INTRODUCTION
Outline.
1. Through the Faith In Christ Jesus
Introductory Remarks.
1. This lesson is presented to assure all who seek Christ's salvation can receive it through faith and obedience to the gospel of the Son of God. Paul, the beloved apostle, has assured us of this fact in his Letter to Rome. Let me clarify: I am neither a Greek scholar nor educated in the art and skill of translating the Holy Bible. My work, as presented, is merely my observations and study of the scriptures. This is a lesson of assurance to the believers in Christ!
2. I have no ax to grind, only a desire to "confirm and defend the faith of the gospel of the Son of God," Philippians 1:7; Philippians 1:17. It is always helpful to study the background of the Text of discussion within the context of the scripture where it has been embedded. We will do this in the lesson, not only in our Text of discussion but also in other passages of scripture that appear in the New Testament that present the same truth regarding the doctrine of Christ, 2 John 1:9.
3. We will conclude this lesson by conducting a Greek Parsing Exercise and reviewing and analyzing our findings to settle this doctrinal issue. Our goal is to understand the message of the scripture to the believers in Jesus Christ. Some preliminary work will be done by researching these prepositional phrases in Greek Manuscripts to lay a firm foundation before discussing how the apostle used them in his Letters to the saints regarding their salvation in Christ.
4. We aim to validate this Text with others that this author has written to the churches in the first century. We seek only to discover the author's original message from Greek Manuscripts, textual investigation, and the harmony of the doctrine taught elsewhere in the New Testament. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding has all them that do His commandments: His praise endureth forever," Psalms 111:10; Proverbs 4:7. With this exhortation, let's go to work!
BODY OF LESSON
I THROUGH THE FAITH IN CHRIST JESUS
A. We will embark on a fascinating study of Paul's use of the prepositional phrase "Through the faith in Christ Jesus and the redemption of sins." Our Text of investigation reads: "Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God, to declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be Just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus," Romans 3:24-26.
1. We will seek to discover the meaning of two prepositional phrases: "Through the faith" and "redemption through His blood." On the surface, they appear to have been reversed in these verses. They do not follow the same writing style as Paul's use of them in other Letters in the New Testament. His customary rendition of these two prepositional phrases is:
a. Through the faith in Christ Jesus rather than through the redemption in Christ Jesus.
b. Through the redemption in His blood, rather than through the faith in his blood.
2. I must admit this has troubled me and spurred this research and investigation to validate the certainty of these prepositional phrases in the book of Romans. I located some Greek manuscripts in the Library of Congress (LOC) that predate all our current Interlinear, from which we could obtain a good picture of Paul's mind in these prepositional phrases.
3. We sought help from ancient Greek Manuscripts. Review similar scriptures containing these phrases: "Through the faith" and "redemption through His blood." Observe,
a. Greek Manuscript 270. New Testament. Saint Catherine (Monastery: Mount Sinai). LOC: Feb 8, 1950. Image 178, page 172, Romans 3:22-26. Bottom of the Page.
1) [dia pistis en iesous christos] - "Through faith in Jesus Christ," Romans 3:22.
2) [dia ho apolytrosis ho en christos iesous] - "Through the redemption in the Christ Jesus," Romans 3:24.
3) [hos protithemi ho theos to hilasterion] - "In whom displayed the God the mercy seat," Romans 3:25a.
4) [dia ho pistis en ho haima autos] - "Through the faith in the blood His," Romans 3:25b.
5) Observe that the Greek Text appears as a "transliteration" in the references above.
NOTE: "The Faith" in this manuscript was readable. Which reads: "Through the faith in the blood His."
6) Conclusion: In this manuscript, these prepositional phrases: "Through faith in Jesus Christ, through the redemption in Christ Jesus, and through the faith in the blood His" appear as presented in 1) to 4) above. Remember, we seek only to see how Paul explained these doctrinal terms to his readers. We will observe later that Paul's teaching was that our redemption was made possible "through His blood" or "through Christ's shed blood" for the remission of sins.
b. Greek Manuscript 1992. New Testament. Saint Catherine (Monastery: Mount Sinai). LOC: Apr 21, 1950. Image 103, page 110, Romans 3:22-26. Top of the Page.
1) [dia pistis en iesous christos] - "Through faith in Jesus Christ," Romans 3:22.
