Will you win, or lose your soul?

Will you overcome the devil?

The New Testament makes it clear that to preserve your soul for eternal life, you must be victorious over the devil (1 Cor. 6; Gal. 5; Rev. 2-3, 21-22). 

How does one overcome the devil? 

Faith in Christ is the main requirement (1 John 5:4-5), which is understandable as the keeping of Christ's commandments and other words (John 15:10-14, Luke 6:46-49 etc.).

Altogether there are seven parts of the armor of God: truth, righteousness, faith, salvation, readiness of the gospel of peace, the sword of the Holy Spirit (which is God's Word), and prayer (Ephesians 6:10-19).

Being led on the paths of righteousness for His name's sake

Everything Christians do must be consistent with the prayer of every Christian: "hallowed be" the name of their Father. It is every Christian's first commitment as a child of God. God's name should be considered to be holy, by everyone. The actions of God's children plays a major role here. 

What happens when a Christian does something that dishonors his or her Father's name? 

This Christian needs to get back onto the paths of righteousness. And that requires understanding how God leads a Christian back onto the paths of righteousness:

(1) Chastizement.
(2) Possibly wrath, if the sin was done willfully.*
(3) Forgiveness, after confession, repentance, restitution to others, and forgiveness of others. 
(4) God's Word, that describes what righteousness is.
(5) God's Holy Spirit, that enables a person to live justly.
(6) Faith and trust in God given to a Christian, so that they continue to believe in their salvation and to work it out through obedience to Christ's words.

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* This is according to one of the possible interpretations of Hebrews 10:26. 

Hearing the stern warnings of Paul to respect Christ's Body

When Christians get ill, do they think about and discuss the warnings given in 1 Corinthians 11:29-32? 

"For the one eating and drinking [wrongfully], eats and drinks judgement on himself, not discerning the body. Because of this, among you are many weak and sickly and a considerable number sleep. Now, if were judging ourselves, we would not judge! Being judged, however, by the Lord, we are chastized, so that we not be condemned with the world."  

One question among many questions to ask about this text is, "what does it mean: 'not discerning the body'?" If one reads the context---chapters 11 and 12, or the whole letter---it is a strong possibility that it is referring to "the body of Christ". Later editions of this text actually have two added words here, perhaps to make that clarification: they read, "not discerning the body of the Lord [tou kuriou]". 

So, what does it mean: to not discern the body of Christ? Again the context gives much support to a particular interpretation. In chapter 11:17-34, Paul has raised a major criticism of the church in Corinth: that when they come together for the Lord's supper, they disregard one another, not sharing their food and drink with one another. This could be "not discerning the body of Christ". One proof that this is the right interpretation is that Paul concludes this argument by saying, "If someone hungers, he must eat at home, so that you do not gather together into judgement" (verse 34a).

If this is correct, then in view of how severe the punishment is for not discerning the body of Christ, we ought to consider how we are properly to discern and respect the body of Christ. One of Scripture's definitions of the body of Christ is given in 1 John 5:1a, "Everyone who is believing that Jesus is the Christ is born of God". In sum, it appears to be the wisest course, to take the Lord's Supper with a heart of regard for all who believe that Jesus is the Christ.

To visit orphans and widows in their tribulation, James 1:27

What does the Christian life look like, according to God's Word?

"Religion pure and undefiled before the God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their tribulation; to keep oneself unstained by the world." (James 1:27)

It would make sense and follow Christ's example to understand "visit orphans and widows" literally and spiritually:
- A "literal" orphan or widow is one who lacks people protecting and helping them.
- A "spiritual" orphan or widow is one who has lost their spiritual relationship with the spiritual Father Almighty in Heaven, and the spiritual husband of the Church, Jesus Christ.

Imagine if every Christian would practice their religion this way: visiting orphans and widows (literal and spiritual ones) in their situation of tremendous difficulty. Let's pray for it for the glory of God in Jesus's name.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Psalm 111:10

This means that without fear of the Lord, a person cannot even begin to be a little wise. 

It also means that a person without fear of God will not make a great discussion partner on the topic of God's merciful rescue through Christ Jesus. If you are preaching the Gospel to people who don't fear God, it would make sense to help them first of all with learning to fear God. 

Why can't a person become even a little wise if they do not fear God? A good explanation is provided in the New Testament, in the Letter to the Romans. Paul describes that God deprives wisdom from those who do not properly honor God. The foolishness and unintelligence of the ungodly is one of 20+ proofs of God's wrath "over all ungodliness and unrighteousness of people, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness", listed in Romans 1:18-31. 

Christians must still honor all people, and all earthly authorities, whether they are godly or ungodly. There is no license to point out any manifestation of unwisdom in for example a government authority, for whom instead Christians are to give thanks, prayers, petitions and intercessions before God (1 Timothy 2:1). 

How can people come to fear God? Recognizing the evidence of God's wrath is a good start. A person lacking fear of God will manifest in their own lives one or all of the types of wrath listed in Romans 1:18-31. 

God's wrath shown on earth ought to act as a forewarning of God's eternal wrath, which is promised at the time of God's eternal judgement for all who have not believed in Jesus.

Scripture provides an orthodox, protestant and catholic principle

Update: I am sceptical that these three movements have not long dwelt in dreadful apostasy (with very few exceptions of individual members of these movements). Please see my articles at christrescues.substack.com and my Translator's Preface to The Christ Family Bible.

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It is a blessed thing to see that in Holy Scripture, an orthodox, catholic and protestant principle are all clearly described and set forth as principles to follow.

An orthodox principle: All churches must conform to what is the established practice (doxa) of the churches. This is the clear witness of the New Testament, e.g. in 1 Corinthians 11:16.

A protestant principle: All churches must protest against sinful, i.e. mistaken, behaviour, especially by church leaders, even bishops. This is the clear witness of the New Testament, e.g. in Galatians 2.

A catholic principle: All churches must submit to the decisions of a single council led by the Holy Spirit and a single presiding bishop. This is the clear witness of the New Testament, e.g. in Acts 15.


