Progressive Baptist Church's Website
Is that what He meant? I thought.......
Often we've heard Scriptures so misinterpreted for so long that it's hard to convince some that the Scripture has been misquoted or grossly misunderstood. Here are a few short everyday life stories where misinterpretations of the Scriptures arose.
Deacon Yarp had misinterpreted Romans 14:11 "For it is written, AS I LIVE, SAITH THE LORD, EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW TO ME, AND EVERY TONGUE SHALL CONFESS TO GOD." Deacon Yarp thought Jesus was referring to a person's physical knees. He thought one must kneel when praying to God. There are millions of people in the world today without physical knees. Acts 10:34 says, "Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons." Jesus would have been discriminating against those people if He meant we must bow down on physical knees. Every knee must bow refers to Humility. Everyone must humble himself before the Lord. We must strip ourselves of self and give an account of ourselves to God. Many Scriptures refer to kneeling when in prayer, but when we humble ourselves before God, it doesn't matter if we are kneeling, standing, stooping, or lying down; He hears every word.
A dear friend of mine wept bitterly when she found out one of her cousins had been killed in a car accident. Unfortunately, I was present when she received the news. I didn't know what to say to my friend to ease her pain. So, I held her close and whispered, "Please don't cry." Those turned out to be the worst words I could have uttered. My friend pulled away and sadly asked, "How could you, of all people, tell me not to cry? You're a Christian! You read the Bible; you know that Jesus cried because Lazarus died. If Jesus cried over someone's death, why can't I cry?" I was shocked! I told my friend, "You go on and cry and when you need me, I'm only a phone call away." My friend had misinterpreted John 11:35 "Jesus wept." She thought Jesus wept because Lazarus was dead. I'm sure Jesus felt compassion for Mary and Martha when their brother died; but, why would Jesus cry over the death of Lazarus when He could raise him from the dead? John 11:15 says, "And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him." If Jesus had been there, Lazarus would only have been healed, thus preventing the greater sign of Jesus' glory.....raising Lazarus from the dead.
When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him. She expressed disappointment that Jesus was not there when they needed Him. Although Martha was a disciple of faith, her trust in Jesus was limited. She believed Jesus could heal; she had heard that Jesus raised Jairus' daughter and the widow's son from the dead, but they were raised before burial. Her brother had been in the grave for four days. When Jesus told Martha that her brother shall rise again; Martha answered, "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus told Martha, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." Martha didn't realize she was talking to the Resurrection and the Life. She didn't know who Jesus really was and this saddened the Master. The tears Jesus wept disclosed how God feels when we are separated from Him because we do not know and believe in His Son.
My sister and I were having a sisterly chat when my fifteen-year old son interrupted us to show me his hurriedly done homework. I looked over his work, was dissatisfied and told him to do it over. Since wrestling was on, I knew we would go through this routine at least twice. We did! As I was about to send him back a third time; my sister snapped, "Why don't you give the boy a break? He's not perfect like Job!" I knew the perfect amount of pushing my son needed to do satisfactory homework; but what I didn't know was that my dear sister believed Job was perfect. My sister had misinterpreted Job 1:1 "There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil." My sister thought Job was perfect. Jesus is the only Perfect One. When continuing to read in Job, we read in Chapter 3:1 that Job opened his mouth and cursed the day he was born and later he said he abhor himself. Doesn't sound like the words of a perfect man to me. In the Book of Job, Satan was allowed to test Job because he believed the children of God loved and served God because of the riches and honor bestowed upon them. Job went from prosperity to poverty. He lost his family, friends, wealth, and health, but refused to curse God. Job was able to endure all his sufferings. He said, "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: and "All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come." Job was not perfect but Job had a perfect Faith. In the end Job comes to see God and is rewarded greater prosperity than he had at first. The main theme in the Book of Job is, "Why do godly people suffer?" We suffer because God wants our faith tried and tested. The trial of our faith works patience. As Christians, we need perfect faith and patience to endure all the afflictions we shall suffer for Christ's sake.
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