Lessons #87 and 88
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ HCSB = Holman Christian Standard Bible +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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Two Jewish Advantages (Rom 3:1-4)
1 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? 2 Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God. 3 What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar. As it is written: “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”
The message of this section that we have been expounding that applies to you as a believer in Christ is that You have the privilege of God’s word in written form and are the beneficiary of His faithfulness. This message is because of two Jewish advantages in the passage we are studying – one that is clearly given and the other implied. The first clearly stated advantage of the Jews is that they are the recipients of God’s promises and by implication possessors of the OT Scripture. The implied second advantage the Jews possessed is experiencing of God’s faithfulness in a way that cannot be said of any nation or group of people since no people received direct promises from God as to judge His faithfulness to His promises or to His word. This implied second advantage is derived from the answer to the rhetorical question of Apostle Paul in Romans 3:3 Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness? The answer to this question, as we stated in our last study, is what led to the implied second advantage of the Jews and it is introduced in the expression of Romans 3:4 Not at all! We ended with the promise to examine this expression and the rest of what the apostle stated in verse 4 in today’s study. So, it is with it that we begin our study this morning.
The phrase Not at all is translated from a Greek phrase or formula (mē genoito) that is used predominantly in the Greek NT by Apostle Paul in that of its fifteen occurrences, the apostle used it fourteen times. The only occurrence of the Greek phrase or formula outside the epistles of the apostle is by Luke to report the response of those who heard the Parable of Tenants that the Lord Jesus Christ gave as recorded in Luke 20:16:
He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When the people heard this, they said, “May this never be!”
The apostle used the Greek phrase or formula predominantly in his epistle to the Romans where he used it ten times and all after a rhetorical question. That aside, the Greek phrase or formula consists of a Greek particle and a verb. The Greek particle (mē) the apostle used may be used as a marker of negation that means “not.” It is a particle of negation that is a subjective negative, implying a conditional and hypothetical negation that is different from another Greek negative particle (ou) that is an objective negative that denies the reality of alleged fact fully and absolutely. Our Greek particle (mē) may be used as a marker of negative purpose with the meaning “so that not, lest.” It may be used as a marker of a question where a negative answer “no” is expected. According to the Greek Grammar of A.T. Robertson, it is an “unsteady particle, a hesitating negative, an indirect or subjective denial, an effort to prevent (prohibit) what has not yet happened.” The fact that our Greek particle may be used to prevent what has not yet happened made it suitable for Apostle Paul to use it in our verse of Romans 3:4. This makes sense because of the Greek verb used in the Greek phrase or formula. The Greek verb (ginomai) used may mean “to be” although it is different from another Greek word (eimi) that may also mean “to be” in that our Greek word emphasizes that of being what one was not before. That aside, our Greek word has several meanings. For example, it may mean “to come into existence” so may have the sense of “to perform” as it is used for the description of the miracles of the apostles in Acts 5:12:
The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade.
The word may mean “to become something” as Apostle Paul used it in cautioning believers not to become stumbling block to others in their use of their freedom in Christ in 1 Corinthians 8:9:
Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.
In our passage of Romans 3:4, the general sense of the word is “to happen.” Thus, the Greek phrase or formula (mē genoito) translated in the NIV Not at all or literally Never may it be is intended to convey a strong negation of something that should not happen or occur.
The thing that should not happen is for God to be unfaithful to His promises because of unbelief or unfaithfulness on the part of humans. God’s unconditional promises would be fulfilled regardless of whether humans are faithful or not. The psalmist alluded to this truth in that he indicated that although the Israelites did not believe or trust Yahweh to feed them or take care of them in keeping with His promise of getting them safely into Canaan, He remained faithful in that He provided manna for them in the desert as stated in Psalm 78:22–24:
22for they did not believe in God or trust in his deliverance. 23 Yet he gave a command to the skies above and opened the doors of the heavens; 24 he rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven.
The Lord Jesus conveyed that His word will never fail to be fulfilled although the heavens and earth pass away as recorded in Matthew 24:35:
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Apostle Paul also taught that human unfaithfulness or unbelief would not make God to become unfaithful to His word or promise as we may gather from 2 Timothy 2:13:
if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.
