The effects of Christ’s suffering and death for the believer

Christ’s sufferings and death are a past event. When He rose from the dead, they ended. We know that the effects of His death carry forward to today just as they carried back to the sins God had “passed over” prior to Christ’s death (Rom. 3:25). His suffering and death also affect Him now.

“He is a merciful and faithful high priest in things facing God, to propitiation regarding the sins of the people. For in which He suffered, He is able to respond to the cry of help for those being tempted” (Heb. 2:17-18). He experienced the things we experience. God cannot be tempted with evil (Jas. 1:13). So the Son became man to experience our struggle. In this way, He has mercy towards us in our struggles, our pain, and our temptations. Mercy is His pity on suffering as a result of sin, whether our immediate sin, the sin of Adam that affects us all, or another’s sin against us. The verb “propitiate” is in the Greek present tense indicating that He continues to be the satisfaction for our sins (cp 1 Jh. 2:1-2). The words “He has suffered” are in the Greek perfect tense indicating a past act with continuing results or a result. The participle “being tempted” describes the specific area of suffering. When believers are tempted, and Jesus was also tempted, the past suffering is real to Him and He does not stand aloof from our struggle. We see a version of this in people relating to and helping others who are going through something that they at one time experienced. We all can help others even when we haven’t gone through their experience, but there is a unique perspective among those with a shared experience. So, Jesus’ past experiences have an effect on Him in His human nature, glorified human nature, but still human. 

Jesus’ prayers for us

Before Jesus left the upper room, He spoke to the Father about His disciples. “I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours;” (Jh. 17:9). He did not ask for the Father to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one (17:15). He sent them into the world recognizing how hard it would be and warning them of what was to come for them. He did not ask the Father to keep them from hardships or pain. He had faced both, and in human nature, He learned obedience and matured through suffering (Heb. 5:7-9). As our high priest, does He then ask for us to escape suffering and hardship? He didn’t Himself. His intercession for us is not escape but strength (spiritual/mental) to go through that suffering.

As an aside, these facts need to be taught in our churches. Too many churches present Christ and salvation as believe in Him, come join, and have the best life ever. We try to sell people on Christianity being fun, fun, fun. Christianity is fulfilling with the right mindset. Peter and John could leave the Jewish council after being beaten and go away rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for Christ. I can’t imagine the early church ever misrepresented the gospel or taught new believers about the best life ever in terms of fun and material prosperity.

Prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane by Jacopo Robusti Tintoretto, c. 1543

Jesus’ prayers in Gethsemane

In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed to the Father about His coming sufferings. His hour was that stretch of time during which He the Creator submitted to Himself to the creation, even allowing them to mistreat Him, mock Him, and put Him on a cross. He also prayed to the Father about the CUP. “My Father, IF it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You desire.” (Mt. 26:39). The “if” with the verb “is” in this statement form a FIRST CLASS CONDITION, a statement that assumes the first part of the condition to be true. Rephrased, Jesus’ request reads, “Since it is possible…” The Old Testament anticipated redemption through suffering. John the Baptist and Jesus spoke of Jesus providing a redemption and bearing sin. So, was Jesus saying that God’s purpose could be accomplished without Jesus dying? Hebrews 5:7 corrects the common misconception that Jesus was asking to avoid death, “Who, in the days of His flesh having offered, with strong cries and tears both supplications and pleadings to the one being able to save Him out of death and being heard, because of His God-honoring actions.” Note, that the writer says Jesus asked to be saved “out of death” not “from death.” Jesus knew He was going to die. He had prophesied His death. But in His human nature, He did not know how long that death would be. “WAIT,” you say, “He said He would rise in three days.” Indeed. We think only of His physical death, but from noon until three, Jesus experienced spiritual death, separation from the Father and the Spirit. This is the death about which He asked. He did not know how long that death would last. Hebrews 5:7 states that He was heard, meaning the Father did end that spiritual death before His physical death. Yet not knowing the extent of that death, Jesus willingly faced that death. In this same way, He intercedes for us. He sympathizes with our weakness and we can receive mercy and find grace for our cry for help that is well-timed (Heb. 4:14-16). 

Jesus’ example for suffering

On the cross, Jesus responded to others in silence. He left us an example of how we can suffer (1 Pet. 2:21-23). Human nature responds to others in kind. If they treat us well, we treat them well. If they insult us, we tend to insult in return. Jesus spoke no threats. We are reminded of His words, as the soldiers nailed Him to the cross, “Father, forgive them. They do not know what they are doing.” (Lk. 23:34). Many modern Christians need to learn this lesson as we have become quite vitriolic in our reaction to the world, a very non-Christian, non-Biblical response. Christ entrusted Himself to God, who judges righteously. The centurion, the Roman soldier who was likely in charge of the others at the crucifixion, when he observed all these things and how Jesus breathed His last, he glorified God and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son.” (Mt. 27:54; Mk. 15:39; Lk. 23:47). An unbelieving Romans soldier saw a difference in Jesus Christ and it impacted Him. We’d like to believe that he became a believer.

