J
jsenner
Guest
After I visited their memorial service (their annual "communion service) and made sure they knew they were welcome to come study with me, this afternoon they finally showed up!
After the general introductions we got to the studying part. In a fairly short time the conversation came around to how many times their New World Translation uses the word Jehovah in the Old Testament and also in the New Testament. They said their translators went ahead and put Jehovah in the NT anywhere there was a quote from the OT where Jehovah would be in the Hebrew text.
Since they had brought up such a delightful topic, I asked them if they realized just how much the NT quotes from the Greek Septuagint rather than any Hebrew text in it’s use of the Old Testament. I pulled my LXX off the bookshelf and started telling them the history of it and how it was practically the primary OT used by almost all Christians for the first couple hundred years. I noted that in the LXX they didn’t typically use the word Jehovah. I told them how the Jews banned the LXX because too many were converting to Christianity because of it!
They wanted to explain to me about the Kingdom of God where this earth would become made new again. They lamented that the Christian world in general didn’t seem to think of a literal kingdom with Christ reigning and others such as the apostles under him, in a kind of government. I told them that the variety of Christianity I’m involved with right now (Orthodox Christian) has definitely not forgotten about the concept of “kingdom” at all. I told them that in my church we hear a whole lot about two of the main things Jesus spoke about the most… “repent” and the “kingdom”.
I asked them where they thought the apostle Paul is right now and what he’s doing. They said he’s in heaven right now and reigning with Christ. I asked them when they thought he went there. They said sometime around 1918-1919 A.D… I told them that the earliest Christian writings outside of the Bible I could find put the Apostle Paul reigning with Christ already. I read the appropriate section out of 1st Clement and explained the history of 1st Clement, that it was written from the Church at Rome to the Church at Corinth to straighten up some troubles there. They said the general apostasy was well underway by 95 A.D. and that Clement was not inspired since it wasn’t in the Bible. I told them that in many places Clement was being read in church along with the other books of the NT and it took a few hundred years before it was decided what was to be read in church and what wasn’t. I told them that in my church, we still do the “reading in church” and they asked if it was like when Jesus read the passage from Isaiah and they said “today this is fulfilled in your hearing”? I told them that’s precisely what I meant. I told them it was unique how I can see little cultural things and phrases in the Bible which didn’t used to mean anything to me but now that I’ve seen them in action I understand. I told them a Christian or Jew from 200 A.D. could walk into my church and they’d know where they were.
Eventually their time was up and they had to leave, but I made sure they knew they were welcome to return!
Jeremiah
After the general introductions we got to the studying part. In a fairly short time the conversation came around to how many times their New World Translation uses the word Jehovah in the Old Testament and also in the New Testament. They said their translators went ahead and put Jehovah in the NT anywhere there was a quote from the OT where Jehovah would be in the Hebrew text.
Since they had brought up such a delightful topic, I asked them if they realized just how much the NT quotes from the Greek Septuagint rather than any Hebrew text in it’s use of the Old Testament. I pulled my LXX off the bookshelf and started telling them the history of it and how it was practically the primary OT used by almost all Christians for the first couple hundred years. I noted that in the LXX they didn’t typically use the word Jehovah. I told them how the Jews banned the LXX because too many were converting to Christianity because of it!
They wanted to explain to me about the Kingdom of God where this earth would become made new again. They lamented that the Christian world in general didn’t seem to think of a literal kingdom with Christ reigning and others such as the apostles under him, in a kind of government. I told them that the variety of Christianity I’m involved with right now (Orthodox Christian) has definitely not forgotten about the concept of “kingdom” at all. I told them that in my church we hear a whole lot about two of the main things Jesus spoke about the most… “repent” and the “kingdom”.
I asked them where they thought the apostle Paul is right now and what he’s doing. They said he’s in heaven right now and reigning with Christ. I asked them when they thought he went there. They said sometime around 1918-1919 A.D… I told them that the earliest Christian writings outside of the Bible I could find put the Apostle Paul reigning with Christ already. I read the appropriate section out of 1st Clement and explained the history of 1st Clement, that it was written from the Church at Rome to the Church at Corinth to straighten up some troubles there. They said the general apostasy was well underway by 95 A.D. and that Clement was not inspired since it wasn’t in the Bible. I told them that in many places Clement was being read in church along with the other books of the NT and it took a few hundred years before it was decided what was to be read in church and what wasn’t. I told them that in my church, we still do the “reading in church” and they asked if it was like when Jesus read the passage from Isaiah and they said “today this is fulfilled in your hearing”? I told them that’s precisely what I meant. I told them it was unique how I can see little cultural things and phrases in the Bible which didn’t used to mean anything to me but now that I’ve seen them in action I understand. I told them a Christian or Jew from 200 A.D. could walk into my church and they’d know where they were.
Eventually their time was up and they had to leave, but I made sure they knew they were welcome to return!
Jeremiah
