Results 201 - 219 of 219
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Results from: Answers On or After: Thu 12/31/70 Author: biblicalman Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
201 | satin on earth Why | James 4:7 | biblicalman | 227826 | ||
God did not 'send Satan to earth'. He cast him out of the heavens because of sin and because of his activities. Like all angels Satan was created by God. We do not know why angels fell and sinned (they too had free will) but we have examples in 2 Peter 2.4; Jude 1.6. Satan was clearly one of the chief angels. And he sinned. But we must not see him as 'almost as powerful as God.' Like us he is helpless in God's hands. From the moment he fell he was doomed and he became the enemy of God and of His people. LIke sinful man, sinful angels were not immediately destroyed. That awaits the judgment. But all is made by God to work to fulfil His purposes (Romans 8.28). However, God's true people are protected from Satan's worst excesses, and we can fight him by submitting to God (James 4.7). With Michael the archangel we have to say 'The LORD rebuke you' (Jude 1.9) |
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202 | Asking satan to leave a person alone | James 4:7 | biblicalman | 228404 | ||
One thing you may be sure of and that is that God will not allow Satan to tempt you beyond what you are able to stand (1 Corinthians 10.13). And it is in fact questionable whether you are being tempted by Satan himself, more probably you have been left to his minions (Ephesians 6.11-12). But this is still seen as being tempted 'by the wiles of the Devil' (6.11). Thus the command to resist him (James 4.7). We do this by submitting to God, being strong in the Lord, and putting on the armour of God (James 4.7; Ephesians 6.10 ff). But we do not resist him directly, we say 'the Lord rebuke you' (Jude 9). While he is powerful, we must not see Satan as being omnipresent (Job 1.7). And he is restrained (Matthew 12.29; Mark 3.27; Luke 10.18; 11.22; 2 Thessalonians 2.6; Revelation 9.11; 20.2). Nevertheless he is out to cause problems for God's people (1 Peter 5.8). He is probably to be associated with the Wild Beast of Revelation 17.8-14, who mimicked God by being the one who 'was and is not and will ascend from the bottomless pit and will go into perdition' (Revelation 17.8, 11; contrast 1.8, 17). He is to be allowed 'one hour' (a short time) in which to make his final attempt against God (as also in Revelation 20.3). Jesus is in contrast 'the One Who lives, Who died and Who rose again' and ascended into Heaven (1.17). The way to defeat Satan is to submit to God and thus be under His protection (James 4.7). Then we will be able to resist him from under the shelter of God's wings. We defeat him by being 'strong in the Lord and in the power of His might' and by 'putting on the whole armour of God' (Ephesians 6.10 ff), that is by using and appropriating the word of God. Martin Luther was so conscious of the Devil's activities that he threw an inkwell at him, but he was one of Gods champions. But Satan is subject to God's restraint. Nevertheless his minions wll not leave us alone. That is why we must be immersed in the word of God, and learn to cite Scriptures against him (Matthew 4.1-11). |
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203 | told to be holy | 1 Pet 1:15 | biblicalman | 228905 | ||
hi welcome to the forum the equivalent phrase occurs in lev 11.44; 19.2; 1 pet 1.15 best wishes |
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204 | is this gentiles? | 1 Pet 2:9 | biblicalman | 225045 | ||
Yes and no. It means strictly that all who truly believe in Jesus Christ form the true Israel, the 'Israel of God' of Galatians 6.16. Jesus said He had come to form a new congregation (of Israel) - Matthew 16.18. Elswhere He calls Himself the true vine, the genuine Israel, as opposed to the false vine, unbelieving Israel (John 15.1-6). All who are truly abiding in Him are Israel. Romans 11 tells us that into the olive tree of Israel Gentiles were incorporated, while unbelieving Jews were cut off. see also Galatians 3.29; Ephesians 2.11-22 where the building of the true Israel is described |
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205 | In Christ | 1 Pet 2:24 | biblicalman | 229360 | ||
Hi Penni The simple answer is, by truly believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. Fist you must acknowledge to Him your sinfulness, and that you are deserving of His judgment (1 John 1.8) Then you must recognise that He died on the cross to take the punishment for your sins (1 Peter 2.24). Then you must open your life to Him and ask Him to be your Saviour because of what He did for you on the cross. Then you must trust Him to fulfil His promise to forgive you and save you. Once you are forgiven and 'saved' you are in Christ. Best wishes |
