Translating The Word of God into our Current Culture?

[Jesus Is Real]

Do you understand the mind-set that we have embraced as a culture? You CAN NOT today translate The Word of God into our Current Culture, it has lost a way of thinking. It's gone the way the world went before the flood, God could not speak into the culture, because they were always thinking about their feelings - Imagination of the heart is your always weighting what your going to say and what your going to do based upon human approval. The Tower of Babel, God could not speak into it, it was group think. Then God broke it up in all these cultures. Do you know what cultures do with each other? They bicker and complain. And that's true of every culture. It's not that we shouldn't love one another, but it's just that there is right and wrong and black and white and light and dark. And Christians hold to the language which says, "this is my property/conscience and it is not your property. And the Bible says, take the Gospel into all races and all cultures. But the world calls what we're seeing now is a Culture-War. Do you know what the culture war is, lets put all the cultures together, lets all put aside our differences (by the way that mean's you have to get ride of God because he has an attitude) and lets all focus what we all have in common and lets rebuild the Tower of Babel. And God can't speak there, they are into fleshly compassion.

You've heard about 'common cause'? You know what common cause is, all that's of of the world. That's what common, right - all what's of the world. The common cause is to meet everybodys needs on the face of the earth. These people who are focused on 'common cause' - the lust of the flesh, eyes and pride of life. If we're all pulled into that - now that doesn't mean we care for one another we don't feed and cloth one another, but the lawless ones came to Jesus saying, "look at the caring we have all done in your name - look at our heart - our wonderful sweet caring heart, we did it even in your name!!!" And what's Jesus' response:

Matt 7:23

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
KJV

Why iniquity? Because they didn't do it unto God but respect of men. They wanted approval of men, they wanted to be a part of the village. You CAN NOT, today, translate The Word of God into this type of Current Culture, it has lost a way of thinking for the sake of 'the village - the collective - the Global Society.' This is an abomination.

Jesus, when He went to Jerusalem he loved Jerusalem, be he wasn't hung up on the village! He wasn't willing the put aside The Truth for the relationship with Jerusalem. And He wept over Jerusalem because He knew how important Truth was. And they weren't interesed in The Truth. And we live today, again, in a culture that's not interested in The Truth, so many are re-defining God's Word into their own Babel-Messages.

But it's The Truth Sets you Free! And you have to understand that when we go 'dialectic' (dialogue away from God's Word) as we go into this process as before the flood, Tower of Babel - Sodom and Gom., the Truth will set you FREE from your job, it will set you free from ~thinking you need (feelings)~ respect in the community, it will set you FREE from having relations in your family reatives, it will set you from from promotion, it will set you FREE from even your next term in office. Your going to pay a price for Speaking The Truth. You have to do it in LOVE - we think not sharing The Truth to all get along. No! God's Love is sharing The Truth, because in there lies Salvation for those who will repent and believe.

But many have re-defined God's Word in their message-translations for the sake of us all getting along in the village. And it's wrong thinking - it's an abomination unto God. It's practicing heresy on The Word of God.

Though this dialectic-Global-Society will not hear you. It never heard Jesus either, it hated Jesus and this culture will hate you too if you are His.


I pray every Christian here listens to this:
http://www.authorityresearch.com/Fi... Gotcher/012107 Dean Gotcher Rock Hill SC.mp3

God bless.

 

[Jesus Is Real]

Am I to hide your belief/opinion in my heart?
Am I to hide your feelings in my heart, your input, your take?
Am I to hide my opinion in my heart?

No,......

Ps 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. KJV

We have so made our Salvation about the village - the Global-Society of what the Collective thinks and have ruled. When that type of structure is not of God, it's of HUMANISM - what the group-mind-thinks. God is going to destroy this structure, He did once in the days of Noah and in the days of Lot and He's doing to do it again in the Brightness of Christ' coming. And on Judgment Day, it won't be about "how do we think or feel about ANYTHING that opposes God's Word" it will all about GOD AND HIS AUTHORITY AND SUPREME JUDGMENTS.

 

[Jesus Is Real]

Fleshly Compassion:
http://home1.gte.net/web23vhn/Joyce-Looking-Good-a.MP3

 

[Jesus Is Real]

THE NEW THEOLOGY INFLUENCES TRANSLATIONS

Translations are always affected by the beliefs of the translators.

