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NASB | Luke 14:26 "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Luke 14:26 "If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life [in the sense of indifference to or relative disregard for them in comparison with his attitude toward God]--he cannot be My disciple. |
Bible Question:
Thanks, Pastor Glenn. I will try to keep those things in mind. But in my particular case, I am not a good discerner of what things are of eternal importance and what things are of temporal importance. As I stated earlier, it seems to very much depend upon who one talks to as to the priority of things. Some would list all of these things as of eternal importance: water baptism, speaking in tongues (otherwise you are not indwelt by the Spirit), using a particular translation (otherwise you don't have the Word of God), doing good works (to prove your faith), keeping the Law, being Reformed, being Calvinist, being Arminian. All these are criteria that some use as eternal "measuring rods." I find it difficult to know which ones are truly valid and scriptural and which ones are not. (Side-note: The Calvinist would say that the Arminian is not saved because the Arminian does not believe in a sovereign God. So his "disbelief in the sovereignty of God" is used to prove that the Arminian does believe in the God of the Bible and, therefore, is not saved. I am just using this as an illustration, please don't anyone take up sides here and pursue this subject in this thread. The subject of this particular thread is much more important to me.) But, Pastor Glenn, if I may, can I demonstrate how touchy this subject of matters of eternal importance can be? Humor me here for a couple of minutes and if you have a good, solid answer, please don't hesitate to share it. Jesus gave some criteria for those who would follow Him (i.e. Christians). We can debate all day long on the standards that WE want to use for judging "true" disciples of Christ. But let's consider what Jesus said: "These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." - Mark 16:17,18 Here in this passage, Jesus Himself list some of His criteria that true believers would be known by. He lists 5 specific things: 1. They will cast out demons 2. They will speak with new tongues 3. They will pick up serpents 4. They will drink poison without ill effect 5. They can heal the sick by the laying on of hands Forum members, please note that I am NOT saying that these are MY criteria. These are criteria that Jesus Himself said would characterize those who believe in Him. Let's look at a similar passage: "Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you." - Luke 10:19 Here Jesus says that His followers can tread on serpents and scorpions. And He notes that they have power over who I would take to be Satan. Again, these are not my words. These are the words of Christ Himself. But I have to ask, is this the same criteria we use to judge whether or not others are believers? I don't think so. I wouldn't (just being honest here). I am not going to try to cast out devils, pick up poisonous snakes, drink poison, step on snakes and scorpions, I have never spoken in tongues, and I am very careful what liberties I take in my "authority over Satan." Now, please allow me to demonstrate my dilema. By the standards of Jesus Christ Himself, I am not a true believer. By the standards of most conservative, fundamental Christian, I am not a Bible-believing Christ myself because I do not personally adhere to this teaching of Christ in the Bible nor would I ever exhort anyone on this board to "prove" his/her discipleship through these tests. So what does that make me? I surely don't know. Yes, I've said a "sinner's prayer." But one cannot find that formula in the Bible. To my knowledge, Jesus never once told someone to invite Him into their heart. He knocks on the door of one of His churches in the book of Revelation but that presumes that He is already in their hearts. So I have to confess to God that I don't exhibit the signs that Jesus gave whereby His true followers and disciples would be known. Pastor Glenn, it would seem that being a disciple of Christ is an eternal issue. But, frankly, sir, I don't measure up to Jesus' own criteria. And to be honest, I don't have the faith to prove my discipleship the way that He demands. What am I to do? Sincerely, seeking4truth |
Bible Answer: Aixen Answer, part A. Seeker: I encourage you to read each of the passages you've mentioned. 1. individually. 2. slowly. 3. prayerfully. 4. without considering what others say about it. 5. considering instead, the context (that is so important) the context of it. If you would do that, I would think you would be able to come back to us with a good understanding of each passage. One of the reasons I think you are saved is that you have a desire to do the will of God. You want the word of God to be not only clear but doable. It is a good sign. You realize that many believers are disobedient. But you want to obey. You want to understand in order to obey. I want to encourage you. With that, may I consider with you one of the passages that seem to be troublesome. Let us do Mark 16:16,17. See what do you get if you consider the following: Jesus was speaking to the eleven apostles; not to us. His words at that time were for them, and designed to meet their unique needs. They apply in principle to other evangelists and missionaries, but they were specifically for them, the present listeners. How would they know that their listeners had believed? They would have trouble believing that any Gentiles could get saved. For that reason, Jesus gave them these signs. They were the pioneers. They were the first. Their needs were unique. They had the need for signs. He was speaking to them. They were the signs by which the apostles would recognize new believers. In the book of Acts we see where these came into play. In the epistles (e.g. 1 Corinthians 14) we see the explanation of the reason for these signs. Tongues were a sign for the Jews to know that the Gentiles were being saved. The signs were not given to new believers to know if they were saved. They were for the observers. The believers would have inner signs: the witness of the Holy spirit, the peace that comes with believing, their desire to obey. Please do not say we pick and choose what is for us and what is not. By looking at the context closely we can determine. When Paul asks Timothy to bring a cloak and some parchments, we know he is speaking to him about that and not to us. Even when he directs him to preach the word, rebuking and exhorting, we know that he is speaking to him as an evangelist and he is not thereby indicating that every believer should follow the same course. He would direct him to teach faithful men who would teach others. The point is that some things are for some of us and some are not. Paul would say in Romans 12, for example, that each one should stick to his ministry. It is unfortunate that some of those who are seeking to answer your questions here might disagree among themselves. They may even disagree with what I am saying here. But I say that in general we need to determine whether specific instructions in the Bible are for us. The instructions to Timothy are for him in particular and for people like him, that is, teachers and preachers and evangelists. They are not for women, for example, who are instructed to not teach but to learn in silence. Context is important. |