Tag Archives: word study

Straining at Rowing

spruce island lake davis wv kayak

I took Mary kayaking this weekend. Typical of a 2-year old, she wanted to “do it myself!” Needless to say, we didn’t get very far and she ended up pretty frustrated. Truth be told, she was a hot mess and I apologize to anyone who was expecting a peaceful afternoon on the water, but was instead subject to a full-blown temper tantrum that I’m sure was heard far and wide.

I kept thinking: If she would just relax and let her father do the rowing, we could have fun zipping all over that lake. Instead, she huffed & puffed and sweated & cried. Instead of going somewhere, we went nowhere. Instead of fun, it was… torturous. I was reminded of the disciples on the Sea of Galilee.

“Then He saw them STRAINING AT ROWING, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.” – Mark 6:48 (NKJV) [Emphasis mine.]

“Straining” doesn’t do that Greek word justice. Basanizó literally means TORTURING.

They were literally torturing themselves by not relying on Jesus! Likewise, you and I are literally torturing ourselves by not relying on Jesus too.

Whenever we try to earn our salvation by being a “good person,” we are straining at the oars. Whenever we try to save ourselves with religious rituals, we are straining at the oars. Whenever we try to do ANY of the rowing, we will inevitably be straining at the oars.

Thinking you have anything to do with your redemption is the opposite of the gospel. Paul says that teaching telling you otherwise is not even a gospel; it is distorted and accursed, twice! (Gal. 1:7-9) Listen: we are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, by His blood, through faith. Period. (Rom. 3:24-25)

We are all in a tempestuous sea. The wind is against us. No matter how furiously we strain, ROWING IN OUR OWN STRENGTH will never get us to shore. Aren’t you tired of rowing in circles? Aren’t you tired of torturing yourself? Jesus can easily step in if we would only let Him. He calms the sea, silences the wind, and gets us safely to the other side.

But we must first hand the oars over to Him.

Let God help you.

Ref: https://biblehub.com/greek/928.htm

Want To Be Richer?

cave of wonders

I have Col. 2:3 written on a Post-it and stuck on my computer. I read it every single day and marvel at its brilliant simplicity. Don’t be fooled by its shortness; it is a total powerhouse. Each word is worthy of meditation and drips with truth.

All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Him. – Col. 2:3 (HOL)

Let me unpack it:

All – all is all. Is anything left out of all? Nope. If so, it would only be some. All means “each & every part; the whole, totality, thoroughly, and ‘all manner of.'”

the treasures = “a storehouse for precious things” from thesaurus, where we get the English term “thesaurus” which refers to a “storehouse (treasure) of synonyms.”

of wisdom & knowledge – knowledge is facts, wisdom is application of those facts. We all know people who had the facts, but did not apply them or who misapplied them and it resulted in folly or destruction (Also see Rom. 11:33

are hidden = kept secret; the concept is having something so valued that you store it away. Do we have anything like that today? Banks, maybe?

in Him – this, of course, refers to Xristós, “the Anointed One,” the Christ (Hebrew, “Messiah“): Jesus Christ!

All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Him. – Col. 2:3 (HOL)

Here’s a visual for you, remember the “Cave of Wonders” in Aladdin? Imagine that, only extending forever in every direction. In Eph. 3:8, Paul calls these riches “unsearchable” (boundless, endless, unfathomable, incalculable, infinite). In a million years, the treasures of Christ could still not be fully explored.

The Greek word means “past finding out.” So, as far as you can go, its past that.

Some takeaways: No matter how long you’ve been a Christian, there is still more to learn. Even after a 100 years, you have only scratched the outer edge of the knowledge of the Holy Spirit (A.W. Tozer). The soul prospers when we have clear knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus (Matthew Henry).

  • Want to be richer?
  • Want to be stronger?
  • Want to be healthier? Col. 2:3.
  • We cannot grow from Him until we are rooted in Him!

WARNING: The opposite of Col. 2:3 also exists. “All debts of folly and lies are exposed outside of Him.”

Do you know Him?

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Ref: All definitions from Strong’s & Thayer.

All – http://biblehub.com/greek/3956.htm

Treasures – http://biblehub.com/greek/2344.htm

Hidden – http://biblehub.com/greek/614.htm

Christ – http://biblehub.com/greek/5547.htm

Unsearchable – http://biblehub.com/greek/421.htm

Your Sins Have Been FIRED!


Let’s say someone comes up to you, removes your coat, and sends it away. Would you say you still had your coat?

No. It was removed. It was sent away. Literally, the coat is no longer here.

Jesus takes our sins away. (1 John 3:5). When John the Baptist saw Jesus he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:19)!”

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to FORGIVE US OUR SINS and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. – 1 John 1:9 (Emphasis mine)

Just like that coat; they’re gone. Now, of course we don’t miss the coat or go shopping for new coats, right?

“No one who is born of God [deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] practices sin,” – 1 John 3:9 (AMP)

Therefore, if we repent and turn to Him, Jesus forgives our sins (something only God can do, by the way).

The Greek for “forgive” carries the word picture of discharging something so as to leave.
I note it because:

  • It is so much fun to say: aphiémi (af-ee’-ay-mee).
  • Its roots are apó, “away from” and hiēmi, “send.”
  • Properly then, aphiémi means: send away; release (discharge).
  • By forgiving our sins, Jesus removes them and discharges them.

Therefore, because of Jesus’s wonderful Love & Grace, your sins have been:
Let go; fired, dismissed, sacked, axed, laid-off, and canned. They have been given their “pink slip” and “walking papers.” Like Elvis, your sins have left the building.

  • Stop re-living them.
  • Stop obsessing about them.
  • Stop beating yourself up over them.

Brother and sister, they are not even there! (Heb. 8:12, Rom. 11:27, Mic. 7:19, Psa. 103:12)

To pretend otherwise is to act like you still have that coat on that someone removed from you and sent away.

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