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206 | hell | 2 Pet 3:9 | biblicalman | 228355 | ||
you have only to read the teaching of Jesus which came before the church was founded to discover how foolish such claims are. see for example on Gehenna Matthew 10.28; Mark 9.42-48. on Hades Luke 16.23 | ||||||
207 | what does with out blemish or wrinkles m | 1 John | biblicalman | 227724 | ||
We will be without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing and holy without blemish on the day when Christ, having purified us, presents us perfect to Himself (Ephesians 5.27). It is not a condition we can enjoy in this life in reality, although it is how God sees us through Christ in that we are 'accounted as righteous' (Romans 3.24-25) through His shed blood and the application to us of His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5.21). | ||||||
208 | what does it say about god | 1 John | biblicalman | 229636 | ||
Hi Lex, Welcome to the forum. 1 John has two main important stresses about God. In 1.5 he reminds us that God is light In 4.16 he reminds us that God is love. The two must always be seen together. God's love can only be finally revealed to those who come to His light. Best wishes |
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209 | Is sinless perfection possible on earth? | 1 John 1:8 | biblicalman | 228591 | ||
To fall short of the glory of God is sin (Romans 3.23). Not to love God with heart, soul, mind and strength is sin (Deut.6.5). To know to do good and do it not is sin (James 4.17). Not to love the stranger as ourselves is sin (Lev 19.34). To fail to do to others what we would have them do to us is sin (Matthew 7.12). Can anyone really say they observe all of these? I have met people who believed in sinless perfection, but I observed sin in them when they did not observe it themselves. And I have never known anyone who lived by the standards described above. That is why John said, 'if we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us' (1 John 1.8). Compare James 3.2, 8; Jeremiah 2.35. It is possible in the power of the risen Christ to achieve a state where we live for a while without known sin, in the sense of avoiding what we know to be sin. But that is very different from being sinless. Indeed Isaiah said, 'all our righteousnesses are as defiled rags'. That is why Paul could say, 'I am carnal. Sold under sin.' (Romans 7.14). He was not speaking of what we might call sin. His sins were probably a failure sometimes in prayer or the overlooking of an individual's needs. But it was still sin. To come short of total perfection is sin. If such a man lived his prayers would be so powerful that the world would see and know. But such a man would be aware of the deceitfulness of his own heart. Thus yes our aim should be total sinlessness, total positive perfection, but we will never totslly achieve it in this life. |
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210 | the bible | 1 John 2:20 | biblicalman | 229675 | ||
Hi. The application of Rev 7 and 14 outside the Book of Revelation is itself unscriptural. If the 144,000 is taken absolutely literally it applies to Jews only. If as many of us believe it refers to the whole church of Jesus Christ, then it is not limited in number. 12 x 12 is simply indicating the church as founded on the Apostles and the Patriarchs (Rev 21). There are no grounds whatsoever for applying it to JWs. As Christians we are all anointed (1 John 2.20). The whole Bible has a message for us, but it must be sensibly interpreted. However Paul certainly made clear that once we were absent from the body we would be present with the Lord (2 Cor 6.8). And that was what he expected for himself (Phil 1.19-23) Best wishes |
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211 | Common grounds with Muslims? | 1 John 3:13 | biblicalman | 225069 | ||
On what grounds do you say that by unbelievers the Quran meant Christians? The Quran distinguishes Jews and Christians from unbelievers. It actually encourages contact between Muslims, Christians and Jews. But Muhammad lived among heretical Christians. They would possibly have agreed with his views about Jesus as we cannot. The common ground that we have is that Muslims believe in a personal Creator, one God, and the coming judgment. But we can of course share our faith with anyone even if we have no common ground. |
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212 | worship a image of god or his son? | 1 John 4:12 | biblicalman | 229267 | ||
