I once heard a comedian jest about the idiomatic misuse of words by English speaking people. With tongue in cheek, he spent about fifteen minutes offering some very witty examples. For instance, he pointed out that we call goods transported on the sea CARgo, but those same goods transported on land are called a SHIPment. He then asked the rhetoric question "why do we park in DRIVEways"? He had the audience in stitches as he ran through a list of oxymoronic terms and misplaced words. He received an avalanche of laughs and a hearty round of applause as he cleverly pinged upon how we often use words in contrasting context. Christians are not exempt from making similar mistakes when it comes to words in the Bible. Sometimes we can inadvertently misuse words without even realizing it. For example, many use the words "soul" and "spirit" interchangeably in places where there is …show more content…
It is not necessary to champion corrections of every misuse of a Biblical word or term when we are merely conversing with other people. There are times however, when correction is warranted and we should take a stand and speak up. Sometimes the misunderstanding of a word(s) can adversely impact upon someone 's personal Christian experience without their even knowing it. It is the responsibility of a discerning brother or sister to help a younger Christian understand more perfectly the components and benefits of their faith. A good example of this would be the commonly accepted use of the two words "joy" and "happiness". We use them interchangeably without giving it much thought. Admittedly, since both words represent a positive state of mind, it is easy to assume that both are similar in meaning. Who hasn 't used the term "I jumped for joy" to express their happiness? Moreover, who has not understood what the person making that declaration