Results 81 - 100 of 495
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Results from: Notes Author: Aixen7z4 Ordered by Date |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
81 | Speak from the midst of the fire to you? | Acts 9:4 | Aixen7z4 | 142243 | ||
Sometimes, a simple schema helps to make a point, and in this case I will simply say, let us remember where X marks the spot. If we wanted to go beyond our own personal sense of comfort, we can think of the cross, where the Lord brings all of us together. Mercy and Truth, Righteousness and Peace do meet. If we follow them to the point, I think we will find we have settled this matter. I take the questions you have asked to be rhetorical. God is sovereign and he can do what ever he pleases. But it has pleased him to give us his Spirit and his word as guides so we can know what to expect from him. That’s how he leads us in paths of righteousness, and there is much comfort in having them both, together. Once again: Dear friend, we are praying for you, and trusting that all will be well with you, and that your body will be as healthy as I know your soul is. |
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82 | Speak from the midst of the fire to you? | Acts 9:4 | Aixen7z4 | 142229 | ||
I would like to interject, if I may, to make a point that I hope will be conciliatory. Personal experiences are so precious to us, and they should be respected. But in the scheme of things they are but anecdotal evidence, and subjective evidence simply cannot prove a point in God’s economy. They must be coupled with something else. This I say, my sister, not to discourage you entirely, but to discourage you from depending on personal experience entirely in any situation. I hope in the end to encourage you to hold your personal experiences tightly coupled always with the word of God. The problem is that there are always personal experiences to the contrary. One young lady once told me that God had told her he wanted her to be my wife. She was so sure, she wrote in all bold letters. She was wrong. She is not. She also said that God had given her the gift of speaking in unknown language. She later acknowledged she did not know what had come over her. It never happened again. My father once ran home not knowing why, to find his house on fire. He was there on time to save it. He ran home another time with a nurse for my mother. He was not on time, and she died. A patient thought she heard God saying everything would be fine. From that moment, everything went wrong. It was not the voice of God she had heard. If we took all of the stories, we would find that many seem to have been God talking and just as many were illusions or delusions. What is the solution? I hope it is this simple: Combine your personal impressions with the word of God. How do you do that? When you think you hear God saying, “I say you should do such and such”, ask him, “Where Lord?” I do believe that the Lord guides us by his Spirit. He also guides us by his word. What I am suggesting here is that he always uses both, together. I chose the last word over its cousin Simultaneously, because I believe he starts with one and brings in the other, for explanation, or for confirmation. When I think of doing something, I look to see where God said so, in the Bible. Sometimes I remember, or may I say the Spirit brings it to my remembrance. I may have to look it up, or ask someone. But, sorry for the bad picture this conjures, the body and the eagles must come together. Dreams are not God’s communication with us. They are essentially no different from our other thoughts and with some guidance you can easily explain them. And our thoughts are not God’s thoughts. Even when our thoughts are godly thoughts we’ll find that he will lift them higher. Let us take our thoughts to God and let him tell us yes or no, by his written word. He did it for Paul (See Acts 16:7, 2 Corinthians 12:8,9). He did it for our Lord Jesus Christ (See Luke 22:42). Long ago God did speak to people in isolated situations in those manners, but he has taught us not to depend on them. There are reasons: the fact we now have the word of God in writing, the fact that Satan mimics God, etc. Please consider that God has two lines: personal impressions from his Spirit, and his written word. Where the two lines meet, there is safety. Without the Spirit, we do not know what the word means. Without the word, we cannot give rein to our thoughts. I think I’ve said enough on that. God does not want to take this sense of personal communication from us, but he also wants it coupled with word. Always. Please consider what I say, and the Lord give you understanding in this thing. One quick word on the other side, our communication to God, in prayer. I was impressed again recently with the fact that we should keep praying and not give up. Suddenly, it seemed the respectful thing to do, and I could do it without being fretful. If I felt he was taking long, I could tell God so, but I would respect his position as God and keep on asking. So, when I fell sick a few days ago, I prayed a million times