I've been getting myself a little bit more organized in my writing
style of late and a good place to start in any discussion is how we orient
ourselves to the discussion.
I call this my 'Assumptions' page, which will help you see how I
approach this (or any other) Scriptural discussion. I think this is quite
important because it will help you understand in a kind of overall way a little
bit more of how I think about certain key details of Biblical interpretation.
This page is also designed to be a work in progress. It may be
updated tomorrow. Oh LORD, help me that it is!
My father (who was a Bible scholar) always taught me to grow in grace and knowledge. It is a command from God. We are called
to grow and learn.
My father used to put these verses in many of his publications as
a guide and I totally agree that they are so important for all of us:
"But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and
Savior Jesus
Christ" (II Peter 3:18).
"That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing,
being
fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of
God"
(Colossians 1:10).
"The path of the just is as a shining light, that shineth
more and more
unto the perfect day" (Proverbs 4:18).
I loved it when my dad would say: "I hope that I know
something about the LORD tomorrow that I do not know today." I totally
feel this way too!
So let's look at some of my Assumptions for this blog (and in
general).
1. The focus of this blog will be seeking to find answers to the
question about what is the destiny of particularly young children who pass away
before the age of accountability. We will not be really focusing on other
unrelated issues.
2. We will be keeping our orientation to what my friend Professor
James Tabor calls an overall 'Hebraic' one. This is directly opposed to what I
might call an orientation or tendency in the Western world to have received its
Christian theological foundation from Greco-Roman civilization. There is
nothing wrong with Greco-Roman civilization, but when it comes to the Bible I
acknowledge that my home is where the home of the Mother Church is in mind,
heart and soul: In Jerusalem and firmly in Hebraic culture.
3. When I speak about Scripture, it must be understood that I take
a particular view of the Bible. I use all versions to help me better understand
the Word of God, but my constant guide seeks to link the Bible to its more
original prophetical and apostolic dress. Find out more here about what this
means. -
http://samuelmartin.blogspot.co.il/2011/08/normal-0-false-false-false.html -
This post talks about the original manuscript order of the New Testament. I
also follow the original order of the Hebrew Bible which Jesus mentioned in
Luke 24:44,45. For more information, see my father’s book “Restoring the Original
Bible” or see www.originalbible.com. I would strongly urge a review of these
resources as they will help you understand this key element of my interpretive
style.
4. I think it very important to believe that many of the questions
we are going to ask and seek to answer on this blog were questions that have
been important for people since time began. Since human beings arrived on this
earth, young children (and others) have passed away at young ages and people
have wondered and sought out information on their destinies. I have no doubt in
my mind that these types of questions were asked of people like Peter, James
and John and especially St. Paul and I think that since they often did not make it
precisely clear in every detail in some of their writings, we really have to study their teachings
carefully and extract what they believed from them. I think they had quite a
lot to say on this issue if we have "eyes to see" what they said and
how they meant it. Often times, some of the information is terse and brief, but
that does not make it irrelevant or not authoritative for coming to some firm
conclusions on what we believe. I believe that the basic answers that we want
to know about this subject are waiting for us in the pages of that good old
book: The Holy Bible. Having said that, one thing we must point out is that whatever ideas we do propose, they must be harmonious with all of the Biblical information and basically compatible with its teachings and overall spirit.
5. I will have much more to say about on this blog about what I
believe that the Holy Scriptures teach on the precise current status of all
those who are dead (I believe that the dead are indeed dead and not currently in
a conscious state at all). I think this is a fundamental issue which
is quite important to this discussion.
6. I believe it important to believe and understand that mankind
and angels are distinct beings. I do not believe that after death children
somehow are transformed into angels or other beings.
7. On this blog, we will not be venturing outside of the Holy
Scriptures to consider non-biblical speculations about the destiny of mankind,
the after-life, the state of the dead or other topics. We will remain and stay
committed to a precise and specific anchoring in the Holy Scriptures.
8. It must be understood that the Holy Scriptures, by their
design, discuss two different time periods of the after-life. One is a
millennial age which comprises 1,000 earth years as referenced in many texts.
(Rev. 20:5; Psalm 90:4; II Peter 3:8) The other is a period of time after the
1,000 years ends. Some of the information that we find in certain sections of
the Bible has traditionally been interpreted with certain Biblical time
periods, like, for example, the fourth book of the Psalms (from Psalm 90-106) being
oriented to the millennial age. Because of that, some of the information in
these sections of Scripture can be helpful in better understanding what is
happening in those periods.
9. One of the key points we will be paying attention to will be
the use of Hebrew or Greek terms that describe various phases of life of
particularly children. We will be sticking with the general understanding of
these terms throughout the Bible and will only make interpretive modifications
to what certain terms mean if we have a compelling reason to do so from
Scripture. For more information on this point, see the first chapter of my book
where I discuss the various Bible definitions for a number of terms for 'child' in the
Hebrew Bible in particular: download it free here - whynottrainachild.com/2013/06/22/download-martins-book
or http://www.endhittingusa.org/resources/sam-martin-s-biblical-studies-about-spanking.
10. A final point is the following. We have to admit that this
subject is mysterious. It is subject to interpretation and we have to admit
absolutely that we could be wrong in our interpreting. However, this is where
we are going to seek a broad and thorough examination of the Biblical texts. We
are also going to rely on interpretive tools which themselves are biblically
oriented and authorized in Scripture itself. So, while errors will certainly be
a part of our experience (especially on this blog), we are going to ensure that
a robust and comprehensive examination of the information that is available
will be undertaken with reasonable, simple and logical interpretations of the
Biblical data, ideas and philosophy.
So, let me know if you have any questions or feedback. Thanks so
much,
Samuel Martin
Jerusalem Israel
Posted - December 17 2014
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