1 Timothy

1 TIMOTHY

Here are a few excerpts from my study of 1 Timothy. The complete study, along with others I have completed thru this date, can be found at http://www.graceevangel.org/Other/BibleBooks.htm

God’s will … the salvation of all mankind (2:4)

Consider closely these verses, for they are clearly contrary to the common orthodox belief in eternal torment.

… God, Who wills that all mankind be saved and come into a realization of the truth. (v. 4)

For there is one God, and one Mediator of God and mankind, a Man, Christ Jesus, (v. 5)

Who is giving Himself a correspondent Ransom for all (the testimony in its own eras), (v. 6)

For which I was appointed a herald and an apostle … (v. 7)

So it is God’s will that all mankind be saved. Remember also that God is operating all things in accord with His will (Ephesians 1:11). That being the case, what can prevent the salvation of all from happening? Some say it is man’s stubborn, free will that stands in the way; but are we saying that the Creator is unable to lead every last one of mankind into a realization of the truth, if that is His will? Remember that Paul refers to the Lord’s grace as overwhelming, and Paul himself was most certainly led in a very overwhelming way to the truth on the road to Damascus.

Some say that if all are saved then Christ’s death upon the Cross becomes unnecessary. Far from that … it is not only necessary, but far more effectual than orthodoxy would claim. For Christ gave Himself as a correspondent Ransom for all (not just for some). Just as death came to all mankind through Adam, so life comes to all mankind through Christ, the correspondent, one-for-one Ransom for all. Correspondent ransom differs from the simple notion of ransom. The thought expressed in the Greek is the idea of equivalence. It is a one-for-one (i.e. “correspondent”) ransom of all mankind.

What is meant by the testimony in its own eras (1:6)? I believe this means that the realization of the truth by all mankind is a progressive thing. Some of us have been gifted with faith in this present age, but others do not yet see. But they will see in a future era. As Christ’s Ambassadors we are to proclaim the correct evangel … pleading with mankind to be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:18-21). But many within Christianity today spend all of their time preaching Old Testament wrath, warnings of eternal torment, observance of the law, and multitudes of teachings that are not intended for this present era. We mix the law and grace and distort the truth. Thousands of different churches teach thousands of different and contrary things, breeding confusion.

Satan, the Deceiver, has done a good job of hiding the truth that is so clear in the Scriptures. Orthodoxy is often his instrument for hiding the truth and breeding confusion. Rejoice … for it is God’s will that all mankind be saved and come to a realization of the truth, and nothing can prevent that from happening.

“King of the eons”

In verses 16-17 the Greek aion is used in a variety of interesting forms.

Those believing will find life eonian. To translate this eternal life would be an incorrect manipulation of the Greek. The point here is that believers will experience life in the eons to come. This does not mean that life will cease once the eons have concluded. The believer will put on immortality (1 Corinthians 15:54) and will therefore continue to live at the conclusion of the eons. But the point of this present passage is that the believer will have life in the eons to come. Let us not alter the Greek by injecting our theological understandings. Let us instead seek to render the Greek accurately, lest we fail to correctly handle the Scriptures and hinder our ability to understand God’s revelation to us.

In verse 17 Paul uses the phrase King of the eons. Some say this proves that eons (plural) must mean forever, since Christ is immortal. Again; let us not inject our theological understandings into the translation effort. I have five children … Cris, Dusty, Chad, Kari and Scott. When I find myself in the midst of Chad’s friends I may say, “I am the father of Chad.” Does this mean I am not also the father of my other four children? No … it is simply that in that context of Chad’s friends I seek to identify myself as his father. So also in the context of the eons … these finite periods of time in which man’s history is recorded in the Scriptures … Christ is the King of the eons.

Lastly, in verse 17 we see the phrase for the eons of the eons. If eon (singular) or eons (plural) means eternity, then what purpose would there be in saying eons of the eons? If we fail to notice the distinctions in the various forms of aion as used in the Greek, and if we simply inject our theological understandings regardless of the form … saying eternal when that seems to fit and age when eternal clearly does not fit the context … then we will fail to grasp the rich meaning of God’s revelation to us.

