Reprint of March 17, 2016 - Initiator Versus Responder

I have also decided to reprint the following article as I think it may be worthy of your consideration (and because my time has been so limited by my role as "nanny" to my 2 year old granddaughter and helping her and my daughter move in with us the last few months.  June

Thursday, March 17, 2016

INITIATOR VERSUS RESPONDER

Parenting and Responsibility:
Ephesians 6:1-4 “Children, under-listen (Greek: hupokouete) [pay attention to] your parents in the Master (Greek: Kurios – Owner, Supreme Ruler, Lord), for this is right.  Value/regard as precious your father and your mother…that you may live long on the earth.  And fathers: Do not bring your children towards anger/impulsiveness, but out of [your spiritual] strength/health, give them instruction and place understanding in their minds, of the Master (Greek: Kurios – Owner, Supreme Ruler, Lord).”

Marriage and Responsibility:
Ephesians 5:24, 33 "Wives, hupostassesthe – “arrange/set yourself under”/["reverence"] your husband"..."each one of you [husbands] must love (agape) his wife as he loves (agapes) himself.”

God and Responsibility: 1 John 4:19 “…we love Him [God] since/because He first loved us.”


Parenting

In most translations, the word, hupokouete, (“under-listen”) is translated as “obey” and would make the scripture appear to address children volitionally controlling their behavior.  But looking at the original Greek for a number of key words in the passage, the admonition to the children is more appropriately seen as their having a particular attitude of attentiveness toward their parents (of course, that attitude would undoubtedly ripple out to the child’s behavior).  But as the scripture unfolds, this attitude can be more correctly seen as a response to the instruction from the foundation of the spiritual health/strength of the father.   The father being the first cause, or initiator, the child being the responder.

Marriage
This process is similar to the responsive nature of the wife in relationship to the nature of the husband as initiator. (Ephesians 5: 24) Wives, hupostassesthe – “arrange/set yourself under” your husband and (Ephesians 5:33) “reverence” the husband.  This is a God ordained, natural response in the wife when the husband, as initiator, “must love (agape) his wife as he loves(agapes) himself.” (Ephesians 5:33) 

Unless the husband is acting as a spiritually healthy/strong initiator by fulfilling his role in loving his wife as himself, the wife’s ordained nature as responder is not able to fulfill its ordained function.  So, although there may be superficial “submission” by the wife, there cannot be “reverence” for the husband as the God given response which would be naturally forthcoming if the husband were performing his God-ordained function as the agape initiator.

Loving God - Whose Responsibility?
This process is also mirrored in the responsive nature built into humans by God that we “…love God since He first loved us.”  When God as initiator, persuades (peitho – the Greek root for the word pisteuo that is commonly translated as “faith”), the built-in, God ordained response in the human is to reverence and long for fellowship and life with a Creator.  Once the Creator persuades the human that the human is perfectly loved (agape – cared about and for) and perfectly cared for and about by a Creator who exists, the human has been formed/wired to respond naturally in that way to The Ultimate Initiator.

Initiator and Responder in Bringing the Good News of Salvation for ALL
When each of us who has been persuaded by The Divine Initiator and is matured/refined by Him to come from a place of spiritual health/strength, through the knowledge that He gives us of Himself (absolute sovereignty, love, wisdom, omniscience and omnipotence over all His works with the irresistible plan formed before the beginning of time for all humanity to be with Him in joyful fellowship throughout eternity), other human beings will “respond” to our joy, our priority of God’s eternal destiny for us rather than priorities of this world, and acceptance of all other humans as the work of God’s Hand.  They will not need to be ordered or threatened to be drawn to Him; they will want what we have and want the knowledge of it in order to possess the joy and hope that we have in this painful world.  In other words, the Divine Initiator, working through us as His Initiator Tools/Vehicles here on earth, generates the response of love (agape) of Him in those humans that he has ordained to recognize Him, through His work in us, in this life. 

After death, for those that He has not ordained to "see" Him here, He again is in the role of Direct Initiator, having ordained that they will know Him and respond to Him in that timing. 

Conclusion:

·         It is the responsibility/role of God to initiate; to persuade each and every human that He exists and that He loves (agape) him/her.  Hebrews 12:2 “Jesus, the author/beginner and completer/finisher of our persuasion (faith)”.  Once God fulfills that role in the life of each human being, the human, in natural, God ordained/wired response will desire to return that love (agape), give reverence to the Beloved, and exhibit that love (agape) in his/her life.

