Results 281 - 300 of 1459
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Results from: Notes Author: John Reformed Ordered by Date |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
281 | A New Reformation? | Revelation | John Reformed | 95800 | ||
Dear Darcy, Check out http://www.reformed.com/pub/church.htm for a different perspective than your own regarding church membership. John |
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282 | What did Martin Luther believe? | Acts 2:25 | John Reformed | 95319 | ||
Thanks Emmaus, "In my opinon" should have pre-ceeded my remark :-) Have you read "Bondage of the Will"? Like reading other great authors, reading Luther can be difficult yet rewarding. John |
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283 | What did Martin Luther believe? | Acts 2:25 | John Reformed | 95308 | ||
Gracefull, Erasmus was a Roman Catholic theologian. It is no surprise that he would oppose Luther and Calvin. His arguements were destroyed in Luther's "Bondage of the Will". John |
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284 | Who makes the rules? | 1 John 3:9 | John Reformed | 94640 | ||
I believe your answer is found by considering what John means by "practicing sin". 1 John 3:9 No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. Cannot sin does not mean that christians are incapable of sinning. It means that they are incapable of sinning in the same way as the children of the Devil. They make a practice of sinning. They love their sins and never experience godly repentence or shame that arises from the failure to glorify Christ. John says it is obvious to us when, a professor of Christ, leads a sin filled life. But he does not say at what point it becomes obvious to us. When, or at one point, does church discipine need to be exercised in the life of a church member? Usually when his sinning begins to bring reproach upon the chuch and upon our Lord's good name. It then behooves the leadership to call the offending person and confront him with the situation. If he remains unrepentant and refuses the counsel from the key holders, ex-communication may be unavoidable. Your fat friend may be digging his own grave with his teeth, but this behaviour is hardly an obvious proof that he is a child of Satan. John 1 John 3:10 By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. |
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285 | Who makes the rules? | 1 John 3:9 | John Reformed | 94609 | ||
Dear Baptistbred, Anytime I find within myself the ability to do good or to shun evil, I always try to remember to give God the praise for giving me the grace to do so. I am His workmanship. I am not my own but have been purchased at a great cost. If it were possible for me to be righteous by my own act of will-power, then I would have somewhat of which to boast! But no...I am weak and helpless apart from Christ. When I am weak, He remains strong. The sect of the pharisees is not for me; They would drum me out in short order. I am but a feeble saint whose only hope for righteousness lies in my dependance on the cross. My assurance that I am His comes from His grace working in me, molding and shaping me day by day. Even my sins (which bring me terrible anguish) serve to teach me humility and thanksgiving. I am astounded that the Holy One of Israel would have called such a one as myself. Faith without works is dead. This is true. If I were to have no works at all, I would doubt my salvation! I would fall on my knees and beg Christ to save me and to change me so that I might serve Him. But even repentance must be granted by God. If only, when we searched our hearts, we could cease from looking at what WE have done, but rather, look at what HE has done in us, our confidence would be boundless because it would be placed in Christ and not in ourselves. Grace and Peace, John Reformed |
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286 | let not sin reign | 1 John 3:9 | John Reformed | 94603 | ||
Dear fran1946, I agree with your main point which is "Here John is not teaching sinless perfection, He speaks here of habitual practice of known sinful acts. The true beleiver's actions will conform to the character of his true Father." But I do have a problem with your usage of the term "mistake". "Mistake" is a word that is used in today's culture to soften even the worst evil deeds. Politicians, celebrities and even preachers have mis-used this word to the extent, that the population as a whole are adopting it themselves as a way to blunt the sharp point of guilt! Eccl 5:6 Do not let your speech cause you to sin and do not say in the presence of the messenger of God that it was a mistake. Webster's defines "mistake" as "To err in knowledge, perception, opinion, or judgment; to commit an unintentional error." The key word in the definition is UNINTENTIONAL. I believe that in order for sin to be sin it must be intentional! Oh sure, we often rationalize and justity our sins to ourselves, but in our hearts we know that it is pure rebellion against our Lord and King. Is what you said a biblical principle? "A fault is a mistake that one make, but if that mistake continues to be make it will become sin." If so...can you offer a scriptural foundation for your statement? Adam and Eve did were not cursed by God for making a mistake! When they ate of the forbidden fruit, they did so knowing that the eating was rebellion against the commandment of God. I am sorry if I sound a bit cranky about this, but it is a sore point with me. Mistakes are always innocent; they are never intentional. God Bless, John Reformed |
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287 | Who makes the rules? | 1 John 3:9 | John Reformed | 94504 | ||
Dear Baptistbred, you wrote "I am not trying to be contentious, but just trying to understand. Here is another thing. 1 John 3:10 says "By this the children of God and the children of the devil are OBVIOUS" (NASB My emphasis.) I don't understand that. If they are so obvious, why is it so difficult to discern the saved and lost?" Let's look again at your friend with the besetting sin of gluttony. From the way described him, he sounds as if his profession of Christ is authentic. If we back up a bit, we see that John makes a sweeping statement that may prove to dispel the fog of seeming contradiction... 1 John 3:2,3 "Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." I believe that the critical difference between the children of God and those of the Devil is not sin (though sin is important), but FAITH. Who are we looking to for our righteous standing before God? Our own works or the work of Christ on our behalf? John tells us that "...everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." This hope is in Christ alone. The reason why we desire holiness rather than sin is due to the love we bear for our Lord. Your thoughts? John Reformed |
