Category Archives: My Deeds

My Deeds, Part 3

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There is a table representing my unstudied view of the relationship of the clauses of Revelation 2:26-29.  I’m considering the clause, who continues in my deeds until the end, because it tugs the hardest at me to return to my own works.  I’ve begun to try to understand τὰ ἔργα μου, translated my deeds, with a study of τηρῶν (a form of τηρέω), translated who continues.  The most basic understanding of τηρῶν is: Blessed is the one who stays alert and does not lose (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his clothes so that he will not have to walk around naked…[1]  It means to keep, not to lose or discard.

To review, the NET translation of John 14:21 confirms both my initial belief and practice, that obeying Jesus’ commands was the path to loving Him, knowing Him and being loved by Him and his Father.  Refining the translation obeys to keeps lowers the standard a bit but doesn’t alter the order of events, that Jesus and his Father loved me because I first loved Jesus (by keeping his commandments, not losing or discarding them).  But this argument was preceded by another, outlined below:

If you love Me…

John 14:15a (NASB)

 …you will keep (τηρήσετε, another form of τηρέω) My commandments.

John 14:15b (NASB)
I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides (μένει, a form of μένω; present tense) with you and will be (ἔσται, a form of εἰμί; future tense) in you.

John 14:16, 17 (NASB)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…

Galatians 5:22, 23a (NASB)
I have not come to abolish [the law or the prophets] but to fulfill them.

Matthew 5:17b (NET)

 …love is the fulfillment of the law.

Romans 13:10b (NET)
He who has My commandments and keeps (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) them…

John 14:21a (NASB)

 …is the one who loves Me…

John 14:21b (NASB)

I will love Jesus and keep his commandments by the Holy Spirit who abides with me and will be in me.  If I concede to the old man (Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:9-11), fighting for its own survival by attempting to lose or discard Jesus’ commandments, though it may not alter God’s love for me, I have ceased to love Him with the love that is the fruit of his Spirit, the love that is the fulfillment of the law, no matter what I tell myself and no matter how much emotion I feel for Him.

In this essay I’ll consider John’s explanation, And the person who keeps (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his commandments resides in God, and God in him,[2] but I’ll back up first to take a run at it (1 John 2:28, 29 NET):

And now, little children, remain (μένετε, a form of μένω) in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink away from him in shame when he comes back.  If you know that he is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) righteousness has been fathered by him.

The Greek word translated fathered was γεγέννηται (a form of γεννάω).  John didn’t leave us wondering what he meant by it: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been fathered (γεγέννηται, a form of γεννάω) by God…[3]  He had a unique understanding of the word μένετε as one of the twelve Jesus sent out with the following instruction (I’ve included Luke 10:7 though it was addressed to the seventy-two others Jesus appointed and sent on ahead of Him).

Mark 6:10 (NET)

Luke 9:4 (NET)

Luke 10:7 (NET)
[Jesus] said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay (μένετε, a form of μένω) there until you leave the area.” Whatever house you enter, stay (μένετε, a form of μένω) there until you leave the area. Stay (μένετε, a form of μένω) in that same house, eating and drinking what they give you, for the worker deserves his pay.  Do not move around from house to house.

I understand what it means to stay in a house, to not move around from place to place.  But what does it mean to stay in God?  A few verses prior to this John wrote (1 John 2:24 NET):

As for you, what you have heard from the beginning must remain (μενέτω, another form of μένω) in you.  If what you heard from the beginning remains (μείνῃ, another form of μένω) in you, you also will remain (μενεῖτε, another form of μένω) in the Son and in the Father.

So I remain in the Son and in the Father if Jesus’ teaching remains in me.  Here is Jesus’ teaching on the subject (John 15:4, 5a NET):

Remain (μείνατε, another form of μένω) in me, and I will remain in you.  Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it remains (μένῃ, another form of μένω) in the vine, so neither can you unless you remain (μένητε, another form of μένω) in me.  I am the vine; you are the branches.  The one who remains (μένων, another form of μένω) in me – and I in him – bears much fruit…

In other words, remaining in Jesus (and his Father) by remaining in the teaching I have heard from the beginning of my new life in Christ (assuming that teaching was the Gospel of Christ) brings forth the fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control that is the fulfillment of the law.  Jesus continued, because apart from me you can accomplish nothing.[4]  I don’t think He meant that I couldn’t become a hypocrite, an actor playing at righteousness more or less skillfully.  Jesus warned, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the experts in the law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.[5]  But I can’t do the righteousness that fulfills the law apart from remaining in Jesus by remaining in his teaching.

Jesus continued teaching his disciples (John 15:6 NET):

If anyone does not remain (μένῃ, another form of μένω) in me, he is thrown out like a branch, and dries up; and such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and are burned up.

He listed some impediments either to hearing in the beginning or to what was heard from the beginning remaining (Luke 8:11-15 NET):

Now the parable means this: The seed is the word of God (ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ).  Those along the path are the ones who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.  Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root.  They believe for a while, but in a time of testing fall away (ἀφίστανται, a form of ἀφίστημι).  As for the seed that fell among thorns, these are the ones who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked (συμπνίγονται, a form of συμπνίγω) by the worries and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.  But as for the seed that landed on good soil, these are the ones who, after hearing the word, cling (κατέχουσιν, a form of κατέχω) to it with an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with steadfast endurance.

