Use the whole verse

Pet Peeves. Everybody has them. Some of them are important (Yes, we all should wash our hands before we eat). Some of them are silly (what real difference does it make which way the toilet paper sits on the dispenser?) 

Like any other human being, I have my own set of them. (Don't worry, I'm only going to get into one today). 

But, the Pet Peeve I'm going to cover today, truly does matter and can have eternal consequences. 

First of all, give me KJV or nothing else. The other versions distort, twist, and nullify huge sections of scripture. I'm only going to give one example of this before I get on to what this post is really about today. (Okay, so I'm going to cover 2 pet peeves. Think of it as a two for one deal?)

John 3:13 is an awesome verse. It contains truth that many people do not truly know:

13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

Here Jesus is talking to Nicodemus and tells him something amazing! Read it and see if you catch it. Did you get it? It's awesome!

Jesus told Nicodemus that he (the son of man) not only ascended to and descended from heaven, but that at that very moment- while he was speaking those sacred words to Nicodemus- HE (Jesus) was also in heaven! 

How can this be? Because there's only one God (Deuteronomy 6:4) and that one God is omnipresent (everywhere all at once). So, though he inhabited the body of the son of God and was speaking to Nicodemus, he was also still on the throne in heaven watching and controlling everything!

In short, he told Nicodemus, "I'm God. Do you truly understand who you are talking to right now?" 

Wow!

Now, what do a few other versions say?

NIV 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.

NLT13 No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man[a] has come down from heaven.

The Voice: 13 No one has ever journeyed to heaven above except the One who has come down from heaven—the Son of Man, who is of heaven.

I could go on and on. The NIV and NLT are bad enough. They leave off the whole phrase "which IS IN heaven." This relegates Jesus' whole existence to inside that body- totally changing the whole meaning and context of the verse.  

But, the Voice is even worse: they leave the phrase in, but change one word. IN becomes OF. Again, this totally violates the actual scripture's meaning and relegates Jesus to existing only within that body- but it does admit he came from heaven. 

There are hundreds of changes like this. So, give me KJV or give me nothing. 

Next Pet Peeve:

When you quote a verse (I mean you as in anyone), please quote the whole verse.

There are Christian catchphrases that we all like to use that are nice to hear. But, they leave off the rest of the verse (or context) and totally distort the actual meaning. Here are just a few. 

"Resist the devil and he will flee."

 This catchphrase makes it sound as if the devil comes against you, you tell him no and wave him away. And he's so afraid of us that he takes off running with his tail between his legs. 

Then why doesn't this actually work in practice? Why doesn't he just leave when we resist temptation? Why doesn't he run away when we don't blow our stack at that person that deserves it so much? 

Because it's a partial verse. Here's what it actually says:

James 4:7

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Read that, please. Yes, it does say that if we resist the devil he will flee from us. So, what's the problem, brother Winskie? 

The problem is that we skip the first part of the verse and think all we need to do is resist the devil. But, it says we are to "SUBMIT (OURSELVES) TO GOD first. THEN, we can resist in God's strength and authority. THIS will cause the enemy to flee! 

If we don't submit to God first, we can resist the devil all day long and he ain't going nowhere, bro. 

Do you see how leaving off part of it changes the whole meaning? 

How about this one?

"There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus." 

That sounds like an absolute guarantee! Once we're born again, it's a 100% guarantee that we will never be condemned. We have a one-way ticket to glory and nothing can stop us now!! 

Wait. There's one minor detail that they left off. What does Romans 8:1 actually say?

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."

Did you catch the difference there? 

If, after we are born again, we choose (because we still have choices to make) to please our flesh rather than strive to please God's spirit, we can (depending on what we do) sin and bring condemnation against ourselves. It's NOT an absolute guarantee. It depends upon whether we follow our fleshly desires or the leading of God's spirit. 

Or, how about this one? 

"God will give you the desires of your heart." 

Holy Cow! What a deal! Let's make our list up right now! 

New Car.

New Truck.

Fix my spouse.

New home.

New job...

Wait. Before you go too far. Let's check out the verse where the phrase comes from.

Psalms 37:4

"Delight thyself also in the Lord: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart."

Delight (in the Hebrew) means to be soft and pliable.

Lord (in the Hebrew) means the self-existent, eternal God. 

desires (in the Hebrew) means prayer or petition

heart (in the Hebrew) means the inner man: mind, will, heart, understanding.

So. If we allow ourselves to become pliable (easily bent, flexible- in other words moldable into any shape he cares to make us into) in the hands of almighty God, he will answer our deepest and most heartfelt prayers. Why? Because they will line up to his word and will. 

It's all about submission to God. We submit to him and let him change us. Then, when we pray, our prayers will line up with his will and he will answer them. 