The point of the apostle in the phrase of Romans 3:4 Not at all is that it is impossible for God not to fulfill His promises or His word. Consider God’s promise to David about an everlasting dynasty as, for example, in 2 Samuel 7:16:
Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’”
This promise was challenged by Satan through Athalia, granddaughter of Omri, killing of the royal family males as stated in 2 Kings 11:1:
When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family.
However, God ensured that His promise to David will not fail as implied in 2 Kings 11:2–3:
2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram and sister of Ahaziah, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the royal princes, who were about to be murdered. She put him and his nurse in a bedroom to hide him from Athaliah; so he was not killed. 3 He remained hidden with his nurse at the temple of the LORD for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.
God’s promise prevailed in that Joash was eventually installed king at the age of seven years as stated in 2 Kings 11:21:
Joash was seven years old when he began to reign.
All the same, to indicate that it is impossible for God not to fulfill His promise or for Him not to be faithful to His word, the apostle made a strong statement of what should happen instead of God being untrue to His promises or His word in Romans 3:4 Let God be true, and every man a liar. A literal translation is But let God be true, even if/and every man a liar. This is because the apostle used a Greek particle (de) that is not translated in the NIV and majority of our English versions. The Greek particle is routinely translated “but” in our English versions to reflect a contrast between clauses but when a simple connective is desired, without contrast being clearly implied, it may be translated “and” or “now” and in certain occurrences the particle may be left untranslated. Other times, the particle is used to provide explanation so may be translated “that is.” In the verse we are considering, it is used after a negative phrase so that it should be translated “rather” as a marker of contrast as done in the NASB. Hence, the apostle states what should rather happen instead of God not being true to His promise. He declared emphatically Let God be true, and every man a liar.
The expression Let God be true is difficult to understand because the word “be” is an imperative in the Greek of the Greek verb (ginomai) we considered previously that can mean “to happen” or “to become” but in the expression we are considering it probably has the meaning “to show” or “to demonstrate.” We say this because an imperative is usually a command issued to a person. Here the apostle wrote the command in relationship to God. The Greek form the apostle used is better understood here as a request or a prayer since the apostle could not possibly be commanding God to do anything. Hence, it is most likely that out of excitement, the apostle prayed for God to show Himself to be the truthful in His promises as He has done in the past. In effect, I am saying that the expression Let God be true should be understood as “May God show Himself to be truthful.”
The word “true” is translated from a Greek adjective (alēthēs) that pertains to being truthful and honest and so means “truthful, righteous, honest” as the word is used by the Lord Jesus to assert that anyone who accepted His testimony had acknowledged God is truthful, that what God said is true, as stated in John 3:33:
The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful.
The word may mean “true” as it pertains to being in accordance with fact, as the word is used by Apostle Paul to assert that what a Cretan poet said about his people being “liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons” is in accordance with fact about them as we read in Titus 1:13:
This testimony is true. Therefore, rebuke them sharply, so that they will be sound in the faith
The word may mean “real, genuine, not imaginary” as the Lord Jesus used the word to qualify what He said about eating His flesh and drinking His blood as indeed pointing to the real spiritual significance of what He said about Himself as the One who would give life to all those who believe in Him as stated in John 6:55:
For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
In our passage of Romans 3:4, the word has the sense of “truthful.” Hence, we contend that the apostle requested or petitioned God to show Himself truthful despite what may happen with humans and for Him to cause people to recognize that He is truthful. In other words, God is to show and cause people to recognize His faithfulness despite human failures.
Humans, because of our fallen nature, are untruthful as that is implied in the clause of Romans 3:4 and every man a liar. A literal translation is even if/and every man a liar. This is because the Greek clause begins with a Greek particle (de) we considered previously that we indicated is predominantly used for contrast and so often translated “but.” The particle may also be translated “and” as we stated previously. It is possible to construe that the apostle used the particle to state something that is true or is potential among people so that it could be translated “even if” or “although.” That aside, the apostle states what is true of all people, in their unregenerate state and may be true of believers if not controlled by the Holy Spirit, in the clause and every man a liar.
