Oh, say can you see

In 2 Corinthians 12:1-6, Paul writes about someone who was permitted to visit the third heaven. He was too humble to admit that he was the one who saw the third heaven, although in verse 7, however, Paul admits that he had the revelations.  He then states that a thorn in the flesh was given to him, a messenger of Satan to buffet him, lest he be exalted above measure. Paul asked the Lord three times to take the thorn away, but his request was not granted. Instead of being upset over his thorn, however, Paul states that he took pleasure in his infirmity for Christ's sake. 

There has been speculation over the years as to what Paul’s “thorn” was.  I believe that Paul’s thorn was the loss of his eyesight.  Paul’s letters were transcribed by amanuenses. Per Dictionary.com, an “amanuensis” is a person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another; a secretary. Romans 16:22 is the only place you will find the amanuensis' name listed (Tertius).  In the other epistles, the name of the amanuensis is not listed, although several of the epistles list names of people who were laboring with Paul and some of them may have transcribed Paul's epistles but they didn't want to mention themselves as the amanuensis. 

 

Now it’s not like Paul didn’t know how to write.  He was a Pharisee, which meant that he was studied in the Torah and the Law.  I believe that Paul had to have amanuenses write the epistles because he couldn’t see well. You need to have the ability to see in order to write in a straight line so that your handwriting is legible.

To prove that he was the author of his epistles, Paul wrote in Galatians 6:11, “Look with what large letters I have written to you in my own hand!” If your eyesight is bad, you would have to write in large letters in order to be able to read them yourself. In Colossians 4:18 and 2 Thessalonians 3:17, Paul writes that he is writing a salutation in his own hand. 

 

I've had my suspicions for a while that Paul's thorn was his bad eyesight, but when I read Galatians 4:15, it finally came together for me. In that verse, Paul states that if it were possible, the Galatians would plucked out their own eyes and given them to him.  They obviously knew that Paul had bad eyesight and they wanted to sacrifice their eyes so that he could see.  Now if Paul had been lame, the Galatians would have offered their legs to him so that he could walk. 

 

Why did God take Paul’s eyesight away? I think it’s because the third heaven is so wonderful that nothing on Earth could ever compare to it.  God didn’t want Paul to remember what he saw. Some of us may have “thorns” in our lives that God hasn’t taken away from us, no matter how much we ask Him to.  God gives us the patience and the endurance, like He did with Paul, to live with our “thorns.”

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've posted. I've been helping a friend take the dramas he wrote and put them in book form to publish them on Amazon.  I hope you don't mind me plugging his book, but he has a book of Christian dramas and you can find that here. 

Thanks as always for reading! See you next time! 

Diane

Saints alive!

There are churches, both Catholic and Protestant, with church names that start with "St.", the abbreviation for Saint. "St.", like "Mr." and Mrs.", are honorifics, which is a word that means "a title or word implying or expressing high status, politeness, or respect." You will notice, however, that most evangelical churches are not named for a saint. 

The Catholic church has a process for how a person becomes a saint, a/k/a canonization.  Here's an abbreviated Dummies.com explanation of canonization:  1.  The person must be dead for at least 5 years; 2. When a person is accepted for consideration, they are called a Servant of God; 3. After it's determined that the Servant of God lived a life of virtue, they are called Venerable; 4. After one miracle is confirmed, the Venerable is presented to the Pope to see if he/she is considered Blessed. This process is called Beautification; and 5. After a second miracle is confirmed, the Blessed is again presented to the Pope for review to be considered a saint.

Whew! That's a long process.  But the Biblical requirements for a saint are much different.  In 1 Corinthians 1:2, Paul addresses the church at Corinth:  “To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours.” (emphasis mine - DMS)  In order to be called a saint, you just have to believe in God and Jesus Christ. You don't have to be dead, you don't have to have miracles attributed to you, and you don't have to have the Pope review your case.  

In the Old Testament, there are many references to believers being saints. There are 20 references to saints in the book of Psalms alone and 12 references to saints in the other Old Testament books. These saints are the Hebrew believers in God. In the New Testament, there are 70 references to saints.  These saints, of course, are believers in Jesus. Here is the link to my search on BlueLetterBible.org for "saints:" Link  Once the new tab opens, click on the link to access the search. "Saints" is a collective term for all those who believe in God and Jesus. There are halos on the heads of paintings and statues of Catholic saints, but there are no references to halos in Scripture.