Jesus’ suffering for our freedom

Christ’s suffering is also a call for us to experience freedom from sin’s dominion. Christ suffered in flesh, and we should equip ourselves with the same intent, to cease from sin (1 Pet. 4:1). Christ was sinless, the unblemished and spotless lamb of God (1:19). He did not have to cease sinning because He never sinned. Yet His death dealt not only with our guilt under sin but of sin’s dominion. We are no longer enslaved to sin. Peter is referring specifically to our sin nature, also designated as the flesh. This can be seen in some of the areas of sin Peter refers to in 4:3, acts which are also mentioned among the works of the flesh (Gal. 5:19-21). Suffering can sometimes result in our excusing sin because we think we already have it so bad. Referencing Christ’s suffering, Peter points out the fallacy of such thinking. As Paul said, we were put into Christ’s death and should count ourselves to be dead ones to that sin nature, but living ones to God in Christ Jesus (Rom. 6:3-4, 11). Christ’s suffering and death mean our freedom today.

Many believers have experienced this comfort through the centuries, not by Christ granting us escape from our pain, temptation, and hardships, but by asking the Father for our growth through hardship (Heb. 7:25). 

A Sin unto Death 1 John 5:16

Sin is a touchy subject in Bible study and theology. Tradition often reigns over Biblical information and definitions regarding sin and unrighteousness. If a group has held that an action is wrong, they often designate it sin whether or not it fits the Biblical definition of sin. To even suggest a correction to this thinking can result in heated arguments and fights.

This is all the more true when one attempts to understand John’s statement about a sin unto death in 1 John 5:16. John has addressed the believer’s privilege in asking (prayer), and moves to asking for a brother (believer) who has sinned. When we read this, we may think of the Catholic teaching on venial (pardonable) sins and mortal (unpardonable) sins or sins for which no grace can save the soul. This is not what John means. Neither the context of 1 John nor the rest of New Testament revelation for the life of New Testament believers even suggests the ideas of venial and mortal in this sense.

John wrote that no one can claim to be free of sin for that is self-deception and makes God a liar (1:8, 10). He wrote because he doesn’t want his readers to sin (2:1). He knows they will sin, and reminds them of Christ’s present work on our behalf. So, believers sin, not as a way of life (3:9) but from time to time, perhaps even for extended periods. So, this side of the Rapture, sin is a sad part of our existence. We’re not enslaved to sin, but still deal with it.

Most sin is not to death. The expression “to death” involves the preposition pros and the noun death. Pros normally views a person or action facing or moving in a direction. perhaps a person such as in 1:2, where the life was “with” or “facing” God. John means it is a sin that is moving in the direction of death, where death would be the outcome or the penalty of the sin.

Examples of sin that ended in death

To understand a sin not facing death, we need to know what a sin facing death is. It is not a specific sin. Some might suggest that lying is sin but not worthy of death, but adultery or murder are. However, Ananias and his wife Saphira died as a penalty for lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1-11). Their lying was worthy of death, but it is not the specific sin of lying but the effect of sin. Ananias and Saphira lied about the price of a piece of property. Others had sold properties and brought the price to the church leaders to help those who were needy (Acts 4:32-37). This couple had “kept back,” a word meaning to embezzle or misappropriate (5:3). They had authority to do whatever they wished with the property and the proceeds of the sale (5:4). They would have been fine not selling the property or giving only part of the sale price. The problem was a negative act against the body of Christ. It seems they did not genuinely care for others when they gave the gift. So what made this sin worthy of death? Their actions may have influenced others in the church to also give, serve, or help to impress others but not out of genuine love. The Church is not a place to show off our wealth, skills, or talents! Our activity towards other believers should be driven by love. 

After giving the basic details of communion or the Lordian (Lord’s) supper, Paul warned the Corinthians against eating the supper in an unworthy manner (1 Cor. 11:27). What is unworthy? Communion is about what we share as believers: we are all one bread, one body in Christ so we share in His body, Christ dwells in all of us as part of the new covenant so we share in His life. As we partake of the bread and wine, we are remembering Christ: what He did and who He is right now. We proclaim the effect of His death, that unifies us in Him and He in us. But if we gather, mistreat others, and neglect their needs by perhaps becoming drunk/over-eating while they sit across from us hungry, we promote disunity, not unity (1 Cor. 11:19-22). We lie about fellowship. For this reason, many in the church had become weak and sickly and many died (sleep) (11:30). Like Ananias and Saphira, claiming unity while not treating other believers right is not only lying but fosters a surface respectability in the church rather than genuine love for one another. 