·         It is the responsibility/role of the husband to persuade the wife that he loves (agape) her as he loves (agape) himself; once the husband fulfills the role as initiator, the wife, ordained/fashioned/wired as a responder, will desire to place herself under her husband and show reverence of him – there will be no need for her to “submit” as a matter of duty, she has been formed for that to be her pleasure.

·         It is the role of the father (earthly parent) for God to keep him in such a strong/healthy spiritual condition in his relationship to God, that he, as initiator will instruct his children in the nature/character of that Master/Supreme Ruler/Owner/Lord as Absolute Love (Care), Absolute Wisdom, absolute Sovereignty over all that occurs, that responsively, the child’s attitude will be one of “under listening”/paying attention to and regarding the parent as having precious value in helping them to “live long on the earth”.

·         It is the role (and joy) that God has ordained for those of us who have been “persuaded” by Him into the hope and promise of eternal life with Him for ALL humanity, to model that joy and hope and promise to anyone that God brings to us so that He uses us to ordain their response in His way and in His time, including after this life.

But God is The First Cause/Initiator, for all of these results.  When we do not see human responses occurring in the way or the timing that our earthly eyes desire/expect, our peace is dependent on our trust of His Ways and His Timing and His Perfect Irresistible Outcome.

June

Reprint of March 22, 2016 1,500 Years of Mistranslation and Misinterpretation

Because I have been quite busy being "nanny" to my two year old granddaughter and helping her and my daughter move in with us, the last few months, I have not had the time to write and post additional articles that I might have liked (if I didn't Trust that God's timing is Perfect).  So I have reprinted one of my early articles below that I think is particularly useful & important for study.  There are several others I will likely reprint soon? also:) 

Still Rejoicing for All,  June

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

1,500 YEARS OF MISTRANSLATION AND MISINTERPRETATION

So many key words and phrases in the translations of the Bible since the dark ages do not carry the meaning that was present in the original languages (Hebrew – Old Testament; Greek – New Testament).
Historically and currently they have been translated with the prejudice toward the expectation of a punitive, exclusionary god.  To understand the original message of the Bible, it is important to not only take into consideration “the full counsel of the scriptures” (rather than taking passages or words in isolation), but to go to the meanings in the original language with translation and interpretation using first, God’s nature/character, and then the necessary ripples from that nature and character to His plan and purposes for man and for the entire of His creation.

GLOSSARY OF KEY WORDS AND PHRASES FROM THE ORIGINAL HEBREW AND GREEK

 

To more clearly understand the scriptures without the prejudices of translators since the dark ages clouding the original meaning, it is of utmost importance to go to the original languages – Hebrew (OT) and Greek (NT).  This is particularly important for the word “hell”, which has been sorely mistranslated and misinterpreted, likely for at least 1500 years.  There is only one Hebrew word in the OT - “Sheol” – that has been translated as “hell”, and has an original meaning completely different than the interpretations that have been historically attached to it.
 
The 3 words in the New Testament that have been (mis)translated and further misinterpreted as “hell” in the Greek are: 1) Hades; 2) Gehenna; 3) Tartarus. 

PLEASE take special note below of the actual meaning of the words in the original languages which are listed below as part of a larger glossary of important words/phrases.
 
Important (poorly translated and interpreted) words and phrases in OT Hebrew:

Sheol – meaning ONLY the grave, pit or hidden place

Olam – The Hebrew word “olam” literally means "beyond the horizon" and signifies only an indefinite period of time, dependent on what it is referring to but often mistranslated as “eternal”. Example: Jonah was in the body of the whale 3 days (Olam time period)

YHWH – I AM Always AM; I AM Who has Always Existed. (in Hebrew, the letters used for God’s name were “breath sounds”.  Likely misinterpreted as that YHWH was too “holy” to utter – but instead being synonymous with the sound of breathing – the spirit of God being similar in function to wind and breath, parallel references to this being substantiated in numerous places in both the Old and New Testaments.

UNFORTUNATELY, in almost all translations since the original Hebrew, the actual name with which God identified Himself to Moses (Exodus 3: 13-15) as a “memorial name (nature/character)" to the people of Israel, was taken out of the translations, and the word “LORD” (in capital letters), was put in its place throughout the Old Testament, stripping it of the meaning that God Himself assigned to it.

