Q: In Exodus 4:21 The LORD said to Moses, "When you return to Egypt, see that you perform before Pharaoh all the wonders I have given you the power to do. But I will harden his heart so that he will not let the people go." Why would God harden Pharaoh's heart. Was God testing Moses to see his loyalty?
A: There are differing views on this topic. R. C. Sproul has delivered an excellent message on this topic as part of his Renewing Your Mind series:
http://broadcast.ligonier.org/podcast-media/rym20070601.mp3
Yours in Christ,
Sue and Peter
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
You Asked Us
Q: In Genesis 1:26 Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." (NIV) and in Genesis 3:22 And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever."
Who is God talking to? Were those verses translated properly? The use of of the plural has confused me. It sounds like God is talking to a being that is the same as he is. Is he talking to his angels? Please clarify.
A: Great question. We believe the verses have been translated properly, and we agree that it sounds like God is speaking to beings like Himself. We view the "us" in these verses as expressions of the trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). The word, "trinity," does not appear in the Bible, but has been adopted to describe the unique concept of God as one, yet three in person. If you have trouble wrapping your head around that idea, you aren't alone, but we believe that this is how God reveals Himself in Scripture.
For a discussion of these verses see:
http://www.gotquestions.org/God-plural.html
or, for an overview of the concept of "trinity," see:
http://www.gotquestions.org/Trinity-Bible.html
or, for a more detailed discussion of the concept of "trinity" see:
Christian Theology by Millard J. Erickson (a copy is available in the church library).
Hope this helps,
Sue and Peter
Who is God talking to? Were those verses translated properly? The use of of the plural has confused me. It sounds like God is talking to a being that is the same as he is. Is he talking to his angels? Please clarify.
A: Great question. We believe the verses have been translated properly, and we agree that it sounds like God is speaking to beings like Himself. We view the "us" in these verses as expressions of the trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). The word, "trinity," does not appear in the Bible, but has been adopted to describe the unique concept of God as one, yet three in person. If you have trouble wrapping your head around that idea, you aren't alone, but we believe that this is how God reveals Himself in Scripture.
For a discussion of these verses see:
http://www.gotquestions.org/God-plural.html
or, for an overview of the concept of "trinity," see:
http://www.gotquestions.org/Trinity-Bible.html
or, for a more detailed discussion of the concept of "trinity" see:
Christian Theology by Millard J. Erickson (a copy is available in the church library).
Hope this helps,
Sue and Peter
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
You Asked Us
Q: Were there possibly two original creations and therefore perhaps a pre-Adamic race?
A: First, thanks for letting us in on your question. We're hoping that everyone will feel free to connect with us when these come up.
We found an excellent response to this question and decided it was best to provide a direct link:
http://www.gotquestions.org/pre-Adamic-race.html
We consider this a rather advanced question that likely didn't occur to many of you. The question demanded a complex response. We're providing it here to support those that brought it to us, but also to build on the information we provided in our last post. Some issues can only be dealt with through a very careful analysis of Scripture - this response is a good example (although we're not endorsing everything on the site at this time).
We want to stress that we're interested in general questions as well, so please don't view this as setting the bar.
Yours in Christ,
Sue and Peter
A: First, thanks for letting us in on your question. We're hoping that everyone will feel free to connect with us when these come up.
We found an excellent response to this question and decided it was best to provide a direct link:
http://www.gotquestions.org/pre-Adamic-race.html
We consider this a rather advanced question that likely didn't occur to many of you. The question demanded a complex response. We're providing it here to support those that brought it to us, but also to build on the information we provided in our last post. Some issues can only be dealt with through a very careful analysis of Scripture - this response is a good example (although we're not endorsing everything on the site at this time).
We want to stress that we're interested in general questions as well, so please don't view this as setting the bar.
Yours in Christ,
Sue and Peter
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Putting Your Reading into Context
According to Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, "there are two basic kinds of questions one should ask of every biblical passage: those that relate to context and those that relate to content. The questions of context are also of two kinds: historical and literary."
Understanding the time and culture of a particular book is of great importance in understanding the meaning of the text. Study Bibles or Bible Handbooks provide a good summary of this information, including maps and other visual aids.
