Falaite ‘Epeleli 9, 2021

 Falaite ‘Epeleli 9, 2021

“He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire”

‘e papitaiso kimoutolu ‘e ia ‘i he Laumālie Mā‘oni‘oni mo e afi

Matiu 3 (Matthew 3)

(v. 11) “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. And they said to him, “We each have had a dream, and there is no interpreter of it.” So Joseph said to them, “Do not interpretations belong to God? Tell them to me, please.”

(v. 11) Ko au ‘oku ou papitaiso vai kimoutolu ki he fakatomala: ka ko ia ‘oku muimui mai ‘oku ne mālohi ‘iate au, ko e Toko Taha ia ‘oku ‘ikai te u taau ke takitaki hono topuva‘e: ‘e papitaiso kimoutolu ‘e ia ‘i he Laumālie Mā‘oni‘oni mo e afi.

 

*Commentary: The NIV Study Bible*

3:11 He who is coming after me expresses strong messianic expectation, is mightier than I. John announces the nearness of the kingdom, but the Coming one will arrive with the power of God to inaugurate messianic rule.

baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. John's water baptism will be superseded by the baptism associated with the Coming One (see note on 12:13). Those who repent and trust in him will receive the blessing of the Holy Spirit (cf. Joel 2:28–29; Acts 2:16-21), while the unrepentant will receive the judgment of eternal fire, and even the repentant may undergo a purifying fire.

GOD IS . . . (KO E ‘OTUA, ‘OKU . . )

4        GOD IS INFINITE

Bavinck provides another way of understanding God's infinity: "When applied to time, God's immutability is called eternity; when applied to space, it is called omnipresence. Infinity helps us to understand how immutability and eternity coincide or how immutability and omnipresence relate.

When we consider God's attributes, we must always consider them as infinite. His infinity is a positive concept, so that we must say that his attributes are intensively and qualitatively infinite. God's infinity is the highest sense of perfection. “Not yet finished” (or "indefinite”) is an improper way to understand infinity with regard to God. Rather, without bounds or limits or degrees, God knows infinitely (Isa. 40:28) and is a sphere whose center is everywhere and circumference nowhere. He is as present in our midst as he is farthest from us in the universe. Yet while he is present in one place, he is never confined to any place.

The psalmist explicitly acknowledges God's infinity: “Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure" (Ps. 147:5). God's understanding exists without measure. The psalmist here combines one attribute with another, as he does elsewhere. God is great, because he is abundant in power (omnipotent) and measureless (infinite) in his understanding (omniscience).

4        KO E ‘OTUA´ ‘OKU ‘INIFINAITE (ta‘efakangatangata)

‘Oku ‘omi ‘e he tangata teolosia ko Heamani Pavineki ha founga ‘e taha ki hono mahino’i ‘o e tu’unga ‘Inifinaite (ta’emalaua) ‘‘o e ‘Otua: “‘I hono fakafelave’i mo e taimi, ko e tu’unga ta’eliliu ‘o e ‘Otua ‘oku ui ia ko e lau’itaniti; ‘I hono fakafelave’i mo e feitu’u, ‘oku tau ui ia ko e ‘ominipeleseni (‘Otua ‘i he potu kotoa pe).” ‘Oku tokoni ‘a e tu’unga ta’e fakangatangata ‘o e ‘Otua ke tau mahino’i ‘a e felava’i ‘a e tu’unga ta’e liliu ‘o e ‘Otua mo e tu’unga lau ‘itaniti, pe, ko e fekau’aki ‘a e tu’unga ta’e liliu mo ‘Ene ‘i he potu kotoa pe.

‘I he taimi ‘oku tau fakakaukau ai ki he ngaahi ‘ulungaanga ‘o e ‘Otua, kuopau ke tau lau kotoa kinautolu ‘oku nau ‘inifinaite (ta’emalaua). Ko hono tu’unga ‘inifinaite, ko ha fakakaukau positivi (‘oku fakamo’oni mai), pea ‘oku tau pehe leva; ko hono tu’unga ‘inifinaite (ta’efakangatangata) ko ha me’a ‘oku tupu fakautuutu mo ta’efa’alaua. Ko e fakakaukau ‘o e tu’unga “te’eki ke fakakakato” (tu’u ava ki he kaha’u) ‘oku ‘ikai ko ha founga lelei ia ki hono fakamatala’i ‘a e tu’unga ta’e fakangatangata ‘o e ‘Otua. ‘Oku ‘ikai hano me’afua pe fakangatangata, he ko e ‘ilo ‘a e ‘Otua ‘oku ta’emahakulea (‘Ais 40:28) pea ko e senitaa ‘o hono kolope ‘oku ‘i he potu kotoa pe, pea ‘oku ta’e ‘iloa ‘a hono maokupu. ‘Oku tatau pe ‘a ‘Ene ofi kiate kitautolu ‘i hotau lotolotonga, mo ‘ene taukakapa meiate kitautolu ‘i he ‘univeesi. Pea neongo ‘a e malava ke ne ‘i ha potu pe ‘e taha, ‘oku ‘ikai malava ke pukepuke ia ‘i ha potu.

‘Oku fakamatala mahino ‘aupito ‘e he Fa’u Saame ‘a e tu’unga ‘inifinaite ‘o e ‘Otua: “‘Oku lahi hotau ‘Eiki, pea fu‘u kaukaua; Pea ko ‘ene ‘ilo ‘oku ta‘emalaua” (Saame 147:5). Ko e ‘ilome’a ‘a e ‘Otua ‘oku ‘i ai pea ‘oku ta’emalaua. ‘I he veesi ko eni, ‘oku ‘omi ‘e he fa’u Saame ‘a e ‘ulungaanga ‘e taha ‘o ha’i ki he ‘ulungaanga ‘e taha, ‘o hange pe ko ‘ene fai pehe ‘i he ngaahi potu tohi kehe.