Reverse The Verse
This is a little study habit I am developing that should prove valuable for me in witnessing and teaching others from the scriptures. It's very new to me considering the time I've known Jesus as my Savior, however it's practical, down to earth, scholastic and profitable to those who will embrace it. It's also simple enough for the average Bible student to grasp and use.
I simply take one verse of scripture and consider what it says, and then I reverse the concept or meaning of the verse to state what is not stated but what I believe the opposite of the verse would state. My first verse will be John 14:6, and I will use that verse as an example on this page and then extend this idea by creating additional pages as time permits for others to study and profit from. God grant this will bring glory and honor to him through the people who seek to know and love him and his word completely!
All the scriptures in this study will come from the King James Version of the Bible.
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John 14:6 - "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me."
Let's break this verse down and see what we can derive from it.
This verse is preceded by Thomas, a disciple of Jesus, asking the question; "We know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way?" Thomas asked that question in response to the previous four verses where Jesus was telling the disciples not to be troubled but if they believe in God they should also believe in him. He goes on to tell them that he was going to prepare a place for them. He also tells them that he will come again for them and receive them so they could be with him where he is going. Then he tells them that they know where he goes and the way he goes.
My take on that is that he told them of his coming execution, he told them he must go to the Father and other things he told them as they traveled with him and heard his words should have been enough for them to perceive what was coming, but for whatever reason, at least Thomas, must not have gotten the message. That would be another entire teaching, and that is not my purpose here.
Back to John 14:6 KJV and what I believe the reverse of the verse would be. The most significant factor in what I am about to share is one little word - "THE." Let's continue. Jesus is telling his disciples that he is 'the' way and reinforces it by saying no man can come to the Father unless they come through me. That's an absolute! Reversing Jesus' words would look like this; All other supposed ways to the Father are false. This statement is a heavily disputed one because it makes Jesus man's only hope to come to God the Father. It also excludes, through rational thinking, any other way; making all other ways spurious, false, and in serious error. I say it's a serious error because the eternal life of all mankind depends on believing Jesus' words, as scripture says, "With All Our Hearts." The alternate course in the Bible is to be damned forever for sin unforgiven and rejection of God's gift of salvation. If Jesus' words are true it's very important that we heed them and put our faith and trust in Him alone for salvation.
Jesus goes on to say he is the truth and the life. Once more the exclusive use of "the" in both instances has to be considered. If Jesus is the truth, then it would follow that he is saying he is the source of all truth. Therefore whatever contradicts or opposes what Jesus is teaching is false or honest error, but error, no matter how honest is still false. So then it would be extremely important to know what the Lord, Jesus Christ has said and is now saying to those who have ears to hear. This could be expounded on more, but not here and now.
Finally, Jesus says, "I am the life." Once again the word "the" implies to me that Jesus is the source of all life. This would lead to a huge theological discussion because We know Genesis, Chapter One, says the God (Elohim in Hebrew), is the source of all life. How can we rectify Jesus' words with Genesis, Chapter One? The answer is that Jesus is part of the Godhead composed of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Further study will prove that all three were involved in the creation. In 1 John 1:1 coupled with 1 John 1:14 we see that Jesus is a member of the Godhead. He was with God and was God and his disciples beheld his glory as of the Only Begotten Son Of God. Further study would reveal that the Bible, speaking of Jesus states, "All things were created by him and for him and without him nothing was made that was made. That one statement alone proves the pre-existence of Christ before the world we know existed. There are so many proofs of his deity in scripture that it would take an amazing amount of twisting and turning to prove otherwise. Suffice it to say that Jesus in concert with the Father and Holy Spirit is the source of all life since all three are always in perfect agreement.
So we have reversed the verse and found out some very important things that all mankind should know and adhere to. Look for more reversed verses as time permits me to prepare and share them. God bless you all and draw you closer to him than ever before.