Results 41 - 60 of 79
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Author: Zsuzsi Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
41 | "Least in the kingdom of God"? | Matt 11:11 | Zsuzsi | 123292 | ||
"...he cannot be God, duh"..?? "Postings must be Biblically based and not opposing to the authority of the Bible, Christianity, or the deity of Jesus Christ. Whenever possible, postings should include supporting Bible references." Ralph if as a result of this you justly happen to get kicked from this forum, feel free to contact me at dsokus@hotmail.com - I'd be happy to discuss this issue with you. You must have respect for the rules of SBF - saying such things is simply not appropriate here. Yours, Zsuzsi |
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42 | God and gods? | Matt 11:11 | Zsuzsi | 123319 | ||
Hi following him, "If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love." 1Corinthians 13 (NASB) I agree - we can preach the Love and Care and Light of our Lord in the most convincing way ever possible, but without ACTUALLY loving and and caring and being the light for "the others", they will rightly think they are the victorious, innoncently persecuted and rejoicing servants of God. But on the other hand, our service to them must not become a 'stumbling block' to people whom we are supposed to shepherd; SBF is a public forum, where new or even "becoming" Christians also come to learn - about the Trinitarian, Christian theology and faith, not the teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses about two or more 'gods' and various heavens etc. There is a great danger that new Christians misunderstand the real Christian doctrine if even on a forum like this they get a mixture of different, including non-Christian, ideologies. We are responsible for the 'little ones', and the Lord Himself entrusted us with this task - this is why we do sometimes have to 'pull the plug'. I gave Ralph my e-mail, he can talk to me about this if he wants to. He certainly must be treated and respected as a human person possessing dingity, having been created in the image of God - just as we are. But, just as we do, he also must keep himself to the original purposes and rules of this forum included in the ToU, which he agreed to before joining. There is a careful balance between loving people who fiercely argue with us about the Truth and loving people who depend on our more mature Christian guidance. It is really nice to have people who think like you on this forum. May God bless you, Zsuzsi |
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43 | I can't find any specific answer | Matt 16:18 | Zsuzsi | 120163 | ||
Defining 'church' is the most difficult part of the question! If by 'church' you mean 'group of people who worship God', then it existed in the form of the Jewish 'church' long before the apostles; the apostles were born into it (just like Jesus Himself!). If 'church' means the 'group of people following Jesus' or 'a group of people sharing the Christian faith', then it was founded by Jesus shortly before His death, see Matthew 16:13-20. Everyone became a 'part' of it once they acknowledged that Jesus was the Son of God. By the time Paul wrote his epistles, the 'church' was spread out all over Palestine; certain groups of people frequently came together to share their faith. Paul was the first to introduce a more formal organisation as well, eg. in his epistles he told the'churches of God' to collect money for the poor, and gave them instructions considering worship services. So I do not think there is a definite time when the apostles 'became part of the church'... God bless you, Zsuzsi |
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44 | speaking in tongues | Mark 16:17 | Zsuzsi | 121762 | ||
Dear Godsgrl52, There are several references to speaking in tongues in the NT: Jesus foretold that the disciples would speak in tongues in Mk:16:17. In Acts we are told how His prophecies came true: see Acts chapter 2, Acts 10:46, Acts 19:6... In the Pauline Epistles speaking in tongues is a great gift of the Holy Spirit. 1Cor 12:10,28. Yet Paul teaches that nobody should boast just because he is speaking in tongues; without charity, for example, miracles are nothing. (1Cor 13:1). He also mentions that speaking in tongues does not benefit other beilevers, unless someone interprets what is being said. (1Cor 14:5) Paul gives a definition of praying in tongues: if someone prays in tongues, his spirit prays but his mind does not; he encourages people to pray with their spirit and their mind too. (1Cor 14:14-15). Paul says that speaking in tongues is a sign for the unbelievers, not for the bevievers (1Cor 14:22). Personally I would connect speaking in tongues to the OT story of the Tower of Babel (Gen 11): what men destroyed with their pride, the Holy Spirit rebuilds. See Isaiah 28:11 for the OT promise of this gift. Hope this helps. Ask if you have any more questions. God bless you, Zsuzsi |
