Results 61 - 80 of 1444
|
||||||
Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Author: JCrichton Ordered by Date |
||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
61 | Jn3:16 ;1Jn2:15 Do/don't love the world | John 3:16 | JCrichton | 151021 | ||
Hi, Doc! I agree with you completely! The problem I have is with those who are purporting to being spiritual or advanced and pass judgment on all who do not have the same intimacy with Jesus or the same understanding of the Word... it is the Holy Spirit who gives to one the ability to know God and to other the ability to be intimate with God... We find that not even the twelve had the same understanding nor the same receptiveness nor the same intimacy with Jesus... Peter is always at the ready, outstripping everyone else in zealousness for Christ; yet, it is John who experiences the greater intimacy with Christ! As with any relationship, our relationship with God grows stronger the more we employ our time with worship and study of the Holy Scripture... yet, knowing God for a very long time does not equate to receiving greater abilities or understanding... we find that human frailty can diminish our relationship with God--even to the point of being detrimental to our spiritual wellbeing: ie: Aaron's and his wife's jealousy of Moses' relationship with Yahweh--they actually thought that they could dictate who God would choose to bring into His intimacy! Further, we are called to lift those who are weak in faith--we are not called to tear them down by removing the slightest hope and strength that they may possess! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
62 | Holy Spirit / Tongues for Today? | Acts 2:39 | JCrichton | 151019 | ||
Hi, Huron! Peter is not saying that all who are baptized and receive the Holy Spirit will be speaking in tongues as a sign that they are part of the Body of Christ... what he is saying is that all Believers throughout time till the return of our Lord will receive the Holy Spirit--this is the same premise made by Christ (John 14:16-17--compare similar inclusion in 2 Timothy 1:7-9 and John 17:15-21); Scripture never stipulates that all who were baptized and received the Holy Spirit spoke in strange languages or that they performed any extraordinary signs! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
63 | Holy Spirit / Tongues for Today? | Acts 2:39 | JCrichton | 150980 | ||
Hi, Huron! The Amish, as well as others, believe that technology should not be part of the Believers' life... there are various interpretations of Scriptures that, for the most part, are extremist views that hinder rather than aide man in worshipping God... There were Christians buying into extemes way back when.. Paul addressed the issue of speaking in strange tongues as follows: 1 Corinthians 14 :2 those who speak in them speak to God not others; :4 they help themselves only; :5 I would rather that you proclaim God's Word; :12 aspire for the gifts of the Spirit with which you can help the Church; :19 in Church worship I would rather speak five words that can be understood by all, than thousands in strange tongues; :22 speaking in strange tongues is proof for unbelievers (those who reject God) not for believers; while proclaiming God's message is proof for believers! I've paraphrased these verses, for the unedited version read 1 Corinthians 14:1-25; for mandates on orderly service with reference to speaking in tongues, read 1 Corinthians 14:26-33--note that Paul specifically calls to order that no more than two or three should speak in tongues, and that there should be an order (not everyone all at once); he also cautions that if there is none who can interprete then those speaking in tongues should be doing it in a quiet manner in order to facilitate and orderly service... it is understood that any revelation must be for the edification of the Church--pesonal revelations or any other revelation is unwarranted! Now, since the Holy Spirit did not just appear on earth for the sole purpose of introducing the disciples to the Jewish and Gentile communities, we must understand that He is able to give any Gift to any member of Christ's Body; the gift of tongues is no exception--there's no time restriction to the Holy Spirit's function in the Church! Sadly, we take the Holy Scripture to extremes and we create theologies that, in essence, places God under our control: speaking in tongues; handling serpents; transportation to Heaven; discerning spirits; having the keys to Heaven, life, wealth, health, longevity, exclusive relationships with Christ, the Father, the Holy Spirit; personal revelations; special knowledge of the future... all for the asking, by following some formula or "little known secrets" of the Holy Scripture... When we claim to be able to do something that other Christians cannot do or when we claim that to be in Christ a person must do precisely what we demand of them to do... does that not verge on egocentrism? Speaking in tongues is possible for Christians... but the lack of the ability to speak in tongues does not demonstrate lack of faith or some form of disenfranchisement from God! It is the Holy Spirit who determines what Gift to bestow upon the Believer and when (1 Corinthians 12:4-11); He will impart you, me or any other Christian with the ability that we need to edify the Church... no one can demand or subscribe to a special forum of "self-service" gifts! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
