joysightings: Recent Episodes
Phil Fields
After being directly involved in Bible translation since 1983, I have wanted to share with younger generations about the things I have learned from my experiences as a Bible translator— the things that made the most impact on me through my years. I have now decided to put a few of my most important stories in this JoySightings podcast. I know that I am never going to write a book. But now if anyone ever asks about my experiences, I will have a place to send them: Go to JoySightings.info and start at episode 52. I hope to add several other stories this year. Today I will also read one more parable of Safed the Sage.
When we were about 7-8 years into the Orya translation project, back around 1991, Nahe asked one Sunday morning to have a private conversation with me. Nahe and I had never had much communication, so I felt it was an unusual request. I knew him mainly as a young guy who made his income by cutting trees into lumber with his chainsaw. He was strong and athletic, but a man of few words.
He came that evening and we sat down together in my candle-lit rustic cabin’s front room. He said, “You wouldn’t have heard this, because it happened in another village. I got very sick and died. When I came back to life, the men were already building my coffin. But while I was dead, I went to heaven and saw wonderful things. The people in heaven are so happy and rejoicing.”
He ended his story with tears in his eyes saying this, “I cry every single day because I know that someone like me can’t go to heaven. What do I have to do to be saved?”
I thought, “Oh boy! A chance to be a real missionary! This will make a good prayer letter.” (But I was in for a surprise!) I immediately answered his question from the book of Acts chapter 16, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31)
Nahe answered, “That’s just it! How can I tell if I have believed?”
I responded incredulously, “Can’t you tell if you’ve believed something?”
And he said, “We Orya people don’t think so.”
That’s how the conversation went according to my understanding of it in those moments. But what we said really meant this:
I answered wrongly from the book of Acts, “Have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.”
Nahe’s answer made sense, “That’s just it! How can I tell if I have faith?”
I responded incredulously, “Can’t you tell if you have faith?”
And he said, “We Orya people don’t think so.”
The difference is between ‘believe’ and ‘faith’. It took a little while in the conversation before I figured out what Nahe was saying. This was a heavy moment for me, because I realized that the word for ‘believe’ that we had used in all our translation work for six years was wrong, including verses in Scripture booklets we had carefully checked and distributed.
Long before we arrived in Guay, the word that the Orya people used to translate ‘faith’ was ei gwen, or to have ‘inner fruit’. By ‘inner fruit’ the Orya meant the inside part that you eat when you take off the skin. It’s the inside of the papaya or watermelon. The situation might be compared to buying a papaya at the market. You don’t know whether the inside is red or yellow until you take it home and cut it open.
Nahe told me that the Orya people assumed that you couldn’t know if you had this inner fruit (or faith) inside you until you died. They thought that at the door of heaven, God would somehow do an operation to reveal if you had any of the right stuff inside you.
It was clear that if we used ‘have inner fruit’ to translate ‘believe’, then no Orya person could tell if they had done the required action to be saved. No one could have assurance of salvation! After that Sunday evening conversation with Nahe, all day Monday Boas and I and several others worked to make sure we found exactly the right word for ‘believe’ in Orya. The word for believe in Orya is not ei gwen, but taïblïblan.
There is a weird twist that has happened with the words for faith and believe in several languages that is not like the Greek words pisteuo and pistis. The Greek words have the same root, so they sound alike.
| Greek | English | Indonesian | Orya | | verb | pisteuo | I believe | Saya percaya | taïblïblan | | noun | pistis | faith | iman | ei gwen | | visually | clearly related | dissimilar | dissimilar | dissimilar |
If only pisteuo (I believe) and pistis/pisteos (noun/possesive noun) were translated into English with similar looking words like ‘I’m confident’ and ‘confidence’, we wouldn’t have so many false teachings being spread around! But because ‘believe’ and ‘faith’ share no visible or audible root relationship, the English noun faith has been allowed to wander— so to speak. The cohesion between pisteuo and pistis that was obvious for the original readers in Grrek has been lost in translation. Perhaps because of the influence of the KJV on Indonesian translations, the same thing has happened in Indonesian. The result is that the Indonesian word iman (like ‘faith’ in English) is used for all sorts of things, including inner fortitude, vague hope, blind trust, denominational faith, and a force for good luck.
Notice what happens in verses like Ephesians 2:8: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. …” If you want to be saved, it would be a good idea to understand ‘faith’. But so many people who ask Nahe’s question, “How can I tell if I have faith,” will get all sorts of misleading answers.
Dear friend, anytime you want to understand what ‘faith’ means in a verse in the New Testament, just remember that you can substitute the word ‘believe’, ‘believed’, or ‘believing’ (whatever form fits) in place of the word ‘faith’. NLT translates Ephesians 2:8 as “God saved you by his grace when you believed. …” If you substitute the word ‘believe’ for ‘faith’ in translations that use that word, you will probably find that you want to add an object. You can choose an object from the context such as these: ‘believe in Christ’, ‘believe in the gospel’, ‘believe true teachings’, or ‘believe God’s promises’.
