http://ichthys.com/ 
Bible Interpretation XVIII

Question #1:   
Dear Teacher,

Thank you so very much for this encouragement. Will send more updates on things shortly.

On another note, I was wondering if John 4:10's "living water" can also be read or understood as water of life à la Revelation 21:6 and Revelation 22:17. What are your thoughts on that?

Your student in Jesus,
Response #1:
My pleasure, my friend.

Water represents the Word which gives life to all who desire it; in New Jerusalem, I'm guessing that partaking of the living water will have a revelatory effect. In John 4:10 the water is then said to be "a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life" (Jn.4:14), meaning the truth leading to salvation and all the glories here and now connected to the truth. So, yes, it's all related as far as I'm concerned, all having to do with the truth and the life-giving power of the truth and of Him who is the very truth, our Savior Jesus Christ.
“They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
Revelation 7:16-17 NKJV
I pray for all good things for your and your family daily.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #2:
Hi Bob,

I read this verse and I was thinking about salvation again.

For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake.
1st Thessalonians 1:5

So the "word" is the truth of the gospel spoken. "Power" is the power of God working through Paul and his team as they gave the gospel. (Romans 1:16) The Holy Spirit gives everyone who hears the gospel understanding in order for them to make a choice for or against God in Jesus Christ and He convicts of sin. Does "in much assurance" or "deep conviction" mean that Paul had much assurance in the truth he believed and that came through as he proclaimed the gospel? Then "what kind of men we were among you for your sake" is the witness of the life - good fruit.

How did I do there, Bob?

Friday tomorrow! Four in a row for you? Busy one for me at work too.

Keeping you in my prayers, Bob!

In Jesus
Response #2:
Well done, my friend!

The power spoken of here also probably includes the miracles Paul and co. did as "signs of apostleship" (e.g., 2Cor.12:12). 

As to "deep conviction" (KJV "much assurance"), or, better, "great confidence" I take to be an apo koinou, that is, a phrase which applies both ways and deliberately so (Paul is rather fond of these). Rather than saying "confidence which is both mine in giving the gospel and yours in receiving it", Paul just says it this way so that they will understand that the confident assurance goes both ways: there is no doubt about our so great salvation on either end of the equation.

Yup. Four in a row . . . but no meetings! A fairly uneventful weekend ahead, praise the Lord!

Thanks for those prayers, my friend – keeping you and yours in mine daily as well.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #3:
Hello Professor,

How are you? How is the semester going? I pray all is well with you and yours! I wanted to write and ask you a couple of questions. I am working on a presentation for my Adult Bible Study class, that is basically a "New Testament Overview". 

1) Do we know how old John Mark was when he penned the Gospel of Mark, and do you think he was around to see any of the things he wrote about? 
2) Under whose authority did he write, Peter or Paul?
3) Do we know how old Luke was when he penned his gospel, and when he wrote the book of Acts? Would he and John Mark have known Jesus, or of him?
Feel free to speculate if the Bible doesn't actually tell us, in which I don't believe it does. Lol!
4) I have read much of what you have about "Marcan Priority" on your site, and I am in complete agreement with you. I have a NIV-Life Application Study Bible, and they have a note in the pre-face of Mark, "The other Gospels quote all but 31 verses of Mark". Is there any truth to that? (My note: Thanks to what you have taught me over the years, I know they are out in left field in much of their commentary, so just curious!)

Thanks for your great ministry and all you have taught me about the truth of the Bible. I am eternally grateful!

Yours in Christ Jesus,
Response #3:
Always good to hear from you, my friend! Things are going OK at the uni and otherwise – thanks for asking. Are you and yours doing OK?

As to your questions, I think you'll also find BB 7: Bibliology a good font of info on these sorts of questions (at the link).

1) John Mark is almost certainly the "young man" who lost his cloak in Gethsemane the night before the crucifixion (Mk.14:52). If so, he was indeed old enough to have personally seen much related in his gospel; and in that case he would have been somewhere in his mid-fifties when he was given to write it (assuming he was a teenager in 33; the book was penned in the mid to late 60's).

2) Mark was eventually reconciled with Paul and become very dear to him (2Tim.4:11), but the gospel was written after Paul's execution under Peter's apostolic authority (1Pet.5:13).

3) We don't know that much about Luke, but we do know that he was part of Paul's team by at least Acts 16:10 (he writes "we"), ca. 50 A.D. during the "second missionary journey". Luke was called by Paul at Colossians 4:14 "the beloved physician" (the book being written some five years or so later), and since it is doubtful that he could have learned this trade in the intervening time and travels, he must have been at least in his thirties or forties by this time. It is possible that he met Paul and converted during the first or second journeys through Asia. Luke is probably also the "Lucius" of Romans 16:21 (the Latinized form of Luke).

