Diluting Christian Jargon
God’s Word is precise. The Bible says exactly what God wants it to say. In this way, we know exactly what God wants us to know. A man hears some words uttered by another, and he says, “Ah, the Word of God,” because the speaker is quoting Scripture.
The original languages of the Bible: Hebrew for the Old Testament, and Greek for the New Testament, are also precise. Hebrew is fluid, with multiple meanings given to many of the words. It is perfect for prophetic mystery. Greek is mechanical. It has the precision of an engineer. It is exacting, as it serves to manifest fulfillment.
Learning the original languages is essential in a world of misused terms. The original authors had intentional meanings for the words they employed. For example, Matthew wrote kathegetes, not sophistes, nor ekpaideutes, nor didaskalos in Matthew 23:10. Thus, the correct translation is “leader”, not “instructor”, or otherwise. The root word is hegemon, which is the word for leader, chief, or principal.
Another example of dilution is John 6:44, where most translators translate elkuse, as “draw” instead of “drag,” as in, “No man comes to Me, unless the Father drags him.” Obviously, “draw” opens the door to the Arminian heresy, of conditional salvation, by means of free will choice. In both of these examples, we have dilution. The Matthew 23:10 dilution is in translation to English, using other words than the original Greek word. The dilution in John 6:44 is the watering down of the intensity of the Greek word. Does a fisherman drag, or draw, his net full of 153 fish?
You know a minister is a man-pleaser when he imports words to replace biblical terms. Instead of “preaching” a sermon, the “leader” is giving a Sunday morning “chat” or “talk.” The purpose is to dilute the Word of God, that is, the words of God, to appease the ungodly reprobates in the hope of “drawing” a bigger crowd.
Psychologists, posing as church growth experts, have infiltrated the church, also known as the “gathering,” or even more vague, “the journey,” and they insist that pastors ditch Bible terms. The psychologists teach pastors to play mind/word games with the lost, in order to trick them into believing the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ…oh wait, forgive me…”the faith and message.”
Why do Christian pastors fall prey to this infiltration? The simple fact is that they eschew the Gospel for its offense. Men hate Christianity because they hate Christ (Jn 7:7; 15:18–19, 24–25). Men hate Christ because they hate God (Rom 1:30). Christ is God. If the pastor actually preaches Christ crucified, he will suffer. This is why posers dilute the Word of God with worldly jargon.
Diluting Christian jargon is the work of lukewarm pastors, who are ashamed of the Gospel, and its particular terms. When “preaching”; “church”; “pastor”; and “Christian”; become disposable words, you can be sure it is the tip of the iceberg. Eventually, a “talk” in certain “gatherings” becomes mere psychobabble, with an occasionally familiar Christian word (see Shawn Bolz).
Paul wrote to Pastor Timothy, “Preach the Word (2 Tim 4:2),” not, “Tim, give them a little talk.” He meant that literally, “Preach the words of God from the Scriptures.” We know this by the simple fact that when an Old Testament Bible transcriber messed up a jot, or a tittle, on a page, that page was burned with fire. How lightly the legion of translators, and we ourselves, handle God’s Word in comparison!
When the human author of Scripture uses one word, and opts not to use a different word, this should not be overlooked. Paul wrote to the Colossians, “And we proclaim Him (Col 1:28).” There, he does not use “preach.” It should be the biblical exegete’s work to answer the obvious question, “Why did Paul use term x versus term y?” The exegete forms his interpretation, with his exegetical conclusions, as the foundation of his interpretation. He then teaches the church what he himself has learned by himself, and with the help of his friends (exegetical commentaries).
The church of Jesus Christ needs the Word of Christ, not the diluted terms of psychologists. Psychologists talk, but preachers preach! We must trust that the Holy Spirit will powerfully work God’s Holy Word to its intended end, whether that is to harden a heart, or pierce it with conviction. We must also trust that the Holy Spirit will not use the diluted words of sinful philosophers and psychologists to do what man intends with them — trick sinners into making a decision that is not theirs to make.
Pastor, if you have opted to dilute biblical terms, you are in gross error. “Hell (sheol/hades)” is not “the afterlife.” Forsake your so-called, “Christ-followers” and preach Christ to the “Christians,” the “beloved of God,” “the saints,” and the “elect.”
Christian, be very aware of your pastor’s use of terms. He may be hip, trendy, popular, and mega charismatic, but is he a “slave of Christ,” who rightly divides the Word of truth?
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
December 15, 2021