 

How dependable and trustworthy is the practice of theology today?

How dependable and trustworthy is the practice of theology today? 

(1) Its basis as a largely empirical science is almost completely missing from current-day preaching.[1]

(2) Its main texts are widely read in highly misleading translations.[2]

(3) Normal preaching is unbiblical, in opposition to God's Word (even the well translated parts of the Bible).[3] 

Other sciences, like biology or physics, have also gone through long periods of confusion: for centuries, people seen as experts made assertions without a basis in empirical-scientific method, and with little or no connection to actual facts. The field of medicine has likely been populated over its history mainly by quacks, who gave advice and performed operations without the proper scientific basis. Even up to our day, physicians (medical doctors) have been causing tremendous injury to others when they lose their grasp of the basic principles of medical science.[4] 

These facts provide powerful reasons not to give up on a science just because of current-day darkness:
(a) The history of natural sciences proves that earnest devotion to good methodology yields progress.
(b) It is immoral to stand by while a science is improperly practiced to the injury of many people.

Another reason to press onward with theology, is that the widespread confusion, even corruption, in theological practice today are predicted and described in the Holy Bible.[5] That means that we should recognize it as false preaching, rather than confusing it with theology rightly practiced. Otherwise we have only ourselves to blame: the Holy Bible gives us fair warning that people will need to discern (i.e. distinguish) between genuine preaching and false preaching. 

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[1] A very brief introduction to the empirical-scientific character of the Bible is provided here. 

[2] Brief treatments of this topics are provided in these articles: "The most important misreadings of the Bible?", and "New solutions for New Testament verses".

[3] See for example "Early warnings of grave misunderstandings of Christianity".

[4] An outstanding example of quackery among elite medical institutions has been widely recognized just this year at Karolinska Institute and Hospital in Sweden: the "invention" of synthetic thoracic transplants, which were essentially untested before they began maiming and killing transplant recipients, a tragedy that in its turn was covered up through false assertions allowed into leading publications like The Lancet.

[5] Matthew 24:10-12, 24; Acts 20:29-30; 2 Timothy 3:1-9, 4:3-4; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 3:16-17.

Jesus demands works but prohibits boasting: how?

Jesus's speech recorded in Luke 17 (in the Authorized King James Version):

5 And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.6 And the Lord said, If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye might say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it should obey you. 7 But which of you, having a servant plowing or feeding cattle, will say unto him by and by, when he is come from the field, Go and sit down to meat? 8 And will not rather say unto him, Make ready wherewith I may sup, and gird thyself, and serve me, till I have eaten and drunken; and afterward thou shalt eat and drink? 9 Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. 10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.



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AKJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

Bad theology versus God's rescue systems

Update: I wish to question the endorsement of hierarchies in this article. Yes, Jesus is recorded as having named 12 apostles, who would in future judge the 12 tribes of Israel. But is any earthly hierarchy given by Jesus? Instead, Jesus can be understood to prohibit hierarchy in Matthew 23.

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It is wonderful to find God's amazing systems* of rescue described in the Christian Bible. It's also surprising, although it shouldn't be so: God is the creator of the entire Universe, a proof of which is the astounding fine-tuning of the systems of the universe.

One divine system could be called sanctification for glorification for salvation. 

(1) Christians are enabled by God to do good works (Ephesians 2:10; 2 Corinthians 9:8).

(2) Those good works cause other people to glorify God (Matthew 5:16).

(3) People who glorify God take one key step closer to receiving God's salvation (Acts 10:1-48; 1 Corinthians 14:19-25; 1 Peter 2:12).

Bad theology works against these systems. Consider, for example, the theological mistake that says—in contradiction to Matthew 5:16 and James 2:14-26—that Christians do not need to do good works because Christ's righteousness is counted as theirs. Such bad theology will disrupt the system of sanctification for glorification for salvation. 

Or consider another divine system described in the New Testament: it could be called chastizement for sanctification, witness and unity.

(1) God sends illnesses on Christians to save them from condemnation (1 Corinthians 11:30-32). 

(2) If a Christian has an illness (James 5:14-18), he or she should
- confess his or her sins to another Christian; 
and
- have the elders of the church pray for them and anoint them with oil.

What does such a system achieve? 
(A) Sanctification. 
Christians are led away from sinful behaviors.

(B) Witnesses to God. 
Being healed by God provides proof to unbelievers of God's existence and character, and builds up the faith of Christians. 

(C) Church-building. 
Healing requires a church with elders. This gives a powerful incentive for Christians to build up and care for churches (rather than trying to practice Christianity independently).

Bad theology undermines this system, for example 
- when preachers and pastors are teaching that God does not send illnesses on Christians;
- when preachers and pastors are teaching that Christians with illnesses do not need to confess their sins; 
- when preachers and pastors fail to teach that God demands holiness from His children (1 Peter 1:13-20).

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* A system is where different parts work together to achieve something.

What the New Testament actually says about anger

Enough of Christians praising what they dangerously label "holy anger" in themselves or other Christians!

Please listen to what the New Testament actually says:

(1) Christians are to put away all anger / wrath—in Ancient Greek, "orge" (Ephesians 4:31).

(2) The anger / wrath ("orge") of human beings does not produce the righteousness of God (James 1:20).

(3) Fits of passion, akin to wrath—in Ancient Greek, "thumoi"—are among "the works of the flesh" that prevent a person from inheriting the Kingdom of God (Galatians 5:19-21).

(4) Christ Jesus is not described as being angry—that is, with the words "orge" or "thumoi", except once, when Christ is described as having looked with anger at people who refused to deal with basic questions of justice and compassion (Mark 3:5). But even in that single instance, Christ did not act towards those with whom He was angry!   

(5) Christ was greatly irritated—the verb "aganakteo" referred firstly to physical effects, such as of cold on the human body (see LSJ)—when the disciples censured people bringing their children to Jesus (Mark 10:14). Unfortunately, many Bible translations misleadingly describe Christ as "angry".