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45 | Justice in my view sesms better. | Luke 17:3 | Zsuzsi | 120529 | ||
Hi Pete2, I get your argument, but there are minor questions which it does not answer: If there is no God, who decides what is 'good' and what is 'evil' at all? What is good for me might be considered bad for another person: eg. is prostitution okay? Secondly, who gives the authority to those who decide what is good and evil, on what basis? Thirdly, even if it can be decided, if there is no God, why is it bad to be consciously 'evil' (i.e. why can't I -morally- blow up the whole world right away, eg. in a nuclear war, who cares)? Fourthly, why would you care about it anyway if you know everyone perishes after their death? To me it seems that ignoring the existence of God makes the question irrelevant! Fortunately God has been gracious enough to give us the answers to those questions in the Bible... As for what Jesus was teaching, I believe the whole concept of justice can be understood the best from Micah 6:8: He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God? DO JUSTLY: Tell if someone is going on the wrong track: tell him privately, then 2 or 3 together, then the church, and if he still doesn't listen, 'let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican' (Matt 18:15-17), that is, pray for them, turn the other cheek and let God do the rest: Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10) LOVE MERCY: Forgive everyone, as the Father forgives you. Forgiveness means 'keeping in love', which is nevertheless not the same as approving of sin. God forgives but out of love He allows the consequences of our sin to take place. (Read 2Samuel 11 and 12 for God's response to David's affair - will help you!) Loving someone often means letting them know that they are doing something wrong. As for children, teach your child, for He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes. (Prov 13:24) WALK HUMBLY WITH THY GOD: Remember that you are sinner saved by grace; check for the beam in your eye before you condemn someone else for a mote. (Matt 7:3) You MUST NOT abuse God's grace: the sin against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven! (Mt 12:31-32, Mk 32:29, Lk 12:10 - Jesus' reply to 'the Biblical Achilles Heel'!) Also accept with humility and without complaint when God teaches you by allowing the consequences of your sin to happen, for whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. (Prov 3:12) Yet, know that He has forgiven: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (Isa 55:7). All Jesus is saying is: Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. (Mt 5:48) Be good to people, pray for them, want good to them, whatever they do to you: be merciful, i.e. forgive, but also just, i.e. teach, so that they may change. And walk humbly with God, and He will let you know what is right and what is wrong; The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility. (Prov 15:33) He will also teach you the correct balance between mercy and justice... Good and upright is the LORD: therefore will he teach sinners in the way. (Psalm 25:8) Psalm 101:1: I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing. Hosea 12:6: Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually. Reading the book of Proverbs, and the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5,6,7) would do you good. ;) Hope this helps. May my God, Whom you sadly don't believe in, bless you. I will pray for you. Yours in Christ, Zsuzsi |
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46 | Answer gone? | Luke 17:3 | Zsuzsi | 120611 | ||
Hmmm. Thanks if you did reply, but I never saw your answer. I would be grateful to know what you think, though I understand if you don't feel like posting it again... God bless you, Zsuzsi |
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47 | Note? | Luke 17:3 | Zsuzsi | 120682 | ||
Try 'Search'... Should be just below the Welcome note... | ||||||
48 | Enemies? | Luke 19:27 | Zsuzsi | 120614 | ||
I believe by 'enemies' Jesus meant the citizens in the parable who did not want the lord to reign over them. Directly Jesus referred to the ones who would torture and kill Him, fearing that He would become their king; but He defeated them and became a King greater than any other. Indirectly He was referring to the ones who reject Him, who love and serve other masters, rather than Him (c.v. Mt 6:24). The servants, in my opinion, are the chosen people of Christ who have been entrusted by special gifts (physical and spiritual) to serve Him. Directly this means the disciples, whom Jesus was still trying to prepare for His death. Indirectly Jesus referred to all the people in the future who would need to serve Him while He is not on earth (including us). As I read these texts it appears to me that the disloyal slave is the person who does not turn towards the Master with faith and trust. Even though he claims to be serving Him, he is not really allied to Him. The failure is due to this mistrust: the servant believes that the Lord 'reaps what he does not sow', so he does not even attempt to satisfy the requirements. This is basically 'spiritual laziness', saying: 'I can't be good so why even try?'