Misquoting Jesus

The following is an email I wrote recently. It requires some background knowledge to understand better, so I'll give that to you before you read this monster. I went on a cruise to Alaska to kick off my summer, and while I was there I did a lot of reading. I stopped by a bookstore in one of our ports and replenished my reading supply with a couple books, both unfavorable to the Christian worldview. One was by Freud, or Nietzsche, one of those philosopher guys whose books had to be translated. Forgive my ignorance. I have yet to read that one. The second was a book called Misquoting Jesus, by a Bart D. Ehrman. He made a case, or tried to, for dismantling the reliability of the Bible, specifically the New Testament. At the very least he believes we cannot put quite as much trust in it as we would like to even if we don’t outright reject its veracity. One reason he gave for this was the fact that we could not be certain of the authorship of some of the books. No, he didn't just stick with Hebrews, the author of which we in fact are not certain. He went so far as to attack the authorship of "closed case files" (i.e. Paul's letters, of whom the authorship seems quite obvious). Maybe Paul didn’t actually write all those epistles, perhaps someone claiming to be Paul did. Or perhaps scribes later added some things to support their own worldview.

One passage specifically came into question that seems to look unfavorably upon women. Paul, however, looks quite favorably on women throughout his writings. Could this be an addition or a fraud? We shall see. With that, here is the email.


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I'm glad to see that you read the book you borrowed. Had it been me I would have been far less determined to finish reading it - especially with the way this particular author writes. I do not remember too many specifics based on what the author wrote, so I can only respond to what you have told me. This especially applies to the subject that you brought up about women teaching. I was not aware that he addressed it. Perhaps I have simply forgotten or skipped over that part like I did with a lot of that book. Anyways, here begins my rant.

When you admitted you had no answer to this apparent contradiction in Paul's theology as perhaps an evidence of his non-authorship of one or the other passage, my apologetic mind kicked in and I immediately had an answer for you. I am convinced that Paul wrote 1 Timothy 2:9-15 (I assume that’s what you meant, though you forgot the "2"), and frankly, I am surprised you were so easily convinced (or perhaps it was not easily?).

Now, I'm not sure what "bulk of his writing" you are referring to that contradicts his view in 1 Tim 2:9-15, because I know of none. However, if we simply compare his view of women using both 2 Tim 1:5 and 1 Tim 2:11-15, leaving out verses 9 and 10 - modesty doesn’t seem to be the issue - we see a healthy view of the role and value of women and of the plan of God for mankind, rather than a contradiction in the former.

Lets look first at 2 Timothy 1:5

"I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well."

Paul commends two women for being sincere and devoted faithful followers of Christ. The way it is worded would imply that they passed it on to Timothy. They taught him what he knows. A later reference to his godly upbringing is made in 2 Tim 3:14-15. Timothy is told to remember, "from whom you learned it" (14). The Greek “whom” is plural, so it becomes quite obvious that Paul is referencing his earlier acknowledgement of his mother and grandmother. Clearly Paul is pleased with the fact that Timothy's mother and grandmother raised him in godly fashion, teaching him spiritual things.

Now, 1 Timothy 2

"11 Let a woman learn in quietness with all submissiveness. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. 15 Yet she will be saved through childbearing - if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control."

First, I would like to note that this clearly is referring to women's authority over men in the church. That is of particular importance when it comes to discussing God's plan for the role of women. In the case that a woman was never allowed to exercise any authority over any male of any age in any situation, a woman would not be able to bring up her own male children! Such an interpretation of this passage would be utter foolishness.

Paul has never been one to look down on women, or consider them of less worth than men. In his epistle to the Galatians, he says, "there is neither male nor female" in the context of salvation (3:28). He encouraged an equal view of men and women, and frequently esteemed women for their service to him and the gospel, mentioning them by name in his letters. However, it had clearly been revealed to him that men and women do not serve the same purpose [that is, they do not have the same roles. They both serve the purpose of glorifying God, to be sure]. In the church, women should submit to male authority and not teach grown men.

They are, however, encouraged to bring up children in godly fashion, drawing support from both references we are using! The support from 2 Tim 1:5 is self evident, and I have already discussed it. However the evidence from 1 Tim 2:15 probably gets lost in the rest of the passage and the discussion over this often controversial matter.

"Yet she will be saved through childbearing - if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control."

It seems to me that Paul is encouraging women here to raise babies (childbearing) in godly fashion (faith, love, holiness, self-control), so that what was meant to be [God’s plan for the role of women] will be restored (saved). This is exactly what he commended Lois and Eunice for. So there is complete harmony, rather than contradiction and question of authorship.

