Randy Green's Blog - Posts Tagged "infallibility"
Does the Bible Contradict Itself? - Part 1
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes [Proverbs 26:4-5].
“Lookee there! A contradiction in the Bible! I knew it! I knew! The Bible does too contain errors! See! This proves it!”
Such are the rantings of typical worldly gainsayers. They search high and low, devoting themselves exclusively to disproving the Bible. They spend inordinate amounts of time sniffing like an old hound dog for the evidence to “prove” what they’ve already determined to be the case. They are staunch card-carrying activists in the anti-Bible brigade. The motto of this organization is, Don’t confuse me with the facts. I’ve already made up my mind!
But is there really a contradiction in Proverbs 26, between verse 4 and verse 5? A lot is at stake here, doctrines like,
• Biblical inerrancy
• Biblical infallibility
• Holy Spirit inspiration
We mustn’t be slapdash in drawing conclusions based on appearance, dear friends, lest we enjoy having egg on the face! As Rule # 4 for Bible study states: When something in the Bible is not understandable or seems in error, consider that our understanding is more likely in error than is God’s! Amen to that.
“Okay then, teacher,” challenges our local skeptic. “You think you know so much. Explain the contradiction if you can.” And then he sits back on his haunches, a smug look on his face and his chest puffed outward several inches, with a hat size considerably larger than before he began his display of wisdom.
Why thank you for the invite, my dear gainsayer. I’ll be glad to…except I didn’t say I could explain everything, only that we mere mortals are more likely in error than is God. Plus I can’t explain the contradiction because there is no contradiction. It is circular reasoning to assert that something nonexistent exists, and then demand that it be explained! Nice try though. It seems to work out there among the worldly folk.
The so-called “contradiction” is merely ostensible, on the surface, superficial. Those who are content to go by first impressions might see one. But to understand the Bible, we must learn the truth of Proverbs 2:4, that we search for the truth as hard as we would search for buried treasure. Half-hearted and perfunctory rituals won’t cut it, dear friends.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
“Lookee there! A contradiction in the Bible! I knew it! I knew! The Bible does too contain errors! See! This proves it!”
Such are the rantings of typical worldly gainsayers. They search high and low, devoting themselves exclusively to disproving the Bible. They spend inordinate amounts of time sniffing like an old hound dog for the evidence to “prove” what they’ve already determined to be the case. They are staunch card-carrying activists in the anti-Bible brigade. The motto of this organization is, Don’t confuse me with the facts. I’ve already made up my mind!
But is there really a contradiction in Proverbs 26, between verse 4 and verse 5? A lot is at stake here, doctrines like,
• Biblical inerrancy
• Biblical infallibility
• Holy Spirit inspiration
We mustn’t be slapdash in drawing conclusions based on appearance, dear friends, lest we enjoy having egg on the face! As Rule # 4 for Bible study states: When something in the Bible is not understandable or seems in error, consider that our understanding is more likely in error than is God’s! Amen to that.
“Okay then, teacher,” challenges our local skeptic. “You think you know so much. Explain the contradiction if you can.” And then he sits back on his haunches, a smug look on his face and his chest puffed outward several inches, with a hat size considerably larger than before he began his display of wisdom.
Why thank you for the invite, my dear gainsayer. I’ll be glad to…except I didn’t say I could explain everything, only that we mere mortals are more likely in error than is God. Plus I can’t explain the contradiction because there is no contradiction. It is circular reasoning to assert that something nonexistent exists, and then demand that it be explained! Nice try though. It seems to work out there among the worldly folk.
The so-called “contradiction” is merely ostensible, on the surface, superficial. Those who are content to go by first impressions might see one. But to understand the Bible, we must learn the truth of Proverbs 2:4, that we search for the truth as hard as we would search for buried treasure. Half-hearted and perfunctory rituals won’t cut it, dear friends.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Does the Bible Contradict Itself? - Part 2
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes [Proverbs 26:4-5].
Proverbs 26:4 does not have to do with the same concept as in verse 5. The first half of each verse is worded identically, except that the words “Do not” in v.4 don’t occur in verse 5. But it is the second half of each verse which identifies the subject matter. Let’s vet them and see.
