Transcript Wandering In The Wilderness - Lake Forest church of Christ

Matthew 4:4
(NKJV)
1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit
into the wilderness to be tempted by
the devil.
The Words of God
• What’s in a word?
• What is the importance of a single
word?
• “One person can only do so much”
• “One person can do so much”
• See the difference one word can make
The Words of God
• “She told him that she loved him”
(Insert “only” anywhere)
• Just as every word in our language
can be important, every word from the
mouth of God is important
• “Man shall not live by bread alone, but
by every word that proceeds from the
mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4)
The Words of God
• It’s important enough for us to be
diligent to understand every word
• Greek language can be a more
detailed language
• Ex. Love is our word in English, but in
the Greek there is agape, storge,
phileo and eros
The Words of God
• 1. If words matter, translations matter
– Every word of God is important, which
means that it’s important to ensure that
the words are translated properly
– There are many tools that can help us,
namely Bible concordances & dictionaries
– Most electronic Bibles contain a free
version
The Words of God
• 1. If words matter, translations matter
– Ex. KJV – Matt. 16:18 – the word hell
should actually be hades (grave)
– Ex. KJV – Acts 2:27 – the word hell
should be hades (grave)
– It’s important for us to check the words in
their original language
The Words of God
• 1. If words matter, translations matter
– Ex. NIV – Ps. 51:5 – Compare with other
Bible versions
– Sadly, sometimes we can see the
translators of a certain version try and
push forth an idea that is not there
– This is true of David’s Psalm in Psalm
51:5
The Words of God
• 1. If words matter, translations matter
– Ex. KJV – Matt. 16:18 – the word hell
should actually be hades (grave)
– Ex. KJV – Acts 2:27 – the word hell
should be hades (grave)
– It’s important for us to check the words in
their original language
The Words of God
• 2. We must look beyond the translation
– Just because we have a certain
translation doesn’t mean that we can’t
see into the true meaning
– We must be willing to look beyond the
translated word into the original language
– This can help us truly understand what
the writer meant
The Words of God
• 2. We must look beyond the translation
– It is possible, you don’t have to be a
Hebrew or Greek scholar
– Concordances can give us the definition
of the root word (most e-Bibles have a
free one)
– Bible dictionaries can also be a good
study source
The Words of God
• 2. We must look beyond the translation
– Ex. The word “inn” found in Luke 10:34
in the story of the Good Samaritan
– Greek word pandocheion meaning
“public lodging place”
– Represents what we might picture as a
modern day inn
The Words of God
• 2. We must look beyond the translation
– We also see the word “inn” in Luke 2:7
concerning the birth of Jesus
– This time it is the Greek word katalyma
meaning “guest chamber or upper room”
– Although “inn” is used, it actually means
a guest room inside the home (see 22:11)
The Words of God
• 2. We must look beyond the translation
– Another example comes from John 14:2
and the word many translations put as
“mansions”
– The word means a dwelling place, room
or abode
– It actually denotes a place inside the
Father’s house
The Words of God
• 2. We must look beyond the translation
– It should actually read, “In my Father’s
house are many rooms (or dwelling
places)”
– The word mansion makes us think of
some huge millionaire's home
– A mansion inside a house doesn’t make
sense