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Why is it so important that a pastor learn the ORIGINAL LANGUAGES
OF SCRIPTURE?
There is much confusion among Bible-believing Christians because so
many pastors have not learned the original languages of scripture and
do not see the importance of knowing them. However, the Bible was not
written in the English language, but in Hebrew and Aramaic in the Old
Testament, and in the Koine Greek in the New Testament, so the meaning
of words being translated from one language to another often causes a
problem in interpretation.
Without a knowledge of the original languages of
scripture, much false doctrine is being taught and many cults have
developed through a misunderstanding of what the scriptures actually
say. For example, the Koine Greek has a tense for verbs called the
AORIST tense that we do not have in our English grammar. It can
refer to something that occurs just once as in |
Acts 16:31: " BELIEVE in the
Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved", and it means ONCE AND FOR
ALL. Without knowing the aorist tense was used by God the Holy
Spirit who is the author of scripture, many people are under the false
impression that they can lose their salvation. There is also a PERFECT
tense which indicates continuous action of the verb BELIEVE, and it
says we must keep on doing something.
The foregoing information is just a very small sample
to show why grammar is so important. In our day and age, the
importance of grammar is generally not stressed in our schools or in
our society in general, but it can make a great deal of difference
when it comes to the communication of God's Word, so we all need to
'bone-up' on our grammar.
One lesson I learned in English classes in school many
years ago that has always been very important in my own life is how to
CONJUGATE a verb. The dictionary give the following meaning of the
word: "to cover the various changes of a verb according to its voice,
mood, tense, number and person."
A verb may be used in a sentence to denote either
ACTION or BEING. It isn't really hard to identify action words like
JUMP, SWIM, CATCH, etc., but when our English teacher taught us how to
conjugate the verb TO BE, I never fully understood how vitally
important that verb was until I became a student of the Bible, and I
hope the following explanation of the verb will be helpful in your
understanding the character of God:The verb "TO BE" is conjugated
as follows:
SINGULAR
PLURAL
l am
you are
you are
we are
he, she or it is
they are
The very first word in the singular column is the most
interesting, because "I AM" is a name that God calls Himself, and it
means PERFECT EXISTENCE ... God has always existed, and there never
was a time when He did not exist.
When God spoke to Moses from a burning bush and
commissioned him to deliver the Children of Israel from Egyptian
slavery, Moses objected and said, 'Who am I that I should go to
Pharaoh and ask him to set the people free?" God replied, "You shall
say to the Children of Israel that I AM has sent you to them." Then
Moses asked, "How shall I answer when they ask for Your name?" God
repeated, "You shall say to the Children of Israel that I AM has sent
you to them ... I AM THAT I AM!"
Jesus Christ is both God and Man in one person forever.
During a discussion with some very religious men, Jesus told them that
He knew Abraham. They laughed and said to Him, "You aren't yet forty
years old ... how can you say you know Abraham?" Jesus replied,
"Listen carefully to my words ... before Abraham existed, I AM!" They
understood perfectly that He was telling them He was eternal God, so
they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid himself and
passed through their midst. (John 8:36-59)
In John 10:22-30 another group of religious unbelievers
surrounded Him in the temple during the Feast of Dedication and
demanded that He tell them in plain words who He was. Jesus said, "I
have told you before who I AM, but you do not believe My words nor do
you believe the works I perform in My Father's name. I and My Father
are ONE." They understood that He was claiming to be God in flesh, so
they picked up stones to throw at Him, but He miraculously escaped out
of their hands.
Throughout the Bible there are hundreds of scriptures
which prove that the Lord Jesus Christ is GOD and MAN in one person
forever.. God the Son became a man in order to die on a cross as our
substitute and pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world.
"THERE IS NO OTHER NAME UNDER HEAVEN GIVEN AMONG MEN WHEREBY WE
MUST BE SAVED." (Acts 4:12) Therefore, "BELIEVE IN THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST AND YOU WILL BE SAVED." (Acts 16:31)
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