I am going to deal with three areas with this post.
First, addressing “en” and “sanctification:”
Here, is a quick copy of the Thessalonian verse with the Greek words written in English script and a translation of each. Again, I call on the Greek scholars on the BB to correct any error that I may have made. I follow it with two other translations.
“God (theos – the exceeding divinity, God) hath (haireomai – choose to take to himself, preferred you) from (apo – at the time of) the beginning (arche – beginning, start) chosen (haireomai – chosen to take to himself, preferred you) you (humas – you) to (eis – into, unto) salvation (soteria – salvation, delivery) through (en – a fixed position relating to time, place, space) sanctification (hagiasmos – purity, holiness) of the Spirit (pneuma – Holy Spirit) and (kai – and, also) belief (pistis – assurance, fidelity) of the truth (aletheia – truth, veracity)"
American Standard Translation:
“God always for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, for that God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth”
Young’s Literal Translation:
“God always for you, brethren, beloved by the Lord, that God did choose you from the beginning to salvation, in sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth”
Specifically, God does not “move the believer.” He did not take us from one place and put us in another. He did not remove us from the earth.
Rather, He proclaimed the believer as His and no longer of this world system or the property of the god of the fallen system. We underwent a change of ownership.
It is as a king’s signet ring sealing a document showing ownership and authority. That is the “state” a believer is “in sanctification of the (Holy) Spirit.” It is as a title or deed, stamped by the authority of the state showing whom ownership is assigned.
You want to state I do not seem to know what sanctification means.
But you are mistaken.
I have moved away from the typical “set apart” definition because it is obviously a confusing definition and really isn’t accurate to the original in our modern age.
The words "set apart" seems to be used by you to indicate what one might do when they have finished taking a swig of Dr. Pepper and setting down the can apart from them so it doesn't get knocked over onto the keyboard.
But, "set apart" were words originally used to assigning a specific significance to something or someone. The temple was sanctified, the worship center is sometimes called a sanctuary, the sanctity of marriage are all terms that indicate no movement but assignment of significance.
If you think I am wrong, I suggest you call forward the Greek scholarship that would demonstrate that I am wrong.
Just so you know, the 1 Peter 1:1-2 phrase, “through (by, to) sanctification,” is used EXACTLY the same way as in Thessalonians. Look at it in the original and you will see I am correct.
Second, your application using a “subordinate:”
I would not think that you are placing the Holy Spirit as a subordinate to Christ or the Father. That doesn’t work.
Again, the Spirit is given to one as a seal of a king’s signet wring. Not as someone “moving the vehicle.” If you’re going to use that illustration make it fit.
It is God that has the foreknowing ability who does the choosing.
The Spirit applies “the seal to the deal” sort of like a vehicle title will have a government seal showing the authority.
Third, defining foreknowledge:
Foreknowledge means – knowing the facts or fully consciousness of events that are going to happen before they happen.
In the case of the Scripture, the word (foreknowledge) is used only twice – In Acts and Peter.
In both places the Greek word is the same – “prognosis.”
In our modern medical world, we don’t even bother using a translation of the word, but use the Greek in English script. It is used as giving medical opinions that indicate what possibly will be the likely diagnosis’s outcome, to forecast the course of a disease, to predict some conclusion of a condition…
Because God is not limited in mental acuity and has total understanding knowledge of the past, present and future, the word “opinions” and “likely” would need to be removed from the definition.
The definition would then read: before time, God possessing infinite entire knowledge of the diagnosis and outcome, the complete certain cognition of the course of a disease, and the determiner of the conclusion of a condition.
Unless you have something more to offer that would persuade me I am wrong, I would consider we have pretty much run the length of the Thessalonians verse.
What shall you desire we consider, next?