If you remain (μείνητε, another form of μένω) in me and my words remain (μείνῃ, another form of μένω) in you, Jesus continued, ask whatever you want, and it will be done (γενήσεται, a form of γίνομαι) for you.  My Father is honored by this, that you bear much fruit and show that you are (γένησθε, another form of γίνομαι) my disciples.[6]  The words if and whatever are the same Greek word ἐὰν.  I understand this request as related to, and bracketed by, bearing fruit.  I’m unsure about translating ἐὰν whatever.  In my case it led to unbelief while—ask [if] you want, and it will be done (or, become) for you—has led to some faith-confirming results.  Jesus continued (John 15:9, 10 NET):   

Just as the Father has loved me, I have also loved you; remain (μείνατε, another form of μένω) in my love.  If you obey (τηρήσητε, another form of τηρέω) my commandments, you will remain (μενεῖτε, another form of μένω) in my love, just as I have obeyed (τετήρηκα, another form of τηρέω) my Father’s commandments and remain (μένω) in his love.

This is how I understood this passage even when the Bible I read translated τηρήσητε keep and τετήρηκα kept.  “Jesus promises to love the disciples if they obey his commandments,” reads the sermon notes for John 15:9-17 on Sermon Writer online.  Here, and other places like it, I turned from being led by the Holy Spirit, especially if my behavior was too embarrassing too often to confess any longer, to take charge of my own righteousness in my own strength.

See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called God’s children,[7] John continued.  The note (1) in the NET reads:

The ἵνα (Jina) clause is best understood (1) as epexegetical (or explanatory), clarifying the love (ἀγάπην, agapen) that the Father has given to believers. Although it is possible (2) to regard the ἵνα as indicating result, the use of ποταπήν (potapen, “what sort of”) to modify ἀγάπην suggests that the idea of “love” will be qualified further in the following context, and this qualification is provided by the epexegetical ἵνα clause.

I think option (2) is the better understanding.  The sort of love the Father has given to us is not the Father’s feeling for us, but a very practical gift: It is the love that is patient, the love that is kind, the love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.[8]  This love may be shared in.  It is the fruit of his Spirit, the fulfillment of the law.  This love may be remained in or may be left behind.  If I leave God’s love behind to run ahead in my own strength God’s love has not and does not change.  If I do not remain in his love I strive way too hard to become a highly-skilled hypocrite rather than receiving the love he has given us.  He gave us this sort of love in order that we should be called God’s children.  Paul concurred with John (Romans 5:5b; 7:6b; 8:3, 4, 14 NET):

…the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us…

…so that we may serve in the new life of the Spirit and not under the old written code.

For God achieved what the law could not do because it was weakened through the flesh.  By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous requirement of the law may be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God.

“To remain in Jesus’ love,” the entry in SermonWriter reads, “suggests being immersed in Jesus’ love—surrounded by Jesus’ love—comforted by Jesus’ love—empowered by Jesus’ love.  Imagine a swimming pool filled, not with water, but with Jesus’ love.”  All analogies have their problems but this one isn’t too bad.  Ordinarily one tries not to drown in a swimming pool.  A pool of Jesus’ love is really only threatening to the old man (Ephesians 4:25-5:5; Colossians 3:12-17).  The believer lives and breathes in its environs, in fact, only in its environs.  This pool travels with the believer, but the believer can leave the pool.  A believer leaving the pool of God’s love does not change God’s love at all.  Leaving only changes the believer’s access to, and appreciation of, God’s love.  Jesus’ and John’s point was, don’t get out of God’s love.

Here is John again (1 John 3:1-10 NET):

(See what sort of love the Father has given to us: that we should be called God’s children – and indeed we are!  For this reason the world does not know us: because it did not know him.  Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed.  We know that whenever it is revealed we will be like him, because we will see him just as he is.  And everyone who has this hope focused on him purifies himself, just as Jesus is pure).

Everyone who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) sin also practices (ποιεῖ, another form of ποιέω) lawlessness; indeed, sin is lawlessness.  And you know that Jesus was revealed to take away (ἄρῃ, a form of αἴρω) sins, and in him there is no sin.  Everyone who resides (μένων, another form of μένω) in him does not sin; everyone who sins has neither seen him nor known him.  Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) righteousness is righteous, just as Jesus is righteous.  The one who practices (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) sin is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning.  For this purpose the Son of God was revealed: to destroy the works of the devil.  Everyone who has been fathered (γεγεννημένος, another form of γεννάω) by God does not practice (ποιεῖ, another form of ποιέω) sin, because God’s seed resides (μένει, another form of μένω) in him, and thus he is not able to sin, because he has been fathered (γεγέννηται, a form of γεννάω) by God.  By this the children of God and the children of the devil are revealed: Everyone who does not practice (ποιῶν, a form of ποιέω) righteousness – the one who does not love his fellow Christian (ἀδελφὸν, a form of ἀδελφός) – is not of God.