The Corinthian church tolerated a brother engaged in an incestuous relationship with his father’s wife (1 Cor. 5:1-2). While in chapter six, Paul has to tell the people to stop visiting prostitutes, their actions appear different (1 Cor. 6:15-16). The man in chapter five is flaunting his immorality rather than ignorantly doing so or sneaking around as the others. Additionally, the rest of the church thought they were progressive because they were tolerant of the man and his sin. They were puffed up when they should have grieved over his actions (5:2). This sin and tolerance were like leaven that affects the whole group (5:6). Paul instructed them to deliver the man to Satan so that his body might be destroyed but his spirit saved (5:5). They do this by putting him out of the church (5:9). Putting him out of the church removes him from the encouragement and help of other believers to direct him back to his position in Christ (cp Gal. 6:1). The church deals with problems within the church; we are not to yell at the world about their behavior, that’s God’s job (5:10-13). This text is the clearest that severe discipline is due to how one believer’s actions negatively encourage other believers to disregard God’s will regarding sin.

The nature of God’s discipline

Even when God disciplines believers in this way, He still loves them (Heb. 12:5-6). “MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM;  FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.” God addresses us as sons. We should take His discipline seriously; learn from it and don’t brush it off. Don’t give up because of discipline. It isn’t meant to crush us but produce the peaceable fruit of righteousness (12:11). God disciplines everyone He loves. No believer is exempt from discipline because God loves us all and wants our best. If a person undergoes no discipline, they are not a son of God but an illegitimate child (12:7-8). Finally, He scourges or whips with severity every son whom He receives (11:6). The word “receives” translates paradechomai, from para-alongside and dechomai-to welcome or receive. When God disciples a believer to death, He welcomes that believer home. From an earthly perspective, it is severe. From a heavenly perspective, death ends our opportunity to be used by God in loving acts of service. BUT, even in this “harsh” act, the moment that person leaves this earth, they are welcomed in heaven. In fact, discipline is proof of God’s love. Though all believers will be disciplined at some point/s, we are not all disciplined by death, but death is still an act of God’s love. Today, we live by grace, and God’s loving discipline or child-training (“instructing” NASB, “teaches” NIV) is part of His grace (cp Tit. 2:11-12). 

In light of these other texts on Divine discipline and death, John’s phrases, “sinning a sin not unto (facing) death,” and “there is a sin unto (facing) death” mean that this brother is not merely sinning but sinning in a manner that influences other believers to do the same. Several times John quotes believers who repeated what the antichrists said, “If we say…” The antichrists denied that they have sin and that they had sinned. Some of John’s readers were now saying this. He warns believers who are mimicking the activities of the antichrists. So, some of these believers, being influenced by the antichrists, now influence other believers. This influence pushes these false ideas and warrants discipline, even discipline to death. God takes seriously our actions against others in the body.

John assumes believers can identify sin in other believers. If a spiritual believer sees a brother caught in a trespass, he is responsible for attempting to restore him by directing his thinking back to his freedom in Christ (Gal. 6:1). This means one believer can identify a trespass in another. If a brother turns around another brother who is straying from the Truth, they are turning a sinner from the error of his ways AND save his soul from death (Jas. 5:19-20). We can identify sin in others. These statements also assume believers can recognize that some sin is more serious than others. It is more serious because it leads other believers to do the same or similar.

When a believer witnesses a brother sinning but not unto death, he can ask [aiteō] God, and God will give him life. It does not say what God does for this believer. Perhaps the believer receives wisdom from God as to how to best help them. God does not need our prayer for Him to act, but in keeping with Galatians 6:1 and James 5:19-20, it makes more sense that God gives the spiritual believer direction how to do their part. After charging spiritual believers with helping the one in a trespass, Paul cautions them to watch themselves so they are not also tempted (Gal. 6:1). James states that acting to turn a believer around from error saves a soul from death. John looks at this as God giving them life, meaning physical life versus discipline to death.

Paul addressed the problem of sin, and specifically the sin nature in Romans 5-8. He is assuring the Romans that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ and the love of God, not even our sin nature. However, he does not want them to think sin is a minor matter. It negatively impacts the way we relate to God and leads to tremendous frustration and grief. Paul expressed his misery upon failing to rein in his sin nature by living under the Law (Rom. 7:24). Though we are free of condemnation in Christ, how we live affects our thinking and even whether we live. He stated that the frame of mind (φρόνημα) from the flesh death and hostile towards God (8:6-7). This is in contrast to the frame of mind from the Spirit, which is life and peace. A believer living by their flesh (sin nature) does not experience peace nor are they using the life they received at salvation. Paul warns us that if we choose to live by the flesh we are about to die (8:13). The verb μέλλω indicates what is about to happen. We’re on the precipice of death. We are living in the realm of death when we live by our flesh but we are also near to discipline that may end in physical death. So, we should put the practices of the body to death and live.