2) [dia ho apolytrosis ho en christos iesous] - "Through the redemption in the Christ Jesus," Romans 3:24.
3) [hos protithemi ho theos to hilasterion] - "In whom displayed the God the mercy seat," Romans 3:25a.
4) [dia ho pistis en ho haima autos] - "Through the faith in the blood His," Romans 3:25b.
5) Observe that the Greek Text appears as a "transliteration" in the references above.
NOTE: "The Faith" in this manuscript seems doubtful. In some translations, a sign of a variant spelling, †, of the word "pistis" is given for Romans 3:25b. The word "faith" is questionable, but it could have been the scribe's error in copying the Text (some Greek letters are readable). We will leave this entirely for you to decide rather than me.
6) Conclusion: We found all these prepositional phrases in this Greek Manuscript. Each appears in the manuscript as seen in 1) to 4) above. Therefore, we must conclude that the prepositional phrases appear as the apostle initially wrote them to the Romans. Paul's message to the saints was that they "were justified freely by God's grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, through God's mercy seat, through faith in the shed blood of Christ for their forgiveness of sins." This truth also agrees with the apostle's other Letters to the churches of Christ elsewhere in the New Testament. The difference is that he explains the process here and reminds them of the blessings elsewhere. Remember, the Book of Romans is one of Paul's Epistles of the doctrine of Christ (justification by faith in Christ Jesus). The other one is the Book of Galatians. Then,
B. Through (the) redemption in Christ Jesus. The following verses were translated as "through the faith" in the New Testament. The apostles' usual rendition of this prepositional phrase is always "through the faith" and not "through the redemption" in Christ Jesus. Paul wrote,
1. In Philippians 3:9, "And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." In this passage, Paul compares the righteousness sought through the Law, as opposed to the righteousness sought through the faith in Christ Jesus. He desired to be found in Christ, not through his righteousness, but by the righteousness of God, which comes "through the faith."
It is this difference that spurred our investigation of these prepositional phrases. Also,
2. In Colossians 2:12, "Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also you (have risen) with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead." Paul now shows that it was in baptism that the Colossians were buried and risen through the faith of the operation of God, who once being dead in sins and the uncircumcision of their flesh, hath He quickened together with Him, having forgiven them all their trespasses and sins," Colossians 2:13. Again,
3. In 2 Timothy 3:15, "And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which can make thee wise unto salvation through (the) faith which is in Christ Jesus." This verse clarifies that the holy scriptures can make one wise unto salvation through the faith in Christ Jesus. The translators omitted the definite article in their translation of this verse. I have included it, and you should consider this always when the prepositional phrase "through faith," as opposed to "through the faith," is mentioned in Paul's Doctrinal Epistles to the saints.
4. In Galatians 3:14, "That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through (the) faith." Here again, the definite article was omitted from this verse, and once added, the entire message of the Text was changed. Paul's message here was that the Holy Spirit was given unto the Gentiles not through the Law of works, but through the obedience of the faith in Christ Jesus, Galatians 3:11-12; Galatians 3:1-5. The definite article was omitted in other passages in the Book of Galatians. Consider,
a. B. W. Johnson wrote: "The fact that the apostles so often place(d) the definite article before the word faith, so that in the Greek he speaks of The Faith, leaves no doubt of his meaning. Unfortunately, the translators have obscured the meaning by omitting the article. Thus, in this chapter, the Greek gives the definite article (the) before the word faith five times where it is omitted in the Common Version. The examples are Galatians 3:14; Galatians 3:23 (twice); Galatians 3:25; and Galatians 3:26," page 515.
b. Most commentaries do not address the definite article in the Book of Galatians or the Ephesians. They tend to gloss over this very vital truth in our salvation. Our works of righteousness and faith alone cannot bring the salvation we need and desire. Under the Law, it was keeping the Law's commandments without offense. None could do it except Christ, the perfect sacrifice for the world's sins. What makes this article so important? Simply, it is not our faith, but our faith and obedience to "the faith of the gospel," or "the gospel of the grace of God," Acts 20:24.