Using His "memorial name", God defined many "nuances" of His nature to the Israelites: I AM Always AM: Your Strong Tower, Your Banner, Your Provider, Your Healer, Your Shepherd, Your Righteousness, Your Peace, Your Light, Your Savior, Your Rock, and I AM Always AM There -  As well as many others.

Shm - In Hebrew: the word shm means “Name” – and signifies, not primarily the verbal letters making up a “name”, but the nature/character/essence of someone/something.  Hence, God’s “name” was not just the verbal word assigned to Him, it was a specific representation of His essence that translators have consistently stripped away by substituting the word LORD rather than the actual “Name” that God communicated of “I AM Always AM”.  Even most "literal" translations, that support Universal Reconciliation/Universal Salvation, generally continue this sad substitution. 

Similarly, in the New Testament, when we are enjoined to pray in the "name" of Jesus, it does not mean to simply mention his verbal name at the end of the prayer: "in the name of Jesus".  It means more accurately praying in HIS NATURE/CHARACTER...a very different meaning!  "Whatever you ask, ask it in my nature/character ." Hmmmm...quite a higher standard and meaning.
 
Important (poorly translated/interpreted) words and phrases in NT Greek:
 
Hades – The first word in the New Testament translated as "hell" is consistent with the OT “Sheol”, meaning only the grave, pit or hidden place; the word Hades, a word that was borrowed by the translators from Greek mythology, with the implications of a conscious afterlife in an "underworld" that the word "Sheol" never conveyed.

Gehenna/Ge Hinnon (the Valley of Hinnon) – The second word in the New Testament translated as "hell" is Gehenna and refers to the Valley of Hinnon that was the dumpsite outside of Jerusalem where the garbage was burned.  Matthew 5: 21-22 “…anyone who says [to his brother], ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of Gehenna [the local trash dump]”.  To understand this accurately, it is important to look at many references to “fire” in the scriptures, and what God’s/Christ’s intent is in putting us through “fire” in this lifetime.  “Our God is a consuming fire”; “the refiner’s fire”; “I have refined, though not as silver; I have tested (purified, chosen, placed you in) the furnace of affliction.” Isaiah 48:10 (There are numerous other scriptures supportive of this interpretation).  Another event correlating to the "refiner's fire" but with another analogy was between Jesus and Peter, regarding Peter's upcoming denial "a cock will not crow today before you deny me three times": in  Luke 22:31 Jesus says to Peter “Satan has asked for you, to sift you as wheat..."ie putting the person in a situation that will be used to separate the worthless chaff from the useful and valuable core of the wheat.

I believe an excellent case can be made that this life,  is “the Valley of the Shadow of Death”and is indeed the “burning dump” that ALL of us must experience in order to be “refined”, and come out on the other end in the image of our God and Savior.
 
Tartarus – the third word in the New Testament translated as "hell" is a word in Greek described in (2 Peter 2:4) "For if God did not spare the angels who "missed the mark" ["sinned"/rebelled] but  committed to chains of gloomy darkness (not necessarily physical darkness or conscious awareness), thrust them down into Tartarus to be kept until/toward the "judgement" (“krino” - His righteous, fair, loving, decision - the more accurate literal meaning for the word, "judgement").  And 1 Peter 3: 18-19 "Because even Christ  once suffered concerning "missing the mark" (poor translation - "sins") , the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God. Indeed being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit in which also, going in to the spirits in prison He then proclaimed to disobeying ones."  And Ephesians 4:7-10 "But to each one of us was given grace ("free gift") according to the measure of the gift of Christ.  Therefore, He says, 'Having gone up on high, He led captivity captive and gave gifts to men.' - but what is it except that He also first came down into the lower parts of the earth?" Taking the scriptures along with the God's repeatedly stated intent and purpose: "I will accomplish all my good pleasure." "My servant will accomplish ?all for which I sent Him."  "God is not willing that any should perish." it appears that during the three days in the grave, Jesus "descended" and brought the spirits who had rebelled [fallen angels] into heaven when he "ascended", applying His completed work to them also. 

Apollumi - From the Greek preposition, apo meaning, “away from” plus the Greek word for whole, entire, complete, ‘olos or literally: completely away from.  Often variations of this word have been historically translated as: to destroy or be destroyed; to kill, be killed or perish.  But the same word can also be translated as: set aside, bring to nothing, tear down, cause to stumble or stumble, to make weak, to be lost/stray, to ruin or bring to ruin, waste. 

