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Results from: Answers On or After: Thu 12/31/70 Author: ChristLifer2001 Ordered by Date |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | What is imputed righteousness? | Rom 4:6 | ChristLifer2001 | 52950 | ||
Steve, Under the Old Covenant, righteousness was only credited. Generally speaking, people received forgiveness through the OT sacrificial system. But they were declared or credited righteousness by their faith in whatever God's Word to them was - Heb 11. But righteousness could only be credited, it could not be given as a gift becauses sins were not permanently dealt with until Christ's blood was shed on the cross. Under the New Covenant, we are made righteous through our union with Jesus Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection. The key verse for this in found in Roman 5:17,19 - "For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of rigtheousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous." Fundamental to understanding this verse is the question "when"? So let's ask that question. When where all men made sinners? When Adam fell. Therefore, when we are born into this world, we are already sinners through our identification with Adam before we ever commit a sin. It is birth, not performance, that establishes identity. Now, when are the many made righteous? When they die? No. The death of your body does not affect your spiritual state. Spiritual identity is determined by birth, not death. We don't become spiritual dead when we physically die. Whatever our spiritual state is when these bodies die is what we will remain. We are sinners because we are born in Adam. So when to we become righteous? When we are born into Christ. When we are united with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection, we become the righteousness of God in Him. It is then that we receive the gift of righteousness. Just like the abundance of grace, we receive the gift of righteousness here and now, in this life. It is not the death of our body that makes us righteous, it is the birth of our new spirit joined to the Spirit of Jesus Christ that makes us righteous in God's sight. This does not mean that we are sinless. We still live in a fallen body and a fallen world. We still occasionally give in to sin. But we are as righteous in God's eyes as His precious Son because we have been joined to Him forever - 1 Cor 6:17. He will never leave us or forsake us. When God sees me, He sees me clothed in Christ - Gal 3:27. He sees in me the righteousness of His Son, not because of my works, but because of my identity with Christ. I am no longer a sinner in Adam. I am a saint in Christ. I hope this helps. Righteous in Christ, ChristLifer2001 |
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2 | Imputed Righteousness | Rom 4:6 | ChristLifer2001 | 52821 | ||
Hi Steve, I'll do my best to answer your question from the scriptures without examining Reformed beliefs (which I know nothing about). God calls the righteousness that we have in Christ a gift - Rom 6:23. A gift is something that is given freely by one party to another party. It can be "given" and it can be "received." God does not simply see us as righteous. He does not pretend that we are righteous. He does not see what is not there. He sees us as righteous because we ARE righteous. But this righteousness doesn't not come from ourselves or our actions, it comes from God. We are MADE righteous at salvation - Rom 5:17,19. Specifically, how does God do this? He accomplishes this by giving us a brand new human spirit that is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Now, before you label me a heretic or a mystic, let's examine the scriptures. In Eze 36:26, God promises those under the New Covenant a new spirit, does He not? Why? Because man's "in Adam" spirit is dead in trespasses and sin. Dead to God but alive to sin. We, as New Testament believers, partake in the New Covenant. Paul calls this new spirit the "new self" or the "new man" and at spiritual birth, God creates this in us in RIGHTEOUSNESS and HOLINESS - Eph 4:24. Because of this, Paul calls us a "new creation" - 2 Cor 5:17. We have been given something new, a new human spirit that is as righteous and holy as Christ. In fact, it is indwelt by Christ - 1 Cor 6:17; 1 Cor 3:16; 1 cor 6:19. This new spirit that has been born of God - John 3:3,6 - is a treasure inside us that the Holy Spirit Himself guards by uniting Himself with us - 2 Tim 1:14. Therefore nothing can separate us from God. So, when we are spiritual born again, God creates a new spirit within us and also puts the Holy Spirit within us to seal us - Eze 36:27; 2 Cor 1:22; Eph 1:13; Eph 4:30. Because this new part of us is created in righteousness and holiness, God can freely join Himself to it. This part of us, the spirit (not the soul, not the body) is "born of God" - John 3:6 - and therefore cannot sin - 1 John 3:9. I can sin out