June 2003

RAISING UP A REDEEMER

(Part Fifteen)

“GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD”

[H]

“Do this in remembrance of Me!”

          We have noted in recent episodes the difference between the two meanings of bread in the Old and New Testaments. Heb 3898 says: “Fight, war, devour, eat, prevail and overcome”; *Gk 142 says: “Lift, take up and away; raise the voice; bear up, carry, put away, remove, loose,weigh anchor, sail away, keep (the mind) in suspense, expiate sin, make to doubt!”

[*This Greek word is “aero” and is the root for our word, AIR,
like that into which Jesus ascended! Interesting that folks say
about fresh, warm, natural bread, “It tastes lighter than air!”]

          The first translation implies DEATH; while the second suggests RESURRECTION LIFE! Likewise the first Adam brought DEATH to the whole world; and the Last Christ Adam brought RESURRECTION LIFE to the whole world! Note how easily religious minds embrace the Truth that DEATH “fights and wars, devours and eats, prevails and overcomes” everything good in the Garden of Eden; but that decry the Truth that RESURRECTION LIFE “Lifted, took up and away, bore and carried up, loosed, removed, and expiated sin” to restore goodness to the world, first in the Garden of Gethsemane, then on the Cross at Calvary! How can a man believe so strongly in the power of death but disbelieve so strongly the OMNIPOTENCE OF ETERNAL LIFE! Is it because they still Jesus Christ as a man of flesh and blood, so they ascribe to him all the human weaknesses that they possess in themselves? Let us hear 2 Cor 5:16 on the matter in four different translations.

“Henceforth know we no man after the flesh; yea,
though we have known Christ after the flesh; yet
now, henceforth, know we Him no more.” (KJV)

“From now on we estimate and regard no man
from a (purely) human point of view- in terms of
natural standards of value. (No) even though we
once did estimate Christ from a human viewpoint
and as a man, yet now we have such knowledge
of Him that we know Him no longer in terms of
the flesh!” (AV)

“From now on we recognize no man according to
the flesh; (and) even though we have known Christ
according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus
no longer.” (NAS)

“From now on we regard no one from a worldly
point of view. Though we once regarded Christ
in this way, we do so no longer!” (NIV)

Now let us hear the following translations on just the second half of this important passage.

“Though once my view of Christ was carnal;
yet now it is no longer carnal!” (Con)

“Even if we once thought of Christ from the
standpoint of the world; yet now we do so
no longer!” (TCNT)

“Even if we have known Christ simply as a
man, yet now we do so no longer!” (Wey)

“Even though I once estimated Christ by
what is external, I no longer estimate Him
thus!” (Mof)

“Even if we used to think of Christ in a human
fashion, we do so no longer!” (Knox)

“Even though we once regarded Christ from a
human point of view, we regard Him thus no
longer!” (RSV)

“Even though we knew Christ as a Man, we
do not know Him like that any longer!” (Phi)

“Once I mistakenly thought of Christ that way,
merely as a human being like myself. How
differently I feel now!” (Tay)

          Eze 24:17 warns against eating the “Bread of men” that is: “polluted bread“ (Mal 1:6-8); and the “bread of sorrows“ (Ps 127:2); “bread of adversity“ (Isa 30:20); “bread of idleness“ (Pr 31:27); “bread of tears“ (Ps 80:4-5) and “bread of wickedness“ (Pr 4:17) This is the bread with which the serpent first tempted Adam; and thereafter his progeny have fallen victim to the same temptation! Let us pray to be delivered once and for all from our fleshly lust for this deadly bread!
          And then let us pray to be filled instead with an all-consuming desire for the BREAD OF LIFE!!

[TO BE CONTINUED]