Least Among You – BT9: Only Old Testament Prophets were used in Church – only to convert Jews
Least Among You – BT9: Only Old Testament Prophets were used in Church – only to convert Jews
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We know from Justin Martyr that by 150 A.D. the OT wasn’t used in the churches except in the Jewish ones and only for singing Psalms. The Church Fathers of the time indicate that the Church was mostly Gentile and viewed the OT as mostly irrelevant since Christ fulfilled its purpose. We also saw that before then, especially before 70 AD when the Church was predominantly Jewish, the Church had a list of about 300 Messianic prophecies called the “logion oracles/utterances of God” (a) used to convert/catechize Jews, viewed especially “as milk and not solid food,” just as all religious writings are considered stoicheion elementary/rudimentary ‘abc’ fundamentals of the world (b), especially for paidion little-child education (c). The NT is clear that the old covenant Law or the 5 books of Moses were NOT allowed to be taught in the Church (d).
<Notes> a) Romans 3:2; Hebrews 5:12; Acts 7:38; 1 Peter 4:11, b) Galatians 4:3, 9, c) paideia or verb paideuo: 2 Timothy 3:16; Ephesians 6:4, which includes corrective-training of children: Hebrews 12:5, 7-8, 11-12, even using this approach to correct opponents of the gospel with gentleness: 2 Timothy 2:25; trained just as Moses was raised in Egypt: Acts 7:22; God’s grace trains us this way to reject godless ways and worldly desire and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age: Titus 2:12; Titus 3:1, d) 2 Corinthians 3:6-18; 1 Timothy 1:3, 7, 6:3-5; 2 Timothy 3:5; Galatians 1:6-9; Titus 1:9-16.
Careful analysis of the Greek words and context of 2 Timothy 3:16 in Logos Word of God – BT7 make it clear that pas “all of a kind/class/category” (rarely, “the entirety/whole of”) of OT scripture is the “God-breathed” ones, i.e., prophetic, that actually “is profitable/useful for teaching . . . for paideia child-rearing education in dikaiosune righteousness.” This is the “kind/class/category” that is the gramma “sacred writings that from childhood Timothy had eido mentally ‘seen’ to understand/know and/coupled manthano learned-the-essentials from” (a), “the ones that are able to make you wise for salvation through trusting-relying-faith in Christ Jesus,” because the dikaiosune “righteousness” that Paul ever writes about is “the dikaiosune righteousness of God through trusting-relying-faith in Jesus Christ for ALL who have trusting-relying-faith” (b), which certainly NOT the “works of righteousness” (c) doesn’t from the 5 books of Moses or the essence of 97.4% of the OT – see Logos Word of God – BT5a. We know there are only 300 of these Christ-oriented salvation verses! <Notes> a) 2 Timothy 1:5 from Timothy’s grandmother Lois and mother Eunice, b) Romans 3:22; 1 Corinthians 1:30; Philippians 1:11; Galatians 3:24, e) Galatians 2:16, 21, 3:11; Philippians 3:9; Romans 3:20, 28, c) Romans 3:27, 4:2, 5-6; Titus 3:5; Galatians 3:10; Ephesians 2:9; 2 Timothy 1:9; Acts 13:39.
We see all the NT writers ONLY citing OT passages to prove the superiority of the Messiah and His gospel logos message over Moses and his messages by sometimes pointing out either the impossibility of keeping the Law or the insufficiency of the “rules, regulations, ordinances, precepts, and commandments” of holiness in “curbing the indulgences of the flesh” (a), especially because “the Law made absolutely-in-fact-NO thing perfect/complete” (b). <Notes> a) Colossians 2:23, b) Hebrews 7:19.
A Catholic theologian around 233 AD named Origen became wealthy and powerful because he single-handedly reinstated the use of the OT in the Church. It gave the other bishops many OT Laws they could re-instate or adapt to “exercise authority over” others, despite Christ’s warnings (a). It was a slippery slope they all slipped on – see The Great Wall quenching the Spirit. It’s no coincidence that they soon persecuted all the “people of the Spirit,” particularly the “New Prophecy” that was spear-headed by the bishop Marcion and many prophets in the Church. Even the great Holy Spirit and apologetics theologian Tertullian was excommunicated, his churches burned to the ground, his followers scattered, and after he died they scattered his bones – that is an evil Catholic Church! <Notes> a) Matthew 20:25; Mark 10:42; Luke 22:25.