Now you know why in the Daily Bible Reading podcasts that I always substitute the word ‘believe’ or ‘fully believing’ for ‘faith’ in the NLT or GNT. It all stems from my conversation with Nahe. You see, I want people to know how to be saved.
Note that believing is a volitional act. We decide to believe, and we better hope our decisions are based on good logic and evidence. That is what makes it so different from the word ‘faith’. People believe that ‘faith’ just sort of happens. False teachers make money by promoting all sorts of things that they claim will increase your faith. But remember that in Greek, faith is the noun form for the verb believe. So if God gives you clear evidence of his power and love for you, like He did when he led the people of Israel out of Egypt, and then you refuse to believe in his good will for you, that is called stubborn disobedience. Believing is a volitional act. Deciding to believe what God says equals increasing your faith.
I wish I could tell you that Nahe followed through with my advice to fully believe in Jesus. Nahe’s widow goes to close friend Boas’ church, and I happened to meet her in his village two years ago. We both feel that Nahe never believed in Jesus to the point that it changed his life. But, interestingly, on that same visit to Boas’ village, two old friends there told me stories of their dying, going to heaven, and being told to return to this world. (If you ever experienced malaria, you would know how easy it would be to nearly die!) I am encouraged that both of my two old friends show signs of true new life in Christ.
Friends, I want everyone to get a clear answer to the question, “How can I be sure I am saved?” I want you to not get confused by the fuzzy word ‘faith’. Remember, faith is fully believing what the Bible says. Every time you read God’s Word and decide that you believe what you find there, you have increased your faith.
Today I would like to give pointers for understanding Jesus’ parables. I consider the parable to be one of the greatest of all teaching devices, and a legacy of the Greatest Teacher. I will end this episode by sharing about one of my favorite writers of non-Biblical parables.
One little detail to understand is that the word ‘parable’ (Greek paraboles) had a wider meaning than we normally think of in English, and you may see this sometimes in the New Testament. In English, we normally think of a parable as a story that points to some deeper meaning. However, as an example, the word ‘parable’ is used for a one-sentence figurative teaching in Mark 7:17 where it refers back to Jesus’ statement in verse 15:
GW “Nothing that goes into a person from the outside can make him unclean. It’s what comes out of a person that makes him unclean.”
In verse 17, the disciples ask Jesus to explain that ‘parable’.
With that footnote, I want you to know that I will really just be talking briefly about what we normally think of as parables, the story type.
In the episode notes, I give links to more complete and scholarly information than what I will present to you. In particular, I recommend viewing the 6 minute video from bibleproject.com entitled The Parables of Jesus. Also in the episode notes, I have links to both a video and a good summary about Interpreting Parables by Bob Utley.
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Bob Utley’s Special Topic page on Interpreting Parables:
http://www.freebiblecommentary.org/special_topics/parable_interpretation.html
Bob Utley’s video on Luke 15:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f76EvjGy7Jw
Don’t miss the cool video from BibleProject.com! Title: The Parables of Jesus
I appreciated the original thinking and humorous examples in this short article:
https://www.1517.org/articles/understanding-jesus-parables
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As I was thinking about what to mention to you, I was reading a historically-interesting commentary by Christopher Wordsworth from 1856, and I almost stumbled into a common error in interpreting parables, which is thinking of them as allegories. An example of this is Luke chapter 15, where we have the parable of the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Lost Son. Wordsworth gives an allegorical interpretation, assigning an identity to all the characters. In this case, the shepherd is Christ, who searches for his lost sheep. That’s not too bad. But seeing the woman who loses one of her coins as a picture of the church, is definitely stretching things. Similarly in the Parable of the Lost Son, the father is interpreted as God, the younger son as the Gentiles who repent, and the older son as the Jews.
One of the things that leads people to take an overly allegorical approach to the parables has to be Jesus himself, in his foundational teaching about the parables found in Mark 4, Mat. 13, and Luk. 8. In Jesus’ explanation of the Parable of the Sower, He might almost contradict my last point about allegorical interpretation. It just happens that the Parable of the Sower (also called the Parable of the Different Kinds of Soil) has clear allegorical elements (the birds, path, rocky soil, etc), whereas for many other parables it doesn’t help to seek an allegorical identity for the various participants. A second thing that is unusual in the Parable of the Soils is that it has clear multiple teaching points, whereas most parables have a single, simple point.