c. Our salvation cannot be earned or bought. It is God's gift to all who would put their trust, faith, and obedience in Christ. Paul reminded the Ephesians that their salvation was made possible through the grace of God. He wrote: "In whom you also trusted, after that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that you believed, you were sealed with that Holy Spirit of Promise. Which is the earnest of our inheritance unto the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory," Ephesians 1:12-13. Observe,
5. In Ephesians 2:8-9, "For by grace you are saved through (the) faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." In this passage of scripture, you should note that the definite article was omitted in this most essential Text in Paul's Letter to the Ephesians. Paul infers that salvation is not through our faith but "through the faith" in Christ Jesus. His message has not changed. The emphasis of all these scriptures is placed on how we were saved (the gift of salvation) and not the process of how salvation was made possible through Christ our "to hilasterion," whom "ho theos" hath displayed or has "set forth Him to be the mercy seat" for the salvation of the entire world, Romans 3:25a; 1 John 2:1-2; Hebrews 9:5. Let us all be confident that God has made the gift of salvation possible through His grace unto all through faith and obedience to the gospel of Christ. We will discuss how that is possible next.
6. Conclusion: Paul's customary rendering of justification in Christ was that it was granted "through the faith." In Romans 3:24-26, Christ's justification of the believers is made possible through (the) faith (or the facts and form of the doctrine). Justification is in Christ "through the faith in Christ Jesus." Indeed, the context of the scriptures indicates that the Roman's justification was made possible through their "faith and obedience" to the gospel of Christ, Romans 1:16; Romans 6:17-18. Now, let us consider Paul's discussion of this prepositional phrase. Observe,
C. Through (the) faith in His blood. These following verses are translated as redemption "through His blood" in the New Testament. He wrote,
1. In Ephesians 1:7, "In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace."
2. In Colossians 1:14, "In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness of sins."
3. In Romans 5:8-11, "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than being justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the atonement," Romans 5:1-2.
a. Paul here defines God's process of atonement. The method of how and when we might be justified by "the faith" and not by the works of the Law. Consider Romans 3:22-26!
b. You can see the harmony of these two passages of scriptures, speaking about the same thing, "redemption." Here we go,
c. Romans 10:5-17, "For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the Law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them…But what saith it? The word is night thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart that is, the word of faith, which we preach…How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?... But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our Report? So then (the) faith cometh by hearing, and the hearing by the word of God." [Text shortened for brevity.]
d. Romans 6:17-18, "But God be thanked, that you were the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being (then) made free from sin, you became the servants of righteousness." In these verses, Paul gives us the "facts" and the "form" of the teaching or doctrine that makes one free from their sins. Notice the doctrine,
e. 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also you are saved, if you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures." Now, let's see how all this applies! What are the facts? What is the form? Observe,
1) The facts are these: "Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again on the third day according to the scriptures," 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Luke 24:44-47. This is the message of Esaias' Report." But they all did not obey the gospel. They heard, believed, but did not obey. Obey what? The faith! Notice Acts 6:7, "But a great number of priests were obedient to the faith." Please get this: the priests not only believed "the faith," but were also "obedient to the faith." See also Romans 1:5; Romans 15:18-19. Paul preached the need for obedience to the faith or Esaias' Report.
2) The form is this: "You have obeyed from the heart that form of the doctrine which was delivered you, being then made free from your sins." Notice that you have obeyed "out of your heart" that form of the doctrine. Not in the heart – but – out of the heart. Faith is conceived and believed in the heart but must be "obeyed from the heart." What was I these believers had obeyed out of their hearts – "in faith and trust in God for the forgiveness of their sins?" Observe,
3) Romans 6:1-7. Stay with me, the understanding is forthwith! The apostle wrote,
a) "What shall we say then…shall we continue?" Romans 6:1-2. [Text shortened for brevity.]
b) "Know you not, that so many of us (as were) baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore, we are buried with Him by baptism into death, like Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life," Romans 6:3-4.
c) "For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection," Romans 6:5.
d) "Knowing that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed (justified) from sin," Romans 6:6-7. Here we have it. Salvation is through "faith and obedience to the gospel" or "through the faith."
NOTE: Paul uses these two prepositional phrases to express this truth elsewhere, Philippians 1:27; Galatians 1:22-24. He preaches "the faith" or "the faith of the gospel." The gospel of what? "The gospel of the grace of God," Acts 20:24. I wish I had some help!