John asserts that there is a sin unto death. He tells us not to ask about that one. John changes the verb “ask” from aiteō in the first clause to erōtaō in the last. Erōtaō [ἐρωτάω] is a request or question between equals, while aiteō is a request as a lesser to a greater. We do not ask God as equals. That is not our authority in talking with God. The Son asks the Father in this manner. One possible meaning is that this is a request for discipline to the point of death, and that is not something we should do. The Son as our high priest alone has that authority. He intercedes for us and this way protects us from any accusation that might harm us (Rom. 8:34). He intercedes for our growth (Rom. 7:25), but by necessity for our discipline when He deems it fitting. The Father disciplines, but our High Priest asks for what we need, even discipline, and as in Hebrews, this is with long-term good intentions. Both the Son and the Father act to bring about our best, and sometimes that comes through physical death as discipline.

What about blasphemy against the Spirit?

If you’re familiar with Scripture, then this topic probably made you think about Jesus’ words regarding the unforgivable sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit (Lk. 12:10). In Luke 11:14, Jesus casts a demon from a mute man so that he spoke. Though the crowd was amazed, some in the crowd, namely the Jewish leaders, claimed that he was casting out these demons by means of Beelzebul the ruler of the demons, as though this Beelzebul (Satan in their thinking?) had authorized Jesus to cast out some of his own minions (11:15). Jesus corrects their foolish claim, pointing out that Beelzebul would be working against himself and his kingdom would collapse due to this conflict (11:17-18). In the balance of Luke 11, Jesus warns the people impending judgment. He even states that for those whom He freed from demons, if they did not believe in Him but continued as before, the demons would come back sevenfold and their later situation would be worse. After a dinner and warnings to the leadership, Jesus warned the people to avoid the leaven or corrupted thinking of their leadership. They denied Him before others, attributing His works to an evil realm (12:8-9). Yet even those who spoke against Him, that word could be forgiven, but those who made the false claim that the Spirit’s work in Him was actually that of Satan, that would not be forgiven (12:10). Luke fills in many details of this story, so the event that gave rise to Jesus’ remarks are separated by other conversations and time. Mark ties together the two events of casting out the demons and Jesus’ warning about blaspheming the Spirit (Mk. 3:22-30). Mark gives us other details, such that these leaders claimed He “has” (possessed by) Beelzebul (Mk. 3:22) and that the Spirit is an unclean spirit (3:30). This was blasphemy. They maligned the nature of the Holy Spirit by whom Christ cast out demons. For this reason, Jesus designated this sin, this blasphemy as unforgivable. It was a sin committed only by the unbelieving during Jesus’ earthly ministry and is not possible today.

Paul’s ending remarks in Ephesians

Biblical exegesis takes seriously every part of the text. This includes the valediction or ending of the New Testament letters. These contain personal notes to friends and coworkers, wishes for God’s peace and grace, and comments on who is going where. They can seem mundane after wading through the theological and practical issues in a letter like Ephesians. Yet in Ephesians 6:21 and 22 in our English Bibles, Paul appears to repeat himself, “that you may know about my circumstances” and “that you may know about us.” However, each statement has a different preposition, κατα in 6:21 and περὶ in 6:22. In the first verse, the pronoun is “me” [ἐμέ], and in the second verse “us” [ὑμᾶς]. A Bible student would like, if possible, to understand why Paul uses distinct prepositions and what if any significance he intends. In short, the first phrase with the preposition kata is about Paul’s conduct and how it matched what he had previously taught the Ephesians and what he has written in this letter. The second phrase with the preposition peri is about Paul’s general welfare and related issue.

Detail of manuscript P46 Ephesians 6:21 Highlighted are the word τα κατ εμε.

The Background of Paul’s letter

Paul writes Ephesians while in Rome under house arrest chained to a Roman soldier. Prior to his Roman imprisonment, Paul spent a couple of years in the prison in Caesarea Philippi. His arrest and imprisonment resulted from his participation in Jewish rituals of sacrifice, offerings, and cleansings for four men who had Nazarite vows (Acts 21:24). Paul participated in this to convince the thousands of believing Jews that he was still actively keeping the Law and teaching the Jews who lived among the Gentiles to do the same (Acts 21:20-21). This would be untrue. When Paul wrote Galatians, he told the believers that circumcision provides no strength [ἰσχύω means to endue with strength] nor does uncircumcision (Gal. 5:6). He closed the same letter stating similarly that neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything (6:15). If you were a Jew in those Galatian churches, you would want to know why you should bother circumcising your boys. You would read Galatians and correctly conclude that the Law is done and you would receive no benefit from keeping the Law. So, when Paul went through with James’ suggestion, he lied. For his compromise, he spent time locked up.

