Mens Bible Study

[Robert1988]

I was wondering if any other guys on the forum would like to start doing a mens bible study here on the forum?

[DMcKay]

The answer to this question really depends on whether or not you have someone who qualifies as a teacher according to James 3:1, "1Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment."

We don't want to put someone in the place of a teacher on he Forum if he has not met the criteria for being a Biblical teacher lest they be brought into more severe judgment. There are already several Bible Studies on the Forum in the area of the Attributes of God and the beginning studies on cults.

If there are enough who are interested and qualified to teach there several lessons that could use a teaacher to read through them and be ready to expound on the truth contained in those lessons, As well as answering any questions that others might ask for text that they don't understand.

Don M

[Robert1988]

Yeah, I haven't even read much of the Bible myself so I obviously can't teach. I was just wondering if we could all read a part of the Bible and then discuss it here.

[Theofilus]

I don't know what the qualifications are that Don is refering to, but I like the idea of reading the Bible and learning together. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit will teach us and we can share with each other what He speaks to us.

[Calidog]

OK, let's start.

Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Rom 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.


Any thoughts?

[Theofilus]

Perhaps we'll get more responses if we look at a larger context at once. It's hard to say much about just one or two verses, without the surrounding context. Let's start with Romans, chapter 1, since that's where those verses were taken from.

Originally Posted by NIV

1Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, 4and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. 6And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ. 7To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul's Longing to Visit Rome

8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. 9God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you 10in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God's will the way may be opened for me to come to you. 11I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— 12that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith. 13I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.
14I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.
16I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."

God's Wrath Against Mankind

18The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. 21For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.
28Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. 29They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Anybody have any coments about some part of this chapter?

[Brian286]

Referring to verses 19-20, does anybody have a list of verses in the Bible that may explain examples of this? I believe it and can see it myself, but I've had a couple discussions/debates recently with friends who are Christians, but seem to have accepted the world's inherent doubt about the validity of the Bible (they talk about how there were 120 books, and most of them were taken out, etc. - implying that humans were the ones that created the Bible as it is today).

One of them has been hurt by the church and just about everybody around him, and is extremely cynical (and, in turn, a bad influence on everybody around him). The other has doubts about faith and God's goodness (which, to me, is the whole basis of a relationship with Christ).

They don't want to hear scripture used as evidence; they are like the world, and want the results before they do anything for God. Any help/suggestions would be appreciated. Also, if you reply, could you also send me an email? I just don't have enough time to check this very often (not as often as I'd like, anyway).

Thanks, and blessings.

[Calidog]

Originally Posted by Brian286

They don't want to hear scripture used as evidence; they are like the world, and want the results before they do anything for God. Any help/suggestions would be appreciated.

The word is a sword. Whether or not someone wants scripture as evidence or not I would go ahead and give it to them. Then they are wrestling with the Spirit, not with anything worldly
Trust the word and use appropriate scripture as evidence/proof despite their objections. You may not see positive results but it'll have it's work on them.

Remember these:


Heb 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isa 55:10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Trust the Author, the Holy Spirit.

God bless.

[DesertScroll]

Originally Posted by Brian286

I believe it and can see it myself, but I've had a couple discussions/debates recently with friends who are Christians, but seem to have accepted the world's inherent doubt about the validity of the Bible (they talk about how there were 120 books, and most of them were taken out, etc. - implying that humans were the ones that created the Bible as it is today).

Hello,

The creation of the Bible as we have today is a very interesting topic. Let me quote from a book by Bruce Metzger (General editor of the NRSV and one of the editors for the The Greek New testament 4th edition (among others) The Canon of the New Testament:

What is really remarkable (as was suggested earlier) is that, though the fringes of the New Testament canon remained unsettled for centuries, a high degree of unanimity concerning the greater part of the New Testament was attained within the first two centuries among the very diverse and scattered congregations not only throughout the Mediterranean world but also over an area extending from Britain to Mesopotamia. (p. 254)

There was not a group of men who got together and decided what the Bible was to contain. These groups of different Christian communities were too isolated from eachother to even try and pull this off. Yet the core of the New Testament was quite uniform among them all.

Eusebius of Caesarea (275-339 AD) puts it this way:

He divides the books into three classes.
1) 22 generally regarded to be canonical: 4 gospels, Acts, the letters of Paul (including Hebrews) 1 John, 1 Peter, and Revelation.
2) 5 widely accepted, though disputed by some (all of these apparently accepted by Eusebius himself) James, Jude, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John
3) 5 are spurious Acts of Paul, Hermas, Apocalypse of Peter, Barnabas, and the Didache. And to these perhaps the Revaltion of John should be added, for some reject it while others count it among the accepted books.

There were councils who decided about the books that were to be contained in the Bible, but these happened much later and really didn't decide, but more of recognized what was already decided by these diverse and isolated groups. Athanasius was the first to name exactly the 27 books of the New Testament in his festal letter of 367 AD exclusively as canonical, African synods of Hippo Regius (393 AD) and Carthage (397 and 419 AD) the 27 books were accepted.
The East had doubts about Revelations longer than the West as a group (but I believe Athanasius was from the East). The Syrian church accepted only 22, 2 Peter, 2 and 3 John, Jude, Revelation are lacking from the standard version of the Syriac Bible, called the Pe|i am offensive, beware!!||i am offensive, beware!!||i am offensive, beware!!||i am offensive, beware!!|ta, dating from the early part of the 5th century. (Info from various books like Metzgers and Lee McDonalds).

So while not total agreement, the greater part has been undisputed, from a wide sway of isolated communities. So no, men did not decide what was to comprise the Bible. From a historical perspective it is pretty interesting and pretty amazing how similar it has been. From a Christian standpoint it is confirmation of the work of the Spirit.

That is not to say there were not many, many different writings out there at the same time. Some groups valued some writings more than others, some read from some writings that other groups of Christians would find spurious. The Didache or another the Shepherd of Hermas were extremely popular with many communities of early Christians and even treated as scripture by some. But they didn't stand the test of all the communities nor the test of time.

I'll end with another quote from Metzger from his book The New Testament its background, growth, and content:

In the most basic sense neither individuals nor councils created the canon; instead they came to recognize and acknowledge the self-authenticating quality of these writings, which imposed themselves as canonical upon the church. (p.318).