Back to Biblical Holiness

If we want to teach our children anything important, we repeat it over and over until it becomes ingrained in their impressionable minds and in their lives. If something recurs numerous times in scripture, this may indicate an important matter God expects us to take to heart. In multiple forms, wording related to “holiness” appears well over a thousand times in the Bible, variously rendered “holy,” “holiness,” “sanctify,” “sanctification,” and “saints.” These expressions in the Greek NT, from the hágios word family, basically convey the sense of being “set apart” and “different” from anything contrary to God and his perfect will. 

God himself is holy (Isa. 6:3) and through his holy word calls upon his people to be holy (Lev. 11:44; 19:2; 20:7; 1 Pet. 1:14-16). The triune Godhead makes our sanctification/holiness possible. The God of peace sanctifies (1 Thess. 5:23), Jesus sanctifies (Heb. 13:12), the Holy Spirit sanctifies (Rom. 15:16), the Spirit-inspired word sanctifies (John 17:17, 19; Eph. 5:26). 

The Importance of Holiness

The primary focus of passages like 1 Thess. 3:13–4:8 is holiness. In view of the coming judgment, the stated goal for the reading audience is “to strengthen your hearts, blameless in holiness …” (1 Thess. 3:13).¹ Our duty or obligation is to “walk” (live, conduct ourselves) accordingly, and the ultimate aim is “to please God” (1 Thess. 4:1; cf. 2:4, 15; Rom. 8:8; 1 Cor. 7:32; 2 Cor. 5:9; Gal. 1:10).  

“For this is the will of God …” (1 Thess. 4:3a). The divine will has been revealed and is therefore knowable (cf. 1 Cor. 2:9-13; Eph. 3:3-5; 5:17). Here God’s revealed will is “your sanctification,” i.e., to be different (holy) and set apart from the sinful world. The admonition is directed to “each of you” (1 Thess. 4:4). There is an individual responsibility for everyone to “possess his own vessel,” i.e., continually and habitually control one’s own physical body² “in holiness and honor.” This is God’s purpose for his people.

To reject a life of holiness is to reject the will of God (1 Thess. 4:5-8) and the very reason Jesus suffered and died for us (Heb. 10:10). To accept anything less than a life of holiness is to reject, despise, and dishonor the sacrifice of Jesus (Heb. 10:29). The cross is proof that a holy God cannot simply ignore sin. God’s holiness has demanded that the debt be paid. “Mercy and justice meet at Calvary; love and holiness join hands at the cross” (Rex Banks). Without holiness, one cannot spend eternity with the Lord (Heb. 12:14). One cannot be a Christian, go to heaven, or be with God unless one submits to the biblical pattern of holy living.

The Process of Holiness

Sanctification begins with our initial obedience to the gospel (1 Cor. 6:11) but must be maintained (Rom. 6:19, 22). As we present ourselves as slaves of righteousness for holiness/sanctification (Rom. 6:1-19), this must continue for the rest of our lives (Rom. 12:1-2). Holiness does not mean we will ever be sinlessly perfect, but with God’s help we are striving toward that goal. The opposite would be resigning ourselves to a life of complacency, not even trying to be holy, thus taking God’s grace for granted, abusing it, and conforming to the mold of this sinful world (2 Tim. 2:21). Saints (sanctified ones) are not holy by mere verbal profession but are to be holy in real life. The world doesn’t need a church that looks like the world!

The Pursuit of Holiness

“Pursue … holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14). This is not something that occurs automatically or easily or by accident (2 Cor. 7:1; Heb. 12:10). In an absolute sense only God is holy (Rev. 15:4), but it is his will for us that we do our imperfect best to pursue it. 

Practical application involves moral purity (1 Thess. 4:3). The only way to engage in sexual activity without being immoral is for each man to have his own wife and each woman her own husband (1 Cor. 7:2).³ While fleeing sexual immorality (1 Cor. 6:18), Christians should avoid compromising situations, like being alone with someone outside marriage where there is mutual attraction, open displays of seductive materials, online pornography, and places where people tend to dress immodestly. Make the commitment that Joseph made, so when faced with temptation the automatic response is: “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9). The Christian is different from others in a world where abstinence and restraint are rarely taken seriously. We are called to a life of holiness.

Married couples must honor marriage vows, respecting and submitting to God’s teaching on marriage. Matt. 19:9 will be in our Bible until Jesus returns. One can ignore it, reject it, twist it, water it down, and explain it away, but it will continue to say the same thing: “whoever has divorced his wife, except for sexual infidelity, and has married another, is committing adultery …” Christian marriages must be different, because of holiness, in a world where divorce and remarriage are commonplace.

Holiness must characterize every aspect of our lives. The Bible does not specifically prescribe exact measurements and rules about how short, low, sheer, or tight one’s clothing can be. Nevertheless, in addition to the principle of modesty (1 Tim. 2:9-10), the Bible does call us to a life of holiness, and this in itself ought to govern the way we dress.

