Suggestions for Public Scripture Reading

February 23, 2018

The basis for the public reading of scripture in our assemblies can be found in the New Testament. Timothy, an evangelist in Ephesus, is instructed by Paul: “Until I come, continue to devote yourself to reading, to exhortation, and to teaching” (1 Timothy 4:13). Most modern translations render reading as public reading. Although the word can mean either private or public reading, the public nature of the other two items in the series, exhortation and teaching, would cause us to think of the assembly. Other passages also indicate a public reading of the word (Colossians 4:16, 1 Thessalonians 5:27, and Revelation 1:3).

The public reading of God’s word underscores its authority. It also gives opportunity for us to hear the message of scripture. Yet it must be done well. If we do it poorly, the hidden message may be that this is unimportant–the exact opposite of what we want to convey. Let me make some suggestions for public reading to help us achieve excellence.

  • Select a unit of thought to be read. Remember chapter and verse numbers are the later addition of editors. They may not always help in selecting a unit of thought. The reader may need to give some context to help the listeners. The goal is that the scripture selected will convey the same message to the listeners as if they had read it in context for themselves. (Most of the time for us, the passage is selected to go with the preaching text. If you want to know the passage prior to Sunday, let me know.)
  • Check for pronunciation and words you may not understand. A Bible dictionary can aid you in the pronunciation of Bible names, so can the book, That’s Easy for You to Say: Your Quick Guide to Pronouncing Bible Names. The web sites, biblespeak.org and thebibleworkshop.com, provide audio pronunciations of some Bible names. An app called Biblical Pronunciation is also available for Android and iOS. Some Bible names have multiple acceptable pronunciations. But nothing hurts a public reading like stumbling over the pronunciation of unfamiliar words and names.
  • Watch for problems that may arise in public reading that might confuse the sense. Failing to pause at the right place or pausing in the wrong place may confuse the listener. Consider the example Luke 2:16: “So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger” (NRSV). If the reader fails to pause at the comma, it will end up sounding as if all three — Mary, Joseph, and the child — are in the manger.
  • Find the author’s meaning, place the stress and emphasis on the main point.
  • Read more slowly than you might speak but be willing to vary the speed and pitch to fit the tone of the reading. I once heard a comparison of audio books made by Audible.com with amateur produced audio books. The speed and pitch of the Audible books were well modulated. The amateur books sounded flat in comparison. And this difference effects the listener’s ability to pay attention and comprehend. No, I’m not expecting us to become professional readers, but it is something at which most of us can do better.
  • Communicate the emotion and tone of the passage with your voice if possible. Is there joy? Is there anger? Is there sarcasm? Is there humor?
  • Practice reading the passage aloud.

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Right Response to God’s Instructions: Psalm 119

February 16, 2018

When I arrived at my sister’s house, it was night. Rounding a curve in the street, I could see her house all lit up since it sits on a hill. The house had lights all the way around, so it was like a beacon. For me, the lights were welcoming. They were even helpful as I unloaded my luggage from the car. But I knew all those lights hadn’t been there on my previous visit, so I enquired about them. She said that there had been break-ins in her neighborhood, so she had the lights installed for security.

The same light can be welcoming or something that a person wants to avoid and hide from. It is the same light, but different responses to this light. Which brings us again to Psalm 119:105: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (ESV). Even though the psalm presents this picture of God’s instructions as light for guidance, he also reflects the reality that it is not true for everyone. The author of Psalm 119 confesses he had gone astray (119:67, 119:176). He had returned and was now keeping God’s law, but there had been a time in his life when he was wandering in the wrong direction.

Besides the personal confession in Psalm 119, the psalmist also speaks of the wicked. “Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked, who forsake your law” (Psalms 119:53, ESV). “Though the cords of the wicked ensnare me, I do not forget your law” (Psalms 119:61, ESV). God’s instructions have all the wonderful qualities that we looked at in the last article, but they require the right response from us. It is instructive to go through the psalm and ask: what kind of response is the psalmist making to God’s precepts? Here’s my list, and I’m going ahead and personalizing the list as ways I am responding even if it is a work in process.

