January, 2016
Dear Friend of Creation Moments,
You remember the story – two women stood before the king. They lived together in one house and had each given birth a few days apart. They had with them one of the little newborns because the other baby had died – and they were each claiming to be the living baby’s real mother! King Solomon called to have a sword brought before him. And when that was done he said, “Now cut the baby in half, and give half to one woman and half to the other.”
As in other places, the King James Bible uses some interesting terminology to describe what happened next. It says about the true mother of the child, that “her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child and in no wise slay it!” (1 Kings 3:26)
As you can imagine, some strong emotion welled up within the true mother when she saw the sword and heard the words of the king! Gut-level emotion made it clear who the real mother was, and so King Solomon commanded that the baby be given to her.
The Hebrew of 1 Kings 3:26 uses the word “rechem” which means “bowels”, while also used to convey intense affection and compassion. And New Testament Greek preserves this usage of “intestinal” language with the word “splanchna” – in famous phrases such as “bowels of mercies” (Colossians 3:12) or “bowels and mercies” (Philippians 2:1). More recent translations of the Bible have not retained the intestinal meaning of the words, translating them incompletely as metaphors for “affection” or “compassion”. In the modern era, who would have thought that emotional affection could flow from the gut anyway?!
Yet, biomedical science is now realizing that there is an important gut-brain connection. The gut and brain are in communication – via hormones, neurotransmitters, other nerve action and immune system effects.
What we see revealed here from the original languages is another depth of truth contained in the Scripture – where science is finally catching up. When the original Greek or Hebrew says “bowels” or “belly”, we lose some truth if we think about only the metaphorical meaning. The Bible holds scientific clues throughout. Something goes on in the inner cavity of our bodies that is more than what we have been able to rationally understand in all eras, including the modern one.
In John 7:37-38, Jesus tells His disciples, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly (koilia) shall flow rivers of living water.” The text then makes it clear that he is speaking of the Holy Spirit.
Other, more modern translations do not use the word “belly” – though that is what the Greek word “koilia” means – but will go right to the metaphorical meaning with something like “innermost being”. I am not saying that the metaphorical meaning is incorrect, but that there is often more truth embedded in the scripture than meets the modern, rationalistic eye. Our physical bodies provide both antennae and repository for soul and spirit – antennae and repository for mind, will and emotion – and for hearing God or being influenced by evil spirits. Something more is going on in our head, heart and mid-section than a merely naturalistic-materialistic-evolutionary view can understand.
Fear and anxiety can grip us, but so can love and joy and peace! The Holy Spirit indwells believers and does so in a way that connects with our mind and body. Indeed, the human body is not only irreducibly complex, it is “fearfully and wonderfully made” by our great Creator – connecting us to the immaterial world of human personality and to the spiritual world of the Supernatural Personality – Yahweh!
At Creation Moments we invite and encourage you to seek and experience God in all His revelation! There is wondrous truth at every hand which the Lord provides for our personal discovery and our joy and delight as we work as His ambassadors until eternity comes.
While we eagerly look forward to eternity, we look around us at a world in turmoil and in rebellion against God. We know that it is only by trusting in Christ that we can experience the joys a new year brings … and triumph in even the most difficult of circumstances. May God place His loving hands of protection on you and your loved ones throughout 2016 as we labor together in the Lord!
Yours in Christ,
Mark Cadwallader, Board Chairman
