Consider this
passage.
John 1 KJT
12 But as many as
received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on his name:
13 Which were born,
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
power - exousia :
leave or permission, of authority (influence) and of right (privilege).
Q1: To whom did God
give power to become the sons of God?
Q2: What does it
mean to be given power to become sons (children) of God?
Q3. What are the
THREE things stated?
Q4. What is the
chronological order of the three things stated?
Do you care enough about the truth concerning your salvation to muse on the matter?
Do remember that
these two:
- being given power
to become sons of God (which is clearly conditional)
and,
- being born of God
(which is clearly unconditional, the spiritually dead can't possibly meet any
conditions)
ARE Distinct.
But so many equate
the two; this prompted me to see if you have learnt the truths.
-------
Ann
Pastor, what can you
tell me of the meaning of “even” in v. 12?
There was a meaning
for this word, common in scripture, that’s very different from how we use it, and I’m often a little confused
Sing
Ann, "But as many as
received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on his name:
Two notes:
1. "even"
is in the italic, indicating that it's not in the Greek text but a word
supplied by the translators, as needed in English grammar.
2. In English
grammar, "even" indicates a comparison; or introduces a more specific
or emphatic detail.
"Even"
introduces a more specific or emphatic term or phrase to clarify or strengthen
a previous phrase.
"to them that
believe on his name" is a more specific phrase to explicate the earlier
phrase "as many as received him."
I hope this helps.
Ann
In my personal
understanding of the covenant that saved His elect, "receiving him"
was an alternate way to express the experience of being born again. Many
children of God are not aware or not yet aware that they have been redeemed and
have a savior. So, if that's right, then believing on His name would ensue from
receiving him or being born again, yet this verse seems to treat those two as
different and believing being a stronger experience than merely receiving Him.
That's what doesn't make sense to me. Your reiteration of the meaning of
"even" is our familiar usage but it interrupts the flow of the idea
in the passage, rather than facilitating it - at least for me. I remember
having to go back and read bible verses many times when "even" was
used this way, which is why I thought it used to have some other shade of
meaning.
Dan
I often ask: “If we
have no choice in our birth (wherein we become sons of God), in what sense
might someone choose to exercise power to BECOME a son of God?” The answer lies
in “becoming a son INDEED” - literally “in deed” - in acting in accordance with
the father’s will for our lives. A father whose son gets in terrible trouble by
breaking the law might well say, “That’s no son of mine!” In so doing he is not
denying the son’s natural, genetic lineage, but rather pointing out that the
child has not acted in accordance with his upbringing and as such has not
produced the evidence of his parentage by his deeds. The matter of having the
power to become sons of God has respect to the visible fruit of our deeds as
borne out in obedience to the father’s teaching.
Rod
🙂 Amen. To John 1:12-13.
Regarding "The
question is not, what does it say; the more important question is, Do you
believe what it says?" perhaps understanding comes before believing? If
so, then the order would be:
* What does it say?
* What does it mean?
* Do you believe?
Acts 8:30-31 (KJV) -
"And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and
said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some
man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with
him."
Acts 8:35,37,39
(KJV) - "Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture,
and preached unto him Jesus. ... And Philip said, If thou believest with all
thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ
is the Son of God. ... And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit
of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on
his way rejoicing."
Amen.
Sing
Rod, thank you. What is
the distinction between "what does it say" and "what does it
mean"?
Is the former
interpretation and the latter application?
Rod
🙂 In the example provided, the Ethiopian could read what was
written in the Book of Isaiah, but he could not understand it. He needed
someone to "guide" or explain it to him. Philip preached to him, then
the eunuch "went on his way rejoicing."
The first is the
ability to read. The second is to interpret and understand what has been read.
The third is to believe what has been read.
I hope this helps,
brother Sing.
If I sent you a
letter in some foreign language, you know the alphabet, so you can read it, but
without understanding. You need to translate it into a language that you
understand. Then you are able to decide if you believe what was written, or
not.
Sing
Rod, thanks. I
need to translate it into a language I can read. but reading and understanding
are two different matters; many can read eloquently without understanding what
is read. So also with understanding and believing, even though understanding is
necessary for believing. For example, I understand what an Arminian says - for
example, a man believes in order to get life - but I refuse to believe the
irrational idea.
If I know what it
says, then I know what it means. Knowing what it means, I make a conscious
choice to believe it or reject it.
That's the way I see
the matter.