Paul explains the purpose of the old covenant or Law, 97.4% of the OT: “Now BEFORE trusting-relying-faith [in Christ] came, we were held captive under the Law, imprisoned UNTIL the coming trusting-relying-faith [in Christ] would be revealed. So then the Law WAS our paidagogos ‘legally-appointed child-educator or superintendent-guardian’ (a) UNTIL Christ came that we would be made/declared righteous/justified by trusting-relying-faith [in Christ]. But-instead NOW that trusting-relying-faith [in Christ] has come, we are NO LONGER under a paidagogos legally-appointed child-educator or superintendent-guardian’, for in Christ Jesus you are ALL [huios mature] sons (b) of God through trusting-relying-faith [in Christ]” (c). Why are so many Christians trapped in the OT still wanting to be treated like children when they could be mature sons in the NT? <Notes> a) paidagogos: servants hired by the upper class to take their little boys to/from school UNTIL the age of manhood, cf. ‘the 10,000 supervisor-guardians’ of 1 Corinthians 4:15, b) huios: although we are adopted sons, we are NOW under the New Covenant made to share the same nature as their Father, able to receive their inheritance, c) Galatians 3:23-26.
Children don’t have son-ship rights! Paul explains that even though technically the future heir is the rightful owner, he is still a nepios breast-feeding infant (a) and no different than a doulos slave under epitropos household-guardians (b) and/coupled oikonomos household-managers (c) until the date set by his Father” (d). Who then are the actual huios sons of God ready for their inheritance? Paul answers: “All who are led by the Spirit of God are huios sons of God” (e). Our son-ship and inheritance won’t come by the OT Law (f), but “in Christ” as we are “sealed with the promised Holy Spirit who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it” (g). UNTIL this son-ship, we are imprisoned and enslaved under the OT Law (h), since “we were nepios breast-feeding infants (a) enslaved to the stoicheion elementary/rudimentary ‘abc’ fundamentals of the world (i).
<Notes> a) nepios: a milk-feeding infant or little child that requires the gentleness of a nursing mother – 1 Thessalonians 2:7, Hebrews 5:13, or minor not of the age of inheritance, or figuratively of a simple-minded or immature, unlearned, unenlightened person, b) epitropos: household managers, esp. of minor children, c) oikonomos: household managers, overseers of finances and minor children, d) Galatians 4:1-2, e) Romans 8:14, f) Galatians 3:18, g) Ephesians 1:11, 13-14, h) Galatians 4:25, 5:1, i) and in context: the Jewish religion, of which the scriptures are composed of such ‘abc’ milk: Galatians 4:3, 9,
Paul continues: “But WHEN the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son . . . to redeem/ransom those who were under the Law so that we might receive adoption as huios sons. And because you are huios sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts . . . so you are no longer a doulos slave, but a huios son, and if a huios son, then an heir through God. . . . How can you turn back again to the weak and/coupled worthless stoicheion elementary/rudimentary ‘abc’ fundamentals of the world (i), whose slaves you want to be once more again? . . . For freedom [from slavery] Christ as set us free [from slavery]; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery (j).” Slaves don’t inherit anything, only huios sons do (k). The entire context is freedom from slavery to the Law, which is 97.4% of the OT! <Notes> i) and in context: the Jewish religion, of which the scriptures are composed of such ‘abc’ milk: Galatians 4:3, 9, j) Galatians 4:3-9; 5:1, k) Galatians 4:30.
Reflections:
As Christian musicians under the completely-differently-in-kind New Covenant, mostly Gentile now, why are we still using the OT scriptures, of which 97.4% is based on the old covenant Law, when most of the early Church didn’t use them except for the prophetic “oracles/utterances of God” used to katecheo convert the Jews as if they were infants being breast-fed “milk,” and used for singing Psalms in the predominantly Jewish churches until 70 AD? Do we not understand the OT’s intended audience and purpose to prepare the Jews for their Messiah, acting as a paidagogos child-guardian school-escorts only UNTIL they became mature sons of God through trusting-relying-faith in Christ and could receive their inheritance of eternal life through Christ’s righteousness per Galatians 3:24-25, 4:2?
Are we ignorant of how many places in the NT the Law is strictly prohibited to be read or taught in the Church, because “to this very day WHENEVER Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts to harden them?” Aren’t we aware that 97.4% of the OT is based on the so-many-strings-attached conditional, merited, earned, loving-favor of God that “imprisons” us under the Law based on our works of obedience, and that 100% of the NT is all about the no-strings-attached, unmerited, undeserved, unconditionally-loving favor of God “sets us free” because of grace based on trusting-relying-faith in Christ’s perfect obedience per Romans 5:19? Do we really want to be like the Jewish-Christians still needing the “milk” of scripture when we should be ready for the “solid food” of learning the will of God through the constant practice of discernment by the Holy Spirit – see New Covenant Ways – BT16? Let us not slip on the slippery slope as the early Catholic Church did by building The Great Wall quenching the Holy Spirit by “borrowing” from the OT Law to build a faulty foundation and then “borrowing” stones from the world to build the rest of the The Great Wall!
Spiritual Education, God revealed to Little Children & other Leasts Among You before Firsts or Greatest, Old Testament limited to Psalms and then none when mostly Gentile, Early Jewish Church used 300 messianic prophecies to convert Jews & encourage Christians, Old Testament added back in 233 AD by Origen, The Mosaic Law was only UNTIL Christ was revealed, Christians are no longer under the Law, Christians are to be FREE from the Law, The Spirit is a mature-son Christian’s first-fruits of their inheritance