Now if I do what I do (ποιῶ, another form of ποιέω) not want, Paul wrote believers in Rome, it is no longer me doing it but sin that lives in me.[9]  It is better to greet John’s and Paul’s explanations with faith than with fear or mockery.  But the Spirit of God relentlessly dragged me back when my default position was to “chuck this whole religion thing.”  He was kind and patient when my default position became do-it-myself sanctification, when I said in so many words, “I can’t trust You with something as important as MY righteousness.”  Jaco Gericke had a very different testimony.  I rationalize this difference with Paul’s conclusion: So then, God has mercy on whom he chooses to have mercy, and he hardens whom he chooses to harden.[10]  Others rationalize it as individual free will.

When I was young righteousness was a matter of good habits developed through willpower because Jesus had saved me.  Now I can see this as a childish misunderstanding of potentially good teaching.  But at the time I saw Jesus’ salvation only as a reason, why I should do righteousness, never as a cause, how I could do righteousness.  My willpower proved to be unequal to the task.  I am weak-willed vis-à-vis righteousness.  So I tend to minimize the effect of my will and magnify the effect of God’s mercy.   Now that I understand that Jesus’ salvation causes righteousness I have replaced willpower with the fruit of the Holy Spirit.  Of course, I still don’t recognize any habit in me toward the good apart from that daily infusion of his love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

On the other hand, I proved to be quite willful, stubborn, rebellious and stiff-necked regarding my sin.  So I tend to see free will as more useful, or more conducive, to sinning.  I don’t tend to argue the point because I can see how one who had more success than I did could regard willpower as helpful in the pursuit of righteousness.  Still, I keep my mind open to the possibility that the preachers of free will may have taken more credit for that righteousness than they deserve.

Little children, John continued, let us not love with word or with tongue but in deed and truth.[11]  As Jesus tried to teach me about the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe,[12] I got tripped up here quite often.  I thought, especially if my performance was less than perfect when I had attempted to trust Him, that his teaching was not his teaching but me playing word games, loving with word (λόγῳ, a form of λόγος) or with tongue (γλώσσῃ, a form of γλῶσσα).  “No, you really have to do it,” I heard many times from my elders if I tried to share what I thought I had been learning.  How I ever thought that obeying rules in my own strength might become loving in deed (ἔργῳ, a form of ἔργον) and truth (ἀληθείᾳ, a form of ἀλήθεια), I can’t explain apart from being willful, stubborn, rebellious and stiff-necked.  Now I assume that loving with word or with tongue corresponds to my hypocrisy, while loving in deed and truth corresponds to being led by his Holy Spirit.

John continued (1 John 3:19-24 NET):

And by this we will know that we are of the truth (ἀληθείας, another form of ἀλήθεια) and will convince our conscience in his presence, that if (ἐὰν) our conscience condemns us, that God is greater than our conscience and knows all things.  Dear friends, if (ἐὰν) our conscience does not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God, and whatever (ἐὰν; or if) we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do the things that are pleasing to him.  Now this is his commandment: that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he gave us the commandment.  And the person who keeps his commandments resides (μένει, another form of μένω) in God, and God in him.  Now by this we know that God resides (μένει, another form of μένω) in us: by the Spirit he has given us.

I want to conclude this essay by addressing one of the statements in the entry in Sermon Writer directly:

The emphasis is love.  Love begins with the Father and flows through the Son to the disciples (v. 9).  It is contingent on obedience…Jesus promises to love the disciples if they obey his commandments.

The demonstrably false statement—“Jesus promises to love the disciples if they obey his commandments”—mischaracterizes God’s love and remaining in his love.  First, consider Jesus’ teaching on the nature of the Father’s love (Matthew 5:43-48 NET):

You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’ and ‘hate your enemy.’  But I say to you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be like your Father in heaven, since he causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.  For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?  Even the tax collectors do the same, don’t they?  And if you only greet your brothers, what more do you do?  Even the Gentiles do the same, don’t they?  So then, be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Jesus’ love for me is not equivalent to, or contingent upon, my remaining in his love.  Jesus loves me because God is love and Jesus remains in his Father’s love.  If and only if I remain in his love I will bear the fruit of his Spirit, the love which is the fulfillment of the law, and obey him thereby.  It is not that his love, or even remaining in his love, is contingent upon some open-ended obedience of mine but that my obedience is contingent upon his love and my remaining in his love.

Here the misdirection of translating forms of τηρέω with forms of obey becomes evident.  To keep Jesus’ commandments, not to lose or discard them, has much more in common with his words remaining in us than it does with any form of obey.  Even as I write this I hear the quibble in my head: “But you have obeyed: you have remained in his love by clinging to his teaching.”  I write this quibble off to the religious mind.