The word “man” in the NIV84 is translated from a Greek noun (anthrōpos) that means “a human being” without regard to gender, as Apostle Paul used it to describe the fate of evil doers as stated in Romans 2:9:
There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; …
The word may mean “man” as male person as the apostle used it to describe Jesus Christ in His humanity in Romans 5:15:
But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!
The word may mean “self” as it is used in the instruction of Romans 6:6:
For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—
The phrase old self is literally old man. The word may mean “person” as that is the way the word is used when the concern is to be inclusive of men and women, as in the doctrine of justification by faith Apostle Paul stated in Galatians 2:16:
know that a man is not justified by observing the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by observing the law, because by observing the law no one will be justified.
Justification is for both men and women so that the phrase a man is to be understood as “a person,” hence the NRSV simply used the phrase a person. In our passage of Romans 3:4, the word is used in the sense of “person,” that is, “a human being.” So, the apostle concedes that all humans could be liars and despite that, He petitioned God to cause people to recognize His faithfulness and to show Himself truthful, something God does regardless of the falsehood displayed by humans.
The apostle, after his declaration that we indicated is tantamount to a prayer request proceeded to quote the Scripture as in the clause of Romans 3:4 As it is written. The word “written” is translated from a Greek verb (graphō) that means “to write.” However, the sentence it is written or its equivalent For it is written is a formula for quotation from the OT Scripture. The Lord Jesus used it to cite Scripture to Satan during His temptation as we read in Matthew 4:4:
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
He quoted exactly from Deuteronomy 8:3:
He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.
Interestingly, Satan used the same formula in his quotation of Scripture during his temptation of Jesus Christ as we read in Luke 4:10–11:
10 For it is written: “‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; 11they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”
Satan quoted exactly from Psalm 91:11–12:
11For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
The Jews who contended with the Lord Jesus used the formula as it is written in their quotation of the OT Scripture as we read in John 6:31:
Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
The Jews did not quote exactly any passage of the OT Scripture but they in a sense referenced the account given in Exodus 16:4:
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions.
Apostle Peter in addressing the disciples regarding replacement of Judas Iscariot supported that move by citing Psalms using the formula we are considering, as we read in Acts 1:20:
“For,” said Peter, “it is written in the book of Psalms, “‘May his place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in it,’ and, “‘May another take his place of leadership.’
The apostle pieced together two different psalms. The first quotation May his place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in it is from Psalm 69:25:
May their place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in their tents.
In this verse of Psalm 69, the psalmist desired the complete destruction of his enemies and their families so that there would be no inhabitants left to occupy their cities and homes so rendering them empty. However, the apostle applied what was aimed at all the enemies of the psalmist to one person, Judas Iscariot, viewed probably as enemy of Christ because he betrayed him. Anyway, the second quotation of Acts 1:20‘May another take his place of leadership’ is from Psalm 109:8:
May his days be few; may another take his place of leadership.
Again, the psalm is concerned with the psalmist’s desire or prayer for the death of his enemy so that another person will take up the position the enemy occupies. One thing we learn from the quotation in Acts 1:20 is that although the apostle pieced together two different passages in Psalms, but the two passages have something in common, desire or petition for the death of an enemy. Peter’s approach lets us know that we could piece together various passages of the Scripture that are germane to our position in support of our arguments. The human author of Hebrews used the formula we are considering in quoting from the Scripture as we read in Hebrews 10:7:
Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll— I have come to do your will, O God.’”
The quotation is from Psalm 40:7–8:
7Then I said, “Here I am, I have come— it is written about me in the scroll. 8I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.”
Comparison of the quotation in Hebrews 10:7 to the original passage reveals that there is a change in the order of the sentences. In the original, the sentence I have come, comes before the sentence it is written about me in the scroll but in the quotation the reverse was the case. Furthermore, the quotation left out the sentence I desire in the original and assimilated the rest of the verbal phrase to do your will, O my God to the sentence I have come leading to the reading I have come to do your will, O God. The implication is that the OT Scripture may be used in argument not necessarily citing every word in the text. In short, we may summarize a passage in the OT in support of an argument. That aside, in our passage of Romans 3:4, the word has the sense of “to be written,” that is, “to be set down in writing.” Hence, Apostle Paul quoted the OT Scripture in Romans 3:4 “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”
The word “proved right” is translated from a Greek verb (dikaioō) that may mean to render a favorable verdict, that is, “to vindicate” as it is used by Apostle Paul to indicate that Jesus Christ was vindicated by the Holy Spirit as we read in 1 Timothy 3:16:
Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.