The Bible does not contain the explicit statement, “You shall not drink alcoholic beverages.” But being called to a life of holiness leads us away from anything that will damage our influence, lower our inhibitions, impair our judgment, or is associated with and responsible for so much evil in the world. Holiness is a way of life. It must govern our every decision, our every word, and our every action. 

Conclusion 

Holiness is possible. God does not expect what we are incapable of doing or being. The Bible sets forth these basic principles regarding holiness. (1) The biblical importance of holiness indicates the priority it must take in our thinking and our lives. (2) The process of holiness involves our cooperation with God; while we cannot do this alone, we must be proactive and do our part. (3) The pursuit of holiness implies intentionality and effort. Because sanctification is the revealed will of God for every Christian, like Jesus we ought to prioritize the divine will above our own (Matt. 6:10; 26:39; John 8:29). The pursuit of holiness must therefore be a primary focus for every child of God.

--Kevin Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ See K. L. Moore, “Looking in the Wrong Direction,” Moore Perspective (17 Jan. 2018), <Link>. Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations are the author’s own translation, with emphasis added.

     ² See K. L. Moore, “How to Possess Your Own Vessel,” Moore Perspective (7 March 2018), <Link>.

     ³ Holiness involves abstaining (present tense – ongoing, continual, habitual) from porneia (1 Thess. 4:3b), i.e., any kind of sexual intercourse that is not within a divinely approved marriage (cf. 1 Cor. 7:2; Heb. 13:4). Such a cautionary prohibition was particularly relevant to the mid-first-century Greco-Roman environment, although nearly twenty centuries later its applicability is still very relevant. Sexual permissiveness, perversion, and promiscuity were the norm in Paul’s day, not unlike the environment in which we currently live.

Related Posts:

 

Image credit: https://mountainrefugeministries.com/articles-data/perfecting-holiness-in-the-sanctuary

Living Sacrifices (Romans 12:1-2)

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom. 12:1-2, ESV). 

At this point in his letter to the Romans, Paul has a major shift in focus, “from instruction to exhortation …. he urges Christians to manifest the power of the gospel in specific areas of day-to-day life…. ‘What God has given to us’ (Rom. 1–11) gives way to ‘what we are to give to God.’ But … what we are to give to God cannot be produced independently of God’s continuing gracious provision.”¹

External Service

The request formula, “I appeal to you” [παρακαλῶ ὑμᾶς] (cf. 15:30; 16:17), is a formal feature of the Pauline letter body. Once again he addresses his readers as “brothers” [ἀδελφοί] in an affectionate, familial sense.² The appeal is through [διά] God’s “mercies” [οἰκτιρμῶν]³ (cf. 2 Cor. 1:3), “to present” [παραστῆσαι] (cf. 6:16, 19) “your bodies” [τὰ σώματα ὑμῶν] (cf. 4:19; 7:4; 8:23)⁴ as a “living” [ζῶσαν] (cf. 1:17; 6:10-13; 8:13; 10:5; 14:7-9) “sacrifice” [θυσία]. This is a willing self-sacrifice of the living, in contrast to the old-covenant sacrificial deaths of unwilling animals (cf. 8:20), and “bodies” offered to God are counterpart to the renewed “mind” (v. 2), a transformational offering of the entire self.⁵ The sacrifice is to be “holy” [ἅγιος] (cf. v. 13; 1:7; 8:27)—set apart (different) from the world—and “acceptable” [εὐάρεστος] or “well-pleasing” (cf. v. 2; 14:18) to God.   

The last part of the sentence [τὴν λογικὴν λατρείαν ὑμῶν] has been variously rendered: (a) “your spiritual service” (ASV); (b) “your reasonable service” (NKJV); (c) “your spiritual worship” (ESV); (d) “your spiritual service of worship” (NASB); (e) “your spiritual act of worship” (NIV 1984); and (f) “your true and proper worship” (NIV 2011). Which rendering most accurately conveys the sense of the text?

The Greek adjective λογικός means “reasonable,” “rational,” or “spiritual,” reflective of the inner self. The noun λατρεία is “service or worship” (BAGD 467), with emphasis on divine service (cf. 1:9; 9:4).⁶ The verb form λατρεύω means to “serve,” especially the carrying out of religious duties (BAGD 467). This is not the same concept as what is communicated by the verb προσκυνέω, which means to “worship, do obeisance to, prostrate oneself before, do reverence to …” (BAGD 716). Paul is not discussing or describing προσκυνέω (“worship”) in this passage; in fact, the word does not appear anywhere in Romans.⁷

Scriptural worship [προσκυνέω] is something that is done purposefully, involving concentration, consideration, and reverence (John 4:20-24; 12:20; Acts 8:27). The intentionality of worship is demonstrated in Acts 24:11, where Paul says he had traveled to Jerusalem “to worship” [προσκυνέω]. Obviously worship is something that is done on purpose; one cannot worship unintentionally or by accident. While we serve the Lord in all that we do (Col. 3:17), not everything we do in life constitutes worship (e.g., reading a novel, sleeping, watching a movie, et al.). When we set aside time and attention for the express purpose of worshiping God, let us do so according to biblical guidelines. In everything else, may we be God’s faithful servants. 