An example of the lost/stray use is: Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost.” (apollumi)
Similarly:  Apoluo: As above, from the Greek preposition apo, meaning “away from” plus the Greek word luo meaning “I loose, untie, release, set free” is a similar word that has also often been historically translated as “destroy”

For additional insight into another use of the preposition apo it is also may be useful to consider the word aspostello, (apo plus stello), meaning “I send out” from which the word apostellos is derived, which is historically translated as “apostles” – often referring to the twelve apostles. So, it can be seen that being sent “away from” or “out” may have positive meanings, including when being sent “away from” for a time is part of the “refining” and building process and NOT necessarily a destructive process.  Even combined with the word aionian, which has been frequently mistranslated, with great harm, as “eternal” but is literally “for a time” – and only when it modifies a noun that is without beginning or end – only God ((I AM Always AM) and life in Him does it mean without beginning or end (see discussion of aionian below).

Aion/aionian – Consistently mistranslated as “eternal” from the original Greek.  Literally meaning “age-long” or “time lasting” and is an article similar to “olam” in the OT, referring to an indefinite time period, dependent for its meaning on what noun or situation it modifies. Example: So if aionian refers to God, whose nature is unending, aionian derives from the nature of the noun, God, and does mean ETERNAL God, but only since God’s nature is eternal.  But if the adjective modifies a word whose nature is other than eternal, it is a specified, limited time period, based on the noun and context.

Kolasis – Most often mistranslated as “punishment”, the Greek root of "kolasis" means "cutting off," as in pruning a tree. One prunes a tree to make it PRODUCE MORE FRUIT, not to kill it! 
 
Aionian kolasis – In the KJV and many other translations – mistakenly translated “eternal punishment”.  The most direct translation would be related to “kolasis” above and accurately translated as “pruning for a time” again to bear more fruit!  What a difference accurate translation from the original languages makes!!!

Krino – to decide; to separate; to make a distinction between (one option versus another option); to determine. In translations after the original Greek the word generally was translated as “judgement” and acquired the negative connotation of a “negative” judgement/decision, rather than the actual meaning of an issue being “decided” – having neither positive nor negative inference as to what the decision would be/was.

Kurios – Owner, master, sovereign, supreme ruler, potentate, lord. This word has also been diluted when translated as “LORD” in the New Testament to which we have come to attach primarily the idea of deity (which it did not have in the original language) rather than authority.  A helpful historical context would be that in Feudal times, the “lord” of the land was the “owner” and “master” with absolute and ultimate authority over his possessions – NOT the deity of the possession.  Try out replacing the word “LORD” with the word “Owner” in the scriptures that use it and see how much more power it has.

Kakos – Generally translated as “evil”, having picked up a much more negative connotation than exists in the original Greek word which means: Of poor quality or disposition, worthless, suffering, misery, affliction (r/t illness, sickness, trouble, and calamity)

Pisteuo – The Greek word translated as “faith”, is derived from the Greek root word, “peitho”, literally “I persuade”, wonderfully putting the responsibility for our being “persuaded” to trust God and act on that trust where it belongs – on God Himself.  “…Jesus (I AM Saves), the author and finisher of our faith.” Hebrews 12:2; “The true light that gives light to every man coming into the world.” John 1:9; John 3:16 …”whoever is persuaded into me will not remain untied/unloosed but have eternal life.”

Eis – into (as opposed to the Greek word en – meaning inside of, within).
 
Helkouo – to drag (with sufficient force that whatever is being “dragged” is unable to resist that force).  Often translated as "draw", which does not have the strength and irresistibility of the actual Greek word.

Pur, puros – fire. “but I say to you anyone who says to his brother “Fool” (better translated as "Worthless") will be in danger of the fire of Ge Hinnon (Valley of Hinnon, the trash dump outside of Jerusalem – and earlier site of sacrifice of their children, which God later Forbid).” Matthew 5: 22  Does it make sense that Jesus would use the term Ge Hinnon to warn that God’s children would be eternally “sacrificed” OR that he warned of the refining process that would be necessary for everyone since “there is none righteous, no not one” (except for Jesus who was God incarnate into human flesh).
 
Peirasmon - "tested/tried" - Referring to the process used by goldsmiths of placing the ore into the crucible and heating it to cause the impurities to be burned away…until the goldsmith can see his own image in the purified gold.  Incorrectly translated as “tempted” in the “Lord’s Prayer” Matthew 6:13. And in many scriptures as “tormented”, etc. Similar to the Greek, doikimos, also meaning "brought to proof, tested for purity, assayed" and also poorly translated as "tempted", "trials", and even "tormented", etc.
 
