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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Who or what is the "gift of God" | Acts 8:20 | GeneralWAS | 14464 | ||
Ray, The gifts spoken of in these passages are not the same, and yet they are the same. Let me explain. In John 4:8 Jesus says to woman, "if you knew the gift of God..". The Greek word for know here is simply the word oida, which is the common word meaning see with the eyes. It does not imply some deep or spiritual knowledge or perception. There are other words for that. He is simply saying that if you could see that I am the gift from God, you would be asking Me for things, which only I can give, i.e. living water which is eternal life. As to the passage in Acts it is different in that Simon believed the gift was the ability to cause people to receive the Holy Spirit. While it is true that this is a gift, it only flows from the bigger gift which is "eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 6:23). Since eternal life is knowing "the only true God, and Jesus Christ" (John 17:3), in another sense, once again, the gift of God is Jesus Christ, and this is how it is the same as in John. Apart from salvation, which is in Christ, there are no other true gifts, since "Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow." (James 1:17) |
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2 | Who or what is the "gift of God" | Acts 8:20 | Ray | 14570 | ||
Hi GeneralWas, I look at John 4:10 exactly as you do. In my personal copy I have inserted 'He" in place of the "who it is". I am simply of the opinion that neither of the Persons is an "it". Thank you for your reply. In Acts I see Simon looking for a gift, an "it" if you will, and his heart was not right before God; he did not recognize who He was. We see that when we compare the Scriptures. When I compare John 4 with John 17, I would go a little further into the passage than you did to the fifth verse where it says, "Now , Father, glorify (Me) together with Yourself,..." James says that He (Himself) does not tempt anyone. Then James goes on and says that every perfect gift comes "down from the Father of lights,... In all these verses, Jesus claims to be God. I see the living water as the spoken word of God. Thanks for any more comments. Later, Ray |
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