I acknowledged the religious mind as nothing more than the carnal mind or the outlook of the flesh, but the term still serves a useful purpose for me.  I expect the carnal mind or the outlook of the flesh to be focused directly on sin.  The pretense of the religious mind is its focus on righteousness, albeit a righteousness of its own derived from the law with a keen desire to justify itself by law.  Consider Jesus’ teaching on the subject (Luke 17:10 NET):

“So you too, when you have done everything you were commanded to do, should say, ‘We are slaves undeserving of special praise; we have only done what was our duty.’”

As I’ve written before, we have this attitude not because we are in some wretched social condition but because our deeds have been done in (or, by) God[13]…for the one bringing forth (ἐνεργῶν, a form of ἐνεργέω) in you both the desire (θέλειν, a form of θέλω) and the effort (ἐνεργεῖν, another form of ἐνεργέω) – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God.[14]

[1] Revelation 16:15b (NET)

[2] 1 John 3:24a (NET)

[3] 1 John 5:1a (NET)

[4] John 15:5b (NET)

[5] Matthew 5:20 (NET)

[6] John 15:7, 8 (NET) Table

[7] 1 John 3:1a (NET)

[8] 1 Corinthians 13:7 (NET)

[9] Romans 7:20 (NET)

[10] Romans 9:18 (NET)

[11] 1 John 3:18 (NET)

[12] Romans 3:22a (NET)

[13] John 3:21b (NET)

[14] Philippians 2:13 (NET)

My Deeds, Part 2

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This is the table representing my unstudied view of the relationship of the clauses of Revelation 2:26-29.

Revelation 2:26-29 (NET)

And to the one who conquers

 and

who continues in my deeds until the end,

I will give him authority over the nations –

he will rule them with an iron rod

 and

like clay jars he will break them to pieces,

just as I have received the right to rule from my Father –

 and

I will give him the morning star.

The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

I’m considering who continues in my deeds until the end, because it tugs the hardest at me to return to my own works.  As the title of this essay suggests my goal is to understand what Jesus meant by τὰ ἔργα μου, translated my deeds.  I’ve begun with τηρῶν (a form of τηρέω), translated who continues.  The most basic understanding of τηρῶν is: Blessed is the one who stays alert and does not lose (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his clothes so that he will not have to walk around naked…[1]  It means to keep, not to lose or discard.

In this essay I’ll begin with, The one who says “I have come to know God” and yet does not keep (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in such a person.[2]  This occurs in a particular context which I’ll begin for the sake of argument with John’s contrast of light and darkness (1 John 1:5 (NET):

Now this is the gospel message we have heard from him and announce to you: God is light (φῶς), and in him there is no darkness (σκοτία) at all.

This hearkens back to John’s description of Jesus as the Word (λόγος): In him was life, and the life was the light (φῶς) of mankind.  And the light (φῶς) shines on in the darkness (σκοτίᾳ), but the darkness (σκοτία) has not mastered it.[3]  And it mirrors Jesus’ description of Himself: I am the light (φῶς) of the world.  The one who follows me will never walk (περιπατήσῃ, a form of περιπατέω) in darkness (σκοτίᾳ), but will have the light (φῶς) of life.[4]  John continued his letter (1 John 1:6, 7 NET):

If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking (περιπατῶμεν, another form of περιπατέω) in the darkness (σκότει, a form of σκότος), we are lying and not practicing the truth.  But if we walk (περιπατῶμεν, another form of περιπατέω) in the light (φωτὶ, another form of φῶς) as he himself is in the light (φωτί, another form of φῶς) we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin (ἁμαρτίας, a form of ἁμαρτία).

This brings me back to Jesus’ words to Nicodemus, the light (φῶς) has come into the world and people loved the darkness (σκότος) rather than the light (φῶς), because their deeds were evil.  For everyone who does evil deeds hates the light (φῶς) and does not come to the light (φῶς), so that their deeds will not be exposed.  But the one who practices the truth comes to the light (φῶς), so that it may be plainly evident that his deeds have been done in God.[5]

I admit I had hoped this would be plainly evident to others but apparently my deeds having been done in God is only plainly evident to me.  Most people who know me assume I obey, more or less, a stringent set of rules that I have proven over and over again (to myself) to be incapable of obeying.

If I hadn’t already considered, and before I had considered, πονηρὰ (a form of πονηρός; translated, evil) and φαῦλα (a form of φαῦλος; evil deeds) I would have assumed that walking in darkness was equivalent to walking in sin and walking in the light therefore would mean not sinning.  But as John continued in his letter I gain another line of argument that πονηρὰ and φαῦλα are not equivalent to ἁμαρτίας, at least as far as they relate to Jesus’/John’s concept of walking in darkness or light.  John continued (1 John 1:8-10 NET):

If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin (ἁμαρτίαν, another form of ἁμαρτία), we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.  But if we confess our sins (ἁμαρτίας, a form of ἁμαρτία), he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins (ἁμαρτίας, a form of ἁμαρτία) and cleansing us from all unrighteousness (ἀδικίας, a form of ἀδικία).  If we say we have not sinned (ἡμαρτήκαμεν, a form of ἁμαρτάνω), we make him a liar and his word (λόγος) is not in us.

