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NASB | Matthew 10:33 "But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 10:33 "But the one who denies and rejects Me before men, that one I will also deny and reject before My Father who is in heaven. |
Bible Question:
Dear forum readers, I agree that the Old Testament saints were 'saved by faith.' Hebrews chapter 11 makes that indisputably clear. I believe that they were saved by putting genuine faith in whatever God's word to them was at the time. However, in these last days, God's Word to us is Jesus Christ. He, and He alone, is where we must have faith. What I disagree with is that it is being implied that they (OT saints), as well as Christ's disciples before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, were 'Christians.' The word 'Christian' was not used until Antioch and it was used to speak specifically of the followers of Christ (not Judaism) who, I believe, because of Romans 8:9, have the Spirit of Christ (the Spirit of God) in them. My 'beef' was with the way the original question was worded. I was not trying to be nit-picky. I was trying to say, if you will read my original reply, that some people take everything that Christ said as a mandate for Christians (those IN Christ with Christ IN them). I was then trying to demonstrate, through subsequent posts, how that type of theology is dangerous. Not every command of Christ while He was physically here on earth is a mandate for the Christian. We must allow the Spirit of Christ to help us discern what is and is not applicable to the 'saved' Christian. Otherwise we will be so caught up in rules and regulations that we begin to think that Christians are defined by what they do or do not do. This, I believe, is dangerous. Christians are defined, in scripture, as those who have put their faith in Christ and what He did. Because of that faith, Christ ACTUALLY indwells us by His Spirit. We were born dead in trespasses and sin, but He has now made us ALIVE by His Spirit. If you don't have Christ's Spirit in you, you DO NOT belong to Him. It doesn't matter what you do right or what you don't do wrong as far as your identity is concerned. If keeping the Law is 'Christianity', then the Pharisees were the best Christians of all. The Holy Spirit will guide your actions as you walk in Him, but it is from inward motivation, an actual change in who you ARE at your deepest level, your spirit, not because you are trying to measure up to external regulations. So were the disciples Christians? I don't believe that they were until the Holy Spirit indwelt them at Pentecost. I do believe they were called of Christ and that He knew they would soon, after His death, be indwelt by Him. In fact, He told them specifically to wait for the Holy Spirit. But, for reasons, that I have stated, I, personally, would not call them 'Christians' before the Spirit indwelt them. In conclusion, were the disciples Christians before they were indwelt by God? I don't believe so. Were they saved by faith in Christ before Christ died? Yes, I believe so. Is there a difference between Christians and OT saints? Yes, I believe so. Would do you, dear readers, think? Am I being too nit-picky? In Him, Bill Mc |
Bible Answer: Bill Mc, Did the disciples receive the Holy Spirit in John 20:21? Moving on, you are not being too nit-picky. There is a difference between the OT saints and us. They were looking forward to His death, we look back. We, too, are saints. We are both believers. The disciples saw both sides of the cross, as well as many of the early church. Steve |