I am asked a lot (especially in these days) what Bible Translation I preach from. Most folks that ask the question are part of the church I am privileged to teach weekly and simply want to follow along to the preaching text more closely. I respect that. In fact, one of the first things I did many years ago was grab a translation that matched the one my pastor used.
I made the decision almost twenty years ago to center my preaching ministry on the text of the New American Standard Bible (NASB). From early on in Bible College and Seminary, many of the professors required this translation because it was considered to be one of the most accurate translations that held to “formal equivalence translation philosophy.” That means (essentially) that the translators sought to use the English Word that most accurate translated the precise word in the original language: either Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek; and, to use the essentially literal equivalent word even if doing so made the sentence a little more difficult to read.
That said, I am not married to a particular translation. You’ll not hear me get on a rant about one translation or another. In fact, most English translations are useful for their intended purpose.
Remember that the sixty-six books of the Bible were originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Throughout the ages, these writings have been translated into popular language to make the text accessible to the masses of people. Unless you’re a Hebrew scholar, you’re likely unfamiliar with Hebrew vocabulary; therefore, the best way to make the Old Testament accessible to you is to translate it into English. Whenever you translate between languages, you have a difficulty to overcome…not every language has an exact equivalent word for every other language. Furthermore, specific language nuance (such as colloquialisms) carries with it shades of meaning.
For instance, If I wrote in a letter, “That Clemson safety killed that receiver on that last play,” you may have trouble translating word for word into Hindi without confusing the reader. After all, no one actually died in the football game. Because of this, some translators choose to modify the words in the receptor language to capture the idea of the original. (Think NIV).
Other translators also use a philosophy like that of the NASB, but they are a little more open in their word choices, seeking to make the sentence structures more easily readable (Think ESV or CSB, NKJV).
So, why do I use the NASB? As you know, I make a big deal out of words and word meanings. I think that’s an important aspect of my teaching/preaching ministry. Therefore, I chose a translation that most accurately reflected an essentially literal equivalent to the original language.
Do you only read the NASB? No! I read a passage from several translations in my preparation process and will occasionally use different translations in the act of preaching if another translation communicates the passage better.
Do you recommend that we get a NASB Bible if we are under your teaching? Bible translations (to me) are an intensely personal decision. So, my answer is, “It depends.” If following along word-for-word with my sermon text is important to you, then you will likely be most interested in getting a NASB Bible. If you have memorized a thousand verses in the NKJV and that is your heart language (so to speak) then stick with what you prefer. There are no bonus points or demerits for using a particular translation. As a side note, there is no uniformity among the pastors on our staff at the church. We use the ESV, NASB, NKJV, and even a KJV just on our staff. I personally have been reading the CSB devotionally all year and have grown to like it.
How should I choose a translation? First, I would probably use a Bible App and read a passage in several translations. For instance, read John 3 or Philippians 1 in the NASB, NIV, ESV, and NKJV. See which one is easiest to comprehend. You may even find the NLT to be helpful. I personally find it to be very conversational in tone but difficult to study (since I am a big “word” guy).
Will you always preach from the NASB? I would hate to commit to “always,” but it has served me well for almost two decades and I don’t see a reason to shift to anything else on the market today. I will switch to the 2020 update in a few months from the 1995 version that I currently use. This is primarily because those who use Apps to read the text will almost all get the 2020 version when they select the NASB rather than the older one from 1995. Also, the minor language adjustments I have seen seem to be helpful.
Will you ever use another translation? Yes. Count on some cross references coming from other translations at times; however, I will typically use the NASB for my primary Bible text.
Why do we have so many translations anyway? That’s a great and “common” question. When you read the front pages of a translation, the translators explain their rationale and philosophy. Also, there are other issues that inform translation work, but that is a conversation for another day and a good reason for you to enroll in one of my studies in the future on the Doctrine of the Bible. Again, I find different translations helpful since I am not an expert in any of the ancient biblical languages.
Why did you write these 1,000 words about your bible translation? That is the best question of the day. I thought I might try to answer a question I am often asked by others. I hope that if you made it this far, the article was helpful.
1You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 2:1–2 (NASB95)
What does “success” look like?
Numbers matter. Yep, I said it. As a pastor, I constantly fight the feeling within me to focus on “numbers” as a proper measure of success. Many days I have walked away from a great sermon and felt like it “flopped” simply because the attendance was low. At other times, I’ve taught an average (or below average) lesson and felt like a rock star because the room was more filled than normal.
Activity matters. There have been days when I was really proud of the fact that I preached four or five times…or I taught for six or eight hours. After all, if you are doing a lot, you must be successful.
Truthfully, activity is important and numbers are a reasonable measure of influence; however, neither activity nor numbers are effective indicators of success. In the passage above, we see that the Apostle Paul instructs Timothy in his ministry…to entrust what he has learned to faithful men who will entrust these things to others. No amount of activity is given as a standard. No base line of numbers is identified as acceptable. What is articulated is duplication…or more accurately, multiplication. Stated differently, Paul says to Timothy: your ministry is to multiply people who do what you do, which is to take what they’ve heard and teach it to others. Another word for this is discipleship.
Discipleship is not a class or a multi-week study. It is not an hour set aside on Sunday or Wednesday evenings. It is not a program, a pathway, or a track to follow. Discipleship is a descriptor of the life of a Christ-follower. Discipleship describes a life of learning, obeying, and teaching others to learn and obey. It alone is the measure of success.
