Tuesday, January 25, 2011

I Cor. 4 -- you don't know it all

A sense of how little we know should incline us to deal kindly with one another. As Paul told the Corinthians,
1Co 4:5 Bu nedenle, belirlenen zamandan önce hiçbir şeyi yargılamayın. Rab'bin gelişini bekleyin. O, karanlığın gizlediklerini aydınlığa çıkaracak, yüreklerdeki amaçları açığa vuracaktır. O zaman herkes Tanrı'dan payına düşen övgüyü alacaktır.
Let's look at a few words:
  • Bu nedenle, -- for this reason,
  • belirlenen zamandan-- at the time of determination
  • önce -- before
  • hiçbir şeyi -- not one thing
  • yargılamayın -- should you judge.
  • Rab'bin gelişini bekleyin -- The Lord's coming await.
  • O, karanlığın gizlediklerini aydınlığa çıkaracak -- He, / out of darkness, / those things which are hidden / to the light / he will bring.
Since we do not know who will ultimately greet us in the next life, we should treat all our neighbors as possible fellow citizens of the world to come -- kindly.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

I Cor. 3 -- no limits to achievement

"There is no limit to what you can achieve, as long as you don't care who gets the credit." The great tyrants of history viewed themselves as the apex of history, demigods astride the earth. Successful leaders, however, view themselves as agents of something far more important than themselves. The Nazi regime evaporated after the death of Hitler. When Alexander died, his empire quickly split into four squabbling parts. The Turkish Republic, by contrast, has outlived its founding father by nearly a century. Kemal Ataturk was not in business for himself. His team took over his vision, and shepherded through the generations to the present.

Paul had a similar vision of participating in something far bigger than himself:
1Co 3:6 Tohumu ben ektim, Apollos suladı. Ama Tanrı büyüttü.
1Co 3:7 Önemli olan, eken ya da sulayan değil, ekileni büyüten Tanrı'dır.
1Co 3:8 Ekenle sulayanın değeri birdir. Her biri kendi emeğinin karşılığını alacaktır.
1Co 3:9 Biz Tanrı'nın emektaşlarıyız. Sizler de Tanrı'nın tarlası, Tanrı'nın binasısınız.
1Co 3:10 Tanrı'nın bana lütfettiği görev uyarınca bilge bir mimar gibi temel attım, başkaları da bu temel üzerine inşa ediyor. Herkes nasıl inşa ettiğine dikkat etsin.
Let's look at a few words in 3:10:
  • bilge -- wise. learned. erudite. omniscient. polymath. profound. sophisticated. wise person. scholar. luminary. owl. sage. sophisticate.
  • mimar -- architect. master builder. builder. surveyor.
  • gibi -- like, as. (one of those interesting Turkish "post-position" words)
  • temel -- foundation
  • attım -- I have laid
  • dikkat etsin -- let him be careful.
Paul had a key role in launching communities of believers in cities throughout the Roman empire. However, he was not alone. Others built upon his work -- and ultimately, God gave the increase. He, like we, was part of something far more important than himself.