we do use good works - or fruit - in our lives to evaluate our faith in God's saving grace. What does God's workmanship look like in your life?

- Rob

Then, at the evening sacrifice, I rose from my self-abasement, with my tunic and cloak torn, and fell on my knees with my hands spread out to the LORD my God and prayed:
"O my God, I am too ashamed and disgraced to lift up my face to you, my God, because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens. - Ezra 9:5-6

I was reading in Ezra this morning and came across this confession for the people of Israel. They have been granted permission to return to Jerusalem by their captor, the King of Babylon. This turn of events is quite unexpected and miraculous. Yet, as soon as they return to the land, those who have been in captivity disobey the commands of the Lord. Ezra tears his clothes (a sign of shame), fasts, and then unleashes a prayer of confession.

I sometimes think we live in and around sin so much that our confessions are matter of fact as if rebellion and disobedience to the one who created us, redeemed us, loves us and wants the best for us is somehow "no big deal." Ezra knows better...we should too. I encourage everyone to take some time to confess in earnest to the Lord; not just your sins - these weren't actually Ezra's personal sins - but the sins of everything we are a part; family, workplace, city, country. It reminds us of our need for the savior whose birth we just celebrated.

- Rob

My daily reading has me in 2 Chronicles and this morning I read chapters 18-20. I learned a few things from the life of King Jehoshaphat. The first is we should really think through what we name our children. Just kidding.

Though Jehoshaphat is considered a good king, twice (at the beginning of his reign and near the end) he throws in with Kings who are wicked and do not honor God. The first time seems to be for image - he is "enticed" or seduced by flattery. The second time is for fortune. Both occasions end disastrously. The lesson here is that we should not try to advance ourselves through collusion with wickedness. I love these little lessons that allow me to examine my life in different ways.

The second lesson is a positive one. In between these two episodes, we read about foreign peoples combining their armies to invade Judah and Jerusalem. The horde of soldiers will easily overpower Jehosaphat and his people. The king's response is the right one this time. He and all the people come before the God at the temple and pray. The prayer includes this awesome tidbit:

"For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you (God)." - 2 Chronicles 20:12

God answers this prayer and the king and all the people bow before him as the Levites praise and worship him "with a loud voice." I also love when scripture reminds me what to do when I feel powerless against the things that face me.

- Rob



Edited: 12/14/2009 at 2:13 PM by rmehner

As King David moved the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem, he seeks to give God thanks. I thought this appropriate for Thanksgiving week.

That day David first committed to Asaph and his associates this psalm of thanks to the LORD :

Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.

Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.

Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

Look to the LORD and his strength;
seek his face always.

Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,

Sing to the LORD, all the earth;
proclaim his salvation day after day.

Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
he is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the LORD made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and joy in his dwelling place.

Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations,
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength,

ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name.
Bring an offering and come before him;
worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.

Tremble before him, all the earth!
The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved.

Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let them say among the nations, "The LORD reigns!"

Let the sea resound, and all that is in it;
let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them!

Then the trees of the forest will sing,
they will sing for joy before the LORD,
for he comes to judge the earth.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

Cry out, "Save us, O God our Savior;
gather us and deliver us from the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name,
that we may glory in your praise."

Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting.
Then all the people said "Amen" and "Praise the LORD."

1 Chronicles 16:1-12, 23-36

Happy Thanksgiving,
Rob

I was reading 1 Chronicles this morning. In chapters 13-15 there are some incidents that at first seem strange and unrelated, but there is a connection. Rather than post 3 chapters, let me give you a summary.

King David decides, along with counsel from the leaders and people of Israel, to move the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. Everyone feels it is within God's will to do so. However, as they are moving it, one of the oxen stumbles and a guy named Uzzah touches the Ark to steady it and dies. We are told that David is both angry with God and fearful of him. The next thing that happens is that the Philistines come up to make war on David and the Israelites. At each point, David intentionally consults God about what to do next. During one of these times, God even gives him specific instructions about how to battle the Philistines (not just a yes or no, but a distinct method). After these battles, David again decides to move the Ark but this time is sure to follow the original prescriptions from God about the method for moving the Ark.

Here is the connection; in one area of his life (fighting enemies) David recognized the importance of God's input on what to do and how to do it. His lack of dilligence in seeking God's counsel in another area of his life (moving the Ark) put someone in danger and had catastrophic results.

I've definitely had times when I tried to do something God was calling me to do and then found myself mad at and/or frightened of God because of the results. While it could be that my planned outcome was not the outcome God had in mind, it could also be that the way I went about it was my own way and not God's way.

How about you; ever experienced this in your own life?

- Rob Mehner

My Bible reading has me at the end of 2 Kings. Just before the exile to Babylon, an eight year old boy named Josiah comes to the throne. This king, unlike almost all those before him, seeks God. He starts by releasing money from the Temple treasury to skilled laborers so that they can make necessary repairs to God's House. As his representative is picking up money to dole out, he finds the Book of the Law - God's covenental word to his people.

In the eighteenth year of his reign, King Josiah sent the secretary, Shaphan son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, to the temple of the LORD. He said: "Go up to Hilkiah the high priest and have him get ready the money that has been brought into the temple of the LORD, which the doorkeepers have collected from the people. Have them entrust it to the men appointed to supervise the work on the temple. And have these men pay the workers who repair the temple of the LORD - the carpenters, the builders and the masons. Also have them purchase timber and dressed stone to repair the temple. But they need not account for the money entrusted to them, because they are acting faithfully."

Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, "I have found the Book of the Law in the temple of the LORD." He gave it to Shaphan, who read it. Then Shaphan the secretary went to the king and reported to him: "Your officials have paid out the money that was in the temple of the LORD and have entrusted it to the workers and supervisors at the temple." Then Shaphan the secretary informed the king, "Hilkiah the priest has given me a book." And Shaphan read from it in the presence of the king.

When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes. - 2 Kings 22:3-11

After Josiah reads it and repents, he reads it to all the people. It has been years since they have heard God's word in this way and it is apparent how disobedient they and their forefathers have been. Sweeping changes come - including the destruction of all other temples and religious artifacts dedicated to other Gods.

I find it interesting in this story that God's truth and the peoples' transformation is initiated by money being directed God's way. I've experienced that in my own life and I'm not so sure it's not a common phenomenon; when we release our money for God's purposes we discover something new about God (new to us, not new to God).

- Rob

This past weekend, Pastor Ron talked about God's holiness and Isaiah's encounter with this holy God. This scripture, the beginning of Isaiah chapter 6, is one of my favorites. Isaiah comes into the presence of God and as he sees God's holiness, he also becomes aware of his own unholiness; and Isaiah was one of the most righteous guys around in that time! God's response is forgiveness and it is in this environment - a right picture of God's holiness, an honest understanding of his own sinfulness, and the experience of God's mercy - that Isaiah is then able to answer God's call to serve him.

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" - Isaiah 6:8

Serving from any other condition, whether it by obligation or pride, is futile.

- Rob

You received Christ Jesus as Lord. So keep on living in him. Have your roots in him. Build yourselves up in him. Grow strong in what you believe, just as you were taught. Be more thankful than ever before. - Colossians 2:6-7

Just a quick note on the difference between receiving and believing. It is one thing to receive Christ Jesus as Lord - to accept his mercy and forgiveness for our sins. This is like being offered a gift and actually opening the box. But believing is something different; it is like actually playing with or using the gift.

So, using a physical example to represent a spiritual truth, receiving is like accepting the gift of a treadmill and believing is actually running on the treadmill. In our spiritual lives, how are we building ourselves up in Jesus? What are we intentionally doing to grow stong in our faith?

- Rob

But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God. They despised his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after false idols and became false..." - 2 Kings 17:14-15

So often when we talk about disobedience and sin, we focus on what God is going to do about it. But one of the things we need to realize is what occurs in us as a natural consequence. According to this verse, when we chase things other than God, we become "false," or another way of putting it is that we become something we were never intended to become.

- Rob

Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. But when God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone. - Titus 3:3-8

This is an amazing little paragraph of Scripture and it goes well with the messages the last two weeks. God doesn't just save for heaven, he empowers for life; to overcome sin and to tangibly love others through good works. Note...for good works and not because of good works.

- Rob

I've never been a big confrontation guy. In fact, by nature, I'm a laid back optimist which means I too often choose to believe that when something is not right it will just get better. But I've learned over the years that confronting a situation early before it really blows up is a much better way of handling things.

This morning I was reading in 2 Samuel, chapters 13 - 15, and there is a series of dishonest schemes and a complete lack of anyone stepping up and confronting the resulting situations. David's household goes from relative peace to having one daughter raped, one son murdered, another exiled, an army official coercing a woman to trick David into having his exiled son return, that same son plotting a coup de tat and David finally wandering around the countryside barefoot trying to escape. Had any one of these people been confronted and the situation dealt with, things most likely would have been different.

In the context of forgiveness, that we have been talking about, the right kind of confrontation is an important first step. The "right kind" is confrontation that has forgiveness and reconciliation as its ultimate goal (though that may not be possible depending on how things go). The "wrong kind" is simply to brow beat the other person with their wrongdoings as some form of punishment.

It's interesting that in the previous chapter to this section, God confronts King David through Nathan the prophet. But the lesson is missed.

-Rob

As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything.

A group of us were chatting over coffee yesterday and talking about how none of us have the mind of God and therefore cannot possibly understand all the things of God. I've heard it said that trying to do so is like a baby still in the womb trying to understand the world. Can you imagine a baby in the womb trying to imagine mountains and oceans or make complex mathematical calculations? Silly when we think about it, yet we try and try to understand everything about God.

I think it is good for us to seek greater understanding of God, as long as at the beginning of that journey we know we won't figure it all out.

- Rob

I was reading Joshua 9 this morning. In it, a group of people from the land that God has promised to the Israelites use deception to make a covenant with the leaders of Israel. They say that they are from a distant land and have come to be servants to the Israelites. Once the leadership makes the covenant, it is revealed that they are not who they said they were, nor were their motives.

It made me wonder, as I reflected; are there things that have come into my life - activities, beliefs, even people - that I have accepted and made peace with because they seemed benign, but really don't belong there? My prayer afterward was for God to search me and make me aware of anything like that. He's already answered that one!

- Rob Mehner

Proverbs 1 rocks. It has solidified my understanding that the primary way in which God deals with our disobedience and foolishness is to first call us out on it, asking us to turn away from it and back to Him. But if we refuse to listen, he doesn't zap us or grind us into the dirt; he simply let's us have our way and reap what we sow.

Proverbs 1:29-31 says, "Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them."

It is not God who causes their calamity, but their own way, devices, complacency and turning away. This of course is not to say that all of our difficulties or troubles are caused directly by our own sin. Sin has corrupted and broken the good world that God created and that brokenness permeates all aspects of our world. When a tower fell on some men in front of Jesus and the disciples, Jesus said that it was not the result of something the men had done. Things that happen to us are not always the result of something we have done. But, certainly, our disobedience and folly have consequences.

- Rob

Edited: 06/23/2009 at 1:15 PM by rmehner