BIBLE STUDY
“NOBLE BEREAN'S”
“THESE WERE MORE NOBLE THAN THOSE IN THESSALONICA, IN THAT THEY
RECEIVED THE WORD WITH ALL READINESS OF MIND, AND SEARCHED THE
SCRIPTURES DAILY, WHETHER THOSE THINGS WERE SO” (ACTS 17:11).
In his second letter to Timothy, the apostle Paul had this advice.” Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth”(2 Timothy 2:15). Rightly dividing is Strong's #3718 orthotomeo, dissect (expound) correctly the divine message. It is not only Timothy who should correctly divide God's truth, but all true Christians should be doing the same.
If we want to continue our journey towards God's kingdom without being lost on the way, we must obey this admonition of rightly dividing God's word.
The example of the Bereans that we read in Acts 17:10-11 should inspire us. “Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived they went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more fair-minded [noble in the KJV] than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with al readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.”
The Greek word translated as “noble” is Strong's # 2104, eugene; “noble by birth, or descended from more illustrious ancestors” (Luke 19:12, 1 Corinthians 1:26). But it was also used to denote a quality of mind or heart, which is why in this verse the NKJV translated it as “fair-minded”.
Checking in the map at the back of my Bible, Thessalonica and Berea were in the region ofMacedonia, about 50 miles apart from each other. The map shows that the incident in Acts 17:11 is Paul's second journey sometime in 49-52 A.D [Acts 15:39-18:22]. Although Thessalonica and Berea
were only 75 kilometers away from each other, the reception they showed could not have been more different.
Predictably, Paul went immediately to the synagogue of the Jews in Berea and preached the same message he gave to the Thessalonians which made the Thessalonians upset at Paul and his companions. Note verse 12 of Acts 17 which says,”many of them believed” [rather than “some” in Thessalonica]. Earlier in the chapter, we can read that the Jews in Thessalonica exercised considerable influence in the community, evidenced by how successful they were threatening Paul's disciples and convincing the civil authorities to take action aganst them. The situation became so grave that the brethren had to “send Paul and Silas away by night” to Berea (Acts 17:10).
The welcome reception that the Bereans gave Paul were recorded by God for our edification. Remember, the focal point of the discussion about the Bereans is found in Acts 17:11, a scripture with which most if not all of us are familiar. This verse give important insight into the proper frame of mind we should have when receiving spiritual teaching, whether in voice or print, our responsibility to evaluate what is being taught and our responsiveness in applying it in our daily lives. “These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11).
In what way were the Bereans noble? This teachable frame of mind and receptiveness to receive the truth are keys to understanding Acts 17:11, just as it was for the crowds on Pentecost mentioned in Acts 2:37-44, or the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8:26-38 and for Cornelius in Acts 10:1-8. The Bereans were better bred spiritually in that they were clearly responding to God's calling and hence were noble in the way that they received the truth. The Bereans listened to Paul and were open to what he had to say, receiving it with a ready mind, unlike those in Thessalonica who rejected Paul's teaching out of hand. The Greek word for readiness or a ready mind is prothumia, Strong's # 4288. The word conveys “eagerness, willingness” or more simply zeal.
Having received the Word, the Bereans continued the learning process by searching the Scriptures to confirm the veracity of Paul's teaching. Paul, of course, would have used the Scriptures in supporting his teaching, but the Bereans took it upon themselves to prove whether what Paul was saying was accurate. The Bereans accepted personal responsibility to “search”- Strong's #350, anakrino, scrutinize, investigate, determine, ask ,questions, examine, interrogate, judge, search. The word is frequently used in judicial process, and conveyed the idea of conducting careful research. This implies that the person doing so would “ask, question, discern, examine, and judge.” This process involved more than just passively following along or performing only a cursory review. “But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man” (1 Corinthians 2:15). They performed an active evaluation of what Paul taught, although not in a hostile manner. There is a subtlety in the wording that indicates the Bereans knew he was right, and their evaluation would merely confirm this.
It also presupposes that the Bereans had a good working knowledge of the Scriptures from which to evaluate. Otherwise, they would not have had a basis by which to sift, research, and examine what was taught. The Bereans must have had a habit of studying the Scriptures on a daily bass. Their respect for the Scriptures was so great that when they were taught new understanding based on them, they accepted it as authoritative and changed their thinking, once proved.
Things we can learn from the Bereans. The first lesson we can learn is to have a mind that is open to, and ready to receive instruction. The Bereans welcomed Paul and his teaching. Unlike today, people seem to have lost their desire to know new revelation from God. Bereans were eager students of God's Word without a “know it all attitude.” If something is presented by those authorized to teach, whether verbally or in print, that may be different from our current understanding, then be “noble” and receive it with a readiness of mind.