Walking in the light and being cleansed of sin by the blood of Jesus are associated with acknowledging and confessing one’s own sin, while walking in darkness is associated with saying one does not bear the guilt of sin or has not sinned.  Here is the same information in tabular form.

Reference

Light (φῶς)

Darkness (σκοτία)
1 John 1:5 God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:6 If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking in the darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth.
1 John 1:7, 8 But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
1 John 1:9, 10 But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us.

The one who practices the truth comes to the light (φῶς), so that it may be plainly evident that his deeds (ἔργα, a form of ἔργον) have been done in God as opposed to those who love the darkness and hate the light so that their deeds (ἔργα, a form of ἔργον) [e.g., their deeds of righteousness] will not be exposed as πονηρὰ and φαῦλα.  And we have a hint here that τὰ ἔργα μου, translated my deeds, are deeds done in God as opposed to those done in one’s own strength.  John continued (1 John 2:1, 2 NET):

(My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin [ἁμάρτητε, another form of ἁμαρτάνω].)  But if anyone does sin (ἁμάρτῃ, another form of ἁμαρτάνω), we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One, and he himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins (ἁμαρτιῶν, another form of ἁμαρτία), and not only for our sins (ἡμετέρων, a form of ἡμέτερος) but also for the whole world.

While the goal remains to cease from sin, the question that has plagued me is how?  Jesus’ attitude toward forgiveness was fairly clear when Peter asked how many times must I forgive my brother?[6]  Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, I tell you, but seventy-seven times!”[7]  The note (33) in the NET reads: “Or ‘seventy times seven,’ i.e., an unlimited number of times.”  But long before I have returned to Jesus even seventy-seven times confessing the same sin in the same day I have reworked the commandment in my mind to assuage my own embarrassment.  And so through pride and unbelief I have effectively “lost” or “discarded” the commandment.  John continued (I John 2:3, 4 NET):

Now by this we know that we have come to know God: if we keep (τηρῶμεν, another form of τηρέω) his commandments.  The one who says “I have come to know God” and yet does not keep (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in such a person.

Jesus’ patience has taught me (through many a trial and error) that disobeying a commandment and confessing my sin seventy-seven, or seventy times seven, times a day is keeping that commandment.  Rewriting the commandment and denying my sin makes me a liar, and the truth is not in me.  Still, I would prefer not to sin in the first place.  John continued (1 John 2:5, 6 NET):

But whoever obeys (τηρῇ, another form of τηρέω) his word, truly in this person the love (Romans 13:8-10) of God has been perfected.  By this we know that we are in him.  The one who says he resides in God ought himself to walk just as Jesus walked.

While it was virtually impossible to translate forms of τηρέω obey or obeys when confession of sin was the topic of discussion, here the NET translators reverted to obeys.  I assume it is because they did the same to Jesus’ teaching (John 14:23-26 NET):

If anyone loves me, he will obey (τηρήσει, another form of τηρέω) my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and take up residence with him.  The person who does not love me does not obey (τηρεῖ, another form of τηρέω) my words.  And the word you hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me.  I have spoken these things while staying with you.  But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and will cause you to remember everything I said to you.

The NET translators believed: The person who has my commandments and obeys (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) them is the one who loves me.[8]  Jesus believed: Therefore I tell you, her sins (ἁμαρτίαι, another form of ἁμαρτία), which were many, are forgiven, thus she loved much; but the one who is forgiven little loves little.[9]  Still, both Jesus’ teaching and John’s teaching point one to the same fulfillment of a desire for obedience.  Jesus said, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and will cause you to remember everything I said to you.  John wrote, The one who says he resides in God ought himself to walk just as Jesus walked.

How did Jesus walk (περιεπάτησεν, another form of περιπατέω)?  He was led (ἀνήχθη, a form of ἀνάγω[10]; ἤγετο, a form of ἄγω[11]) by the Spirit that descended and remained on him.  Mark wrote: The Spirit immediately drove (ἐκβάλλει, a form of ἐκβάλλω[12]) him into the wilderness.[13]  Oh, to let go of fear and be ἀνήχθη, ἤγετο and ἐκβάλλει by the Spirit of God.

And the person who keeps (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his commandments, John concluded, resides in God, and God in him.  Now by this we know that God resides in us: by the Spirit he has given us.[14]  A comparison of these verses in the KJV and NET follows.

Reference

KJV

NET
1 John 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. Now this is the gospel message we have heard from him and announce to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: If we say we have fellowship with him and yet keep on walking in the darkness, we are lying and not practicing the truth.
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we say we do not bear the guilt of sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar and his word is not in us.
1 John 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.  And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: (My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.)  But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One,
1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. and he himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for our sins but also for the whole world.
1 John 2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. Now by this we know that we have come to know God (αὐτόν, a form of αὐτός): if we keep his commandments.
1 John 2:4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. The one who says “I have come to know God (αὐτόν, a form of αὐτός)” and yet does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in such a person.
1 John 2:5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. But whoever obeys his word, truly in this person the love of God has been perfected.  By this we know that we are in him.
1 John 2:6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. The one who says he resides in God (αὐτῷ, another form of αὐτός) ought himself to walk just as Jesus (ἐκεῖνος) walked.
1 John 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him.  And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. And the person who keeps his commandments resides in God (αὐτῷ, another form of αὐτός), and God (αὐτὸς) in him.  Now by this we know that God resides (μένει, a form of μένω; literally, he resides) in us: by the Spirit he has given us.

