Results 1 - 5 of 5
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | How does God speak to us? | Heb 1:1 | kalos | 154232 | ||
How does God speak to us? 'I am a bit distressed even talking about this issue because my comments are meant to try to rein Christians in a little bit, to keep them off of the fringe... 'But whenever I have to rein Christians in a bit and talk about this kind of thing I feel badly because I realize that some people are straining at the bit for the best of reasons and with the best of intentions...They want to experience more of the working of the Holy Spirit in their life. And here is Koukl coming in, apparently throwing cold water on the whole operation. 'I feel bad about that because I have no intention of quenching the work of the Holy Spirit. My entire goal is to be very, very careful and look closely at the specifics of what's being held to be true to see if they do, in fact, line up with the directives given in the Scriptures. Or, are we drawing some wrong conclusions that cause us to go over the edge and maybe do some spiritual damage to ourselves and others?... 'I think I'm somewhat of an evangelical iconoclast because I'm always breaking up people's parties, so to speak. An iconoclast is an image breaker, someone who kind of attacks, to some degree, cherished notions. Sometimes that bothers people and I 'm sorry about that. I don't mean to cause trouble for the sake of trouble, but I do mean to force people to think clearly and Biblically, even about those ideas they cherish the most. And, to many of us, the thing that we cherish the most is this idea that we have a personal hotline to God and we ought to expect Him to speak to us about our decisions. 'I had a very stimulating conversation last week about this. I talked about it on Sunday in some detail, and then a friend of mine wrote me a note and offered me eighteen references from the book of Acts that seem to contradict my point of view. So what I want to do for just a few moments is to talk about these particular references and see if they do contradict what I was saying last weekend. 'I have to make clear what my point of view is so that it's not misunderstood. Let me capsulize it for you very quickly. My point of view is basically four quick points: 'First of all, learning to hear the voice of God is not taught as a Christian discipline that we must learn in order to live the optimal Christian life. This is the "hotline to God" view in which we get specialized and tailor-made instructions for our personal lives. That is not taught in Scripture. 'Secondly, God sometimes does give specialized instructions, so I'm not saying that God can't do that and I'm not putting God in a box. He does sometimes give specialized instructions. He did in Biblical times and He does in the present. But when we read in the Bible especially in the New Testament, which is what our discussion is about today when He has done it, such specialized instructions are clear first of all. They are not mumbled. They are not whispered. They are not nudged. And they are, almost without exception in the New Testament, a sovereign intrusion by God into the circumstances rather than something that is first sought by a Christian. 'Thirdly, God's intrusion in these cases is sometimes through special gifts in the body that I believe are in full operation today, but are by very nature individual. In other words, every person has his own gift and each person does not have every gift. So this working through gifts can't be a means of every Christian hearing from God. In other words, sometimes God intervenes with a prophetic word, but since prophetic words only come through those people who have the gift of prophecy, it's not the kind of thing we all have to cultivate, to learn to do. 'Finally, there are clearly workings of the Spirit in the area of teaching, conviction of sin and comforting of individual Christians. I admit that those workings are private, individual and tailored to individual people. Those kinds of things are not in question here. 'We're going to do a little Bible study. We're going to look at eighteen references suggested in the letter to me that was an attempt to offer contrary evidence from the Scriptures to the point of view that I just described for you. All of these references come from the book of Acts. We will see if these references actually undermine the basic point I have been making or not. In a sense, I hope the Bible study will go beyond just the meaning of the passages because what this will do, as we walk through it, is help us to learn how to be more precise and particular about our Bible study and not draw conclusions hastily or inappropriately from the Scriptures. But take a close, methodical look to get a clear idea of what is actually being averred here about Christian disciplines and God speaking.' ____________________ Acts and the Voice of God by Gregory Koukl To read more go to: (www.str.org/free/commentaries/theology/actsvoic.htm) |
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2 | How does God speak to us? | Heb 1:1 | Aixen7z4 | 154285 | ||