I think there's good reason he [Ehrman] didn't use the "easy" argument.

With respect to the rest of the book, I too noticed that the author does not suggest reasoning with which to view the subject (or any other subject he makes mention of). He stated facts, but didn’t draw conclusions, and that was something else that frustrated me.

I thought it was interesting how many times he stressed that there were mistakes or changes made to the text. However, if we actually look at it, what we have as scripture is incredibly reliably preserved despite our human shortcomings, and I am convinced that we have a Book that can be trusted as the Word of Christ, leading to salvation (Rom 10:17).

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I hope this helped in convincing you of the reliability of Scripture and its ability to “give an answer” (1 Peter 3:15). Anything in brackets was added to the email to help clarify meaning that I thought might not be obvious, and the grammar/spelling was edited, though I'm sure there are more mistakes to be found. If anything is unclear, let me know.

Where Home Is

There has been a lot of rearranging lately concerning where friends’ homes are. Many have moved down to the OC, and it has been extremely difficult to see them go. Soon I myself will have a new home, moving into the dorms on campus at Stanford. It has caused and will cause separation between friends when it is time to go home.

The Bible says that a Christian’s home is not in the world; rather, it is in heaven with Christ. It metaphorically relates this truth to people visiting a foreign country, being citizens of their homeland. “But our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20). We desire heavenly things and put our minds on Christ and things above, as opposed to people who put their mind on earthly things.

I’ve noticed that when I am away from home (i.e. away from friends and family) I long to be back there, and to be with the people I love. I miss people, a lot. There are tears, many of them. And how often does this happen with my Lord? How often do I long to be home with Him, at peace forever? Tyler Sultze was our speaker last week at middle school camp, and he made some radical statements about our desire to be with Christ. He asked us to apply Philippians 3:7 to its extreme: “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.” If we could give up the one thing that is most important on this earth to be with Christ, would we be content? He said that if he never saw his wife or unborn baby again, but instead went to be with Christ, he would be satisfied. And he hopes his wife thinks the same.

And what of the very thing that keeps me from Christ now? Do I mourn over the sin that separates him and me? Do I strive to be united with Him as much as is possible in this life by seeking to live as He lives? Sin is a terrible thing. It is a sign of our citizenship when we have godly sorrow over sin, yet it is never good to be unhealthily preoccupied with it. We need not spend all our time mourning, but rejoicing over the fact that our relationship with Him is real, and we are blessed. Philippians says, “we eagerly await a Savior from [heaven]” (3:20). We can’t wait to see our Lord Jesus. We look forward to being with Him finally.

So a change in perspective takes place. I may be sad that I have left my friends, or that my friends have left me, but my God is with me always, and He is who I most long to be with. Let us rejoice with each other that we can all await so great a future as fellow children of God.

Ephesians 5:15-20

Paul is writing the second half of his epistle to the church in Ephesus about Godly and holy living. He has switched from theology in his first half to practical Christian living.

In these verses Paul encourages us to walk “circumspectly,” or heedfully, being aware of the consequences of ouractions. He realizes that days are running low and time flies and often the time that does pass is not spent wisely. Paul encourages the church to use their time wisely, because the days we have are evil. This flows right into knowing what the will of the Lord is. Walking wisely means I will naturally know what the Lord’s will is for my life. One practical example of this is to not get drunk. We should allow the Spirit to consume us and control us, so that we will be encouraging each other with godly speech and always giving thanks to God. Of course, this principle should be applied to everything. We are controlled by none but the Lord. He is our only Master!

This passage seems to be pretty clear on how to apply it to my life. I need to be heedful of the consequences of my actions, not just doing anything on a whim. Paul used drunkenness as a specific action to be on guard against. Getting drunk would mean something other than the Holy Spirit is controlling my body, which goes directly against the purpose of salvation – to be freed from the control of the world and placed under the control of Christ. We Christians should walk wisely, being an example to others, and redeeming the time, not conforming to the pattern of this world but using every opportunity we have to do good. That idea is pretty revolutionary and completely destroys this idea of being able to put off doing good. We have only a certain amount of time here on this earth, so when we pass up an opportunity to do good in some way, that opportunity is lost forever and never coming back. We cannot ever add a day to our life, all we can to is take advantage of the opportunities we have, and that pleases the Lord. That is the Lord’s will.

