Results 6761 - 6770 of 6770
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Author: Morant61 Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
6761 | Will sin enter heaven? | Rev 21:17 | Morant61 | 140853 | ||
Greetings BradK! Well, as a Nazarene, I won't take offense! ;-) Of course, 'holiness' is certainly a Biblical term, but 'sinless perfection' is a very misunderstood phrase. Remember though, it was coined in a time when people were not as careful with their phraseology as we are today! :-) 'Sinless perfection' does not mean 'incapable of sinning'. Rather, it means something more like 'don't want to sin'. Wesley used the term 'perfect love' to describe a state of holiness where a believer has such love for the Father that a desire to sin is not a part of it's makeup. To me, that is the best way to understand Rom. 6. Clearly Scripture does not indicate that it is impossible for Christians to sin. Yet, Rom. 6 (and many other verses) do teach that there is a real change that takes place. We are not simply declared righteous (though this is certainly one aspect of salvation)! We are actually made righteous as well. So, my view of sanctification is multifacted. 1) We are judically sanctified as salvation, declared righteous even though we are probably not living righteously. 2) We are progressively sanctified as we mature in Christ throughout our lives. 3) We can reach a point (differing from person to person) of what the Nazarenes call 'entire sanctification', which is basically what Wesley called 'perfect love'. 4) Finally, we are glorified after death and made perfectly righteous in such a way that sin will no longer even be possible. p.s. - Thanks for the kind words my friend! I certainly appreciate your contribution to the forum as well! Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6762 | Who knows? | Rev 21:27 | Morant61 | 7372 | ||
Greetings Charis! I appreciated your comments! There is nothing wrong with being firm in one's beliefs. However, we all too often become dogmatic on things that Scripture is not dogmatic about. The "book of life" occurs six times in the book of Revelation. They are: 1) Rev. 3:5 - "He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels." 2) Rev. 13:8 - "All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world." 3) Rev. 17:8 - "The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and will come up out of the Abyss and go to his destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because he once was, now is not, and yet will come." 4) Rev. 20:12 - "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books." 5) Rev. 20:15 - "If anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." 6) Rev. 21:27 - "Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life." There are only a couple of statements of fact that can be made from these references. a) The "book of life" is more than just the "book of the living." I have heard some say that the "book of life" is nothing more than a list of those who are or have been alive. However, the references above make it pretty clear that it refers to a list of believers. (How a believer is listed in the book is not explained!) b) Those who are listed in the book will not worship the Beast. c) Those whoare listed in the book will not be astonished (like the world) when the Beast appears. d) The "book of life" will be instrumental at judgement in some fashion. e) Those who are not listed in the "book of life" will face eternity in hell. f) Only those recorded in the "book of life" will enter the Kingdom of God. This seems to be about all that can dogmatically be said about the "book of life." Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6763 | Who knows? | Rev 21:27 | Morant61 | 7384 | ||
Greetings JVHO212! Since we approach the issue of election from different perspectives, I'm sure that we would not agree on how the names are written in the Book of life. However, we can definitely both agree that there is a tremendous amount of confidence that comes from knowing that nothing can remove us from God's grace. Charis made an excellent point earlier when He asked (to paraphrase) what practical use is this issue. Here is one answer to that question: To give us assurance that our salvation is in God's hands, not the Anti-Christ's. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6764 | Arminian view of Called Rm 8:30? | Rev 21:27 | Morant61 | 7432 | ||
Greetings Charis! You have asked some great and indepth questions here. I do not approach the Romans the way that most Arminians do, but I will try to lay out my understanding of Romans in general (Part One) and then address your specific questions (Part Two). I believe that Paul was not writing a compendium of his theology in Romans, but specifically dealing with the issue of why the Jewish people were not accepting Christ, and why Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles. After all, the Messiah was a covenant promise to the nation of Israel. If Christ is the Messiah, why weren't the people of Israel coming to Him in faith? Were God's promises to Israel false? If God's promises did not hold true for Israel, then what assurance could Gentiles have that God would be true to them? Had God rejected Israel in extending the Gospel to the Gentiles? The great scholar F. F. Bruce once said of this situation, "..it was a paradox, not to say a scandal, that the very nation which had been specially prepared by God for this time of fulfillment, the nation which could glory in so many unique privileges of divine grace (including above all the messianic hope), the nation into which in due course the Messiah had been born, should have failed to recognize him when he came, while men and women of other nations, which had never enjoyed such privileges, embraced the gospel eagerly the first time they heard it. How could this be harmonized with God's choice of Israel and his declared purpose of blessing the world through Israel?" (Quoted from Beasley-Murray, G. R. "The Righteousness of God in the History of Israel and the Nation: Romans 9-11". Review and Expositor 73. April 1976, pp. 437-438.) These questions lead to what I believe is the thesis of Romans: "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." (Romans 1:16) This phrase or a variation of it is repeated in: Rom. 2:9, 2:10, 3:9, 3:29, and 10:12. I believe Romans 1-11, in particular, is an attempt to answer the question of the relationship between the Gentiles and Israel within God's plan of salvation. With this in mind, I would roughly outline Romans in the following way. I. Introduction and thesis: Romans 1:1-18. II. Gentiles and God's wrath: Romans 1:19-32. III. Jews and God's wrath: Romans 2:1-29. IV. All under God's wrath: Romans 3:1-20. V. The Gift of Salvation: Romans 3:21-31. VI. Salvation through Faith: Romans 4:1-8:39. VII. God's Plan for Israel: Romans 9:1-11:36 VIII. Concluding Remarks to the church: Romans 12:1-16:27. This is only a very broad outline. The main point that I am making is simply this: Election cannot be understood outside of the context of the relationship between Israel and the Gentiles in salvation. Every great "Election" passages deals with this issue in it's context. Cont. in Part II Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6765 | Arminian view of Called Rm 8:30? | Rev 21:27 | Morant61 | 7434 | ||