Psuche – life of the individual, self, soul; this is the mortal “personhood”, mind, personality and should NOT be confused with the Greek word, “pneuma” meaning spirit/breath. We get our English word "psychology" from this word - the study of the mind.
 
Soma – the physical body

'Agios - generally left in most translations from the King James version as "holy" rather than going to the literal original meaning in the Greek: "set apart for special use" and the traditional translation of 'agion as "saints" rather than as "set apart ones.  So, when something is (traditional word) "holy" as in "holy ground" "holy scriptures/writings", "holy ones" it is only saying that God has set something apart for a "special" or "unique" purpose.  AND when we see this as "Holy God", who is completely "set apart" and "unique" from ALL of His creation, we understand the word and implication, rather than the traditional mistranslation that seems to endow the thing that it modified with special righteousness or goodness, which is NOT included in the word.  Therefore EACH of us is "holy" since each of us are "set apart" and "unique" for the special purpose that God has for EACH of us as His individual tool.  And, similarly, each of us are "saints" - not inferring special privilege or powers or approval, but only meaning that we are "unique/set apart" from each of His other tools in the purpose He has ordained for each of us.

Kosmos –world; universe

Tetelestai – Jesus last words on the cross before giving up his spirit/breath. “It is finished/perfected/completed/repaid” John 19:30

I am not an expert in the Hebrew or Greek languages, but I have studied for many years and have found that, even with an elementary understanding, a Greek lexicon, an Interlinear English-Hebrew-Greek Bible, the God that I hoped might be there is there in the words of the original languages.   In other posts I hope to expand on some of the specific words, phrases, concepts, doctrines and "parables" that would seem to indicate other than an ordained perfect joyful eternal ending for ALL humanity!...And additional resources that you may find helpful. 

June

The Logic of Illogical Joy: James 1:2

James 1:2 "See/regard/visualize/consider it as  ALL pure joy/occasions for rejoicing/gladness, my brothers, whenever you fall into various purifications [Refiner's Fire], because you know that the purifying of your persuasion [of who God really is, - HIS responsibility to accomplish - Hebrews 12:3] develops patient waiting.  Patient waiting must complete its work, that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything [in your being formed into His image]."

In our humanity it seems quite illogical to have joy/gladness about things that are painful in life and in ourselves (pain, scarcity, disease, death, wars, brutality, etc. etc.) but James 1:2 enjoins us to "see/regard/visualize/consider it ALL pure joy/gladness".  So how is it logical to do so (and how can one be able to do so)?

I find that the tool of visualizing all that I see and experience in my life and all that I see in the world within the context of it ALL being from the Hand of The Wise, All-Powerful Creator who IS LOVE (agape: Gr. perfect caring about and for) makes it logical to be content and even be glad about everything that exists, since ALL has been brought into existence/ordained by Him. 

There are various tools that develop my expertise at visualizing ALL from Him:  Scripture reading & study, other inspirational literature, inspirational music, dancing, singing, fellowship and encouragement from others, reaching out to others to tell them the really good news.  Different tools will minister more strongly to each person.  You will find what works for YOU and finding what supports your development of your "vision" by experimenting and Him showing you what He has designed that speaks to your heart.

Our evaluation of what occurs in our life and in the world is primarily and understandably oriented to our "fleshly"/earthbound human needs, fears, pains (as ordained by Him as part of His process for each of us as individuals.

It takes practice to develop the orientation that all that we see in ourselves and in this world is God working out His will of creating a race of spiritual, eternal beings (ALL humanity) that will be his "bride", his companion, one with Him through eternity.

2 Corinthians 4:18 "so we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are earthly/temporary; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

Isaiah 45:6-7 "I am the I AM Always AM and there is NO other.  Forming light AND creating darkness; causing well -being AND creating calamity.  I am the I AM Always Am who does ALL these.

Psalm 131:2 "I have calmed and quieted my soul (being/personhood).  Like a young (weaned) child in its mother's arms, I am content."

Once we have strengthened this practice, this kind of vision, it is LOGICAL to have contentment and, yes, at times even joy as we see His Hand as giving ALL.

