OZTheology

The sign on the back of the trailer read, "If I'm not headed West, stop me and turn me around!"   Not knowing where I'm going is a problem, not caring about it is even worse, and tragically many Christians today are confused or misled about the critical matter of guidance.   Some want a set of printed directions emailed from heaven.   Others want total freedom to do what they like.   Does the Bible offer any guidance?   I believe the Scriptures provide three major markers for knowing what God wants and this blog will cover two of them.   I.          The Scriptural Precepts A number of New Testament passages state the will of God for Christians.   Having listed several spiritual and moral obligations when writing to the Ephesians , Paul states, "So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is."   He goes on to write, "And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but b...

Previously, we considered abiding in Christ as essential and the consequence of not abiding in Him.  Now, we look at the result of abiding in Christ, as well as its experience. THE RESULT OF ABIDING IN CHRIST John 15:2b, 5, 7-8, 11 The main result of abiding in Christ is fruitfulness in growing measure.  God the Father prunes fruitful branches so that they bear more fruit (verse 2b).  Believers experience God’s discipline in the removal of hindrances to spiritual fruitfulness.  This may be sinful attitudes and actions or neutral ambitions and distractions.  God will deal with anything that prevents fruitfulness.  Pruning may be uncomfortable, but the outcome is worth it.  Becoming more like Jesus and serving Him more outweighs the discomfort (Hebrews 12:5-11 cf. 2 Corinthians 4:15). Further, continued abiding in Christ will produce much fruit (verse 5) and this will glorify the Father (verse 8).  Both Jesus and the Father enable believers to be...

When we moved into the first home we bought, which was in Para Vista, it came with a well-established fruit tree.   This tree produced fabulous “Million Dollar Peaches”, which we enjoyed seasonally each year.   The tree was so laden with fruit one year that the weight cracked one of its branches without completely severing it.   When the time came for the tree to bear fruit again, I noticed a significant difference in the fruit production on that damaged branch.   It flowered as the rest of the branches and little peaches began to grow, but they never became full-sized, delicious “Million Dollar Peaches”.  They lacked sufficient connection with the source of nutrients and so failed to produce that delightful fruit. Jesus uses a similar reference to fruit bearing in His farewell discourse with His disciples in John 15.  He declares that He is the true vine and His disciples are the branches, with His Father as the vinedresser.  The main point of this ex...

  WHICH BIBLE? - AN EXAMINATION OF TRANSLATIONS - Part Four Having considered original manuscripts and subsequent copies, which then gave rise to textual traditions used in the production of Bible translations and the earlier English versions of those translations, we can examine the method of translation used in modern versions. MODERN VERSIONS AND METHOD OF TRANSLATION Modern Versions   Since the King James Version, many English versions have been produced, most of which were based on Wescott & Hort’s revision of the Greek text.   The first one was the English Revised Version (1881, 1885), followed soon after by the American Standard Version (1901).   Then, as a result of further manuscript research and revision of the Greek text, and the changes in English literary style, the Revised Standard Version (1946, 1952) was produced.   This version was severely criticised by conservative evangelicals and fundamentalists for its seeming liberal bias at ...

WHICH BIBLE - PART THREE Having considered original manuscripts and subsequent copies, which then gave rise to textual traditions used in the production of Bible translations, we now come to examine English versions of those translations. THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF THE TEXT - EARLY VERSIONS A number of early efforts sought to produce an English version of Scripture but none succeeded in translating the entire Bible.   From Caedmon (7th cent) who sang Scripture and Aldhelm (640-709) who translated portions of the Bible to Richard Rolle of Yorkshire (c. 1320-40) who also translated only portions of the Bible, English-speaking people waited for the first complete Bible that they could read for themselves.   John Wycliffe was the man God raised up to bring it to them.   These are a selection of the versions produced for the English-speaking  church. Wycliffe's Translation   John Wycliffe (c. 1320-84) gradually realised the errors of Rome and began to speak...

  WHICH BIBLE? - AN EXAMINATION OF TRANSLATIONS - Part Two Previously, I considered the original manuscripts and the subsequent copies as the foundation for the Bible.   This post discusses the biblical text contained in those copies, which then forms the textual tradition from which Bible translations are created.   THE BIBLICAL TEXT CONTAINED IN THE COPIES   It is here that there has been considerable debate, but only with respect to the Greek text of the New Testament.   The Old Testament text has generally been agreed on for many centuries.   During the Masoretic Period (c. AD 500-1000), this text was standardized, and the Masoretic text has been the basis of translation from that time onwards.   Because of the variations between the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, it was and still is necessary to choose the correct one, the one that represents the original.   This process is known as textual criticism, which despite being...

  WHICH BIBLE? - AN EXAMINATION OF TRANSLATIONS - 2 Timothy 3:10-17 I am often asked for advice on which Bible to use and why.   With so many Bibles on sale from which to select, I can appreciate the difficulty in making such a choice, and it is not getting any easier with new versions and editions constantly appearing.   What are the differences between them, and does it really matter which version you use? I hope that this series of posts will assist you in assessing the quality of a particular translation.   I also hope to address in brief the claim that the King James Version is the only true Bible for English-speaking people.   I will approach this subject using the following steps:   1.                   The Original Manuscripts and Subsequent Copies 2.                   The...