64 | Jn3:16 ;1Jn2:15 Do/don't love the world | John 3:16 | JCrichton | 150972 | ||
Hi, Doc! Sorry... but I can be obtuse at times... I don't follow you! ...are you saying that all Christians have complete understanding of the Holy Scripture?, or Anyone not having complete understanding of the Holy Scripture lack the Holy Spirit? We can be confounded by Scripture when we view the Word at extremes... there are congregations stipulating that to be "saved" or that to "have the Holy Spirit" a person must (no exception), a person must speak in strange languages; others stipulate being impervious to venom; others, that we cannot use modern technologies, doctors, medicines, coffee, tea... Understanding of the Word of God is through Divine Inspiration--does that mean that only a select few are capable of reading the Holy Scripture? Jesus never stipulated a point grade level to His disciples... and there is no teaching in Scripture that having the Holy Spirit guarantees complete and unabridged comprehension of God or God's Word... Every element in Christ's Body operates in his/her capacity as the Holy Spirit deems it... there are no "division of classes" in Christ's Body... every member is a codependent element in the Body; not all are Apostles, not all are preachers, not all are teachers... some will have basic understanding and some will have deeper understanding; some will have litte faith and much knowledge; some will have much faith and little knowledge... it is the Holy Spirit who convicts both the Believers and the world... To exclude poeple from the Body on the grounds that they lack the Holy Spirit because they lack full understanding of the Holy Scripture is not only an irresponsible act, but it is a stumbling block to those whose faith is not strong and to those who are mere beginners! Saul was very knowledgeable about God (Philippians 3:4-6)... still, he was not receptive to the Holy Spirit... God chose him to lead the missions to the gentiles; though we cannot claim Paul's miraculous conversion, our conversion is just as important as his--and it was through his submission to Christ's Authority that allowed the Holy Spirit to enlighten his mind and spirit!: the man that knew much was blind; the man that confided in God saw the Light! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
65 | Jn3:16 ;1Jn2:15 Do/don't love the world | John 3:16 | JCrichton | 150967 | ||
Hi, Starfire! Thank you for your generous words! "...I now see that there is no shame or defeat or disappointing God..." I think that this too is part of God's Plan... we are called to be part of One Body... every one of us has something to contribute (the Holy Spirit bestows upon us what the Church needs)... coming together in Christ is the culmination of both humble obedience and true worship... and since we've not yet become what we can be, we must each bring forward our weaknesses or strengths... not a single one of us will be deemed less valuable to Christ! As Paul said, it is in our infirmities that Christ is Strong! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
66 | why go to a doctor for healing | Bible general Archive 2 | JCrichton | 150919 | ||
Hi, Lani! Just as there is no Scripture restricting from the use of a doctor, there is no Scripture guaranteeing us miracle cures from God that correspond to our level of obedience and/or faith... As a matter of fact, there is one specific passage that speaks on our reliance on God's Strength rather than on ours, and it shatters all teaching that lack of faith is the impediment to health and wealth for the Christian: 7To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 8Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 10That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10) Paul's faith and accomplishments in the service of Christ, outstrips most of today's Believers'--would we say then, that it was his lack of faith or his ambivalence that kept Paul from obtaining enough grace to remove/cure whatever ailed him? Clearly, Jesus was aware that the poeple of Israel were frequenting physicians (Matthew 9:12; Luke 4:23); yet, there was never a word against those who practiced medicine nor against those who sought treatment! Just as on the day of Pentecost, God has the Power to reveal Himself as He pleases... it could very well be that during our times (as times in the past) the Holy Spirit may decide to remove/cure any and all ailments from those who serve Christ--this by no means implies a contractural obligation in God's part! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
