A different concept....

[Enoch111]

Christ never told us to sit back and relax, because He would go out and usher people into the doors of our church buildings.

And I just showed you that those who believe in a pre-tribulation Rapture DO NOT sit back and relax. So you have created a straw man.

 

[Uisdean]

One of the most prevalent views on this is that if a person thinks they are getting out of this world soon, and most of it is going to burn any way (including most people), why bother working too hard to expand the kingdom
Personally, I think it might be as long as 10,000 more years till Jesus returns, and He DID leave us a job He wanted us to do for Him.

...
This editor & my tablet's "keyboard" can be dangerous!!
Apparently, posting is posting & editing does not change the post...
I did edit my post in an attempt to be even more careful with my words. It shows up as another post?!?!?
I guess I need to find the lessons on how this works...!

 

[Willie T]

And I just showed you that those who believe in a pre-tribulation Rapture DO NOT sit back and relax. So you have created a straw man.

Well, you DID say Christ is the one doing the work of building the church today, didn't you? That seems to mean that we should let Him do it.

 

[Uisdean]

Amen...good post. Me too.

Thanks
Glad a few of you understood what I was saying.

I knew it was dangerous to mention the topic. I hoped people would see that some scripture can be interpreted in more than one way ( an aspect of the topic under discussion) ... I'm not saying my original interpretation is right, just that I read it that way & then learned how others see it.

 

[Uisdean]

I did start it...but I am not good at toeing the line...even if I make that line myself!
I start, but then I go off in all directions...'following rabbits' down different holes!!

Yeah! Since I started this I have missed a couple of days, and on other days I might get one chapter read. But I'm not giving up.
I've been using Bible Gateway for various translations. It's interesting to see how each one does this. It also makes the reading less repetitive.
But so far I have not had the sense that any one was "different"; Nor have I experienced a 'new way' to think about some verse.
Keep at it. Start where you left off. Set your goal for two weeks. That won't seem so long.
And...Pray for God's help.
Rejoice Always!

 

[GodsGrace]

I know this bolded part will border upon Satanic heresy for some of you. But, that is a "given", considering the group we have here. So, as I usually do, I will ignore such a faction and address this to those of you I have come to respect as thinkers.

An interesting and often rewarding approach to the study of the Bible is to take a smaller book, like Ephesians or 1 John, and read it through each day for a month. More than any single effort, this will put the structure of the book into your mind. Read it without trying to fit it into established categories. Expect to hear new things in new ways. Keep a journal of your findings. In the course of these studies you will obviously want to make use of the best secondary aids available.

Anyone ever done anything like this?

There's another way??
LOL

Oh wait. You mean read the WHOLE book of Ephesians EVERY DAY for a whole month so that I've read it 30 times at the end of the month?

If so, then NO. I've never done this. But I DO like to read through whole books, not do some from the O.T and then the N.T. and then a gospel verse....some do this. I find it does't create a good understanding of any book.

(Guess I showed up here late.)

 

[Enoch111]

Well, you DID say Christ is the one doing the work of building the church today, didn't you? That seems to mean that we should let Him do it.

Not really. As Paul says "GOD giveth the increase" but "we are labourers together with God".

1 CORINTHIANS 3
5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?
6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.
8 Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.
9 For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.
10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.

 

[Uisdean]

So far I have only found one thing that sounds different. I've started using two versions side by side, reading a section from Youngs Literal Translation and then the same verse from New King James. This does bring up some translation questions, but both of them say the same thing. One exception: Ch 2 vs 10. Youngs says, "10 for of Him we are workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God did before prepare, that in them we may walk." and the NKJV says, "10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Yes, they both say the same thing. It's what they say that's interesting. Apparently "good works" were prepared by God 'beforehand' for us to walk in.

So, here's what @Willie T was seeking, I think. I've always seen this verse as 'tacked on' to verses 8 & 9. That is, it is after we are saved (vs 8 & 9) that we do our good works. Period. End of discussion. (Look at how The Message handles it.) However, now I see this differently. First, there is the question of what St. Paul means by "good works". But more important, I think, is the phrase, "...created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God did before prepare, that in them we may walk." and/or "...created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." The idea of "walking" in "good works" is new to me. This makes me think that, while we were created by God in our mother's womb, we are also created again, or (dare I say it) "born again" and it is this second creation St. Paul is meaning in verse 10. We "walk in" shoes. We "walk in" a puddle of water. We "walk in" step with the drill sargeant. I think St. Paul would mean all three of these ideas at once. "Walking" in "Good Works" means we "wear" them, we "travel through" them and we "maintain the correct pace". Wierd idea?

