Gleaning A Passage Of Scripture For All It’s Worth
Posted: Thursday, February 02, 2012
by Joel Hendon
http://hebronics.org/index.html
There is a passage of scripture in the New Testament which has an enormous amount of meaning that Christians should know in detail. Mostly, it is easy to discern but there are some phrases which are easily to misunderstand, even though perhaps the very misunderstanding is somewhat slight.
Let's look at the passage first of all:
The meat in this passage is very simple. It is totally about who Jesus is. When he asked them who the people were saying he was, they gave him terms which many were saying. The belief at that time among some was that many prominent folks spirit came back in the form of someone else. (This is called transmigration of souls) And these were saying that he was John the Baptist's spirit and some Elijah's and others, Jeremiah‘s. (the spellings in the KJV were the Greek translations of Hebrew which I've used here)
Then when Jesus asked them who they thought he was, Peter answered him as Jesus wished them to do. That he was literally the Son of God. And he then explains that this very fact is what his church is based upon. It was established shortly after he ascended back into heaven as is fully recorded in the second chapter of Acts. Anyone who does not believe that Jesus was actually the Son of God, will not (cannot) be added to His church, or kingdom. There are ample scriptures to prove that.
Take time to read Acts the eighth chapter, especially from verse 26 through verse 39. There you will see and understand the meaning of entering the Lord's church and what the confession was, when made in this case. The Ethiopian eunuch, when asked if he believed, said: "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." It is the bedrock of the church. He is referred to as the "chief corner stone" in Ephesians 2:20.
When Jesus told Peter that it is upon this rock that I will build my church, some have misconstrued the remark. He was in no way referring to Peter as being the rock that the church would be built upon. The entire conversation had been about who Jesus was and when it was answered correctly, he commended Peter for answering it right, but the conversation did not switch to anyone other than the original subject. And when Jesus said he would build his church, "upon this rock" he was still referring to the fact of who he was.
He then told the them that he would give unto them the keys of the kingdom and let's re-read this statement:
And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
This phrase is easily to misunderstand slightly, but the difference in the meaning is quite important to know. Here is why.
We must discuss the tenses of the verbs "shall be bound" and "shall be loosed." Here for you is information from some of the greatest Greek grammarians in the world. In his wonderful set of books, Word Pictures in the New Testament (Nashville: Broadman, 1930), the late Dr. A. T. Robertson, inarguably one of the greatest Greek scholars in the world, calls these verbs future perfect indicatives which indicate a state of completion. "All of this assumes ... that Peter's use of the keys will be in accord with the teaching and the mind of Christ. ... The binding and loosing is repeated by Jesus to all the disciples" (Mt. 18:18) (volume 1, p. 134).
Here is a rendering from a more modern translation than the King James which will perhaps make it more easily seen:
"I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:19 NASV)
I once misunderstood this verse myself. It sounds as if Jesus was telling the apostles that anything they might bind or loose on people, then he would bind that in heaven. But, rather, it means that they would be directed by the Holy Spirit to speak those things which were bound or loosed in heaven…already.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15 )
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