Internal Transformation

The imperative is simple: “Do not be conformed [συσχηματίζω]⁸ to this world [αἰών, ‘the present age’] …”⁹ Instead, with divine assistance available (chap. 8), the objective is to “be transformed” [μεταμορφόω]¹⁰ (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18) “by the renewal [ἀνακαίνωσις]¹¹ of your mind [νοῦς]” (cf. 1:28; 7:23, 25; 11:34; 14:5). 

The concept of renewing the “mind” reaches back to chaps. 7–8, before the extended excursus on Israel’s plight (chaps. 9–11), where the “mind” [νοῦς] is opposed to the “flesh” [σάρξ] (7:23, 25), and “spirit” [πνεῦμα] (7:6) is synonymous with “inner being” [τὸν ἔσω ἄνθρωπον] (7:22), whereby one is able to “determine,” “wish,” or “desire” [θέλω] (7:15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21). In chap. 8 the same contrast continues between “flesh” [σάρξ] and “spirit” [πνεῦμα], with particular reference to walking/living “according to flesh” [κατά σάρκα] and walking/living “according to spirit” [κατά πνεῦμα] (8:1-17), the impetus of which is described with the thinking-feeling-acting verbal φρονέω (“set the mind”) and noun φρόνημα (“‘mind”) (8:5-7).¹² This appears to be the significance of having “the spirit of Christ” (8:9).¹³ If “Christ is in you” (8:10), the old sinful self (“in the flesh”) is replaced by the spirit, character, disposition of Christ with the aim “to be conformed to the image of his Son” (8:29).¹⁴

The Will of God

The “testing” to “discern” [δοκιμάζω]¹⁵ (cf. 2:18; 14:22) or “prove” (ASV, NASB, N/KJV) “the will [θέλημα] of God”¹⁶ is not just a wish for God’s will to be accomplished (1:10; 15:32) but implies that the divine will is knowable because it has been revealed (cf. 2:18). It encompasses all that is “good” [ἀγαθόν] (cf. vv. 9, 21),¹⁷ “acceptable” or “well-pleasing” [εὐάρεστον] (cf. v. 1; 14:18),¹⁸ and “perfect” [τέλειον],¹⁹ but is indiscernible without a renewed mind set on spiritual rather than fleshly things (cf. 8:5-8).²⁰

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ Douglas G. Moo, Romans 744-45. 

     ² See also Rom. 1:13; 7:1, 4; 8:12; 10:1; 11:25; 15:14, 30; 16:17.

     ³ Note also the noun “mercy” [ἔλεος] (9:23; 11:31; 15:9) and verbal “show mercy” [ἐλεάω] (9:15-18; 11:30-32; 12:8).

     ⁴ Contrast Rom. 1:24; 6:6, 12; 7:24; 8:10-13.

     ⁵ Cf. Deut. 6:5; Matt. 22:37; 1 Thess. 5:23. 

     ⁶ See John 16:2; Heb. 12:28.

     ⁷ The only biblical record of Paul’s use of the word προσκυνέω (“worship”) is Acts 24:11 and 1 Cor. 14:25.

     ⁸ See also 1 Pet. 1:14, the only other occurrence of this verb in the NT. 

     ⁹ Matt. 12:32; 13:22, 39, 40, 49; Mark 4:19; Luke 16:8; 1 Cor. 1:20; 2:6, 8; 3:18; 2 Cor. 4:4; Gal. 1:4; Eph. 1:21; 2:2; 1 Tim. 6:17; 2 Tim. 4:10; Tit. 2:12. Note also the “world” [κόσμος] in Rom. 3:6, 19; esp. the comparable admonition in 1 John 2:15-17.

     ¹⁰ The same word for the Lord being “transfigured” (Matt. 17:2; Mark 9:2). 

     ¹¹ The only other occurrence of this noun in the NT is Titus 3:5. 

     ¹² See K. L. Moore, “Lost in Translation: A Closer Look at the NT Greek Term PHRONÉŌ,” Moore Perspective (15 April 2020), <Link>. “Against those who might object that the abandonment of the law as a code of conduct (cf. 6:14, 15; 7:1-6) leads to license, Paul argues that the gospel itself provides sufficient ethical guidance for Christians. Through the renewal of the mind that the gospel makes possible, Christians can know and do the will of God (12:2) …” (D. J. Moo, Romans 746).