(6) Paul instructs Timothy and Titus to rebuke ("elegcho") elders who are sinning and false teachers (respectively).

(7) It appears fair to conclude from these NT texts, then, that Christians are required to use reason, for example when powerfully irritated or when confronting misbehavior, and naturally this cannot be done when in anger / wrath / fits of passion.

The Christian Bible and a scientific, evidence-based approach

If one reads the entire Christian Bible, one regularly encounters what can be called "the rule of science". This rule is what one encounters without pause in natural sciences like physics and chemistry. It requires that beliefs are based on evidence and logic.

Here are some Christian-biblical instances of the rule of science:

(I) God promises explicitly over-abundant blessing in return for collectively bringing "all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in [God's] house", adding the commandment to "test" God in this (Malachi 3:10). [1]

(II) The prophet Jeremiah concludes a long, evidence-based reasoning in his letter to the Israelites captive in Babylon, where worship of idols was common: "Therefore, [in] no way is [it] manifest that [they] are gods: therefore, do not fear them" (Letter of Jeremiah 65 / Baruch 6:68).

(III) Paul describes that there is a huge range of evidence of God's wrath on "every impiety and injustice of people who suppress the truth in injustice" (Romans 1:18). The types of evidence of God's wrath are described in Romans 1:21-31.

(IV) The Lord Jesus states that "If someone loves Me, My Word he will keep, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and an abode beside him We will make" (John 14:23). 

(V) According to one reading of the text of Mark 16:17, Christ Jesus promises that a range of types of signs will follow those who are faithful to the commandment to go out into the entire world and preach the Gospel in all creation.[2] Those types of signs, which are all miraculous, are described in Mark 16:17b-18. 

(VI) Paul describes the evidence of the pre-Christian existence ("the works of the flesh"), and the evidence of the divine spirit, the Holy Spirit, dwelling in Christians ("the fruit of the Spirit"), in Galatians 5:19-23. 

(VII) Christ Jesus describes, according to John 13:34-35, one foremost type of evidence that will identify who are disciples (i.e. devoted students) of Jesus: if they love one another as Christ loves (i.e. self-sacrificingly). 

Notes
[1] If more people followed this commandment, there could hardly be any material need among God's people, just as it was with the Church in the first years (Acts 4:34).
[2] There is a lot of evidence that this verse has been mistranslated and then misapplied: foremost, the incidents of people using the act of handling poisonous snakes as a test of being a believing Christian. Further analysis is provided here.

Early warnings of grave misunderstandings of Christianity

Among the riskiest hypotheses about the message of the Christian Bible are surely those hypotheses, "teachings", or "doctrines" that describe how God judges Christians. If anyone proposes a theory that Christians can act immorally without consequences from God's hand, when consequences do exist, the potential destructiveness seems almost limitless: great injury to the person duped into acting immorally, to those persons he or she acts immorally against, and to the person who led the fraud. 
      This form of misunderstanding of Christianity - moral libertarianism, antinomianism, or lawlessness - appears to have arisen so fast that several or even all of the apostles and books of the New Testament strive to point out the misunderstanding and correct it. To begin with, the Lord, Christ Jesus, warned beforehand of it in the Sermon on the Mount:

"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matthew 7:15-23, AKJV)

After the Lord we might listen first to the apostle St. John:

"Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." (1 John 3:7-8, AKJV) 

Then Paul:

"Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor cowardly, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Corinthians 6:9-10,)

And Peter:

"Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear...." (1 Peter 1:13-17, AKJV)

AKJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

The Christian Bible's Guide to reading the Christian Bible

Update:  Please see my Translator's Preface to The Christ Family Bible.

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The Christian Bible does articulate principles that, very likely, are essential for avoiding misreadings (and mistranslations) of the Bible:

(1) Jesus Christ is the only "guide" (kathēgētēs) to Christian teaching, which is then taught and supervised by teachers (Matthew 23:8-10; 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 4:11).

(2) The Holy Spirit, promised and sent by Christ to faithful disciples, guides Christians to all truth (John 14:15-17; John 16:13). 

(3) Wisdom is given freely to Christians who pray for it (James 1:5).

(4) Divinely authored Scripture as a whole is entirely orderly, never contradicting itself (1 Corinthians 14:32-33).

(5) A wicked force ("the god of this aeon") works to prevent people from perceiving God's wonderful message of good things (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).

(6) Experience confirms the correct reading, or in the words of Jesus, "Wisdom is justified [shown to be righteous] by her works" (Matthew 11:19) and "all her children" (Luke 7:35).

(7) The Christian Bible can be misread, "twisted", to the extent of the "self destruction" of the misreaders (2 Peter 3:16).

Two guides to Christian rejoicing

How can a Christian "always rejoice", as God's Word in 1 Thessalonians 5:16 commands him or her? It can hardly be rejoicing in the general conditions for life in the world, which are described by God's Word as continually worsening during a long period, marked by increasing lawlessness and lovelessness (e.g. Matthew 24:12). 

Two guides toward Christian rejoicing are given here:

"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full." (John 15:9-11, KJV)

"Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:4-7, KJV)

KJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

The most important misreadings of the Bible?

Are misreadings of these 12 verses of the Christian Bible the most consequential for misunderstandings of Christianity?

1. Isaiah 1:18 
2. Matthew 5:28, 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, 1 Timothy 2:11-14 (the missing-wife verses)
3. John 3:16
4. Galatians 2:16
5. Ephesians 2:8-9
6. Philippians 3:9

Yet in all the above cases, clarification of the intended sense is made in the very same text—just as one would expect from an intelligent author when a potential exists for misinterpretation because of polysemic (multiple-sense) words or phrases.

1. Isaiah 1:19-20
2. Matthew 5:29-30, 7:24-27, 1 Corinthians 14:34b-35, 1 Timothy 2:15
3. John 3:20-21
4. Galatians 2:14-15, 5:19-21, 6:2
5. Ephesians 2:10-11, 5:3-7
6. Philippians 3:10-14

Altogether it is astounding, tragic, and yet predictable, however. Both in the (foreshadowing) Old Testament and in the New Testament, misunderstandings of God's Word that are either foreseen, or intended, or both, are described repeatedly: for example in Isaiah 6:9-13, Matthew 13:10-15, Mark 4:10-12, Luke 8:10, John 6:22-68, Acts 28:24-28, 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, and 2 Peter 3:16. 