4) "Quote" would be incorrect in the extreme; "refer to the same events" would be plausible (I haven't counted). If you read two different histories of D-Day or any other secular event, odds are, if they were roughly the same size, they would cover the same events, though one might have some things the other omits and vice versa. That doesn't mean that the one is BASED on the other (they might not even have read each other's works).

There are a lot of similarities in language between the gospels since they are written about the same essential thing: the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. But even if two verses are close to being identical, that does not mean that a) they are actually quotations of each other (after all, the Holy Spirit is the one inspiring these works), or b) that, e.g., Matthew quotes Mark any more than Mark may be reproducing something in Matthew. So similarities in verses are no proof whatsoever that Mark wrote first. 

As you've probably read, "scholarly" unbelievers who view the gospels in their entirety as fabrications based upon oral tradition having something or other to do with stories told about Jesus which themselves were mostly not true have decided that because Mark is shorter it has to be the kernel from which the longer books sprouted. Anyone who has actually read the gospels, even an unbeliever who thinks they are all fiction, would easily be able to see that this really is a crackpot idea since there are too many differences for these false theories to hold any water.

Thanks for your good words, my friend! Best wishes for a great Bible study.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #4:
Thanks so much Doc! I really appreciate your prompt and thorough answers. Some of the questions might seem silly, but I have always thought that Christians have a tendency to have this disconnect between Gods truth in scripture (which it 100% is) and the reality that the folks who wrote it (carried along in the Spirit) where humans, and had to navigate life with all the political, social-economic and cultural issues, that we too must navigate. Even Jesus in his 100% Deity, took on humanity and was just as human as John Mark, Peter, Paul, and Luke. The difference was, he was absolutely sinless and perfect in every respect, something none of those folks, including us, can claim. So, sometimes I just remind myself about these things! Thanks for being my mentor, and always being willing to take the time to help me out when I can't find the answer's I'm looking for in the Mountain of information on your site. (Thinking Rockies here, lol!)

All is well here. My wife and I have seen God really answering some prayers in amazing ways lately after years of praying! The words "patience" and "it didn't turn out like I thought" which you are fond of saying come to mind! Lol! Retirement is great! Highly recommend it! Only downside is you have to fend of all those whose seem to know what you should do next!!
Anyway, have a great weekend! I know it's posting day so no worries on getting back to me! You are daily in my prayers! Thank you again for everything you have taught me! Keep up the good fight brother! Your reward is immense!!

In our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
P.S. By the time I am done with most of my Bible Study classes, the attendees know you on a first name basis even though the never met you!! ("What does Robert say about that?"). Probably didn't know you were that famous! 
Response #4:
You're very welcome, my friend! Glad you found it useful. Yes, the scriptures are "real" and they are about "real people". The more we immerse ourselves in them, the clearer that gets.

Good to hear you're enjoying your retirement (even if you're getting a lot of unsolicited advice). Depending on how things go, I may be on the "feet first" plan here. But one never knows day to day. Looking forward to THE Day – which is closer every day (Rom.13:11-12).

Thanks for all the encouraging words!

Keeping you and yours in my prayers – and every grateful for yours!

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #5:
Hi Bob,

Just a quick note to alert you that the Alexander Scourby videos of the KJV on YouTube (audio with the words) had a painting of the 'coronation of Mary' as part of its presentation of the Bible.
Of course there is no such thing but a Catholic invention but thought I would let you know about it in case you ever recommended that channel to any baby Christians.

https://youtu.be/uCkHp_88Sqk?si=U7-kwdQJc8H9w9St

Seems like there is false teaching being sneaked in everywhere these days. We seemed to be being lumped back in with Catholics again! Someone on there doesn't know their Bible OR their history given the Catholic Jesuits tried to assassinate King James as part of the infamous foiled 'Gunpowder Plot"!!

I made a comment of complaint to the channel but doubt it will do any good.

Have a lot to update you on but things are hectic at the moment..will write again when things slow down a bit.

Hope you are well.

In Jesus,
Response #5:
Thanks for this. I have recommended this set of recordings by Scourby (I personally think they're great), but not that particular channel (as far as I can recall). Can't think of anything more at odds with the RC tradition than the KJV, so this is odd!

Please take care of yourself with all you've got going on lately. Lots of Covid flying about over here.

