Change to a new language: (Zephaniah 3:9) . . .For then I shall give to peoples the change to a pure language, in order for them all to call upon the name of Jehovah, in order to serve him shoulder to shoulder.. . .

Have you ever heard phrases such as: "I wash my hands of responsibility in this matter," (Matthew 27:24-25) or maybe, "The writing is on the wall." (Daniel 5:3-7 & 23-31) Those are principles from the Bible, and people use them all the time in conversation; often without even realizing where they come from. Learning what the Bible teaches can be thought of as learning a new language, in some measure a language of principles; And as Zephaniah puts it above: It is in order that we may be able to call on the name of Jehovah and serve him in unity. God promised a day when all mankind would have the law of the new covenant written upon their heart. (Jeremiah 31:31-34) Jeremiah teaches us that each individual will know Jehovah, so as to be able to call upon him. Understanding and applying the Bible is what writes that new covenant (the law of love - Romans 13:8-10) on our heart. It is what gives us the ability to magnify our God:
      If you consider the first two chapters of Luke, you will read about an assignment God gave the angel Gabriel, to provide a message to two upright persons: Zechariah (the soon to be father of John the Baptist) and Mary (the soon to be mother of Christ). Both Mary and Zechariah had a measure of trepidation over the Angels appearance, and over the message given them; and both had questions. They demonstrate how Gabriel was able to magnify our God in his dealing with them.
      Zechariah was a priest before Jehovah according to the Jewish arrangement. He was in the process of carrying out his priestly duties in behalf of the people, including Jesus's future mother Mary. When Gabriel appeared to Zechariah, Zechariah manifested doubt. Please remember: Gabriel well knew when he appeared to this man that he was a priest of Jehovah, and that he was in the process of carrying out his priestly duties in Jehovah's temple. An angel appearing to such a man should not be too hard to fathom.
      In her turn, Mary had a question for Gabriel about how such a miracle could be; about how the thing he promised her could come to be. Was that doubt on her part as well?
      Gabriel was able to discern the action by Zechariah was an improper manifestation of doubt, while Mary's question was not. He struck Zechariah mute until the prophecy given him saw fulfillment, while he gave Mary a blessing. To have been chosen as the father of John, Zechariah was obviously an upright man. It would appear he humbly mentioned to his wife Elizabeth (later, and in writing we must presume) about his lack of faith toward Gabriel; for when Mary visited Elizabeth, as recorded at Luke 1:45, Elizabeth blessed Mary for her unwavering faith: Mentioning Mary had not expressed doubt [as had Elizabeth's husband].

      This is a heartwarming account!!! There is no indication Gabriel had to question Jehovah so as to know how to deal with these two individuals, but he took decisive action on his own. He might not have done exactly the same thing Jehovah would have done in dealing with them, but his actions were in perfect harmony with Jehovah's righteous standards. The reason Gabriel could thus magnify Jehovah, as he took action in God's behalf, is because Gabriel knows Jehovah intimately. Gabriel knows how to imitate Jehovah, and thus to magnify his God. Imitating our Father is the way in which we want to imitate Gabriel. We must first know our Father of course. The way we can come to know Jehovah personally, is by knowing what He had recorded in the Bible: By becoming fluent in that new language of Bible principles, and by writing the new law of love on our heart. (Romans 13:8-10) We want to do our best to put on the mind of God's faithful son Christ Jesus. (1 Corinthians 2:16)

So then, learning the new language of the Bible means in part, learning it's language of principles. The short stories that join to make up the Bible teach us those principles. Principles are: "Broad and basic rules or truths," as defined in one dictionary. These basic truths can then help us act as we should: Being motivated to do so out of our own conscience. (Romans 2:15-16) In this way we are able to magnify Jehovah, by acting as emissaries for him. We can learn and know how He would wish us to act: This by meditating on these short stories [like this one about Gabriel and Mary and John] God had recorded for us in the Bible.

For example: When we read about Doeg in the Bible, we can learn about a wicked and dangerous way for us to behave; and we can learn not to follow that course. Conversely, when we read from the Bible about being "noble minded", we can learn that is the way we want to conduct ourselves. Knowledge of just those two Bible principles then, can be an aid to us as we strive to become the people we want to be; and most importantly, to become the people our Creator wants us to be. The Bible is comprised of many such principles, which can govern our lives if we choose to be obedient to them. We learn from the Bible, for example, that all Jehovah's ways are perfect. (Deuteronomy 32:3-4) Any deviation from his way is thus bad; as it is less than perfect. (Deuteronomy 32:4-5) That can help us learn to be upright out of love for our Father; and love for his way of doing things. Rather than needing laws to prohibit us from doing certain things; we learn to desire to do what is right because it will bring good to all.

Bible principles can thus become a new language for us. When people who have knowledge of Bible principles use the term Doeg for example, each will fully understand what is being conveyed by using the term. Those hearing will know Doeg was a bad man and will understand why. They will thereby know better how to avoid being like him. The principles of the Bible thus become a new language we can use to communicate with all who understand the language. More importantly, those principles can govern our lives out of our own conscience. (Romans 2:15-16) By understanding Bible principles, which apply to a wide range of circumstances, we can know how to act in a way pleasing to our Creator.

May we do our utmost to become fluent in the truth of the principles contained in the Bible, and to share in the joy and peace that will abound as all the earth becomes filled with the knowledge of Jehovah! (Isaiah 11:9)

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