Author: petebeck3

Pete Beck III ministered as a pastor and Bible teacher in Burlington for over 34 years. He is married to Martha, with whom he has four children, ten beautiful grandchildren, and four amazing great grandchildren. He ministers in his local church as a Bible teacher and counselor. He has published two books - Seeing God's Smile and Promise of the Father - as well as a wide variety of Bible-related articles which he has compiled into books in PDF form.

What is the Worst Response to the Gospel?

After Paul addressed a crowd in Athens, his listeners responded in three ways. Which do you think was the very worst?

When they heard Paul speak about the resurrection of the dead, some laughed in contempt, but others said, “We want to hear more about this later.” 33  That ended Paul’s discussion with them, 34  but some joined him and became believers. Among them were Dionysius, a member of the council, a woman named Damaris, and others with them. Acts 17:32-34 (NLT)

Lack of interest is the worst response to the gospel. Far better that a person be hostile than be indifferent.

Jesus warned in Revelation:

I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! 16  But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! Revelation 3:15-16 (NLT)

Even though Jesus spoke these words to the church, the principle still applies. If people actively resist the gospel, it is because they are seriously listening and do not like what they hear. There is hope for such a person. Perhaps the Holy Spirit will bring them around as they continue to ponder the implications of the gospel. The “lukewarm” disinterested person, however, will probably not give the gospel a second thought. He does not think he is rejecting the message, just saving it for later consideration, which quite probably will never happen. Procrastination is not a virtue when it comes to the gospel. The “hot” response is most to be desired. These people “get it” and respond positively right away.  The next time someone becomes hostile to the message, we should give thanks to God. At least we were heard.

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Can I Quickly Summarize the Gospel?

While addressing a crowd in Athens, Paul summarized Bible history from creation to the resurrection in one paragraph.

“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, 25  and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. 26  From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries. 27  “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. 28  For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 29  And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone. 30  “God overlooked people’s ignorance about these things in earlier times, but now he commands everyone everywhere to repent of their sins and turn to him. 31  For he has set a day for judging the world with justice by the man he has appointed, and he proved to everyone who this is by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:24-31 (NLT)

Sometimes we find ourselves in situation where we have a very small window of time in which to communicate big ideas.

To be an effective gospel communicator we need to learn how to share the good news with great thoroughness when given the opportunity and with brevity when that is required.

I am not sure what kind of time pressure Paul found himself, but it seems that he knew his audience’s attention span was short. He covered thousands of years in a few sentences. Let’s see what he established in that one paragraph.

  1. God is the Creator.
  2. Man-made religion and idols are useless.
  3. God is sovereign over the affairs of the world.
  4. God’s purpose for mankind was for us to seek and find him. He is near at hand.
  5. God is calling everyone to repent and turn to him.
  6. He will one day judge the world through one he raised from the dead.

Paul did not share the entire gospel in this paragraph, but he did manage to get their attention and provoke a response. He found out who was open and who just wanted to debate, which was a decent outcome.

Do we understand the gospel message well enough to share it succinctly? Can we go into detail?

We owe it to God and unsaved people to study the gospel message and learn how to share it effectively.

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Find Common Ground

When given the opportunity to address a crowd in Athens, Paul found a way to segue into the gospel message.

So Paul, standing before the council, addressed them as follows: “Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way, 23  for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about. Acts 17:22-23 (NLT)

When we have the opportunity to converse with friends, neighbors, workplace colleagues, and even strangers, wisdom teaches us to look for “common ground” in which we agree. Finding areas of mutual interest and agreement increases the likelihood that we can have a decent conversation because our listeners will not have assumed a defensive posture. Paul found common ground with the Athenians in a most surprising way. Instead of negatively focusing on their pagan idolatry, he pointed out one thing they shared – worship of who to them was an unknown God. He offered to identify this God for them, which I am sure piqued their interest. He no doubt anticipated that most of the Greeks would reject his gospel message, but at least he got the chance to share it by finding common ground.

Finding common ground with our listeners can open the door to deepening a relationship or even sharing the gospel.