I find the last verse to be appropriate for this time of year, seeing as we have just passed Thanksgiving. I feel like some people have an attitude that wants to stop even thinking about being thankful as soon as Thanksgiving is over. I know I was that way (More so than now. I am still working on it) when I was younger. According to this verse, giving thanks is an all-the-time thing for Christians. I know I’ll always have something to be thankful for, because I can always thank the Lord for saving me from myself.

Ephesians 5:8-14

These are some long overdue Bible journals that I had ready to post but never did. I kept telling myself it was because I hadn't typed up verses 1-7, but do you care? I didn't think so.

Ephesians 5:8-14

Paul is writing the second half of his epistle to the church in Ephesus about Godly and holy living. He has switched from theology in his first half to practical Christian living.

These verses talk about living as light – just as Christ taught to be the light of the world (Matthew 5:14-16). We have been transformed from darkness to light and therefore should live like it! Paul lists a few fruits of the Spirit (or in other manuscripts, fruits of the light); those are goodness, righteousness, and truth. Our job as light is to “have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret” (vv. 11, 12). Only light can expose dark deeds, and we must realize that this light comes only from Christ, for we are asleep and dead to Him in and of ourselves, having no power to produce goodness.

I absolutely love this passage. It continually exhorts to take affirmative action when it comes to living the life of godliness (or in this case, the life of light), yet at the same time reminds us that the power comes from Christ alone! We were once darkness, but Christ gave us light, now lets share it with the world! By living such a life, we will have an increasingly clear idea of what God’s will is, “finding out what is acceptable to the Lord” (v.10). So many people wish they could know what God’s will for their life is; I do too! First we live according to His will; only then will we be shown what His will is for our lives. This isn’t usually what I want to hear, being human and having a slight case of what my mom calls immediatitis, but it is so true. Once I stop worrying about what exactly I’m supposed to do, start surrendering that to God, and start living like He wants me to, all the extra information comes to me in God’s perfect timing. Again, often this is not exactly the timing I’m comfortable with, but the point is that I’m closer to God because of the trust I placed in Him, and He is once again confirmed to be faithful.

The next exhortation of this verse it seems to me is to expose sin – in us and in others. As light, we will naturally reveal things; that’s what light does! Partaking in them would be shameful. Even talking about them would be shameful, yet sometimes I find myself caught up in sin. I have to remind myself that sin is a small problem for the God whose infinite love conquered it. It has no power over me because I have the power of God. The last verse is just awesome. It is a calling of the dead and asleep to Christ to rise and to wake, so that Christ may give them the power that He has over sin. Christ did that for me, and it is my job to spread that good news to others so they can receive that power as well.

Cautiously Carefree

Consider this part 2 in the series of paradoxes in the Christian faith. The last one was Swimming in Time, where we refuse to delay in completing what God has for us to do, yet always wait for His timing on all matters. This one has to do with worrying.

In the Bible we are commanted to "not be anxious about anything" but instead "present our requests to God" (Phil. 4:6) and trust him for all our cares. Jesus also reasons with us, asking "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" (Matt. 6:27). Clearly stressing about how everything will turn out is not a good habit for a Christian to get into. We need to trust God for his faithful deliverance. He will take care of us: "...for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked" (Psalm 97:10).

However, God in no way intends for us to be naive in our actions. Jesus didn't live His life carelessly, doing whatever trusting it would all work out. He was practical in his decisions, and we should be too. He acted on what He knew to be true. When people came to Him and believed in Him, He did not simply accept them and "trust" that God would work everything out in their lives. The Bible says He actually would not entrust Himself to them because He knew what was in their hearts. He knew they weren't really committed to Him and so did not commit Himself to them (John 2:24-25).

Another thing to note is the Christ took action, deliberate and convicted action. When He saw the way Israel was treating the temple, He didn't sit back and say, 'Oh well, God will work it out for good. It'll all be ok.' He did quite the opposite! He wove together a whip and started making a difference - He took action on an issue He observed. The same goes for us. When Christ tells us not to worry about where we will get our food or clothes, that in no way means we sit at home playing videogames trusting that an angel will drop off our daily bread at the door whenever we need it. We work. Diligently. Heartily as for the Lord.

There is a balance that become necessary when living the Christian life. We wait, not procrastinate. We work, not worry. There is a middle ground that needs to be acheived if perfection is to be attained. We most definitely need to trust God to be our Provider and Sustainer (Carefree) but let us remain reasonable, knowing that God works through practical means (Cautiously). He favors the hard working. He loves the diligent. Yet let us always remember that all things are possible only through Christ who strengthens us.