67 | Jn3:16 ;1Jn2:15 Do/don't love the world | John 3:16 | JCrichton | 150914 | ||
"IF we cannot understand the bible, that the Holy Spirit is not within us " Hi! Jesus never taught that! Not a single Apostle/disciple ever taught that! Our spiritual growth does not depend on our personal abilities... it is God, the Holy Spirit, who chooses to give to some one Gift or another (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). Kwoing God is not a choice that we make; God reveals Himself to us according to His Will (John 6:44); hence, knowing God is never contingent upon any human power or understanding... we have an excellent example of this in John 15:27 thru 16:15: 27And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning. ...4I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you. I did not tell you this at first because I was with you. 5"Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?' 6Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. 7But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 9in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; 10in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. 12"I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you. In the above passage, Jesus speaks of things to come... He credits the Apostles with the witnessing they will do since they were with Him from the beginning; while at the same time He explains to them that His absence is to their benefit... the disciples, with the exception of Judas, were eager to know Jesus, to know God's mysteries... they wanted to get closer to God by being part of Jesus' intimate companions--did they understand everything? No! Was it required of them? Emphatically, NO! Not only did the disciples not understand everything, but Jesus tells them flat out that there are things that they could not comprehend even if He were to reveal them to them... He sends the Holy Spirit, the other Paraclete, who will come to reveal the fullness of truth! The Holy Spirit is in the world... we are at the last days when His Spirit is given to the world, and it is He, the Holy Spirit, that teaches and leads all to Christ... it is He, who reveals the mind of God (1 Corinthians 2:6-16)... and those who have the Holy Spirit do not demonstrate this by their abilities (human/superhuman) of speaking strange languages, walking on hot coals, playing with serpents or taming tigers, and lions, and bears! Here's the quintessential prof that you are in Christ and that the Holy Spirit dwells in you: Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3) 20But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. 21I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. 22Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son. 23No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25And this is what he promised us—even eternal life. (1 John 2:20-25) ...more proof that it is not what we know but who we know?... read Acts 8:14-17; 10:34-48 On the above passages, some were received into the Body of Christ through preaching and baptism (knowledge and awareness) while others through direct interaction of the Holy Spirit; these new Believers were not rejected because they did not know enough or because they did not offer some physical demonstration of the Holy Spirit working in them! God's Holy Spirit cannot be contained or restrained; He determines who receives what, when, and in what measure. So, be at peace! God will reveal to you everything that He wants you to know at His appointed time... we are commanded to seek God; not to worry about who gets to "home plate" first or how often! Anyone who attempts to teach you differently than Jesus, he/she is wrong! (Matthew 20:1-16) God Bless! Angel |
||||||
68 | Jn3:16 ;1Jn2:15 Do/don't love the world | John 3:16 | JCrichton | 150904 | ||
Hi! I think that part of the problem you are having is experienced by most Christians (and the world) as they begin their trek with Jesus... There are many seemingly contradictory statements in Scripture... one in particular is when Jesus talks about the end of times and He tells His disciples that not even the Son (of man) knows the exact moment, that that hour and day are exclusively known only to the Father... Here's the catch... Jesus never stopped being God; since God is Omniscient, Jesus must know all (all things were created by Him and for Him); the disciples become aware of Jesus' Omniscience: Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. This makes us believe that you came from God." (John 16:30) Then, why would Jesus lie?... He didn't! As the Lamb of God (John 1:29) the Word Incarnate did not come to teach and reveal all the mysteries of God; He came to Save the world (John 3:140-17)... and Jesus Himself