  1. I feel reverence and awe for them because of who God is. 119:120, 119:161
  2. I diligently keep them. 119:4
  3. I remember them (119:11, 119:15) and meditate on them. 119:153, 119:176
  4. I delight in them (119:14) because they are more valuable than riches (119:35, 119:47, 119:72), better than money (119:103), and sweeter than honey (119:143, 119:174).</;i?
  5. I seek them as my counselors. 119:24
  6. I hope in them. 119:43
  7. I am comforted by them. 119:52
  8. I am blessed by them. 119:56
  9. I love them. 119:97, 119:119, 119:163, 119:165, 119:167
  10. I count them as my forever heritage/inheritance. 119:111
  11. I rejoice in them like someone finding a treasure (i.e., plunder). 119:162
  12. I am helped by them. 119:175

I’ve looked at Psalm 119 in four articles to tell my journey of moving beyond a few favorite verses to a deeper appreciation for this psalm.* I used some inductive questions to reflect on the psalm: What do I learn about the author and circumstances? What are his petitions? What does he say about God’s instructions? How does he respond to God’s instructions? Answering those questions and meditating on the psalm brings a deeper appreciation. God’s word can indeed be a light for my path, but for it to bring guidance, I must have the right response to God’s instructions.

*The articles in order are:

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Posted by Russell Holden

Characteristics of God’s Instructions in Psalm 119

February 9, 2018

When I think of Psalm 119, verse 105 certainly comes to mind: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalms 119:105, ESV). The psalm emphasizes the importance of God’s instructions by the use of Torah (law) along with seven synonyms. One of those eight words will be in every verse except for four verses, but the psalmist compensates for these omissions by using two of these words in five verses. The emphasis is clear.

But how do I get beyond just underlining Psalm 119:105 or couple of other favorites? I never really appreciated the psalm as I should until I did an inductive study of it. I took a few simple questions and recorded my findings. I’ve already written about learning what I could about the author and his circumstances and noting his petitions to God. He has clearly telegraphed in the psalm by his use of law and its synonyms that a major theme is God’s instructions. So it is helpful to go through the psalm and record all that he says about God’s instructions. Here’s my list, but it is a project worth doing for yourself.

  1. God’s instructions are righteous. 119:7, 119:62, 119:75, 119:106, 119:137, 119:144, 119:160, 119:164, 119:172
  2. God’s instructions give life. 119:25, 119:37, 119:50
  3. God’s instructions are good. 119:39, 119:68
  4. God’s instructions are saving. 119:41
  5. God’s instructions are true. 119:43, 119:142, 119:151, 119:160
  6. God’s instructions teach good judgment, knowledge, and wisdom. 119:66, 119:98
  7. God’s instructions are sure, trustworthy. 119:86
  8. God’s instructions endure. 119:89, 119:152
  9. God’s instructions are broad. 119:96 How do we understand the word broad or wide in this verse? One approach is found in the NET: “I realize that everything has its limits, but your commands are beyond full comprehension.” Obviously, we get a clue from the contrast. Another approach is to compare limits to something that is boundless.
  10. God’s instructions are a light for your path. 119:105
  11. God’s instructions are wonderful. 119:129
  12. God’s instructions (in this case, promises) are tested. 119:140

These are the conclusions of a reader who has spent time in God’s word. I agree with his conclusions as someone who has also spent time in God’s word. The Bible is an amazing library that has a unified message despite the fact that it spans 3600 years, 40 some authors, three languages, and three continents. It contains predictive prophecy. In the places where it can be tested by history and archaeology it has been found reliable. We have sufficient manuscript evidence to believe we have reliable manuscripts. It has a message that makes profound sense of the human predicament, and its practice seems to produce the best in its followers.

If you are not convinced, I invite you to read and see. Investigate! Maybe you too will become convinced of the characteristics of God’s instructions in Psalm 119.

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Petitions in Psalm 119

February 2, 2018

Getting beyond a few favorite verses from Psalm 119 is a matter of spending some time with the poem and asking some inductive questions. We learned something about the author in the last article. The author was a seeker, who meditated on God’s instructions, and stored it up in his heart. He had strayed from God but returned. He was younger and probably not in the elder class of society. And most importantly, we learn that the psalm comes out of a situation of distress.* These difficulties are the circumstances of the psalm, and we learn something about the author and about praying from examining his petitions to God.

The psalmist asks for understanding.

  • Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. (Psalm 119:18, ESV)
  • Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe in your commandments. (Psalm 119:66, ESV)
  • Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. (Psalm 119:73, ESV)

We can’t grow in our understanding without searching God’s word, but God may answer this prayer by means of providence: teachers, books, articles, and conversations that help us. I’ve had people come out of a lesson and say I needed that. God may answer this with our sanctification so that we are more sensitive to God’s instructions as we mature.

The psalmist asks for help in living God’s instructions.

  • Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! (Psalm 119:5, ESV)
  • Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me. (Psalm 119:133, ESV)
  • Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways. (Psalm 119:37, ESV)

The psalmist asks to be a good example.

  • Let those who fear you turn to me, that they may know your testimonies. May my heart be blameless in your statutes, that I may not be put to shame! (Psalm 119:79-80, ESV)

We are an example to someone, whether we like it or not. We’ve had professional athletes protest that they are not role models, and many of them shouldn’t be. However, the psalmist wants to be a good example, so that looking at his life would lead someone to know God’s instructions and the character of God.

The psalmist asks to be delivered out of his troubles.
We looked at the psalmist’s sufferings and trials last week. It is difficult to be detailed about them given space, but they are a major theme within Psalm 119.

  • Give your servant a pledge of good; let not the insolent oppress me. My eyes long for your salvation and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise. (Psalm 119:122-123, ESV)
  • According to your justice give me life… 119:149
  • Look on my affliction and deliver me… 119:153
    Deliver me 119:153

I’ve learned to pray by praying, but I’ve also learned to pray by listening to and reading the prayers of others. I’ve learned something about what to pray for as I listen to the petitions of Psalm 119.

*https://whiletoday.com/2018/01/25/meeting-the-author-of-psalm-119/

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Posted by Russell Holden

Meeting the Author of Psalm 119

January 25, 2018

Psalm 119 is the longest poem in the Book of Psalms. It has 22 stanzas of 8 lines each giving a total of 176 verses. The psalm is an acrostic. It has 22 stanzas because there are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet. Many English versions will put the name of the Hebrew letter above each stanza (e.g., Aleph, Beth, Gimel). That means each of the eight lines of a stanza begins with the same letter of the Hebrew alphabet as the author works through the entire alphabet.

That is not the only challenge in the composition of this poem. The author also uses the word law (the Hebrew word is Torah, which also means instruction) and seven other synonyms of law. These eight words for God’s instructions in the ESV are law, testimonies, ways, precepts, statutes, commandments, rules, and word. The poem uses one of these words in every line of the poem except for four, and it appears the author compensates for these four lines because in five lines of the poem a word for God’s instructions occurs twice. Clearly, the psalmist has signaled that this poem is about God’s instructions, and by using the entire alphabet, he is attempting to express himself as we would say from A to Z.

But I must confess that my early readings of this psalm found only a few nuggets, verses that I thought were worth underlining. I also read over a lot of things in the psalm missing what was going on. What helped my reading of the psalm was an inductive approach. I read the psalm asking a set of questions: What do I learn about the author? What are his petitions? What does he say about God’s instructions? Let me finish this first article with some observations about the author.

The author seems to be a younger man, because he says he has more understanding that all his teachers (119:99) and the aged (119:100), since he meditates on God’s testimonies and keeps God’s precepts. Maybe that is why he asks the question: “How can a young man keep his way pure” (119:9a)? Although he now memorizes God’s instructions so that he might not sin (119:11), he confesses “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word” (119:67). The circumstances of the psalmist are persecution (119:84-87) and desire for salvation and comfort (119:81-82). He complains, “I have become like a wineskin in the smoke” (119:83). The image is of a wineskin becoming so dried out and brittle that it is in danger of perishing. In the midst of his difficulties, he hangs on to God’s faithfulness and steadfast love (119:88, 90), and he is sustained in his trials by God’s word.

Through this inductive study I have more than a few verses worth underlining. I now see a real person in the ups and downs of life, who hangs on to God by reliance on God’s word. I find a valuable life lesson through this inductive study by meeting the author of Psalm 119.

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Posted by Russell Holden

Plan to Read the Bible

December 29, 2017

The Bible is a big book—really a library of books. Although I have valued Bible reading since I was a teenager, I’ve never succeeded at it without some sort of plan. The plan could be very simple. I will read a section of scripture before I go to bed. The plan could be more involved—I will read the Bible through in a year. The plan should fit you.

