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NASB | Psalm 23:3 He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Psalm 23:3 He refreshes and restores my soul (life); He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. |
Subject: How Do You Stay on Track? |
Bible Note: Dear Henry (Hank) By coincidence I am also Henry (Hank) I tried to have screen name Hank, but it was already taken. Now I know by whom. There is no fear in my not being both gentle and honest in things I post at any time to anyone. It is not always easy to get the tone of a comment in the written word. IF ever you think the tone from me is anything but kind, let me assure you that that would not be the case. As you know I believe once saved is not a guarantee. I know works must go with faith or I have nothing. It is not in my interest or anyone else for me to be impatient or offensive in my dealings with others. If a discussion leads to discord, best not to have the discussion in the first place. Here is a short history on where we come from regarding scriptures. We are simple folk, who noted that Jesus was more acceptable to people who in this system have little power. He was opposed by the very ones who from their studies should have known better, namely those who studied the scriptures. Also opposing him were the powerful who had their interests to protect. We also read that one cannot understand God if we do not have His Spirit. In addition the scriptures are spiritual and must be spiritually discerned. An unbeliever thinks of the truth about God as foolishness. The Spirit is our teacher and we have no need of another person to teach us. Everything we hear no matter who says it must be considered carefully to see if it is true or not. The ability for us to do this comes from havingthe Spirit. We depend on it to inform us and verify or reject what we hear. Credentials of learned people cannot be trusted at face value. There are two reasons for this. There is wide disagreement among the "experts" and weare to put our trust in only ONE. We believe the bible is simply written. There are parables and likenesses, but unless it is otherwise stated, or clearly the case, we ought to read with it in mind, that what it says is exacly what it means ie literally. It seems logical that if God wants the bible to enlighten us, He did not instruct it to be written so it would be hard to read or understand. If you for instance want someone to learn a skill of some kind, would it not make sense to write the instructions as simple to understand as possible. We feel the bible is written so simply that generally the world is overlooking the true meaning, thinking for some reason that it should be complicated. The bible is a true miracle. It can be studied and studied with little or no learing taking place. The Spirit is needed for us to interpret it correctly. If we do not have it, we are bound not to understand. We have nothing worldly to protect when we look to the bible to learn. No money is involved. We have no organization to defend in any way. There is no agenda to protect other than to learn the truth. A person with a string of doctorates in theology, or great respect from people in general hold no more sway over our hunt for the real truth than does a person who claims to know nothing about it. We depend solely on the Spirit to teach and guide us. We hold no premises and try to make the scriptures fit them. Our premise on each topic stems from what we read first. We are open to having others suggest we are wrong, because we find that considering view points of others can sharpen our own understanding. If someone else says something that differs with our view, we consider it carefully. What is right we accept, what is not we reject. We can do this if the Spirit guides us. Until the Spirit reveals a thing, we leave options open. We study scriptures regularly, and find as I said that the scripures are very simple to understand if one lets the Spirit guide, with no other motive in mind but to learn the truth. Even Revelation is simple and clear if one takes this approach. Just believe what is simply stated. The world at large think it is hard to understand, and so it is if the Spirit does not guide. This is why there is so great a variety about what people think the bible is saying. There are so many different interpretations because those reading it are not lead by Holy Spirit. If everyone reading it were lead by the Holy Spirit they would be of ONE accord. Sincerely Emmy and Henry (Hank) |