tells us that there are things that He did not reveal because the disciples were not yet ready to understand (John 16:7-15)... God can love the world (all of humanity without exception) while still rejecting the world (all of humanity who choose to trangress His Authority and rebel against His Will), for it is not God who differentiates between one man and another; it is man who humbly subjects himself to God's Will and obeys Him or proudly rejects God's Authority and disobeys Him and revels in his own will (John 3:17-21; 5:24-40; John 1:1-5, 9-14)... God loves the world so much so that the Word becomes as one of us in order to rescue us from the wages of sin (death); but God loathes iniquity... thusly He rejects the world which waddles and revels in iniquity! And because there is an evident distinction between God and man, He is able to love all the world without succumbing to its snares and enticements (Matthew 4:1-1-11), while, simulatenousely, warning us not to get caught up in the entanglemens of the world's lures... Did God forbid us to love the world as He does?... a resounding, NO! We are commanded to pray for the world , to love, in Christ, the world, to bring peace, Christ's peace, to the world, to offer the world the Light of God. (Matthew 5:43-48; 5:14-16; John 14:27; 2 Corinthians 5:20 thru 6:10; Romans 10:14-15; Matthew 28:18-20) So we are to love the world, in Christ Jesus, while not becoming lovers of the world and all of its revelries and orgies (sex, money, power, hate, anger, gluttony ...) which lead us away from God and places us in enmity against God's Might, Judgment and Wrath! (Revelation 6:15-17) God Bless! Angel |
||||||
69 | Reincarnation, scripturally founded? | Heb 9:27 | JCrichton | 150893 | ||
Glad to have helped! Thank you for the encouragement! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
70 | So HOW do you walk in the Spirit ? | Gal 5:16 | JCrichton | 150890 | ||
Hi, Jlhetrick! Thank you for the encouragement! You are so correct... there are way too many people memorizing a single Scriptural verse or part of a verse and formulating a whole theology about it... to the point of ignoring/excluding the rest of the Holy Scripture, including the verses preceding or proceeding the specified text... I remember that at one time I thought that Romans 6:23 was comprised only with the term: "the wages of sin is death;" unwillingly, I had adopted only a portion of that particular verse which, as in the Old Testament warning (the sin visited to the fourth geneneration), offers much more than simply death: God's free gift of Life! Keeping in mind that many people who are asking questions are simply not familiar with the Holy Scripture, we can better serve othes and ourselves by referencing corroborating or hermenutical passages that can expand their understanding of a single Scriptural passage... Context is not just a guide but an importand aide to understanding... this is one reason why I refuse to entertain those "what if" scenarios--nothing is relevant but the clause itself, making all and any interpretation valid! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
71 | Whats the point? | Bible general Archive 2 | JCrichton | 150885 | ||
Hi, Katebote! I've have encounter this exact problem several times... one way to avoid is to open a computer program (word/works...) and work on that pad then copy on to the forum's pad--the original can be edited to remove any symbols that is not supported by the forum's server; another way is to copy the text on the pad before depressing the "Previe Follow-up" button--the material would be in temporary memory and can be pasted and edited... God luck and God Bless! Angel |
||||||
72 | Whats the point? | Bible general Archive 2 | JCrichton | 150808 | ||
Hi, Katebote! I doubt that anyone here knows about a site that can produce miracles at will--though Jesus tells us that Satan will do just that... I don't think that anyone is afraid of having their feelings hurt... I think that most people on this forum are concerned with shearing the Holy Scripture as the Word of God... sadly, in order to understand this a person coming to this forum must be willing to learn that the Bible is not simply a collection of books, but God's own Word! If a person comes here looking to satisfy his/her curiosity by applying human terms and idologies they will simply get what they came in with--predetermined philosophies... for instance, hollow wood preaches that when evil threatens the world God uses the most wicked and vile people to rescue humanity... this of course is sacrilege as it denies Christ's Incarnation: the Just rescuing man from death; it is also a wonderful spin for all who pretend to want to be Christians yet continue a life of sin without remorse, repentance or obedience to God. You say you need to talk about the Bible in truth... however, this post attests to "your truth" not the Bible's... since you