. The judgement for this servant, whom Jesus calls 'wicked', is severe: all he has is taken away from him, and he is also cast out of the presence of God. I think the difference between 'enemy' and 'disloyal slave' is that while 'enemies' are directly against God's ruling, 'disloyal slaves' simply mistrust Him and become lazy. 'Disloyal slaves' are not killed right away, they are (only) cast out into the darkness (i.e. absence of God), so they are given a chance of changing their attitude and going back to the Lord (c.v. the prodigal son, Luke 15:11-32). The 'enemies', however, are killed, because their attitude to God is not only mistrust but direct hatred. Please let me know what you think... God bless, Zsuzsi |
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49 | Enemies? | Luke 19:27 | Zsuzsi | 120806 | ||
Hi Mommapbs, Thanks for your answer and for this excellent study topic. I am sorry about the delayed response but I have actually been researching and praying about what you said... And as a matter of fact, your interpretation does make sense in a way, it can stand language-wise and it is supported by a few other Bible passages. Here is what I found: 'enemy' - 'echthros' (Gr), means hated, used in many cases for 'bitter enemy of divine government'. 'slave' - 'doulos' (Gr), means slave or bondman, one who gives himself up to another's will. In a metaphorical sense, Jesus uses this word in a few places for the people who devote themselves to His service. Also see, for example: Mt 13:44: Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. Together with: Lk 17:21: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. Jn:15:5: I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. etc... Nevertheless if we take your interpretation, we still have the question about the difference between 'enemy' and 'unworthy slave'; neither have I found any Biblical reference that Jesus was referring to Himself, and your interpretation, to me, seems somewhat out of context (Luke 19 - Zacchaeus, the colt and triumphant entry to Jerusalem, and Jesus clearing the temple). Zacchaeus: Jesus came to save those who are lost; The colt and enrty in Jerusalem: "..if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out." Lk 19:40 Clearing the temple in Jerusalem: God's house should not be made a den of thieves. Also, Luke 19:11 says, "And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear." To me that suggests that Jesus was trying to tell the people that He would not save the world in the way they imagined... Besides, I do not believe in 'Grace-Only' salvation, I am reminded of Jn:14:15: If ye love me, keep my commandments. (Lk:6:46: And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Mt:7:21: Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. etc) Personally I believe maintaining an intimate relationship with Jesus is the most important, which necessarily involves a strong determination to keep His commandments. The rest is His Grace. I think He definitely did not die to 'entitle' anyone to sin... He died so that we would be 'in' but not 'of' the world. (John 17). Additionally, as I said above, He does use 'servant' for the people who serve Him, which makes me think my interpretation can also stand. So to me the idea that Jesus was urging us to at least attempt to use the talents He has given, however little, seems more straightforward. But of course that is just my personal opinion. I know the feeling when the Holy Spirit touches you through God's Word, and if this is what you believe happened to you now, I am really no-one to convince you of my own opinion. A single word of the Holy Spirit outclasses all our tries in grammatico-historical and whatever approaches. Your interpretation is well within the borders of what I call 'sensible Christian faith' and I have not found anything that would belie its truth. Jesus is indeed a treasure in our heart, to me He is actually much more than that. After some hours of prayer I believe it is not His will that I should try to change your opinion about this, "Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind." Romans 14:6 This is all I can say to you: if you are unsure, pray about it once more, and see what the Lord answers. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. Prov 2:6. In case you would like to discuss it a bit more, I am willing to pray and explore this more in depth with you. Thank you again and God bless you, Zsuzsi |
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50 | Enemies? | Luke 19:27 | Zsuzsi | 120834 | ||
