Debate In Romans 1: 29 - Paul's Reasoning With the Jews
In Romans 1: 21-29 Paul writes that "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers..."
Debate in Romans 1; 29 is from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance number 2054, eris, meaning "a quarrel, i.e, by implication wrangling, contention, debate, strife, variance."
Within Romans 1: 21-29 debate is seen in a negative light. Yet Paul and other apostles taught the word of God and the King James Version (and other versions) talk about Paul disputing with the Jews - and others - in proclaiming the Gospel of Christ, as in Acts 17: 17.
There is an important distinction to be made between debate as a verbal expression of contention between opposing sides in arguments, which is often driven by pride. In pride people want to win arguments so much that they ridicule, harass and insult their opponents. But the "disputing" of Paul with the Jews is motivated by faith, and by a desire to be obedient to the Lord in sticking to and presenting his truth to those who reject it.
A word study I did shows an important difference in meaning between eris translated as debate in Romans 1: 29, and the Greek words used to describe Paul's discussion or exhortation of the Gospel of Christ in the Book of Acts.
The meanings of eris, translated as debate in Romans 1: 29, point to debate as being strife
between two or more people, or two sides in an argument, and by contention between people expressed verbally.
But the meanings of Dialegomai and Suzeteo used for Paul's pesentation out of the Old Testament and from his own revelations from Christ and the Holy Spirit are generally not about a quarrel or debate as contention. Paul is presenting the truth in reasoning, preaching and exhortation to those
who have never known God, the Gentiles, and the Jews who hold now to a false view of God and of Israel reborn in Christ. Debate in Romans 1: 29 is more of a quarrelsome discourse, while the reasoning of Paul to teach the truth is not quarrelsome, but he is, like Jude 1; 3, contending for the Gospel of Christ and does not water it down or compromise it for the sake of human relationships. And Paul is born again in Christ and met the risen Christ on the Road to Domascus. Paul's "contending" for the faith is not driven by his fleshly pride, but by the Spirit.
For example, Acts 17: 17 says "Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him."
But the Interlinear Greek-English New Testament, by George Ricker Berry, 1958, translates dielegeto as "Therefore reasoned he in the syngogue with the Jews..." not disputed he....
The Greek word epagonizomai is used only in Jude 1: 3 where it is said to mean "earnstly content." "...ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." In pesenting the Gospel to those who have compromised it, it is entirely acceptable to earnesty contend with the opposition which will often occur when the truth is presented to those who do not like the truth. When the truth is presented this is not contentious quarreling.
There is an insight that can be added to the distinction between debate as contentious quarreling in Romans 1: 29 and Paul's reasoning with the Jews and others in the Book of Acts. This insight is that now, in the early 21st century, many Christians make use of the dialectic in arguments.
Satan was the first "psychotherapist" or facilitator of the dialectic and took
over much of man's fleshly nature, which includes self-esteem as
pride, as Dean Gotcher emphasizes, "the lust of the flesh, and the lust of
the eyes, and the pride of life" I John 2: 16.
The first facilitator's work on Eve is recorded in Genesis 3: 1-6
where Satan deceived Eve into disobeying God and eating of the tree of
the knowldge of good and evil. Luke 11: 14-27 is almost a verbatim
account of what was said in dialogue between Christ, the Pharisees,
the people gathered there and the woman in verse 27 who said blessed
is the womb and breasts that bore Christ, focusing
on the physical or flesh, but also a kind of compromise for the two
factions, Christ and the Pharisees, who he called serpents in other
texts (Matthew 23: 33). This verbal interaction is an example of the
Hegelian dialectic.
Many preachers become facilitators of the dialectic since they were
trained in seminaries influenced by Transformational Marxism, or
Stealth Marxism, not seen
by most as a form of Marxism because its not Bolshevism. Preachers into the church growth
movement are especially likely to use the Marxist dialectic.
In Romans 1: 21-29 Paul writes that "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers..."
Debate in Romans 1; 29 is from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance number 2054, eris, meaning "a quarrel, i.e, by implication wrangling, contention, debate, strife, variance."
Within Romans 1: 21-29 debate is seen in a negative light. Yet Paul and other apostles taught the word of God and the King James Version (and other versions) talk about Paul disputing with the Jews - and others - in proclaiming the Gospel of Christ, as in Acts 17: 17.
There is an important distinction to be made between debate as a verbal expression of contention between opposing sides in arguments, which is often driven by pride. In pride people want to win arguments so much that they ridicule, harass and insult their opponents. But the "disputing" of Paul with the Jews is motivated by faith, and by a desire to be obedient to the Lord in sticking to and presenting his truth to those who reject it.
A word study I did shows an important difference in meaning between eris translated as debate in Romans 1: 29, and the Greek words used to describe Paul's discussion or exhortation of the Gospel of Christ in the Book of Acts.
The meanings of eris, translated as debate in Romans 1: 29, point to debate as being strife
between two or more people, or two sides in an argument, and by contention between people expressed verbally.
But the meanings of Dialegomai and Suzeteo used for Paul's pesentation out of the Old Testament and from his own revelations from Christ and the Holy Spirit are generally not about a quarrel or debate as contention. Paul is presenting the truth in reasoning, preaching and exhortation to those
who have never known God, the Gentiles, and the Jews who hold now to a false view of God and of Israel reborn in Christ. Debate in Romans 1: 29 is more of a quarrelsome discourse, while the reasoning of Paul to teach the truth is not quarrelsome, but he is, like Jude 1; 3, contending for the Gospel of Christ and does not water it down or compromise it for the sake of human relationships. And Paul is born again in Christ and met the risen Christ on the Road to Domascus. Paul's "contending" for the faith is not driven by his fleshly pride, but by the Spirit.
For example, Acts 17: 17 says "Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him."
But the Interlinear Greek-English New Testament, by George Ricker Berry, 1958, translates dielegeto as "Therefore reasoned he in the syngogue with the Jews..." not disputed he....
The Greek word epagonizomai is used only in Jude 1: 3 where it is said to mean "earnstly content." "...ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." In pesenting the Gospel to those who have compromised it, it is entirely acceptable to earnesty contend with the opposition which will often occur when the truth is presented to those who do not like the truth. When the truth is presented this is not contentious quarreling.
There is an insight that can be added to the distinction between debate as contentious quarreling in Romans 1: 29 and Paul's reasoning with the Jews and others in the Book of Acts. This insight is that now, in the early 21st century, many Christians make use of the dialectic in arguments.
Satan was the first "psychotherapist" or facilitator of the dialectic and took
over much of man's fleshly nature, which includes self-esteem as
pride, as Dean Gotcher emphasizes, "the lust of the flesh, and the lust of
the eyes, and the pride of life" I John 2: 16.
The first facilitator's work on Eve is recorded in Genesis 3: 1-6
where Satan deceived Eve into disobeying God and eating of the tree of
the knowldge of good and evil. Luke 11: 14-27 is almost a verbatim
account of what was said in dialogue between Christ, the Pharisees,
the people gathered there and the woman in verse 27 who said blessed
is the womb and breasts that bore Christ, focusing
on the physical or flesh, but also a kind of compromise for the two
factions, Christ and the Pharisees, who he called serpents in other
texts (Matthew 23: 33). This verbal interaction is an example of the
Hegelian dialectic.
Many preachers become facilitators of the dialectic since they were
trained in seminaries influenced by Transformational Marxism, or
Stealth Marxism, not seen
by most as a form of Marxism because its not Bolshevism. Preachers into the church growth
movement are especially likely to use the Marxist dialectic.