I looked up the verse in a couple of other translations. I also looked up "works" in the dictionary. The Amplified Bible comes close to what I'm thinking. Here's my thoughts:

So, I might rewrite verse 10 to read, "God, knowing that He would save us and re-create us in His image, designed specific moral chores for us, these moral chores would become a part of us after we were saved (or like clothing, that we would wear as we walk with Him--thinking about the Armor in chapter 6.); so that as we walk with our Lord, these moral chores, or works, or deeds, or acts are signs and witnesses of just who we are. Each of us has our own set of tasks/works. Others can see that we belong to Christ because they can see our works."

Well, Willie T? Is this what you were asking in the beginning of this thread? Again, thanks for proposing this. It really is a worthwhile endeavor.

(Oh, just for fun: how many posters will post "off topic" on this? I guess six.)

I'll keep reading and post another report soon.

OH, did I use "@Willie T" correctly?

Rejoice Always!

 

[Uisdean]

(Guess I showed up here late.)

Better late than never...
Just think, you could start on Sept. 1st.

 

[Willie T]

So far I have only found one thing that sounds different. I've started using two versions side by side, reading a section from Youngs Literal Translation and then the same verse from New King James. This does bring up some translation questions, but both of them say the same thing. One exception: Ch 2 vs 10. Youngs says, "10 for of Him we are workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God did before prepare, that in them we may walk." and the NKJV says, "10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Yes, they both say the same thing. It's what they say that's interesting. Apparently "good works" were prepared by God 'beforehand' for us to walk in.

So, here's what @Willie T was seeking, I think. I've always seen this verse as 'tacked on' to verses 8 & 9. That is, it is after we are saved (vs 8 & 9) that we do our good works. Period. End of discussion. (Look at how The Message handles it.) However, now I see this differently. First, there is the question of what St. Paul means by "good works". But more important, I think, is the phrase, "...created in Christ Jesus to good works, which God did before prepare, that in them we may walk." and/or "...created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." The idea of "walking" in "good works" is new to me. This makes me think that, while we were created by God in our mother's womb, we are also created again, or (dare I say it) "born again" and it is this second creation St. Paul is meaning in verse 10. We "walk in" shoes. We "walk in" a puddle of water. We "walk in" step with the drill sargeant. I think St. Paul would mean all three of these ideas at once. "Walking" in "Good Works" means we "wear" them, we "travel through" them and we "maintain the correct pace". Wierd idea?

I looked up the verse in a couple of other translations. I also looked up "works" in the dictionary. The Amplified Bible comes close to what I'm thinking. Here's my thoughts:

So, I might rewrite verse 10 to read, "God, knowing that He would save us and re-create us in His image, designed specific moral chores for us, these moral chores would become a part of us after we were saved (or like clothing, that we would wear as we walk with Him--thinking about the Armor in chapter 6.); so that as we walk with our Lord, these moral chores, or works, or deeds, or acts are signs and witnesses of just who we are. Each of us has our own set of tasks/works. Others can see that we belong to Christ because they can see our works."

Well, Willie T? Is this what you were asking in the beginning of this thread? Again, thanks for proposing this. It really is a worthwhile endeavor.

(Oh, just for fun: how many posters will post "off topic" on this? I guess six.)

I'll keep reading and post another report soon.

OH, did I use "@Willie T" correctly?

Rejoice Always!

You are doing great on all counts. All I ever intended with the OP was that we expand our awareness beyond whatever limitations might have been placed on us...…. whenever and however that happened. And I think we can all trust (as seen from simply reading posts here) that a lot of that has happened to all of us.

 

[bbyrd009]

Personally, I think it might be as long as 10,000 more years till Jesus returns

Return to Me, and I will return to you

 

[bbyrd009]

Well, you DID say Christ is the one doing the work of building the church today, didn't you? That seems to mean that we should let Him do it.

never gonna become elohim that way Willie, wadr
work while it is day
you can worship Jesus, or you can partake in Christ imo
bam let Him do it, the Body of Christ