that God would heal me. And it happened while I was praying. This day I was able to keep my speaking engagement, because the Lord answered my prayer. And if you would, I’d like to pray for you. I’d also like to encourage others who might have read this to keep on praying concerning your physical problem. Let us let our voices rise like a fountain night and day for you. We need not multiply words. We can say the same words, as Jesus did. If we would bombard his throne with our requests, he’ll notice. And we should not stop until he tells us no. And we will only know he’s saying no when he directs us to some passage such as 2 Corinthians 12. Otherwise we’ll let the ones like Luke 18:1 and 3 John v. 2 encourage us. Somehow there comes to mind the thing about the rod and the staff in Psalm 23. We can’t get into that now, but we also have two things to be very thankful for: the Spirit and the word. |
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83 | What is the difference between believing | 1 John | Aixen7z4 | 142013 | ||
Not sure what the statement means, that Satan believes in Jesus. The first responder seems to be referring to the fact the devils believe there is one God (James 2:19). Though language may seem to equate “I believe in God” with “I believe that God exists”, it is doubtful that “I believe in Jesus” is ever spoken to mean “I believe that Jesus exists”. It seems to me that believing in Jesus and believing on Jesus are exactly the same thing. The words seem to be exactly the same in the original language, and they mean to trust in him, not to believe that he exists. I write this to encourage us to keep the message of the Gospel as simple as it is given us and not to complicate it unnecessarily. Not everyone that says “Lord, Lord” believes in or on the Lord. Those who do the will of the Father enter the kingdom of heaven. But what is the will of the Father? They said they unto him, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said unto them, “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent”. Again he said, “This is the will of him that sent me, that every one who sees the Son, and believes on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6). And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ (in order to have everlasting life -- as in John 6 above, Acts 16:31, etc.) and love one another (after we are saved -- as in 1 John 3:16) as he gave us (believers, his disciples -- John 13, 15) commandment. We are saved when we believe in (Romans 10:14) or on (1 Timothy 1:16), or trust in (1 Timothy 4:10) the Lord Jesus Christ. Thereafter, we do good works, not in order to have salvation, but because we have it (Ephesians 2). The Holy Spirit guides us (Romans 8) and the love of Christ constrains us (2 Corinthians 5). |
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84 | How do we know that we are truly saved? | 1 John 3:24 | Aixen7z4 | 141640 | ||
I think that 9 verse 9 is talking about our spirit, the inward man, as in 2 Corinthians 4:16. With that in mind, I would also have to choose the NASB version for verse 10. But these are deep things of God, and I think we would do well to keep both versions in mind. It is a fellowship between God and us, between his Spirit and our spirit, that is in view here, and it is perhaps that dynamic relationship we should be thinking of and in no way seeking to think of ourselves as separated from him. I can only imagine the dilemma the translators had in choosing the words to place here. I find a need to change even my favorite translation slightly so that it makes sense to me. We are not controlled by your sinful nature. We are controlled by the Spirit. And this can only happen because the Spirit of God is living in us. (And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them are not his people at all.) Since Christ lives within us, we have this situation: although our body is slowly wearing out because of sin, our spirit is vibrant and alive because we have been made right with God. |
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85 | How do we know that we are truly saved? | 1 John 3:24 | Aixen7z4 | 141639 | ||
I must say "Amen" to the response that Pastor Glenn gave. Those are the words of Scripture, and an expression of the heart of God. He loves us, and he wants us to love him. Love is the motivation for our obedience. As for feeling the presence of God, I agree as well. Whether or not we feel him, he is with us. Fact is, he is in us. Whither shall I go from his spirit? Or whither shall I flee from his presence? If I ascend up into heaven, he is there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, he is there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall his hand lead me, and his right hand shall hold me. It may be that we feel alone when we are closest to him and cannot see him from afar. It may be we should rejoice in those moments and say, “I am hid away with Christ in God”. |
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86 | How do we know that we are truly saved? | 1 John 3:24 | Aixen7z4 | 141588 | ||
