Wannabefree...guess what I got in the mail today!?!?!?!?

[Wannabefree]

Just letting you know that I am going to back track on your journal a bit when I have time. I don't read alot of journals, (consisitently) but I have alwasy been interested in the languages used in the bible, and the true meanings of scripture as they relat/translate to the original language used. Beth Moore gets into the origninal languages quite a bit, and it is so helpful.

Our women's bible study uses a lot of Beth Moore's materials. The old languages are incredible tools.

 

[Wannabefree]

Greek word monogenes. Translation "only begotten." It could also mean "unique." In the Greek-English Lexicon it is stated as having two primary definitions. One is.. "pertaining to being the only one of its kind or class, unique in kind." The other..
"only," "one and only," and "only begotten."

If Jesus is God's only begotten Son, then what does this mean? Is He a unique son, or the only son? I use the argument that Adam was God's son as well, so therefore the word "only" would not fit. Maybe Jesus was God's "unique" son. He, Christ, can very much live up to that definition of being "the only one of His kind or class, unique in kind." Who else died for our sins? Nobody. Animals had previously, but never a man.

Also note that son's translation is descendant. The word says Jesus is the Son of David as well, also the Son of Man...a descendant of the genetic line of David, who was a son of Abraham and so on. Son of man, and Son of God. Descended of both. The Greek word for Son is heios.

monogenes heios could be translated simply as "unique descendant." The virgin birth, the Spirit of God descending on Christ in the form of a dove when He was brought out of the baptismal waters support the fact that He and God had a very unique relationship. The English word son is used in translation to note the significance of the uniqueness of their relationship. It equates the importance of their bond in our language. The uniqueness of Christs birth is enough to tell me He was sent by God.

We are all son's and daughters, descendants, of our God. Jesus the Christ was a unique descendant, a promised son from generations back to Abraham in the covenant. He was God in the flesh, through virgin birth not tainted by the blood of man, instead conceived by the ultimate power of our God, and the Spirit of God rested on Him. He was the promise of freedom from perpetual animal sacrifice. A once and for all sacrifice for our sins. Without Him, none of us could be saved. When the Christ arrived, the Abrahamic era sacrifices were nullified and no one could come to the Father but through Christ. Christ is a turning point, the unique cornerstone, on which our faith must be built. Christ put God's covenant with man on an eternal level. The blood of the Messiah is all that is required to wash our sins. No animal blood is good enough any more, nor necessary. God made it personal.

Before, we could do pretty much what we wanted and spill the blood of an innocent animal to make up for it. My theory is that isn't what God wanted. He wanted a personal relationship with each one of us. How personal is it to kill a lamb when you have flocks of thousands? I'd venture a guess to say...not very personal. God wants our closeness, and our love, as much as He gives of Himself to us. I can't say I can find fault in that. I want the same from my children. We all have charachteristics of God, we are made in His image. I don't wish for my children to know(gnosis) me, they already know I am mom, I wish for them to know (epignosis) me. I enjoy the closeness. I think God wants the same, so He sent a unique Son or descendant, to be that sacrificial Lamb of God, to further our understanding of how serious He is about a relationship. Jesus is my hero!

My brain is spent for now...out of juice Hope this is making sense to those who are enjoying reading it. I'm going somewhere with it....I'll let ya know when I know!!

 

[Denim Deb]

I don't like the translation one and only in describing Jesus as the Son of God. After all, those of us that are Christians are called the children of God, and if children, then heirs and joint heirs w/Christ. We cannot be His children if Jesus is the one and only child of God.

I believe the word mongenes is also used of Issac. And, we know he wasn't the only son. There was also Ishmael, and Abraham married again after Sarah died. I don't know off the top of my head how many children he had by his second wife.

So, the word monogenes cannot mean one and only. It is a deeper meaning than that. I have some notes written down on it somewhere, but not sure where off the top of my head. I looked it up for some reason a few years ago.