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288 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 94313 | ||
I don't see any harm in pointing to unanswered errors. Perhaps you might point me to a post of your's whrere they are addressed? John |
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289 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 94298 | ||
Dear LDS, Please be a good berean. Check out the doctrines of the WoF movement. http://www.cuttingedge.org/news/n1825.html John |
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290 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 94287 | ||
"I was shocked when I found out who the biggest failure in the Bible actually is…The biggest one in the whole Bible is God…I mean, He lost His top-ranking, most anointed angel; the first man He ever created; the first woman He ever created; the whole earth and all the fullness therein; a third of the angels, at least - that's a big loss, man….Now, the reason you don't think of God as a failure is He never said He's a failure. And you're not a failure till you say you're one." (Praise-a-thon on Praise The Lord, April 1988) "When Jesus cried, 'It is finished!' He was not speaking of the plan of redemption. There were still three days and nights to go through before He went to the throne…Jesus' death on the cross was only the beginning of the complete work of redemption. (Jesus - Our Lord of Glory, Believer's Voice of Victory Magazine 10, 4; April 1982, p. 3) "Faith is a power force. It is a tangible force. It is a conductive force." (The Force of Faith, p. 10.) "You don't have a god in you, you are one." (The Force of Love audiotape, 1987) "Now Peter said by exceeding great and precious promises you become partakers of the divine class. All right, are we gods? We are a class of gods!" (Praise The Lord TV Show, Feb. 5, 1986) "...that Word of the living God went down into that pit of destruction and charged the spirit of Jesus with resurrection power! Suddenly His twisted, death-wracked spirit began to fill out and come back to life. He began to look like something the devil had never seen before. He was literally being reborn before the devil's very eyes. He began to flex His spiritual muscles…Jesus was born again - the firstborn from the dead." (The Price of it All, Believer's Voice of Victory 19, 9; September 1991.) "He [Jesus] is suffering all that there is to suffer. There is no suffering left apart from Him. His emaciated, poured out, little, wormy spirit is down in the bottom of that thing [hell]. And the Devil thinks he's got Him destroyed." (Believer's Voice of Victory program, April 21, 1991.) John |
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291 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 94163 | ||
Dear LDS, You wrote "Let’s use a little bit of reasoning here. If God fashioned, put in order, and equipped the worlds for their intended purpose BY HIS WORDS, and we have the Spirit of God living on the inside of us . . . hmmmmm. Doesn’t it stand to reason that we should at least have SOME of that creative power lurking in our recreated spirits?" God does whatsoever He pleases. We are not God. The only good works which we perform are the ones which God has pre-ordained for us to perform! 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. Eph 2:10 For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live]. Living the "good life" often entail difficult trials; sickness, poverty and even martyrdom. The prophets, sent by God to Israel were killed by those who rejected the truth. Read the history of the church down through the ages. It is overflows with the blood of the saints. Your brand of theology could only exist in modern America. A culture which has bred a pampered and spoiled generation whose god is Mammon. This people who think they are rich, healthy and happy are in reality poor, diseased and miserable! Paul told us to follow him as he followed Christ. What did he have to say about worldly riches. Phil 4:11-14 Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction. Wake up my friend. Jesus did not come to teach people how to be content on earth. He came to die that they might live eternaly with Him in the kingdom of God. John |
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292 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93990 | ||
DearLionsdensurvivor, "Faith - Faith is in general the persuasion of the mind that a certain statement is true (Phil. 1:27; 2 Thess. 2:13). Its primary idea is trust. A thing is true, and therefore worthy of trust. It admits of many degrees up to full assurance of faith, in accordance with the evidence on which it rests. --Faith is the result of teaching (Rom. 10:14-17). Knowledge is an essential element in all faith, and is sometimes spoken of as an equivalent to faith (John 10:38; 1 John 2:3). Yet the two are distinguished in this respect, that faith includes in it assent, which is an act of the will in addition to the act of the understanding. Assent to the truth is of the essence of faith, and the ultimate ground on which our assent to any revealed truth rests is the veracity of God. --Historical faith is the apprehension of and assent to certain statements which are regarded as mere facts of history (Easton's) Faith is definitely NOT a meta-physical force by which believers manipulate creation for their personal gain! Doctrines that deny this fact, have more in common with witch-craft and magic then they do christianity. The very idea that words are vessels that contain a faith-force is absurd as well as heretical. Flee from these falsehoods! Trust in Christ alone and not your own ability to conjure up positive confessions which purport to change things of themselves. What hog-wash! I suggest you learn from Scripture rather than Copeland, Hinn, and TBN. Hebrews 11 (the entire chapter!) would make a good beginning. I really mean you well my friend. It's just that I fear you have been led astray. John |