Keeping you in my prayers.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #6:
Dr. Luginbill;

It has been about 6 months since I last emailed you. That email was centered around my son's issues and our heartbreak about the whole situation. At the time, I told our son that someday, somehow he would thank God that this came to light - regardless of what the discipline would end up being. Well, we can't express the joy we have experienced watching God work during these last 6 months. The trials and tests that we have been through have strengthened our faith and made us so much more aware of God's love and concern for us, His actions which are working everything together for good in our lives. I won't go into detail here, but we have seen so many things happen that we would have previously considered highly improbable, unlikely, even next to impossible. Yet, with God all things are possible. We are in awe, honestly. And seeing these things take place before our very eyes keeps strengthening our faith bit by bit, reinforcing the truths that we need not worry about anything - just trust and be thankful.

Our son has been staying with us these past 6 months and we have seen a huge change in him during that time. We have been having regular family bible studies. We went through the Peter series from front to back, and are currently going through the Gospel of Luke. Our son is an active participant with plenty of questions and comments, and looks forward to each new study time.

My preparations for our current study has raised some questions in my mind that I would like to get settled before teaching chapter 9, particularly verses 23 - 26: "And He was saying to them all, 'If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, this is the one who will save it. For what good does it do a person if he gains the whole world, but loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and the holy angels.'"

In my studies and research on these verses, it seems to be the consensus of many that Jesus is giving us the requirements for salvation - how to become a Christian, how to be saved, redeemed, born again. One has to be 100% committed to the cause of Christ, forsaking all previous plans and dreams (denying himself), and take up his cross daily. This is how extreme our devotion has to be. This is willingness to endure persecution, hatred, hostility, rejection, reproach, shame, suffering, even death. Without this commitment, one cannot be saved.

I get spiritual indigestion about comments like that. What happened to the process of spiritual growth? Spiritual growth takes time - studying, learning, applying, passing tests to grow our faith, and then becoming fruitful and helping others. These comments seem to insinuate that one must achieve spiritual maturity before one can be truly saved. Or am I reading this wrong? What about John 3:18 - "He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." Does "believe in Him" mean spiritual maturity? The New Testament is full of verses that say salvation is a result of believing in Him, but I don't know of anyone (including myself) who was born again into an instant spiritually mature Christian. There was always a period of growth, learning spiritual truths and learning to apply them.
I am certainly no proponent of "easy believism" - saying the magic prayer to get our "fire insurance". I completely understand that 100% commitment to the work our Savior did for us is the only way to salvation - forsaking all our so-called "good works" as nothing but rubbish and relying on Jesus's sacrifice alone as payment for our sin and making possible a relationship with the Father. I guess I always looked at those verses in Luke 9 as requirements to follow Jesus (become a disciple), to grow spiritually and become fruitful, not about how to be saved, but I could certainly be wrong. Did any of the apostles or Paul have that instant maturity? Peter was ashamed to be associated with Jesus in the courtyard even after following Jesus for over 3 years and learning from the Master Himself. So stating that one must be 100% committed to the cause of Christ or salvation is not possible seems to me to be leaving out the whole "growing up" period.

And verse 26, "For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory and the glory of the Father and the holy angels" does seem to be talking about salvation, so now I am confused and unable to teach this passage. Could you please shed some light on this whole issue for me?
Response #6:
That is wonderful news, my friend! I have been praying about this too, so thanks for keeping me in the loop.
(23) Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. (24) For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. (25) For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? (26) For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels."
Luke 9:23-26 NKJV
On your question, your spiritual common sense instincts are right on the money. The second passage is indeed about salvation (Lk.9:25-26); the middle verse distinguishes between believers and unbelievers (Lk.9:24); Luke 9:23 is about our Christian life – how we should be living it. Of course, all of these things are interrelated. We "are saved" but we are also "being saved" and that will continue until we are "saved once and for all" when we have won the final victory in this life. Until then, how we are living is critical because sloppy Laodiceanism can lead to apostasy or the sin unto death, and that is going to be doubly true once the Tribulation begins.