of my flesh, but my new spirit cannot. It is not the source of sin. It is my source of righteousness and holiness and it has been given to me as a free gift. Therefore, when God looks at me as His new creation, He sees what is REALLY there, a new spirit indwelt by His Holy Spirit. It is mine, I have received it, but it comes from Him as a free gift because I have placed my faith and trust in Christ. So though my body is still under sin's curse, my new spirit is alive to God - Rom 8:10. I have been (so have you) joined to God forever. He will never leave us or forsake because our sins have been forgiven. And nothing shall separate us from Him. I hope this helps, bro. I may not be exactly the answer that you were looking for but I believe that there is plenty of scriptural support. "But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him." - 1 Cor 6:17. Not in dissolution but in union. Your brother in Christ, ChristLifer |
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3 | Self control and Spirit controlled? | 1 Cor 9:25 | ChristLifer2001 | 49953 | ||
Living in Christ, The apostle Paul makes it clear that our old self was crucified with Christ (Rom 6:6 and Gal 2:20) and that we have "put on" a new self which has been created in righteousness and holiness (Eph 4:24). This new self is a new spirit that God creates in us when we are born again of His Spirit (John 3:6) and is united forever with the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:17). What does this mean in practical terms? This means that we are now a new "self" that has been joined (or indwelt) by God. Man was never meant to be autominous and function apart from Him. He is our source and He is united with us so that He can manifest His life through us. Our old self functioned as "flesh". Our new self needs to be controlled by the Spirit. The self is always controlled by something. As Bob Dylan says, "Ya gotta serve somebody." We are designed to be under the control of the Spirit of God just as Jesus abided in His Father while on earth. His "self" always looked to the Father as His source. We, as new creations in Christ, look to Him and should abide in Him. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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4 | which nation actually resembles God? | Gal 6:15 | ChristLifer2001 | 49732 | ||
Aurrance, Skin color is not an issue with God, my friend. God's essence is Spirit - John 4:24. Man looks (and often judges) by the outward appearance but God looks at the heart. When God created Adam, He did not create him to reflect God's skin-tone. "In God's image" means that Adam (and the rest of us) are eternal spirit beings, as God is a Spirit Being. Adam didn't even know he was naked until AFTER he sinned. This was when Adam and Eve became self-concious instead of God-concious. There are only two "races" now, my friend. You have either placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ and are "in Christ" or you are ignorant of or reject Him and are still "in Adam." Read the books of Romans. Being "in Adam" and his image is not a good thing. Being "in Christ" and in His image by being spiritually born-again is what matters. Flesh and blood will not inherit the kingdom of God, Aurrance, only those who are born from above - see John 3:3-6. Skin tone is irrelevant according to God. What really matters is being a new creation "in Christ" - Gal 6:15. Have you placed your faith and trust in Christ alone, my friend? Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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5 | God knows everything Why except the date | Phil 2:5 | ChristLifer2001 | 49221 | ||
Ivory313, The short answer is that while Jesus was on earth, He did not exercise His divine rights as God. Instead, He operated as a human man who was completely dependant, not upon Himself, but upon His Father. He said things like, "I do nothing unless the Father tells Me to do it. I say nothing unless the Father tells Me to say it. I do nothing of My own initiative but only what the Father tells Me." Yes, Christ was (and is) fully God. But during His incarnation, He "emptied Himself" of acting out of His divinity. Although He was fully God, He chose to function as a man who completely abided in the Father. And He now calls us to do the same. He said, "As I have abided in My Father, so you are to abide in Me." Of course there were times when Jesus would know, humanly speaking, unrevealed things. But these were revelations from His Father to His spirit. Now that our Savior is glorified and all power in heaven and earth has been given unto Him, He does know when He will return. He is full of grace and truth. But He chose to limit Himself while here on earth 2000 years ago to demostrate to us what a man who completely abided in His heavenly Father looked and acted like. And of course He became our once-for-all sin offering. He is now all-in-all. I hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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6 | Possible definition for 'Flesh'? | Rom 7:14 | ChristLifer2001 | 47865 | ||