I realize, that many Bible students disagree with and find my interpretation of these events offensive. I’ve dealt with these issues before. See my post in Galatians https://john1420blog.wordpress.com/2021/07/09/galatians-freedom-in-christ-part-6/(opens in a new tab) It is not the purpose of this brief study to prove these conclusions but they form a background to Ephesians, so let me return to Paul’s ending.

Paul’s last personal meeting with any Ephesians was with the elders only in Miletus for one night. He rushed past Ephesus on his way to a Jewish feast at which he engaged in the compromise I mentioned above. How would the Ephesians react upon receiving word of his actions? It divided at least some of the church. Believers of Jewish decent begin to reconsider their status, perhaps thinking they are better than Gentile believers, have better access to God, and the lion’s share of the inheritance. Gentile believers feel angry about their being forced to the back of the line and perhaps feeling Paul didn’t explain God’s plans correctly. So, Ephesians addresses these divisions and hard feelings. All these lead to Paul’s first line in 6:21.

Tychicus’ in-person words to the Ephesians

Tychicus brought this letter to Ephesus. He also personally relates “the things according to me, what I practice.” The preposition kata when used with the accusative case normally indicates a standard or measurement for a thing, hence “according to.” The pronoun ἐμέ is the accusative case form of ἐγώ. The “what I practice” further explains the “according to me.” “I practice” translates the present active indicative verb πράσσω which English Bibles represent as “circumstances.” Abbott-Smith gives as definitions “1. to do, practice, be engaged… 2. to achieve, effect, accomplish, perform… 3. to transact, manage, hence of a payment, to exact… 4. Reflexively, of state or condition, to do or fare.” [Abbott-Smith: p. 376]. Abbott-Smith lists only Ephesians 6:21 as a location for definition #4. It makes more sense to simply handle the verb in sense #1 of Paul’s practice, what he does. The only reason for taking it with sense #4 is that translators and interpreters do not appreciate the distinction between the two phrases in 6:21 and 22. Even more, they do not see that Paul’s actions in Jerusalem were wrong and that Paul needed someone to verify to the Ephesians that Paul was doing what he wrote them.

Tychicus would relate to the Ephesians what Paul does. He would explain that Paul does exactly what he has written in this letter. He can assure them that Paul is not doing as he did in Jerusalem. He learned his lesson and is practicing what he had taught them about the new reality that is the body of Christ, the new creation, in which all believers are equal with no difference (cp Eph. 3:6). Paul taught and lived this. However, when he was confronted with fellow Jews, especially those who shared faith in Christ, he found it hard to be consistent with what he taught. Peter acted similarly when he visited Paul in Antioch following the meeting in Acts 15. Paul records this account in Galatians two. Peter lived like the Gentiles, not focusing on Law keeping and Kosher. But when Jews arrived from Jerusalem, Peter separated himself and acted as a hypocrite. His actions quickly influenced the other Jews to do the same. For this reason, Paul stood and accused Peter before others to correct the problem. Now Paul was in the same position.

Clinton Arnold illustrates the common understanding of the phrase τὰ κατ᾽ἐμέ. “is an idiomatic expression Paul has used elsewhere to refer to events that have happened in his life.” [Arnold: p. 479] I recognize that Greek has many idioms that require translators to find a matching idea in English to communicate what was intended. However, the occurrence of two phrases together that are taken to communicate similar ideas suggests that the idea of each phrase is different.

Paul uses this same phrase τὰ κατ᾽ἐμέ “the things according to me” two other times and both have similar ideas. Paul determined to make known to the Philippians that things according to me had come rather to the advancement of the gospel (Php. 1:2). The NASB95 renders this “that my circumstances”, the HCSB, Mounce, and the NIV “what has happened to me.” However, Paul means something more specific than his circumstances but what he has done in his imprisonment. Luke ends Acts, “And he stayed two full years in his own rented quarters and was welcoming all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching concerning the Lord Jesus Christ with all openness, unhindered.” (Acts 28:30-31). After sitting in the Caesarean prison for more than a year and having few ministry opportunities, he learned to do God’s will. So, Paul is now operating as God planned even while imprisoned and this is allowing the gospel (the same he wrote about in Ephesians 6:20) to advance.

Colossians 4:7 has this same phrase. Paul has unloaded a lot of truth and correction on the Colossians. He has directed them away from philosophies and the Law and directed them to Christ the head of the body. For some of these believers, these are new truths, even shocking for one accustomed to law in some form. So Tychicus will also explain to them that Paul lived as he wrote to them.