[1] Revelation 16:15b (NET)

[2] 1 John 2:4 (NET)

[3] John 1:4, 5 (NET)

[4] John 8:12 (NET)

[5] John 3:19b-21 (NET)

[6] Matthew 18:21a (NET)

[7] Matthew 18:22 (NET)

[8] John 14:21a (NET)

[9] Luke 7:47 (NET)

[10] http://biblehub.com/greek/321.htm

[11] http://biblehub.com/greek/71.htm

[12] http://biblehub.com/greek/1544.htm

[13] Mark 1:12 (NET)

[14] 1 John 3:24 (NET)

My Deeds, Part 1

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In another essay I contrasted 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 and Revelation 2:26-29.  I’ve wanted to return to the latter for a while.  Here is a table representing my unstudied view of the relationship of its clauses in English.

Revelation 2:26-29 (NET)
And to the one who conquers and who continues in my deeds until the end,

I will give him authority over the nations –
he will rule them with an iron rod and like clay jars he will break them to pieces,
just as I have received the right to rule from my Father – and I will give him the morning star.

The one who has an ear had better hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

To begin I’ll consider who continues in my deeds until the end, because it tugs the hardest at me to return to my own works.  As the title of this essay suggests my goal is to understand what Jesus meant by τὰ ἔργα μου, translated my deeds.  But first I’ll look into τηρῶν (a form of τηρέω), translated who continues.

The most basic understanding of τηρῶν is: Blessed is the one who stays alert and does not lose (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) his clothes so that he will not have to walk around naked and his shameful condition be seen.[1]  It means to keep, not to lose or discard.  He who has My commandments and keeps (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) them, Jesus said, is the one who loves Me.[2]

In another essay I described shacking-up “with my girlfriend du jour” as a time when “I began to walk in the grace of Christ’s salvation.”  Of course, I shacked up with my girlfriend because I was trying to believe that Christ put an “end” to the law and all things were “lawful” for me.  In other words, I was attempting to lose or discard Jesus’ commandments (ignoring for the moment that the main “commandment” at issue in my mind was the suspect “sin of premarital sex”).

Jesus wasn’t perplexed by my conundrum.  Suddenly I was filled with desire to write a rock opera about Him.  I became immersed in the words of the four Gospel narratives.  Among those words was: He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me.  Though I read the word keeps, I heard the word obeys.  I thought keeps meant obeys at that time: The person who has my commandments and obeys (τηρῶν, a form of τηρέω) them is the one who loves me.[3]

So when I married my roommate, though I had certainly fallen away from grace since I was trying to be declared righteous by the law,[4] I was done for the moment with my attempt to lose or discard Jesus’ commandments.  I can’t say I was obeying them.  Obedience apart from grace is hypocrisy, an actor playing at righteousness.

The Circle in the movie of the same name is a religious cult/high-tech company.  There are many spoilers here.  During a weekly worship service called Dream Friday tech evangelist Eamon Bailey (Tom Hanks), one of the founders, introduces a new low-cost, wireless, internet-enabled camera to the faithful, called Circlers.  These cameras, connected to The Circle, are being placed all over the world.  “There needs to be accountability,” Eamon preaches.  “Tyrants and terrorists can no longer hide.  We will see them.  We will hear them.  We will hear and see everything.  If it happens, we’ll know.  We’re calling it SeeChange.”

A new employee Mae Holland (Emma Watson) sits in the congregation drinking the Kool-Aid (as she admits to another Circler later in the film).  “We will see it all because knowing is good,” Eamon proclaims, “but knowing everything is better.”

“We need accountability.  We need openness,” Tom Stenton (Patton Oswalt), COO of The Circle, concurs as he introduces Congresswoman Olivia Santos (Judy Reyes) at another worship service.  “I intend to show exactly how democracy can and should be,” Congresswoman Santos thrills Tom’s congregation.  “Starting today, my every meeting, my every phone call and email will be accessible to my constituents and to the world in real time.”

“Hello, democracy!  Open and accountable!” Tom seals the deal.

One night SeaChange cameras and monitoring help save Mae’s life after a misguided kayaking accident.  Tom and Eamon counsel her after the incident.  “I am a believer in the perfectibility of human beings,” Eamon admits.  “When we are our best selves, the possibilities are endless.  There isn’t a problem that we cannot solve.  We can cure any disease, and we can end hunger.”  Mae is a repentant convert.  “Without secrets,” Eamon concludes, “without the hoarding of knowledge and information, we can finally realize our potential.”

“I committed a crime” Mae confesses before the Circlers.  “I borrowed a kayak without the owner’s knowledge, paddled out to the middle of the bay and I wasn’t wearing a life jacket.”