It's not a blank check to get anything we may fancy. 

But, Lord, we really need a new truck. 

If he thinks we do, he'll make the way. But, just because we're a believer, doesn't mean he'll give us anything we want. If our parents won't do that, why would God?

But, the point is, when we use scripture, we must use the whole thing. 

If we shorten it into a soundbite that sounds good to people's ears, we could be setting them up for a potentially catastrophic event to their faith. This could cause the new believer to leave their faith. 

Absolutely, we should use scripture and claim the promises of God. But, when we do, we've got to use it complete and in context. 

If we do not, the results could be devastating. 

When you follow Jesus, sometimes it's your "close friends/associates/family" that fight you the hardest.

I usually begin with scripture and spend the rest of the posting in an explanation of that scripture. As you have seen, the last couple were not in that pattern and neither will this one be. 

Making the commitment to follow Jesus is a wonderful thing. It's choosing to give up your sins, your selfishness, and your old life in order to begin learning to live life by God's rules. It's learning to have faith in and completely trust the God of the universe with everything in your life: Finances, Relationships, Jobs, entertainment, time, health, and so on. 

But, notice I didn't say following Jesus was easy. I didn't say "making a decision for Jesus." In fact, there's no scripture that says we are to "make a decision for Jesus." Following Jesus is not like deciding what outfit to wear. In your closet, there are multiple choices and all may have equal merit. In Jesus, it's an all or nothing thing. It's a total commitment or it's no relationship with Jesus at all. 

There is no other choice if going to heaven is our goal. It's Jesus or Hell. It's his way or the end of the highway. 

But, there's another thing we must be aware of: some people that we respected will not be in favor of our new belief nor the life changes that accompany it. 

First, let's look at family. The people that we have looked to for the better part of our lives for comfort, counsel, and even help, may not give positive feedback to your commitment. Some may only give a cursory "That's nice," or, "I'm happy for you." Other's may be outright hostile towards you. People have lost family relationships with parents, siblings, children, close kin, and spouses due to their becoming a Biblical Christian. 

When Jesus began his public mission his brothers openly mocked him. They believed he was about lifting himself up. They thought he was another false Messiah: 

2 Now the Jew's feast of tabernacles was at hand.

3 His brethren, therefore, said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judaea, that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest.

4 For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, shew thyself to the world.

(John 7:2-4)

Jesus didn't defend himself. He didn't attack them. He just calmly went about his business. But, due to the witness of the spirit of God in his life, his mother and at least 2 brothers (James and Jude) became his followers. 

So, pray for them and live the life of Jesus before them. There's always hope that they will see Jesus in you and be converted one day. 

There's evidence (inconclusive) in the scripture that Paul was married at one time. I believe he was. Part of being a good Pharisee was to be married and carry on his Jewish heritage through his family line. 

I also believe that Paul was divorced. 

12 But to the rest speak I, not the Lord: If any brother hath a wife that believeth not, and she be pleased to dwell with him, let him not put her away.

13 And the woman which hath an husband that believeth not, and if he be pleased to dwell with her, let her not leave him.

14 For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband: else were your children unclean; but now are they holy.

15 But if the unbelieving depart, let him depart. A brother or a sister is not under bondage in such cases: but God hath called us to peace. (1 Corinthians 7:12-15)

He says this with the sensitivity of a man who had lived and prayed through the process of losing his spouse himself. 

I believe the great Apostle Paul lost his spouse due to his conversion to Jesus. 

As a Pharisee, Paul had grown to be a powerful and popular man. He worked hand in hand with the Sanhedrin (Pharisees and Sadducees) in trying to stamp our Christianity. (Acts chapters 8&9). He was trained and educated by the famous teacher Gamaliel (Acts 22:3-5). 

Yet, after he was converted, the same men that had once been his allies became his greatest enemies. They persecuted him and had him beaten 5 times in the same way Jesus was beaten, he was beaten with a rod 3 times and stoned once - at the behest of his once-close colleagues! (2 Corinthians 11:24-31)

Yes, when we decide to commit to and obey Jesus, it changes our lives for the better spiritually, but it can also bring on a whole host of other problems we've never faced. Some of them extremely painful. Paul lost friends, family, and respected colleagues. He lost position in society, money, and position in the Temple he'd grown up in and loved.

But, he gained the high calling of Jesus! 

Living for Jesus is not a cakewalk. It takes real commitment. There are many things that the world will throw at you in its efforts to pull you away from Jesus. It is not easy. That's why it takes more than a decision for Jesus. It takes a commitment. And with that commitment comes obedience to Jesus. 

Without obedience, he cannot be our Lord. If he is not our Lord, he cannot be our Savior. 

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.