Evan, I'm not here to shoot anything down, brother. Just to point to the Word, written and Living. :) Yes, Jesus did come in the flesh. But there is more that one definition of "flesh" in the scriptures just as there is more than one definition of spirit. Spirit is used of the essence of God - God is Spirit i.e. He is not primaryly of the physical universe (in fact, He made it out of nothing). The word "spirit" is also used of man's immaterial part. It can also mean an attitude or an emotion. Even evil demons are known as spirits. So how do we know which spirit is which? We must look at the context to see what is being spoken of. Flesh likewise has different definitions. Sometimes "flesh" means the physical body. When the Bible states that Christ came in the flesh, this is what it means. But in many of Paul's writings, "flesh" has a different connotation. Most of the time "flesh" means a condition where man operates out of his own resources, doing things his way. Proof? Consider Gal 3:3, Paul asked them if they thought that they could be perfected by the flesh (self-effort to keep the Law). Phil 3:4-6 - Paul talks about whether or not he could put confidence in his flesh. Look at what he lists there as "flesh": circumcision, a Jew, a Benjamite, a Hebrew of Hebrews, a Pharisee, zealous for the Law, blameless in the Law. These traits all spring from Paul's indentity apart from Christ - his natural "self". But he said he put no confidence in all these qualifications - vs 3. Paul says in Rom 8:9 that the believer is no longer "in the flesh." Is he speaking of an out-of-body experience here? I would think not. Rather, he is saying that the believer now draws his identity from being in Christ, not from self-effort. Paul says in 2 Cor 5:16 that we no longer estimate people according to the "flesh" - self-accomplishments. Why? Because according to vs 17, the believer is a new creation. As far as flesh and Spirit refering to ages, I haven't seen that for myself in the scriptures. So I'm not sure what you mean by that statement. But I do feel that in Rom 7, Paul is making reference to flesh as self-effort. He says that no good thing dwells in his flesh - vs. 18. The human body is not inherently sinful but the power of indwelling sin causes the "flesh" to use the body as an instrument of sin. So self-sufficiency "flesh" can be either good looking (like Paul's qualifications) or it can be bad like the works of the "flesh" as in Gal 5:19. Either way, good flesh or bad flesh, it is getting our self-needs met apart from God's provision. Therefore both are unacceptable to God. Our standing with Him is never based upon self-effort to make ourselves holy or self-effort to avoid sin. It is based upon the finished work of Christ. He is our identity. And it is only as we walk in the Spirit in that identity that we will not fulfill the desires of the flesh - be they "good" or "bad." Hope this helps, brother. ChristLifer2001 |
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7 | i am confused about Romans.7:15-20 | Rom 7:14 | ChristLifer2001 | 47845 | ||
Shirleytys, Great question, sis. Paul is describing his struggle to live under the Law as a system of gaining God's acceptance. Trying to live under Law is always going to result in self-defeat and self-condemnation because we can't do it. Paul makes reference here in this passage that though he wants to do the right things, there is a power within him called "indwelling sin" that will use the Law (which is holy, righteous, and good - verse 12) to commit sin. Paul says that this "power of indwelling sin" is within him, but it is not him i.e. it is not his identity. Notice some of the statements he makes: "I am doing the very thing I hate." "I do the very thing I do not wish to do." "For the good that I wish, I do not do." "I joyfully concur with the Law of God." And yet, there was something in Paul, that was not Paul, causing him to sin. "No longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me." - vs 17 "But if I am doing the very thing I do not wish, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me." - vs 20. This "power of indwelling sin" dwells in what Paul calls the flesh - not that the body is inherently evil, but the the power of indwelling sin will use the Law to cause the flesh to sin. Everyone still has what the Bible calls "the flesh" - the tendency to get our needs met apart from God, the desire to edify self. This is the part of us that we war against - the Spirit against the flesh. Though this power of indwelling sin is in us, it is not us. We are new Christians in Christ - 2 Cor 5:17 - with a new spirit and heart. It is only as we walk in the Spirit - appropriating our union with God's Spirit, then we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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8 | What does the world presently think abou | 2 Sam 13:1 | ChristLifer2001 | 47601 | ||