“So, Mae,” Eamon asks, “do you think you behave better or worse when you are being watched?”

“Better.  Without a doubt.”

“What happens when you’re alone and unobserved?”

“Well, for starters, I steal kayaks.  Seriously, I do things I don’t wanna do.  I lie…secrets are lies.  Secrets are what make crimes possible.  We behave worse when we’re not accountable.  I was my worst self because I didn’t think anyone was watching.  I thought that I was alone…Knowledge is a basic human right.  Access to all possible human experience is a basic human right…From now on I’ll be wearing a modified SeeChange camera at all times.  I’m going fully transparent.”

My personal logline for The Circle is “Cyber-bullying with a great warm smile.”  But the attempt to drive a preachy plot with a series of worship services didn’t fare any better for a mainstream movie than it does for a Christian film.  And when Tom and Eamon bully Mae in front of the congregation into becoming complicit in her friend’s accidental death, she doesn’t rise up and race against the clock and certain death to consume The Circle in slow-motion fireballs.  The Circle is not presented as evil through Mae’s eyes but as a necessary good.

From the beginning she believed that the needs of society and the needs of the individual are the same.  “When someone dies in a plane crash,” she explains to her disbelieving parents, clinging desperately to their sick old ideas of personal privacy, “you don’t abandon planes.  You make them safer.”  And with the self-assurance that “I’m the only one who can do this,” Mae flips the script on Eamon and Tom, becomes high priestess of the cult and leads the Circlers into the light.

Still, I enjoyed the film’s depiction of the religious mind in a non-theistic context.  And it was a welcome reminder that forced righteousness under an ever-watchful eye is not the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe.[5]  The table below contrasts the NASB and NET translations of John 14:21.

NASB

NET
He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him. The person who has my commandments and obeys them is the one who loves me.  The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will reveal myself to him.

Though keeps may be a lower standard than obeys, the flow here is still fairly clear and appears that there is something one must do before Jesus will disclose or will reveal Himself to that person, not to mention love.  I looked into ἐμφανίσω (a form of ἐμφανίζω) the Greek word translated will disclose and will reveal.  It only occurred this once, so I made a table of all the forms of ἐμφανίζω.

Form of ἐμφανίζω Reference KJV

NET
ἐμφανίσατε Acts 23:15 …ye with the council signify to the chief captain… …you and the council request the commanding officer…
ἐμφανίσω John 14:21 …I will love him, and will manifest myself to him… …I will love him and will reveal myself to him.
ἐμφανισθῆναι Hebrews 9:24 …to appear in the presence of God for us… …and he appears now in God’s presence for us.
ἐμφανίζειν John 14:22 …thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? …you are going to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?
ἐμφανίζουσιν Hebrews 11:14 …they that say such things declare plainly… …those who speak in such a way make it clear…
ἐνεφάνισαν Acts 24:1 …who informed the governor against Paul. …they brought formal charges against Paul to the governor.
Acts 25:2 Then the high priest and the chief of the Jews informed him against Paul, and besought him… So the chief priests and the most prominent men of the Jews brought formal charges against Paul to him.
Acts 25:15 …the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me… …the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me about him…
ἐνεφάνισας Acts 23:22 See thou tell no man that thou hast showed these things to me. Tell no one that you have reported these things to me.
ἐνεφανίσθησαν Matthew 27:53 …and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. …and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

The most basic meaning is to appear in person (Hebrews 9:24; Matthew 27:53).  And that sense was certainly true in John 14:21 and 22:  After his resurrection Jesus appeared (ἐφανερώθη, a form of φανερόω) in a different form to two of them while they were on their way to the country.[6]  Then he appeared (ἐφανερώθη, a form of φανερόω) to the eleven themselves, while they were eating…[7]  After this Jesus revealed (ἐφανέρωσεν, another form of φανερόω) himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias.[8]  This was now the third time Jesus was revealed (ἐφανερώθη, a form of φανερόω) to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.[9]  But not once did He reveal Himself in person to Ananias, Caiaphas, the Pharisees (other than Saul) or the experts in the law after his resurrection.

“Lord, what then has happened” Judas (not Iscariot) asked, “that You are going to disclose (ἐμφανίζειν, another form of ἐμφανίζω) Yourself to us and not to the world?”  Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me [e.g., if anyone has My commandments and keeps them], he will keep (τηρήσει, another form of τηρέω) My word (λόγον, a form of λόγος); and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him.  He who does not love Me [e.g., does not have or keep My commandments] does not keep (τηρεῖ, another form of τηρέω) My words (λόγους, another form of λόγος); and the word (λόγος) which you hear is not Mine, but the Father’s who sent Me.[10]

I know that you are Abraham’s descendants, Jesus said.  But you want to kill me, because my teaching (λόγος) makes no progress among you[11] (NASB: My word has no place in you).  And, Having no regard for the command of God, you hold fast to human tradition…Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down.[12]  In other words, they did not keep his word or his commandments and He did not disclose or reveal Himself to them by a personal appearance after his resurrection.