Hi Michelle, Welcome to the Forum. God has forbidden the worship of ALL images (Exodus 20.4-5). Jesus Christ as the Son is described as 'the image of the invisible God' (Col 1.15), that is, an exact representation of Him (Heb. 1.2-3), but not in His manhood. He is in God's image as the Firstborn (the one with authority over) all creation, as the One Who made all things. As the Creator He is the image of the Creator. When man was made in God's image it does not mean that man looked like God. It means that man was given spirit, as God is Spirit (John 4.25).That is why, unlike all animals, man worships. When man sinned his spirit became corrupted, which is why it is said that Seth was made in Adam's image. But God is the invisible God Whom no man has seen nor can see, dwelling in unapproachable light. There is nothing that can truly portray Him. And to seek to do so would be to demean Him |
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213 | What is sin that leads to death? | 1 John 5:16 | biblicalman | 228356 | ||
One sin which can lead to death is the partaking of the bread and wine at the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner (1 Corinthians 11.27, 30). Another is to continually refuse to do something which God strongly impresses on the heart over a long period e.g. Mark 3.29. |
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214 | GOD/ SATAN TEETH | Revelation | biblicalman | 228898 | ||
Hi Sharan, welcome to the forum. I suspect that the TV Pastor was expressing himself vividly in order to get over his point. He was probably indicating that the Lord had made Satan relatively harmless. Scripture says the same thing when it says that The strong man has been bound by the Stronger than He (Luke 11.22). Satan is in fact a spirit being and therefore has no teeth. Best wishes |
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215 | rev.7:4 | Revelation | biblicalman | 229053 | ||
Hi Dyke, Welcome to the Forum. This is a highly controversial subject and you will receive many answers. You will notice that it does not say that John saw the 144,000, who were sealed, he only heard 'the number of them'. Thus the number was important. In my view the 12 x 12 x 1000 represents the whole people of God, 12 for the 12 tribes of Israel, and 12 for the 12 Apostles. Compare for this Rev 21 where the city of God which is the bride of Christ (the church of the Messiah) has 12 gates representing Israel and 12 foundations representing the Apostles. In the New Testament the true Israel are those who believe in the Messiah (whether ex-Jew or ex-Gentile). See Rom 11.16-24; Gal 3.29; 6.16; Ephe 2.11-22; 1 Peter 2.9; James 1.1; John 15.1-6; Matt. 21 43. Furthermore those whom Scripture shows to be sealed by God are the whole church of Jesus Christ (Eph 1.13). Having heard the numbering John then saw those who were numbered. They were a multititude which no man could number (only God could number them). In Rev 6 the whole of history has been outlined in terms of Matt 24; Mark 13. False Messiahs, war, famine; earthquake and pestilence, the persecuted saints, Christ's coming. So now John is demonstrating that through all this God's people are sealed and are safe. Notice how the same description is given of the multitude as was given of the dead saints awaiting resurrection in Rev 6.11. Through history God's people have experienced great tribulation, and are still doing so. But their final security is guaranteed by the seal of God. Best wishes |
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216 | will people be saved during tribulation? | Rev 7:14 | biblicalman | 229384 | ||
Hi Bob, Welcome to the Forum. Throughout history from Adam onwards men and women have been saved in the same way, through faith in the God provided means of salvation. That is indeed the lesson of Hebrews 11. All come to God on the same basis, though faith. In the Old Testament they accepted God's offer of mercy through His covenants, responded to Him in faith, and trusted to Him for forgiveness through the shedding of blood, in circumcision and sacrifices. Today we accept God's offer of mercy through His covnenant offered in Jesus Christ, respond to Him in faith, and trust Him for forgiveness through the offering up of Jesus Christ by the shedding of blood on our behalf once and for all. Whatever the future holds that will be God's basis of salvation. He is the unchangeable One. There are of course those of us who believe that men and women are being saved out of great tribulation today through the blood of Christ, and have been for the 1900 years, and that that is what Revelation 7 teaches. But, however that may be, God's way of salvation through faith never changes, and men will be saved in that way right through to the end. Best wishes. |