In our review of Scripture, we see that there is no complicated process to become a saint of God. As referenced above, all we have to do is to call on the name of Jesus and believe in Him to become saints. It doesn't matter if you're rich or poor, or what your ethnicity is, as long as you believe in Jesus, you are a saint. 

One of my favorite childhood hymns is "I Sing a Song of the Saints of God." The first and second verses talk about saints of God who lived in the past and their courageous actions. In the third verse, the lyricist speaks about the saints that live in the present day and where a person can find the saints - everywhere!  The last phrase of the first verse states, "They were all of them saints of God and I mean, God helping, to be one too."  In fact, that should be every believer's goal.  There's an old saying - "You're a saint or you ain't."

Thanks as always for reading! See you next time!

Diane

Personally yours, Part 3

3 John is the second epistle, or letter, that John has written to a particular person.  The letter recipient is Gaius. The commentaries I reviewed state that this epistle was written in 90-100 AD.  It was probably written before John's exile to Patmos since John states in the letter that he hopes to see Gaius soon so they can speak face to face. 

In verse 1, John once again identifies himself as the Elder.  John must have known Gaius very well and knew of his faith, for John calls him "beloved Gaius." John loves Gaius in the truth.  We should love fellow believers in the truth as well. 

John repeats the word "beloved" in the second verse. John prays that Gaius prospers in all things, as his soul prospers.  As believers, our souls must prosper in our relationship with the Lord so that we may prosper in all things, and be in health. When our relationship with the Lord is not prosperous, the rest of our life will suffer, especially if we fall into sin.

In verses 3-4, John states that he rejoiced when he heard from the brethren that Gaius was walking in the truth. We should be joyful when fellow believers walk in the truth. 

In verses 5-6, John addresses Gaius' duties. Gaius is to do whatever he does for the brethren faithfully. Whatever we as believers do for fellow believers and for strangers, we are to do it faithfully.  John states that both the brethren and the strangers bear witness to Gaius' love before the church.

John stated that Gaius was to send people on their way in a manner worthy of God and that he would do well. The people who went forward for Jesus' name sake took nothing from the Gentiles. You may recall that Paul supported himself as a tent maker. John stated that Gaius, and we as well, should receive those who speak the truth so that we will become fellow workers for the truth.

The subject changes in verse 9.  John wrote that he had written to a church, but he didn't identify the name of the church. There is a man at this church named Diotrephus, who I'll call Dio for short. Dio has a superiority complex.  He will not receive John or anyone with him.   

In verse 10, John stated that when he does go to the church that will not be named that he will remind Dio of his bad deeds. John stated that Dio was prating.  Per Dictionary.com, the definition of "prating" is to talk excessively and pointlessly.  Not only did Dio speak badly about John, Dio would not receive his fellow brethren and he evicted those from the church who wished to receive their fellow brethren. Dio was a bad leader. We should receive our fellow brethren in love and rebuke those who refuse to do so.

John transitioned to another subject in verse 11. John stated that we are not to imitate evil but to imitate good.  Those who imitate good are of God, but those who do evil have not seen God, or even know God.

Verse 11 is a bridge into verse 12, where John praised Demetrius and said he had a good testimony. This is in contrast to Diotrephus, who is not a good example to follow.  This comparison reminds me of the characters Goofus and Gallant, the characters in the magazine Highlights for Children who illustrate good behavior and bad behavior for children. 

John finishes up the letter in verses 13-14. He states that he had many things to write, but he would rather speak to Gaius in person, face to face. John then ends the letter with a blessing and greetings from God's friends. 

This is a short book, but there are lots of good things packed into it.  This epistle has instructions on how Christians should greet and treat fellow believers, how a person in pastoral authority should and should not act, and what a believer should imitate.  

That's all for now! Thanks for reading! See you next time!

Diane

Personally yours, Part 2

In part one, I wrote about Paul’s epistle to Philemon, which was addressed to a person and not to a particular church like his other epistles. The apostle John wrote three epistles and two of them are also personally addressed to a person.

2 John is the first of John's two epistles directed to a person as opposed to the church in general, as in 1 John. In modern times, we write (or type) the names and addresses of the person or people we are writing to, and put our signatures at the end of the letter, but in Biblical times, it appears that the writer puts his name first, and then addresses the recipient.  