:) That's actually what we are commanded to do: "A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction." Prov 1:5-7 I am convinced that it hurts the Lord deeply when people bigotedly hold on to their own ideas, especially about His Word, without consulting Him; they wouldn't turn to Him even when they find themselves in those fierce, never-ending debates... No wonder God's blessing is not there! But if it hurts me so much, how much can it hurt Him?? Aren't we are supposed to seek the TRUTH, rather than ways to prove ourselves right? Prov 22:4: "By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life." So I am just doing what I was commanded to do. I am an unprofitable servant: I have done that which was my duty to do. (Luke 17:10) But thanks anyway for the blessing, may God bless your day too. Zsuzsi |
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51 | God's name or a title? | John 1:1 | Zsuzsi | 120586 | ||
There is a special name for God in Hebrew, that is translated 'the LORD' ('Yahweh', that is, "the existing One", always capitalized 'LORD') in basically all Bible versions. The Jews respected the name of the LORD to a great extent, that is why they preferred to use 'titles' at other times; eg. 'Adonay', which is translated 'Lord', was a title, spoken in place of Yahweh in Jewish display of reverence; or 'Elohym', translated 'God', meaning something close to 'Divine Ruler'. And of course there are thousands of other titles, "Tower of Refuge", "Rock of Strength", "Great King", "God of Abraham", "Holy One of Israel", and so on. So I believe God has only one 'name' in the Bible, that is 'the LORD', ie. 'the existing One'; all the rest are mighty and beautiful titles appointed to Him... Truly He deserves every one of them, and He would deserve much more; His Name is above all names. 'Word' refers to Jesus, for in Him the word of God (His law and His promises) was fulfilled. Jn:1:14: And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. Mt:5:17: Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. God bless, Zsuzsi |
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52 | Is the quote presumptuous? | John 6:44 | Zsuzsi | 123532 | ||
Hi Knucklehead, Satan does bother with everyone, saved or unsaved, he even bothered with Jesus so why would we be different? I cannot tell you why he does it apart from that he hates God and all things that are from Him, but speaking from personal experience I can tell that he does tempt Christians as well. Unfortunately we can't tell him where he "should" move on to... :-) In my opinion, salvation depends solely on whether one is reborn in the Spirit or not (John 3:1-21) - and in rebirth, I believe, our whole inner nature changes from 'sinful' to 'righteous'. By being reborn, we get the same Spirit whom Jesus Himself had (Galatians 4:6), and as He did, in our inner self we delight in doing His will (eg. Romans 7:22), and we call Him and know Him as 'our Father'. Even Jesus is not ashamed of calling us His brothers/sisters (Hebrews 2:12). If we live by this Spirit, we will be "in" but not "of" the world - this is what Jesus prayed for in John 17. Yet our mortal flesh is unredeemed while we are on earth (c.v. Romans 8:23), and it 'wars' against the Spirit of God in us (Romans 7:23). This is where Satan can attack; we must live by the Spirit in us and not obey the lusts of our flesh (Galatians 5:16). If we sin, that is because we have not obeyed the Spirit of God living in us. But that does not stop us from being reborn - it simply means we have temporarily acted against our own reborn selves, which is the same as acting against God, hence the guilt and consequences etc.. (Read Romans 7, esp v 9-25). We also know that God has defeated Satan and will strenghten and support us to do good (2Peter 2:9, Romans 8:11, etc), and we can count on the sympathy of Jesus when we are tempted because He knows what it feels like (Hebrews 4:15). Therefore Satan has no power over us - unless we allow him to have some. So we are actually told to rejoice in temptations (James 1:2) because we can be sure of victory. Unless we ourselves choose otherwise, of course. And if we do, we have still gained the knowledge of how dependant we actually are on God. If we sin, God is gracious and forgives (1John 1:9). So sinning does not take our birthright: we are still His children, and He still loves us. I usually say to people struggling with guilt that God foresaw all the sins we would commit before He chose to save us; so if He loved us yesterday, He loves us today too, no matter what we have done or will do tomorrow. This is why we can feel safe in our position before Christ. Maybe I am misinterpreting things, but it seems to me that the Scriptures are not saying we are to try to be good because we are afraid of what would happen if we weren't, or because we want any rewards, not even because of our appreciation of the sacrifice Jesus made for us; but because we are One with Him and simply can't do otherwise (1John 3:9). We are not our own any more: we are God's (1Cor 6:19). This is a wondrous thing: we can try to live 'good' lives even before we are