The “you” is singular? Are you sure? I don’t have a Greek copy here with me right now. But I know that I was taught yesterday that the Office of the Keys is given to the -Church- and that the Pastor exercises it on behalf of the Church with confession, general absolution and with words in the liturgy of the Eucharist. And that this has implications for our forgiving each other, and for our asking God for forgiveness, as we are part of the Church. This also applies to church discipline.
Beng, what are the keys if not the binding and loosing? Ok, that sounds like a challenge. It isn’t, it is a question from someone who doesn’t even know what it is he doesn’t know.
DVIN CKS, some of the Bible was written 3500 years ago (roughly) and Job is older yet. The NT was written between AD 33 and AD 90something. Matthew is -extremely- early. It had been noted that it had to have been written before the end of the 40s, due to internal evidence. Then recently someone reexamined the orthography of some leaves from Matthew in the British Museaum, and it turns out these were written between either 12 or 17 years (my memory fails me) of the Crucifixion. So, they had the whole OT, and a considerable amount of the NT. And yes, they had the Apostles and still had prophets. Eventually everything God wanted enscripturated, the Holy Spirit carried on the amanuenses to write down.
BTW, it sounds to me like the couple who’s exasperating behavior indirectly started this thread belong to the Boston Church of Christ, which is a high-control group, and generally considered a cult. As such, they are not Evangelicals any more than the several anti-popes alive today are Catholics.
Mayra. I’m going to quit now and hopefully return to your post. And check it against UBS or Nestle-Aland. That is eye-opening, except that at 2 am, that is mentally unfeasible for me. But you speak Evangelical, or at least Greek. This is good!
Most groups that send people out two by two do so so that their people won’t be converted by the people they are knocking on the doors of. (for some reason, these cultists never come to my door - and I love singing Charles Wesley’s hymn "holy holy holy. . . .God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity when the Arian heretics are in town for conventions
ChrisG, God bless you for your stand! Those cultists aren’t Evangelicals. I don’t believe in private interpretation, nor did any of the Reformers. I think that private interpretation is a doctrine unique to the Southern Baptists. I might be wrong on that. What we do believe is that the Bible, in the original autographs, consists with the very words of God, Hence inerrant, and God is infallible. My understanding is not, and the Fathers and Doctors may err and contradict each other. Where they seem to be holding a different view than the Bible, it is the Bible that is right. Now, I/we may be misunderstanding those who have gone before us, and we may be misunderstanding the Bible. But it is by studing the Bible that we hope to improve our understanding, and thus our obedience to and fruitfulness for God. And that is collegial, you might see a mistake I’ve made that I’ve missed or even kinda pushed towards due to some opinion of mine, and likewise I might discover a mistake you’ve made.
Lindalou