In verse 1, John calls himself The Elder. Everyone must have known that John was the Elder and he didn't need to put his name before the title.  John then addresses the recipient of the letter, who is “To the elect lady and her children.” To be “elect” is to be a person who has repented of their sins and receives Jesus Christ as his or her Savior.  John does not mention the name of the elect lady.  The commentaries I reviewed did not know who the elect lady was either.  Was the elect lady someone that John knew very personally and that is why he didn’t address her by name?  In the book of Revelation, the Church is referred to as the Bride of Christ. Could the elect lady be the Church?  Her children, then, would be all the believers in Christ.  So this letter may have a double meaning. 

John then states that he loves the elect lady in truth and those who know the truth love her as well.  So this is not a romantic relationship -  this is agape love.  John then states that the truth abides in him, in her, and the truth will live in them forever.  If we know the truth of Jesus Christ and have accepted Him as our Savior, the truth will live in us forever as well. 

In verse 3, John gives the elect lady a blessing.  John states that grace, mercy, and peace will be with her from God and from Jesus. John refers to Jesus as the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father.  

In verse 4(a), John writes that he is rejoicing that some of the elect lady's children are walking in truth, which is the truth of the Gospel. Wait a minute - "some" of her children? That means that not all of her children are walking in the truth. This also has a meaning for today's church.  Not all of the people attending worship services or who are church members are born-again Christians. For some people, church is a social club where they meet up with their friends or they join a certain church to advance in certain clubs or occupations.  

Then in verses 4(b) and 5, John ends the personal greetings and writes about the first topic, which is love.  John covers the topic of love in great depth in 1 John 4. Here, John states the most important commandment, which is to love one another by walking in God's commandments.  This also applies to us in the modern church.  We are to walk in love both towards God and towards others by following God's commandments. 

The next topic in John's epistle are deceivers, who are antichrists.  John defines an antichrist (small "a" antichrist, not to be confused with the Antichrist, who will come forward after the Rapture) as those who deny that Jesus Christ came to Earth in the flesh. John notes that the elect lady, and we as well, should not fall into this false doctrine so that we will obtain our full reward in Heaven. John states that those who don't abide in Christ's doctrine do not have God, and those who do abide in Christ's doctrine have both Christ and God.  We should abide in Christ's doctrine so we will have both God and Christ. John writes to the elect lady that if any of these deceivers show up at her door that she should not greet them nor receive them into her house, so as not to take part in their evil deeds. We in the modern church need to keep an eye out for those who come into the church with unbiblical ideas and doctrines.  We want to walk in Biblical ways and not in ways that are not pleasing to God.

John writes a personal greeting to the elect lady in the last two verses.  He states that he has more to say, but he would rather do so in person so that their joy may be full. He then states that the children of her elect sister greet her.  So who is the elect sister?  Another church?  And why are the children greeting the elect lady and not their mother? The commentaries I reviewed had no idea about who the elect sister was.  There are some things that we won't know until we get to Heaven.

Thanks for reading! See you next time!

Diane

Personally yours, Part 1

Most of the books of the New Testament are epistles (or letters) written by Paul to the various churches that he either founded or visited. These letters contained Paul's greetings to the church that he was addressing, corrections in doctrine, instructions for church worship or organization, and personal greetings to some of the members of the particular church that Paul was addressing.  It appears from reading the last chapter of most of the epistles that Paul has dictated the letter to someone else to write because there will be a verse added where Paul is writing with his own hand. In Romans 16:22, Tertius states that he has written the epistle.  In Galatians 6:11, Paul states:  "See with what large letters I have written to you with my own hand!" I think that poor eyesight was the "thorn" that Paul suffered from after his vision of Paradise in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9.  If Paul's sight was poor, he wouldn't have been able to write the epistles so that they could be read by the church they were addressed to. Paul would have to write in very large letters so that he could read his own handwriting.

One of Paul's epistles, however, is not directed to a church. It is directed to a person. Philemon is a short letter; it is only 25 verses long.  Paul starts his letter by calling himself a prisoner of Christ Jesus.  The commentaries I have reviewed indicate that Paul was in prison in Rome when this letter was written. Paul was a believer in Christ and it was for his faith that he was a prisoner.  Timothy was probably in Rome attending to Paul's needs, and that may be why he is mentioned in verse 1.  