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293 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93875 | ||
Dear LDS, No matter the needs, sickness, poverty, mental or emotional anguish, we are to take them before God the Father in prayer. Phil 4:6,7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. In the lives of His children, God has ordained times of trials and testings. These times can be excruciatingly difficult and may cause us to wonder at what is happening, and, why God is allowing such things to happen to us. In my experience, the answer does not usually come during, but after, the trial has past (sometimes months or years later). Perhaps the reason for a particular trial will be revealed only in Heaven or maybe never. It all depends on God's will and eternal purpose. Faith is the key to actually experiencing the peace" which surpasses all comprehension". If our faith is weak, we must pray that God will strenghthen what faith we do have. But what ,preciesly is "FAITH'? Is it really a "force" by which we obtain earthly and temporal blessings of health, wealth and happiness? I think not. Do not stop at Hebrews 11:1, but read the entire chapter!!! God Bless, John |
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294 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93609 | ||
Dear LDS, I have no doubt that you are sincere in your belief, but sincerity alone is of no value whatsoever. Rom 10:2" For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge." The Jews sincerely believed that righteousness could be gained by way of the Law. Their mis-placed sincerity in a false doctrine condemned them to eternal seperation from the only way to God; Faith in Jesus Christ and His substitutionary death on the cross on behalf of sinners. I am not saying that you or anyone else in WOF are lost. I am merely pointing out that bad doctrines make bad foundations on which to build a house. 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. We are His workmanship! That is where my understanding of Scripture begins and ends. We are not our own, we have been purchased by Christ. How does this fact harmonize with the man-centered teaching of WOF? Their teaching throws man back upon himself and his ability to develop for himself power to move mountains. This leads to despair and guilt: Why do I still have cancer (one may cry)? The answer from WOF is: "Because your faith is small. You must read the Bible more, pray more, fast longer, give more generously to the ministry. So, if you still have cancer it's your fault that you are a feeble saint." I know what I'm talking about, I've been where you are now. It is bondage of the worst kind. I have witnessed the same people heading for the altar Sunday after Sunday; month after month and year after year. It is so sad, and it makes me angry. What does the Bible say about sickness, poverty, depression, etc.? Rom 8:28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. That verse alone abounds in hope for all who recieve it in faith. What a magnificent promise! May God give us the grace to live by it. I do believe in Bible study, prayer, supporting the church, etc., but I see these things as means which God uses in the lives of His people to accomplish His purpose. Grace and Peace, John Reformed |
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295 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93515 | ||
Dear Figgy, I feel compelled to join Hank and EdB in thanking you for a well reasoned and scripturally sound opinion on this important topic. God Bless, Dad |
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296 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93296 | ||
LDS, I'm glad that the Bereans did not hold the same attitude toward Paul, as your attitude seems to be toward the discussion of Scripture with fellow believers. Prov 27:17 Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another. John |
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297 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93266 | ||
Dear LDS, The entire focus of my post to you was on what the Word of God says in Matt 17:19,20. I do not consider rightfully discerning the Scripture as nit-picking. Looking at the context of the passage, it seems as if the disciples are surprised at their failure to cast out the demon. "17:19,20 unbelief. The disciples' shortage of faith was not that they lacked confidence or did not expect success--they were apparently surprised by their failure--but because their expectation was not properly grounded in relationship to God. A tiny grain of true faith, rooted in submissiveness to God, is effective. Mark 9:29 makes this point even clearer by speaking of prayer as the key." (Reformation Study Bible) I do not see faith as being a "living thing", as you put it. When the Bible refers to a "living faith" or a "lively faith" it is a figure of speech that refers to faith's power and efficaciousness. Faith, when exercised by the christian according to the will of God and in accordance to His eternal purpose, does cast mountains into the sea! Try to do it aside from God's will and purpose and that mountain is'nt going anywhere. My interest in this topic stems from my concern over the false teaching that christians are "little gods", and that through faith we may acquire anything which our hearts desire; Health, wealth and happiness are our's for the asking, if only we believe. Nonsense! He is the Potter and we are but clay. John |
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298 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93151 | ||
Dear Darcy, I apologize. I thought your post was from LionDen Survivor. John Reformed |
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299 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93150 | ||
Dear Darcy, I apologize. I thought I was responding to LionDenSurviver. John Reformed |
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300 | A FALSE TEACHING? Yes / No | Matt 8:5 | John Reformed | 93149 | ||
Could you please respond to my initial post before turning elsewhere? The subject was the parable of the mustard seed. You used it as a proof that faith may be small to begin with but can grow to a great size. I disagreed and sought to correct your error by a re-examination of the text. Let's settle that issue first. John Reformed |
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