The New Theology characterizes Eugene Peterson’s book, The Message, which he calls a Bible “translation”, but others refer to it as a paraphrase. However, it is certainly not a “translation” of the Bible! It neither uses the “word for word” principle or the “thought for thought” principle that are the basis for translations. It may be a paraphrase, but it lacks any kind of equivalence in meaning with the original texts. It is an interpretation based on Peterson’ belief system (presuppositions), which is Neo-orthodoxy. He says, “I began to realize that the adults in my class weren't feeling the vitality and directness that I sensed as I read and studied the New Testament in its original Greek. Writing straight from the original text, I began to attempt to bring into English the rhythms and idioms of the original language.” He is not concerned about theological content, but about rhythm of the original texts. This is easily seen in comparing passages in Mat. 6:9-13, John 10:30; 14:28; Rom. 1:26,27; 3:19,20; 15:4,5; 1 Cor. 6:9-18; 2 Cor. 5:20; Gal. 5:16-26; Eph. 2:1-3; 5:18; 6:10-19; Col. 2:10; Rev. 2:22 just to name a few. (Compare The Message with a modern translation such as the NKJV or the NIV, or even a respected paraphrase such as the Living Bible.) He simply takes the biblical texts and interprets them so as to fit into the real world experiences of people existentially, but it is not what the Bible says! It is what Peterson says in words that interpret it in terms of some kind of life “authenticating experience” in Neo-orthodox fashion. However, much of the content and meaning is simply dropped out because it has no significance in Peterson’s theological system. The Christian Faith (belief) is in the content and details, not the rhythm! There is an implicit or explicit universalism in The Message wherein everyone is saved. Peterson is concerned about the practice of Christianity that it be real and sincere, but personal salvation isn’t really an issue. Peterson isn’t honest enough (or perhaps he thinks everyone shares his theology) to explain the Neo-orthodox basis for his interpretations.

Peterson is “Professor of Spiritual Theology” at Regent College and has a Dr. of Ministry degree from New York Theological Seminary, which is very modernistic in its theology. (It shares facilities with Union Theological Seminary, which has long been recognized as the most modernistic in theology.) His concept of spirituality is not a state of being filled or controlled by the Spirit, it is what you do or practice. He says, “Spirituality is no different from what we've been doing for two thousand years just by going to church and receiving the sacraments, being baptized, learning to pray, and reading Scriptures rightly. It's just ordinary stuff.” This is contrary to the conservative or orthodox view of spirituality (Gal. 5:16-18, 22-26; Eph. 5:18, etc.). Peterson puts the emphasis on relationships with other people rather than a personal relationship with God. To him anyone who thinks he is a Christian is one! “The Church is the World…”, etc. He talks about following Jesus, but he is mainly concerned about using Jesus’ methods of relating to people in sincerity and “reality”. It is the existential experience or the doing of it that is important to him. Sincerity and being “real” and “intimate” with other people is the all important thing. Peterson calls believers to a life lived with "wholeness, honesty, without contrivance", which is commendable. He considers Christianity a “mystery”; he says, “But we're involved with something that has a huge mystery to it”. In Neo-orthodoxy, everything in the area of eternals or universals is a mystery that can’t be discussed because there is no rationalism in the “upper story.” However, “mystery” in the New Testament means something hidden in the Old Testament, but revealed in the New Testament. What is revealed in the New Testament is no longer a mystery (Col. 1:26).

The Message is eulogized because it is so easy to read. Warren quotes from it extensively in The Purpose Driven Life, and then puts the references in an appendix. If he cited the references with the verses, many would recognize the stark difference in meaning. The problem lies in the deception involved in thinking that this is what the Word of God says. This is not God’s message, but Satan’s message of universality, and many young Christians will choose this translation just because it is easy to read without realizing the doctrinal deceptions or the modern theology behind it. Schaeffer was right in his perception that few pastors and theologians really understood modern (Neo-orthodox) theology. Even “conservative fundamentalists” such as Warren Wiersbe and Navigators appear to be so deceived. Satan counts on Christians not knowing the truth (Jn. 8:31, 32), just as he did in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:1). The Message will no doubt become the Bible of the New Theology, the New Age Movement, and the New World Order, and it will deceive many people. They will never really understand what God says in His Word because they choose to believe what comes easily to their ears without any effort. They are biblically illiterate! They will also be easily deceived by the satanic movement to the new ecumenical religion of the New Age Movement and the New World Order.
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/006/smith/new_theology.htm

 

[heron]

Thanks for bringing it up -- also your other thread on the Message.

I was disturbed at a funeral a couple weeks ago, where all references to God's kingdom were replaced with things like "the heart of God."

I often gain insight by thinking about an unseen realm where things happen -- a different plane of activity, so it was sad to see that removed, probably considered too violent, domineering, territorial. One doesn't have to be militant to appreciate the concept of a kingdom.

It is a good time to address these reshapings of Christianity -- we seem to be on the brink of a significant global ecumenical movement.