4. Conclusion: We have now heard and witnessed the "facts and the form" of the gospel. Israel heard it and believed it but would not obey it. Recall, "But they have not all obeyed the gospel. Lord, who hath believed our Report? So, then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God," Romans 10:16-17. The facts are that Christ died, was buried, and rose again on the third day. The form is that we die to sin and are buried with Christ so that we can rise in the newness of life. For if we have been planted, or buried in (the likeness) of Christ's death, we shall also be in (the likeness) of His resurrection. Being "justified from sin" through faith and obedience to "the faith of the gospel," Romans 6:7; Romans 5:1-2. We are now ready to begin our exercise in this lesson. You might be asking,
D. What is Greek Parsing? Recall that Greek Parsing means "To divide (a sentence) into grammatical parts and identify the parts and their relationship to each other." Reference, Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
1. In this case, examining a word or prepositional phrase in a sentence from Greek to connect its adjective or verb to its proper definite article, noun, or pronoun that agrees within the Text by (case, number, and gender).
2. We will allow the case, number, and gender of a word or phrase in a sentence to define their relationship in the Text. The Textus Receptus is the Interlinear being used in discussing this topic.
3. In this case, a sentence in the Greek manuscript is examined by case, number, and gender. (Insertion is mine.) Before we can view this Text, we need to correct something else that leads us to this discussion. The translation of "a propitiation" should be addressed first. Consider verse 24: "Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation," in my judgment is incorrect. Observe,
a. Now, "Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (mercy seat) in His blood through (the) faith, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God," Romans 3:24-26.
1) There is some discussion on what Paul meant by several key phrases in Romans 3:25. We will look at them quickly before closing out this point in the lesson.
2) He wrote: "Whom God hath set forth to be:"
a) One, "a propitiation through faith in His blood."
b) Two, "to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins."
c) Three, "through the forbearance of God."
3) Some scholars have argued that this translation is incorrect. The emphasis is on what God has done in Christ, not our "faith." The current King James Translation of these phrases cannot be validated through Greek Parsing. What I mean by this is that their noun and pronoun cannot be correlated with their definite articles (which are missing) by "case, number, and gender." While,
4) Examining them through Greek Parsing, the sentence reads: "Whom God hath set forth [to be]:"
a) First, the phrase "a propitiation" must be considered. The phrase, a propitiation could be understood to mean more than one "propitiation." This cannot be the correct translation. A definite article is missing in this phrase. Nearly all translations render "propitiation" as "the mercy seat." Therefore, we sought to locate the missing definite article in this phrase. The noun is neuter in this Text. Therefore, the definite article must also be neuter in gender.
i. I located the definite article in verse 26. Sometimes, the definite article is not always near its noun in the Text, or the translator just omitted it.
ii. The definite article "the" is T-ASN, and the noun "propitiation" is N-ASN.
NOTE: ASN means Accusative Singular Neuter.
iii. The proper translation would then be "the propitiation." God set forth Christ as "the propitiation" not a propitiation "for the sin of the entire world," 1 John 2:1-2; 1 John 4:10. Whether propitiation is being described as the "person, place or thing." See also Hebrews 9:5.
b. Paul, in these verses, asserted that both (Jews and Gentiles) were justified by faith, Romans 3:30. The Jews "by the faith." And the Gentiles "through the faith." See Romans 3:27-31. Now, we are ready to proceed with our first prepositional phrase. To maintain continuity of thought, let's begin with,
4. Examining the prepositional phrase: "Through faith in His blood," Romans 3:25. In this phrase: the word "through" is a preposition; | "faith" is a noun N-GSF; | "in" is also a preposition; | "His" is a pronoun P-GSM; | and "blood" is also a noun N-DSN.
a. The nouns in this sentence are not made definite without the "definite articles." What is missing in this sentence is the definite article (the), which makes the nouns faith and blood definite. They were not translated into English. The definite article must precede the noun to make it definite in the prepositional phrase. With the definite articles added and translated, it would read,
1) In this manner: "Through the faith in the blood His." | Through is a preposition; | the is a definite article T-GSF; | faith is a noun N-GSF; | in is also a preposition; | His is a pronoun P-GSM; | the is also a definite article T-DSN; |and blood is a noun N-DSN.
