Results 1 - 6 of 6
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Blasphemy against Holy Spirit | Mark 3:30 | Hank | 118999 | ||
Norrie: It's nice to "see" you again. I wrote a response to your post earlier, which was far and away superior to this one :-), but it flew out into cyber space and never landed on the pages of this Forum. .... Thanks for sharing the post you gleaned from another forum. The only thing wrong with it is that it's wrong! When we extrapolate on Scripture, trying to make it say what it in fact does not say, as the author of the post you quote apparently has done, we invariably run into all sorts of theological blunders and dead-ends. Jesus' teaching on the unpardonable sin is clearly given in Matthew 12:22-32 and Mark 3:20-30. I've never been quite able to understand why there has been such an aura of mystery about the nature of this particular sin or why it should give rise to so many wild and speculative interpretations. The thing that prompted Jesus' teaching was the Pharisees' contention that He was acting by the power of Satan, when His supernatural power was, in fact, a manifestation of the Holy Spirit in Him. Therefore, the fatal sin is the denial of the Holy Spirit's testimony to Jesus as Savior and Lord. The ultimate result of this is rejection of the Son of God. Jesus' teaching on the unpardonable sin is not synonymous with the teaching in Hebrews 6:4-6, as the author of your quote implies. Nor does it prove the doctrine of the perseverence of the saints and neither does it disprove it, as the author of the post you quoted seems to be attempting to show. It is so much better to listen carefully to what Scripture is speaking before making up our minds than to make up our minds and expect Scripture to agree with our conclusions! --Hank | ||||||
2 | Blasphemy against Holy Spirit | Mark 3:30 | Norrie | 119007 | ||
"Therefore, the fatal sin is the denial of the Holy Spirit's testimony to Jesus as Savior and Lord." What about the number of times someone rejects but ultimately does accept. I know before I accepted, I would say I was pretty blasphemous but I got saved later on. I would think that now if I decided I was wrong, this bull, I was taken, there is no Jesus/Holy Spirit, then it seems I'd be condemning myself for sure then. Say some christians may do this when the time comes for taking marks... |
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3 | Blasphemy against Holy Spirit | Mark 3:30 | Hank | 119031 | ||
Norrie, we all of us who are regenerated believers were at one time lost in our sins. Even when the Holy Spirit of God through the instrumentality of His word drew us to Christ, without which no one can come to Him (John 6:44), we may have resisted for a time. When the Spirit said, "Come...take the water of life without cost" (see Revelation 22:17), we may have rejected His invitation for a time. But this is not the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit that Jesus was speaking of in Matthew 12 and Mark 3. This was the deliberate, calculated denial of Christ as the Son of God, the attribution of His supernatural powers not to the Holy Spirit but to Beelzebul, the ruler of demons. ..... Norrie, I must ask you, do you think it within reason to believe that a truly regenerated child of God would or could commit the unpardonable sin? God does not play games with His offer of eternal life, nor is He slow about His promise (2 Peter 3:9). When in John 3:16 He promises eternal life to all who believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, He means it and He means every word of it. God does not dangle eternal life before our eyes as we might dangle a carrot before a hungry rabbit and say, "Now, this is eternal life. Take it and be sure you don't lose it. Be a good person, sing in the choir, do all the good works you can in order to keep your salvation secure. Be careful, be cautious, help old ladies across the street, brush your teeth twice a day. And don't let anyone snatch this gift of eternal life out of your hand." The Bible says, "My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow Me; and I GIVE ETERNAL LIFE to them, and they will NEVER perish; and NO ONE is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand." (John 10:27-29). Salvation is wholly of God. It is a gift given by God's grace alone. It is solely on the basis of the redemption of Jesus Christ. The merit of His shed blood on the Cross is what saves us and keeps us saved. Human merit of works has no power whatever to save us or keep us saved. Scriptural references: John 1:12; Eph. 1:4-7; 2:8-10; 1 Peter 1:18,19; John 5:24; 6:37-40. --Hank | ||||||