reborn, that is what many people claim to do today - but that again is something like the young man who came to Jesus, saying he's been doing everything God commanded all his life but obviously he was still missing something: although he was prepared to obey God as a remote servant, he was not prepared to be reborn and completely owned by Him as a child (Mark 10:17-21). I believe it is the initmate oneness with Him, the sweet Father-child relationship between Him and us that makes us holy, not our own attempts to act righteously. There is only one sin that will not be forgiven: the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (eg. Mark 3:29), which I believe is "making Him out to be a liar" by claiming we walk in His light while we actually consciously walk in darkness (1John 1:10). That is a sin we can never repent of, since we deny repentance itself - neither will God forgive. Neither the generosity of the Father nor the sacrifice of Jesus "entitles" anyone to sin. Abusing the freedom which is our birthright is what Paul repeatedly refers to as "God forbid!". Once we are reborn, faith or works as a basis for our salvation loses meaning. Salvation is what God gives to us, not what we give to ourselves. All God wants is a willingness to completely surrender our lives to Him and enjoy the "fullness in Christ" already on earth and in the life to come. Read also Ephesians 3:14-21. This is what I believe... Hope it made sense... :-) God bless you, Zsuzsi |
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53 | can you explain a little more? thanks | Rom 8:13 | Zsuzsi | 121089 | ||
Dear Leonore, I understand your concern and can assure you that you have absolutely no reason to feel ashamed of asking: Prov 3:13: "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding." I believe the solution to this problem is that you understand 'rebirth'. It doesn't mean that all of a sudden you will not be tempted to do bad things (remember, even Jesus Himself was tempted) - it simply means that you will have an identity as a child of God, so it is actually below your dignity to sin. Read Jesus' answer to Satan when He was tempted: "It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." (Lk 4:4). I.e., 'Yes, I am the Son of God, and this is the very reason why I consider myself more worthy to do my Father's will than to simply satisfy my hunger.' (NB: He had been fasting for 40 days - so He was hungry!) You have to realize that God does not look at you as a wretched sinful rebel any more, since Jesus died for you; and it is this realization that will enable you to live up to your dignity by choosing not to sin. 'Rebirth' really means realizing Jesus WITHIN you, and allowing Him to work His will in your life. This will involve a lot of surrender in the beginning, it is like letting your Father take your dirty clothes and clothe you in white; for the Lord said: Isa 1:18: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." This surrender is what Jesus meant when He said: Mt:16:24: "Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." 'Deny yourself', that is, 'deny your right to yourself'. You are not your own any more: You are God's. You are 'His personal concern' (1Pet 5:7). Your pain is His pain, your joy is His joy; and vice versa, His pain should be your pain, and His joy your joy. 'Surrender' and 'deny' sound like awful words, but what we are talking about is the sweetest thing that can ever happen in your life. Simply deposit yourself in His hands, love Him, let Him do with you according to His will and watch the miracle happen. You are saved only if you are reborn: and if you are reborn to be His child, you will find it the most natural to keep those commandments. You will delight in His law (Ps 40:8: "I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart."), you will be IN but not OF the world.. Not because you are able to do it yourself, but because God by His Grace has done it already for you! So give yourself to Jesus, without Him you can do nothing. Jn 15:5: "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." Turning to the passage you are asking about in light of what I now told you, I believe it means that if you neglect the guidance of the Holy Spirit within you, by concentrating on satisfying your bodily desires (i.e. you are not reborn), you will not gain eternal life. If you, however, 'by the power of the Holy Spirit', 'put to death the deeds of the body', surrender yourself to God, (i.e. you are reborn), you will live. After you have read what Angel advised you to read, please turn to John 3:1-21, John 17 and Psalm 119... Another thing. Generally speaking, the best way to cope with Scripture problems is actually prayer. You'll find that God often reveals the meaning of certain passages right away; He loves you, and He promised: Ps 32:8: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." So He will sure do it. Ask, and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you... (Mt 7:7) Apart from the Bible, I do recommend a book for you: it is 'Birthright' by David C. Needham, Multnomah Press, Portland, Oregon (1979). (ISBN: 0-930014-75-8). Try to get hold of it; it has helped me a lot in clearing up the true meaning of 'rebirth'. The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. (Numbers 6:24-26) Zsuzsi |