  1. Choose a translation that you are comfortable reading. Translations fall into two categories: formal equivalent (e.g., KJV, ASV, NASB, NKJV, ESV) and functional equivalent (e.g., NIV, Easy-to-Read, NET, CSB). Formal equivalence attempts to match the forms of the original language as closely as possible in the receptor language. Functional equivalence attempts to achieve the same effect on the reader. Formal equivalent translations usually have a reading level of 8th to 12th grades and are harder to understand. Functional equivalent translations may have a reading level of 3rd to 8th grades, but leave more opportunities for bias from the translator. My advice would be start with the ESV or NKJV which have lower reading levels (about 8th grade) than the NASB or KJV (about 10-12th grades) and see how it goes. If you are having difficulty with comprehension, then switching to something like the NET, CSB, or NIV makes sense (about 7th grade). For people still having difficulty, the New Century Version or God’s Word have even lower reading levels (about 3rd to 5th) .
  2. Personalize your plan. Reading through the Bible in a year is a wonderful goal, but maybe that isn’t the proper starting place for you. My first time through the New Testament was without a time goal involved—I just set as a goal reading through the New Testament, and kept at it until I was finished. Reading through the New Testament in a year takes about five minutes a day. The next thing I did was read through the narrative portions of the Old Testament (Law and History), which gives you the basic story of the Bible.
  3. Listening may be a great alternative. Some people have difficulty sitting still to read. God needs action-oriented people too. Maybe you should consider listening to the Bible on mp3 files or CDs as you drive or do other activities. The YouVersion Bible app has audio Bibles for free as do some others. If you want CDs, local bookstores or Christianbook.com are sources for these.
  4. Define success. If success is defined as reading a particular portion of scripture on a particular day, then I’m a failure, although I’ve been reading the Bible through in a year for decades. I claim to be a regular Bible reading but not always a daily reader. Expect to get behind and have to play catch up. Get ahead if possible. If your goal is more knowledge of the Bible, then skimming or skipping a section may allow you to keep going. How many people have gotten bogged down in the first seven chapters of Leviticus (sacrificial laws) or the first nine chapters of 1 Chronicles (genealogies)?
  5. Add variety and scope. If you succeed in reading the New Testament, then go on to read other portions of the Bible. Maybe you will work up to reading the entire Bible through in a year. I like reading guides that provide an Old Testament and New Testament readings on the same day for variety. I’ve also used different translations for variety.
  6. Do it. If you have come up with a personal plan, then the next step is doing it. As in forming any new habit, it takes time and you will have setbacks, but if you keep at it, reading the Bible brings many rewards.

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Posted by Russell Holden

My Wish for All

December 22, 2017

My generation had a wish book, the glossy, colored pages of the Sears-Roebuck toy catalog. Its arrival marked a season of dreaming about what you wanted. It was a time of making your wishes known. It was a time of eager anticipation.

My childhood desires have faded, but not my wonder, anticipation, and joy. I was never meant to stay in childhood; I was meant to mature to learn lessons from the gifts I received. The adults in my life found joy in giving. I was to learn from them to follow the words of Jesus: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). As I grew older, I realized that for some the wish book was a hollow dream. That this season of the year could bring sadness as well as joy. It could unfortunately illustrate greed as well as exemplify generosity.

My adult desire is to be generous. In my gift giving for family, I have also learned to give to others. In this desire to go beyond my immediate circle, I’ve found the greater joy. It truly is more blessed to give than to receive.

My adult desire is also to appreciate and enjoy time with family. My family has many traditions that we have developed over the years. Traditions have a way of growing. You do something once, that’s nice. You do it a second time because you enjoyed it before, and you soon find yourself with a yearly tradition. But they function as ways of making lasting memories. My desire for everyone is to make memories with your family. The joy of family need not be expensive. Simple things can bring families together. The years fly by, but our memories are precious, and those memories are a part of the life of joy.

My adult desire is to know Jesus and to make him known to others. And here is the rub: the New Testament teaches us about the birth of Jesus and its importance. Without the incarnation, there could be no atonement. Yet, the New Testament never commands a celebration of Jesus’ birth, which is not likely to have been on December 25th, but does command a weekly celebration of his death and resurrection in the Lord’s Supper. If people feel pain by this season of the year, it is not from what Jesus or the New Testament teaches. They are the unintended consequences of human efforts.