Denying oneself is very clearly choosing what the Lord wants instead of what we might desire in this temporary world. Picking up one's cross is serious commitment to the will of God for our lives. "Following Me" is following through on our decision and commitment, ideally with determination all the way to the end. It's no good choosing God's will for our lives in principle if we're not going to seriously commit to actually following it and then actually do it as well, and we can't actually do it unless we've seriously committed to that initial good intention. So this teaching (also at Matt.16:24 and Mk.8:34) removes all doubt about what the Christian life properly lived ought to look like. Of course, it doesn't spell out the "how" (spiritual growth, progress and production), but that is abundantly clear from many other places in scripture. Good intentions and initial commitment are fine, but this verse tells us that follow-through is absolutely necessary for us not to fall into the category of the lukewarm. It is also the case that only by doing things this way, the right way, are we absolutely sure to end up where we want to end up, with a good report before the Lord. But if we are behaving as if we don't care, then that is just a hop, skip and a jump away from an even worse result if we are not careful – which is why the Lord continues in the vein in which He does. There may be a "middle ground", but that is a very dangerous place to live as a Christian, especially in time soon to come.

From a prior posting:
(24) Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wants to follow Me, let him [first] abandon his own aspirations, [then] pick up his cross and follow Me."
Matthew 16:24 (cf. Mk.8:34; Lk.9:23) 
. . . truly serving God by (1) foreswearing any love for the world; (2) embracing salvation through the cross of Christ; and (3) following after Jesus Christ in spiritual growth, progress and production.
Thanks for your own zealous love for the truth, my friend! And thanks for sharing this very encouraging set of developments.

In Jesus Christ our Lord,

Bob L.
Question #7:
Apologies for the second email but I also forgot to ask- do you believe James the Lord's brother was the author of the book of James? That was my impression but I wanted to see your take since there are multiple individuals with that name mentioned throughout the New Testament. 

Thanks! 
Response #7:
Re: the book of James and "It seems you posited it between 45 and 55 AD.", that is correct. For many of these writings, a range in dating is the only thing possible to give. Within this range, I have listed the books in general order of writing as well, so that James and Jude would follow the other books in this range. In addition to those two links, please see also BB 7: Bibliology, section 4.d, "Chronological Order and Composition of the Books of the Bible (at the link). And, yes, I do subscribe to the position that this James is the Lord's brother (along with Jude: Jude 1:1), the same James who is prominent also in the book of Acts.

On the length of time in the garden, this is a back-calculation based upon Adam's life span when plugged into the putative chronology of the Seven Millennial Days (see the link).

I'll let you know if I hear anything more about our friends – please will you also do the same?

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #8:
Hello Dr.,

In your DropBox you should find the following audio file:

BB1-Pt.1: The Essence of God – The Persons of God pt1.

Finally got my new-ish computer up and running this past week. Also obtained a one-year membership to an AI voice platform, it’s the same company where all this started years ago with Ryan the Robot. The voice I’m using now is the exact same voice I’ve been using for the audio file re-mastering for the last year (all the AI companies seem to pull from the same pool), so there’s consistency. Since this company has been around for years and they boast of clients such the U.N. I don’t expect any problems with the platform becoming unstable. I think I’m to the point now where I’ve got a handle on the new PC and the speech platform so I should be able to get into a groove and supply you with a somewhat consistent turnout. God willing, I plan to have all your major books finished by the one-year expiration date.

Things have been interesting here. The Lord recently delivered me from some difficulties at my place of employment, however, things are still a bit strange around the office. [omitted] . . . prayers health and my job (especially for this Wednesday) will be greatly appreciated. I’ll get you caught up on details in a future email.

How are you Sir? I’ve been keeping up with my studies here and life in general. Hope you are well. Got you in prayer here daily I’ll be in touch soon.

All the best,

Rev.22:20 
Response #8:
I'm glad to hear from you! And thanks for the new file. Sorry to learn that things didn't work out for __ in trying to fix up something usable. The contrast between this file and the old "Ryan" is pretty amazing!

Sorry to hear about __. I'm praying for you. 

I'm hanging in there. One third of the way through the new semester already. Most of the home improvement did get done before the visit. It was expensive but not as bad as it could have been. Got a bad foot/ankle which is limiting my exercise. Going to have to find a way to eat less I guess.

Thanks for those prayers, my friend! They are always needful. I came within a hair's breadth of having my Greek program cancelled (by accident) and a lot of my Latin one (through loss of my PTL and then by the administration on account of low enrollments in the upper level classes), but with the Lord a hair is as wide and thick as one of those cables on the Golden Gate bridge . . . with the help of your prayers. So keep 'em up, and I'm keeping 'em up on this end too.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #9:
Thanks, Bob, for reaching out .I continue to be challenged while reading your work in combination with the scriptures. I can't thank you enough for your articles and Bible studies.

God bless. 
Response #9: 
My pleasure!