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54 | can you explain a little more? thanks | Rom 8:13 | Zsuzsi | 121090 | ||
Dear Leonore, I understand your concern and can assure you that you have absolutely no reason to feel ashamed of asking: Prov 3:13: "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding." I believe the solution to this problem is that you understand 'rebirth'. It doesn't mean that all of a sudden you will not be tempted to do bad things (remember, even Jesus Himself was tempted) - it simply means that you will have an identity as a child of God, so it is actually below your dignity to sin. Read Jesus' answer to Satan when He was tempted: "It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." (Lk 4:4). I.e., 'Yes, I am the Son of God, and this is the very reason why I consider myself more worthy to do my Father's will than to simply satisfy my hunger.' (NB: He had been fasting for 40 days - so He was hungry!) You have to realize that God does not look at you as a wretched sinful rebel any more, since Jesus died for you; and it is this realization that will enable you to live up to your dignity by choosing not to sin. 'Rebirth' really means realizing Jesus WITHIN you, and allowing Him to work His will in your life. This will involve a lot of surrender in the beginning, it is like letting your Father take your dirty clothes and clothe you in white; for the Lord said: Isa 1:18: "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." This surrender is what Jesus meant when He said: Mt:16:24: "Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." 'Deny yourself', that is, 'deny your right to yourself'. You are not your own any more: You are God's. You are 'His personal concern' (1Pet 5:7). Your pain is His pain, your joy is His joy; and vice versa, His pain should be your pain, and His joy your joy. 'Surrender' and 'deny' sound like awful words, but what we are talking about is the sweetest thing that can ever happen in your life. Simply deposit yourself in His hands, love Him, let Him do with you according to His will and watch the miracle happen. You are saved only if you are reborn: and if you are reborn to be His child, you will find it the most natural to keep those commandments. You will delight in His law (Ps 40:8: "I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart."), you will be IN but not OF the world.. Not because you are able to do it yourself, but because God by His Grace has done it already for you! So give yourself to Jesus, without Him you can do nothing. Jn 15:5: "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." Turning to the passage you are asking about in light of what I now told you, I believe it means that if you neglect the guidance of the Holy Spirit within you, by concentrating on satisfying your bodily desires (i.e. you are not reborn), you will not gain eternal life. If you, however, 'by the power of the Holy Spirit', 'put to death the deeds of the body', surrender yourself to God, (i.e. you are reborn), you will live. After you have read what Angel advised you to read, please turn to John 3:1-21, John 17 and Psalm 119... Another thing. Generally speaking, the best way to cope with Scripture problems is actually prayer. You'll find that God often reveals the meaning of certain passages right away; He loves you, and He promised: Ps 32:8: "I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye." So He will sure do it. Ask, and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you... (Mt 7:7) Apart from the Bible, I do recommend a book for you: it is 'Birthright' by David C. Needham, Multnomah Press, Portland, Oregon (1979). (ISBN: 0-930014-75-8). Try to get hold of it; it has helped me a lot in clearing up the true meaning of 'rebirth'. The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. (Numbers 6:24-26) Zsuzsi |
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55 | Can someone help me get to God? | Rom 10:9 | Zsuzsi | 122592 | ||
Hmm... Yes, our Good Shepherd would like the big sheep to protect the little sheep from bad food that will make them sick - but He would also have us give them something good which they can actually feed on! Mark 6:34 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things. Sincerely yours in Christ, Zsuzsi |
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56 | Can someone help me get to God? | Rom 10:9 | Zsuzsi | 122650 | ||