The word may mean “to be free” as it is used of believers in connection with sin as we read in Romans 6:7:
because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.
The word may mean “to declare, pronounce, righteous and therefore acceptable” as it is used negatively in Romans 3:20:
Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.
In our passage of Romans 3:4, the word means “to be vindicated,” that is, “”to show or to prove to be right.”
The word “prevail” in the clause of Romans 3:4 and prevail when you judge is translated from a Greek verb (nikaō) that may mean “to conquer, overcome, prevail,” that is, “to win in the face of obstacles” as it is used in the promise given to the seven Asiatic churches pertaining what will happen to the believer who is an overcomer in Revelation 2:7:
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
In our passage of Romans 3:4, the word has the sense of “to win a victory over.”
The word “judge” in the clause and prevail when you judge is translated from a Greek verb (krinō) that may mean “to judge, pass judgment upon, express an opinion about” as it is used in the Lord’s instruction concerning looking down on others in a condemning way in Luke 6:37:
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
The word may mean “to judge as guilty, condemn” as in Nicodemus’ question to Jewish leaders regarding what they said about Jesus as stated in John 7:51:
“Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?”
The word may mean “to punish” as in Stephen’s sermon as he referred to God’s promise to Abraham of punishing those who would enslave his descendants in Acts 7:7:
But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’
The word may mean to make a judgment based on taking various factors into account, hence means “to judge, think, consider, look upon,” as in Apostle Paul’s statement to the Jews who rejected the gospel message, as stated in Acts 13:46:
Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.
In our passage of Romans 3:4, the word means “to judge,” that is, “to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong.” The apostle used a passive voice so that the sense in our passage is “to be judged” or “to be tried.”
To understand what the apostle means in the quotation, we need to consider the context of the quotation. The apostle quoted from Psalm 51:4 (LXX 50:6):
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are proved right when you speak and justified when you judge.
The first thing we should note about the quotation of Psalm 51:4 in Romans 3:4 is that the Septuagint reads slightly different from the Hebrew since it reads “So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.” You will notice that instead of the word “justified” in Psalm the quotation from the Septuagint used the word “prevail.” The word “justified” in Psalm 51 is translated from a Hebrew word (zāḵāh) that may mean “to be pure or clear” but it is used Psalm 51:4 with the sense that God is right in His dealing with David because of his sins. The translators of the Septuagint used the Greek word (nikaō) that may mean “to conquer, overcome, prevail” to translate the Hebrew word used in Psalm 51:4. Interestingly, it is the same Greek word that they used to translate two other Hebrew words. They used it to translate a Hebrew word (ḥāmǎḏ) that may mean “to desire, delight in” as in cautioning a young man from lusting because of a woman’s beauty in Proverbs 6:25:
Do not lust in your heart after her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes.
The instruction Do not lust in your heart after her beauty is literally Do not desire her beauty in your heart. The translators of the Septuagint used the same Greek verb used in Romans 3:4 to translate another Hebrew word (nāṣǎḥ) that may mean “to direct, supervise, lead, i.e., lead or rule a group in any of several different endeavors or tasks” so that it is given the meaning “director” in Habakkuk 3:19:
The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights. For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.
That aside, the translators of the Septuagint were aware that there is another Greek word that clearly means “to justify” since they used it in the same Psalm 51 that is translated “proved right” in Romans 3:4 so there is a reason the apostle quoted from the Septuagint where the word that means “to win a victory” is used. The word “justify” used in the Psalm 51 does not quite fit the context of Romans 3:4 so that the quotation from the Septuagint the apostle used where the word “prevail” appears makes better sense as we will note shortly.
