Quote:
Originally Posted by zeek
Meaning is derived from context in other words it is... get ready for the hated word... relative to the context.
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Which is why I repeatedly pointed out that 'ekklesia' was used in the NT in other contexts than a purely Christian one. And this was a reflection of, or was relative to, how it was at that time being used outside scripture as well. There was the ekklesia, and then there was the ekklesia of Jesus, being developed in the NT setting. Two different things. We miss the first and then we misunderstand the second.
One of the things which I began to ask myself many years post-LSM was what the words and sentences might have meant to the writer, and what the writer might have expected them to mean to their contemporary readers, and not to some Bible expositor 2,000 years later. The Nee & Lee meanings were partly a result of the Great Schism, and then the Protestant reformation 500 years after that. People like Calvin and Melanchthon were largely left with the text at hand, and their logic, to derive meaning. "What does this mean to me, today, with my reason and logic (and faith)" became the interpretive standard. They had lost the original context.
This has benefits: Luther realized that salvation was by grace, and through faith, and not by works. Why? Because the words of scripture said so, right in front of him. So this method worked relatively well for the basics. But some of the deeper stuff eventually gets into amateurish "Bible code" nonsense like what is found in "The Two Babylons". What this means for me today is not necessarily what God wants it to mean to all people at all times. LSM people, are you listening? I'll repeat myself if you need me to.
When I began to look into scholarly literature, written by people who understand Greek and Hebrew, as they write to each other, I realized that there's a lot of assumed understanding, as they ferret out the unknown. Sure there are a lot of gray areas, and many hypotheses, lacking new texts, may remain largely unresolved. But the Dead Sea Scrolls, and other ancient works, greatly aided this process. Yes there has been a revolution of sorts, a paradigm shift. My own started when I first confessed "Jesus is Lord". Why stop now? Keep going. Jesus is still the Lord. God's throne is never shaken. The only things we have to lose are our chains.