Hi Edb, Being willing to become a Bible scholar and/or a theologian, I might have a special viewpoint, but I believe an honest heart does recognize the voice of the Holy Spirit! If we search the Bible just to find some passages that prove our ideologies, we will probably end up with getting lies and deception out of it - but then it is our deliberate choice... But if we prayerfully and without prejudice (for this reason, personally I don't even read the commentaries before I study a passage myself) read the Bible, the Holy Spirit will lead us to His Truth and teach us all things (Jn 14:26)! Don't we pray, 'deliver us from evil' (Mt 6:13)? We know that God listens to all our prayers (Jn 14:13-14) - so if our sincere intention is to find the Truth, not to bigotedly hold on to our beliefs, we can fully trust in God's power to protect us from lies and deception from the adversary! Luke 11:13: "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?" The truth that the Holy Spirit reveals to us is never in contradiction with the Scriptures, and ripping single verses from their context or holding on to beliefs which are clearly proven wrong is clearly not 'being led by the Holy Spirit'... "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? But I trust that you will realize that we ourselves do not fail the test. Now we pray to God that you do no wrong; not that we ourselves may appear approved, but that you may do what is right, even though we may appear unapproved. For we can do nothing against the truth, but only for the truth." 2Cor 13:5-8. We listen to preachers for the purpose of testing our faith. We are to pray and open our minds: if we know the Truth, nobody can convince us of anything else, for God Himself will protect us, if we ask Him to do so. But if we do not know the Truth, we must be prepared to change our mind... This is what teachers and preachers are for: we judge their teachings, and pray that God will show us what we are to accept and what we should reject. Whether we are lay people or theologians, we are not to suffer fools gladly... (2Cor 11:19) Blessings, Zsuzsi |
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57 | Can someone help me get to God? | Rom 10:9 | Zsuzsi | 122706 | ||
EdB, What you said is unfortunately true, and it is very shameful... I believe this behavior of people orginates from plain pride: this is the tragedy of humanity, wanting to know, and thinking we know, but not realizing that we are limited in our knowledge and therefore do err. We ate from the tree of knowledge, and see where we are heading. We acknowledge, with words, that only God knows everything; but somehow it seems to be beneath our dignity to accept that we ourselves might sometimes be wrong. Bigotry is one of our weakest points; we all are tempted and we do fall. To make it worse, we even draw on the 'Holy Spirit' as an excuse. :-( As for the denominations, you are so right... Jesus made one Church, and I believe He never intended it to end up in different groups getting into bitter debates with one another. (John 13:34: "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.") He especially did not intend it to become any financial institution or political organization (Mark 12:17: "Then Jesus said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." And they were amazed at him."). It was meant to keep His sheep in unity and bound to Him - so they would stand on the Rock and not be shaken when the storm comes. I am convinced that the painful divisions within His Body hurt Him the most. I actually think we should thank Him, daily, on our knees, that He is patient enough to hold us together even this much, when we have constantly tried to scatter throughout the centuries. Sadly the problem is rooted too deeply in us... I mean, just look around: we, being 'good Christians', even start selling sightseeing books and postcards in cathedrals and churches - I am sure Jesus would whip all that out just as He did in Jerusalem. And after all that, WE want to work miracles, speak in tongues and heal the sick?!? We'd be better off begging for a miracle of Grace that this greed would disappear from our hearts... The true Church of Christ is fortunately not going to be destroyed by any powers of hell, for it was His will that it should stand (Mt 16:18); but it certainly does not consist of the people who bigotedly hold on to 'MY faith is right', but rather of those, of whatever denomination, who are in but not of the world - the reborn 'little flock', who are able to place love before pride on their priority-list. Maybe I am too naive. I probably am. But that is what the Scriptures seem to tell me anyway. 1 Corinthians 1:10: "I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought." Zsuzsi |
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58 | Can someone help me get to God? | Rom 10:9 | Zsuzsi | 122707 | ||
Yes. :-) Did I say anything different? Grace to you too, Zsuzsi |
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59 | Can someone help me get to God? | Rom 10:9 | Zsuzsi | 122750 | ||
Earnest, If earthly wealth is really "a measure of one's inner being", then I am very blessed to be so poor in spirit too (Mt 5:3)! ...But... may I ask, where exactly did you get "vitally important to man and God" from? Blessings, Zsuzsi |
