Acts 13:26-41, Issues with Decay

This world is subject to rot, spoil and decay because it is a “fallen” world.  This eating away of life is part of human existence also.  We should also understand that our souls are subject to this corruption.  What do we mean?  Let’s take one of the NT terms that speaks of this, beginning with the verb diaphtheirō.

·       Lk. 12:33: We should lay up treasure in heaven where moths do not destroy.  Matthew (6:19-20) uses a term that means to vanish away, disappear.  What a moth does has that effect.  Matthew term highlights the end result while Luke’s speaks of the process.  Bottom line is, what do I treasure in life?  Is it something eternal or something subject to corruption?

·       2 Cor. 4:16: Our outer man is decaying while the inner man is being renewed.  Keep this in mind for later.

·       1 Tim. 6:5: In the Body of Christ people who cause controversy or disputes and constant friction are men of depraved minds who are, thus, destitute of the truth.  Interesting.  Minds that have decayed.  This is why church leaders must “hold fast the faithful word (Titus 1:9).

·       Rev. 8:9: 1/3 of the ships are destroyed.  They disintegrate but this term indicates a process.

·       Rev. 11:18ab: The time will come to destroy those who destroy the earth.

Now consider the noun, used several times but all in the same book and context.

·       Acts 2:27,31; 13:34-37: Peter in Acts 2 and Paul in Acts 13 quote and build on Psalm 16:8-11 in tying the resurrection of Christ to OT prophecy.  The Psalmist said that God would not allow His Holy One to see corruption or decay.  Paul had noted that in this life our outer man is decaying but the inner man was being renewed day by day.  Now we see that the resurrection of Christ has overcome the decay of the fallen race. 

Let us also look at the root verb, phtheirō which means to corrupt or destroy.

·       1 Cor. 3:17: if anyone defiles the temple of God (the Body of Christ) God will destroy him.  That is NKJV, two English words but the same Greek term.

·       1 Cor. 15:33: Evil company corrupts good habits.

·       2 Cor. 7:2: Paul affirms he had wronged/corrupted/cheated no one.

·       2 Cor. 11:3: As the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, Paul was concerned their minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

·       Eph. 4:22: We need to put off the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts.

·       Jude 1:10: False teachers are corrupted by their evil speaking (cf. 1 Tim. 6:5.)

·       Rev. 19:2: The great harlot who corrupted earth with her fornication is judged.

May I encourage review.  What causes corruption?  What is subject to corruption and what is not subject to corruption?  What is the role of Christ in all this?