Hi, Angel. I did not realize before now that there are those who think that to trust in the Lord means we quote His Gospels! And I was not aware that many Christians trust in Jesus in the sense that we trust in one another. It is obviously important that those of us who call him Lord should do what he says. But here is the point, and I hope you do not miss it: It is not doing good works that makes us saved. It is because we are saved that we should do good works. Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us (Titus 3:5). Not of works, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:9). We are new creatures (2 Corinthians 5:17) created in Christ Jesus unto good works (Ephesians 2:10). In saving us, God changes us, and thereafter we are expected to do good works. We do not do them automatically, and that is why the epistles are given to encourage us in that regard. Now, there are some other interesting quotes in your post. “If you do not abide in me you will be removed”. Yes, John 15 records Jesus saying that. But I encourage you to consider that he was speaking of being removed from a place of service. That happens (See revelation 2:5). It may involve being removed from this life (1 Corinthians 11:30). Yet the soul that trusts in Jesus will be saved (1 Corinthians 3:15). Jesus will say, to use your wording, “Begone from me you children of iniquity!” But I note it is not they had worked iniquity (we’ve all done that, as Romans 3 reminds us). It is because “I never knew you”. We need to make sure that he knows us. The best way it seems to ensure that he knows us is that we introduce ourselves to him. Come to him, admit that we are sinners, ask him to change us, and he does. It is only then that we can do good works that are not filthy rags, after he has changed us. You refer to people learning scripture and memorizing passages and chanting hymns and enunciating prayers, and I agree that those things will not save them. But neither will their attempt to love their enemies, uphold the Sacrament of Matrimony, or otherwise to “obey His commandments”. All those good works come after salvation. You note well that we own a guarantee of salvation which we have done nothing to merit! The fact is, we cannot merit salvation. After you have done all those good words you will still find you have come up short (Romans 3:23). We declare ourselves bankrupt, and then we trust in his merit alone. So, admonish us, but we do not believe you that we can merit salvation. We claim salvation by faith, not by works. We claim that good works come after salvation. We do believe that those who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved, because it says so in Romans 1:13. And yes, we do believe that we have safe passage and a secured place in heaven. Passages such as John 5:24 and 1 Peter 1:3, 4 assure us of that. We who are saved ought to be doing good, as all of the New Testament commands us and encourages us. We are ashamed of our failures and our sins. We are encouraged to abide in him and to follow his way so as not to be ashamed at his appearing (1 John 2:28). But please do not insist on condemning us, because God may ask you who are you (See Romans 8:33,34). Yet I do believe that you mean well in all that you have said. If we are not concerned about our behavior it may well mean that we are not saved. Since we have been forgiven and cleansed and saved, we should not return to sinning. God forbid (Romans 6). To the extent that we do sin after we are saved, please correct us. But please leave us the right to know that we are saved. Our salvation is our motivation to do good works (2 Corinthians 5:14). We know we could have done nothing to merit our salvation. Finally, I find myself in agreement with your last statement. We should boast in Jesus, and Him Crucified for our Salvation. It is He who secures our salvation. Without Him we are nothing! Amen. |
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87 | How do we know that we are truly saved? | 1 John 3:24 | Aixen7z4 | 141586 | ||
The witness in ourselves is not between our spirit and our flesh but between our spirit and the Holy Spirit who is given to us to indwell us, the same witness that you referenced in Romans 8. The witness that we get from communicating with God is greater and more important than what we may get in communicating with other men. What God says, in his word, and by his Spirit, is more important than what other people say. This may be related to the comments made by Angel on this day. Men may look on the outward appearance. They may see our failures. But God looks on the heart. He knows whether we have repented and put our trust in his Son. He knows whether we are his, and he lets us know. The witness of God is great. It is in his word, and he communicates it to us by his Spirit. This communication is to us as individuals, to our hearts, if you will, so that we can know for sure that we are saved. |
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88 | How do we know that we are truly saved? | 1 John 3:24 | Aixen7z4 | 141566 | ||