NOTE: The articles and nouns now agree in case, number, and gender. In some cases, the definite articles do not have to be translated to maintain the author's meaning of the Text. However, Paul includes the article when discussing the "doctrine" or "the faith." The articles make definite "the faith" and "the blood" of Him (Jesus). This is a different picture from the one that appears below.
2) Not in this manner: "Through faith in His blood." Through is a preposition; | faith is a noun N-GSF; | in is a preposition; | His is a pronoun P-GSM; | and blood is a noun N-DSN.
3) Rightfully, the translated sentence could read as: "the propitiation through the faith in the blood of Him."
b. The entire verse could then read: "Whom God set forth as the propitiation (mercy seat) through the faith, (of the gospel of the grace of God); in the blood of Him (Jesus), to shew forth His righteousness, in respect of His forbearance, in passing over all the sins that were previously committed, under the former dispensations (ages)," Romans 3:25. Christ's death was necessary for the sins passed over by God, as His means of declaring His righteousness in His forbearance, forgiveness, and the justification of both Jews and Gentile through the faith in Jesus Christ.
NOTE: Review also Ephesians 3:1-7; Hebrews 9:14-17; Hebrews 8:6. They specify that this grace was given in "the dispensation of the grace of God." Thank God for Jesus! John 1:17.
5. Examining the sentence: "Through faith in Jesus Christ," Romans 3:22. The word through is a preposition;| faith is a noun N-GSF; | of Jesus is a N-GSM; | and Christ is also a Noun N-GSM|. We found no definite article tied to this prepositional phrase in the manuscripts above. Finally,
6. Examining the sentence: "Through (the) redemption in (the) Christ Jesus," Romans 3:24. In this sentence: the word | the is a definite article T-GSF; | redemption is a noun N-GSF; | the is a definite article T-GSF; | the phrase is in is also a preposition; | Christ is a noun N-DSM; | and Jesus is also a noun N-DSM. Observe,
a. The first definite article, "the," was translated in this prepositional phrase. Therefore, the meaning is clear. Its meaning is the redemption that is in the Christ Jesus.
b. The second definite article preceding Christ Jesus appears to have been miscoded. If it is to make definite Christ Jesus, it should have been coded T-DSM and not T-GSF.
c. We corrected this prepositional phrase to read as follows: "Through the redemption, in (the) Christ Jesus," Romans 3:24. Observe,
1) "Through" is a PREP;| "the" is a definite article T-GSF; |and "redemption" is a noun N-GSF.
2) “In” is a PREP; | “the” is a definite article T-DSM; | “Christ” is a Noun N-DSM; |and “Jesus” is also a noun N-DSM.
3) The definite article was changed from T-GSF to T-DSM. The definite article "the" does not make "redemption" definite, but it does for "Christ Jesus."
NOTE: GSF means Genitive Singular Feminine, and DMS means Dative Singular Masculine.
E. Analysis of these verses. The two missing definite articles, if put in their proper place, would read as follows:
1. Through (the) redemption in (the) Christ Jesus, Romans 3:24.
NOTE: Through is PREP; | the is T-GSF; | redemption is N-GSF; | in is PREP; | the is T-DSM; | Christ is N-DSM; | and Jesus is N-DSM.
a. Observe that the definite articles and the associated nouns agree in case, number, and gender.
b. GSF means genitive in case, singular in number, and feminine in gender.
c. DSM means dative in case, singular in number, and masculine in gender.
d. PREP means preposition.
2. Through (the) faith in His (the) blood, Romans 3:25.
NOTE: Through is PREP; | the is T-GSF; | faith is N-GSF; | in is PREP; | his is P-GSM; | the is T-DSN; | and blood is N-DSN.
a. Observe that the definite article and the associated nouns agree in case, number, and gender.
b. GSF means genitive in case, singular in number, and feminine in gender.
c. GSM means genitive in case, singular in number, and masculine in gender.
d. DSN means dative in case, singular in number, and neuter in gender.
e. PREP means preposition.
NOTE: The (the) in these verses is the missing definite article in each prepositional phrase.
3. The Text could read: "Being justified freely by His grace through (the) redemption in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be (the) propitiation through (the) faith in His (the) blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of past sins, through the forbearance of God. To declare, I say, at this time His righteousness: that He might be Just, and the Justifier of him which believeth in Jesus," Romans 3:24-26.