When we talk with people, we should be alert to opportunities to share the gospel. We should ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to us where we can find a launching point to share Jesus, if it is appropriate. I am not of the persuasion that every conversation needs to end up with our sharing the gospel. That is a good way to alienate people. If we hope to have a long-term connection with our listeners, we must be socially aware and smart. If we are preaching at a gospel crusade, we can be a gospel bulldozer that flattens everything in its path, but in one-on-one conversations, we need tact and wisdom.

Sometimes God will open a way to share the gospel in a first conversation with someone. Other times we may need to cultivate a relationship. If we know we will never see the person again, we might be more aggressive. If we love people, it will make it easier to decide what to do. We will do the loving thing.

Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone. Colossians 4:6 (NLT)
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What about Herman?

One of my favorite comedic movies is What about Bob, starring Bill Murray. Murray plays the part of neurotic psychiatric patient whose persistence enables him to move from being a pesky nuisance to becoming the most important member of the family.

When it comes to understanding the Bible creation account in Genesis Chapter One, perhaps we should ask, “What about Herman?”

Like Bob in the movie, Herman may seem irritating at first, but he can help us a lot. Who is Herman? I am glad you asked. His full name is Herman Neutics.

Hermeneutics is the study of the general principles of Bible interpretation which are meant to guide us to a proper exegesis (a pulling out of the meaning) of biblical passages, as opposed to eisegesis, which is the reading our presuppositions into the Bible text.

One of the basic ideas of good Bible interpretation is that a passage must at least mean what the author meant it to say. It could mean more, but not less. This is important when it comes to the creation account and the nature of the earth and heavens.

We should ask ourselves, “What was the view of the cosmos held by the authors of the Bible?”

It is acknowledged by Bible scholars that the Hebrew conception of the earth and heavens is represented by the following illustration. 

This view was held until around 500 years ago with the advent of the Copernican revolution and the Enlightenment. Such notable teachers as Luther and Calvin rebuked the Copernican heresy for contradicting the Bible. How sad that a few centuries later we think that those esteemed men were ignorant and misguided. They may have been unschooled in the theories of  modern astrophysics, but they knew the Bible. Today, it is often quite the opposite. Many professing Christians know more about the heliocentric theory than the Bible. This raises an important question.

 

Which has more authority in our lives and the quest for truth, so-called science or the Bible?

I am a child of the modern era and was schooled in the heliocentric view. I, like everyone else I know, was indoctrinated with an almost ever-present globe model of the earth. All the important teachers in my life told me the same story. The earth is an extremely old spinning water ball hurtling through the vast emptiness of outer space, kept in line by the power of gravity. No one I knew ever questioned this theory, even though, looking at it with fresh eyes, in many ways it is quite ludicrous.

Soon after becoming a follower of Christ in 1971, I became convinced that the Bible is God’s inerrant Word. This profoundly impacted my life. I made it my quest to study it and try to live by Jesus’ teachings. When it came to the Genesis creation account, however, I suspended critical thinking and simply admitted that I did not begin to know how to make it agree with modern astrophysics. This is where most Christians find themselves today. We must either reject Genesis Chapter One as a myth, poetry, or a symbolic account that has no translation into scientific fact, or believe it is literally true. It seems that most have gone with one of the former options.

This all changed for me when I saw that the earth has no provable curvature. All empirical measurements show that it is flat. The only way globe believers can make their case is by relying on NASA images from “outer space” and by interpreting eclipses to “prove” the earth’s shape. But proving curvature in some other way has not and cannot be done because the earth is a plane, not a globe. (I believe the images delivered by NASA and other space agencies are computer generated, and eclipses can be explained in other ways using a flat earth model. I have created a resource page for those wishing to learn more.)

After becoming convinced that the earth’s surface does not curve as the globe model requires, I read Genesis with new eyes. Now I accept Genesis One as a true account, an actual history of how God did it. Herman and I are back in sync. I now see the scriptures with the same eyes as those who authored the Bible.

It’s amazing how the Scriptures come alive when we stop superimposing our “scientific” presuppositions upon the text and let it speak for itself.