There are five other occurrences (Acts 23:15, 22; 24:1; 25:2, 15) of forms of ἐμφανίζω which included personal appearance but the communication of certain information was also of key importance.  I’ll highlight two of them because they remind me of my own experience studying the Bible.

The chief priests and the most prominent men of the Jews brought formal charges (ἐνεφάνισαν, another form of ἐμφανίζω) against Paul to[13] Festus, the Roman governor.  Describing those charges Festus said (Acts 25:15-19 NET):

When I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed (ἐνεφάνισαν, another form of ἐμφανίζω) me about [Paul], asking for a sentence of condemnation against him.  I answered them that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over anyone before the accused had met his accusers face to face and had been given an opportunity to make a defense against the accusation.  So after they came back here with me, I did not postpone the case, but the next day I sat on the judgment seat and ordered the man to be brought.  When his accusers stood up, they did not charge him with any of the evil deeds (πονηρῶν, a form of πονηρός) I had suspected.  Rather they had several points of disagreement with him about their own religion (δεισιδαιμονίας, a form of δεισιδαιμονία) and about a man named Jesus who was dead, whom Paul claimed to be alive.

In Jerusalem the information Festus received from the chief priests and the elders of the Jews formed an image in his mind based largely on his own knowledge and experience—the evil deeds I had suspected.  On further examination at trial in Caesarea Festus’ erroneous ideas were corrected—they had several points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a man named Jesus who was dead, whom Paul claimed to be alive.  Though Festus received more information and even some more clarity about Paul’s situation, he acknowledged: I was at a loss how I could investigate these matters…[14]  My point here is that the information, and understanding the information presented, had taken precedence over the personal appearance aspects of ἐμφανίζω.

Finally, one occurrence of a form of ἐμφανίζω referenced people of the past, known only through Scripture: These all died in faith without receiving the things promised, but they saw them in the distance and welcomed them and acknowledged that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth.  For those who speak [e.g., through words recorded in the Bible] in such a way make it clear (ἐμφανίζουσιν, another form of ἐμφανίζω) that they are seeking a homeland.[15]  And it is in this way that I think Jesus’ words have meaning for me here and now.  He will disclose or will reveal Himself to me through Scripture if I love Him, which means if I have his commandments and keep them.

So why was I filled with desire to write a rock opera about Jesus even as I attempted to lose or discard his commandments?  Why wasn’t I filled with desire to write a rock opera about Aleister Crowley?  I certainly knew of him.  No one gets very deep into rock music without hearing about its patron saint. “Harm None, Do as You Will” was much closer to my mantra at that moment than anything Jesus had said.

Before Jesus said—He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me—He said—If you love Me, you will keep (τηρήσετε, another form of τηρέω) My commandments.[16]  Then[17] he introduced the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17 NASB).

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.

If I remember that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control,[18] then what Jesus said logically was:

  1. If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
  2. You will love Me (e.g., the fruit of the Spirit).
  3. Therefore, you will keep My commandments.

The simple answer to my question then is that I was filled with desire to write a rock opera about Jesus because his Holy Spirit is alive and well.  Aleister Crowley is dead.  (I’ll ignore for the moment that spirits which may or may not have influenced him are alive still.  They obviously had little or no influence on me.)  But what do I make of Jesus’ other statement?  He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.

The implication here is that if I do not have and keep his commandments He will not disclose Himself to me.  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, He also said, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.[19]  How do I reconcile these two?

Do not extinguish the Spirit,[20] Paul wrote the Thessalonians without any explanation.  I think I’ve found here one way to extinguish the Spirit (in me, not in anyone else); namely, to lose or discard Jesus’ commandments, whether deliberately by conscious rejection or holding fast instead to the traditions of human religion so that his teaching (λόγος) makes no progress in me.  But if I were to teach others the traditions of human religion that nullify the word of God, though my power would be less than absolute, I might become instrumental in extinguishing the Spirit in them as well. 

I’ll pick this up in another essay.

[1] Revelation 16:15b (NET)

[2] John 14:21a (NASB)

[3] John 14:21a (NET)

[4] Galatians 5:4 (NET) Table

[5] Romans 3:22a (NET)

[6] Mark 16:12 (NET)

[7] Mark 16:14 (NET)

[8] John 21:1a (NET)

[9] John 21:14 (NET)

[10] John 14:22-24 (NASB)

[11] John 8:37 (NET)

[12] Mark 7:8, 13a (NET)

[13] Acts 25:2 (NET)

[14] Acts 25:20a (NET)

[15] Hebrews 11:13, 14 (NET)

[16] John 14:15 (NASB)

[17] By adding then to the text the NET translators have made it seem as if Jesus said, If you love me and you keep my commandments then I will ask the Father…   This then however does not make the second clause logically dependent on the first two.  It is simply an irregular translation of (καγὼ, a form of κἀγώ) and means no more than Jesus said this then He said that as they acknowledge in a footnote 36.

[18] Galatians 5:23, 24a (NET)

[19] John 14:26 (NASB)

[20] 1 Thessalonians 5:19 (NET)