reject God as the Creator and Author by rejecting His Word as the exact Truth! Jesus is the Life and the Truth--where are you to go to find the truth if not in the persona of Christ? He is the one that made everything that exists... everything that exists was made by Him and for Him... He Commands us to Believe in Him and He will set us free (from anything and everything, including our finite understanding)... If you are looking for God's revelation to you in an all out shattering explosive exclusive... God is not interested... the Hebrews were rescued from Egypt way back when and no more is there need for the Red Sea to be parted... John the Baptist came and so did the Immanuel (Emmanuel) so there will be no further intervension from the Holy Spirit to create a new superior prophet (John) or for the Word to be incarnated... Humble yourself to God and He will lift you up! (James 4:10) Remove all hollow woodsy interpretations of God from your mind; humble yourself to the Holy Spirit; quest to get to know Him--not to have Him prove Himself to you; allow His Word to kindle that fire that you are so passionately seeking... He is not far from you, He is in your heart, in your mind, in your body, in your soul! Listen to the Holy Spirit and He will guide you to the Truth: 38Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, "Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you." 39He answered, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. (Matthew 12:38-39) Feel free to continue posting; if nothing else, you might get familiar with the Holy Scripture as you study the various passages that will be cited to you. God Bless! Angel |
||||||
73 | Verses in bible depicting Jesus as God? | Matt 4:10 | JCrichton | 150805 | ||
Hi! I am posting part of a recent reply I gave on this topic: Jesus IS God! John tells us that the Word was with God and that the Word is God... that all that exist was created by Him and that He is the Light of the world, the Life incarnate which came to His own, upon their rejection He gave all who believe in Him the power to become children of God. (John 1;1-14) Yahweh testifies, through His prophets, that Joshua, Christos, the Anointed, is coming to the world and that He is the Emmanuel (God-with-us--which is an ancient prophecy made by God that He will come and walk/live among His people)... among His other titles are: "Mighty God," "Eternal Father," and "Prince of Piece!" Jesus was called Master (Rabbi or Rabbuni) and even those who rejected Him would still recognize that He spoke the truth and that His teaching had full authority... so it is not difficult to understand that His disciples and those who would hear Him were able to understand that there was someone greater than themselves among them... yet even those who did not know Him that intimately undestood that He was God: Elizabeth (and her son), Mary's relative (Luke 1:39-44), the magi (Matthew 2:1-11), Satan (Matthew 4:1-11), Satan's minions (Mark 5:1-13), His disciples (Matthew 16:16; 28:9; 14:33; John 16:25-30; 20:20), the Father (Matthew 3:17; 17:5; Luke 3:22; Hebrews 1:8-12), the Father's Heavenly servants (Revelatin 5:7-14), and finally the Father and the Son (Revelation 21:3-6; 22:12 and 1:7-18)... It was no simple revelation that Christ made when He told His disciples that when they have seen Him they've seen the Father... the Father and the Son are inseparable, how can we expect to serve the One sitting on the Throne and not the One next to Him? The four living creatures, the elders and the angels make no exception because they know that God is God and that there's no subdivision in the Eternal One! (Revelation 21:22 thru 22:5) If you need additional passages, just let me know and I'll gladly assist you! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
74 | Was Naomi bitter towards God | Ruth 1:14 | JCrichton | 150804 | ||
Hi, Bigida2! It is easy to get confused with Scripture if we separate one verse from the rest of Scripture... true Naomi speaks on her situation as being dejected by God but her spiritual state is that of a loving and obedient servant: 8 Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go back, each of you, to your mother's home. May the LORD show kindness to you, as you have shown to your dead and to me. 9 May the LORD grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband." (Ruth 1:8-9) Notice her generosity and her continued faithfulness to the Lord--if her bitterness was against God, would she not take advantage of her two daughters-in-law (she had no male protector so she could use them to gain favor from some prospective courters)? And, if she were begrudging God, why would she bless her daughters-in-law in His name? The people of Israel attributed all incidents to God, even those that were of negative outcome... the death of her husband and sons could only be seen as God's dejection... still, as Abraham, Naomi did not question God and she was rewarded in Ruth! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