     ¹³ See also 1 Cor. 2:16; Gal. 4:6; Phil. 1:19; 2:5; 2 Cor. 3:17; Heb. 9:14; cf. Acts 16:7; 1 Pet. 1:11.

     ¹⁴ When we are baptized into Christ (Rom. 6:3-4), we “put on Christ” (Gal. 3:26-27), i.e., we take on Christ’s character, virtues, and intentions (cf. BAGD 264; A. Oepke, TDNT 2:319).

     ¹⁵ See also 1 Cor. 11:28; 2 Cor. 13:5; Eph. 5:9-10; Phil. 1:10; 1 Thess. 5:21.

     ¹⁶ While θέλημα is used in the NT in reference to the devil’s will (2 Tim. 2:26) and the human will (Luke 23:25; John 1:13; 1 Cor. 7:37; 16:12; Eph. 2:3; 2 Pet. 1:21), it mostly applies to the divine will (Matt. 6:10; 7:21; 12:50; 18:14; [21:31]; 26:42; John 3:35; Luke 11:2; [12:47]; 22:42; John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38, 39, 40; 7:17; 9:31; Acts 13:22; 21:14; 22:14; Rom. 1:10; 2:18; 12:2; 15:32; 1 Cor. 1:1; 2 Cor. 1:1; 8:5; Gal. 1:4; Eph. 1:1, 5, 9, 11; 5:17; 6:6; Col. 1:1, 9; 4:12; 1 Thess. 4:3; 5:18; 2 Tim. 1:1; Heb. 10:7, 9, 10, 36; 13:21; 1 Pet. 2:15; 3:17; 4:2, 19; 1 John 2:17; 5:14; Rev. 4:11). 

     ¹⁷ Also Rom. 2:7, 10; 7:12, 13, 19; 8:28; 10:15; 13:3, 4; 14:16; 15:2; 16:19.

     ¹⁸ On pleasing God, see also Rom. 2:29; 1 Cor. 7:32; 2 Cor. 5:9; Eph. 5:10; Phil. 4:18; Col. 1:10; 3:20; 1 Thess. 2:4; 4:1; 2 Tim. 2:3-4; Heb. 13:21; 1 John 3:22; cp. Rom. 8:8; 1 Thess. 2:15.

     ¹⁹ This is the only usage of this word in Romans; cf. 1 Cor. 13:10; Jas. 1:4, 17, 25; also Matt. 5:48.

     ²⁰ “What if we could understand the commandments of God as promises of how we will be when transformed by our relationship with Him? …. if you’re struggling with sin, then the answer isn’t stronger will-power and self-control. The answer is a stronger relationship with God. Work on loving Him more. Work on trusting Him more. The right behavior will follow much more easily and naturally…. Let’s present ourselves to God – our whole selves, holding nothing back. Then let Him transform us” (Daniel Gaines, Facebook [7-31-23]).

Related Posts: Rom 11:26-36, Spiritual Service (Rom 12:3-8): Part 1 

Related articles: Patrick Swayne, Where's the Altar for a Living Sacrifice?

Image credit: https://devotionalbox.com/give-god-an-offering/

The Law: a Harbinger of Death or Holy, Righteous and Good? (Romans 7:7-14)

“What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’ But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died. The very commandment that promised life proved to be death to me. For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me” (Romans 7:7-11, ESV). 

In these verses Paul resumes the instructional method of question-answer in the first person, “What then shall we say?” (cf. 3:5-9, 27-31; 4:1, 9; 6:1-4, 15), switching from the plural (“we”) to the singular (“I”), with which the chapter began (vv. 1-4). Having forsaken the way of life “in the flesh” by dying to the law in order to serve “in newness of spirit” (vv. 4-6), the rest of the chapter addresses the struggle between “the spirit” wanting to do good and “the flesh” yearning to sin in both the past (vv. 7-13) and the present (vv. 14-25).

The Problem is Sin, Not the Law

Lest anyone gets the misguided impression that Paul is anti-law, he offers clarification here. The law, in revealing and enhancing “knowledge of sin” (3:19-20), was a gracious gift to Israel for guidance and protection (2:18; 7:12, 14; 9:4). Seeing that sin and death were realities long before the law made its appearance in history (5:12-14), the human predicament cannot legitimately be blamed on the law. “But sin seizes the opportunity provided by the law to what humankind’s curiosity as to what the commandment may be forbidding. In this way desire for the forbidden is stirred up and becomes an insatiable force, whose final outworking is death.”¹

Paul notes in particular the Decalogue’s tenth commandment, “You shall not covet” (Ex. 20:17), probably because the basis of all sin has long been recognized as illicit desire (cf. Jas. 1:15). It is “the commandment,” which was meant to regulate righteous living, that became a channel of “death” (cf. v. 5). But the responsibility lies, not with the commandment itself or the One who gave it, but with sin and the human appetite to pursue it. 