Verse 2 states that the letter is addressed to Philemon and the people in his house, along with the church that was meeting in Philemon's house.  Verse 3 is a blessing to the recipients of Paul's letter.  

Paul addresses Philemon personally in verses 4-7 and praises him for his faith and love toward Jesus and all of the saints. Paul states that Philemon has refreshed the hearts of the saints and that he has great joy because of that. 

Now that Paul has gotten all of the niceties out of the way, he gets down to business in verses 8-11.  Paul states that he could be bold and demand that Philemon do what he is going to request, but instead, he appeals to Philemon in love because he is old and he is also a prisoner of Christ.  Paul requests that Philemon take back Onesimus, Philemon's runaway slave.  Onesimus apparently ran away from Philemon to Rome to see Paul. In verse 10, Paul states that Onesimus is his own "son," and Onesimus is now profitable to Paul and to Philemon. I believe this means that Onesimus repented of his sins and was born again while he was with Paul.  

Paul wanted to keep Onesimus with him in Rome so that he could minister to Paul in his chains.  However, Paul realized that Onesimus should return to Philemon, his earthly master, so he sent Onesimus back to Philemon. Paul states to Philemon that he wanted Philemon to take Onesimus back voluntarily and not by compulsion. Paul explains that now Onesimus is not only Philemon's slave, he is Philemon's brother in Christ.  

Paul asks Philemon to receive Onesimus as he would Paul.  Paul states that if Onesimus has wronged Philemon or owes him anything, Paul would take care of it. It appears that this letter was not dictated to another person, for in verse 19, Paul states that he is writing with his own hand.  Paul states that Philemon owes Paul his own self besides - Paul probably led Philemon to Christ. 

Paul tells Philemon to refresh his heart in the Lord and to have joy from him in the Lord.  Paul states that he knows that Philemon will do more than he asks him to do, because Paul has confidence in Philemon's obedience.  

Paul must have hoped that he would be released from prison, for he asks Philemon to prepare a guest room for him because he believed that through Philemon's prayers that he would be able to come to Philemon.  However, we know from history that Paul was not released  from prison in Rome and he was executed there.  

Verses 23-24 are more greetings from various laborers in Christ and from Epaphras, Paul's fellow prisoner in Christ.  Paul ends the letter with a gracious benediction.

So since the letter to Philemon was not addressed to a church, why was it included in the New Testament canon? I believe the letter to Philemon has lessons that we as Christians can and should learn.  When people repent of their sins and believe in Christ as Savior, we are to treat them as the new creatures in Christ that they have become and not as the sinners they once were. We are to receive them graciously in Christ. When we want others to do things for us, we are to ask in love and not with demands.  We should always speak graciously and in love to fellow believers. And Onesimus' story is similar to the parable of the Prodigal Son - Onesimus ran away but believed in Christ and returned home, and the Prodigal Son came to his senses and returned home as well. Onesimus is also mentioned as a faithful and beloved brother in Colossians 4:9, which means that Philemon was probably written before Colossians.

The Apostle John also has two epistles that were addressed to individuals, and I'll look at those in my next post.  Thanks as always for reading - I'm sorry it's been a long time since my last post.   In the meantime, don't forget to check out and subscribe to this blog's YouTube channel - the link is here:  Reflections, Ruminations & Recollections.  See you next time!

Diane

What's in a name?

"That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." So goes the quote from the tragedy "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare. Parents choose the name of their newborns carefully, whether it is a new-fangled name or the name of a favorite relative, and they also have to see how the chosen name fits with the surname.

In the Bible, people's names and place names reflected their character traits. Most of the time, the actual text does not provide the meaning of the name; you can usually find the meaning of a name in a footnote. Sometimes, however, the meaning of the name is found in the text. Isaac's wife Rebekah bore him twin sons. The firstborn son was named Esau, which means "hairy," because he was covered with hair when he was born. The other twin was named Jacob, which means "one who takes the heel," because he grabbed Esau's heel when he exited the womb. Jacob's name also means "deceiver," and he deceived Esau out of his birthright. Jacob's wife Leah bore him many sons. Each son's name described the circumstances of his conception or birth.

