The married couple of Mr. and Mrs. Priscilla and Aquila are one of many examples of the early Church teaching and living the Gospel. Not only were they witnesses to the Good News about the Saviour, Jesus Christ, but together this duo trained Barnabas who then went out into his field of service and mission.

Aquila and Priscilla were considered equal. Of the 6 times they are mentioned, 3 times Aquila is named first and 3 times Priscilla is named first. Rooted in contemporary culture too many male leaders claim women (in general) cannot teach. But Paul writes that “there is neither male nor female” (Galatians 3:28), and Paul mentions many women leaders of the Church.

So what does 1 Timothy 2:12 mean, “I don’t allow a woman to teach or to have authority over a man. Instead, she should be quiet” (God’s Word Translation©)? Much can be said, but I refer only to the fact that verses 8-10 are plural, and since verses 11-12 use the singular (“woman” and “man”) it is not an issue of gender, but about wife and husband. A wife should not teach her husband, or usurp (interfere with, or interrupt, her teaching husband) during a gathering of believers. This is consistent with Jesus teaching that no believer should “have absolute power over people” (Mark 10:42 God’s Word Translation©). It also is consistent with Jesus teaching that if you have an issue with someone you first speak to them face-to-face privately, not in public (Matthew 18:15)! This shows how we must carefully consider the whole Bible, and not pick out one verse to give it a meaning which is contrary to the rest of Scripture because we can make it suit our own likes and wishes.

People also underestimate the incredible influence and pressure of society and culture and tradition on us, for human cultures treat people in categories (gender, race, economic status, age, etc.). God sees us as unique persons. The Bible declares, “There are neither Jews nor Greeks, slaves nor free people, males nor females. You are all the same in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28 God’s Word Translation©). This prohibits racism. James strongly teaches against showing favouritism to the rich (James 2:1-5). Paul clearly cannot be teaching sexism, then.

We must not let culture or tradition shape our faith. Many are the warning signs against giving up spiritual discernment for the easier route of peer pressure or religious domination. Instead,
always to submit to Scripture even if it makes you uncomfortable or demands you must give up a pet belief or cultural practice. “Ezra was determined to study the Lord’s Teachings, live by them, and teach their rules and regulations in Israel” (Ezra 7:10 God’s Word Translation©).

Never acquiesce to, or relax in, any theology or institutional doctrine, but, “Do your best to present yourself to God as a tried-and-true worker who isn’t ashamed to teach the word of truth correctly” (2 Timothy 2:15 God’s Word Translation©).

***This post is a sister to “Submission” which was published October 7, 2018. I respectfully suggest they could be read together.

The Bible is about God.

Yet people read it for political proofs, religious ideology, for use as a weapon against those with whom they disagree or find unacceptable and as a verification for their own heresies or adrenaline to feed their “I’m-right” ego.

The Bible is about being on God’s Team (with God as the highest honcho) and non-debatable love for each and every one of God’s creations.

If your reading gives you permission to judge and condemn anyone of any time or place, prideful assurance that your doctrine or culture is superior to others, or seems useful as an excuse to abuse or hold power over others, you are not reading The Bible God commissioned, but a social distortion for human justification for wrongdoing.

“The tree had fruit that was good to eat, nice to look at, and desirable for making someone wise [“like a god” Genesis 3:5]” Genesis 3:6.

From the beginning people chose whatever satisfied their personal consumption, titillated them in their vision and set them up to play god.

The Divine Plan was for people to serve in creation, walk with God and nurture each other.

I plan, God being my helper, to follow the Plan and benefit the Community, not my little self-centred, self-created universe. Yes, the price is high, but it is better than the religious vandalism that allows people to mutilate creation and destroy other people.

It is rarely noticed how cultural expectations and theological interpretations form a large part of Christian religious teaching.

Consider these 2 things:

1. “Application – application – application” was not used or advised by Jesus. Jesus used parables which touched the listeners in different ways, imposing on them the responsibility to face the implications of the teaching and obey the Spirit in how that would be lived out in the life of the one “who had ears to hear”. Paul, Peter, John taught what Jesus taught (Matthew 28:20), but never said, “Now the application of this teaching of Jesus means this…”
   True, the parable of the Samaritan ends with “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
   “The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
   Jesus told him, “Go and do like likewise” (Luke 10:37 NIV) which might be considered an application, but the statement does not interpret or add to the story a layer of human insight, but is rather a call to obedience.
   What is a preacher to do, then, in Biblical terms? “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Ephesians 4:11-12 NIV).
   This idea of advising the congregation to interpret and understand a Bible story or passage in one specific way does not come from the Bible, because a person with the spiritual gift of helps would need to practice a given teaching in a different way than would a teacher or healer. It requires all the body of Christ to apply the Bible because it speaks of heavenly, infinite things to earthly finite people. Consider 1 Corinthians 12, which of course leads into Chapter 13.
   According to John 16:13 the job of leading people into truth is the work of The Spirit, not the preacher.
2. Another common tool used by religious teachers/preachers is to invite listeners to imagine themselves in the situation described in a Bible story, or to put themselves in the place of one or other of the characters in that event. Since Jesus never suggested the disciples should put themselves in the place of Abraham, or Moses, or any other of the spiritual ancestors, this cannot be considered an appropriate teaching technique. People will “feel” they have learned something, but they have imposed on the Bible story their own modern, cultural, biased interpretations of the event, without getting any insight from the Bible itself, trading that for their own emotional thinking or memories.
   This human imagination is not needed to grasp the Bible truths. After all, “the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12 NIV). The Bible doesn’t need our imperfect imagination to make it “come alive”. Any exercise which calls people to use their imperfect knowledge or finite intelligence or cultural context limits God’s Spirit rather than opening us to the leading of that very Spirit.

In the end, the “word that goes out from [God’s] mouth will not return to [God] empty, but will accomplish what I [God] desire and achieve the purpose for which I [God] sent it” (Isaiah 55:11 NIV). Trust that God will do that without any human editorial additions or imaginations of the flesh.

The Bible is not merely human words. Vast amounts of the Bible are quotes from the mouth of God. Much of the Gospel of Matthew is teachings from the mouth of Jesus. Much of the writing of the prophets is made of quotes from God to them, or the record of the visions/dreams that God gave them. The last book of the Bible, Revelation, is “the revelation of Jesus Christ…to his servant John”, and consists of dreams.

Despite that, a number of years ago a group of “scholars” decided what Jesus was really like, and anything in the Gospels that did not fit their intellectual assumptions was discounted as mere human words.

Paul challenges this kind of academic exercise, teaching Timothy that the Bible has value beyond human thinking because “From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures. They have the power to give you wisdom so that you can be saved through faith in Christ Jesus. Every Scripture passage is inspired by God. All of them are useful for teaching, pointing out errors, correcting people, and training them for a life that has God’s approval. They equip God’s servants so that they are completely prepared to do good things” (2 Timothy 3:15-17 GW©).

So stop giving interpretations of The Bible; stop “making applications to today’s world” and stop picking verses to prove the doctrine to which you are already committed. The Bible points out this error. It corrects such human thinking. It trains you for the life prepared “to do good things”.

The Bible is not a textbook of mere knowledge, but an open channel with God for action on the front-line of life.

Do it; don’t think about it!

I was in dialogue with a person about a present-day issue. I referred to one of the places in the Bible where this issue is addressed. The response was, “But what limitation do you put on it?”

In my mind I answered, “None!”

This person is one of the too many who have abandoned Scripture and live loyally to the interpretation their religious group places on the Bible. They were inviting me to accept their dogma, which totally negates what God says in The Holy Word. I could not join their heresy.

Several times recently Galatians 3:1-5** has been thrown into my view. It breaks my heart to think that there are so many people who have been “bewitched” into thinking their ideology, their efforts, their self-appointed heroism and their actions which are affirmed only by like-minded individuals (even though rejected by spiritual Christians) constitute righteousness. Alas, it is merely self-righteousness, the spiritual condition of the 1st century Pharisees who opposed Jesus.

Since the modern-day Galatians who are “under an evil spell” (and those at early Ephesus according to Revelation, also) have lost their first love they are called to “repent” (Revelation 2:1-7). If they do not repent Jesus will “come to [them] quickly and remove [their] lampstand from its place”. My call on them to repent has been met with a closed mind, so far, but I keep praying. They do not realize that their “everlasting life” (John 3:16) is at stake!

** “You stupid people of Galatia! Who put you under an evil spell? Wasn’t Christ Jesus’ crucifixion clearly described to you? I want to learn only one thing from you. Did you receive the Spirit by your own efforts to follow the laws in the Scriptures or by believing what you heard? Are you that stupid? Did you begin in a spiritual way only to end up doing things in a human way? Did you suffer so much for nothing? [I doubt] that it was for nothing! Does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you through your own efforts or through believing what you heard?”