He came to save us, Angel, and when you trust in him, you're in (1 Corinthians 12:13; 2 Corinthians 5:17). You have eternal life (John 5:24). You will never perish (John 10:28). You have the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9) and he lets you know you are a child of God (Romans 8:16). His presence in you is a guarantee of your salvation (Ephesians 1:13,14). If you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, then you have this assurance (2 Timothy 1:12). Jesus guarantees salvation to those who trust in him. God is willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, so he confirms it by an oath: that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast (Hebrews 6). And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life (1 John 2:25). |
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89 | Can Satin read our minds?Chaser. | Bible general Archive 2 | Aixen7z4 | 138640 | ||
You seem to have good intelligence and good study skills. You also seem to have the ability to do critical analysis. So you should be able to figure out all of this by yourself. I commend you for recognizing that the Bible does not focus extensively on the person and work of Satan. You should also be commended for the insight that his influence in the Old Testament is pointed out and explained in the New Testament. With that, I am confident that you are able to do some searching and that by so doing you will be able to answer your own question. When it is all done, I trust you will be able to recognize and resist his influence. |
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90 | Who was God going to kill? | Ex 4:24 | Aixen7z4 | 138609 | ||
It is my understanding that God does not desire the death of the disobedient person. Ezekiel 18:23 “Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” saith the Lord GOD: “and not that he should return from his ways, and live?” Ezekiel 33:11 Say unto them, “As I live”, saith the Lord GOD, “I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die …?” 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is … not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. The Lord had no more intention to kill Moses or his son than he had of destroying the people of Nineveh (Jonah 3,4) or than Jesus had intention of going further (Luke 24:28). The God who knew that Abraham would direct his family in the right way (Genesis 18) knew that Moses’ family would accede to his demand for circumcision of the male. It does not take away from the fact that God is just and will punish sin. The soul that sinneth, it shall die (Ezekiel 18:4,20). The wicked will be turned into hell (Psalm 9:17). But God looks forward to our repentance and to his chance to forgive us. We might not do well to delve into the foreknowledge of God because it could lead into a discussion of predestination, and that is not the purpose here. But would it not be interesting if God would have chosen Moses to deliver the children of Israel from Egypt and then turned around and killed him (or his son) before he had had a chance to do that? It seems then that God’s threat of death is to remind us that he is a God of justice, but he never wants to follow-through on that threat. He will kill some, as he did Er (Genesis 28) and Korah (Numbers 16), and Uzzah (2 Samuel 6) and those who refuse to repent and trust in Jesus (John 3:16). But he knew he would not have to kill anyone in Moses’ family on the way to Egypt. I agree with you that someone would have died if atonement was not made. But atonement would be made there, and on the cross, by Jesus, and no one needs to die. I speak here of spiritual death. |
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91 | Why would God seek to kill Moses? | Ex 4:24 | Aixen7z4 | 136727 | ||
Amen, Lady. Permit me to add some thoughts that I have had on this. But first let me say how impressed I am that you found your answer so easily. It seems that your heart was all ready for it, and that I admire. It is hard to know what someone has in mind when they ask the question “Why”. But to that question I will say that there are many times when God does what he does and he does not tell us why. The fact is that God is sovereign. He can do what he likes and does not have to give us a reason. Let it be said that we cannot question God. By that I mean we cannot second-guess him, for “The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying, ‘Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand’” (Isaiah 14:24). Nevertheless, the Lord has revealed to us what he is like, and we can look to see that he is acting in concordance with his character. But first, we can learn God’s attributes from the thing he does, and I suggest that is the proper approach to the question. It is recorded for us what God did, and what can we learn from it? Remember that “Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope” (Romans 15:4). One lesson we can learn is that God cares that we obey him. God had told Moses to circumcise his son and he had not done it. God shows here that he is patient. He may delay his judgment. But he wants obedience. He says, “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear?” (Mal 1:6). We should fear God, and reverence him, and we show that by obeying him. If God had not shown his displeasure at Moses’ disobedience (or neglect of obedience) in this matter we could also be asking why. And we might conclude that Moses got away with it and so can we. We can weary ourselves with these questions. And we can weary the Lord, by trying his patience and then asking questions like this. Indeed, “Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, ‘Wherein have we wearied him?’ When ye say, ‘Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them’; or, ‘Where is the God of judgment?’” There is a bad result when judgment is slow in coming. “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil” (Ecclesiastes 8:11). So it is good for us to see God in the judgment mode. We can learn that God does not wink at sin. We can learn that we should not harbor sin in order to take advantage of God’s patience. God is patient “But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God”? (Romans 2:5) So, we learn that God is a God of justice; that he will punish sin. And yet, God does not desire the death of the wicked. “Say unto them, ‘As I live’, saith the Lord GOD, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die?’” (Ezekiel 33:11). Notice, if you will, that Moses was not actually killed. We learn that God is a God of the second chance. When he says he will bring judgment, if we repent, he relents. He says, “Again, when I say unto the wicked, ‘Thou shalt surely die’; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; … he shall surely live, he shall not die. None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live” (Ezekiel 33) Yet, when God acts, we ask why? “The children of thy people say, The way of the Lord is not equal”. And we do not learn. There are many things that God has asked us to do today. Like Moses, we neglect to do them. For example, God says that a new believer should be baptized. But some of us debate the fine points of it and yet neglect to simply do it. Like Moses, we may feel that we have gotten away with it. Yet God is still a God of judgment, and he comes to us in judgment. Some say he does not, because he has already judged our sins at the cross. But we should consider that that he might. He might come to us with death. It might be spiritual death. Though he does not take away his salvation or his love, he may withdraw his presence, and that separation, I submit, is like death. Then again, it might be physical death. Many are weak and sickly among us, and many die. “But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world” (1 Corinthians 11:32). I am not sure we needed to ask the question for the eleventh time. But we can learn from that incident in the life of Moses. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy” (Proverbs 28:13). |
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92 | Resymbolism? | Gen 50:20 | Aixen7z4 | 136372 | ||
Yes. It is said that everyone, not only a Christian, rationalizes at times. It serves not only to protect the ego but to give meaning to the events of life. Sometimes life is weird and difficult to deal with. A problem is apparent when that mechanism is used too much as it were to avoid reality. Again, if a person has God's perspective, they find it easier to deal with unpleasant circumstances or things they would not understand otherwise. One may say it is the way a believer is expected to live, "while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things that are not seen". Brother J. Alan Blair says we should live in light of eternity, and Brother K.P. Yohannan asks us to pray that God would stamp eternity on our eyes. God inhabits eternity and that would be his perspective. When the world hates us, Jesus says it is normal, and when we suffer for righteousness’ sake we are told we should accept it because… Back to the case of Joseph though, his perspective is given in hindsight. “God meant it”. One wonders whether he knew all along that God had a plan. Jesus knew what to do and how to accept the events of his life because he knew what had been written and that it must be fulfilled. He acted often just so the Scriptures would be fulfilled, and after the fact he would say that is the way it had to be. I have not read Joe Stowell’s book, but the sentiment rings true to Scripture. Man’s goings are of the Lord, how then can he know his own way? I think we are like Job and like Solomon. If God’s will is not apparent in the events of life, then they make no sense at all. But if we can see his will in his word and apply it to our lives, then all is well. That is one reason we should search the word, to see the meaning in the events of life even before they happen. If we are not familiar with the word we may not be able to see God’s perspective, and we may not be able to apply the right principles. Without the word we are forced to invent reasons why things happen, and it may be to excuse our own behavior. But if we life by the word and it provides explanations, that seems entirely satisfactory and satisfying. Jesus told us life would be hard, so if we can face difficulty without being surprised by it and “think it not strange” it will help. All in all it seems there is a scriptural form rationalization. Some may call it philosophizing. Some may call it resymbolization. I'd say if it makes proper use of Scripture it is OK, whatever they may call it. |