The second thing we note concerns the translation of the quotation in our English versions. The Hebrew clause justified when you judge based on the Septuagint may be translated either prevail when you are judged if the Greek verb used is considered passive voice or prevail when you yourself judge, taking the Greek verb as a middle voice. Some English versions such as the NIV and HCSB and a handful of other versions take the view that the middle voice is implied so that their quotation is such that their translation when you judge agrees with the Hebrew text. Most of our English versions take the view that the Greek verb is passive leading to the reading prevail when you are judged. Of course, some English versions while not directly translating the passive as we indicated, conveyed that meaning. For example, the NLT reads and you will win your case in court while NCV reads you will win your case. However, the context of both Romans 3:4 and Psalm 51:4 is different. In Psalm 51, David was confessing his sins and so he indicates that God was right in declaring him guilty or even in bringing any punishment on him. The immediate context of Romans 3:4 is God’s faithfulness to His word or promise although the preceding context is concerned with God’s judgment. Based on this, it is more likely that the apostle quoted the psalm in a way that reflects passive voice, that is, that the Greek translated into the English should read when you are judged. It is when we adopt this meaning that it makes better sense to use the word “prevail” in the sense of “winning victory.” Of course, many commentators interpreted the significance of the quotation of Apostle Paul from Psalm 51 in the Septuagint without addressing the fact that he used the word “prevail” and not “justified” that appears in the Hebrew text. The apostle did not introduce the word “prevail” since it is part of the Septuagint that he quoted from, so it is important that our interpretation should consider the use of the word “prevail” instead of “justified” that appears in the Hebrew text of Psalm 51.
In any case, it is when we read the Greek as prevail when you are judged that we can make sense of the quotation from Psalm 51:4. The apostle had indicated that God is faithful to His promise or word. He fulfilled His unconditional promises to Israel, such as bringing them to the Promised Land and that of Christ coming through them. It is conceivable that an objector would charge God of being unfair in that despite the failures of the Israelites, He still did what He promised. So, the apostle’s answer to the objectors is that God would prevail in such a charge because of His faithfulness. In effect, it is because of His faithfulness that when He is judged by critics for what He did for Israel, that He would be the winner of the case because of His faithfulness. This, again, was the reason the apostle cited Psalm 51:4. The fact is that the apostle quoted this passage in Psalm 51:4 as it appears in the Septuagint to support his issue about God’s faithfulness that is behind what He did that may be objectionable to one that does not understand that human unfaithfulness or unbelief would not alter God’s faithfulness. He remains faithful to His promises and words or even in judgment. This, my friend should give each of us comfort, knowing that He would keep His promise or word to us.
Be that as it may, recall that the message of Romans 3:1-4 that applies to you as a believer in Christ is that You have the privilege of God’s word in written form and are the beneficiary of His faithfulness. As we stated previously, in application of the message of this section we are considering, that we will deal with the question of what advantages Christians have after we have finished considering the questions and answers the apostle gave in this passage. Following our exposition of the passage, we bring your attention to some of the privileges or advantages you have as a believer that unbelievers do not have. But before I do, let me state that as Israel had the advantage of being the recipients of God’s word or the OT Scripture, believers in the NT have the advantage of being recipients of the complete Scripture of the OT and the NT. This we assert because the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul indicated that the church is the custodian of God’s truth as stated in 1 Timothy 3:15:
if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.
The advantage of the church is given in the phrase the pillar and foundation of the truth. What does the apostle mean by declaring the church to be the pillar and foundation of the truth? The Greek words for “pillar” and “foundation” have overlapping meaning of “support” so it is best to take the word “pillar” and “foundation” as a hendiadys, that is, that both words refer to the same concept. Or, to take the word “foundation” as an explanation of the word “pillar” since the word “and” can also be rendered “even.” But, because the function of a pillar is to support a structure and foundation basically does the same thing, the apostle is saying that the church is entrusted with God’s word to guard and dispense it. This is in keeping with what Apostle Paul stated as one of the advantages of the Jews as we have already examined in Romans 3:2. However, Israel failed. Look at what has happened to the nation since then. I believe that the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 and the complete destruction of the temple in A.D. 135 is so that the church would separate completely from the influence of Judaism. Since the church is now central in God’s plan, the apostle also sees the church as the body to which the truth has been deposited. But this truth that has been deposited needs to be given out to others once understood. It is this requirement that our Lord alludes to after explaining several parables to His disciples, as we read in Matthew 13:51-52:
51 "Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked. "Yes," they replied. 52 He said to them, "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old."
