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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | What did Jesus mean? | John 13:18 | brother paul | 179754 | ||
Dear brother, I deeply thank you for your reply. It is the best post I have received. My thoughts have been concentrated recently on the fact that truth is a person, not an idea. He is truth. The betraying of Christ by Judas is not an obsession, it is only an example. The reason why I return to this example, is because no-one seems to address the principle. Adam has to reject God, Peter deny Christ, Israel condemn Jesus, Paul persecute the church, David commits murder and adultery, Moses kills, to bring Christ to a place where we can accept Him. It is all somehow part and plan of His design. I pray and consider what you have written, I do not reject anything, but merely seek of Him. There is something that the 'sin must become sunful' turn him 'over to Satan that the spirit might be saved'. I have personally experienced this rejection before I feel I know Him. Does anyone else sense this? If we begin to understand that there is a process of alienation before reconciliation, we begin to understand His ways, not merely His acts. I no longer seek to 'prove' certain doctrinual points to win debates. I try to empty myself, so that I can be taught of Him. Your final statement did acknowledge that the betraying of Christ did somehow contribute to His identification and belief that He is Messiah. This is my point, the process of rejection in His divine plan has advanced His purpose. God is all in all, through our sin He has triumphed. Yours and His, in Him Paul |
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2 | What did Jesus mean? | John 13:18 | DocTrinsograce | 179762 | ||
Dear BP, The questions you are asking aren't unanswerable. They have frequently been discussed among believers since the earliest times of the Church. I've touched on them a bit on the forum. You might be interested in post #150811, for example. You need to be careful, though, for several reasons. First of all, most people won't understand what you're talking about. Very few people today read philosophy or church history, let alone theology. Consequently, you'll simply confuse them. Furthermore, as you struggle with various ideas, your assertions may be entirely off beam. It would be sad if in your journey you unintentionally misled someone. A public forum like this isn't really the place to bounce around ideas. Let me introduce you to a bunch of dead guys. In their lifetime, blessed with powerful intellect, illuminated by the Holy Spirit, they had the opportunity for thorough study, deliberation, and debate. They aren't infallible or inerrant, and they'd be the first to tell you so. However, they have charted these seas of thought, and they can warn you about the sand bars of heresy and the reefs of error. They know well that in the shifting currents there is only one sure anchor, and that is the Word of God. Their names are Augustine, Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Owen, and Jonathan Edwards. Think of them as friends. Understand what they thought and preached. Your curiosity and hunger will be more than satiated, your intellectual muscles exercised, and your spiritual growth stimulated. You'll discover they went farther than what you've even imagined. Remember, the legacy of these dead guys is a gift of God, especially for the purpose that I've advocated to you (Ephesians 4:11-16). By the way, the literary works of these dead guys are all available online. Isn't technology wonderful? It would have cost us a great deal of money to have purchased these works, our only recourse just a couple of decades ago. Of course, while you're reading these men, continue to grow in your understanding of Scripture, the basis of all revealed truth. Edwards had a resolution "to study the Scriptures so steadily, constantly, and frequently, as that I may find, and plainly perceive, myself to grow in the knowledge of the same." So let's post on the forum what we can confidently assert from the Word of God. Meanwhile, we'll study to show ourselves approved. Feel free to interact with me via email if you'd like a sounding board. Shalom aleichem. In Him, Doc |
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