Keeping things simple, literary context has to do with understanding the plain meaning of a sentence. In most cases, the sentence has meaning within the broader context of a paragraph, or as it relates to surrounding paragraphs, or the book as a whole.
Content refers to the meaning of the actual words used and it may be necessary to examine outside sources to fully understand some references in the Bible. Depending on the Bible you are using, you may find that uncommon terms are defined in footnotes or in special note sections. Bible Handbooks or Bible Dictionaries are good sources to consider. It is worth noting that the books of the Bible were originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. A variety of English translations were noted in our first post. If you're having difficulty with a particular passage, you may find it helpful to review the passage in another version.
Generally speaking, we would encourage you to do your level best to understand a passage considering the above and seeking God's guidance before you resort to consulting a commentary.
We'll examine these principles and expand on them during the tour. If you'd like to examine this more closely for yourself, we highly recommend, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, by Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, as an excellent reference on how to understand Scripture. Fee and Stuart also recommend the book, Knowing Scripture, by R.C. Sproul as a basic primer.
Understanding the time and culture of a particular book is of great importance in understanding the meaning of the text. Study Bibles or Bible Handbooks provide a good summary of this information, including maps and other visual aids.
Keeping things simple, literary context has to do with understanding the plain meaning of a sentence. In most cases, the sentence has meaning within the broader context of a paragraph, or as it relates to surrounding paragraphs, or the book as a whole.
Content refers to the meaning of the actual words used and it may be necessary to examine outside sources to fully understand some references in the Bible. Depending on the Bible you are using, you may find that uncommon terms are defined in footnotes or in special note sections. Bible Handbooks or Bible Dictionaries are good sources to consider. It is worth noting that the books of the Bible were originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. A variety of English translations were noted in our first post. If you're having difficulty with a particular passage, you may find it helpful to review the passage in another version.
Generally speaking, we would encourage you to do your level best to understand a passage considering the above and seeking God's guidance before you resort to consulting a commentary.
We'll examine these principles and expand on them during the tour. If you'd like to examine this more closely for yourself, we highly recommend, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, by Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, as an excellent reference on how to understand Scripture. Fee and Stuart also recommend the book, Knowing Scripture, by R.C. Sproul as a basic primer.
As we close this post, we would like to end with another important quote from Fee and Stuart, "The aim of good interpretation is not uniqueness; one is not trying to discover what no one else has ever seen before. The aim of good interpretation is simple: to get at the plain meaning of the text."
As always, we would invite your comments and questions.
Yours in Christ,
Sue and Peter
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Making Contact
We're still working on the blog and have now added a link to our "MBP Tour Sheet" in PDF (under "Links"). If you or someone you know would like to join us, please feel free to direct them to the blog to download a copy.
If you'd like to contact us, you can now email us directly at mbp@hillsideonline.ca
God bless,
Sue and Peter
If you'd like to contact us, you can now email us directly at mbp@hillsideonline.ca
God bless,
Sue and Peter
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Happy New Year from the Starting Line!
Happy New Year! We're excited about the journey we're embarking on and hope you are as well. We hope to use this blog to provide some useful tips, encouragement, point out some interesting facts, and answer a question or two as we progress. Along the way, we'd love to hear from you. You can make a comment on a posting or email us directly. Either way, Sue and I will be doing our best to stay connected with you throughout the coming year.
As we start out, we felt it would be helpful to provide three quick tips:
- Find a translation of the Bible that you find easy to read - some people love the King James Version, but many people would find it difficult to follow. Sue plans to read from both the New International Version(NIV) and the New King James Version(NKJV). I plan to read from the NIV and the New Living Translation (NLT). Any of these versions would be a good choice. The New American Standard Version (NASV) has also come highly recommended.
- Pick a time to read that suits you best. Chances are greater that you'll stick to the program if you pick a time that suits your schedule best. Trying to read as you're going to bed might not work so well for some of us, while trying to do this first thing in the morning might prove difficult for others.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read. Things may not immediately jump out of the text, but in time, we are confident that you will find God drawing your attention to some detail or another. The Bible has much to teach us about God, ourselves, and each other.
Don't be shy in asking for help. We're doing this together for a reason. There may be times when you need the support and encouragement of others to complete the race. Thanks for joining us.
God bless,
Sue and Peter
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