Now I can accept that God created the dome of the firmament on Day Two, and the sun on Day Four, placing it, the moon, and the stars in the firmament. We do not revolve around them. They go around us. That’s how the ancients saw it, and, guess what, they were right. We have been grossly deceived and tricked into rejecting the Bible. Sound familiar?

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Those Who Love to Debate May End Up in Hell

While in Athens, Paul…

...had a debate with some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers. When he told them about Jesus and his resurrection, they said, “What’s this babbler trying to say with these strange ideas he’s picked up?” Others said, “He seems to be preaching about some foreign gods.” 19  Then they took him to the high council of the city. “Come and tell us about this new teaching,” they said. 20  “You are saying some rather strange things, and we want to know what it’s all about.” 21  (It should be explained that all the Athenians as well as the foreigners in Athens seemed to spend all their time discussing the latest ideas.) Acts 17:18-21 (NLT)

Some people love acquiring knowledge but are not willing to commit to the truth.

This might be like contrasting a womanizer with a faithful married man. Both like women in general, but when the latter finds “the one,” he realizes his quest was completed and commits to just one person.

Some people love to debate more than they love truth.

It does not matter to them which side of the argument they defend. Such people may end up in hell, if they are unwilling to forsake everything when they find the truth.

Jesus is the Truth, and when we find him (or he finds us!), it is immensely satisfying. We realize that our search has ended because we found “the one.” Jesus said:

...“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. John 14:6 (NLT)

Beware of people who merely want to debate, but who are not really looking for truth. They are a waste of time and energy, like trolls on social media.

People cannot be saved through debate, only by making a commitment to the truth, who, it turns out, is a Person.

I close with Paul’s words to the church in Thessalonica.

He [the man of lawlessness, the antichrist] will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. 2 Thessalonians 2:10 (NLT)
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Is Science vs Religion a Real Thing?

When I first published my conviction that the earth is a stationary plane rather than a globe, I met some stiff resistance. I was told that my “flat earth” beliefs were religious in nature because I was not open to contrary evidence. I suppose it was meant to be somehow derogatory, but was interesting that it came from a firm believer in Christ, his resurrection, a six-day creation, and everything else that goes with being a Bible believer.

Some believe that science is not religious, but, in fact, this is not true.

For example, one of the “fathers” of modern astrophysics was Albert Einstein. When he and his contemporaries were confronted with the confounding results of the Michelson-Morley experiment, which indicated that the earth is not in motion, he devised his now famous theory of special relativity to explain away the unwelcome results. In doing so, he remarked that he “knew” that the earth is moving. In other words, he had an a priori belief that the Copernican heliocentric view is correct, complete with the earth’s supposed revolution around the sun, rotation around its axis, the movement of the entire solar system through the Milky Way galaxy, and the movement of our galaxy through the universe. He set about disproving the results of a scientific experiment by “proving” what he assumed to be true, which is a logical fallacy. In so doing, he attempted to use advanced math to demonstrate that a metal container changed shape, thus nullifying the results of the experiment. This seems to be quite absurd, unless one religiously accepts his a priori belief, but it has been accepted by most of the scientific community as proof that the earth indeed moves by “proving” that we cannot experimentally prove whether the sun if moving or the earth, since all such motion is relative. In other words, he asks us to dismiss the results of a solid scientific experiment, which has been repeated many times, in order to hold on to his a priori belief. If I am not mistaken, this is what I was accused of doing.

Some of Einstein’s contemporaries were not fooled by his mathematical magic trick. Nicolai Tesla, whom I consider to be the preeminent scientist of his day, dismissed Einstein’s work as nonsense.

Another group of scientists in Europe signed a document disavowing Einstein’s work as being unscientific.

God created us to be people of faith. The desire to move beyond faith into experimental knowledge apart from divine revelation is what destroyed Adam and Eve’s Edenic existence. Since then, it seems that human beings are in a continual quest to escape the confines of God’s Word. (Click here to read more extensively on this subject.) Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, and Newton did not wish to be limited in their understanding by what the Bible says. Instead they invented theories of the nature of the cosmos that contradict biblical testimony. Sadly many so-called “Bible believing” Christians believe what these men say instead of what the Bible says, not realizing that modern astrophysics, like the Bible, rests on a priori beliefs or presuppositions.