In both Ephesians 6:21-22 and Colossians 4:7, the key phrase is followed by “the things about [peri] us.” This very phrase is a key reason that I do not think Paul means kata eme to be his circumstances. The preposition peri when used with the genitive case means generally or about. This phrase does indicate Paul or Paul and his companions’ circumstances. Tychicus not only would assure them that Paul’s conduct matched what he wrote to them but he would also share information about Paul’s welfare, circumstances, and general needs. To repeat, this phrase should make the Bible student wonder what the first phrase meant and I think the first phrase is Paul’s conduct with respect to what he teaches.

Additional notes

Two texts appear to be the same construction but are not. One time he appears to use the same phrase τὸ καθ᾽ἡμῶν in Colossians 2:14, but in this occurrence, the definite article τὸ goes with the noun “handwriting” [χειρόγραφον], so we have “the against [kata] us handwriting.” In Romans 1:15 Paul assures the Romans that he intends to come and has in the past but has been hindered. So, now he is eager to come. Paul uses the verbless phrase τὸ κατ᾽ἐμὲ πρόθυμον is like Colossians 2:14. The definite article goes with the noun prothumon. Rigidly rendered, the phrase can read “in this way the according to me purpose.” With this phrase, Paul assures them that he really wishes to come evangelize for those in Rome. It has not been forced upon him. “According to me” means it is what he wants.

The preposition kata has diversity even in similar constructions to that in question. The NASB95 translates a similar phrase to that in question “Paul’s case” in Acts 25:14. This is the idea, but a rigid representation could be “the things against the Paul” which could mean the charges against Paul or the case against Paul. In both cases, “charges” or “case” is added for clarity in English. We have “all the Jews who are among the Gentiles” in Acts 21:21 for τοὺς κατὰ τὰ ἔτνη πάνατς Ἰουδαίους. This is an idiomatic use of kata for we would not expect the preposition en for “among” rather than kata. Similarly in 27:2 and 5 referring to locations along the coast of Asia. The highlighted words translate kata. The idea is down along Asia which may not be as clear to modern readers as “along the coast.” This idea is also seen in passages that refer to a group meeting in someone’s home, or down at someone’s home (1 Cor. 16:19; Col. 4:15). It occurs in Romans 9:5 τὸ κατὰ σάρκα describing Christ as descending from Israel’s fathers, “according to flesh” indicating his human ancestry. Many translations have something like “godly sorrow” in 2 Corinthians 7:11, where it might rigidly be rendered “the according to God grieved” to indicate that God is the standard as opposed to grief by normal human means. A similar idea is used of the new man in Ephesians 4:24, where God is the standard of how the new man has been created.

Sources

G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1948).

Clinton Arnold, Ephesians Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010).

Should we pray for revival?

When I was growing up, we occasionally sang the hymn Revive Us Again. The chorus ends with “revive us again.” The final stanza begins, “Revive us again, fill each heart with thy love. May each soul be rekindled with fire from above.” A visiting speaker or speaker at a special event would ask us to sing this song and plea with us to pray for our revival that we would be on fire for God or something similar. Songs are powerful teachers but many Christian songs can teach us unbiblical ideas.

I recently spoke with a friend who expressed distress over the war in Ukraine. He added that he prays every day for revival in those people, then he prays for revival in our nation, then his state, his community, and finally in himself. Most people would find this inspirational and praise him for such a prayer. I see it as a misunderstanding of what God is doing that only leads to further distress.

I sat quietly asking God whether I should speak up or hold my peace. It was clear that he needed some help and encouragement. So, I shared with him. 

What is revival?

Revival means to “live again.” It means to receive life. The idea of “revive us again” comes from Psalm 85:6. The songwriters, the Sons of Korah wrote about God turning and restoring Israel’s fortunes from the losses due to their perverse activities and sins (85:1-2). God had dealt with them in fury and anger but stopped doing so (85:4). These singers wished for God to give them life again (85:6) and to show them His faithful loving-kindness (85:7). All this hinged on their not turning to their stupid self-confidence that likely resulted in their perverse actions and sins in the first place (85:8). They needed to fear God (85:9).

The difference between Israel and us is that God established them as His people and as a religious nation. Regardless of what we are taught by people, the Bible does not state that our nation is God’s nation or is positively religious toward God. The Church is not part of this system. Our nation and all those in the world are part of the world. Trying to fix our nation is a distraction for the believer. It is also an uphill battle as God reveals the future of this world.