The most important misunderstandings of Christianity?

Update: I wish to question the lack of distinction in this text between the authority of Jesus's words and the authority of other words in the Bible.

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Could these be the most important misunderstandings of Christianity?

1. God does not judge all people (including Christians) justly, by rewarding their good and bad deeds with perfect justice.* (Versus Scripture)
2. God does not chastize (punish) Christians, with for example sickness or death, in order to prevent their eternal condemnation. (Versus Scripture)
3. Christians’ sins cannot stop them from receiving eternal life. (Versus Scripture)
4. Obedience to Christ—keeping Jesus’s commandments and teachings—is not necessary for Christians. (Versus Scripture)
5. A Christian can sin intentionally and then receive forgiveness on the basis of Christ’s sacrifice (or the merits of the church). (Versus Scripture)
6. Infants and young children should not be baptized into Christ. (Versus Scripture)
7. A Christian is anyone who believes that Jesus died for his or her sins. (Versus Scripture)
8. Theological statements cannot be evaluated on the basis of evidence from actual experience. (Versus Scripture)

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* The Christian Bible makes clear that God is merciful and forgiving, most especially towards sins committed prior to knowledge of God's grace through Christ's sacrificial torture and death (Romans 3:25). Even after repentance and Christian conversion there is mercy and forgiveness from God toward a Christian person, but the Bible makes clear that there are limits (see 1 John 5:16-17 for example).

Qualifying church leaders more carefully than physicians

Update: I wish to question whether Christ authorises any human leaders for the churches. See for example Matthew 23.

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Are there ways to qualify and licence church leaders that are even more dependable than how societies qualify and licence physicians (medical doctors)? There are strong reasons to look for them: church leaders have even more responsibility, and power to do good or harm, toward people in their influence, than do physicians.

(1) Problem-based learning (PBL), used widely and successfully to prove whether a person can be relied upon as a physician, appears worthy of consideration also for church leaders. Can a person apply theological understanding to solve a comprehensive set of problems? A key here is that the New Testament lays out an evidence-based theology: a range of outcomes are witnessable through objective facts.

Other best practices from medicine potentially applied to church leadership are: 

(2) Regularly recurring licence reviews that focus on the facts of a practitioner’s work (e.g. patient outcomes).

(3) Training in the basic sciences that enable a practitioner to detect errors and generally understand the process of reasoning and verification. Imagine a physician who does not understand mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology. He or she would be at the mercy of whatever “truths” the medical profession teaches. 

(4) There may be even surer verification (qualification and licencing) methods for church leadership than for physicians. For example, when St. Paul, writing with St. Timothy, faced doubts about their authenticity as Christ-ministers, he presented a long set of criteria, in 2 Corinthians 1:3—6:10, all of which are fairly easily observed within a short period of time (again, here is evidence-based theology). A similar list of criteria for bishops, elders and deacons is found in St. Paul's letters, 1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9. 

Is this surprising? It seems entirely predictable of God, who is perfect, and perfectly loving, that He would provide straightforward, highly practicable methods for identifying both trustable church leaders and untrustable ones (identified explicitly in texts such as Romans 16:17-19, 1 Timothy 6:3-5, 2 Peter 2, and 2 John 9-11).

Wisdom of Solomon, chapters 1 & 2 (KJV)

These chapters of Holy Scripture (part of the Greek version of the Old Testament, translated or composed circa 200 BC) are wonderful not only for their prophetic description of the persecution of Christ Jesus (and generally of Christians), but also for their clear statements about death not being God's plan for humanity (1:12-16; 2:22-24), and the conditions for the presence of the Holy Spirit (1:1-5), inter alia.

Chapter 1

[1] Love righteousness, ye that be judges of the earth: think of the Lord with a good (heart,) and in simplicity of heart seek him.
[2] For he will be found of them that tempt him not; and sheweth himself unto such as do not distrust him.
[3] For froward thoughts separate from God: and his power, when it is tried, reproveth the unwise.
[4] For into a malicious soul wisdom shall not enter; nor dwell in the body that is subject unto sin.
[5] For the holy spirit of discipline will flee deceit, and remove from thoughts that are without understanding, and will not abide when unrighteousness cometh in.
[6] For wisdom is a loving spirit; and will not acquit a blasphemer of his words: for God is witness of his reins, and a true beholder of his heart, and a hearer of his tongue.
[7] For the Spirit of the Lord filleth the world: and that which containeth all things hath knowledge of the voice.
[8] Therefore he that speaketh unrighteous things cannot be hid: neither shall vengeance, when it punisheth, pass by him.
[9] For inquisition shall be made into the counsels of the ungodly: and the sound of his words shall come unto the Lord for the manifestation of his wicked deeds.
[10] For the ear of jealousy heareth all things: and the noise of murmurings is not hid.
[11] Therefore beware of murmuring, which is unprofitable; and refrain your tongue from backbiting: for there is no word so secret, that shall go for nought: and the mouth that belieth slayeth the soul.
[12] Seek not death in the error of your life: and pull not upon yourselves destruction with the works of your hands.
[13] For God made not death: neither hath he pleasure in the destruction of the living.
[14] For he created all things, that they might have their being: and the generations of the world were healthful; and there is no poison of destruction in them, nor the kingdom of death upon the earth:
[15] (For righteousness is immortal:)
[16] But ungodly men with their works and words called it to them: for when they thought to have it their friend, they consumed to nought, and made a covenant with it, because they are worthy to take part with it.