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93 | The Old Covenant lingers? | Heb 8:13 | Aixen7z4 | 135368 | ||
That is a beautiful passage. I am sure you must have been thrilled to hear it. Little words like “But” and “Now” can have such an impact! For example, we were dead in trespasses and sins ... "But God who is rich in mercy ..." (Ephesians 2) and, what if the dead rise not? "But now is Christ risen ..." (1 Corinthians 15). The work of Christ on the cross, with all of its ramifications, is an accomplished fact. As he said, “It is finished”. Praise God. |
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94 | The Old Covenant lingers? | Heb 8:13 | Aixen7z4 | 135367 | ||
Thank you for pointing out that a question can be rhetorical. Even when it is not, a question may be designed, not to show ignorance, or to request information, but to encourage the reader to think. Don’t you think so? For example, I might have asked, “Are you sure the Old Covenant did not fade away in the moment that the New Covenant came into effect, at the cross?” The immediate response might have been a defensive “Yes, I am”. With the thoughts generated by all the other questions, the reader might have come, hopefully, to a more reasoned conclusion in his own mind. Might it not work that way? Jesus had a way of asking questions that did not suggest he was lacking in knowledge and needing to be informed. For example: Once while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, “What think ye of Christ? Whose son is he?” They say unto him, “The Son of David”. He said unto them, “How then does David in spirit call him Lord, saying, ‘The LORD said unto my Lord, “Sit thou on my right hand, till I make your enemies thy footstool?”’ If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?” In all of this, Jesus was not seeking information, but making a point. At other times he might ask, “Which of you convinces me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?” Or he might ask, “Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you go about to kill me?” Questions like that can cause a person to think, don’t you think? In this case, my barrage of questions was meant to ask Emmaus, “Won’t you reconsider the combination of statements, that ‘The New Covenant was established with the death of Jesus on the cross. (But) The Old Covenant lingered and was fading when Hebrews was written’”? Surely that would mean that the two Covenants coexisted for a while. I would hope his response would be, not Yes or No but, “Let me think about it”. He might think about it in light of the other facts submitted: that there are those who think the two Covenants coexist to this day, what with tithing and Sabbath keeping and all. He might even recall, without my saying it, that Jesus said you do not put new wine into old wineskins. Sometimes a barrage of questions does not work. But it could cause a reader to think. It could cause him to think more deeply about the issue, don’t you think? |
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95 | How do Philippians 1:3-11 compare and... | Col 1:3 | Aixen7z4 | 135063 | ||
OK. One who are tired and unable to concentrate enough to proofread such a short post is not ready to do this assignment. | ||||||
96 | Does Heb.8:13 say N.Cov. hasn't started? | Heb 8:13 | Aixen7z4 | 135061 | ||
"Jesus came and come" means "Jesus has come". And he has established the New Covenant that Jeremiah saw ahead. When Jeremiah spoke, it had not yet started, but it is now in force. | ||||||
97 | Baptism-What Does the Bible Teach? | Acts 2:38 | Aixen7z4 | 133527 | ||
I think your point is well taken, that baptism allows one to be publicly recognized as a part of the church. Believing on the Lord Jesus Christ is a matter of entrusting our eternal destiny into his hand (2 Timothy 1:12). It is more than giving mental assent to some facts about him. It is done from the heart (Romans 10:10) and others cannot see it. Baptism is a thing of outward appearance that is shown to them afterwards. And yes, it is a sign that the person’s repentance was genuine, that the heart is now right with God (1 Peter 3:21). It may be a part of faith as well if it says that we trust him enough to obey him. |
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98 | Baptism-What Does the Bible Teach? | Acts 2:38 | Aixen7z4 | 133446 | ||
