Well, with a title like this your curiosity was probably aroused. Others, however, did not bother to read this article since they were not familiar with the word and didn’t care to learn. Such is the basis, I believe, for Jesus’ use of parables in His teaching (see our text). God is not handing us salvation on a silver platter. Some effort, even considerable effort, on the part of each person is necessary to obtain the redemption which is in Christ. We cannot bring about or merit our own salvation, but we have a part in securing our own salvation and even that of others (1 Timothy 1:15; 4:16). So, what is an antinomy? Per Webster: antinomy - 1) the opposition of one law, regulation, etc. to another 2) a contradiction or inconsistency between two apparently reasonable principles or laws, or between conclusions drawn from them. Paradox would be a fair synonym. The Bible is filled with paradoxes, antinomies and hard sayings. Here’s a sampling:
•Whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave - Matthew 20:26-27
•He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal - John 12:25
•He who is forgiven little, loves little - Luke 7:47
•For to everyone who has, more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away - Matthew 25:29
•...when I am weak, then I am strong - 2 Corinthians 12:10
There are many more. The question: Do we avoid such sayings because of their difficulty, or do we dig into them to discover the gems of truth which God wants us to know? In fact, if we do not understand some of these and follow them, we will miss the kingdom of heaven! So, it’s up to you and me. My preference is to keep digging. What will you do? Hmmm?
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