Until Full Light

Instruction, inspiration, and resources to help you understand and apply the Bible in your life.

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The Great Commission—forget the world, how’s it going in your life?

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Don’t forget the world for very long, but for a few minutes, think about the Great Commission and how it applies to YOU.

Just you.

Let’s review the Great Commission:

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)

Because you are reading this site, there is a good chance you have made a decision to follow Jesus. Most likely you’ve also already been baptized.

The question is, how is your obedience to the rest of it going for you? Are you a disciple of Jesus who obeys everything he taught?

If the answer is yes, you can stop reading and keep doing whatever you are doing, but if like most of us a you feel you are far away from obeying everything Jesus taught, read on.Continue Reading

Why Bible verses in isolation can be misleading

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This year as we read through the entire Bible in historical order, not only will you get a better sense of how God works overall in salvation history, but it will also help you to avoid errors in the interpretation of individual verses.

Many of the disappointments of the Christian life come when people believe they can “claim” a verse from the Bible, where they feel that God is making a specific promise to them. If things then don’t turn out the way the person expected he or she is often upset, disappointed, and angry with God because of this.

Greg Koukle of the Stand to Reason Ministry has two excellent articles on the dangers of the misapplication of individual verses and how reading any verse in context helps you understand the true meaning of the passage. Here are some of his key points:

  • Meaning flows from the larger unit to the smaller unit. Always read the context.

  • They key to understanding the meaning of any verse comes from the paragraph and chapter, not just the individual words.

  • Don’t isolate verses. Ignore chapter and verse divisions and focus on the bigger picture.

. . . . .

Misconstruing a passage neutralizes the Word of God. It robs Scripture of its authority and influence. The entire reason we go to the Bible in the first place—to get God’s truth and apply it to our lives—is thwarted when we ignore the context.

PLEASE take time to read these articles. It is essential in our relationship with Jesus that we understand his words correctly. Here are the links to the two articles:

http://www.str.org/Media/Default/Publications/Solid%20Ground%201-2015%20Misquoting%20God-1.pdf

http://www.str.org/articles/never-read-a-bible-verse#.VJiF2sABA