We should go back to kalos’ post, I would suggest, and thank him for a masterful job of exposition. It was not logic that he used, as in “Don’t you think …?”, but a very noble and necessary practice of allowing Scripture to shed light on Scripture. I would only add this, that while we say that water baptism follows salvation and is not a part of it, we should not at the same time minimize the importance of water baptism. It is very significant. According to Peter, it is the answer of a good conscience toward God (1 Peter 3:21). Baptism is the natural next step after a person professes faith in Christ, and it should happen promptly because there is no suggestion in scripture that we delay it. There is a serious problem, I think, and I am not sure what to think, if a new believer refuses to be baptized. Unfortunately, some believers refuse or delay baptism as if o prove the point it is not essential. Some churches find it prudent to give a new believer words of assurance of salvation before getting into the subject or the activity of water baptism. Sometimes there are issues because the person may have been baptized before. It may then be necessary to show that baptism follows salvation and does not precede it or facilitate it. But the new believer should receive it. Whereas most churches almost always do baptize new believers, one may wonder why this discussion comes up so often. If there is repentance and faith and baptism, then why is there an issue? It seems that those who emphasize baptism are concerned not only that it take place but that we believe it was essential to salvation. To do it is not enough, they say, we must profess belief that it was essential. Scripture seems to say that acceptance of baptism is an evidence of faith (Mark 16:16; Acts 8:36,37) and it is therefore received with joy, even as there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:7,10). Both the new believer who is receiving it and those who observe it have reason to rejoice, as in Acts 16:33,34. |
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99 | What's this about the Rapture? | Rev 4:1 | Aixen7z4 | 133434 | ||
Interesting. I take it that there is a Rapture, referred to in I Corinthians 15:51,52 and in 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17. I take it that the church is in heaven in Revelation 4, not because John is there (Revelation 4:1) but because the twenty-four elders are there (vv. 4,8; Revelation 5:6,8). I understand that in Matthew 24 Jesus is talking about the Jews and not the church, and in Revelation 6 John is seeing the Jews and not the church. The tribulation is the time of Jacob’s trouble. Jews will go through the Great tribulation and out of it some 144,000 will be saved, but during all of this the church is in heaven. I imagine that the subject of the rapture has been discussed elsewhere, but it seems appropriate that the post above be answered here. Meanwhile, I will look for other discussions on this topic. |
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100 | Why was there fear here? | Acts 5:11 | Aixen7z4 | 133129 | ||
Greeting, my sister: I appreciate the thoughts. God’s grace is truly amazing. My point is that human behavior is in its own way amazing; I might even say “unbelievable”. But it is the situation in which God shows the nature and extent of his grace. We are indeed sinners. We have rebelled against God and shown so much ungratefulness. It is unbelievable. But God, who is rich in mercy, for the great love with which he has loved us, even when we were dead in sins, has brought us to life with Christ, and hath raised us up, and made us sit in heavenly places in Christ. And it is all because of his grace. I do not know how clearly we see it now. But in the ages to come he will show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. His grace is greater than all our sin. Even now that we are believers, some aspects of our behavior are unbelievable. Look at the way we behave toward each other. How can it be? Look at our interest and efforts in bringing the Gospel to those who are without God and without hope. Please note how all of this is expressed in terms of ourselves as the recipients of God’s grace, in the plural. One important word that I left out in the reference to Ephesians 2:4,5 is the word “together”. It may be another aspect of all this that we fail to appreciate as we should, that we who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ are in this together. Our attitude toward this fact continues to reflect our attitude toward God whose chief command to us is to love one another. But in spite of this, his grace abounds. We should not take advantage of it to continue to behave badly. We should not only stand amazed at his grace. We should worship him because of it, and other aspects of his nature, and recommit ourselves to obey him. I appreciate your point of view on 1 Timothy 1:15, that the emphasis is on one being the foremost or chief of sinners. Surely Paul was amazed at the grace bestowed on him. But the point is also there that the whole idea, that Christ came into the world to save sinners, is worthy of acceptation. As much as it is true that he came to save the chief, it is also true that he came to save the others. As much as it is amazing, it is also true, and it should be accepted. If I could, I would change the question to read as you suggested. As it is, I hope that someone who reads it will say, “I can. I will. I do believe”. |
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