I have mentioned all this heavy stuff to bring us around to this simple point: When we get too fancy in our interpretation of parables, we tend to miss the main point, which is to ask, “How does this apply to me?” The cool thing about parables is that Jesus intended them to be multi-purpose. People who were ready to believe in Jesus would get one interpretation, and the religious leaders criticizing Him would understand Jesus’ meaning very differently. Both groups got a correct interpretation, as Jesus intended, even though the interpretations were different.
This propensity of parables to be interpreted differently has a plus side and a negative side. On one hand, we must remember that parables are not good for determining doctrine. Let’s not decide the timing of Jesus’ second coming based on parables, but some of the parables clearly illustrate something about Jesus’ second coming. The plus side is that the Holy Spirit may use Jesus’ parables to say something very pointedly appropriate for you.
I have been amazed that in the Parable of Different Kinds of Soil I sometimes find that I am dangerously close to living amongst thorns, way too concerned with the cares of this life. But in a few months when I come across the parable again, I find that I have moved over to the rocky soil, meaning that I might glibly say that I love God’s Word, but on that day if I am honest, I have to admit that my roots are dangerously shallow.
Another illustration of a personal application for me is this, which I don’t think I have ever shared with anyone before: When I read the story of the prodigal son, I am reminded that I acted like the prodigal son, when I was young and thoughtless, by asking for part of my inheritance early. I didn’t realize that this was tantamount to wishing my father dead. How this must have hurt him! I wish I could tell him how sorry I am that I ever did that.
Don’t look to parables for decisions about moving to another city, quitting your job, or selling your house. That’s not what I mean by a personal application.
Finally, here are three final pointers:
- Understanding the context and the audience Jesus was speaking to is key to understanding what Jesus was saying.
- You can see a progression in Luke’s Gospel that leads from more general parables about the Kingdom of God, to Jesus’ identity as the king who will return, and to whom everyone will give an account.
- Look to see if the Gospel writer or Jesus himself tells what He was driving at. And also take note of any surprising twist in the story. Such twists often give an important clue to the meaning.
Let me illustrate that idea of a surprising twist found in some parables. One of my favorite booklets that we printed to display our translation in Indonesia is a collection of 25 parables. If I am in Indonesia, I like to have that booklet handy in my bag. There was one devout Islamic taxi driver that took me to my home at least six times. Because of frequent traffic jams in Jakarta, a 20 minute trip can take two hours on bad days. So I started reading the parables to him. He was interested, and it was way better than trying to debate with him about our religions. After many of the parables he would say, “OK, yeah. I think we Muslims could agree with that one.” That continued until we got to the Parable of the Vineyard owner in Matthew 20. That’s the one where the vineyard owner gives all the workers the same pay for a full day’s work, even though some workers only worked for one hour. He responded, “What?! He did that? That’s crazy. That’s unfair!” This gave me an opportunity to talk about God’s kindness. We call it grace. God wants to be generous with us, because none of us can manage to earn our salvation. God designed this counterintuitive situation so that all glory would go to our Savior, and none would go to us.
As I will not be living in the same place in Jakarta when I go back in July, it is not likely that I will take that route again with the same taxi driver. It is not appropriate for me to share his name. But you can join me in praying for that taxi driver that I read parables to.
One of my spiritual fathers (Richard Burson) introduced me to the parables of Safed the Sage. Safed was the pen name of William E. Barton, who lived from 1861 to 1930. William Barton was a highly regarded Congregational pastor, and also a published expert on the life of Abraham Lincoln. Barton also edited a Sunday School newsletter (and in his day, Sunday School included adult classes). In the newsletters he first published his Parables of Safed the Sage. These were picked up by newspapers who republished them, and around 1919 the parables were published in several books. Happily, you can find Barton’s parables of Safed the Sage as free downloads at the Library of Congress website. They are in the public domain.
Barton’s writing style is humorous because he used an affected old-fashioned style of English, mixing in expressions like in the King James Bible. And he heightened the effect by using capital letters in strange places, for words that he wanted to highlight. So I feel that often his parables are better when read, rather than in audio form.
I have so appreciated Barton’s parables that I have recorded many of them for a podcast that I call JoySightings, found at joysightings.info. You can subscribe to this podcast in any podcast player.
I will give you two short examples of the parables of Safed the Sage in this podcast. They are different than Jesus’ parables in that Safed usually gives the meaning of his parable at the end. I think you will enjoy the experience of hearing a new parable. Think of how engaging Jesus’ parables would have been, and still are, for people hearing them for the first time!
The Gravity Trolley
I journeyed unto a distant State, even to California, and I rode upon a Trolley that ran Six miles back from the Railway Station into the hills. And I observed that all the way as we Ascended, the Motorman consumed Electric Current, but when we Descended, then did he shut off the Juice, and controlled our speed by means of the Brake, with an Emergency Brake at hand, and I spake unto certain of those with whom I rode, of the Trolley, and of how the Roadbed was all Up-Hill one way, and all Down-Hill the other way; and how they used two kinds of power, even Electricity and Gravitation, and each of them in one direction only.