A close study of the Scriptures seems to tell us of five distinct eons or ages in the history of mankind. Eon (singular) is speaking of one of these periods of time. Eons (plural) speaks of more than one of these periods of time. Eons of the eons is like saying “two or more ages in particular, in the context of all five ages” (if five is the correct number … that is simply my observation). The last two eons are those following the return of Christ to the earth. Paul is emphasizing these two glorious eons in his benediction … Now to the King of the eons, the incorruptible, invisible, only, and wise God, be honor and glory for the eons of the eons! Amen!

Love Wins

Love Wins

Excerpts from the book by Rob Bell (2011)

Honest Discussions within the Church

Some communities don’t permit open, honest inquiry about the things that matter most.

I believe the discussion itself is divine. Abraham does his best to bargain with God, most of the book of Job consists of arguments by Job and his friends … (p. ix)

[I would go one step further and say that most religious communities … churches, seminaries, organizations … will not permit open, honest inquiries on Biblical interpretations that vary from their own. Go too far … ask too many questions … and you will be asked to leave; allowing the “closed system” to continue propagating its own version of the “truth.” - BE]

How Does One Escape Eternal Torment?

One woman included in her work a quote from Mahatma Gandhi. [But another responded], “Reality check: He’s in hell.” (p. 1)

Does God punish people for thousands of years with infinite, eternal torment for things they did in their few finite years of life?

If there are only a select few who go to heaven … How does a person end up being one of the few? Chance? Luck? Random selection? Being born in the right place, family or country? (p. 2-3)

Which leads to a far more disturbing question. So is it true that the kind of person you are doesn’t ultimately matter, as long as you’ve said or prayed or believed the right things? (p. 6)

Differing with Atheists

Often times when I meet atheists and we talk about the god they don’t believe in, we quickly discover that I don’t believe in that god either. So when we hear that a certain person has “rejected Christ,” we should first ask, “Which Christ?” (p. 9)

Is Salvation Up to Us?

If our salvation, our future, our destiny is dependent on others bringing the message to us, teaching us, showing us – what happens if they don’t do their part? What if the missionary gets a flat tire? Is someone else’s eternity resting in your hands? (p. 9)

A “Personal Relationship” with Christ

The phrase “personal relationship” is found nowhere in the Bible. (p. 10)

[Here is one of many examples of things we believe come from the Bible, but which we have simply been indoctrinated with by the teachings and traditions of the organized church. We must learn to case off those biases and approach the Scriptures from a fresh, unbiased perspective, as much as is possible. – BE]

Is Grace a Gift?

Accepting, confessing, believing – those are things we do. Does that mean, then, that going to heaven is dependent on something I do? How is any of that grace? How is that a gift? (p. 11)

What About Loved Ones Who Died without Christ?

As [one woman] imagines being reunited with her sister who was killed in a car accident 17 years ago … [another woman realizes] she will be separated from her mother and father, brothers and sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles and friends forever, with no chance of any reunion, ever. (p. 25)

Aion = age (not eternity)

Aion refers to a period of time with a beginning and an end. (p. 57)

[I would say there are three major Biblical misunderstandings that stand in the way of our ability to see God’s plan to ultimately save all mankind. This is #1. The Greek “aion” appears in many different forms … singular, plural, before the aions, at the end of the aions, etc. It is CLEAR that this Greek word is not intended to carry the meaning endless or forever. There are some passages where this notion seems to fit in accord with orthodox understandings, so English translators use “eternal” in these instances. But there are other instances where “eternal” is clearly not intended per the context, so these same Biblical translators use another word, like “age.” But would God use a single word to mean opposite things … endless, and with an end? Would He leave it to scholars to tell us when it means endless and when it does not? Dumbed-down Bible translations and a failure to see that there are significant differences in the various forms of the word (singular, plural, etc) cause God’s wonderful plan to ultimately save all mankind to be hidden. – BE]

Hell

There isn’t an exact word or concept in the Hebrew scriptures for hell other than a few words that refer to death and the grave. (p. 64)

Gehenna, in Jesus’s day, was the city dump. Gehenna was an actual place that Jesus’s listeners would have been familiar with. (p. 68)