Both verses tell why we should or should not answer a fool according to his folly. The context for v.4 is that, if we do, you yourself will be just like him. The teaching is simple enough when we consider the context. To be “just like him” we must behave just like him. The context, then, has to do with our behavior. The fool scoffs and scorns, sneers and jeers, and generally acts contemptible. If I respond to him with the same behaviors, I will be just like him. Am I not right?
Now let’s vet verse 5. In this verse we are told to answer a fool according to his folly, the exact opposite of verse 4. This is what leads the gainsayers to bluster windy speeches about Biblical contradictions. However, the second half of the verse furnishes the context, and it is not the same context we saw in verse 4. Listen to verse 5: or he will be wise in his own eyes. In v.4 the person who answered the fool in his folly was the subject. In v.5 the fool himself is the subject. Very different context, you see.
The reason why we MUST answer the fool in his folly is to refute his foolishness. Otherwise he (and many like him) will be emboldened to persevere with their foolishness. We want to disperse the darkness with the light, not turn away and permit the darkness to persevere. So we gently and systematically set forth the errors of the fool’s way, while simultaneously laying out the truth in plain English for all to understand.
Verse 4, then, teaches that we mustn’t respond to the fool in his folly by imitating his folly. He scoffs, but we don’t. He sneers, but we don’t. He jeers, but we don’t. Otherwise we are being fools in their folly along with him! And that doesn’t get rid of the foolishness, does it?
Contrariwise, v.5 teaches that we must respond to the fool in his folly by being prudent and self-controlled, gentle and humble, yet still bold and adamant with respect to the truth. In this way his folly is exposed, both by noting his lack of logic and by presenting the true logic.
Words to be found in theology textbooks:
• inerrancy: the Bible contains no errors
• infallibility: the Bible is absolutely trustworthy and doesn’t lead us astray
• inspiration: the Holy Spirit (Who is God) led God’s chosen men to write down His Word in such a way that their personalities were included (i.e., they were not mere robots or automatons), but with the Holy Spirit still overseeing the process so that what was written was exactly what the Lord wanted written, no more and no less.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Proverbs 26:4 does not have to do with the same concept as in verse 5. The first half of each verse is worded identically, except that the words “Do not” in v.4 don’t occur in verse 5. But it is the second half of each verse which identifies the subject matter. Let’s vet them and see.
Both verses tell why we should or should not answer a fool according to his folly. The context for v.4 is that, if we do, you yourself will be just like him. The teaching is simple enough when we consider the context. To be “just like him” we must behave just like him. The context, then, has to do with our behavior. The fool scoffs and scorns, sneers and jeers, and generally acts contemptible. If I respond to him with the same behaviors, I will be just like him. Am I not right?
Now let’s vet verse 5. In this verse we are told to answer a fool according to his folly, the exact opposite of verse 4. This is what leads the gainsayers to bluster windy speeches about Biblical contradictions. However, the second half of the verse furnishes the context, and it is not the same context we saw in verse 4. Listen to verse 5: or he will be wise in his own eyes. In v.4 the person who answered the fool in his folly was the subject. In v.5 the fool himself is the subject. Very different context, you see.
The reason why we MUST answer the fool in his folly is to refute his foolishness. Otherwise he (and many like him) will be emboldened to persevere with their foolishness. We want to disperse the darkness with the light, not turn away and permit the darkness to persevere. So we gently and systematically set forth the errors of the fool’s way, while simultaneously laying out the truth in plain English for all to understand.
Verse 4, then, teaches that we mustn’t respond to the fool in his folly by imitating his folly. He scoffs, but we don’t. He sneers, but we don’t. He jeers, but we don’t. Otherwise we are being fools in their folly along with him! And that doesn’t get rid of the foolishness, does it?
Contrariwise, v.5 teaches that we must respond to the fool in his folly by being prudent and self-controlled, gentle and humble, yet still bold and adamant with respect to the truth. In this way his folly is exposed, both by noting his lack of logic and by presenting the true logic.