When Paul says, “I was once alive apart from the law,” contextually (vv. 1, 7) and thematically (2:12, 18, 20; 3:20) this would be applicable to knowledge of the law. There was a time in his life when he was without this knowledge, i.e., in his infancy and early childhood (cf. 1 Cor. 13:11; 14:20).² One is not conscience of any sinful inclination until one’s obedience is tested. As his learning capacity developed and he was “instructed from the law” (2:18), “sin came alive” and he “died” spiritually.

The Law is Good

“So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin” (Rom. 7:12-14). 

Even though the Mosaic law was not designed as a means of justifying sinners (3:20), during the centuries it was in force provisions were made for atonement and forgiveness,³ salvation was attainable,⁴ and one could even be counted “blameless.”⁵  Faith, love, and mercy were essential components,⁶ and it was beneficial to all who submitted to it.⁷ Therefore, Paul can readily describe the law as “holy and righteous and good” (cf. 1 Tim. 1:8), as well as “spiritual.” After all, it has emanated from God and is therefore a reflection of his holy, righteous, good character, “the embodiment of knowledge and truth” (2:20). 

Conclusion

The problem is “sin” and the weakness of human “flesh,” as the law openly exposes the true nature of sin. Any apparent negativity toward the law is in response to its misappropriation and abuse (vv. 10-11; 2:17-27; 8:3, 7; 9:31-32).⁸

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ J. D. G. Dunn, Theology of Paul the Apostle 99.

     ² See Deut. 1:39; Isa. 7:16; 8:4; 28:9; Neh. 8:2-3; Ezek. 28:15.

     ³ Lev. 4:20, 26, 31, 35; 5:13, 16, 18.

     ⁴ 1 Sam. 2:1; 2 Sam. 22:51; 1 Chron. 16:23; Psa. 3:8; 13:5.

     ⁵ Luke 1:6; Phil. 3:6; cf. Acts 22:3; 26:4-5; Gal. 1:14. “Israel’s problem in the Old Testament was not with their inability to keep the law; it was with their choosing not to do so” (G. D. Fee and D. Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth [4th ed.]: 175, emp. in the text).

     ⁶ Deut. 6:4-9; 10:12-21; Mic. 6:8; Hab. 2:4; Matt. 23:23.

     ⁷ Deut. 6:24-25; 10:13; 12:28; cf. Psa. 78:1-7.

     ⁸ Cf. Matt. 5:20-48; 23:1-39; Gal. 2:16, 21; 3:2-5, 10-13; 5:4.

Related Posts: No Law, No Transgression (Rom 4:15), From Law to Christ (Rom 7:1-6), Struggle with Sin (Rom 7:15-25)

Image credit: https://firmisrael.org/learn/discovering-jesus-in-the-torah-law-of-moses/

Asceticism Vs. Everything Made Holy by God’s Word and Prayer? (1 Timothy 4:4-5)

In Paul’s first letter to Timothy he instructs his young colleague to anticipate and be prepared for departures from the faith. 

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. (1 Timothy 4:1-5)¹

 

This section begins with dé, which is rendered “Now” in a number of English translations to mark a transition to something new (CSB, ESV, N/KJV, N/RSV). However, as a conjunction dé more often serves as an adversative, “But” (ASV, ERV, NASB), which would then connect and contrast the current text with what has just been affirmed in 3:15-16 (no chapter break in the original) concerning the church as “a pillar and buttress of the truth,” including “the mystery of godliness” professed in the Christological hymn. “But,” sadly, not everyone remains faithful to the truth of the gospel (note chap. 1!).

 

As the Lord’s inspired agent (1:1, 12-18; 2:7) Paul receives and communicates prophetic revelations through “the Spirit,”²  although no particular process, whether direct or indirect, is identified here. The expression, “in later times” [en hustérois kairoîs] or “in latter times” (NKJV), is a general reference to the future without specifying a particular or limited time period.³  That “some will depart from the faith” was already happening (1:6, 19-20; 5:15; 6:10, 21 cf. 2 Tim. 2:18) and would get worse, something foretold on numerous occasions to various audiences throughout the 1st century.⁴ Early on the Christians in Thessalonica were forewarned of hē apostasía (2 Thess. 2:3), “the apostasy” (CSB, NASB), “the rebellion” (ESV, ISV, NIV), “the falling away” (ASV, NKJV), specifying something they had apparently been informed about already, thus no further explanation is needed or given. If it were important enough for Paul to have repeatedly spoken [élegon – imperfect active indicative] of these things (2 Thess. 2:5), surely the same teachings and warnings were provided to other congregations.⁵

 

