A Ransom in Vain?: 1 Timothy 2:1-7 Galations 2:21

By D. I. Sidebottom

Are you surprised at the number of preachers and teachers of God's Word who apparently find it so easy to manipulate the Word just a bit in order to teach their belief instead of the Word of God?

This study seeks to demonstrate this tendency via the study of two passages of Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:1-7 and Galatians 2:21.

Reading the Word of God presents us with what seems to be just the opposite of what some Bible teachers are teaching.

For whom did Jesus Christ give himself as a ransom? A second question could be, what would make the death of Christ in vain? The Word of God does give answers to these two questions.

Consider this statement: The effectiveness of Christ's work as mediator and ransom payer is never dependent upon the response of any human to that work.

Does that sound accurate and biblical?

So, listen to the preacher and then test the teaching with the Word of God. Reject the non-biblical teaching and stand upon the statements of the Scriptures.

Go ahead! Accept the challenge! What does the Word say?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 8, 2024
• ISBN: 9798888326688

Book preview

cover.jpg

A Ransom in Vain?

1 Timothy 2:1-7 Galations 2:21

D. I. Sidebottom

ISBN 979-8-88832-667-1 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88832-668-8 (digital)

Copyright © 2022 by D.I Sidebottom

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the author. For permission requests, solicit the author via email at:

[e-mail]

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Preface

Introduction

Recognition and Notifications

Note to the Reader

Bibliography Notice

Chapter 1

A Ransom for All

The Concept of Ransom

Presenting the All Men in 1Timothy Ch. 2

Dealing with All Men in the Text

The Challenge

The Reason—(A)

The Reason—(B)

The Reason—(C)

The Beneficiaries (Option A)

The Beneficiaries (Option B)

The Beneficiaries (Conclusion)

Looking at the Interpretation Assumptions

Looking at the Interpretation Inconsistencies

The Conclusion of the Matter

Chapter 2

The Value of Christ's Death

A couple of examples

A couple of assumptions in the above quotes

Biblical reason Christ could die in vain

Biblical purpose for Christ's coming

Biblical Purpose for Christ's death

The challenge

What is lacking?

Thank You!

Appendix

All in John's Gospel

Review Questions for A Ransom in Vain?

Review Questions with Answers for A Ransom in Vain?

Bibliography

Scripture Index

Topic Index

Coming Soon!

Does Your God Deceive? Review

Volume 1: ETEC Inconsistencies

Volume 2: ETEC Shifty Foundation

Volume 3: ETEC Consequences

Volume 4: ETEC Corrected

Volume 5: ETEC Appendixes

About the Author

by:

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Preface

It is discouraging to me as a Bible student to hear and read time after time a statement which proposes to be biblical but is a slight twist on the Scriptures. For example, I read a web-site Bible study which had this statement:

Those who think God was not fair to love Jacob and hate Esau before they were born don't understand that God knew them before they were born.

Does anything strike you as added to the text? He had quoted Romans 9:13, As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated, but then just added the phrase, before they were born and apparently hopes no one questions it. I doubted! And, come to find out, the statement is in fact not in the Bible.

Let me offer this example and foundational principle for our study.

True or False: 5 + 8 equals 13

True or False: 5 + 8 equals D

Most people, except maybe for those who have heard the illustration before or those who think I am trying to trick them, would answer the first as True and the second as False.

However, at one time or another, both statements can be true and both statements can be false, but both are not always true and both are never true at the same time and in the same situation.¹

The secret to answering is not the question itself but the assumption upon which the answer is offered. If one starts with an assumption or foundation of a base 10 numbering system as is generally used in our public schools, then 5 + 8 = 13.

But, if one starts with a base 16 numbering system² as is used in the computer world, then 5 + 8 = D.

So it is possible for two seemingly contradictory statements to be true, but they are not both true for the same system. In this way, the importance of the premise is emphasized.

So what is my premise? Sometimes we hear people say, Forget everything you have learned and come with a clean slate. I doubt it. Not everything we have learned can be forgotten, though we might need to unlearn some things. So I do come to our study with some basic ideas.

The premise of this author is:

the Bible is the Word of God;

the Bible is our source for information from, and about, God; and

what God has revealed in His Word is understandable, though might still be confusing to the reader.

From this premise series, and as one learns about God via the Word, we discover:

God will not deceive us;

God will not contradict Himself;

the Bible is written for our learning; and

the tradition received from my fathers of back to the Word and the context is critical is necessary to a proper understanding of the Word and must not be undermined with a dependence upon human understanding.

When listening to preachers and teachers of God's Word (really any teacher in any field), look for the foundational premises upon which the speaker is building their truth.

Time after time, while listening to a Bible teacher, one hears statements which have no Biblical support. When a question is raised as to a source verse, the speaker continues with some explanation or voices surprise at the question, gives no verse support, and carries on as if nothing were questioned.

We want to continue to question the speakers and doubt the content presented. Bible teachers are human and make mistakes.

Remember the old adage that much speaking opens the door for some error. I am only human and subject to the same mistakes as anyone else. I can be perfect in my speech sometimes. The more I speak, the greater the chance for mistakes. I trust any mistakes you do find will be minimal and not cause too much confusion or distraction from the message.

This quote (from Beyond the Fundamentals) reflects my desire in this booklet:

Be somebody who thinks about what you say, and as a Christian, you need to have, you need to be on a life-long journey right now of constantly refining how you articulate truth. And you want to refine it and get it better, and better, and better, and better.³

May God help us as we consider His Word together.

The Author

2022 February

[e-mail]

Facebook: Jurgens Solomon