As God's people, we should have a teachable attitude, even if we have been “around for a while.” There can be a tendency for long-time members to become complacent and resist some ideas that present challenge to their existing understanding. Doing so prevent us from “growing in grace and in knowledge” (2 Peter 3:18) and this will hinder our spiritual development. One reason for this is that God's work is still going on. New revelation from God is being shown to His true people. A good example is the correct new moon to use to point to His appointed days for His Feasts.
There should be no point where we remain static and “stuck in time,” rejecting teaching that threatens our current understanding. The Jews in Thessalonica, unfortunately, had a problem with this and reacted with envy (Acts 17:5). The outcome of the venting of their human nature was violence against the very person bringing the truth.
We should be willing to entertain a teaching that expands or enlarge on our understanding. The Bereans did this. They were not being asked to discard the foundation of their faith. Paul was building upon what already existed.
Another lesson we can learn from the Bereans is that they know the Scriptures and sift through what is said to evaluate, judge and discern “whether these things are so.” As Paul later instructed the faithful in Thessalonica, it is our responsibility to: “Test [prove] all things; hold fast what is good” (1Thessalonians 5:21).
No one expects any member to accept anything that doesn't agree with the Bible. The first point is not advocating the whole-sale acceptance of everything we hear. This would be foolish.
However, after we have considered what had been taught to us with a readiness of mind, we should dig into our Bibles and make it our job to make careful and exacting research to see if “these things were so.” We will find that we will develop sound Bible study habits, improve our confidence in the Scriptures, and become “noble” in how we handle and view the Scriptures.
Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong often said, “Don't believe me; believe your Bibles.” This is sound advice, and we are safe when we follow this instruction. But, if we have not followed the first lesson, and have not received the teaching with an open and ready mind, this second lesson will do us no good
The third lesson for us is, if we receive it and prove it, then do it. Unlearning wrong knowledge or habits can be much more difficult than learning something new. We may have to rewire our thinking, and this requires not only a desire to do so, but also time and effort. It certainly will require a change in our pattern of behavior as our understanding is perfected. It has been said that, “doctrine is as doctrine does.” The apostle James cautions us with regard to our application of knowledge: “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James1:22).
To complete the learning process, we should make whatever changes we need to bring ourselves in line with God's Word. If we honor Him, He will honor us by continuing to refine our character “until we come to: .....a perfect man, to the measure of the stature f the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).
We all have much to learn. We will learn more and continue to grow spiritually if we develop a readiness of mind to receive teaching and then carefully search the Scriptures to see whether those things are so. The process becomes complete when we apply what we have learned and make changes in our behavior to come into line with what we have proven to be God's will.
For many years now since 1992, the Church of God in Truth has been publishing articles about the new knowledge that God the Almighty had revealed to His people in this end-time, the correct calendar He had revealed to Moses [see God's almost forgotten calendar, November/December 2007 issue of the Prove All Things magazine]. If we are like a noble Berean as we often want to call ourselves, we must not be static in our spiritual development, dig into the Bible, the Word of God.
May God bless and help you in proving God's truth, like the Noble Bereans! 7
Sotero Sonza
Sharing God's Word
Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong, in many sermons started his preaching, repeatedly about the “two trees” found in the book of Genesis. He remarked on numerous occasions that some “just did not get it” It was said in Sabbath sermons, Bible studies and while attending the refresher programs in Pasadena, CA.
For the benefit of those who were not around then, or who might not have been church members, I want to discuss just what Mr. Armstrong meant by this statements.
The “two trees” are mentioned in Genesis 2, and Genesis 3, they are called the “tree of life” and the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil. “These “two tree” represent two ways of life. One - “the tree of life” - is the give way, the way of cooperation and love, which will lead to eternal life. The other one - the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil” - is the get way, the way of competition and strife, which, if not repented of, will ultimately lead to eternal death, from which there is no resurrection.
The one way is based on the demonstration of love by keeping the Ten Commandments of God. The first four of the Ten Commandments show us how to love God, the last six show us how to love our neighbor. The get way is going against God's laws and results in sinning.
History has shown that many people, who were viewed once as being Church members, “did not get it,” since they turned their backs on God and went back into the world. Peter compares this action with a dog turning to his own vomit. “For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.”( 2 Peter. 2:20-21). It is really a matter of choice. God lamented that fact when He asked: “Why will you die, O Israel?” They were making the wrong choice, adopting the way of get which leads to pain, suffering and death. “See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil ” (Deut. 30:15).
Notice that we demonstrate LOVE through obedience. Let us not become part of future statistics, listing those who are not getting it, but let us rather ensure, through faithful obedience, that we make the right choice. Let us always turn from the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil,” and let us continue to choose the “TREE OF LIFE. 7 James Russell
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