4 | Blasphemy against Holy Spirit | Mark 3:30 | Norrie | 119056 | ||
Hank, what you say makes sense but on the other hand, I just have hard time reconciling all the pagans I've met online that claim to have been at one time Bible-beliving, spirit filled christians and turned away. We are saved thru faith, they believed they were, can they all have been mistaken about whether they were or weren't? And if they believe that they were saved but turned from their faith and flat out rejected, how can I know that I am strong in my faith? Would a better question be can one really believe they are truly saved and yet not have their name in the Book of Life? How can you truly know? There are people living like hell who truly believe they are saved because they walked the aisle and were baptized but they are def. showing no fruit, esp if they are sitting in jail. So how can you truly know if you really believe one thing but are believing wrongly? It sure seems complicated to me... | ||||||
5 | Blasphemy against Holy Spirit | Mark 3:30 | kalos | 119110 | ||
Norrie: You ask: "They believed they were [saved], can they all have been mistaken about whether they were or weren't?" Yes, it is possible that they were mistaken about whether they were saved. We need to remember that we base doctrine on the Word of God, the Bible, and not on experiences or case examples. A case example -- such as someone who seemed to be saved but turned out not to be -- does not prove anything. Moreover, we test our experience against (by) the Bible, not the other way around. I.e., we do not test the truth of the Bible by whether it lines up with our experience. (Not saying you do, Norrie, just stating a Bible principle here.) Here is one of the best things I've ever read that answers the question "What are the distinguishing marks of genuine saving faith? NOTE that the following is to help one to examine ONE'S OWN SELF. It is not to judge other people as to their salvation. (This is part one of several parts. To read the rest of the article, go to ID 16500 here on the forum or to the following website: (http://www.gty.org/IssuesandAnswers/archive/genuinefaith.htm)) Grace and shalom, kalos ******************** 'Part 1 What kind of things do and do not prove the genuineness of saving faith? '2 Corinthians 13:5 Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you--unless indeed you fail the test? 'Churches today are filled with people who hold to a faith that does not save. James referred to this as a "dead faith"-meaning a mere empty profession (James 2:17, 20, 26). Paul wrote to the people in the church at Corinth to test or examine themselves to see if they were truly in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5). As important as it was in Paul's day, how much more important it is for people in our churches today to put their faith to the test and to make sure they have not been deceived. 'But where do we start? By what criteria do we determine true from empty faith? What are the distinguishing marks of genuine saving faith? Surprisingly, there are a number of popular standards or tests that really don't prove the genuineness of one's faith one way or the other. So before we look at the tests that prove genuine faith, let's take a look at some popular tests that neither prove nor disprove the genuineness of one's faith. 'Here is a list of seven conditions that do not prove or disprove the genuineness of saving faith. One can be a Christian and possess these things or one may not be a Christian at all and still possess them. While they don't prove or disprove one's faith, they're important to know and understand so you will not be deceived. 'Seven conditions that do not prove or disprove genuine saving faith. 1. Visible Morality 2. Intellectual Knowledge 3. Religious Involvement 4. Active Ministry 5. Conviction of Sin 6. The Feeling of Assurance 7. A Time of Decision 'These are seven common conditions or tests that don't necessarily prove or disprove the existence of saving faith. What then are the marks of genuine saving faith? Are there some reliable tests from the Word of God that enable us to know for certain whether one's faith is real? Thankfully there are at least nine biblical criteria for examining the genuineness of saving faith.' (to be continued) ____________________ This is part one of several parts. To read the rest of the article, go to ID 16500 here on the forum or to the following website: (http://www.gty.org/IssuesandAnswers/archive/genuinefaith.htm) |
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6 | Blasphemy against Holy Spirit | Mark 3:30 | Norrie | 119131 | ||
Thanks! | ||||||