Iheukwumere, The bottom line is that it is irrelevant what the world thinks about it. The world's standards may or may not reflect God's righteousness depending upon culture and time period. To force ANYONE to have intercourse violates the law of love that Christ demonstrated and taught about. If we truly love others as Christ does, forcing them to have intercource is a sin, whether that person is your wife, a sister, a half-sister, or a stranger. The issue is not whether we are following the 10 commandment or Jewish cultural law. The issue is are we being led by the Spirit (which we should be if we call ourselves Christians). Anyone led by the Spirit of God is NOT going to purposefully hurt another person whether it is through a sex crime, lying, verbal or physical abuse, stealing, and any other means the man can find to damage his neighbor. This is why we must walk in the Spirit and allow the living Christ to fulfill the law of love in us. If we don't do this, then we inevitable fall into categorizing what is a sin, what is not a sin, what is a worse sin, etc. From God's viewpoint, all sin deserves death - period - Rom 6:23. If we allow Christ to live out through us, then it is clear that He will fulfill the Golden Rule and keep the two greatest commandments. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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9 | How can God (Jesus) increase in wisdom? | Luke 2:52 | ChristLifer2001 | 47452 | ||
Bob R., My post is not designed to prove that Jesus is God. There are many scriptures and other posts here on the forum to address that issue. I simply wanted to express my understanding of the incarnation. One of the things that we need to understand about the incarnation is that though Jesus was (and is) fully God, when He came to earth, He did not function out of His Godly attributes. He functioned as a human male except without sin. Phil 2:5-11 explains this concept. Jesus was fully God but He chose not to exercise all His divine attributes AS God. Instead, He gave us a pattern for how we should live as God's creations - with God as our source for life. This is why Jesus made statements like: "I do nothing unless the Father tells Me to do it. I say nothing unless the Father tells Me to say it. My works are not My own but My Fathers. I do nothing of My own initiative but only what I see the Father doing." All of these statements demonstrate that Christ source for EVERYTHING was drawing upon His Father. And Jesus said, "As the Father has sent Me, so send I you." As the Father was Christ's source for everything He said and did during His earthly ministry, Jesus is now our source for everything that we should do or say. Jesus expressed this to His disciples: "Apart from Me, you can do nothing. As I abide in the Father, you should abide in Me. Paul expressed this concept also: "I can do all things THROUGH Christ." "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live. The life that I live in this body, I live BY FAITH in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me." Yes, Christ was fully God. But He set aside (emptied Himself) His abilities to live and act out of His divine attributes. Instead, He was a channel for His Father to live and work through. He calls us to do the same. We are not God. He is forever the Creator and we are forever the creations, but as Christ abided in His Father, we abide in Christ. He is our life. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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10 | What day did Adam and eve sin? | Gen 2:17 | ChristLifer2001 | 47337 | ||
G ZAZ, Sorry, friend, but the Bible doesn't tell us how long Adam and Eve existed in a state of innocence. It could have been a week, it could have been thousands or even millions of years, we just don't know. But the important thing to know is that they died that day they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. And all who now eat from the Tree of Life (Jesus Christ) live forevermore. ChristLifer2001 |
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11 | after death, right then, what? | 2 Cor 5:8 | ChristLifer2001 | 47330 | ||