Words to be found in theology textbooks:
• inerrancy: the Bible contains no errors
• infallibility: the Bible is absolutely trustworthy and doesn’t lead us astray
• inspiration: the Holy Spirit (Who is God) led God’s chosen men to write down His Word in such a way that their personalities were included (i.e., they were not mere robots or automatons), but with the Holy Spirit still overseeing the process so that what was written was exactly what the Lord wanted written, no more and no less.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 1
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
When I was a wee tot, mom told me to take the garbage sack to the can. I responded, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to school, the teacher wanted me to turn in my homework. I challenged her, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to the job, the boss told me to bring him the report I was supposed to have finished. I told him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I opened my Bible to read it, the Lord instructed me… I told Him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
Okay. So I made all that up. Sadly, though, it’s all too common with today’s affluent middle class morality reigning supreme. Even worse, most folks will look at my first three willful responses, and they will find them outrageous. But when it comes to the fourth willful response…well, no biggy.
The Word of God doesn’t hold much authority in the eyes of the people of today’s world. Truth be told, the Bible is contemned by nearly everyone. Oh, I know the word “Bible” is often bandied about in a reverent sense. That only makes it all the worse, when those doing the bandying don’t read it much.
It is a sign of the times—one which clearly spells out how far down the road of apostasy we have gone in the good ol’ USA—that even in churches which still claim allegiance to the Bible, the folks predominantly are Bible illiterate, or at best semi-literate. Perhaps, just perhaps, they can tell you that Noah built the ark and David slew Goliath. But pass a Bible competency exam. Fat chance! Don’t hold your breath.
The “good” churches with the “real” Christians have sunk so low, that the word “Bible” has replaced the actual Bible! I’ll leave it to your imagination what this means for the professed Christians in the more liberally inclined churches. Apart from a real Holy Spirit time of refreshing, methinks it is curtains for America. No government election will alter our course either, dear friends.
Personally, I love to read my Bible every day. I can’t get enough of it! Take, for instance, the Apostle Paul’s words in the two verses we quoted to begin this study. Read them attentively, musing on what he emphasized and what his underlying assumptions are. I note three points of emphasis. They are:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
We will continue this topic on the morrow. For today let’s hie off to the prayer closet alone with Jesus for a spell.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
When I was a wee tot, mom told me to take the garbage sack to the can. I responded, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to school, the teacher wanted me to turn in my homework. I challenged her, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to the job, the boss told me to bring him the report I was supposed to have finished. I told him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I opened my Bible to read it, the Lord instructed me… I told Him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
Okay. So I made all that up. Sadly, though, it’s all too common with today’s affluent middle class morality reigning supreme. Even worse, most folks will look at my first three willful responses, and they will find them outrageous. But when it comes to the fourth willful response…well, no biggy.
The Word of God doesn’t hold much authority in the eyes of the people of today’s world. Truth be told, the Bible is contemned by nearly everyone. Oh, I know the word “Bible” is often bandied about in a reverent sense. That only makes it all the worse, when those doing the bandying don’t read it much.
It is a sign of the times—one which clearly spells out how far down the road of apostasy we have gone in the good ol’ USA—that even in churches which still claim allegiance to the Bible, the folks predominantly are Bible illiterate, or at best semi-literate. Perhaps, just perhaps, they can tell you that Noah built the ark and David slew Goliath. But pass a Bible competency exam. Fat chance! Don’t hold your breath.
The “good” churches with the “real” Christians have sunk so low, that the word “Bible” has replaced the actual Bible! I’ll leave it to your imagination what this means for the professed Christians in the more liberally inclined churches. Apart from a real Holy Spirit time of refreshing, methinks it is curtains for America. No government election will alter our course either, dear friends.
Personally, I love to read my Bible every day. I can’t get enough of it! Take, for instance, the Apostle Paul’s words in the two verses we quoted to begin this study. Read them attentively, musing on what he emphasized and what his underlying assumptions are. I note three points of emphasis. They are:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
We will continue this topic on the morrow. For today let’s hie off to the prayer closet alone with Jesus for a spell.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 2
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
The good ol’ USA mentality today is this: “You Can’t Tell Me What To Do!” Christians even adopt this mentality when it comes to the Bible. The Apostle Paul had a thing or two to say about this. We concluded yesterday’s study by noting three points of emphasis in Paul’s words to the Thessalonian Christians:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
Dear friends, it excites me to learn those three truths! Look around us in the good ol’ USA today. Visit some churches and pay close attention. Few folks know that God calls them, much less that He did so for His own specific purpose. Oh, you may well hear some words spouted which say otherwise. But points #2 and #3 in our list testify otherwise.