• How good is your spiritual vision in this way?
• How do you support it becoming stronger?
• Are there any exceptions in you or in your life to seeing ALL as His gift (often in very difficult packages for our "fleshly" selves)? Can you look at ALL that is painful or difficult for you or the world and practice putting it in this context?
• How can you improve your vision that ALL is from Him (what speaks to you to build this up in you)?

It's very O.K.  - in fact part of the process of what He has Ordained for your creation into His image - for you to go back & forth in this process (pushups of falling into the "flesh" and pushing up into the spiritual view.  When you are angry, despairing, questioning, "sinful" (Greek: missing the mark of His perfection) about what you see/experience in "the flesh", that is part of His perfect process ordained for you individually also.  And it is important to praise Him for all of what you don't like in yourself also, another way of reinforcing your contentment/joy in even that, seeing nothing as outside of His ordained perfect will and timing in each of our formation.  Isaiah 64:8 "But O I AM Always Am, You are our Father.  We are the clay and you the Former (Potter) and the work of Your Hand are we ALL":).

June

"ALL You Have Made WILL Praise You" Psalm 145

The scripture I want to bring to you this morning is Psalm 145. As I often do, I will substitute the more accurate translation of words such as the inaccurate LORD for the accurate translation of God's personal "name" (nature/character/essence) that He gave to Moses - YHWH: I AM ALWAYS AM - and subsequently combined with other modifiers to express various aspects of His nature (Ex: I AM ALWAYS AM  Healer - YHWH Rapha). Although YHWH occurs over 5,000 times in the Old Testament, it is consistently replaced with the capitalized word, LORD, which is not its translation in the Hebrew.  In a few translations the word Jehovah is substituted.  But this is just a poor attempt in English to sound similar to the Hebrew word, but, again, is not the translation and therefore, omits the original meaning given by God.

Psalm 145

¹ I will exalt you, my God the King;
    I will praise your name (nature/character/essence) for ever and ever.
² Every day I will praise you
    and extol your name (nature/character/essence) for ever and ever.

³ Great is the I AM Always AM and most worthy of praise;
    his greatness no one can fathom.
⁴ One generation commends your works to another;
    they tell of your mighty acts.
⁵ They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—
    and I will meditate on your wonderful works.
⁶ They tell of the power of your awesome works—
    and I will proclaim your great deeds.
⁷ They celebrate your abundant goodness
    and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

⁸ The I AM Always AM is gracious and compassionate,
    slow to anger and rich in love.

⁹ The I AM Always AM is good to all;
    he has compassion on all he has made.
¹⁰ All your works praise you, I AM Always AM;
    your faithful people extol you.
¹¹ They tell of the glory of your kingdom
    and speak of your might,
¹² so that all people may know of your mighty acts
    and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
¹³ Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
    and your dominion endures through all generations.

The I AM Always AM is trustworthy in all he promises
    and faithful in all he does.
¹⁴ The I AM Always AM upholds all who fall
    and lifts up all who are bowed down.
¹⁵ The eyes of all look to you,
    and you give them their food at the proper time.
¹⁶ You open your hand
    and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

¹⁷ The I AM Always AM is righteous in all his ways
    and faithful in all he does.
¹⁸ The I AM Always AM is near to all who call on him,
    to all who call on him in truth.
¹⁹ He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
    he hears their cry and saves them.
²⁰ The I AM Always AM watches over all who love him,
    but all the wicked he will destroy.

²¹ My mouth will speak in praise of the I AM Always AM.

    Let every creature praise his holy name (nature/character/essence)

    for ever and ever.

 

Since I find universal reconciliation and eternal life completely substantiated in the scriptures, some of the verses that are particularly dear to me are:

• ⁹ The I AM Always AM is good to all;
      he has compassion on all he has made. [Since everything including all men are His Handiwork - Isaiah 64:8 -  it is completely logical and just that He should have compassion on all that He has made.]
• ¹⁰ All your works praise you, I AM Always AM; [Since our judgments are earthbound and our perception of what is "good" and "bad" proceed from that, we do not generally comprehend that all works are ultimately His works but for HIS eternal purposes. Those things that we interpret as "bad" occurrences, we do not see as "praising" Him.  But again, it is the limitation of our understanding in not yet being able to comprehend that everything that occurs IS PRAISING HIM.] 
• ¹⁴ The I AM Always AM upholds all who fall
      and lifts up all who are bowed down. [Since He is the one who ordains everything for His ultimate purposes, of course it is His responsibility to uphold what He sovereignly ordained to fall and lift up all who He caused to be "bowed down".]
• ¹⁵ The eyes of all look to you,
      and you give them their food at the proper time. [Here "their food" is everything anything that He created needs to attain His ultimate loving, eternal purpose for it/them - that of existing with Him in fellowship and joy eternally.  The "proper time" is echoed in Ecclesiastes 3:2 " There is an appointed time for every purpose under heaven.]
• ¹⁶ You open your hand
      and satisfy the desires of every living thing. [The most basic desire of every living thing is to exist AND to exist in comfort and joy - in whatever way that being/entity experiences joy.  We may be surprised in eternity how algae, snails, and leaves experience "joy".  We certainly have the example in scripture of creation "praising", "singing" and the trees "clapping their hands".  How limited our imaginations here are of what eternal fellowship and communication will look like when it arrives.]