We can say we value science over religion, but the truth is that we have simply replaced one religious system of beliefs with another. The way God made us, we cannot escape the requirement to put our faith in something. I choose God and the Bible. How about you?

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Get in the Game

Paul next traveled to Athens, Greece, where…

...he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17  So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. Acts 17:16-17 (NIV)

Paul visited two places where people gathered to look for opportunities to share the gospel. God wants us to be alert for such chances to talk to people about Jesus. A skilled fisherman will go where he believes there will be fish to catch. The skilled angler will know what bait to use, at what depth to fish, etc. God wants us to use our wits to go where we can find people, but, more importantly, to listen to the Holy Spirit.

Jesus advised his disciples to…

Now go out to the street corners and invite everyone you see [to be reconciled to God].’ Matthew 22:9 (NLT)

I believe this translates to our getting out in our neighborhoods with the intent to talk to people about Jesus, should the opportunity arise. This must be done with wisdom, love, and consideration. We don’t want people running inside every time we go outside. 🙂

I believe it is a great idea for us followers of Christ to make it a practice to be present where people gather with the express purpose of seeing what God might do.

This will require us to be alert, relaxed, and lovingly bold. It will give us an opportunity to hone our conversational skills so that we can easily talk to people about spiritual things without making them feel uncomfortable. If we use conversation to discover more about them, their situations, and needs, we will likely find a way to offer to pray for them or to share how Christ could be the answer they seek. The more we do this, the easier it will get, the more relaxed we will become, and the more we will enjoy it. The Holy Spirit is waiting for us to get in the game, so to speak. We cannot make an impact on anyone by sitting on the sidelines. God is already at work in people’s lives. He is looking for teammates.

So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.” Matthew 9:38 (NLT)
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Word Games

People love word games. I play Wordle almost every day. Even Bible translators play word games. One of their favorite is called “Translator’s Bias.” The goal of this game is to translate a word in such a fashion that it will obscure its plain meaning in order to guide readers into accepting the translator’s view of things. This happens all the time as translators wrestle with the difficult task of how to best communicate the meaning of scripture. The New Living Translation does this on purpose in an attempt to accurately present larger ideas instead of the literal meaning of specific words. Sometimes they hit a home run. At other times one is forced back to a more literal translation to properly understand a passage.

It is a sad state of affairs, however, when translations that are supposed to be literal engage in obfuscation of the text.

A great example of translator’s bias is how the Hebrew word “raqia” is rendered in English. The people who wrote the Bible and lived at that time understood it to mean a solid dome that enclosed the stationary plane of the earth and the seas. (If you want to read more about the raqia, click here.) The KJV and NKJV give us an honest pre-Copernican rendering of the word in English by using the word “firmament,” which communicates the idea of solidity. Almost every other translation bows the knee to post-Copernican cosmology by using words such as sky or expanse. These words are not “wrong,” per se, but such a translation allows readers to think that biblical cosmology does not differ from modern astrophysics.

As a result, most Christians today believe in the heliocentric lie without realizing that it contradicts the Bible and dishonors God.

(I have written an article that focuses on the occult religion of heliocentrism.)

This morning I read Psalm 104:3 in my daily devotions, which says that God “lays out the beams of his upper chambers in the waters.” (NKJV) The Hebrew word (aliyyah) translated “upper chambers” could be rendered more literally “roof chambers,” which accurately communicates the concept of the firmament being a roof over the earth, above which is God’s throne. (I wrote another article going into more detail about this place called heaven.)

My notation in the margin next to Psalm 104:3 took me to Amos 9:6.

He who builds His layers [Hebrew: maalah] in the sky, And has founded His strata [Hebrew: aguddah] in the earth; Who calls for the waters of the sea, And pours them out on the face of the earth— The LORD is His name. Amos 9:6 (NKJV)

I have numerous Bible translations, but for my daily reading and study I use the NKJV. I switched to this version because it accurately translates raqia as the firmament. It is a fairly good translation, but I like the NASB the best. In this instance, the NKJV let me down. The Hebrew word it renders as “layers” (maalah) communicates little of the literal meaning, which the NASB better translates “upper chambers,” which corresponds to Psalm 104:3.