The church is supposed to bring out the treasures of truth to humankind. It is through the church that God’s purpose is to be made manifest not only to human beings but eventually to angelic creatures, as the apostle writes in Ephesians 3:10:
His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
The way many local congregations function today, we can state that they in no way manifest God’s wisdom. The church should always defend the truth that has been passed on to it. It was important for the church in Ephesus to defend the truth because of the false teachers in Ephesus. False teachers frequently attack the truth of God’s word so the church must vigorously defend the truth. This is especially important today when everything that is in the word of God is under great attack. Those who do not want to accept God’s revelation are challenging every truth in the Bible that they find offensive. It is not only true with the unbelieving world, but those who claim to belong to the church. For example, we hear that women and homosexuals are being ordained pastors. Furthermore, the church is now being asked to sanction the same sex marriage, in other words, to admit that the Bible is wrong in declaring that homosexuality is a sin. But if the church is going to be true to its purpose and function, both attacks to the truth deposited to the church must be resisted. It is sad that many local churches no longer take their bearing from the infallible word of God. This is because the church has failed to teach the truth. Of course, it is easy for us to criticize but we should remember that the church is made up of individual believers. So, when the church fails it is because the individual believers have failed. This failure is in rejection of truth. Many believers do not want to be taught the truth and if they hear the truth they disobey it, no wonder those who teach are often discouraged and afraid to declare the truth of God’s word. But this should not be, because the church is the body that has been given the truth and so must uphold it at every cost, even loss of life. Furthermore, we should recognize that it is the duty of every member of the family of God in Christ to defend the truth. Hence, no one should think that it is the function of pastors and teachers of the word of God alone to defend the truth. Every believer is called upon to defend the truth. Of course, this assumes that every believer knows the truth since no one can defend what the person does not understand. Consequently, the challenge is for Christians to learn the truth and become witnesses to the truth. I have gone this length simply to make the point that the advantage we have as believers in Christ is the written word of God that we are responsible for its preservation and communication. You are a part of the church hence you should consider it a great advantage to have the word of God in written form.
I have so far focused on the advantage that the church has but let me go a step further in reminding you of this advantage as it relates to the word of God. As a believer, you have the advantage of knowing God’s secrets or mysteries. The Scripture gives us the knowledge of what will happen in the future regarding future resurrection. In effect, we have the advantage of knowing that not all humans will die when Christ returns but that all would have a bodily transformation. It is this truth that the Holy Spirit described as mystery through Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:51:
Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—
We have the advantage of knowledge of the outworking of God’s plan that indicates that Gentiles and Israel are now joint heirs of God as stated in Ephesians 3:6:
This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.
Related to this mystery is also that truth that there is an entirely a new humanity that the rest of the world and sadly many believers have no knowledge of as the Holy Spirit conveyed to us in Ephesians 2:15:
by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace.
We believers, like Israel, have several promises given to us. You recall that I indicated that the most important promise of God to Israel concerned the coming of Messiah through them. We also have a promise of the second coming of Jesus Christ who promised to come and take us to a heavenly home He is now preparing for us as stated in John 14:2–3:
2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
Jesus Christ promised and did fulfill His promise of sending the Holy Spirit. Hence, we have the advantage of the Holy Spirit indwelling each believer and indwelling the church cooperatively, as we may gather from 1 Corinthians 3:16:
Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?
The indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the believer means that we have the advantage of our lives being guided and directed by the Holy Spirit as implied in Romans 8:9:
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
It is because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that believers are commanded to conduct their lives in accordance with the leading of the Spirit as stated in Galatians 5:16:
So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
If believers are controlled by the Holy Spirit, they have the advantage of manifesting the fruit of the Spirit as described in Galatians 5:22–23:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
In any event, it is advantageous to be a Christian because of the many advantages such a person enjoys that are not available to unbelievers. Let me close by reminding you one more time the message of the section we have studied, which is that You have the privilege of God’s word in written form and are the beneficiary of His faithfulness. So, go home and behave like one with this privilege and benefit.
02/06/26