Chapter 2

[1] For the ungodly said, reasoning with themselves, but not aright, Our life is short and tedious, and in the death of a man there is no remedy: neither was there any man known to have returned from the grave.
[2] For we are born at all adventure: and we shall be hereafter as though we had never been: for the breath in our nostrils is as smoke, and a little spark in the moving of our heart:
[3] Which being extinguished, our body shall be turned into ashes, and our spirit shall vanish as the soft air,
[4] And our name shall be forgotten in time, and no man shall have our works in remembrance, and our life shall pass away as the trace of a cloud, and shall be dispersed as a mist, that is driven away with the beams of the sun, and overcome with the heat thereof.
[5] For our time is a very shadow that passeth away; and after our end there is no returning: for it is fast sealed, so that no man cometh again.
[6] Come on therefore, let us enjoy the good things that are present: and let us speedily use the creatures like as in youth.
[7] Let us fill ourselves with costly wine and ointments: and let no flower of the spring pass by us:
[8] Let us crown ourselves with rosebuds, before they be withered:
[9] Let none of us go without his part of our voluptuousness: let us leave tokens of our joyfulness in every place: for this is our portion, and our lot is this.
[10] Let us oppress the poor righteous man, let us not spare the widow, nor reverence the ancient gray hairs of the aged.
[11] Let our strength be the law of justice: for that which is feeble is found to be nothing worth.
[12] Therefore let us lie in wait for the righteous; because he is not for our turn, and he is clean contrary to our doings: he upbraideth us with our offending the law, and objecteth to our infamy the transgressings of our education.
[13] He professeth to have the knowledge of God: and he calleth himself the child of the Lord.
[14] He was made to reprove our thoughts.
[15] He is grievous unto us even to behold: for his life is not like other men's, his ways are of another fashion.
[16] We are esteemed of him as counterfeits: he abstaineth from our ways as from filthiness: he pronounceth the end of the just to be blessed, and maketh his boast that God is his father.
[17] Let us see if his words be true: and let us prove what shall happen in the end of him.
[18] For if the just man be the son of God, he will help him, and deliver him from the hand of his enemies.
[19] Let us examine him with despitefulness and torture, that we may know his meekness, and prove his patience.
[20] Let us condemn him with a shameful death: for by his own saying he shall be respected.
[21] Such things they did imagine, and were deceived: for their own wickedness hath blinded them.
[22] As for the mysteries of God, they knew them not: neither hoped they for the wages of righteousness, nor discerned a reward for blameless souls.
[23] For God created man to be immortal, and made him to be an image of his own eternity.
[24] Nevertheless through envy of the devil came death into the world: and they that do hold of his side do find it.

Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

How is Christian faith manifested in good works?

The New Testament repeatedly warns that faith must have good works (Lk. 6:46; 2 Cor. 5:10; Heb. 5:9; Jas. 2:14, 18-20, 24-26; Rev. 2:4-5; 3:1-3; 22:12; etc.). What descriptions are there of Christian works? Here are 6 descriptions.

“All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you….” (Matt. 28:18-20, KJV)

“Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” (Matt. 25:34-36, KJV)

“If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. (John 15:7-8, KJV)

“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock….” (Matt 7:21-23, KJV)

“If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. (John 15:10-14, KJV)

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.” (John 12:24-26, KJV)

Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

“Provoke… to good works…”

The Bible tells us to "consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works" (Heb. 10:24), an exhortation that is confirmed repeatedly: 

"What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works?" (James 2:14, KJV)

"And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Luke 6:46, KJV)

"He [Jesus Christ] became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him...." (Heb. 5:9, KJV)

"Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent." (Rev. 2:4-5, KJV)

"I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent." (Rev. 3:1-3, KJV)

"Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works." (James 2:18-20, KJV)

"Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." (James 2:24-26, KJV)

Those above are 7 witnesses from the Bible that aim, quite surely, to ready us for the judgement seat of Christ, where all of us will one day appear.

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." (2 Cor. 5:10, NKJV)

"And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be." (Rev. 22:15, NKJV)

KJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

NKJV: Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Jesus and the other NT apostles gravely warn... and who listens?

Update: I disagree with the phrase "the other NT apostles" and likewise with the absence here of any distinction between the authority of the Lord Jesus and the authority of others who speak in the Bible. Please see my Translator's Preface to The Christ Family Bible.

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"Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men...." (2 Cor. 5:11, KJV)

"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matt. 7:21-23, KJV)

"It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." (Rev. 21:6-8, KJV)

"And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear...." (1 Pet. 1:17, KJV)

"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." (Gal. 5:19-21, KJV)

"Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." (1 Cor. 6:9-10, KJV)

"...let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries." (Heb. 10:24-27, KJV)

KJV: Scripture quotations from The Authorized (King James) Version. Rights in the Authorized Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Reproduced by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.

Four witnesses to the Christian calling

"Do you not know that you all are a temple of God, and the Spirit of God resides among you?" (Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians, 3:16)

"Every bitterness, and anger, and wrath, and clamor, and slander—it should be put away from you together with every evil." (Paul's Letter to the Ephesians, 4:31)

"Yet the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control." (Paul's Letter to the Galatians, 5:22-23)

"The one saying himself to be in the light, and hating his sibling, is in darkness until now; the one loving his sibling remains in the light, and there is no trap-trigger in him." (The First Letter of John, 2:9-10)

A Christian witness

So how did I become a believer in God the Father, the Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit? Three Biblical words, proved true in personal experience, were especially important.

One: 
ἐάν τις ἀγαπᾷ με τὸν λόγον μου τηρήσει, 
καὶ ὁ πατήρ μου ἀγαπήσει αὐτὸν καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐλευσόμεθα 
καὶ μονὴν παρ’ αὐτῷ ποιησόμεθα. 
(John's Gospel 14:23)

Two: 
τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθησαν
καὶ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ στόματος αὐτοῦ πᾶσα ἡ δύναμις αὐτῶν 
(Psalm 33:6)

Three: 
μετανοήσατε, 
καὶ βαπτισθήτω ἕκαστος ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ εἰς ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ὑμῶν 
καὶ λήμψεσθε τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος. 
(Acts of the Apostles 2:38)

Let's discuss these.