Thanks much for the encouraging words.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #10:
Thanks, Bob, for staying in touch. This has been a challenging year. I had radiation oncology for prostate cancer in January and February with exceptionally good results. PSA dropped from 8 to 0. Feeling fine and avoided the dreaded surgery. 

The MP3 is indeed impressive. (Is that your voice?) I will listen to it on my daily walks. 

XAPIC KAI EIPHNH
Response #10:
That's good new, any time one can avoid "the knife"!

No, that's not me, LOL! If my voice were on there you'd switch it off pronto!

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #11:
Hi Bob,

I have just got myself a quiet morning to myself and thought it a good time to write to you now.
I know it will be your posting day today so it's not a problem writing back later.

Things have been really hectic and very hard at times and very heavy with lots of conflicting strong emotions. [omitted] It can be very hard Bob and __ helps me all he can but my __ won't help at all.

[omitted]

Then again I was thinking that we are likely to be plundered by the Antichrist's minions in the future so it isn't good to have any ties or reliance on money at all. Again, it wasn't the money, it was the lack of consideration and unfairness of it all. I would go beyond that and say that it was sheer perversity. It took longer than it should have done but I have got over that now. I realise that all these types of things are snares from the enemy designed to trip us but if we respond faithfully then they have no power over us. The things we can get caught up in and torn down with are all meaningless anyway.

The Day of the Lord will bring huge fiery judgement over the whole world that even the elements will melt so there is so little point getting upset by such pointless and worldly things, as though these are all we have. 

__ is getting married a week today.

[omitted]

Will send a separate email Bob with prayer updates. Please let me know if you have any updates to prayer for yourself?

You can print this one but please redact the personal information. Thanks.

In Jesus,
Response #11:
All updates posted (let me know if anything is amiss of if you want any changes).

On my side of the pond, I'm just getting over what seems to have been a mild dose of Covid (based on the symptoms). I would appreciate prayer for my right ankle which has been out of whack for a couple of months now and it has gotten to the point where I can no longer jog on it. Even with just walking it's not healing up entirely. For the sake of my health I really need to get that extra lick of exercise in, so prayers appreciated! 

I'm praying about the wedding. Also about your entire family situation. You have certainly been the most outstanding daughter and sister imaginable – but that doesn't seem to have been appreciated in the least. Don't know what to advise you going forward, except to say that in situations such as this it's my opinion generally that we should do what we are genuinely obligated to do, but set limits at that point, because we have other things we need to do in this life as well.

Thanks for your prayers too, my friend!

In Jesus,

Bob L.
p.s., very scary cartoons; no doubt that is what a lot of people think (dream); apparently in reading through the Bible this person never got to Genesis chapter three.
Question #12:
Dear Professor,

On the first day of my exams, I thought “ Prof Robert is praying for you, you’ll be fine”. I also remembered that I’m probably not worthy of your prayers, but I’m very very priviledged and blessed to have them. Thank you Sir. I usually don’t like to make a big deal of these medical school exams, making it a do or die affair like some do because med school is not why I’m here, but I also know that we have a mandate from the Lord to do everything well and school is part of a process of being able to work for a living which is also a mandate from him. So, I give it my best. But I have such a frustrating brain, sometimes I wonder if the Lord made my brain like that on purpose. I’ll study a topic multiple times, answer questions on it, connect it to real life situations and other topics. I’ll do all I can to make it stick and then when I see it a few weeks later, it’s like I’ve never seen it before.

After spending some years in medical school, my brain does feel like is getting better at remembering stuff even though I have to work very very hard at it. And I sometimes get jealous of those who read something once and can remember it for weeks or those who only need to listen to the lecturer and they are fine. I’m very very grateful to our Lord because passing these exams is simply His mercy, definitely not my knowledge.

Thank you very very much once again for your prayers Sir. Thank you. I have a two month break and then my final six months. I’m excited to be called Doctor. I also look forward to working as a doctor. 

The home front is fine. Everyday I’m reminded that I couldn’t have done this marriage thing with anyone else. We talk, we trash out anything before it becomes major. He is very patient and very loving and very kind. But the best part is that I have a pastor teacher right here with me all the time. I am beyond blessed. Sometimes I feel like I may have a very tough time during the tribulation or even in a few months or weeks. Cause the Lord has given me so much. Why me? I’m very undeserving. Why me?

[omitted]

Our little family is thriving. I hope you and yours are doing okay?