75 | Reincarnation, scripturally founded? | Heb 9:27 | JCrichton | 150803 | ||
Hi, NYP! Scripture does not tells us that Elijah died... he was taken onto heaven as his servant Elisa watched... Moses and Elijah appeared with Jesus, again there's no mention of Elijah's death... Reincarnation is a premise of a soul/spirit jumping into another person's body, at birth or a metamorphosis into a different existence (man to animal or plan or thing) due to a spiritual growth or punishment... in either case it is divorced from Christ's Incarnation and Resurrection which promises that we will be risen in our existing condition (man as man, woman as woman) into a glorify existence (spiritual being)... Elijah, as Enoch, was taken into Heaven... what happened then?... it has not been clearly revealed, but we know from Jesus' Transfiguration (Matthew 17:3-6) and His post resurrection appearances that our bodies will be changed into a spiritual being--not a thing or animal or sharing another person's body... Now, are Elijah and John the Baptist one and the same persons... only God knows... He does have the power to have placed him into the womb of Elizabeth: And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. (Matthew 3:9) 1 The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. 3 He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" I said, "O Sovereign LORD, you alone know." 4 Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! 5 This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. 6 I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.' " 7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.' " 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. (Ezekiel 37:1-10) God Bless! Angel |
||||||
76 | So HOW do you walk in the Spirit ? | Gal 5:16 | JCrichton | 150798 | ||
Hi! Read Galatians 5:16 in conjunction with Galatians 5:17-26: 17For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. 19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. To walk in the Spirit is to humble ourselves to God's Will by emulating and obeying Christ! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
77 | How do we understand these words? | John 6:63 | JCrichton | 150796 | ||
Hi, Aixen7z4! The struggle goes on... When we ignore Christ's command to be humble it is, in part, because we we get immersed in ourselves... we fail the first Commandment and we put God not above our ego but below it, we are then able to choose ourselves instead of Christ! "But how can we know if we are sufficiently humble?" The fact that we must constantly check ourselves is a clear gauge of our capacity to be sufficiently humble--we can never be humble enough! Though this is not because humily is so beyond our understanding or spiritual awareness or willingness to serve Christ... rather, it is because we abide in the flesh and Satan, that ole embodiment of pride, assails our weackest link: our ego. Was it pride that prompted you to share your experience at the meeting?, I think not! I think that it was determined by your desire to demonstrate that ecuminsim is possible for Christians, even when the Body of Christ is represented by a diverse group of Believers. There's no pride in demonstrating that we can be one in Christ! "Yet, in some ways, I am identified with them." Here's where we tread beyond humility... there's a fine line between rejoycing in Christ for Christ's sake and rejoicing in ourselves or our "accomplishments;" if the focus of contentment/pride is in ourselves/congregation (I/we did this or that; I/we have done more or outdone him/her/them...), we have left all humility behind and have embraced pride! Conversely, when we move in Christ and for Christ we will be able to remain humble (2 Corinthians 5:20-21; James 4:6; Romans 12:16)... even when we err, we would be receptive to the Holy Sprit and we will quickly repent from our transgression as we humble ourselves to Christ! Can we be humble enough?... no, pride wont let us! But we are humble in Him who died for us; Him who was raised; Him who sits at the Father's right Hand, always interceding in our behalf! So, if we humble ourselves to God, He will lift us up--both exaltation and eternal life! "The standard, after all, is our Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:35)" I do not follow you on this example... could you clarify? "Someone pointed out at a recent meeting that we can become proud of our humility. Isn’t that amazing?" True! Society has conditioned us to appeal to the world in false love and false humility... it could easily be that by professing to be humble we may be expecting acknowledgement of our "sincere humility"--Jesus spoke on this to the disciples when He warned them not to imitate the Pharisees and Sadducees! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
78 | The Bible, Creators word or what? | 2 Tim 3:16 | JCrichton | 150629 | ||