The unfaithful ones will be “devoting” (proséchō, cf. 1:4; 3:8; cp. 4:13) themselves to “deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,” an explicit affirmation of what was hinted at earlier (2:14; 3:6-7; cf. 5:15). Anything opposed to the gospel message (cf. 1:3, 11, 19; 2:3, 7; 3:9, 15) is ultimately of the devil and his evil forces.⁶ Apostasy is generated “through the insincerity of liars,” or “the pretentions of liars” (RSV), the noun hupókrisis⁷ alluding to “playacting” or “hypocrisy,” thus “hypocrisy of liars” (CSB, NASB, NRSV), or “hypocritical liars” (NIV). “Their hypocrisy consisted in their assumption of a mask of holiness, which holiness they considered was derived from their false asceticism and their abstinence from things which the Apostle proceeded to show were lawful.”⁸ As opposed to the “good” and “pure” consciences of the faithful (1:5, 19; 3:9), their “consciences are seared” (cp. Tit. 1:15). The verbal kautēriázō (its only occurrence in the NT) means to “mark by branding,” so a number of versions have added “with a hot [or ‘branding’] iron” (ASV, ISV, NASB, NIV, N/KJV, NRSV). Without the added phrase (CSB, ESV, RSV), the sense would simply be to “cauterize,” thus having become insensitive and unfeeling (cp. Eph. 4:19).

 

In particular they “forbid marriage,” an extreme view that arose among the ascetic Essenes (Josephus, Jewish War 2.8.2; Ant. 18.1.5) and later among the Gnostics (Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 3.6; Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. 1.22).⁹ There was “no reason to dwell on this point at any length [dismissed with one short sentence]; the gross absurdity of such a ‘counsel’ as a rule of life was too apparent; it was a plain contradiction of the order of Divine Providence.”¹⁰ Note also 2:15; 3:2, 12; 5:14.¹¹

 

They also “require abstinence from foods …” Unlike the peculiar anti-marriage philosophy, dietary restrictions were part of the Mosaic law (note 1:7; cf. Lev. 11:1-47; Deut. 14:3-21),¹² while the question of meat sacrificed to pagan idols also posed a problem in a number of mid-1st-century Christian communities.¹³ Though Gnosticism did not develop into a coherent movement until the 2nd century,¹⁴ its incipient ideologies arose much earlier. Adherents embraced a distorted dualism, viewing the physical and the spiritual as antithetic forces, thus matter, considered flawed or evil, could not have been created by God. Such an erroneous belief system would naturally prompt the apostle’s stern denunciation.¹⁵

 

The importance of “thanksgiving” is a recurring theme in Paul’s teachings (note the double emphasis here, vv. 3-4; cf. 2:1).¹⁶ Whatever the radical ascetics were forbidding, “God created to be received with thanksgiving …” It is hard to be thankful for provisions denied or unavailable. Even though the Lord provides sustenance for all people (cf. Matt. 5:45), the ones who are truly grateful and consistently express thanks are “those who believe and know the truth” (lit. “the faithful and [the ones] knowing the truth”). This is not suggestive of two separate groups; the second description reiterates the first (cf. 2:4, 7; 3:15; 6:5).

 

“For everything created by God is good” (cf. Gen. 1:31), “and nothing is to be rejected …” As an explanatory statement (hóti, “For” or “because”), this contextually applies to whatever the Lord has provided to be eaten that the misguided ascetics prohibit (v. 3; cf. 6:17).¹⁷ It would not necessarily include poisons, intoxicants, hallucinogens, or other harmful and addictive substances that were not designed by God for human consumption. The condition, “if it is received with thanksgiving,” fulfills the Lord’s intent, echoing and reaffirming v. 3b. The faithful ones knowing the truth gratefully receive and do not reject what is good (cf. 1 Cor. 10:30-31). 

 

As a further explanation, “for [gár] it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.” The present tense participle hagiázetai, “it is made holy” or “it is sanctified” (ASV, CSB, NASB, N/KJV), implies current and ongoing action, “by” [diá] (“by means of,” NASB; or “through,” ASV) the habitual practice of acknowledging and thanking God as the source of every good gift.¹⁸ Each time nourishment is received with thanksgiving, it is set apart¹⁹ from what is rejected (or even consumed) without gratitude or awareness of who ultimately provides. This is affirmed through the “word of God,”²⁰ which is not detached from “prayer,”²¹ in that the revelation of the divine will prescribes the duty, the content, and the manner of expression of the prayer of thanksgiving (cf. 2:1).²²

 

--Kevin L. Moore

 

Endnotes:

     ¹ Unless otherwise noted, the base text used here is from the English Standard Version in bold type.

     ² Cf. John 16:13; Acts 16:6-7; 20:23; 21:11; 26:16; 1 Cor. 7:40; Gal. 1:11-12; Eph. 3:1-5.

