I like the way The Message paraphrases Galatians 5:22-23 calling the fruits of the spirit gifts from God:
Love - Affection for others
Joy - Exuberance about life
Peace - Serenity
Patience - Willingness to stick with things
Kindness - Sense of compassion in the heart
Goodness - Conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people
Faithfulness - Involved in loyal commitments
Gentleness - Not needing to force our way in life
Self-Control - Able to marshal and direct our energies wisely
Look up and read the entire passage here. I like how the source of the gifts (fruit) is clear. In addition, the paraphase gives the accurate impression that the gifts are developed over time and not all given at once.
I do find The Message to be a helpful devotional supplement. The Message is a contemporary paraphrase of the Bible by Eugene Peterson. It should not be the primary, and for that matter the only Bible translation a person should read - it is a paraphrase.
1 comment:
I'm glad you differentiate between The Message as a primary source and a supplement. I know people who have taken it and arrived at completely false doctrinal conclusions based on things in The Message. That becomes very, very dangerous. I've always been pretty cynical of paraphrases because of that, but I've also tried to soften my stance on them and realize that it's possible for God to use them in someone else's life in a way that He may never use them in mine.
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