Farout, This is an interesting question. I think that answer may be open to a some speculation. But I also think that there are a few givens: The Bible does say that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. So the question becomes, when are we absent from the body? Does our soul sleep in our body (or it's eventual decayed remains)? I think that maybe part of the answer lies in understanding the spirit and the soul. Do this components of man remain with the body after death? Consider Acts 8:59: Stephen was being stoned and, somehow, saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God the Father. (Obviously, the crowd could not see this as they stoned him anyway.) But Stephen also cries out, "Lord Jesus, recieve my spirit." So it is implied that, at death, our spirit immediately is received by Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus cried out the same thing from the cross, "Father, into Your hands I commend My spirit." So there is pretty solid biblical evidence that our spirit goes immediately into God's presence. What about our souls? Rev 6:9 seems to speak of dis-embodied souls under the altar (in heaven) waiting to be avenged and clothed with their bodies again. There are given white robes to wear in the meantime. Well, Farout, that's just a couple of my thoughts. If we are most fundamentally spiritual beings with human experiences, instead of vice-versa, then it would seem that who we really are goes directly into God's presence at physical death. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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12 | Can we say that all of the scriptures | 2 Tim 3:16 | ChristLifer2001 | 46559 | ||
Faithfolk, We would also do well to remember that though Paul talks about ALL scripture in reference to the Old Testament, he was concious that what he preached was directly from the Lord. Consider Galatians 1:11,12: For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. Paul's writings in the New Testament carry just as much weight as Jesus' words in the gospels. Why? Because they had the same Author. After his conversion, Paul did not immediately go to Jerusalem to visit the other disciples and apostles of our Lord to get the "scoop". He was not taught what he knew by men. He was taught be direct revelation from Christ Himself. Therefore, even Paul's writings are just as inspired as the OT or any other portion of scripture. ChristLifer2001 |
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13 | People want answers! | Prov 3:5 | ChristLifer2001 | 46546 | ||
Inmyheart, Of course our Lord can and will give a right answer. Trust Him to do so as you seek the answers. The Holy Spirit promises to lead you into all truth and your quest will ultimately lead to Christ, for He is God's answer for our every question. 2 Peter 1:3 says that God's divine power has given us EVERYTHING we need for life and godliness through truly knowing Jesus Christ. Romans 8:32 says that God freely gives us ALL THINGS in Christ Jesus. Christianity is a person, Jesus Christ, and God will be faithful to finish what He has begun in you. Trust in that relationship. Your Lord did not leave you alone. He is in you and will lead you. Unfortunately, here at this forum you will, much of the time, get conflicting answers. If you ask a question like, "Are Christians under the Mosaic Law?" you will get 3 different answers: 1) Yes 2) No 3) Some parts of it. This is because everyone views scripture through a particular "lense." There is nothing wrong with this lense as long as it does not take the place of scripture. In the end, you must be a Berean, my friend, and study the scriptures for yourself. We seldom argue about what God says but we'll debate until the cows come home concerning what He means. Christian's are all members of Christ's body, the church. There is unity in Him but it is not always prevalent. This doesn't mean that we will always see things the same way. When we don't, the best we can do it to state what we believe God is saying and let the Holy Spirit do what He does so well. Paul did the same thing on Mars Hill. Some sneered at what he had to say, some said that they wanted to hear more, but some accepted what He said about God and joined Him. May you find the answers in Christ, my friend. ChristLifer2001 |
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14 | you said I can remarry... | Bible general Archive 1 | ChristLifer2001 | 45498 | ||
Dimples, Please see my answer to your other question. ChristLifer2001 |
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15 | Why cant I remarry, even though... | Bible general Archive 1 | ChristLifer2001 | 45494 | ||
Dimples, I am going to offer my views on this subject and let you decide for yourself. I will probably not be popular for taking this stance on this forum but the truth is the truth. Modern Christianity has made divorce the "unpardonable sin" and this was never God's intention. Yes, it is God's design that when we marry someone, we marry them for the length of our earthly lives. This is His highest will. It is the blue-print for Jewish culture, there is no denying that. But this is not the way things always turn out. In marriages, infidelity happens, physical abuse happens, severe psycological abuse happens, things go wrong. To insist that two people stay in an abusive relationship, whether it is sexual, physical, or psycological, is just plain legalism and doesn't stand up to scripture. The Christian world has grabbed the Jewish law (which the Jews never could keep) and made it the standard for Christian