In the persecution of A.D. 303 Emperor Diocletian ordered a systematic search that swept away the Biblical manuscripts from Asia Minor and Syria. The sacred writings were shoveled into carts and hauled to the market places to be burned. The goal was to wipe out Christianity. Later the Goths, Vandals, Moslems, and Mongols did their worst to destroy the Christian faith.But Jesus had promised. "Heaven and earth will pass away, but what I say will not pass away" (Luke 21:33). How was it done? Not by keeping one original copy in an ark of the covenant which men could destroy but by sending out thousands of manuscripts all over the earth. We have almost 5.000 Greek manuscripts of the New Testament or parts of it plus many thousands of the Latin, Syriac, and other translations. Every manuscript and fragment is a flame of the Spirit's fire appearing in such an inextinguishable quantity everywhere in the world no organized hostility of men can ever put it out.
To match this vast evidence for the truth, God wants us to have a passion for it, to use all the best evidence from the manuscripts, dictionaries, and grammars as light on the text, and to search with burning hearts for its exact meaning.
In recent years two very important papyri, called P and Ps, both from about A.D. 200, have been published. These papyri now provide us with the finest evidence for the following readings:
Luke 22:19-20: "Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to them, saying. This is My body, which is given for you. Do this to remember Me. He did the same with the cup when the supper was over, saying. This cup is the new covenant in My blood, poured out for you.""
24:6: "He is not here. He has risen."
40: "He showed them His hands and His feet."
51: "While He was blessing them. He parted from them and was taken up to heaven."
John 1:18: "the only Son who is God"
Every word in these and other fine manuscripts was carefully checked to make this an accurate New Testament. And what is the language of the papyri? When Matthew, John, Paul, and the others wrote the New Testament, which language did they use?
Not the Hebrew of the Old Testament.
Not the classical Greek of Aristotle and Plato.
Not the classical Greek of Aristotle and Plato.
Not even the literary Greek of the first century.
But the everyday Greek of the people of Jesus' day.
The many papyri that were found are like a tape recording of what people said off guard, at their "coffee and doughnuts." This is the language of the New Testament.
If Jesus came into our home today, how would He talk? Just as we talk to one another. He would take the words out of our lives and put heaven's meaning into them.
This is the most winning way. We see it on Pentecost. Watch the people from many different countries, talking their own dialects, and see the sparkle in their eyes as they are stirred to say. "How does everyone of us hear his own language in which he was born?... We hear them tell in our languages the wonderful things of God" (Acts 2:8, 11). This is Paul's way-"I would rather say five words that can be understood. in order to teach others, than ten thousand words in a language nobody understands" (1 Cor. 14:19).
Today our language carries a world responsibility. It is written, spoken, broadcast, and understood on every continent. 250 million people use English as their primary language, and 600 million people understand it. It is spreading at an accelerating speed. Radio and television are bringing the world together, and the closer the world lives the more it will talk our language.
God wants to use our language to talk to the world-before the end! He means to reach every man, woman, and child everywhere. We hold in our hands the doorknob to millions of hearts.
And so this New Testament is in the living language of today and tomorrow. It uses "you" and "don't" and "12 o'clock" and "hurry" and "worry." It says. "Jesus looked at him and loved him" (Mark 10:21).
Let's not feel ashamed of our language. The Father's only Son CAME DOWN to be our flesh, was counted among criminals and considered too shameful to be crucified in the holy city. He did this to take away our sins and give us His glory. And just as He became flesh like ours, so He talked to people in a language that was flesh of their flesh. Today He would talk a language that is direct and forceful-like the prophets; that is fresh and simple-like His telling the lame man. "Get up and walk."
In His Word the Spirit of the living God is talking to us, and His book is the book of life. His vital touch is on every page, in every word. And when we let God speak the living language of today, a reader can instantly get into the spirit of the words to the point where the printed book seems to vanish and he hears the truth fresh from the lips of his God. He reads on and on, delighted with the meaning that shines to light up his way.
The Holy Bible: An American Translation, preface to the first edition, p. v-vi
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