Have a blessed week Dear Professor
Response #12:
You're welcome for the prayers – thanks ever so much for yours! No doubt my concerns have been answered too because you are praying for me. That is why we are here as one body, to help each other as fellow believers in Jesus Christ. I'm very happy that you have passed and that you are well on your way to being "Dr."! LOL, I wouldn't worry about your brain. From what you've described, it works a great deal like mine does (here's hoping that's a good thing or at least not too much of a bad thing!).

We all have our unique blessings from the Lord and we all have our unique challenges and burdens to bear. That being the case, while I appreciate what you are saying here, I wouldn't be able to appreciate your blessings properly or bear your burdens or you mine no doubt. The Lord deals with each of us perfectly. Our job is to respond to His grace and mercy with as much faith and faithfulness as we can muster, growing in that good approach day by day. Keep up that good work for the Lord!

Doing pretty well here (some health issues but that is par for the course).

I'll be keeping your family in my prayers, my friend.

Best to __!

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #13:
Hi Dr L,

A while back you said: "In terms of charity, I have the same basic take as you. Giving money, if one has it but even more especially if one doesn't have it, is best done in the actual service of Jesus Christ. And it is also very, very common for people with money to give to those who either don't really need it or are otherwise obviously unworthy (from a Christian perspective) while overlooking those near and dear to them or otherwise very worthy (from that same Christian perspective)." And I got that sense from my mentor friend again. If you happen to remember your thinking then, I was wondering if you had any idea why this dynamic happens?

The good news is that the Lord brought to my mind verses in the Bible about loving agape-wise anyways via prayer, and even if I feel like it is very-fair-weather-companioning-only, I can still practice heating up a love for brethren in a less than pleasant situation. And I remembered that even if I am alone from a secular perspective, David was alone too from a secular perspective at Ziklag, so I may be in good company (or maybe approaching good company lol). 

All this was to say that I think I have made a lot of progress since the Spirit seems to have brought those earlier things I mentioned to mind, because ten years ago I think I wouldn't have not been able to handle anything. He is very patient!

I hope you are well,
Response #13:
I'm very pleased to have seen your wonderful spiritual progress over the years, my friend!

If you are asking about me personally, I don't remember ever overlooking someone close to help some abstract/unknown group. I have observed this MANY times, however, that is, people giving money to charities whose effects are unknown (and possibly close to non-existent) while good Christians in need in their own circle go without help, so that was probably what I was referring to. 

I will also say that the Lord always takes care of His own. Even if those who SHOULD help don't, He has never let the righteous fall. That doesn't mean there isn't suffering, or testing, or struggle. Indeed there is, in this world. But we have absolute confidence that our Lord never, ever lets us down, even when for all the world it looks like we are going under. We never do. And I have seen THAT many, many times as well. Praise the Lord!
I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.
Psalm 37:25 NIV
In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #14:
Hi Robert,

It is fantastic to hear from you. I do appreciate your work and your in-depth understanding of God's Word.

The explanations regarding the 'King Epistle' and its author have solidified my understanding that Paul is the writer. The MP3s are excellent listening materials to have. Yes, I am impressed!

However, the expressions "... Scripture does not come any closer than this ..." and "... His spiritual death ..." as referenced in Hebrew 9:13-14 under the headings Holy and Through the Spirit, seem eisegetical. If your analogous way means that our Lord Jesus gave up / yielded his spirit (soul, ghost) on the cross, I agree! (Matt 27:50; Mark 15:37; Luke 2346). In John 10:18 Jesus states that he can lay down and take up His life. Scripture does not speak of Him dying spiritually! Perhaps, and this is my assumption, a separation from God at that moment, is better than a spiritual death. The soul and the spirit possess an eternal character from God (... breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, ... Gen. 2:7).

In Him our glorious Savior,
Response #14:
Thanks for the good words.

Re: your observations, on "eisegetical", well, the context verse, Hebrews 9:14, does say that it was through the Spirit that Christ offered Himself, and that clearly has to do with His spiritual death because His spiritual death is the offering. Granted that scripture does not call it "spiritual death", but I use this term, not coined by me, because it is necessary to distinguish between our Lord's paying the penalty for sin and the giving up of His physical life after the sacrifice had been made. After all, He says, before that breathing His last breath, "it has been completed!" (Jn.19:30; quoting Ps.22:31). 

There is a lot to this absolutely critical point of how Christ atoned for our sins, and it is generally misunderstood.  Best place to find this at Ichthys is in BB 4A: Christology, section II.4, "The Blood of Christ", and II.5, "The Spiritual Death of Christ".

For the false appreciation of "soul" in traditional theology, best place is BB 3A, section II.4, "The Dichotomy of Man".  See also, "The Image and Likeness of God" (at the link).