     3 Cp. Acts 2:16-17; 2 Tim. 3:1; Heb. 1:2; Jas. 5:3; 1 Pet. 1:20; 2 Pet. 3:3; 1 John 2:18; Jude 17-18.

     4 Matt. 7:13-23; 13:15; 25:31-46; Acts 20:27-31; Rom. 16:17-18; Eph. 4:14; 2 Thess. 2:3; 2 Tim. 2:16-18; 3:13; 4:3-4; 2 Pet. 2:1-2, 18-22; Jude 4; 1 John 4:1, 6; Rev. 2:5; 3:16. 

     5 Note 1 Thess. 5:27; 1 Cor. 4:17; 7:17; 11:16; 14:33; Col. 4:16. 

     6 Cf. John 8:43-47; 1 Cor. 10:20-21; 2 Cor. 4:4; 6:14-18; 11:3, 13-15; Eph. 2:2; 6:12.

     7 Matt. 23:28; Mark 12:15; Luke 12:1; Gal. 2:13; 1 Tim. 4:2; 1 Pet. 2:1. 

     8 H. D. M. Spence, “The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy,” in Ellicott’s NT Commentary 3:196.

     9 “St. Paul is alluding throughout, not to Judaism proper, but to that false spiritualism and those perverted ascetical tendencies, which emanated from Judaism, and gradually mingling with similar principles derived from other systems …” (C. J. Ellicott, A Critical and Grammatical Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles 70).

     10 H. D. M. Spence, “The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy,” in Ellicott’s NT Commentary 3:196.

     11 Paul’s advice in 1 Cor. 7:1, 7-8, 25-27, 32-35, 37, 40 is in the context of “the present distress” (vv. 26, 29-31) and is balanced by vv. 2-5, 9, 28, 36, 38-39.

     12 Many of these were “probably from reasons connected with the public health” (H. D. M. Spence, “The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy,” in Ellicott’s NT Commentary 3:196).

     13 Acts 15:20, 29; 21:25; Rom. 14:1-23; 1 Cor. 8:1-13; 10:14-33; Col. 2:16a, 20-23.

     14 See Robert M. Wilson, “Nag Hammadi and the New Testament,” NTS 28 (1982): 292.

     15 See also Col. 1:9; 2:3, 8, 15, 20, 21, 23; perhaps the Corinthian correspondence as well (see W. Schmithals, Gnostics in Corinth [Nashville: Abingdon, 1971]); even more so in the Johannine writings (see J. M. Lieu, “Gnosticism in the Gospel of John,” ET 90 [1979]: 233-37; H. Koester, Introduction to the NT 2:195-96).

     16 The fem. noun eucharistía (“thanksgiving”) is employed in 1 Cor. 14:16; 2 Cor. 4:15; 9:11, 12; Eph. 5:4; Phil. 4:6; Col. 2:7; 4:2; 1 Thess. 3:9; 1 Tim. 2:1; 4:3-4; the adj. eucháristos (“thankful”) in Col. 3:15; and the verbal eucharistéō (“give thanks”) in Acts 27:35; 28:15; Rom. 1:8, 21; 14:6; 16:4; 1 Cor. 1:4, 14; 10:30; 11:24; 14:17, 18; 2 Cor. 1:11; Eph. 1:16; 5:20; Phil. 1:3; Col. 1:3, 12; 3:17; 1 Thess. 1:2; 2:13; 5:18; 2 Thess. 1:3; 2:13; Philem. 4.

     17 See Mark 7:15-19; Acts 10:10-16; 11:4-10; Rom. 14:20; 1 Cor. 8:8; 10:25-26. “One may do as one wishes before God, but one may not impose those ‘wishes’ as regulations for others to follow” (G. D. Fee, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus 100).

     18 See Phil. 4:6, 19; Col. 3:15; 4:2; 1 Thess. 5:17-18; Jas. 1:17; cf. Psa. 23:1-6; Mark 6:41; 8:6; 14:22-23; Luke 24:30; Rom. 14:6; 1 Cor. 10:30. On God’s provision, see also Psa. 34:9-10; 37:25; Prov. 10:3; Eccl. 5:18-20; Matt. 6:33.

     19 The verbal hagiázō essentially means to set apart or separate from what is unholy to being dedicated to God (cf. 1 Cor. 7:14; 2 Tim. 2:21).

     20 Cf. 1:19; 2:4, 9, 15; 4:1, 3, 6, 13; 5:17; 6:5, 21; 2 Tim. 2:15, 19; 4:2; Tit. 1:3; 2:5 

     21 C. J. Ellicott, A Critical and Grammatical Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles 72.

     22 Cf. also Prov. 28:5, 9; Eph. 6:17-18; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 1 John 5:14-15.

 

Related Posts: Jesus Annuls Food Restrictions? Mark 7:1-19

 

Image credit: adapted from https://www.ibelieve.com/slideshows/15-things-to-pray-before-reading-your-bible.html

The Sociocultural Context of the New Testament (Part 9): The Kiss Greeting and Feet Washing