The first word that became obviously true in my own life:
"If someone loves Me, My Word he will keep, 
and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, 
and an abode beside him We will make." (Jesus Christ, as recorded in St. John 14:23)

Odd, quasi-miraculous coincidences began to become an everyday experience for me, when and only when I made the effort to keep Jesus's teachings and commandments. This went on for years and slowly broke through the atheistic skepticism I had been indoctrinated into.

The word that became obviously true in my life:
"By word of the Lord the heavens were established,
and by Spirit of His mouth all their force." (Ps. 33:6, in Greek)

University of Oxford professor John C. Lennox's book God's Undertaker: Has Science Buried God? (new edn, 2009, Oxford: Lion) brought me face-to-face with the fact that many natural scientists have gone from atheism to theism (belief in God) because they are convinced by huge amounts of evidence in nature that it must have an intelligent designer. Not only did scientism's background doubt about God disappear for me, but I was also led to the following conclusion: If God is powerful enough to design the universe with such miraculous precision that atheist scientists are forced to believe, God must also be powerful enough to write a book (i.e. the Holy Bible).

The third word that became obviously true in my life:
"Repent, 
and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for remission of your sins,
and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
(Acts of the Apostles 2:38)

One April Sunday in 2013, I confessed in my heart along the following lines: "The whole Bible is written by God and it convicts me as a sinner. I pray with thanks to the Lord Jesus Christ to be forgiven and to become a disciple of the Lord Jesus." As I sat there praying, a tremendous force of energy radiated onto and into me, for perhaps 5 seconds. The following week I spent much of my time cleaning out anything from my home that could be offensive to God (e.g. books of other religions, radically skeptical theology books, etc.). From then through today (three years later), that process of bringing my life into obedience to God's Word has continued, thanks to the power of the Holy Spirit enabling me. Other manifestations of the gift of the Holy Spirit include physical healings and (what increasingly certainly appears to be) exorcisms, just as promised in Mark 16:17-18.

What can language sciences do for readers of Paul's letters?

Engagement with language sciences proves to be fruitful, at least toward generating new hypotheses about the decipherment problems encountered by Paul's readers. A brief summary of such hypotheses would include the following:

(1) Discursive Recursion
This concept grows out of research in linguistics and psycholinguistics on syntactic recursion and discourse structure, respectively. It appears likely that Paul's texts have extraordinary levels of recursion in their discursive structure.

(2) A Competitive Principle
This is a corollary (and competitor) to the Gricean and Neo-Gricean hypotheses about a Cooperative Principle that guides human communication. It appears likely that Paul's texts are among the Biblical texts that are guided at least in part by a competitive principle, made explicit in several places (cf. Matt 13:10-15; Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:10; John 6:22-68).

(3) Parsimonious Elenchic Dialogue - Recursive Anaphoric Polysemy ("PED-RAP")
This hypothesis grows out of insights from a variety of disciplines. The concept of parsimony comes especially from the philosophy of science, as a criterion for selection among competing explanations. The criterion of parsimony is motivated by the hypothesis that nature tends toward simpler rather than more complex dynamics, and that descriptions of nature ought therefore also to be parsimonious. The concept of elenchus comes from the ancient Hellenistic world, where it came to refer to a competitive, testing form of rhetoric, dialogue, or discourse. It appears likely that Paul's letters are characterized by these qualities. Stated differently: Paul competed, with stunning efficiency. The tremendous complexes of arguments are perfectly arranged around single-pointed, competitive necessities. 
The second part of the PED-RAP hypothesis describes a major reason for readers' confusion: not only are Paul's texts hugely recursive, but they also use polysemy intentionally (to achieve aims efficiently) and anaphorically. An example of a RAP might be Paul's use of the verb egkakeo in 2 Cor 4:1, where it may support, through intentional polysemy, propositions made in 2 Cor 2-3 both about ministerial fitness and ministerial boldness.

Dangerous and difficult decipherment

How dangerous and difficult is the problem of deciphering Paul's letters? His contemporary Peter[1] warned that "in them are some confusing[2] things, which the undiscipled[3] and unstable[4] twist[5], as also the other scriptures, to their own destruction of themselves" (2 Peter 3:16). A similar warning comes from the conflict-filled, modern history of Christianity. Differences of opinion about the meaning of Paul's texts have played a leading role here.[6]
Why are Paul's letters so confusing? Can language sciences[7] help solve the problem, with diagnosis or cure?[8]
_________________________
[1] For a recent overview of the arguments for and against Peter's authorship of 2 Peter, see D.A. Keating, First and Second Peter, Jude, Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture, Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2011, pp. 127-9; a skeptical, opposing summary of arguments is provided by J.N.D. Kelly, A commentary on the epistles of Peter and of Jude, Black's New Testament commentaries, London: Black, 1969, pp. 235-6.
[2] dysnóeta: i.e. difficult to understand
[3] amatheîs: i.e. untaught, untrained
[4] astériktos: i.e. "not supported by a staff", "not remaining still" (LSJ), "weak" (BDAG)
[5] streblóo: i.e. distort, stretch, torture, pervert (LSJ)
[6] For example, the Protestant-Catholic/Orthodox schism is usually traced back to Martin Luther's "Reformation Discovery" of an alternative interpretation of Romans 1:17. See e.g. A. Hastings et al (eds), The Oxford Companion to Christian Thought, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000, p. 399; F.L. Cross & E.A Livingstone (eds), The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 3rd edn, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997, p. 1008.
[7] By "language sciences" I refer to the highly diverse field of disciplines that aim to study language, including Philology, Linguistics (Grammar/Syntax, Semantics, Pragmatics, Morphology), Sociolinguistics, Psycholinguistics, Text Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Conversation Analysis, Literary Criticism, Translation Studies, Semiotics, Logic, and the Philosophy of Language.
[8] St. Peter's cure ought to be noted without delay: he advises readers to reject any antinomian (moral libertarian) interpretation of St. Paul's letters (see 2 Peter 3:11-18, cp. 1 Peter 1:13-2:25).