What God has promised…

Jesus told His disciples that in the future people will hear about wars and rumors of wars as nations rise up against nations (Mt. 24:6). He told His followers that they would be betrayed because of Him, killed, and hated (24:9-10). He foretold that a time of great trouble would come, so bad that nothing like has ever happened in the past and nothing like it will ever come in the future (24:21). He said that it will be so bad that if God did not shorten the length of the days, no one would survive (24:22). This  is not about our future, but it is part of a worsening future upon this earth.

Jesus did not promise us an easy life. He told His disciples that they would have trouble in the world (Jh. 16:33). They would have peace in Him while that trouble goes on. He told them that the world would hate them (Jh. 15:19). He encouraged them that the world hated Him first (Jh. 15:20). Therefore, the world is not a God-loving, Christ-loving, or Christian-loving system. This is our existence. 

Paul told the Thessalonians that we would come under negative pressure in the world (1 Thess. 3:4). Indeed the Thessalonians suffered at the hands of their fellow Macedonians (1 Thess. 2:14). Paul reminded Timothy that the Spirit spoke clearly that in later times that some will depart from the Faith (1 Tim. 4:1). He wrote him again that in the last days times would be hard and he described at length the kind of people Timothy would encounter, not just in the world, but in the church (2 Tim. 3:1). Paul reminded him of all the persecutions he experienced and added that all who want to live a God-honoring life will be persecuted (3:12). He told him that people in the churches-because the unsaved could care less-will stop putting up with healthy doctrine and want teachers to tickle their ears (4:3). There will be so many teachers to do this, that Paul says they will pile them up in heaps.

Peter told us that we have to endure some hard times in the present (1 Pet. 1:6-7). He also warned them that false teachers and mockers would come (2 Pet. 2:1; 3:3). John told believers that antichrists would deny Christ’s physical existence or His deity and the world would listen to them but would refuse to listen to us (1 Jh. 2:18-19, 22-23; 4:1-6).

Does any of this look like a world that is reviving and being revived by God? Does it look like a society moving towards improvement? And I have not presented all the texts that speak so clearly on these matters. When Jesus comes, the world does not welcome Him with open arms. He speaks a word pictured as a sword going from His mouth and kills the armies of the world gathered against Him (Rev. 19:15, 21). He comes and takes the kingdoms of the world by force because mankind largely rejects Him. 

If this is the world He tells us we live in and is coming, why would we pray for revival? We are encouraged to pray for revival because people do not like to think that this world cannot be turned around. We want to be optimistic about this world rather than optimistic about God’s plans for His people.

Should we pray for revival for ourselves?

God has given us life. Christ gives us eternal life by dwelling in us (Jh. 10:28; 1 Jh. 5:11-12). The Spirit causes us to live (Gal. 5:25). So we have eternal life. We also have life in Christ, this is sharing in His resurrection life (Eph. 2:5-6). So, we already have life. In fact, we have ALL THINGS for life and godliness (2 Pet. 1:3). So, to ask God to revive us is unnecessary. We already have this life. What we need to do is what Christ charged us, “be at ease in Me and I in you…apart from Me you can do nothing.” (Jh. 15:4, 5). Paul says eternal life is God’s gracious gift to us in Christ (Rom. 6:23). This is a promise for believers. Only as we set our minds to who we are in Christ and rest at ease in who God says we are in Christ can we use eternal life, lay hold of eternal life, and experience the life that is real life (1 Tim. 6:12, 19). Romans 6:23 is telling us how to enjoy eternal life. We don’t do it with the sin nature, for it pays off the experience of death. Our identity in Christ allows us to enjoy eternal life as a result of God’s grace. To ask God to revive us is kind of ignoring what He has told us about this life. We need to avail ourselves of His instructions. This, however, is only for believers. The world will not and cannot ever experience this.

He has told us how we can enjoy the life He has given to us. We can live this life even when the world attacks, persecutes, pressures, or even kills us. Like Paul, we may find ourselves facing the end of this earthly life. If we live out eternal life, like him, we may be able to say that we have finished our race and have guarded the Faith (2 Tim. 4:6-7).

We don’t need revival. We need to listen to God’s call to rise to who He says we are in Christ (Php. 3:14). We shouldn’t pray for revival to come to our world or nation because God has never promised that He will do it in this way. We should focus upon the life He has set before us, day by day, minute by minute, moment by moment. We have life. Lay hold of it

Your Identity in Christ: Access to God

“And raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,” (Eph. 2:6). “But now in Christ Jesus, you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Eph. 2:13).

In the last study, we saw that in Christ we are seated in the heavens (Eph. 2:6). After Christ died and rose again, He ascended on high and sat down at the Father’s right hand (Heb. 1:3; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2). The Father is also called the Majesty on High, or the Majestic One on High. This is where Christ sits, Christ’s seated position distinguishes Him because God never granted such a position to any of the angels (Heb. 1:13). It is His alone…except that by His grace He shares that status with us. So when Paul states in Ephesians 2:6 that we are “seated in the heavens in Christ Jesus,” he is saying that we are seated in a position above the angels. That is an amazing fact.

