Hank, decades ago I listened to your Bible Answer Man series on the radio and developed such respect for you. Coming out of the Southern Baptist tradition (my dad was a preacher and a Bible scholar) your understanding and knowledge of the Bible met me at an important place in my spiritual journey as a Roman Catholic. I am now coming up on my 1st year anniversary as an Orthodox Christian and am so grateful that my searching finally led me to Orthodoxy. It is no surprise to me that your devotion to truth led you, also, to the Orthodox faith. God bless your ongoing ministry.
I always get asked why the mass? is it redoing Jesus' sacrifice that has been dome once and for all? Do you have any programs about this subject? Thank you.
Incorrect. First of all you have to prove that Jesus actually died on a cross......The instrument that Jesus died on was just that, a torture instrument, and all the evidence points to the fact that Jesus did not doe on a cross but rather a "upright pole of stake" ! An important reason is that Jesus Christ did not die on a cross. The Greek word generally translated “cross” is stau·ros′. It basically means “an upright pale or stake.” The Companion Bible points out: “[Stau·ros′] never means two pieces of timber placed across one another at any angle . . . There is nothing in the Greek of the [New Testament] even to imply two pieces of timber.” In several texts, Bible writers use another word for the instrument of Jesus’ death. It is the Greek word xy′lon. (Acts 5:30; 10:39; 13:29; Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24) This word simply means “timber” or “a stick, club, or tree.” The most convincing proof of all, however, comes from God’s Word. The apostle Paul says: “Christ by purchase released us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse instead of us, because it is written: ‘Accursed is every man hanged upon a stake [“a tree,” King James Version].’” (Galatians 3:13) Here Paul quotes Deuteronomy 21:22, 23, which clearly refers to a stake, not a cross. Since such a means of execution made the person “a curse,” it would not be proper for Christians to decorate their homes with images of Christ impaled. So if there was a chance that this is true it means that people are putting Jesus onto a pagan symbol!
The Greek word stau·rosʹ is translated “cross” in many Bible translations. Notice, however, what various sources say about the meaning of this word: “The Greek word [stau·rosʹ] properly . . . means merely a stake.”-Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature. “A pole in the broadest sense. It is not the equivalent of a ‘cross.’”-Crucifixion in Antiquity. “A strong stake, such as farmers drive into the ground to make their fences or palisades-no more, no less.”-History of the Cross. “It never means two pieces of timber placed across one another at any angle, but always of one piece alone.”-The Companion Bible. “An upright pale or stake . . . It never means two pieces of wood joining each other at any angle.”-A Critical Lexicon and Concordance
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Hank, decades ago I listened to your Bible Answer Man series on the radio and developed such respect for you. Coming out of the Southern Baptist tradition (my dad was a preacher and a Bible scholar) your understanding and knowledge of the Bible met me at an important place in my spiritual journey as a Roman Catholic. I am now coming up on my 1st year anniversary as an Orthodox Christian and am so grateful that my searching finally led me to Orthodoxy. It is no surprise to me that your devotion to truth led you, also, to the Orthodox faith. God bless your ongoing ministry.
Thank you and God bless you.
Such deep and meaningful theological information, what a pleasure to hear it.
Thanks!
Thank you so much! You are so generous.
Bless you Hank.
I always get asked why the mass? is it redoing Jesus' sacrifice that has been dome once and for all? Do you have any programs about this subject? Thank you.
Incorrect. First of all you have to prove that Jesus actually died on a cross......The instrument that Jesus died on was just that, a torture instrument, and all the evidence points to the fact that Jesus did not doe on a cross but rather a "upright pole of stake" !
An important reason is that Jesus Christ did not die on a cross. The Greek word generally translated “cross” is stau·ros′. It basically means “an upright pale or stake.” The Companion Bible points out: “[Stau·ros′] never means two pieces of timber placed across one another at any angle . . . There is nothing in the Greek of the [New Testament] even to imply two pieces of timber.”
In several texts, Bible writers use another word for the instrument of Jesus’ death. It is the Greek word xy′lon. (Acts 5:30; 10:39; 13:29; Galatians 3:13; 1 Peter 2:24) This word simply means “timber” or “a stick, club, or tree.”
The most convincing proof of all, however, comes from God’s Word. The apostle Paul says: “Christ by purchase released us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse instead of us, because it is written: ‘Accursed is every man hanged upon a stake [“a tree,” King James Version].’” (Galatians 3:13) Here Paul quotes Deuteronomy 21:22, 23, which clearly refers to a stake, not a cross. Since such a means of execution made the person “a curse,” it would not be proper for Christians to decorate their homes with images of Christ impaled.
So if there was a chance that this is true it means that people are putting Jesus onto a pagan symbol!
The Greek word stau·rosʹ is translated “cross” in many Bible translations. Notice, however, what various sources say about the meaning of this word:
“The Greek word [stau·rosʹ] properly . . . means merely a stake.”-Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature.
“A pole in the broadest sense. It is not the equivalent of a ‘cross.’”-Crucifixion in Antiquity.
“A strong stake, such as farmers drive into the ground to make their fences or palisades-no more, no less.”-History of the Cross.
“It never means two pieces of timber placed across one another at any angle, but always of one piece alone.”-The Companion Bible.
“An upright pale or stake . . . It never means two pieces of wood joining each other at any angle.”-A Critical Lexicon and Concordance
NO WHERE IN THE BIBLE SAYS TO FO THE SIGN OF THE CROSS
@stevenrebelo1821 nowhere is expository preaching too. Yet, the tradition is embraced.