Hi, Kate! Glad to be of service! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
79 | Homosexuality, sin or not? | Lev 20:13 | JCrichton | 150625 | ||
Hi, Fox! Again, I find that you are seeking to accommodate Scripture to your personal wants and desire... from your logic it could be said that domestic violence is a prudent Christian behavior since Scripture has nothing explicit against it... it could also be claimed that craking a few vials of crack-cocaine and inviting friend, families and acquaintances to partake of the banquet also falls within good Christian conduct... What don't you understand from these passages?: 24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. 26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. (Romans 1:24-26) EVEN THEIR WOMEN EXCHANGED NATURAL RELATIONS FOR UNNATURAL ONES. IN THE SAME WAY THE MEN ALSO ABANDONED NATURAL RELATIONS WITH WOMEN AND WERE INFLAMED WITH LUST FOR ONE ANOTHER. MEN COMMITTED INDECENT ACTS WITH OTHER MEN, AND RECEIVED IN THEMSELVES THE DUE PENALTY FOR THEIR PERVERSION. Anyone and everyone has the right to choose to ignore God, to choose to reject God, to choose to disobey God! No one has the right to disobey God, reject God or ignore God and demand to be accepted as he/she is! God will not be moved to bring such a peson into His Realm... those who claim that they are Christian and reject the Word of God or choose to ignore it or choose to transgress it, they are calling upon themselves the WRATH of God not His LOVE. So please do not deceive yourself, God will not accept you (or any of us) on your own terms: choose life in order that you may live! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
80 | Homosexuality, sin or not? | Lev 20:13 | JCrichton | 150621 | ||
Hi, Fox! Ever heard the expression practice makes perfect? Jesus said it better, though, He said that from the abundance of the heart man speaks (acts, believes, functions)... He also said... "those who have eyes, see; those who have ear listen" And He told His contemporaries religious elite that they were blind leading the blind! If you choose to ignore Scripture or to rationalize it or to circumvent it, I cannot show you enough proof that homosexuality is wrong! I can't even proof to you that the Jews are descendants of Abraham! Here's your problem: you seek to make homosexuality an accepted sexual practice... you do not seek to give homosexual rights... you seek to make homosexuality a simple choice that is sanctioned by God! You will only convince yourself (and any homosexual that deceives him/herself into thinking that God created them so and that God desires all to be happy with their personal choices)... These men which you so vehemently choose to protect for the wages of sin quickly gathered around Lot's house seeking to have homosexual sex with the men Lot was hosting... since they knew Lot before this particular incident, they knew that Lots daughters had not been married (being from such a devoted household they were clearly virgins); yet there was no interest in having an orgie with Lots daughters... and there was no mention of their desire to attack/bed Lots daughter prior to the incident nor during the incident... their whole purpose was to have homosexual intercourse with the men in Lot's care... Did Lot think that having his daughters raped and sodomized by these men was a good thing? Apparently you read the Bible in an effort to find errors not in an effort to understand God (for God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son!)... Jesus tells us that a true friend would give his life for a friend... this is not knew to God's people... it is the code of conduct expected and demanded of them by Yahweh! Lot volunteered his hospitability to these extrangers that came into the city... he was obliged to do everything that he could to secure their well-being; yes, including giving his own life for them... did you not notice that? Lot went out of his house to fend the eminent attack on the strangers! He appealed to them to allow free passage for the men inside his home... he reasoned with them that he had extended his hospitability to them... he pleaded with them to take their lust out on his daughters in an effort to spare the shame that these foreigners would suffer at their onsluaght... he offered to them what he could... but their homosexual appetite was greater than their natural sexual desire to possess a virgin woman and they rejected his offer! Further, since he insisted on keeping them from the object of their conquest, they threatened Lot with sexually assaulting him even more so than they would his guests! If you still insist on reading Scriptural proof that homosexuality is a perverted sin against God and nature, read Romans 1:18-32! God Bless! Angel |
||||||
Result pages: << First < Prev [ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 ] Next > Last [73] >> |