Table C: Leaning on the Wrong Support

1. The Jews were relying on the Law for salvation. Is this wrong? Why, or why not?

2. Before condemning the Jews, are there any ways we as Christians lean on the Wrong Supports? If so, what are they?

3. What does "application of Scripture" mean? Is application important?

     The first line is literally (as per the original text), "Assuming that you are (one who is called) a Jew". "Behold" is not the Greek "EIDE" (which would be translated "look", or behold), but is actually "EI DE", which should be translated "assuming". Following this statement we read "and restest in the law". The Jew rested in the Law of Moses, relied on it (erroneously) for salvation, and boasted that they were under the Covenant Promises of God. They felt that the Law was sufficient, the fact that they were recipients of the Law was sufficient for their eternal security. The Pharisees continually reviewed the Law and the Scriptures, wrote massive commentaries (like the Talmud), and paid close attention to it's instructions. But they failed in that they never "applied" what they studied. In these two verses Paul begins to build a case against belief without application, knowledge without benefit.

     Lest we be quick to jump on the Jew who rejected Christ and studied the Law, think about how these verses can be applied to our present day world. "Organized religion (and by this I mean Christian organized religion) often, in our modern day world, follows the same pattern that the Pharisees did." Regardless of denomination too often we "follow knowledge and ritual without seeking the "application" of God's Word to our lives".

     In Churches all across our nation we mouth platitudes such as "Pastors and deacons are servants", and then we exalt these same groups above the parishioner. We preach love, goodness, and faith, and yet our Churches in many instances remain segregated because we refuse to witness to "those kind of people". We teach the rightness of loving one another and yet we gossip, back stabbing one another terribly in secret.

     Many Churches are little better than large corporations, each member trying to crawl to the top of the corporate ladder over the backs of other Christians. In Paul's day, as in our day, this is totally unacceptable to God. We may have the Biblical knowledge but, unless we apply it in our own personal lives, we are no better than those Jews who had the Law but never followed it's precepts. The individual believer's failure to apply what God has given us in His Word has impacted the Church as a whole, weakening it's effect on our society. Consider the following articles from the January 1998 Family News From Doctor James Dobson:

     "Bill Clinton Became the First Sitting President in United States History to Address a Homosexual Activist Group: On November 8, 1997, Bill Clinton spoke at a fund raising dinner sponsored by gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered attendees in Washington, D.C. He told an audience of about 1,500 that people who "aren't comfortable yet with you" need to learn to see lesbians and gays as fellow Americans committed to freedom and equality." He continued, "we have to broaden the imagination of America. We are redefining in practical terms the immutable ideals that have guided us from the beginning ...... " Consider that last sentence for a moment. The word "immutable" means "unchangeable," and yet Clinton has taken it on himself to redefine the immutable ideas Of Our founding fathers. Note also that no distinction was made between acceptance of individuals who are homosexual, which we support, as opposed to promotion - especially among children - of a lifestyle that many Christians consider to be immoral, unhealthy and dangerous.
     During Mr. Clinton's address to gays and lesbians, he bragged about how he looks out for their welfare. In a striking moment of candor, he said, ". . . since I became president, we're spending 10 times as much per fatality on people with AIDS as people with breast cancer or prostate cancer." That should be deeply disturbing to those who are in a life and death struggle with these diseases that Clinton considers less important than AIDS.
     Two days later, the president sponsored a conference ostensibly to address "hate crimes." The centerpiece of the occasion was a call for "diversity training" programs in public schools, kindergarten through grade 12, to teach "tolerance" of homosexuals. This should alarm every parent who still believes in local control of schools and the right to determine the values taught to his or her children.
     Attorney General Janet Reno, who hosted the conference, told the 425 participants to return home and make sure their schools have diversity training programs and a "conflict resolution plan" in which problem children can be enrolled. "Find out what your schools are doing in diversity programs to teach others how to appreciate diversity," Miss Reno said. California State Representative Sheila Kuehl, the openly homosexual president pro tempore of the California State Assembly, said that the president should speak out more on hate crime issues and continue lending his support to targeted groups, such as homosexuals."
(From page six of the January 1998 Family News From Doctor James Dobson)

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     "The Campaign to Silence Conservative Christians Gained Momentum: The effort to muzzle conservative Christians has never been so intense as in recent years. New policies and prohibitions pop up every few days. In November 1996, for example, security police at the U.S. Capitol building actually threatened to arrest a group of touring believers if they didn't stop praying in the Rotunda!
     More recently, a group of students at a Alabama high school recited the Lord's Prayer in the lunch room, which prompted a suit by the parents of another student. In response, Judge Ira DeMent, on October 29, 1997, termed their action "religiously based harassment" and issued a broad ruling that banned all forms of prayer in Alabama schools, including those that are voluntary and student led. He also prohibited groups like the Gideons from distributing Bibles in schools, and even specifically barred prayer in times of national emergencies, such as wars or natural disasters.
     Governor Fob James said in a press release, "This means that in times of national emergency, such as when President Reagan was shot and wounded in 1980, this judge will fine or even put in jail any teacher who stops class to pray for the life of the president. When a young football player is seriously injured at practice or at a game, this judge will fine or put in jail any coach who leads the team in prayer for the injured player. When this nation or its people are attacked by foreign or domestic enemies or goes to war, such as the bombing in Oklahoma City, Operation Desert Storm, or the Cuban Missile Crisis, this judge will fine or put in jail teachers and students who publicly pray to the Almighty for the protection of this nation for the safety of soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines. This ruling cuts at the heart of all that is good in America and brings shame on our nation. I will resist Judge DeMent's order by every legal and political means with every ounce of strength I possess."
     Unbelievably, Judge DeMent then ordered federal monitors to stalk hallways and classrooms in search of any students or teachers who dare to pray on school grounds. The secret police have arrived in Alabama. Will parents tolerate this infringement of their religious freedom? We'll see!"
(From pages six through seven of the January 1998 Family News From Doctor James Dobson)