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217 | what does the 144,000 mean? | Rev 14:1 | biblicalman | 227895 | ||
You have to recognise that the answer to your question is hotly disputed. In my view the 144,000 (12 x 12000) represents the Israel that Jesus founded on Peter's statement about His Messiahship, His congregation. 12 represents the 12 tribes of Israel.12 x 12 is 12 intensified. This Israel (the true Vine John 15.1-6) began to be built up by Jesus Himself, was further built up by the Apostles, expanded as a wholly Jewish believing remnant and was expanded by accepting Gentile proselytes as Israel had always done. Paul made clear that the church was the true Israel. (Romans 11.16-24; Ephesians 2.11-22; Galatians 3.29; 6.16. See also 1 Peter 2.9. James 1.1 calls the church 'the twelve tribes'. It is not a replacement Israel. That is an American conception. It acually IS Israel founded on the believing remnant of Israel who believed and followed the Messiah. Thus in my view the 144,000 represents the whole true believing church of Jesus Christ as numbered and sealed by God. |
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218 | can some one be out of the book of life | Rev 17:8 | biblicalman | 228825 | ||
In ancient days cities retained two books, a record of the living from which names were erased on death, and a book of worthies, people who had done some great thing whose names were never erased. The second is in mind in Malachi 3.16. Moses had the first book in mind when he offered to have his name erased from the book of the living for Israel's sake (Exodus 32.32). He was not offering to suffer eternally, but indicating his willingness to die for them. The Psalmist may have had both in mind when he said, 'let them be blotted out of the book of the living, let them not be enrolled among the righteous'(Psalm 69.28). When Jesus said to His disciples, 'rejoice that your names are written in Heaven' (Luke 10.20) He had the book of the righteous in mind. This is the same book as John had in mind in Rev 17.8; 13.8 were he speaks of those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life from the foundation of the world. It is probably that same book that is in mind in Phil 2.3. It is quite clear that if someone's name has been written in a book eternally it will not be blotted out. These are the names of the redeemed. The verse that causes problems is Rev 3.5 were Jesus says, 'He who conquers will be clad thus in white garments, and I wlll not blot his name out of the book of life, I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels. This may well have been the book of the living so that Jesus is saying 'he will never die'. We do know that sometimes God does bring death on Christians as a punishment (1 Cor 11.30). The fact that it is called the book of life in contrast with the Lamb's book of life (which is clearly deliberately separately identified) is against the idea that the same book is in mind. It should also be noted that the emphasis is not on the fact that names will be blotted out, but on the fact that they will not be. The book of life in Rev 20.l5 must be the Lamb's book of life. Thus someone can be blotted out of the book of the living, but they cannot be blotted out of the Lamb's book of life. |
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219 | Is judgement on judgement day private? | Rev 20:12 | biblicalman | 227929 | ||
Jesus said, 'nothing is hidden that will not be openly revealed, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light' (Luke 8.17). This suggests that God will deal with men on an open basis. Indeed the whole point of a court is not only that justice is done, but also that it be seen to be done. Thus it would appear that we will be judged in the open publicly. That is why the books are opened. However, the observers will be our fellow accused. They will not be tut tutting at your sins. They will be facing up to their own. However, having said that we must recognise that all the pictures of judgment are given in earthly terms. What wlll actually happen will be beyond our knowledge. And the judgment might well be over in seconds. God hardly has to hear the evidence. The purpose of the books is not to assist Him but as evidence before all of what we have done. But if you are a Christian then you are being judged for your success or failure in service. Every Christan will have praise of God (1 Corinthians 4.5). Our problem may be that there is little to be praised. There will be no question of judgment and punishment (Roman 8.1). |
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