Below is the NASB rendering of the verse in Amos.

The One who builds His upper chambers in the heavens And has founded His vaulted dome [aguddah] over the earth, He who calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the face of the earth, The LORD is His name. Amos 9:6 (NASB95)

I suppose you noticed how differently the NASB translated the Hebrew word  “aguddah.” The literal meaning is bands, thongs, slavery fetters, or bunch (as a bunch of hyssop). Why then did the NASB translate this “vaulted dome?”

We are told in Genesis that another term for firmament is heaven. (Genesis 1:8) We are also told that heaven has multiple layers called “the heavens.” God apparently dwells in the third heaven. (2 Corinthians 12:2) We know so little about the heavens that it is quite probable that the first heaven, our atmos has multiple layers. We are still discovering what has been deliberately obfuscated for centuries. So, we see that translating aguddah as vaulted dome is consistent with other scriptures, but is not a literal rendering. Here we seem to have translator’s bias in support of biblical cosmology, instead of against it as usually happens.

When we interpret the Word of God, it is important that we allow it to speak for itself instead of twisting its meaning to fit a preferred paradigm. Let us not resort to word games as we search for truth, even if that search leads us away from long cherished presuppositions.

 

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Where Is Jesus?

Jesus rose bodily from the dead and after forty days ascended into heaven.

And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” Acts 1:10–11 (NKJV)

This indicates that heaven is an actual place above the earth, not just a spiritual dimension. (I have written more about this in another article.) Jesus’ physical body has to be somewhere. It did not de-materialize. 

Those who believe that the Bible’s description of the earth and heavens is true understand that God’s throne is located above the dome of the firmament. 

It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. Isaiah 40:22 (NKJV)

The Bible gives us descriptions of this place called heaven.

And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. 27 Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking. Ezekiel 1:26–28 (NKJV)

This sure does resemble the description of Jesus in the Book of Revelation.

Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. 14 His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; 15 His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; 16 He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. 17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. 18 I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death. Revelation 1:12–18 (NKJV)

Jesus identified himself as the Son of Man prophesied by Daniel when he stood before the Sanhedrin. According to our Lord, he will return in glory to the earth coming down from heaven in the clouds.

Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Matthew 26:64 (NKJV)

Putting all of this together, Jesus ascended into a real place called heaven, which is located atop the firmament. There he sits on God’s throne, waiting for the day of his return, from where he will descend in the clouds to the earth in judgment on all who ever lived. If we believe the Bible, we know these things. If we believe the heliocentric lie, we must spiritualize heaven into some unknown mystical place out there in the infinite void of the ever-expanding universe. I believe the Bible and believe that I will one day see what Ezekiel and John saw.

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Look for Open-Minded People

Paul and Silas made it to the city of Berea where they encountered people who were open to truth.

And the people of Berea were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul’s message. They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth. 12  As a result, many Jews believed, as did many of the prominent Greek women and men. Acts 17:11-12 (NLT)

Most of the Jewish leaders had already made up their minds to reject Jesus and his teachings. Such closed mindedness blinded them to the beauty and truth of his words and the testimony of his many miracles. They imagined that they were the custodians of truth whose job was to root out those who had veered away from their teachings, not realizing that their teachings had long since departed from God’s heart.

And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME. 7 ‘BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.’ Mark 7:6–7 (NASB95)

Humble open-minded people are willing to consider an idea and check out its validity for themselves. Instead of being manipulated by those who hated Paul and the gospel, the Bereans examined the Scriptures to see if the gospel’s claims were true.

Jesus described this sort of people in his famous parable of the sower.

And the seeds that fell on the good soil represent honest, good-hearted people who hear God’s word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest. Luke 8:15 (NLT)

Rather than wasting time with those who steadfastly resist the gospel, look for those who are open-minded.

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