Results 1 - 9 of 9
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | New Creature | 52394 | ||
my question(s) concern the phrase "blasphemy against the Spirit" which is mentioned in Matthew 12:31-32 Question 1 - is this something that a saved person or an unsaved person commits? Question 2 - Wouldn't it be necessary to first know, or have the indwelling presence of the Spirit within you before you can blaspheme Him? |
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2 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | John Reformed | 52395 | ||
Dear New Creature, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." One of those "old" things is condemnation. Rom 8:1 "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. My dear Brother, if you are a believer, chosen by God and regenerated by the Holy Spirit then your eternal security is assured. If you are unconvinced of your salvation there are persciptions in the Word of God for gaining that assurance. For christians, our condemnation is from satan (the accuser of the bretheren) and he is a liar! If you have any questions I would be glad to search the Word with you. Your Brother in Christ, John |
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3 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | New Creature | 52409 | ||
John; Thank you for your reply. It got me thinking about other verses of the Bible. When you quoted 2 Cor. 5:17, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature," John 15:6 immediately came to mind, which says, "If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast [them] into the fire, and they are burned." By using 2 Cor 5:17 which you quoted, and John 15:6 which I think needs to be considered also when we speak or mention our being "in Christ" On the one hand we read of the one who is "in Christ" , while on the other hand we read of the necessity of abiding or remaining "in Him" In this I see there is the responsibility on our part to persevere in the faith. Don't we have to daily "present our bodies as a living sacrifice?" Rom. 12:1 present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service. Your thoughts would be appreciated. Shalom |
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4 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | John Reformed | 52426 | ||
Dear New Creature, Good Morning Brother! Phil 1:6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Salvation is the work of God from beginning to end. Does this mean that we can live according to the flesh and sin with impunity? God Forbid! If one would adopt such a doctrine of demons, I would have grave concerns regarding the reality of his new birth. (see Matt 7:17-23) The evidence of our being in Christ is that we will persevere til the end. Despite sins and doubts and trials and failures, if we still cling to Christ and look to Him as our only hope, that is the assurance of our salvation. Our faithful reliance on Him alone and not on any works that He has graciously ordained that we accomplish. It is a common deception of the devil to point out all the inconsistancies of our profession of faith and the feebleness of our performance. He never tires of attemting to knock the helmut of salvation from off our heads. That is why it is so important for us to put on the full armour of God. You asked: Don't we have to daily "present our bodies as a living sacrifice?" Rom. 12:1 present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service. My reply is absolutely yes. But it is the grace of God that enables us to do so. Eph 2:10 "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." One of the great mysteries of our Faith surrounds our resonsibility and God's soveriegn rule of His universe. Should we be zealous for good works? Yes. Has God ordained them to take place before we were born. Yes. Can I explain how this works? No. Heb 13:20-23 "Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. But I urge you, brethren, bear with this word of exhortation," For further study of our security in Jesus I recommend you go to: http://www.caledonianfire.org/caledonianfire/ Your thoughts? John |
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5 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | New Creature | 52444 | ||
John, once again I thank you for your very helpful reply. Let me just make a couple of comments on what you posted. You said, "Despite sins and doubts and trials and failures, if we still cling to Christ and look to Him as our only hope, that is the assurance of our salvation." Should I take the "if" in that statement and consider it a conditional phrase? Whose responsibility is it to "cling to Christ?" And is "clinging" the same thing as abiding? Lastly I think it may merely be a typo on your part, but you changed the wording of Eph. 2:10. You posted it as follows, Eph 2:10 "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." It actually should read, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." the difference is between the word "would" and "should" Concerning works which you mentioned, I would just like to add my comments, just so you know I don't believe in salvation by works. I believe we are "saved by grace through faith - not by works" I think Eph. 2:8-9 makes that clear, while at the same time James makes it clear that a faith if it has no works (as evidence) is dead, being by itself. James speaking of Abraham said, "faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected. From those scriptures I am led to believe that true saving faith will always manifest itself or give evidence of it's genuineness by the fruit it produces. Is that the way you see works playing out in the believers life also. Thank you and Shalom |
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6 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | John Reformed | 52447 | ||
Hello NewCreature, "Despite sins and doubts and trials and failures, if we still cling to Christ and look to Him as our only hope, that is the assurance of our salvation." You asked: "Should I take the "if" in that statement and consider it a conditional phrase?" Yes it is conditional. As long as my hope is in Christ I am assured of the genuineness of my faith. If however I were to fall away from that hope, and died in that error, it would prove that I was a false brother (one who professed faith in Christ but was not a "new creature" in Christ). In other words a "false professor". Whose responsibility is it to "cling to Christ?" It is our responsibillity, however becaue of our changed nature we will never fall so far as to be lost forever. Having experienced the grace and the presense of God we will not be able to bare seperation from Him. He will chastise us and recieve us back as did the father of the prodigal son. And is "clinging" the same thing as abiding? I see no meaningfull distinction between the two terms as they relate to our enduring unto the end. Matt 24:13 "But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved." The point is that it is God within us that insures our salvation. His power not ours, His grace not our obeiance, His strength not ours, His will not our willpower, His faithfulness not our faith. There will be no bragging in heaven about what great christians we were on earth, we will joyfully cast our crowns at His feet. The NASB translation of Eph 2:10 is "would". As to your question as to how I see the relationship of works and faith: Good works are an assurance to me that God is indeed at work within in me. I give Him all the glory and thank Him for using an unprofitable servant like me to further the kingdom of God (if this sounds pious forgive me. I don't wish it to taken as false humility, but as a fact). Brother John |
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7 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | New Creature | 52460 | ||
John Thanks again. Just one last note. The translation I was using is also the NASB, and the word in Eph. 2:10 is should not would. At least thats what my NASB says. So I question you on that. Everything else you said I agree with you on God bless you Shalom |
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8 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | John Reformed | 52461 | ||
Hello NC The following is a copy and paste from the NASB search function: Eph 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. What are you using? John |
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9 | blaspheme the Spirit | 2 Cor 5:17 | New Creature | 52495 | ||
Thank you John, I see that what you posted is so. I just find it very interesting that my NASB says "should" instead of "would." I wonder what edition the change was first made | ||||||