 

[BarredBuff]

I love these revelations you get!

 

[Wannabefree]

I don't like the translation one and only in describing Jesus as the Son of God. After all, those of us that are Christians are called the children of God, and if children, then heirs and joint heirs w/Christ. We cannot be His children if Jesus is the one and only child of God.

I believe the word mongenes is also used of Issac. And, we know he wasn't the only son. There was also Ishmael, and Abraham married again after Sarah died. I don't know off the top of my head how many children he had by his second wife.

So, the word monogenes cannot mean one and only. It is a deeper meaning than that. I have some notes written down on it somewhere, but not sure where off the top of my head. I looked it up for some reason a few years ago.

SHARE WITH ME!! LOL! Pleeeassssseee! That was totally my point. The word son is simply too flat. It was definately a spiritual relationship, not much like son in our language at all which is simplistic physical relationship only. My husband did bring up a good point this morning when I was discussing this with him. The Hebrews used the word son as descendant as well but the closeness of the relationship of the FIRST son to the father was a bit different, the first son was more like, for lack of better wording a "near clone" of the father. If Jesus was a "near clone" being completely God in spirit, by being the "son" of God, yet totally the "son" of man physically, then that is perfect explanation for WHO and WHAT Jesus is in my opinion. It is a deeper meaning description that just simply son. When we think son, we think physical genetic association, and that is just too flat an application for this case.

BB~ Me too! I love digging in and learning new things

 

[Wannabefree]

Here's another fun one pisteuo means believe, but not just recognition that something is so. Believe in this context means to trust that something is whether you have proof that it will or not. If you believe in Christ you trust, you know, epignosis, that who He says He is, is in fact who He is. It is a complete faith, not partial. I believe the floor is going to hold my weight every time I choose to walk across it. I don't know if a bungee cord would, I've seen it hold people, and seen them drop people to their death. I have much more faith in the floor than I do a bungee cord. I know a bungee has the potential but I also know it has the potential to break. The trust in Jesus should be unbreakable, unmoveable, unshakeable faith. Complete and total.

I personally struggle with that from time to time, as do many, but if you keep your mind on the capabilities of our God, there should never be any lack of trust. Sometimes when I get wrapped up in the things of this world: bills, bratty teenagers, demanding husbands, broken faucets, loose chickens , a bill due and only 50 cents in my pocket, or any number of things, I get distracted from keeping my eye on the One that will take me away fom all this. He should be my "security blanket" through everything. I don't take care of me, God takes care of me. Always has, and why I still lose sight of that can only be attributed to the fallibility that is humanness. I dislike my own fallibility

 

[BarredBuff]

Wannabefree you need to read Beekissed personal page. Let me find the link and Ill post it

 

[BarredBuff]

Here is the link
http://www.sufficientself.com/web/viewblog.php?id=5

 

[Wannabefree]

Here is the link
http://www.sufficientself.com/web/viewblog.php?id=5

Ah yes BB, remembering to "let go" is the difficulty have you ever swung out into a creek on a rope swing, and then maybe something is going on down below and you are busy watching that and forget to turn loose and wind up thumping a tree? That's me, the tree thumper I KNWO I'm supposed to let go, but sometimes, I get distracted It's hard!!!!

 

[Denim Deb]

I saw a perfect example of that a few years ago w/a squirrel.

We had a bird feeder hung in a branch in the oak tree in our front yard. The only way to get the bird feeder up was to throw a rope over the branch, tie the feeder to it, then tie the other end to another tree. Of course, we had a ton of squirrels trying to get to it too. We found that they could go down the rope to it-fixed that. So that meant the only way they could try and get to it was to jump from the other tree and hope to land on it. There was one in particular that really, really tried. It would jump over and over again. We'd watch it from the window and laugh. It had faith that it could make it, but didn't have 100% faith, trust or whatever you wish to say. While it was jumping, it would attempt to hold onto the branch it was jumping off of, so it never made it. It always fell short.