Part II (Cont.) Greetings Charis: I will now try to address your specific questions, though time and space will limit me from being as specific as I would like. 1) Foreknowledge: I believe that Arminians and Calvinists have both been guilty of reading a lot into words that simply isn't there. This is one of those cases. I do not believe (as many Arminians do) that God elects individuals unconditionally based upon their foreseen faith. The word 'foreknew' is only used by Paul twice (Romans 8:29 and 11:2. The word is only used five times in the entire New Testament (the other three occurances being: Acts 26:5, 1 Peter 1:20, and 2 Peter 3:17. I am a firm believer in allowing the Bible to define terms, not our theology. One should look at how a word is used in all of Scripture. One should look at how a word is used by a particular author in all of his writings. Finally, one should look at how a word is used in the book in question. The last being the most important for interpreting a word in it's context. With this in mind, how does Paul use the word 'forknew'. Romans 11:2 gives us the definiton of the word. Romans 11:1-2a says, "I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew...." There isn't any doubt in my mind that Paul uses this term as a sort of title for Israel. Therefore, he most likely uses it in the same way in Rom. 8:2. Does the evidence support this? Consider the following: a) Within ten verses of Rom. 8:29, Paul begins his discussion of the status of Israel in Romans 9-11. b) Within seven verses of Rom. 8:29, Pauls quotes a Psalm (44), which deals with God's perceived rejection of Israel. Therefore, my understanding of Rom. 8:28-39 is not that God is teaching the unconditional election (through either Divine fiat or foreknowlede) of individuals to salvation, but that Paul is letting Israel (the people whom God foreknew) know that nothing can seperate them from the love of God. (Of course, the message would also be just as significant for all of those who love God.) 2) Called: Your second word is another good example of where I believe many have added meanings that simply are not there. Arminians did it with 'foreknew', and Calvinists have done it with 'called'. There simply is not a single verse in the entire New Testament where 'called' is used in the sense of an irresistable call to salvation. The word is used in several ways. a) To name someone, as in Mt. 1:21. b) To physically call out to someone. c) And, by implication, to invite as in Mt. 22:3-14. Paul uses the word (# 2564) 7 times in Romans: Romans 4:17, 8:30, 9:7, 11, 24, 25, 26. Romans 4:17 seems to be a different context and usage, but the rest all are in the same context. How then does Paul use this word? Each occurances is used within a context which deals with the Spiritual Israel. Paul make the argument in Romans 9 that Israel is made up of all those who have responded in faith to God's call, not just those who are born of Abraham. Romans 9:7 says, "Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called." Romans 9:24 includes both Jews and Gentiles in the number. This is a direct answer to God's promise in the Old Testament according to Rom. 9:25-26. This is getting long, so will close with this summary. In my view, the Elect refers primarily to Christ and then secondarily to those who are in Christ. The promises of Rom. 8:29-30, refer primarily to Israel, but secondarily to all those who respond to God's call. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6766 | Originals? | Rev 22:18 | Morant61 | 79245 | ||
Greetings Truthfinder! Do you have one of these 'originals' which includes God's name? If not, the whole argument is pure speculation. Concerning the Jews, read what Paul said: Rom. 11:1 - "I ask then: Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew...." What Scripture can you point to which says that the Jewish nation is no longer God's people? Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6767 | Originals? | Rev 22:18 | Morant61 | 79338 | ||
Greetings Truthfinder! Two quick points my friend! 1) Paul definitely expands Israel to include Gentiles, but he also makes it clear that YHWH's covenant with the nation of Israel is still in effect in Rom. 11:25-32. The New Testament refines our understanding of what it means to be part of Israel, but it in no way teaches that Israel is no longer God's people, or that they have been rejected. 2) What about the orginals I asked about? Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6768 | Originals? | Rev 22:18 | Morant61 | 79362 | ||
Greetings Truthfinder! In other words my friend, the text that we actually have has been changed by the NWT without any evidence whatsoever. :-( Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6769 | Release and Faith Question | Rev 22:18 | Morant61 | 91369 | ||
Greetings Pastor Glenn! Excellent point! The verse does not say 'by faith God...'. It says, 'By faith we understand that God...'. Not one single verse ever says that God did anything by faith! Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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6770 | Not praying for the end of the world | Rev 22:20 | Morant61 | 77360 | ||
Greetings Jburchel! I don't recall any verse which says that we should not pray for the end. However, I do know of several verses which do pray that Jesus would come. 1 Cor. 16:22 says, "If anyone does not love the Lord?a curse be on him. Come, O Lord!" And, Rev. 22:20 says, "He who testifies to these things says, ??Yes, I am coming soon.? Amen. Come, Lord Jesus." The first verse uses the Aramaic expression 'marana tha' which means 'Our Lord, come'. While the second verse seems to be a Greek equivalent of this same expression. Rev. 6:10 records the prayer of those slain for their faith during the end times. It says, "They called out in a loud voice, ??How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?? 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed." So, I would say that it would be okay to pray for the end to come quickly, as believers long to see their Lord. Of course, He will come when He is ready! ;-) Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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