And as you see above, I have substituted the word "name" for its fuller Hebrew meaning of nature/character/essence.  Check out my blog article on the implications in both the Old and New Testament of the fuller meaning of the word "name" in the scriptures (2/17/17, 2/28/17


Still Rejoicing for ALL,
June

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Day by Day Hymn 1865

The following hymn, originally written in Sweden in 1865 by Lina Sandell and subsequently translated into English  by A.L. Skoog, encourages me that this life is very difficult, but is from  the Hand of a wise and loving heavenly Father who "Gives to each day what He deems best".  For my human experience, this is most often painful.  But is logical taken into the promises of "the refiner's fire"  (Our God is a consuming fire; God is Love) that are making us each into a unique expression of His image, based our formation by Him via our genetics and life experiences.  And I have no "proof" that God even exists.  But my heart and logic comfort me that visioning life in this way is the only way to experience "serenity" in the process.  Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous: "and I can have no serenity until I accept every person (especially me), thing, situation as exactly as it is supposed to be at the moment.  Nothing, absolutely nothing, happens in God's world by mistake."

Day By Day 1865

Day by day and with each passing moment,
Strength I find to meet my trials here;
Trusting in my Father's wise bestowment,
I've no cause for worry or for fear.
He whose heart is kind beyond all measure
Gives unto each day what He deems best--
Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure,
Mingling toil with peace and rest.

Ev'ry day the Lord Himself is near me
With a special mercy for each hour;
All my cares He fain would bear, and cheer me,
He whose name is Counselor and Pow'r.
The protection of His child and treasure
Is a charge that on Himself He laid;
"As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,"
This the pledge to me He made.

Help me then in eve'ry tribulation
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith's sweet consolation
Offered me within Thy holy Word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E'er to take, as from a father's hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.

Still Rejoicing for ALL,

June

I Am Perfect and My Pathway is Perfect Because HE is Perfect

In the past I have spent significant time on each of my theological blog posts.  As I have shared, for the past two years, God has added responsibilities (death of my son-in-law and more involvement with my daughter and their two children; late-life-baby for my other daughter for whom I have become "nanny" every other week) to my "perfect path" that are HIS priorities over and above my having as much time to add to my blog.  So I am going to experiment with doing shorter blog entries, likely based on a scripture He has brought, if and as He ordains.

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This first attempt is based on a scripture He gave this morning: Psalm 18:31-32 "For who is God besides the I AM Always AM?  And who is the Rock except our God?  It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect."

The second has a similar core concept: Matthew 5:48 "You are perfect since your Father in heaven is perfect."

And a supporting scripture: Isaiah 64:8 But O I AM Always AM, You are our Father; we are the clay and you the Former (Potter) and the work of Your Hand are we ALL."

So, from a human/material perspective our "paths" do not "appear" perfect.  And from a human perspective we do not "appear" perfect.  But if God is there, having ordained His creation of each of us and path for each of us, for HIS purposes, our paths are perfect at every point AND we, as HIS "pots" are perfect at every point in His formation of us to His ultimate end of each of us uniquely reflecting His image. 

Our judgments of what is even "good" are almost always based on our human evaluation of what we and our "path" looks like.  Which is understandable since, for this time period HE has limited our vision and understanding.  1 Corinthians 13:12 "For now we see through a glass, darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; but then shall I know, even as also I am known."

But He asks us to see everything as given by HIM for His ultimate purposes in eternity and in ALL of us.  AND He asks us to see each and every human being as having been given a perfect path for His purposes and being perfect for His purposes.

Isaiah 46:10 "My purpose will be established and I will accomplish ALL my good pleasure."

Still Rejoicing for ALL,

June