performance. Yes, that law does reflect God's character and moral attributes, but the fact remains that we, as NT believers are no longer under the law. We are under grace. As soon as someone (like me) says this, the legalist will immediately day, "That doesn't give you the license to sin." True. I don't need a license to sin. I can sin quite well without one. Nevertheless, even if grace is abused, it is still grace. God design for one man and one woman to be married for earthly life. This started in the garden of Eden way before the law was given. That is His ideal. However, His ideal was also that Adam and Eve not eat from the forbidden fruit. Where things do not turn out for the "ideal", we must trust in God's grace. In fact, we must trust in God's grace whether things are ideal or not. :) Jesus was born under the law and most of His teaching is law-based - Gal 4:4. But we, as NT believers are no longer under Jewish law. The church, by and large, has a really hard time accepting this. The Romans 7 passage which Paul wrote was NEVER intended as a marriage/divorce law. If we look at the context, it is extremely clear that Paul is using Jewish culture (marriage and divorce laws) to illustrate a spiritual truth. That being that mankind is born married to Mr. Law. But we, as believers, need to be married to Mr. Grace. The only way (except through adultery) for one to get out of a Jewish marriage is for one of the partners to die. Now Mr. Law did not die because his job is to lead the sinner to Christ. So, instead, we died in Christ to Mr. Law. Because of our death to the law, we can now be married to Mr. Grace, Jesus Christ. That is the whole point of Romans 7:1-6. It is an illustration to show that we are no longer under Jewish law and are now married to Christ - we are His bride! PTL! But the legalists comes along and takes this illustration and makes it the standard instead of embracing the truth that this passage illustrates. It is so ironic. Paul uses this illustration to show that we are no longer under the law and we use it to keep believers bound to Mr. Law! I would laugh if it weren't so perverted. Please see Part 2. ChristLifer2001 |
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16 | what are the divisions of the bible | Bible general Archive 1 | ChristLifer2001 | 45304 | ||
Miriam, Steve has listed the theological divisions of the Bible. These can be very helpful to understanding the different literary styles. I wanted to share the fact that our Bibles are divided into the Old Testament (which means Covenant) and the New Testment (which can also be translated Will). Many folks see these two distinctions in their Bibles but have don't really know how they relate to God's overall plan of redemption. Hebrews says that the Old Covenant was merely a shadow of the reality that we enjoy under the New Covenant as children of God. Under the New Covenant, God has given His children a new heart and a new spirit and He remembers our sins no more - Heb 10:9-18. Another popular word for this covenant is grace - God's unearned blessings on us. These are the two major divisions of the Bible and we would do well to keep them separate in our understanding. The Old Covenant pointed to the once-for-all sacrifice of the Lamb of God and the New Covenant tells of it's reality. In the Old Testament, with few exceptions, God dwelt amongst but not in His people. New Covenant believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit Himself. What a wondrous thing God has done. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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17 | Christians don't take Jews seriously, y? | Gal 6:15 | ChristLifer2001 | 45268 | ||
Ramy, From God's point of view, there is now no Jew or Gentile, there is no longer that circumcised/uncircumcised distinction. We are either "in Christ" or we are "in Adam". Of course the Jews would like to disregard the Christians, Jesus Christ is a stumbling block for them because they seek to be justified by the Law and attain their own righteousness apart from Christ. And there is much of Christianity that seeks to bring Judaism into the church. Paul calls this Galatianism. Paul makes it clear that the only thing that matters know is whether or not we have placed our faith and trust in Christ alone. In Christ, Jew and Gentile can become one - one new creation indwelt by Christ. Our "gospel", as Christians, should not be to preach anti-Jewish beliefs. Our responsibility, as Paul exhorts us, is to preach Christ. Preach the truth and let it dispel the darkness. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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18 | Help. Someone's testamony has me upset | Rom 6:23 | ChristLifer2001 | 45257 | ||
