A medical report out of the
UK is causing debate on whether or not newborns should be swaddled. It is
suggested that restricting leg movement in developing bones might cause hip
problems in the future. One doctor who is against the practice said, “When a
baby is growing let him grow.” I think the same can be said for the Gospel.
When I hear something that isn’t quite in sync with the Word, my first reaction
is to either restrict what is said, or correct the person saying it. I’m afraid
I wouldn’t have handled the situation with Apollos quite as delicately as did
Aquila and Priscilla. Apollos knew the Scripture, spoke with great fervor and
taught about Jesus accurately; however, he lacked understanding in the area of
baptism. “…When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home
and explained to him the way of God more adequately.” (Acts 18:26b NIV)
1 comment:
Gail;
-----So, did Priscilla and Aquila swaddle Apollos in that the further truth they laid out for him restricted his movement into eventual error? Or did they unswaddle him in that they unwrapped his thinking from the error of insufficient understanding, freeing it to run and jump and play inside a vast new understanding? The hue of a mental framework is cast upon all concepts roaming therein. Whether Apollos’ thinking was swaddled or unswaddled depends upon how the mind is framed in all its nuances, from its negatives and positives to its relevancies and irrelevancies.
-----The scriptures also must run the gauntlet of mental framework. Nothing makes my heart beat warmer than God’s Word. It is the physical substance He put into my hand which decodes into many ideas, concepts, and affects of His own Mind relevant to mankind in general, and to each one of us in particular, as it is read. So, He’s shared these with us, but only through several layers of coding. Why? He intends for only a specific audience to understand and obey it.
-----The Bible itself speaks of the more refined layers of code. “Then the disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do you speak to them in parables?’ And He answered them, ‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given;” (Matt 13:10) “…I thank Thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes;” (Luke 10:21b) “He said, ‘Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end…and none of the wicked shall understand; but those who are wise shall understand.’” (Dan 12:9-10) And let’s not forget the most encoded message, “And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, ‘Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.’” (Rev 10:4) The seven thunders speak only to those who will hear them, and to John.
-----The fact that language itself is a code does not guarantee a message’s pure decoding. Different ages and different places have different idioms delivering specific meanings. This is a cultural thing. Different people grow up in different sets of experiences, even in the same families. Such aspects develop different mental frameworks amongst people in which even similar idioms reflect divergent thoughts and meanings.
-----Love for another will draw one to help another overcome grammatical, dictional, parlance, and phonetic errors involving the linguistic code. Such doing enhances the loved one’s communicative experiences. You’ve done it for me. The same love desires to help when it encounters misunderstanding of the “Bible codes”.
-----But the off-limits variances are the particular framings within spiritually living minds. God knows the amount of necessary correctness of the heart and mind of any soul for the genuineness of new life for that soul. I think He also delivers an approximating hint of how much this is to that soul, alone. Therefore, “One believes he may eat anything, while the weak man eats only vegetables…One man esteems one day…while another man esteems all days alike. Let every one be fully convinced IN HIS OWN mind.” (Rom 14:3,5, emphasis mine.) When two living minds just can not quite frame up enough alike, then Paul says, “The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God…” (Rom 14:22a)
Love you all,
Steve Corey
Post a Comment