Scientific translation, or translation-as-description

From the brief study (available to read here):

....Ricoeur’s labyrinth of translation problems builds on the dead-ends of hypothesized linguistic incommensurability, linguistic relativity, and unavoidable information loss. It extends further by hypothesizing that human language centrally involves tasks of “safeguarding the secret”, preservation of otherness (or foreignness), and “non-communication”.[1] Therefore, the "other" person speaking, in your own language or another language, is always partly or fully incomprehensible to you. This is not so much proved as presupposed by Ricoeur (whose appeals to the philosophy and sciences of language are not robust), and defended on the basis that it is impossible to refute. Why? Because, Ricoeur claims, there is never a way to verify that one has properly understood the other.... (p. 4)

....What can brighten the outlook for translation? Given that the practice of science, for some 23 centuries at least, has sought to describe phenomena with increasing accuracy, and decreasing misrepresentation,[2] a scientific practice of translation, i.e. translation-as-description, deserves consideration. This essay’s major hypothesis is: A scientific practice of translation is able to counter-act two dynamics that, alone or together, undermine translation accuracy: insufficient control of translation accuracy, and theoretically motivated surrender of the goal of translation accuracy....  (p. 5)

___________________

[1] Paul Ricoeur, On Translation, E. Brennan (trans.), Abingdon: Routledge, 2006, 8, 22-23, 28, 35.
[2] H.G. Gauch (Jr.), Scientific Method in Brief, Cambridge: CUP, 2012, 34-51.

What might 1 Corinthians 13:7 tell us?

Love “bears all things, entrusts all things, hopes all things, endures all things”.

If that is the right way to translate 1 Corinthians 13:7*, what might it tell us?

1. Love has amazing symmetry.

For example, a Christian bears a cross** out of love, and entrusts that burden to God out of love. More symmetries can be discovered between bearing, entrusting, hoping and enduring.

2. Love is tremendously capable.

Paul sums it up this way: “Love never fails” (1 Cor. 13:8). Love never fails, because it is able to bear anything, entrust anything, hope anything, endure anything.

3. Love’s power is related to its symmetry.

A Christian can bear a cross because he or she entrusts the burden, and him- or herself, to God. Love can endure anything, because it is able to hope so powerfully.

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* A brief summary of evidence was made here.
** Matthew 10:38; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23, 14:27.

A new solution for 1 Corinthians 13:7

From the archive (Google+ post from August 6, 2015):

There is linguistic evidence - and logical force - for translating 1 Corinthians 13:7, "Love bears all things, entrusts all things, hopes all things, endures all things". Why "entrust"? That is [often] the verb's sense when it appears with an object in the accusative case (compare Luke 16:11), for starters! It also makes sense: love entrusts all things, especially when the object of its love is God. Furthermore, the composition of the four parts is thereby shown to be symmetrical and chiastic: A B B’ A’, bear-entrust, hope-endure.

More analysis is provided in the brief study, "Does love entrust, or believe, all things?". 

God's wonderful announcement

What is God's wonderful announcement—the Gospel (Gk. euaggelion)—that the New Testament conveys?

A relatively clear summary is given by Jesus Christ himself.* At the end of the New Testament, Christ announces a number of repetitive, mutually clarifying promises. One may well consider that the purpose of the repetitiveness is to clear away any ambiguity surrounding earlier descriptions of the Gospel in the New Testament—ambiguity warned about, in the strongest terms, explicitly in 2 Peter 3 and 1 John 3.

(1) "To the one overcoming, I will give to him to eat from the tree of life that is in the paradise of God" (Rev. 2:7**)

(2) "The one overcoming shall not be injured by the second death." (Rev. 2:11)

(3) "To the one overcoming, I will give to him of the hidden manna, and I will give to him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written that no one knows except the one who receives." (Rev. 2:17)

(4) "The one both overcoming and keeping my works until the end, I will give to him authority over the nations, and he will shepherd them by a rod of iron, as ceramic vessels are shattered, as also I have gotten from My Father, and I will give to him the morning star." (Rev. 2:26-28)

(5) "The one overcoming, thus will he be clothed—in white garments. And I shall not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father, and before His angels." (Rev. 3:5)

(6) "The one overcoming—I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, the one descending out of heaven from My God, and My new name." (Rev. 3:12)

(7) "The one overcoming—I will give to him to sit with me by My throne, as also I conquered and sat with My Father by His throne." (Rev. 3:21)

(8) "It is become. I am the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. I myself will give to the thirsting one out of the fountain of the water of life, freely. Him overcoming will inherit all things, and I will be God to him, and he will be son to Me." (Rev. 21:6-7)

(9) "And, look! I come suddenly! Blessed is the one keeping the words of the prophecy of this book." (Rev. 22:7)

(10) "Look! I coming suddenly, and My reward is with Me to render to each as is his work." (Rev. 22:12)

(11) "Blessed are the ones washing their robes, so that the authority will be theirs to the tree of life and they may enter by the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs and the phármakoi*** and the fornicators and the murderers and the idolaters and everyone loving and making falsehood." (Rev. 22:14-15)

Naturally, a reader of these promises would want to understand what Jesus means by to overcome (Gk. nikaō). Here, too, clarity is provided, by the contexts of the promises (especially Rev. 2-3, 21-22), where the components of overcoming, and the opposite of overcoming, are repeatedly described with similar, overlapping terms. A summary of these could be: a Christian is required to be overcoming the power of sin and walking in obedience to Christ.

Finally, the question of how a person comes to be overcoming. This appears to be described well in NT texts like John 8:31-51, Romans 6:1—8:17, and Hebrews 10:1—13:21. Something like a seven-part process of sanctification is described: Christ-believers are given teaching, ransomed, baptized in water, baptized in the Holy Spirit, tested, chastized, and glorified. Even this can be summarized, with caution, as obeying Jesus—keeping Jesus's  commandments and other words (prophecies, teachings).