Kiss Greeting

“Greet one another with a sacred kiss” (Rom. 16:16b; see also 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12; 1 Thess. 5:26; 1 Pet. 5:14).¹  Ignoring the cultural setting of this oft-repeated biblical directive might lead some to conclude that all Christians today ought to be kissing each other. However, the kiss-greeting was the conventional form of social interaction in ancient Mediterranean cultures (see Gen. 27:26; 29:13; 2 Sam. 20:9; Matt. 26:49; Acts 20:37). Rather than initiating a new form of greeting to be bound on the churches, Paul and Peter were simply regulating the customary greeting that was already practiced by their original audiences. In other words, when greeting one another in the customary way, readers are reminded to ensure these intimate exchanges are kept “holy” or “sacred” and in “love,” i.e., sincere and with moral integrity (cp. Matt. 26:48-49; 1 Cor. 6:18; 1 Thess. 4:1-8). In whatever ways Christians ordinarily greet one another in any historical-cultural environment, the underlying principle is the same.

 

Feet washing

In John 13:14 Jesus is recorded as saying, “If I, therefore, the Lord and the Teacher have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Failing to consider the sociocultural context of this passage has led a number of interpreters to regard the directive as a religious rite or church ordinance. Contextually, however, the Lord is not speaking to the church but to his twelve apostles whose feet he had just washed. They had been bickering over which of them should be considered the greatest (Luke 22:14-24), so Jesus teaches humility and servitude by washing their feet (John 13:3-17). 

In ancient Mediterranean cultures where sandals were worn and travel was mostly by foot on dusty roads, visitors entering a home could expect water and towels to be provided for washing dirty feet. It was a customary act of hospitality (see Gen. 18:4; 19:2; 24:32; 43:24; 1 Sam. 25:41; Luke 7:44; 1 Tim. 5:10). Sometimes the host himself would do the washing, but typically this was the job of a house slave. What Jesus teaches on this occasion to his prideful, selfish apostles, employing an object lesson that was practical and familiar at the time, is humbleness and service, not a specific, permanently binding religious ritual. The underlying principle rather than the explicit act remains relevant in all historical-cultural settings.²  

--Kevin L. Moore

Endnotes:

     ¹ Scripture quotations are the author’s own translation.
     ² This is different from the Lord’s Supper, for example, the particulars of which have much broader applicability (cf. Matt. 26:29; Acts 2:42; 20:7; 1 Cor. 11:23-26).

Related Posts: Sociocultural Context Part 1: Introduction, Part 7: Hospitality

Image credit: https://jaminism.wordpress.com/2012/05/08/the-hidden-meaning-of-jesus-washing-the-disciples-feet/

You Are the Temple of God

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17, NKJV).

     Before we consider the implications of this passage, we should realize that the original message has the potential of being lost in translation. The problem is not due to any ambiguity in the text but to the limitations of the English language. These words were first penned in Greek, where the difficulty does not occur. But when the passage is rendered in English, the meaning can be obscured.

     The second person pronoun “you” in English can either be singular or plural, depending on whether an individual or multiple persons are being addressed. If I want to speak to an entire group (“you, class”) or to just one person (“you, Tom”), there is only one pronoun from which to choose. However, those of us from the southern United States have rectified the problem by regarding “you” as the singular form and “you all” or “y’all” as the plural. [Note: in the King James Version “ye” = the plural “you all”]

     In 1 Corinthians 3:16 Paul used the second person plural form of address, and if we read it in the language of the southern United States, the point is much clearer: “Do y’all not know that y’all are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in [or ‘among’] y’all?” Paul is not speaking here about the individual Christian but rather the collectivity of Christians, the body of Christ, the church. It is God’s church (the community of the saved) that serves as his spiritual temple and the dwelling place of his Spirit.

     Next the apostle writes: “If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him” (v. 17a). Again, the description here is not that of the individual person (as in 6:18-20). Neither should we consider the church building (a physical structure of brick and mortar) as some kind of hallowed sanctuary, despite what we may have inferred as children from the song, “Tip toe, tip toe in God’s house.”

     When as faithful Christians we assemble together, work together, and collectively represent God’s presence in our community, we are God’s spiritual temple. Accordingly, may none of us ever be guilty of defiling this temple by such things as ungodly behavior (5:1, 2; 6:1-11), spiritual apathy (11:30, 31), false teaching (15:12, 34), corrupt worship (11:17-22; 14:2, 4), or unnecessary division (1:10, 11; 3:3). Our primary aim should be that of building up the temple of God.

     From the third chapter of 1 Corinthians, we are reminded of how very important the church is, the great privilege of being part of it, and the solemn responsibility we all have to devote ourselves to godly living, active involvement, and faithful service. “For the temple of God is holy, which temple y’all are” (v. 17b).

–Kevin L. Moore

First appearing in The Voice of Truth International 70:47-48.

Related Posts: The Church of the NT

Image credit: http://dothingsbetter.us/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/group-hug.jpg