The polls indicate that a majority of Americans celebrate Christmas now as a cultural holiday. Two-thirds believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, compared with 73% in 2014. 75% believe he was laid in a manger (down from 81%). Belief in the wise men guided by a star and bringing presents has also declined. (And for those who take the Bible seriously, the arrival of the wise men was likely months after Jesus’ birth, and not on the night of the shepherds’ visit.) Only 57% believe that all of these things actually happened.*

My wish for all is to know the blessings of generosity, family, and most of all Jesus. But we must go beyond the cultural trappings to the Jesus revealed in the New Testament. There are reasons for belief even if polls show a decline. For those who seek him, he can be found. And when he is found, he is Lord of lords and King of kings (Revelation 17:14, 19:16) which is not a seasonal occupation. With Jesus as the Lord of my daily life, I find an unfading joy: joy in giving, joy in family, but most of all, joy in Jesus Christ, my Lord.

*http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/12/18/5-facts-about-christmas-in-america/

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Sex Scandals

December 15, 2017

If you are not familiar with The Babylon Bee, it is a parody news site. Parody exaggerates for comic effect, but comedy to work and to especially make biting social commentary must contain an element of truth wrapped in its exaggeration. The current celebrity sex scandals have been a ripe field for the Babylon Bee.

One of the first such headlines to catch my attention read: “Another Actress Accuses Kirk Cameron of Treating Her with Respect.” The “article” goes on to quote this fictional actress as saying, “I never felt threatened, and I always felt safe and respected.” Another line states that women were treated “like fellow humans with inherent value, and not as sexual objects to be exploited.” Those are great lines.

Christian ethics do teach us to treat people with respect and not exploit them using them as objects. The Bible views sexuality as created by God and beautiful, but it is to be reserved for the relationship of marriage, marriage of a man and woman. We are taught not to lust (Matthew 5:27-28). So, when Christian ethics are lived it will lead to chaste behavior.

I will admit that there have been sexual scandals among Christians including ministers and church leaders. But whenever such things happen, they are the result of sin and weakness. They are examples of not living the faith, and they are aberrations — not what happens most of the time. Christian ethics lead to chaste and respectful behavior.

Another parody headline reads: “Sexual Revolution Working Out Great, Reports Nation Full of Perverts.” This is the headline for an article dealing with all the sex scandals. It raises the question of whether we should be surprised by sex scandals after a sexual revolution that encouraged sexual license. The secular moral relativist has a problem. The sexual predator is working with an ethic of might makes right: power and prestige allow a person to take advantage of a young woman or man and get away with it. We are understandably going through a period where there is a backlash to that, which I applaud as a Christian. But we can ask the moral relativist: why is might makes right wrong? If there is no ultimate standard, objections become more like I prefer chocolate over vanilla.

The sex scandals are troubling in many ways. The “casting couch” has been a cliché all of my life. People knew such things went on but didn’t expose them. Exposure is good, but we as a nation are in need of repentance that really turns to God. Further, the very people in entertainment and government engaged in this type of activity have often pushed the sexual revolution as a social agenda. The wreckage of the sexual revolution is all around us if we have eyes to see. Finally, there is another inconsistency. As men in entertainment are being outed, the entertainment being produced is still often sexually explicit. There is much that we as Christians should not watch. Does not this material make us into a nation of voyeurs? Are not voyeurs just another kind of sexual predator? Why condemn one kind of predator and not challenge the other? The final question is: where does this all end? The Bible’s answer has always been repentance or judgment.

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Meaning of Church

December 8, 2017

Our English word church translates the Greek word ekklesia (ἐκκλησία, G1577) in the New Testament. Ekklesia means assembly, so the emphasis of the word is on our regularly assembling together. Preachers have through the years also mentioned the etymology of the word which is “called out.” But as Everett Ferguson notes, “The popular etymology … is not supported by the actual usage of the word. The emphasis was on the concrete act of assembly, not a separation from others.”1

Our English word church derives from another Greek term kyriokos. This word is a Greek adjective mean “Lord’s.” The word does occur in the New Testament in 1 Corinthians 11:20 and Revelation 1:10 where they refer to “the Lord’s supper” and “the Lord’s Day.” However, in our word church, the phrase in its word history is kyriokon doma (Lord’s house). This word phrase led to Kirche in German, Kirk in Scotland, and church in English. So, the first definition in English is “a building set apart for public esp. Christian worship.”2 However, ekklesia is not talking about a building but an assembly of people. Because of this word history for our English word, we end up emphasizing that the New Testament meaning of church has to do with the people not a building.

