Walking With Christ

Romans 5:1-2
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (2)Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Mathew 5:5
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

It’s amazing how language has shifted over time. The definition of words can slowly shift until the original meaning is completely lost. These three verses contain a couple of great examples.

Peace:
Today, peace is usually considered to mean an absence of conflict. The original connotation was much closer to wholeness or completion in every aspect of life. This is less about a state of no conflict and much more about living life to the fullest according to God’s plan for your life.

Hope:
Hope is mast accurately described as wishful thinking these days. “I hope it doesn’t rain.”, said while looking at ominous clouds. The original Greek word elpis is a confident expectation. The sun will come up tomorrow. It hasn’t happened yet but we know that it will.

Meek:
When someone is called meek today, it means that they are weak, timid, and essentially a door mat. That couldn’t be further from the truth of the original definition. The original Greek word is praus which means strength under control. This is accentuated with combined with humility. It is meant to show someone who is strong yet humble and self-controlled.

A few other great examples would be fear, repent, blessed, love, perfect, and witness. These words have shifted quite a bit in meaning from when the bible was originally written. Understanding the original language and how the words were used, the actual context, is critical to understanding the message being delivered. It’s one thing to read these passages with out modern understanding. It’s entirely another to read these verse in the same context they were written.