Richard Aberdeen
Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2026
- Messages
- 106
Means both "letter" and "formal letter" in Koine Greek. While today one can look up the word "epistle" in a modern dictionary and find that it refers to a formal letter of special importance, in the First Century world of Paul and other authors of the New Testament, the Greek "epistole" apparently referred to any and every kind of letter.
Some of Paul's letters were intended to be read to one or more groups of people, some of them like First and Second Timothy, Titus and Philemon, are personal letters written to a specific individual. It is the very counter-productive and misleading habit of modern translators to leave certain words in modern bibles in or close to their original Greek (and sometimes Latin) form or worse, in Old and Middle English, rather than translating them correctly into modern English and other languages.
Thus, words like "epistle", "disciple", "gospel", "doctrine", "church" and far too many others give modern Bibles an orthodox religious 'tone' where none is likely intended. The message of Jesus in every way is a highly secular message intended for sinners and common average people, as well as for the rest of humanity.
There is nothing in the New Testament that is remotely similar to the modern Catholic or Protestant theology-laden Christian religion. One should never confuse simple basic English words like "teaching" and "instruction, with the religious sounding "doctrine", as if it somehow means something different, which it does not.
Paul always refers to God's "law" in the singular and, never as "laws" in the plural. If we break any part of God's law, we have broken God's law. Unlike what is frequently heard in pulpits, there are no such thing as "doctrines of the church". Rather, "doctrine" is singular; "sound doctrine", as found in II Timothy 4:3 and elsewhere in the New Testament, simply means proper teaching or instruction.
Likewise, disciple simply means follower, gospel means good news and assembly (wrongly translated as church) ALWAYS refers to people. The word "assembly" as found in the New Testament, does not ever refer to a religion, a religious building or a religious brand or organization.
In Search of the Real Jesus
www.FreedomTracks.com/revolution.html
Some of Paul's letters were intended to be read to one or more groups of people, some of them like First and Second Timothy, Titus and Philemon, are personal letters written to a specific individual. It is the very counter-productive and misleading habit of modern translators to leave certain words in modern bibles in or close to their original Greek (and sometimes Latin) form or worse, in Old and Middle English, rather than translating them correctly into modern English and other languages.
Thus, words like "epistle", "disciple", "gospel", "doctrine", "church" and far too many others give modern Bibles an orthodox religious 'tone' where none is likely intended. The message of Jesus in every way is a highly secular message intended for sinners and common average people, as well as for the rest of humanity.
There is nothing in the New Testament that is remotely similar to the modern Catholic or Protestant theology-laden Christian religion. One should never confuse simple basic English words like "teaching" and "instruction, with the religious sounding "doctrine", as if it somehow means something different, which it does not.
Paul always refers to God's "law" in the singular and, never as "laws" in the plural. If we break any part of God's law, we have broken God's law. Unlike what is frequently heard in pulpits, there are no such thing as "doctrines of the church". Rather, "doctrine" is singular; "sound doctrine", as found in II Timothy 4:3 and elsewhere in the New Testament, simply means proper teaching or instruction.
Likewise, disciple simply means follower, gospel means good news and assembly (wrongly translated as church) ALWAYS refers to people. The word "assembly" as found in the New Testament, does not ever refer to a religion, a religious building or a religious brand or organization.
In Search of the Real Jesus
www.FreedomTracks.com/revolution.html