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #15:
Hi Bob,

Thank you for the references regarding "The Dichotomy of Man", "The Image and Likeness of God', and "The Blood of Christ". It is sufficient to say that I agree with these exegeses.

However, I would rather emphasize 'paradidomi' (Para: 'from close-beside and didomi: 'to give') in the latter part of John 19:30 and not 'tetelestai' as a reference to death. He accomplished the work 'tetelestai' and refers to this earlier in Luke. Therefore, I can not accept your rendering of Christ's death spiritually. 1 Peter 3:18 "...He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit, ..." 

By His grace.
Response #15:
On John 19:30, it's not a question of emphasis; it's a question of what the text says. The statement, "It has been accomplished" comes first; our Lord giving up His spirit comes after that. The latter means exhaling so that this refers to the giving up of His physical life unto physical death; however His spiritual death, His being judged for the sins of the world, came during the three hours of darkness prior to that. 

As mentioned, this is all explained in BB 4A (at the previous links). Lack of understanding regarding our Lord's death for our sins is widespread nowadays, but since this is what procures our salvation, it should be given more attention by the church-visible. Exhaling His spirit so that His physical body ceased to be alive was not even apparently painful. The physical suffering He endured before and during crucifixion was obviously much more intense. But nothing could compare with being judged for the sins of the world, "being made sin for us" (2Cor.5:21), as He "bore our sins in His body on the tree" (1Pet.2:24). This Jesus did while physically alive – His spiritual death; once salvation was accomplished ("It is finished!"), so was His mission, and then He "gave up His spirit".

In our dear Lord Jesus Christ,

Bob L.
Question #16:
Hi Robert,

Thank you for your openness and expansive layout of Scripture.

I am moved to write a simplistic response regarding your teaching about Jesus' spiritual death. The use of Scripture to exegete this theory remains a problem for me.

Therefore my believe that the nature of God should remain the ultimate truth in the things we are to understand in this life. His eternal existence and His continuinging sinlessness and His immutability. Anything that could violate these fundamentals in my view, I would rather distance myself. Faith in God's Son for salvation and the Holy Spirit as Helper is life (God's work and will).

Thank you for the opportunity to communicate.

Emmanuel with us.
Response #16:
I certainly don't disagree with anything you've written here.

However, I also don't believe that teaching what is in scripture, even if it is not obvious to folks reading the English Bible occasionally (as opposed to studying it diligently in the Spirit from the original languages over a very long period of time), could in any way "violate these fundamentals". A teaching is either true or untrue. Clearly, we should reject anything untrue, but if it is true, we should believe it. If we refuse to believe any biblical truth, it retards our spiritual growth and creates a chink in our armor. There is no virtue in such simplicity for simplicity's sake alone.
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
2nd Corinthians 5:21 NIV
“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”
1st Peter 2:21 NIV
In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #17:
Dear Teacher,

You didn't forget, Sir, and I did pass them on. Thank you very much, Sir.

Have you been well? The hurricane didn't come your way, did it?

Just got news that __, a dear friend, just suffered significant damage to his house from the storm. Could you pray for him? [omitted] Although I can't be sure, I have a feeling that this is a deliberate push from the Lord. I am not sure what it will accomplish, but I'll see how we will walk on the water with Him here.

Always praying for you here,

Your student in Jesus,
Response #17:
I'll say a prayer for __. Apparently, the storm was very nasty all the way to Atlanta. We are currently getting the aftermath. It rained all day and the winds gusted very strongly (55 MPH was forecast). They cancelled classes at the university last night in anticipation. Probably could have gotten through OK, but grateful to the Lord for the day off. So far no trees down around here and we didn't lose power, so all is well (the wind should be gone by tomorrow night).

Praying for things to work out for you in every way, my friend!

Say hello to __ for me.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #18:
Hi Bob,

I hope everything is going OK for you after the storm, the squirrel and then the issues with your server. Pipes here are all sorted and fixed now. Cost a lot but had to be done.

Very good emails again, thanks Bob. Someone wrote that you said the witness of the life can only be of use near fertile ground. There doesn't appear to be a lot (if any) fertile ground around me but inwardly only the Lord knows what's going on in their hearts. It isn't easy but I don't allow it to weigh me down and become a distraction. I continue to pray for them and keep a calm and quiet trust in the Lord. I don't allow it to stop me from focusing on my own walk with the Lord and growing closer and closer to Him day by day. I continue to seek Him and to know His will for my life and how he wants me to serve Him and His Church. I think that's so important. 