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60 | 'Lone rangers' and spiritual discernment | 1 Cor 12:12 | Zsuzsi | 121911 | ||
It happens sometimes that believers are 'left alone' and have to become 'lone rangers'. The Bible actually mentions that most servants of God were 'lone rangers', at least for a period in their lives: - Noah was left alone (with his family). Genesis 6 - Lot and his family escaped alone. Genesis 19 - Jacob was left alone to wrestle with God. Genesis 32:24 - Joseph (alone) was even sold by his brothers. Genesis 37 - Elijah complained about feeling alone several times (though God confirmed later that he wasn't) 1Kings 18:22, 1Kings 19:10,14 There are many more examples in the OT... Also in the NT, we see: - John the Baptist was alone the voice of crying in the wilderness. Mt 3:3 - Jesus Himself felt alone and forsaken by His disciples. Jn 16:32. On the cross He even felt forsaken by His Father. Mk 15:34 - Paul and the apostles also had to be alone at times. eg. Acts 28 In my opinion, being a 'lone ranger' is not the same thing as rejecting universal church teachings... Would you consider non-denominational believers 'lone rangers', for example? I actually believe it is important for a person's spiritual development that God seperates him from solid earthly support for a while; only this way can his faith be tested and strenghtened. See for example 2Chronicles 32:31: "God left him alone only to test him, that He might know all that was in his heart." Of course the Bible emphasizes the need for co-operation within the church, eg. Eph 4:1-16, but I believe it also urges each person to find out and work individually the will of God. ("You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise!" 2Cor 11:19) 'Individuality' does not mean 'in complete separation from the church'-all eyes must remember that they belong to a body-, but I believe God does not want a blind eye to follow a blind ear. Some churches do teach doctrines that I find unacceptable, for example. Shall I submit just because they claim to be 'THE Church of Christ', or shall I rather withdraw and seek God elsewhere? I believe each person in the universal church of Christ should feel a personal responsiblity for discerning what in the teachings of a particular church comes from God and what doesn't. I study the Bible and pray for discernment from the Spirit if I hear or read any 'Christian' teaching that I find difficult to accept. As Christians, shouldn't our purpose be to find and follow the Truth, rather than either to blindly follow earthly leaders who might as well be blind guides, or to bigotedly hold on to our personal beliefs which are clearly proven wrong? Being a 'lone ranger' is wrong if it means teaching false doctrines to people, claiming to be Christian - that is being a blind guide. But in my opinion, it is not wrong to separate ourselves to God and rely solely on the Scriptures and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, when we are in a learning period and seeking Truth. "It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man." Psalm 118:8 The future 'rangers' must go out alone for a while and see for themselves what the battlefield is like; the battle we are to fight is not an easy one! We can only succeed if we are backed up by the Almighty God Himself. If we do not have His support in a certain mission we feel called to, we will certainly fail anyway. We could put it this way: the eye must find the way to see by himself. He is designed for seeing, that is the only thing he has the support of the Spirit for. He might attempt to hear, but will surely fail. The ears cannot teach the eye how to see, even though they function very well in other ways: only the Spirit, who dwells in the body and holds it together, that can teach the individual parts their jobs. In the discernment period, the task of the church, I believe, is exactly to send out the believers into the hard part of the service: trying to protect them from the fight would prevent them from knowing their own abilities and limitations. Let the eye find out for himself if he can hear; he will soon realize that it is not what he is called to do. He does not need 'recipes' from any other part of the body for how to hear (there is a sad tendency that people want recipes for everything: 'How do I receive the Holy Spirit?' is a FAQ); he cannot, and will not, because he is not gifted to do that. As he turns to his Creator, he will eventually find the purpose for his existence, and be able to please God and be satisfied. It is only when we know our calling for sure and have tested our faith for ourselves (in Paul's words, know the 'fullness of Christ') that we can fully join the work in the body of Christ and function to its advantage. But then we must do so... Do you agree? Blessings, Zsuzsi |
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