Chynna, Our faith does not rely upon the "things that brought us to God", dear sister. In fact, it isn't even faith that saves you. It is your faith IN CHRIST ALONE that saves you. Our salvation rests upon Christ's redeeming work on our behalf - He was crucified to provide us with forgiveness, He was buried, and He was raised again to provide us with eternal life. This are all historical facts in the Bible and it is the Person and work of Jesus Christ that saves us, NOT our experiences. All of us have different experiences. All of us are drawn to God through difference paths. But it is God Himself who has saved us - freely by the gift of eternal life. The beauty and bane of the internet is that anybody can say anything they want to and people are susceptible to believing it as truth. However, as Christians, we believe that the Word of God (Jesus Christ and His revelation - the Bible) is truth. Anyone can claim visions, dear sister, but Christ alone is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. The beauty of the gospel is not that men are caught up to heaven, it is that heaven now indwells us. If we are going to judge our beliefs by other's beliefs and experiences, our's will usually be different. We must judge our beliefs according to the scriptures, not experiences. I don't believe that God ever "tempts" anyone to become a Christian by the impartation of divine knowledge. We are not saved by what we COULD know if we accept. We are saved by what we DO know according to the scriptures. The free gift of God (salvation) is eternal life in Jesus Christ, our Lord. Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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19 | What is God's covenant with believers | Hebrews | ChristLifer2001 | 45124 | ||
Wilson, Welcome to the forum! The covenant that you are under as a believer in Christ is called the New Covenant. This is what the words "The New Testament" mean. This New Covenant went into effect when Christ died - Heb 9:16-22. The New Covenant is vastly superior to the old covenant - it is a better covenant because it is unilateral - Heb 8:7,8. God announced the New Covenant - Heb 8:8-12, the Holy Spirit testified to it - Heb 10:15-18, and Jesus Christ proclaimed during His earthly ministry that it was coming - Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25. The New Covenant replaced the old - Heb 10:8-10; Heb 7:18,19; Heb 8:13. There is a new priesthood, a New High Priest - Jesus Christ, and a new once-for-all sacrifice. The most important benefit of this New Covenant is that God has given us a new heart and a new spirit and He remembers our sins no more - Heb 10:17,18. There is no longer a sacrifice for sins - It is finished! We are now, as believers, ministers of the New Covenant, not of the Law - 2 Corinthians 3:6-11. I'll close with a quote from Spurgeon: According to this gracious covenant, the Lord treats His people as if they had never sinned. Practically, He forgets all their trespasses. Sins of all kinds He treats as if they had never been; as if they were quite erased from His memory. O miracle of grace! God here does that which is certain aspects is impossible to Him. His mercy works miracles which far transcends all other miracles. Our God ignores our sin now that the sacrifice of Jesus has ratified the covenant. We may rejoice in Him without fear that He will be provoked to anger against us because of our iniquities. See! He puts us among the children ; He accepts us as righteous; He takes delight in us as if we were perfectly holy. He even puts us in places of trust; makes us guardians of His honor, trustees of the crown jewels, stewards of the gospel. He counts us worthy, and gives us a ministry; this is the highest and most special proof that He does not remember our sins. Even when we forgive an enemy, we are very slow to trust him; we judge it to be imprudent to do so. But the Lord forgets our sins, and treats us as if we had never erred. O my soul, what a promise is this! Believe it and be happy. - Charles H. Spurgeon Hope this helps. ChristLifer2001 |
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20 | Can a christian still get to heaven if | NT general Archive 1 | ChristLifer2001 | 45050 | ||
Muffy, CDBJ is right, Christ paid for ALL sins for ALL time for ALL mankind on the cross. The question is, did your uncle receive this forgiveness by placing his faith and trust in Christ alone. If he was saved, then he was completely forgiven by Christ's blood shed at Calvary. All sins, except the sin of unbelief were forgiven at the cross. We accept that forgiveness as part of our redemption - Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:4. After the cross, which provided this forgiveness, we don't keep on receiving forgiveness by asking for it. We are either totally forgiven or we are not forgiven at all. See also Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 2:13; 1 John 2:12 and especially Revelation 1:5. I hope that your uncle was indeed saved, sister, and that he was welcomed into the arms of Jesus. ChristLifer2001 |
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