New Perspectives

November 21, 2024 — first edit

December 11, 2024 — final edit

After becoming a Bible Believing Born Again Christian, I started reading the Bible from cover to cover. There were very few surprising bright lights going off in my head.

Later, however, when I began rereading the Bible, I would discover more and more ideas that I needed to assimilate into my believing. and to learn to walk in that new knowledge and those new precepts. My views were evolving.

As I walked in this path of a Believer, I often stumbled, tripped, and fell with some

But God didn’t abandon me to be left behind, but patiently would pick me up, make sure I knew where I went wrong, pointed me in the right direction, and continued to lead me onward and upward.

I began writing essays, posting them as ads in a local weekly newspaper. Much much later I have been publishing for several years on this Medium platform.

I did a lot of living in the last 50 odd years that I’ve been walking the Believers’ pathway. It’s been quite an eventful life. Still making mistakes and failing, Jesus’ Holy Spirit continually comes alongside to help correct and educate. God is certainly faithful.

All things considered, my life is good. I’ve been married to my wife for some 43 years in which she has put up with a lot of my mistakes. Still and all, we have 5 adult children and 7 grandchildren. So, like I said, life is good.

To the point of this letter, I keep on discovering gems of understanding while reading and listening and studying the Bible which I want to share with both Believers and Non-Believers.

“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” — Philippians 1:6, New Living Translation.

This reaffirms God’s patience with Believers because of His faithfulness.

Then, there are word studies from the original Greek texts that correct misunderstandings which turned into misconceptions and metamorphosed into wrong teachings and false yet hardened dogma.

I’ll start with Genesis chapter one in which God Created the Universe and all matter and every living plant and animal in it. Then God created Mankind, gave them dominion over all living things, and charged them to be fruitful and to populate the entire Earth.

Next, and separately, which aspect of division is very important, God made a kind of National Park, separated from the rest of the world, made the man, Adam, separate from the rest of Mankind, made a woman whom Adam called Eve, and gave them a similar charge to take care of the Park and to be fruitful and multiply.

The importance of the separateness that I have overemphasized is that this is the pattern of a dynamic process God continues to use throughout the Bible stories. in which “holy,” simply means “separate” or in its context “separated to God” with the understanding that it meant for God’s purposes. All the individuals throughout the Bible were separated out of the crowd to illustrate God’s purposes in a real meat and potatoes way.

God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

A recent discovery of mine is related to that concept:

Where in many, if not most translations, the word “called” is used as in Matthew 24;13 the NKJV reads, “For many are called, but few are chosen.” while in the NIV it is, “For many are invited,but few are chosen.” I never really understood it, because I didn’t understand being called was like being called up on the phone. In my opinion being invited by God is a much fuller and picturesque way of conveying the same idea.

This seems to be a standing invitation throughout the Old Testament and it is a definite invitation held out to everyone in the New Testament — both Jewish and everybody else.

You could respond to the invitation anytime. “For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” — 1 Corinthians 6:2. NIV.

Here’s another little tidbit of when I was unclear on the meaning of the word “hypocrisy” which simply enough means “play-acting” with the added connotation of jealousy at its roots. Here’s a related verse: “For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. — 2 Corinthians 11:13–15, NIV. It seems that an archangel got jealous of what I’m not sure… mankind? Adam and Eve? No matter, that particular angel got tossed and became known as Satan, the serpent, the snake that upset Paradise. Jesus said about him, “He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” — John 8:44, NIV.

One of the concepts that I am trying to show is the continuity of the Bible through and through. Everything is woven together in a complex quilted offering.

In the end, God has given everything great and good to Mankind from time everlasting. Yet, we all managed to screw things up, doing things as we saw fit and showing God no appreciation — even though over and over we managed to purposefully ignore His right ways — traveling on, making things up as we traveled onward and downward.

Finally God gave Mankind Jesus who actually volunteered for the mission: “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son…” — John 3:16–18, Berean Standard Bible.

Everybody is invited,but apparently, not everybody responds with a “Yes, please, and thank you so very much,” but with “No thanks, I’ve got more important things to do.”

Here is the whole parable:

Jesus replied, “A certain man prepared a great banquet and invited many guests. When it was time for the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

But one after another they all began to make excuses. The first one said, ‘I have bought a field, and I need to go see it. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out. Please excuse me.’ Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, so I cannot come.’

The servant returned and reported all this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ ‘Sir,’ the servant replied, ‘what you ordered has been done, and there is still room.’

So the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. For I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will taste my banquet.’ ”