Names were also changed by God if the person's circumstances changed. Abraham's original name was Abram (exalted father). God changed Abram's name to Abraham (father of a multitude) in Genesis 17 when God told him that he would be the father of many nations. Sarah's name was originally Sarai, and her name was also changed in Genesis 17. Sarah's name means "princess." Sarah laughed when she heard the Lord say that she would bear a child in her old age, so her son's name was Isaac, which means "laughter."

Jacob's name was changed to Israel (Prince with God) after he wrestled with a Man, who was probably the Angel of the Lord, in Genesis 32. Jacob called that place Peniel, which means "Face of God." The name change is reconfirmed in Genesis when Jacob returned to Bethel (which means "house of God").

Jesus changed names as well.  He gave Simon the name Peter. He also gave brothers James and John the nickname Boanerges, which means "sons of thunder."

As believers, we will also receive new names. In Revelation 2:17(b), John writes: "And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one know except him who receives it." Even Jesus Himself will get a new name. In Revelation 3:12, Jesus states: “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more.  I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God.  And I will write on him My new name.” There is no indication in Revelation what Jesus’ new name is – we will just have to wait until we get to Heaven to find out what it is. 

Interested in finding out what your name means? You can go to this website https://www.behindthename.com/to find out.

Thanks for reading! See you next time! 

Diane

Wrestling in the Garden

Wrestling is one of the few sports mentioned in the Bible.  In Genesis 32:24, Jacob wrestled with a Man all night after he sent his wives and the rest of his entourage over the brook.  The heading for this section of the chapter is "Wrestling With God" in the NKJV.  In Ephesians 6:12, Paul states that we wrestle against principalities, powers, the rulers of the darkness of the age, and against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.  This is spiritual wrestling and not physical wrestling. 

Those of you who are modern wrestling fans know that every wrestling card has the main event, which usually takes place at the end of the event. In the main event, the reigning champion is challenged for the title. The matches that lead up to the main event are called the undercard. 

The main event in Christianity, of course, is the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  The last match on the undercard, however, was a wrestling match in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Let me introduce you to the wrestlers. The first wrestler was Jesus the Son of Man, fully human. His human side showed compassion, yet He also showed anger when he cleared the temple of the money changers. 

The second wrestler was God the Father, Creator of the universe. He knew the future before the beginning of time.  He made man in His image and breathed life into him. 

The Son of Man came to the Garden of Gethsemane to wrestle in prayer with God the Father.   His disciples came with Him to the Garden, but He made most of them wait elsewhere, except for Peter, James, and John (Matthew 26:36).  His human emotions came to the surface as He told the three that He was sorrowful unto death and told them to keep watch with Him.  Like most of us humans, we want the comfort of other humans when we are sad.  

The Son of Man wrestled in prayer with God the Father three times (or three rounds, in boxing terms.  Sorry about the mixed sports metaphors.).  During the first time He prayed, His human emotion came out in the first part of the prayer. "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me." The cup referenced here was Jesus' death on the cross as the ultimate sacrifice for sin.  The Son of Man, like most humans, didn't want to suffer pain and die. But in the second part of the prayer, the Son of God, who knew His Father's will, showed up and said, "nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." 

The Son of Man then checked up on the disciples and found them sleeping.  Maybe they ate too much at the Passover seder.  He chastised Peter for falling asleep. He then spoke one of the most famous verses in Scripture - "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." That has an application for us as well. 

In the second round of prayer, the Son of Man began to be resigned to His fate.  He said, "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass from me unless I drink it, Your will be done." Luke records in his Gospel that after this round of prayer, an angel came to strengthen the Son of Man.  He went back to check on His disciples and they had fallen asleep again.  

There was a third round of prayer in which the Son of Man prayed the same as He did in the second round.  Luke records in his Gospel that Jesus prayed in such agony that His sweat was like great drops of blood falling to the ground.  He came back to check on His disciples and they were still sleeping.  This time, the Son of God woke the disciples up and told them to rise and pray, lest they fall into temptation.  

We Christians wrestle with God in prayer as well.  We don't sweat like great drops of blood or have an angel strengthen us, however, like Jesus did. We must remember, though, that when we wrestle with God in prayer that it is not our will but God's will that must be done.  

Thanks as always for reading!  I hope it won't be as long until I write again.

Diane