I expect that many will be surprised when standing before Jesus one day. These will try to tell Jesus how busy they were, how many groups they were in, how many hungry people they fed, how many spiritual crisis situations they intervened in. These people will point to the breadth of their ministry lives. In then end though, when they came to the end, so did their ministries because they never multiplied their influence.
Is it possible that one faithful person who intentionally discipled one person a year who went out and did the same could better obey the Great Commission than the most active of church members and eloquent of teachers?
Reflection: Who are you discipling right now? Who is discipling you? If you hesitate on either or both questions, then the next step is to ask the Lord for forgiveness and commit to begin the discipleship journey today.
8Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. 9The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Philippians 4:8–9 (NASB95)
Have you ever noticed that you often see what you’re looking for? Several months back, I was considering changing vehicles. I got in my head that I wanted a Toyota Tacoma. Of course, it had a good reputation and held its value well. I liked a number of the features of it. What struck me the most was how many other people had the exact same idea. It seemed that every third or fourth vehicle in town suddenly became a Tacoma. Everywhere I went, there were more of them. They were everywhere! How did so many people know to go buy a Tacoma the week I started looking at them?
Of course, that’s a silly question. No one rushed out to buy the truck I was looking at. My focus and awareness simply changed. The same trucks were always there…but now I was seeing them.
That works with the other circumstances of our lives. If you’re looking for trouble, you’ll find it. If you are looking for a conspiracy theory (especially in election season), there are dozens of people who will help you find it on the Internet. If you want negativity, suspicion, defeatism…all are readily available.
The same is true if you’re looking for hope. If you want to see the fruits of the gospel, there are there too. Kindness is there. Respect for authority…also there. Grace and forgiveness is also right there! Certainly, you see these things rehearsed in the pages of Scripture, but they also exist in your life if you are a believer. They are rehearsed in sharing within your Connect Group/small group at church. They are trumpeted in praise songs and heralded in preaching. They are present in acts of kindness prevalent around us.
It leads one to wonder…if you see the darkness of the world as its most prominent feature…what are you looking for? Do you focus on criticism or on compliments? What are you projecting? Maybe the world needs a little sunshine and you’re the window through which God wants it to be revealed. What if we simply took the counsel of Scripture above and applied it? Whatever is good, lovely, true, honorable, excellent, praise-worthy—dwell on these things.
We often find what we fixate on. By the way, I love my Tacoma.
39Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!”
John 4:39 (NLT)
Have you ever considered the value of a simple Gospel Conversation?
In John 4, Jesus encountered the woman at the well. Their exchange was unusual. It was cross-cultural. It was uncomfortable (at least for the woman). At times, it was adversarial. It was also essential. The disciples did not understand. The woman did not fully understand. Certainly, she was not totally oblivious; however, she could only see and understand the events from a very narrow perspective.
This momentary exchange with the woman led to a witness. The woman did not have to explain all of the theological nuances of Judaism. She did not have to give a defense of her Samaritan traditions. She simply and plainly bore witness to what Jesus did in her life in a personal encounter. From this simple exchange, Jesus drew many Samaritans to a saving relationship.
Who are the “Samaritans” in your pathway? How are you looking for bridges to the gospel? How do you pray for God to make opportunities clear to you and to give you courage to speak?
What if through a faithful witness, just like the Samaritan woman, many people you knew could encounter Jesus and believe?
I enjoy feeding birds. Jodi and I have installed several feeders in the backyard and get the opportunity to watch many birds drop by for a snack. It is enjoyable and interesting to watch them.
Along with the birds, I have a number of uninvited guests. These tree rodents (you may call them squirrels) live in the woods near our home. They seem to think that if I put food out, it is fair game.
Now I will admit, though it may be only me, that I have given an inordinate amount of attention to these uninvited guests. In our last home, I kept a pellet rifle by the door and would sneak up on them (picture Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny) and shoot them off the feeder. My efforts typically resulted in a stunned squirrel breaking into a sprint once he hit the ground and scurrying away until I went back inside. I’ve since given up on this line of attack. Now, it is not terribly unusual to catch me raising a window or stepping onto the porch to clap my hands and tell them to leave. Yes, I actually talk to the squirrels! The problem is, as I make this ridiculous commotion, the birds also head for the hills!
I have noticed that, if I am not careful, I will spend more time considering the squirrels than enjoying the birds. I think about their habits, their lack of manners, the money they cost me in feed, the fact that they are not wearing masks or social distancing (ok, maybe not so much on the last part). I think about all of the starving birds in the world and the piles of wasted grain on the ground once a squirrel hits the feeder. But…rarely do I remember the birds.
I find that many people do the same thing, only in matters far more significant. They think about the vacation they cannot enjoy this year and lose sight of the dozens of vacations in the past. They think of the lost enjoyment of sports and lose sight of the many great times experiences they’ve had in years past. They think of the seemingly endless barrage of restrictions and lose sight of the immeasurable freedoms we all enjoy. They count the numbers of sick in the state and forget the countless numbers of healthy.
Much of life is informed by our focus. If our focus is on the blessings and benefits of the lives we enjoy…our perspective is relatively sunny. If we rehearse the things we have temporarily lost, we will wait on the proverbial “other shoe” to drop. If we obsess with the squirrels, we will miss the birds.
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