Hades is essentially the Greek version of the Hebrew word “Sheol.” (p. 69)

For many in the modern world, the idea of hell is a holdover from primitive, mythic religion that uses fear and punishment to control people for all sorts of devious reasons. (p. 69-70)

[This is major misunderstanding #2 in Bible teaching today. The concept of eternal torment comes from mythology and not the Scriptures. The Greek “hades” is inconsistently translated … “hell” when it appears to be speaking of the wicked, and “grave” when it appears to be speaking of the righteous. But, again, we leave it to the scholars to give us an inconsistent translations of the Scriptures … when, in fact, “hades” in EVERY instance simply means “the unseen place” … the place our souls go when we die; whether we are saved or unsaved. – BE]

Destruction, with a Purpose

[Ezekiel said] that God will “restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters.

Ezekiel says that where there was destruction there will be restoration.

According to the prophets, God crushes, refines, test, corrects, chastens, and rebukes – but always with a purpose. (p. 83-86)

[On the sheep and goats judgment in Matthew 25] … An aion of kolazo [can mean] “a period of pruning” or “a time of trimming,” or an intense experience of correction. In a good number of English translations of the Bible, the phrase “aion of kolazo” gets translated as “eternal punishment.”

But “forever” is not really a category the biblical writers used. (p. 91-92)

How Great is God?

[God is routinely credited with being] mighty, powerful, loving, unchanging, sovereign, full of grace and mercy, and all-knowing. This God is the one who created the world and everything in it. This is the God for whom all things are possible.

“God wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2)

So does God get what God wants? How great is God? Great enough to achieve what God sets out to do. (p. 96-97)

Have billions of people been created only to spend eternity in conscious punishment and torment, suffering infinitely for the finite sins they committed in the few years they spent on earth? (p. 102)

Church History

Beginning with the early church, there is a long tradition of Christians who believe that God will ultimately restore everything and everybody. (p. 107)

In the third century the church fathers Clement of Alexandria and Origen affirmed God’s reconciliation with all people. (p. 107)

1 Corinthians 15

“In Christ all will be made alive.” (p. 134)

[Major misunderstanding #3 in our Biblical understanding is our failure to see that the many verses referring to the salvation of all really mean what they say … ALL. Because the traditional church has taught us there is an eternal torment for the unbeliever, we see the word “all” and find it necessary to limit its meaning to make our “system of theology” work. But when we clear up misunderstandings #1 and #2 … “aion” means age, and “hades” means the unseen place … we see that when God speaks of saving all, He means ALL.

God is the Saviour of all (1 Timothy 4:10). God wills that all mankind be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). God is operating all in accord with the counsel of His will (Ephesians 1:11). Christ Jesus died as a correspondent ransom for all (1 Timothy 2:6). In Adam all are dying and in Christ shall all be made alive (1 Corinthians 15:21-23). All are created in Him, and all will be reconciled through Him (Colossians 1:16-20) … to mention only a few. – BE]

A Terrifying God

Millions have been taught that if they don’t believe, if they don’t accept in the right way, that is, the way the person telling them the gospel does, and they were hit by a car and died later that same day, God would have no choice but to punish them forever in conscious torment in hell.

A loving heavenly father who will go to extraordinary lengths to have a relationship with them would, in the blink of an eye, become a cruel, mean, vicious tormentor who would ensure that they had no escape from an endless future of agony. If there was an earthly father who was like that, we would call the authorities.

The God they’ve been presented with and taught about can’t be loved. That God is terrifying and traumatizing and unbearable. (p. 173-175)

Summary

[The author has presented in a very readable form many Biblical passages that should be thought-through anew, and he has asked many powerful questions to be considered as we look at our current understanding of the Scriptures. And most importantly of all, Rob Bell is a highly visible pastor who has taken the bold step of offering non-orthodox understandings of the Bible that has generated much criticism. I applaud him for having the courage to step out of the orthodox comfort zone to share a message that has been hidden for far too long from church-goers of our present age. – BE]

Excerpts selected by Bob Evely, 2012