And one of them spake unto me, saying, Thus it was intended when this Road was Surveyed, and before they had Electric Power; for in that day did they haul the cars Up-Hill with Mules; and there was a Platform upon the Rear of the Car, and the Mules Ascended the Platform and rode down. And they told me how the Mules soon learned the trick, so that as soon as they were unhitched they hastened to the rear of the car and climbed up.
And others told me many things about those Mules; and a certain Woman procured for me a Picture of the Car with the Passengers riding Inside and the Mules riding Outside, and the Mules enjoying it as much as the Passengers. And it pleased me much.
Now it came to pass in time that the Electric Current Emancipated the Mules, and the Owners of the Trolley sold the Mules. And farmers bought them at a good price, for the Mules were fat and strong. But it was a Bad Buy for the farmers.
For those Mules would pull the Plow Up-Hill to the end of the Furrow, and then turn around and seek to climb up on the rear end of the Plow in order to ride down! And when they found no Platform, then were they Troubled in their Mind and much Bewildered. Neither was it Possible ever to teach them to pull any load Down-Hill.
Now I know many people with whom this System worketh the other way, and who are very willing to be hitched up to a job that runneth down hill by Gravity or the labor of others, but who insist upon riding or being Unhitched when the Trolley hitteth the up-grade. For the work of the Lord hath its Up-Hill and its Down-Hill aspects, and if there be any Platforms provided for those who would ride, thou shalt find them already occupied by kindred souls who have beaten you to it.
On Rising Above the Clouds
I rode upon a Railway Train; and we were in the Rocky Mountains. And we awoke in the morning, and the Train was climbing, with two Engines pulling us, and one pushing behind. And we were nigh unto Twelve Furlongs above the sea.
And it came to pass as we ascended, that there were clouds below us, and Clouds upon the sides of the Mountains, but there were no clouds above us, but the clear shining of the Morning Sun.
And there came unto me a small Girl and her younger Brother, who were riding upon the Train, and we talked about the clouds. For so did John Ruskin, and Aristophanes, and the little lad was very happy, and said,
I have never been above the Clouds before.
And his sister was worldly wise. And she said, A Cloud ain't nothing but just fog.
And he said, Nay, but it is more. And behold now, how then is a cloud just under us, and we ride on top of it?
And she said, We are on the Rails, just as we always have been; and there can't nobody ride on a Cloud.
And the boy said, Jesus can ride upon a Cloud; For I saw a Picture of Him.
And the little girl said, Yes but that ain't us.
Now the little girl may have been right; but I thought within myself that this world hath too many people who look out on Life through her windows. For they see no sunlit Clouds, but only Fog; and they have little faith in rising above Clouds, but have confidence only in the Rails.
And I do not despise Rails, nor advise people to discard them and ride upon Clouds. Nevertheless, I have seen people rise above Clouds, and live in the sunlight of God. But I have known others who, whenever it is said unto them, Thus have other men done, or thus did the good Lord Jesus, make reply, Yes, but that ain't us.
And if it is spoken concerning the House of God, Thus did the Synagogue in Jonesville, and thus was it done by the Church in Smithville, they answer, Yes, but that ain't us.
And if it be said, Thou shouldest be a better man; for other men have risen above thy Clouds and thine Infirmities, they say, Yes, but that ain't us.
And when it is said, Thus hath the grace of God abounded in other lives, they say, Yes, but that ain't us.
But if it ain't, why ain't it?
For this cause did God dwell in human flesh: That men should never count any good thing impossible that they behold in the dear Lord Jesus.
For he is our peace, who hath broken down all middle walls, that men should no longer say, But that ain't us.
May the Lord bless you ‘Real Good’!
Phil
Parables by William E. Barton, from The Wit and Wisdom of Safed the Sage, published in 1919. This book is available for free download at the Library of Congress.
You will love these stories! These have been a blessing to our children and grand kids.
My testimony was recorded in Papua in 2014. It was recorded as part of the Daily Bible Reading Podcast, and that's why at the end that I was transitioning to reading the day's Scriptures.
I have no idea why that testimony got linked with these two parables! Although, it is the story of a true Joy Sighting.
William E. Barton (1861-1930) wrote parables where he called himself Safed the Sage. Barton was a Congregational minister, and we wrote many books and is especially noted for his books on the life of Abraham Lincoln.
The stories I read from William E. Barton are now all within the public domain and can be freely downloaded via the Library of Congress site.
In this podcast, I read The Dog and the Limited, and Moving Picture.
The DayStarters will be re-released here. They were originally published at dailybiblereading.info as part of the series based on the GNT. Now that series has moved to dailyGNTbiblereading.info.
Please view the attached PDF file!