Recall some of the problems the believers in Ephesus were facing. The believers were dividing along racial lines (Eph. 2:11-12). Apparently, the Jewish believers reminded the non-Jews that they had no share in Israel’s promises. This was true and is true. We still do not share in Israel’s promises and we should be OK with that. They also pointed out that the Gentiles had been without God and had no promises from God. This was also mostly true. God had made a promise to all the world that He would never flood the world again (Gen. 9:9-11). We can also see a promise in Genesis 12:1-3 that the nations who dealt well with Israel would be blessed. So, the claims of the Jewish believers were not entirely true. 

The significance of these harsh claims from the Jewish believers is that most of the Ephesians church were likely Gentiles by birth. Paul encourages them-and us-that now we are near to God and no longer distant (2:13). In fact, we are nearer to God than any Jew was able to enjoy. We sit at His right hand in Christ.

Christians of Gentile and Jewish descent comprised this divided church. Christ came to those who were distant, that is the Gentiles, and proclaimed peace (Eph. 2:17). He did the same to those who were near, namely the Jews. The Gentiles were distant because God had not been dwelling among the nations. He dwelt among Israel in their temple. Moses told Israel that if Israel lived as God dictated, the nations would claim, “What great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the LORD our God whenever we call on Him?” (Dt. 4:7).

Because we are now in Christ and seated together in Him in the heavens, we learn that we all have access to God in Christ (Eph. 2:18). By “access…to the Father” Paul means we can come to the Father and talk with Him. We don’t need to go to a physical location such as an earthly building on earth. There is no physical temple/s on earth. (2:6, 13). We approach God in His temple in heaven. No earthly structure is a temple today. Israel approached God at His earthly tent and later the temple. When they came, they could offer sacrifices and offerings and there they could talk to God. They could have the priest relay their requests to God. We do not need to seek any such building. Wherever we are on earth, we are always seated in Christ and seated in Christ, we are privileged to turn and speak with our Father. UNPRECEDENTED!!! GRACE!!!

In Ephesians 3:12 Paul adds that we approach God with “boldness.”We do not come to Him in a cautious attitude. The Greek word that is translated “boldness” means to speak freely, to flow freely. When we appreciate how God sees us in Christ, we can not only come to Him but speak boldly. We come based on who God says we are in Christ. BOLDNESS!!! UNPRECEDENTED!!! GRACE!!! 

We do not approach God on our merits. We approach on Christ’s.

Day 17: Who We Are in Christ: We have access through Christ

For through Him, we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.

Ephesians 2:18

God granted the nation of Israel access to Him at the Tabernacle (a tent) and then at the temple, but they had stringent requirements to experience this access. In the previous post, we saw that God gave Israel the law to demonstrate that they could not do everything He asked of them. This remains the dangerous presumption of mankind: we can do it, yes, we can! God’s presence with people prior to Exodus 19 changes from openness to rigid requirements of law following Exodus 19. 19:12-13 best expresses the change,

You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, “Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live. When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.

The threat of death best expresses the change in access from before the law to under the law. That threat of death framed Israel’s access to God. Would you come before God boldly knowing you might die if any matter of uncleanness were found in you?

Our access is through Jesus (Eph. 2:18). We are seated in Him at this throne of grace.  Our access is because we are in Him, but we do not stop in Him but access the Father through Him as though we turn to our left and speak to the Father. Because our access is through Him we approach the Father on the basis of who Christ is and who we are in Him. Like Israel, we could never measure up to the standards of the Law. In Christ we are worthy. In Christ, we measure up so we may approach. Paul adds that our access involves boldness and confidence (3:12). The Greek word boldness has the idea of “outspokenness, frankness, plainness of speech” [Gingrich: 152]. When we approach God through our position in Christ, we can be frank with God. Too often believers speak cautiously to God, fearing we might say something wrong. However, as we relate to who we are in Christ, we should find ourselves at ease to speak freely with God. I’m not talking about being disrespectful but asking honest questions, and being free to admit our struggles and concerns. God already knows, He just wants us to bring these before Him. As Peter tells us, “Throw your cares/anxiety on Him because He cares for you” (1 Pet. 5:7). We approach Him at the throne of grace without fear of death in fact with confidence.

When you approach God-I hope you do that daily and multiple times a day-don’t approach Him thinking about whether you are worthy or unworthy to do so. Remind yourself that you are worthy because you are in Christ. He is worthy and in Him God says you are worthy. So rest where God has seated you in Christ and speak freely to our kind and gracious God.

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F. Wilbur Gingrich and Frederick W. Danker, Shorter Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983)