Christmas Greek Exegesis – Luke 2:14

Open your Bibles to Luke 2:14.

Verlyn Verbrugge writes,

“Peace on earth, good will toward men” (Luke 2:14, KJV).  You have probably all received Christmas cards containing this part of the angels’ song to the shepherds on the fields of Bethlehem.  But most modern translations read differently: “on earth peace to men on whom his [God’s] favor rests” (NIV); “and on earth peace among those whom he [God] favors” (NRSV). The difference between the KJV and the others is the difference between the nominative and the genitive.

The Greek manuscripts used to translate the KJV contain eudokia (nominative), whereas the older manuscripts used to translate the modern versions contain eudokias (genitive) – literally translated, “of good will” or “characterized by [God’s] good pleasure.”  In other words, the peace that the angels sang that belonged to the earth as a result of the birth of Christ is not a generic, worldwide peace for all humankind, but a peace limited to those who obtain favor with God by believing in his Son Jesus (see Romans 5:1).  What a difference a single letter can make of the text!

What do you think about that?

The Ultimate Gift – written by Dave Messenger & Jennell Faulkner

Last night, the Calvary Chapel Christian School presented their Christmas program of lights, sounds, dance, and music.  Dave Messenger did the writing, recording, and arranging; while Jennell Faulker directed the program.  All the kids sang and performed fabulously.  Pastor Scotty Brown provided the comic relief for the Holly Jolly Medley.

Here is the gist of the musical.  A teenage girl is stuck on herself.  Me.  Myself.  And I.  All she can think about at Christmas time is an I-phone, an I-pad, etc.   When shopping at the Grand Teton Mall in Idaho Falls, she listens to the Calvary Calvary Chapel Christian School sing the “Holly Jolly Medley”.  Eventually in the mall, she discovers some magical mannequins and the mall janitor who is actually an angel.  It is a 3-D experience, better than Avator, and yet hopefully not in how many look at Christmas in 3-D (Disbelief, Doubt, and Distrust) .  The angel transports her back to Christmas Past and the manger scene.  The girl comments, “This is worse than a Motel 6 with no continental breakfast.”

Then the angel transports her to Christmas Future and “Gift Giving Day” where everything is mechanical, legislative, predictable, and measured.  But the whole, lifeless scene breaks out into a “Sing We All Noel Rap” (lyrics  by Mackenzie Jones).  The girl gets arrested for bringing Christmas into the scene.  This is all good.  The girl’s attitude changes through the help of the angel and the mannequins.  And the musical climaxes with the power of Jesus, who was born to save.  The program closes by all in the auditorium singing, “Come, Let Us Adore Him.”

Pastor Scotty Brown preached the heart beliefs of the school.  They believe in the Creator God, not evolution!  They believe in marriage between one man and one woman for life!  They believe that children are not born “naturally good”; but that they can be redeemed through the love, power, and the shed blood of Jesus Christ!  Pastor Scotty declared his agreement with the old song, “On Christ the solid rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.”  It is the desire of Calvary Chapel Christian School that all the children build their lives on the Lord Jesus Christ! And Him alone!

We thank God for the ultimate gift.

(Special thanks to Harbor Freight, Kmart, Home Depot, Johnson Brothers, Ace Hardware, Home Fabrics, and Mary Kay for props.)

Christmas Events in Idaho Falls

1.  December 10 – Tomorrow Night – The Calvary Chapel Christian School Christmas Program – 7:00 P.M.

2.  December 12 – Christmas Worship at Berean – 10:45 A.M.

3.  December 12 – Christmas Movie, The Nativity Story,  at Berean – 6:00 P.M.  Free Admission and Concessions.

4.  December 19 – Christmas Worship at Berean – 10:45 A.M.

5.  December 19 – New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church presents “Christmas Lessons and Carols: A Series of 9 Sacred Songs and Texts” – 5 P.M.

6.  December 21 – Bar J Wrangler Christmas Concert Benefit, at the I.F. Civic Auditorium, 7:00 P.M.

7.  December 24 – Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at Berean – 5:30 P.M.

Will I see any of you in any of these venues?

Wednesday in the Word

ACTION STEPS FROM THIS PAST SUNDAY MORNING IN THE WORD (I Corinthians 5:6-13)

1. Listen to another pastor/elder, Rick Brown, in town teaching on I Corinthians 5.  Notice how he applies the chapter to a believer, publicly intoxicated among his fellowship, here in Idaho Falls. http://www.calvaryif.org/1st-corinthians

2. How have you thought of becoming more and more who you already are, “unleavened” in Christ Jesus? [Remember, it is not that you become moral, in order to be accepted in the body of Christ. Christ, the Passover Lamb, has already been sacrificed, doing all the work for you.]

3. What leaven is God calling you to purge from your heart?

4. Have you tried to isolate yourself from notoriously sinful and unbelieving people in Idaho Falls? Is that scriptural? What if a well-known public sinner asks you over for dinner?

5. To what extent are you not associating with a “brother” or “sister” who remains blatantly unrepentant in their sinful lifestyle?

PREPARATION FOR THE WORD THIS SUNDAY (Luke 1)

1. Which verse(s) in Luke 1 unveils all three members of the Trinity?

2. What is the Greek word for maidservant (1:48)? (Hint: this is John MacArthur’s biblical word of emphasis in his latest book.)