________________________________
* Two points ought to be noted. (1) This presentation is consistent with the Gospel presentation of the NT texts collected in "Ten Testimonies to the good news from God". (2) This counts Rev. 22:14 as speech directly by Jesus and therefore as a continuation of Jesus's speech in the previous verse (v.13). This view is not, today, a consensus position among published translations of Revelation, but it has good grounds, nonetheless: above all, that if one does count 22:13-15 as speech by Christ, it clearly has the identical form of the speech at Rev. 21:6-8 that is already, by consensus, considered to belong to Jesus.

** These translations are new and based on Nestle-Aland's 28th edition of the New Testament in Ancient Greek, available here. One way to check these translations is to consult a cross-referenced Greek-English interlinear text (e.g. here), and a dictionary such as Liddell Scott Jones, available here.

*** In Rev. 22:15, the Greek word phármakoi has a set of meanings that all could be applicable to this context, such as poisoners, magicians, sorcerers. (LSJ, s.v.)

For more discussion of the Gospel according to the entire New Testament (rather than a pared down and false gospel), see 
"The New Covenant through Christ Jesus is not unconditional", "The working system of God's salvation", "God's very best possible, wonderful announcement", "Is there any idea more destructive than a "Law-Gospel" division?", "Christian questions", "The tragic misreading of Paul (when he argues against Israelite works for Christians)", "What happens when theologians convince people that God doesn't judge sin?".

Just by belief or by faithfulness?

From the brief study, "Three Biblical keywords: What do language sciences clarify?"

... Here we examine facts of Ancient Greek (AG) relevant not only to several foundational hypotheses of Dixon’s “basic linguistic theory”—universal word classes, universal clause structure, universal transitivity typology, etc.—but also to the comprehension and translation of central parts of humanity’s most widely read text, the Christian Bible (recorded firstly in AG manuscripts). Central to the Christian Bible are ideas expressed with a set of related words—pistos, pistis, pisteuō—translated most often into modern English with “faithful”, “faith”, “to believe”, respectively, yet revealed in dictionary entries to be far more difficult to understand, at least for lexicographers (LSJ, s.v.; BDAG, s.v.). For example, pisteuō is understood to have the senses of “to comply” (LSJ, s.v. 2) and “to entrust” (LSJ, s.v. II; BDAG, s.v. 2) in some ancient texts. (Continued....)

Sanctification methods, the Competitive Principle, etc.

Update: I now question the legitimacy of church hierarchies, given that in Christ's words we have a commandment to practise equality (Matthew 23) and only the elevation of 12 apostles who would in future be the judges of the 12 tribes of Israel. 

____________

According to two Pauline letters (1 Tim 3:2, 10; Tit 1:6, 7), all leaders of churches (prebyteroi, episkopoi, diakonoi) must be “blameless” (anegkletoi). Is this really possible, and if so, how? Answers are given by at least three New Testament texts (John 8:31-51; Rom 6:1—8:17; Heb 10:1—13:21) that describe the mechanism of how a Christ-believer is set free from sin slavery. Precisely according to the Exodus anti-type, Christ-believers are given teaching, commandments and leaders, ransomed, baptized, tested, and chastized—a seven-part sanctification process.
      Specifically how Christ-ministers are made fit for service is described in a fourth text (2 Cor 3:1—4:6). Here, in broad accord with the Creation anti-type, Christ-converts are formed in the divine image, the primary agent is God’s Spirit, and God’s enemy is the agent for deception and blinding. Because real Christ-ministers have ministries only to the extent that they are Christ-converts, they also have experienced the sanctification process that liberates from sin slavery and “have renounced the hidden things of shame, neither walking in craftiness nor deceitfully using the word of God” (4:2). So they are able to conduct themselves blamelessly, able to manifest “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (4:6), and therefore able to administer the process whereby Christ-believers are made into a “letter from Christ” written by the Holy Spirit (3:3).
      The NT’s descriptions of sanctification are usually overlooked, but this fourth text is ignored to an unusual extent. Why might that be? At least several possible factors can be considered: (a) The loss of sanctification traditions over the centuries, so that sanctification-oriented Bible interpretation (like Chrysostom’s, for example) is exceedingly rare; (b) The complexity of the 2 Corinthians text, so that its full coherence requires much effort to find; (c) The keystone that holds 3:1—4:6 together, making it a single, coherent sub-argument of the letter, is hidden by polysemy, a noted problem especially for Pauline texts (cf. 2 Pet 3:14-18); (d) The text is an example of the genre of competitive communication (pace, inter alia, Huang, Levinson, Grice[1]) that allows only some to understand it correctly (cf. Matt 13:10-15; Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:10; John 6:22-68)....  (continued...)

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[1] Pragmatics, at least its Anglo-American tradition, is dominated by the hypothesis that all human communication is founded on what H.P. Grice first called the Cooperative Principle, which has been reformulated by Neogriceans, prominently Levinson and Huang. Cf. Yan Huang, Pragmatics, 2nd edn, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.

Ten testimonies to the good news from God

Here are ten testimonies recorded in the New Testament that describe the rescue action by God Almighty.

Matthew 25:31-40
John 8:31-32, 34-36
Romans 6:17-18
Colossians 1:3-29
Hebrews 5:8-9
James 1:12-27
1 Peter 1:3-21
1 John 3:1-12
Revelation 3:8, 10-13
Revelation 22:12-17

Three theological goals

Are these three goals within reach for Christians today?

1. Theology that overcomes major schisms, so that the world may believe. (Cp. John 17:21)
2. Theology that effectively shepherds Christians to overcome and to enter eternal life. To reveal the Bible’s clear system of sanctification and overcoming (Rev. 2-3) that leads to salvation.
3. Theology that is as robust as any other science. To establish methods that produce knowledge that is as reliable as the other sciences’. The Bible is, after all, the basis of science (historically, and by supplying key presuppositions about the reliability of evidence and logic) and makes continual appeal to evidence and logic in the manner of the best sciences.

Reflexion indicates that these goals are inter-related, even so much so that achieving any one of them (perhaps) achieves the other two.