In 1915, Robert Frost wrote a famous poem titled “The Road Not Taken.”
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I–
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
For most Christians, the study of Greek is a road not taken, but usually there’s no clear point of decision. It’s one of those things that flits across the mind a few times, instantly dismissed with “But I’ll never have [time, talent, whatever] to do that.”
I don’t know that this is the time for you to learn Greek. That’s between you and God. But I do want you to know that there’s a clear fork in the road here. The opportunity is available, and in a way that you might not have expected. Over the next year, a group of us will be studying 1 John. We’ll meet twice a week for 2 hours each session — a total of 120 hours of study time to cover 105 verses. Needless to say, we’re going to know 1 John very well indeed.
In fact, we’re going to know 1 John so well that we learn it right down to its Greek grammar. This will not be a conventional Greek-in-a-vacuum class, as though you were learning the language in the abstract; rather, this will be a class in all aspects of 1 John, including the Greek of 1 John. The worst-case scenario here is that you come out not really understanding Greek, but knowing 1 John like the back of your hand. That’s not too bad for a year’s worth of fellowship.
If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to hear even one book of the New Testament read, in the language it was written in, and really understand it, here’s your chance. If you’ve ever thought that you’d love to learn Greek, but it’s just too hard, this class is designed for you. If you’re local (Orange County, CA and environs), you’re welcome to join us. If you’re not, I’m accepting a very limited number of distance learning students for our pilot online program. You can find more information on both options here.
Full Contact Christianity 