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Today's Little Lift
by Jim Bullington
Verb tenses say more than we frequently notice. In fact, sometimes the entire point of what God says can be missed by failing to notice such seemingly insignificant matters. Today's message extends that principle and demonstrates just how important it is in understanding and applying the Holy Scriptures to our lives.
We begin by quoting Romans 10.5 from the King James Version: “For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, 'That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.'” (emphasis mine; jb). The American Standard Version substitutes the word writeth for the word describeth but otherwise the meaning is essentially the same. The modern reader will note the somewhat strange appearance of the two verbs (describeth and writeth) under consideration (even now as I write this article, my word processor is telling me that the words are mis-spelled and I being prompted to correct their spelling). However, the words are correct and they convey the precise meaning that God intended; we miss that meaning when we alter or fail to note this significance.The eth ending on verbs in older versions is helpful in that it conveys, as in this case, present and ongoing action. Paul could have said, “Moses described the righteousness which is of the law...” but the Holy Spirit which guided him chose another word; He chose a word which makes Moses' written words of more than a millennium past yet active and alive. Although the purpose of the Law had been fulfilled in Christ (Romans 10.4), it was not a dead letter. In those writings, Moses yet was speaking and describing things relevant to Paul's readers. It is noteworthy that throughout this entire section of text Paul used words which convey this thought. He quoted Moses, long dead and buried, but he said that he still speaketh (Romans 10.6). As Paul proceeded with his argumentation, he consistently (verses 8,11, 16, & 20) used the verb saith (another archaic form which depicts present and ongoing action) to describe Moses' written words as well as those of another of the Old Testament prophets, Isaiah.I beg you to get the force of this language; do not overlook this essential principle! We live in an era in which the word of God, written and completed years and years ago, is treated as though it has lost its relevance. According to many voices being heard today, the word of God has to be freshened on today's horizons in order for it to have meaning. Paul clearly did not believe such and argued against these concepts through such texts as the one we are presently considering. Paul was a learned man; he had the ability to write what he meant – and he did! The Holy Spirit which guided his hand was not careless or negligent in this writing, but rather, superintended the words so that they convey precisely what God wants them to say.The bottom line is this: God spoke through Moses; God yet speaks through Moses! Extend that principle to 39 or so other writers and one comes up with this: God spoke through David; God yet speaks through David. God spoke through Paul; God yet speaks through Paul. God spoke through John; God yet speaks through John. God spoke through Jesus; God yet speaks through Jesus. Remove or void that principle, and the Bible becomes a book of yesteryear and has relevance only as we mold its words to fit our circumstance. The Bible today means exactly what it meant when it was penned! Why make that claim? Because through it God speaketh!Questions:
1. How important is the doctrine of God speaking (presently and ongoing) through the Bible?
2. If God does not presently speak through the Bible, then how does He speak? Who or what is the standard of right and wrong, or for that matter, is there a standard?
3. In Jesus' story of the rich man and Lazarus, Abraham tells the rich man that his brothers yet on earth had “...Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.”(Luke 16.29). Yet, Moses and the prophets had been dead for years. How is that similar to today's message?
4. If Jesus and Paul believed that God yet speaks through the Scriptures, what ought we to believe?
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