I will say one thing more and be done with this conversation. Let the word stand, that has been written. The folks who are writing here can agree among themselves, and then hurl insults at anyone who dares to suggest to them that they should listen to their brethren who think differently. You can embrace anyone whom you think will agree with you. You can congratulate each other for simply being of the same point of view no matter how it is arrived at, no matter if they are only borrowing and quoting without thinking. My word to you is simply this: that you should think of your brothers who think differently. And what I say to you, I say to all, because there are groups everywhere who hold another point of view, but who similarly congratulate each other and agree among themselves. They close ranks and close their minds, and they also despise you, their brethren. What I say to you, I say to them: Please listen. What I say to you, I say to them. You are correct in saying that God speaks through his word. They are correct in saying that God speaks to them personally. They need to listen to you and to pay close attention to what the Bible says. And you ought to listen to them, and appreciate their emphasis on the application of the word to our lives. It is from the Bible that they have learned that God is interested in a personal relationship and in personally leading them. If you listen to yourself you will also hear that God is not only the God of history and the God of the Bible, but he is the God of today, and he lives in our hearts. The Holy Spirit who dictated the Bible also wants to dictate our steps. He wants to take the truths set in the Scriptures and apply them to the specifics of our lives. He is the same yesterday and today, and he will transform the words of the Bible and bring them to life, so that you “hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it, when you turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left“, as in Isaiah 30:21. I am not writing this in order to solicit dittos or kudos but because, as we all say of our own statements, it is based on the Bible. I pray that you will listen, even while facing the reality that you probably won’t. But someone will read this and understand, so let it stand. I will not respond to your response, whether good or bad. I am leaving now for a church where there is all emotion and no Bible knowledge, where they sing “Gospel” and have no conception of what the gospel is. I am concerned with the reports that “seventy to ninety percent of the people attending the average church are not saved”. I want to show them the way, from the Bible, and encourage them to mix truth into their experience. As always, there are a few who will listen, and I trust it will be the same in this place. |
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3 | How does God speak to us? | Heb 1:1 | Wild Olive Shoot | 154287 | ||
Greg Laurie writes the following: In America today, we have something that could be described as a new spirituality. It's a revival of sorts—not in the biblical sense of people turning to God, but a revival of all kinds of ancient and weird spiritual concepts and beliefs. People are spiritually hungry. They are searching for truth. And the problem is, some of this strange theology is finding its way into the church. We must be very careful to keep our guard up. Don't forget that when the devil misled Eve in the Garden, he did it with partial truth. He did not question God's Word altogether. Rather, he questioned if Eve properly understood it. We must be careful of the deviant teachings that are out there today. So often when a new teaching comes along, we will get excited: a new revelation! I hope this won't disappoint you, but there aren't any new revelations. Everything you need to know about God is already written in His Book. As it has been said, if it's true, it isn't new. And if it's new, it isn't true. So don't go looking for new revelations. Spend your time instead in learning God's Word, and He will bring fresh understanding of it. Years ago, the great thinker C. S. Lewis warned us, "If you do not listen to theology, that will not mean that you have no ideas about God. It will mean that you have a lot of wrong ones." I think this is especially important today. We need to know what Jesus said. We need to know what the truth is. We need to pay attention to doctrine. Copyright © 2005 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved. |
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4 | How does God speak to us? | Heb 1:1 | Jehonadab | 154295 | ||
God used his prophets to be his spokesmen up to the time of Jesus arrival, as the Christ, in the fall of 29 C.E. But three days before his death, Jesus told his disciples that spiritual food would be provided through a "faithful and discreet slave". He asked:"Who really is the faithful and discreet slave whom his master appointed over his domestics, to give them their food at the proper time?" Thus, Jesus said that after his death, there would a "slave" class that would giving out spiritual food to the members of God's household "at the proper time". Thus, when the issue of "cicumcision" arose in 49 C.E., the "older men and apostles" gathered together in Jerusalem to settle the issue. Hence, after coming to a unanimous accord, these sent out Paul and Barnabus with letters to the different congregations, so that they could be fed "at the proper time" and for these to remain unified.(Acts 15) This "faithful and discreet slave" began when the holy spirit was poured upon the 120, on Pentecost, 33 C.E.(Acts 2:1-4) These were anointed to serve as "kings and priests" in the heavens after their death and resurrection.(Rev 5:9,10 )Today this "slave" class is dispensing the food "at the proper time", for Jesus further said that "Happy is that slave if his master on arriving finds him doing so. Truly I say to you, He will appoint him over all his belongings."(Matt 24:46,47)He also told of an illustration whereby, a "man of noble birth", traveling to become a king, "committed to them(his "slaves" ) his belongings." These were to do "business" with the king's "talents" and increase the "master"s "belongings".(Matt 25:14-30) Hence, those of this "faithful and discreet slave" class provide spiritual food during these "last days" and therefore is how God speaks to us now. | ||||||
5 | How does God speak to us? | Heb 1:1 | kalos | 154297 | ||
This I can tell you: A "theocratic" organization led by several men in Brooklyn, New York does not provide me with spiritual food. Therefore, it is NOT how God speaks to me. | ||||||