Lifts up or takes away?

Eric Weiss eweiss at gte.net
Tue Apr 30 00:36:09 EDT 2002


I believe this idea of "lifts up" -- in order to aid the fruitless or
poorly-bearing branch to bear fruit by untangling it or somehow freeing
it from perhaps being crushed by the other branches -- comes from a
desire to uphold the doctrine of eternal security in the face of this
passage which seems to indicate that believers can be "cast away."

On a related note, Greek scholar/author/commentator Thomas Schreiner
stated in his book on interpreting the Pauline epistles that he had to
change his previously-held belief in eternal security when his word
studies of ADOKIMOS persuaded him that Paul really was fearing, not just
a loss of rewards, but potentially a loss of salvation when he stated in
I Corinthians 9:27 why he buffeted his body.

Perhaps a similar word study of the Johannine usages of AIRW might help
determine if "lifts up" really is a plausible interpretation of the word
in this passage. Most comments I've read on the subject (and I think the
notes in The Criswell Study Bible were the first place I encountered
this AIRW teaching) support the traditional/usual "takes away" -- i.e.,
the potential destruction of those who do not bear fruit.

--
Eric S. Weiss
http://home1.gte.net/eweiss/index.htm
S.D.G.





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