3. What people groups are contrasted in the song of Mary?

4. How many attributes of God can you detect in Mary’s song?

5. How is Christmas a fulfillment of covenant (look at Zacharias’ prophecy)?

6. What descriptions/titles does Zacharias share concerning Jesus?

Monday Meditations (2)

1. Kirk Baker from Calvary Baptist shared “What’s On Your Mind? (Part 2)”:

The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God.  It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.  Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God (Romans 8:6-8, NIV).

In introduction, Kirk touches on Jesus in the flesh (I John 4:2, John 1:14) but then explores three aspects of the text concerning a sinful mind.

  • The sinful mind leads to death (and this does not mean just ending up in nonexistence). Kirk provided a clip on NBA hopeful, Len Bias, and his untimely death.
  • The sinful mind is against God.  Are you submissive to God?  Have you been submissive to God with your bank account?  Do you know why you do not have peace with God? It could be because (1) you are fighting against God, (2) you are battling for control, and (3) you are unsubmissive.
  • The sinful/carnal mind is unpleasing to God.

What  is on your mind? Fleshly or spiritual thoughts.  Death or life. 

(P.S. – This Christmas season, Calvary is hosting a live nativity showing.)

2. Forty-five year old, Rick Brown, of Calvary Chapel teaches on Exodus 11-12

  • When there is a rebellious hard heart, God brings ten plagues (Have you experienced a trainwreck in your life?)
  • Plundering – they were just knocking on doors and asking for the jewels.
  • Moses was very great – sort of like Billy Graham in his 60 years of ministry
  • Devastation – all the firstborn dying
  • the LORD does make a difference between the Egyptians and Israel – you are saint.  A saint means not a perfect person but a set-apart person.
  • Heart hardening – the more times you say no to Jesus, the easier it is to say no to Jesus.
  • The Passover Lamb – I Peter 1:18-19 – “the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish  and without spot.”  Jesus came.  He was examined during examination week.  No genetic sin.  No acquired sin.  And then on Passover, he was killed.  You pick a lamb; there is affection; and then the lamb is killed four days later.

All this teaching in Exodus 12 was a great setup for what I was meditating on last week in I Corinthians 5:

Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened.  For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (NKJV)

Look at what the Passover Lamb did for the Corinthian believers!  The sufficient work of Jesus Christ made these believers truly unleavened.  So, because of the finished work of the Christ, it is each day being what you already are in Christ!  This is revolutionary for Idaho Falls.

  • Unleavened bread – yeast is a picture of sin.  Go through the house and clean it out.  I don’t do this to get accepted before God.  This is part of the sanctification process.

3.  Last Friday night, at Barnes and Noble, Mrs. Jenell Faulkner, led the Christmas singing by the Calvary Chapel Christian school.  It was a blessing to hear two of my children among the others singing praises to Jesus among the customers in the book store.  This Friday night, at CC in Idaho  Falls, you will be able to hear the whole Christmas program.

4.  Also, last Friday, at Hastings, Apolo Ohno (who lives in Salt Lake City) signed his book, Zero Regrets, for my oldest daughter Hannah.  He smiled and shook her hand and mine.  I am halfway through the book.  He acknowledges God.  He prays.  He asks the question, “Am I going to heaven?”  But as of yet, I detect no gospel in the book.

Greek Exegesis

Last night in Greek class with Pastor Dave Bass of New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church, we concluded our discussion on Greek prepositions with an in depth look at I Corinthians 5:5 – our focal verse of last Sunday morning.  Dave wrote the Greek verse on the white board, and we zeroed in on two Greek prepositions – “eis” and “hina”.

 
Craig L. Blomberg writes in Mounce’s Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar: “Hand this man over to Satan, so that the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord” ( I Cor 5:5, NIV).  So reads Pau’s command to the Christians about the man who was having an affair with his stepmother.  The NIV margin notes that “sinful nature” (literally, “flesh”) could also be translated “body.”  Commentators are divided as to whether Paul envisions simple excommunication or actual death here, though the former seems more probable.  But either way, this command seems harsh by modern standards, particularly in the majority of our congregations that exercise little or no formal church discipline of any kind.
 
“An understanding of the preposition ‘eis’ can shed some light on this verse.  The NIV reads as if there were two equally balanced purposes behind Paul’s command: one punitive and one remedial.  But the Greek prefaces the first with an ‘eis’ and the second with the conjunction ‘hina’.  ‘Eis’ can denote either result or purpose; ‘hina’ far more commonly denotes purpose.  Paul’s change of language is likely deliberate–to point out that his purpose in discipline is entirely rehabilitative, even if one of the results of his action is temporary exclusion and ostracism of the persistently rebellious sinner.  Or in Gordon Fee’s words, ‘What the grammar suggests, then, is that the ‘destruction of the flesh’ is the anticipated result of the man’s being put back out into Satan’s domain, while the express purpose of the action is his redemption.’
 
“Not every scholar agrees with this interpretation.  But being able to read only a translation like the NIV would never alert us to this as an option.  Growing exposure to the Greek of the New Testament brings us into frequent contact with numerous prepositions and other connective words that are often left untranslated in English versions, for the sake of literary style and fluency.  But in reading only the English, we may miss altogether the originally intended relationship between sentences and clauses, and we may import motives to writers they never held.  Whatever the final solution to I Cor 5:5 turns out to be, it is certainly true that in every other New Testament instance of church discipline, the purpose was exclusively remedial or rehabilitative and never punitive or vengeful.  “The Lord disciplines those he loves” (Heb 12:6), and so should we.”