Keeping you in my prayers, Bob.

In Jesus
Response #18:
Thanks! Also the squirrel has been defeated . . . temporarily. Never count those little darlings out. You know my former colleague; her husband is very handy and has built a number of very clever devices over the years to keep the squirrels out of the bird feeders. Eventually, they find a way. Server also seems OK. And even the ankle is better today. So thanks for those prayers! Glad to hear that the pipes are sorted. Everything is expensive these days, but when all is said and done it's nice to have plumbing and electricity.

You're fighting the good fight, my friend – and your fighting it right. We need a lot of patience down here, and you have it. I like to remember Job who had proverbial patience and then "lost it" . . . right at the last minute. We can always hang on and hang in for "one more day", if we rely on the Spirit.

Thanks for the help!

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #19:
Doc, I see and hear "self-compassion" and "loving yourself" often given a leery eye by certain types of Christians. I mean, if it's focused on "self" it can't really be God-honoring right?

While I feel they have a point there, the other side argues if you don't have any compassion or love for yourself, how can you show it to others? If you aren't compassionate to yourself at some level, how are you going to move on from a sinful failure, or worse, end up pitying yourself and bringing your spiritual life to a screeching halt in such wallowing?

What do you think on this Doc?
Response #19: 
I agree that this is something we need not spend time worrying about. Is there a verse in scripture that says anything like "love yourself?" Scripture tells us to love the Lord with all that is in us and our neighbors (fellow believers) as ourselves. In the history of the world, not loving self enough has never been a problem. Not loving the Lord enough and not loving our brothers and sisters in Christ enough is often a problem. And you are right, that takes spiritual growth – while focusing on self instead our mission down here is definitely going to retard that growth.
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves . . . 
2nd Timothy 3:1-2 NKJV
I will also say that anyone who really is loving the Lord and our brethren as he/she should is experiencing joy that surpasses any such worldly attempts to overcome depression and the like.
Keeping you in my prayers, my friend.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
Question #20:
Thanks for the insight...another way I hear this put is that true self-love, not the shallow, self-indulgent kind the world believes in, is based on the opposite principle of what I talked about. 

It's based on acceptance of ourselves as REDEEMED beings rather than anything within ourselves. Rather than looking inward to the endless corruption of the human heart, trying to scrounge up reasons to "love ourselves" from that mud (which either leads to hedonistic delusion or misery out of there being nothing of true worth there), we look outwards, accepting the reality of our redemption because despite God having every reason to cast us straight to Hell, He sent Jesus to die for us. From what i understand it's not necessarily "I love myself because God loves me" either (though it's understandable why some would fall into this trapping), but it's realizing that if we refuse to let go of the failures of our past, if we keep pitying ourselves because we can't get over a mistake, as awful as it might have been, there can be no true progress in our walk with Christ (I know I had this horrid mindset for a very long time!). We need to fully accept and embrace the reality of God's ever-renewing mercy and love for us in spite of such things to go anywhere with Him as a believer. In a way, putting "self" in the name of the idea isn't really accurate. It's more about loving God enough to have neither have the arrogance or other pride to diminish the role of His mercy, nor to accept ourselves and whatever behaviors we have as is without taking into account the fact that He saved us in spite of how much we deserved to burn.

Properly accepted, this is supposed to encourage us to truly seek to cast off that old sin and grow in our relationship with the Lord. Do you still think there's something off about this though? As far as I can tell, the only thing wrong is trying to fit "self" into the idea where the "self" is only tangentially related to this.
Response #20:
Yes, I think there is a LOT that is "off" about this new age sort of "teaching".

Re: "We need to fully accept and embrace the reality of God's ever-renewing mercy and love for us". YOU have it right. But what you are doing is apologizing for this false teaching. Or, better put, trying to fit it into your correct understanding of things. This is exactly what believers who know something of the truth end up doing whenever they go to "church". There are some things there which are not altogether wrong or quotations that even though not understood or correctly applied are actual scripture, so believers in Laodicean churches often end up tying themselves in knots trying to see how some of what they are hearing might be "OK". 
If all you end up doing is affirming the truth you know, well and good. But if the false ever ends up shifting us away from what's true, then instead of no damage there is real damage. Which begs the question: so why have anything to do with "teaching" which is clearly not Bible-based for which you have to exercise all manner of verbal gymnastics so as to "understand it" in a way which is not entirely heretical?

If the teaching is good, you don't have to apologize for it.

Keeping you in my prayers, my friend.

In Jesus,

Bob L.
http://ichthys.com/