Ekklesia was also used for other assemblies than what we think of with church. It is used for an assembly of citizens in Ephesus.

Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly (ekklesia) was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. (Acts 19:32, ESV)

But if you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the regular assembly (ekklesia). (Acts 19:39, ESV)

It is also used of the assembly or congregation of God’s people in the Old Testament in Stephen’s speech in Acts 7.

This is the one who was in the congregation (ekkesia) in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. (Acts 7:38 ESV)

The Greek translation of the Old Testament uses the word ekklesia 100 times in the Old Testament for such things as the assembly of the Lord (Deuteronomy 23:2/23:1), the assembly of Israel (Deuteronomy 31:30), the assembly of the sons of Israel (Joshua 9:2/8:35), and the assembly of the people of God (Judges 20:2). This may give some force to Jesus’ words, “I will build my church.”

The word synagogue (Greek συναγωγή, sunagōgē, G4864 )is also used once of an assembly of Christians, although this gets obscured by translation.

For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, (James 2:2, ESV)

I’ve heard people say, “You can’t go to church, because we are the church.” But the reality is you can go to an assembly. Unless age or health prevent it, to be a part of a church is to assemble regularly together.

1Everett Ferguson, The Church of Christ: A Biblical Ecclesiology for Today, p. 130.
2Merriam-Webster Third Unabridged Dictionary

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Posted by Russell Holden

The Meaning of Church

December 8, 2017

Our English word church translates the Greek word ekklesia (ἐκκλησία, G1577) in the New Testament. Ekklesia means assembly, so the emphasis of the word is on our regularly assembling together. Preachers have through the years also mentioned the etymology of the word which is “called out.” But as Everett Ferguson notes, “The popular etymology … is not supported by the actual usage of the word. The emphasis was on the concrete act of assembly, not a separation from others.”1

Our English word church derives from another Greek term kyriokos. This word is a Greek adjective mean “Lord’s.” The word does occur in the New Testament in 1 Corinthians 11:20 and Revelation 1:10 where they refer to “the Lord’s supper” and “the Lord’s Day.” However, in our word church, the phrase in its word history is kyriokon doma (Lord’s house). This word phrase led to Kirche in German, Kirk in Scotland, and church in English. So, the first definition in English is “a building set apart for public esp. Christian worship.”2 However, ekklesia is not talking about a building but an assembly of people. Because of this word history for our English word, we end up emphasizing that the New Testament meaning of church has to do with the people not a building.

Ekklesia was also used for other assemblies than what we think of with church. It is used for an assembly of citizens in Ephesus.

Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly (ekklesia) was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. (Acts 19:32, ESV)

But if you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the regular assembly (ekklesia). (Acts 19:39, ESV)

It is also used of the assembly or congregation of God’s people in the Old Testament in Stephen’s speech in Acts 7.

This is the one who was in the congregation (ekkesia) in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. (Acts 7:38 ESV)

The Greek translation of the Old Testament uses the word ekklesia 100 times in the Old Testament for such things as the assembly of the Lord (Deuteronomy 23:2/23:1), the assembly of Israel (Deuteronomy 31:30), the assembly of the sons of Israel (Joshua 9:2/8:35), and the assembly of the people of God (Judges 20:2). This may give some force to Jesus’ words, “I will build my church.”

The word synagogue (Greek συναγωγή, sunagōgē, G4864 )is also used once of an assembly of Christians, although this gets obscured by translation.

For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, (James 2:2, ESV)

I’ve heard people say, “You can’t go to church, because we are the church.” But the reality is you can go to an assembly. Unless age or health prevent it, to be a part of a church is to assemble regularly together.

1Everett Ferguson, The Church of Christ: A Biblical Ecclesiology for Today, p. 130.
2Merriam-Webster Third Unabridged Dictionary

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Posted by Russell Holden

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