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     "Supreme Court Strikes Down the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA): On June 25, 1997, the U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision, struck down the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, continuing its assault on religious liberties in our country. The act had been passed in the House by a unanimous voice vote, and in the Senate by a vote of 97-3.
     The RFRA legislation had represented a dramatic effort by Congress to undo the damage done to religious liberty by the judiciary. The Court has been eroding these rights for 36 years, beginning with the prohibition of prayer in schools, followed by denial of the right to post the Ten Commandments on school bulletin boards, the refusal to let prayers be said at graduation ceremonies, the rejection of Colorado's initiative to limit special rights for homosexuals, and the Casey decision, which departed for the first time from the United States' historic dependence on the "law of nature and nature's God."
     Despite the unanimity of Congress on RFRA, the Supreme Court threw this legislation back in the faces of our representatives. Justice Kennedy, writing for the majority, said Congress had no right to enlarge upon or make substantive definitions of religious liberty. Can you imagine such a ruling in the 1960s when the Congress was passing civil rights legislation to guarantee the fights of African Americans? By declaring RFRA unconstitutional, the Court created a constitutional crisis between two branches of government, each claiming authority over the place of religion in society and disagreeing emphatically over how to use it. We are convinced that Congress should refuse to accept the dictates of the Court, as occurred in the Dred Scott decision in 1858.
     Without that assertion of Congressional authority, the Court's ruling will affect the way your children, grandchildren and future generations are permitted to worship in this nation.
(From page seven of the January 1998 Family News From Doctor James Dobson)

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     You might thing, "What does this have to do with me?". Well, it has a lot to do with how you, I, and all Christians everywhere try to apply the Word of God to our lives. We elect representatives that elect judges that create the laws by which we live. "Christianity is an "applied relationship with God", and should be applied in all facets of our lives. We don't stop applying the Biblical precepts when we vote, or when we're at work. Our lives must be dedicated to following God's Word in everything that we do". At one time in our Nation the Christian Church was a power to be reckoned with, because the Church, regardless of denomination, applied God's Word in what it did. We all "MUST" get back to the Bible, or we'll end up like the Pharisees of Paul's time.

     The Jews, failing to apply what God gave them, had only "the form of knowledge". The Greek for "form" is "MORPHOSIS", which means "A shadow or copy of the original". The Greek "GNOSIS" is used for "knowledge" which means "experiential knowledge". They only had a shadow of the Law because they failed to apply it's precepts. They also only had a shadow because, when He came, they rejected the fulfillment of the Law, Jesus Christ:

Matthew 5:17 "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil."

Table D: Form Knowledge

1. What is "Form Knowledge"? Why is it dangerous?

2. Do you believe there are those in the Church with "Form Knowledge"?

3. Has "Form Knowledge" damaged the public relations of the Church in our world today? If so, how?

     An understanding of the Scripture, which the Scribes and Pharisees had, is never sufficient for salvation. It's not even sufficient to equip the saint to do the work of God after salvation. You must have understanding "as well as" application, i.e. "How does this relate to me in my spiritual walk?" When we apply the Bible's precepts we walk a little humbler, speak a little more carefully, vote a little more wisely, work for our employer with honoring God in mind. Anything less is as useless as the "Pharisees religion", good only for pomp and self inflation.

[Note: Distinguish between three titles, "Hebrew", "Jew", and "Israelite". The "Hebrew" was a title given to the seed of Abraham who yet spoke their native language. In the early Church, many Jews had forgotten how to speak Hebrew. The title "Jew" was used the describe the direct seed of Abraham from the Gentile nations. And the title "Israelite" specified the Jew who is a member of God's theocracy and thus an inheritor of the Abrahamic promises by faith. ]

     Paul now uses a question and answer format to expose the hypocrisy of the organized religion of his day. His intent was not to judge, but to cause careful reflection in the reader. "Am I doing those things which I openly condemn?" His purpose was to cause the Jew to reflect on the uselessness of following a shadow, and to turn them, in their despair, to the power of Christ. None of us are sinless, we all have areas of weakness that we fall into time and again. When we fall, though, we rely on the reality of Christ to bring us back into union with our Father. We, when confronted with the impossible, apply the teaching:

Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

     The Pharisee, bound only to the shadow of the Law, had no real relationship with either God or His Son. The Pharisees commonly committed adultery with the Temple prostitutes of the Roman religious system. The word "sacrilege", is the Greek "HIEROSULEO", and literally means "to rob or desecrate a temple". The Pharisees often were guilty of "borrowing" from the Temple of God for their own gain. Their "do what I say, not what I do" mentality did not go unrecognized:

     The world always watches us, my Christian friend. When we say one thing and do another, then the "name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles through you". The steward of the Gospel must always be careful of his witness, not just the spoken witness, but his living testimony. The Jews, through their bold hypocritical demeanor and attitude, "turned off" the Gentiles to the Law, and also to the Gospel message.

     "The eternal lives of others often depends on how we, as Christians, live our earthly lives."

Table E: Form Knowledge and the Ambassador

1. How does Form Knowledge impact your mission as "Ambassador for Christ"?

2. What is the root cause of Form Knowledge?

3. When we love as Christ taught us to love, what will this do to Form Knowledge?