4. Conclusion: Paul's message to the church at Rome was that Christ was set forth to be the mercy seat for all the sins of humanity (past, present, and future) through His death, burial, and resurrection from the dead. That God might be witnessed as Just and the Justifier of all who would believe and obey the gospel of Christ. In our Text of discussion, Paul defends God's mercy and grace for saving Jews and Gentiles. All required His grace and mercy, for "all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God," Romans 3:23. As I begin to conclude, let me….
CONCLUSION
A. Outline.
1. Through the Faith In Christ Jesus
B. Summarize Main Points.
1. In this lesson, we sought to assure all who seek Christ's salvation can receive it through faith and obedience to the gospel of the Son of God. Paul, the beloved apostle, has assured us of this fact in his Letter to Rome. Let me clarify: I am neither a Greek scholar nor educated in the art and skill of translating the Holy Bible. My work, as presented, is merely my observations and study of the scriptures.
2. We had no ax to grind, only a desire to "confirm and defend the faith of the gospel of the Son of God," Philippians 1:7; Philippians 1:17. We found it was helpful to study the background of the Text of discussion within the context of the scripture where it has been embedded. We did that in this lesson, not only in our Text of discussion but also in other passages of scripture that appear in the New Testament that present the same truth regarding the doctrine of Christ, 2 John 1:9.
3. We concluded this lesson by conducting a Greek Parsing Exercise and reviewing and analyzing our findings to settle this doctrinal issue. Our goal was to understand the message of the scripture to the believers in Jesus Christ. Some preliminary work was done by researching these prepositional phrases in Greek Manuscripts to lay a firm foundation before discussing how the apostle used them in his Letters to the saints regarding their salvation in Christ.
4. Lastly, we validated this Text with others that this author has written to the churches in the first century. We sought only to discover the author's original message from Greek Manuscripts, textual investigation, and the harmony of the doctrine taught elsewhere in the New Testament. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding has all them that do His commandments: His praise endureth forever," Psalms 111:10; Proverbs 4:7.
C. Invitation. Present God's pattern of conversion. Jesus said: "Come unto me all ye that labor," Matthew 11:28-30. [Explain the POC, i.e., hearing and believing the gospel; repentance of all past sins, Luke 24:44-47; confessing faith in Christ, as the Son of God, Matthew 10:32-33; and then, by obeying the gospel, Romans 10:16-18; Romans 6:17-18; that is to: "repent and be baptized, in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost," Acts 2:38; Acts 5:31-32; Ephesians 1:13-14].
D. Exhortation. "The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved," Jeremiah 8:20.
E. Motivation. Do as Peter directed: "Save thyself," Acts 2:40; Acts 2:36-39; Acts 2:41.
Acknowledgments and Commendations
To: "Render therefore to all their dues: tributes to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; and honor to whom honor (is due)," Romans 13:7. I acknowledge my consultation with these distinguished authors.
References
1. Merriam-Webster, since 1828, by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated (Merriam-Webster.com), 2017.
2. Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible, by Matthew Henry, Christian Classics Ethereal Library, Grand Rapids, MI, 1706.
3. The People's New Testament, by B. W. Johnson, Christian Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, MI, 1891.
4. The New Greek-English Interlinear New Testament; United Bible Societies,' Fourth, Corrected Edition, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL, 1990.
5. Textus Receptus, taken from the Greek Text of Stephens 1550, The Englishman's Greek New Testament, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, First Zondervan Printing, 1970.
6. Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, by W. E. Vine, Fleming H. Revell Company, Old Tappan, NJ, Copyright, 1981.
7. The BlueLetterBible.org, (BLB's) Interlinear, Textus Receptus; and the Morphological GNT, © 2022, by the Blue Letter Bible. This tool allows you to access the Greek New Testament in both manuscripts. http://www.blb.org/The BLB also provides tutorials to help you learn how to use it. Link, (www.BLB.org).
A word of thanks to BLB.org.
Thank you for this valuable tool of study, BLB.org. It has been an excellent instrument for me to learn and use the Interlinear to bring my sermons alive to the audience. Thank you very much for this great Application to help study the scriptures.
Contact Information
Ron Freeman, Evangelist
wwmcoc@earthlink.net
https://wwmchurchofchrist.org/
Website: https://en.gravatar.com/refreeman