If I claim to be Christian, then the Lord called me into His family. Apart from God’s call I wouldn’t have come. Sinners—and anyone born of Adam the First is a sinner—but sinners just don’t go seeking God on their own. The chief characteristic of sin is that it rebels against God and His Word. It doesn’t embrace God and His Word!
How do I know that? Well, it’s like this. God taught it to me…in the Bible. And that is the problem today. Folks don’t understand Rule #2 for Bible study: “The Bible is our sole and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.” Once we become distant and aloof from the Word of God, we perforce become distant and aloof from God. It cannot be avoided. Just ask those in the Church of Ephesus (cf., Revelation 2:1-7).
Churches today—and Christians comprise churches, so this means Christians today—but we’ve substituted programs and activities for the Bible. We’ve substituted doctrinal statements, Sunday School booklets, and other assorted varieties of man’s words about the Bible, for the Bible itself.
To build today’s church requires mega money for high tech toys, and the latest fad book on “effective” church programs and activities. But tell the old old story, proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, train up the saints in the Word of God and promote daily quiet time alone with the Lord with Bible opened and man’s books closed? No one cares about that anymore, so why waste our time?
Waste our time, indeed! If we don’t build the church God’s way, we don’t build the church. It matters not how many pews are in the “sanctuary” or how many good folks fill the pews. What matters is how many sinners die and saints rise out of death. What matters is how much spiritual maturity God’s leaders in the church foster in these newborn lives.
Point #1 of our Bible verses states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Trouble is, folks in the churches today don’t know this truth, much less personally experience God’s call on them or His purpose for them. Sadly, but the church leaders often don’t even know this truth for themselves, so how can they teach it to those they are supposed to lead? They can’t.
Tomorrow we will proceed with our analysis. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your hearts now, as you chew the cud of today’s study.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
The good ol’ USA mentality today is this: “You Can’t Tell Me What To Do!” Christians even adopt this mentality when it comes to the Bible. The Apostle Paul had a thing or two to say about this. We concluded yesterday’s study by noting three points of emphasis in Paul’s words to the Thessalonian Christians:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
Dear friends, it excites me to learn those three truths! Look around us in the good ol’ USA today. Visit some churches and pay close attention. Few folks know that God calls them, much less that He did so for His own specific purpose. Oh, you may well hear some words spouted which say otherwise. But points #2 and #3 in our list testify otherwise.
If I claim to be Christian, then the Lord called me into His family. Apart from God’s call I wouldn’t have come. Sinners—and anyone born of Adam the First is a sinner—but sinners just don’t go seeking God on their own. The chief characteristic of sin is that it rebels against God and His Word. It doesn’t embrace God and His Word!
How do I know that? Well, it’s like this. God taught it to me…in the Bible. And that is the problem today. Folks don’t understand Rule #2 for Bible study: “The Bible is our sole and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.” Once we become distant and aloof from the Word of God, we perforce become distant and aloof from God. It cannot be avoided. Just ask those in the Church of Ephesus (cf., Revelation 2:1-7).
Churches today—and Christians comprise churches, so this means Christians today—but we’ve substituted programs and activities for the Bible. We’ve substituted doctrinal statements, Sunday School booklets, and other assorted varieties of man’s words about the Bible, for the Bible itself.
To build today’s church requires mega money for high tech toys, and the latest fad book on “effective” church programs and activities. But tell the old old story, proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, train up the saints in the Word of God and promote daily quiet time alone with the Lord with Bible opened and man’s books closed? No one cares about that anymore, so why waste our time?
Waste our time, indeed! If we don’t build the church God’s way, we don’t build the church. It matters not how many pews are in the “sanctuary” or how many good folks fill the pews. What matters is how many sinners die and saints rise out of death. What matters is how much spiritual maturity God’s leaders in the church foster in these newborn lives.
Point #1 of our Bible verses states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Trouble is, folks in the churches today don’t know this truth, much less personally experience God’s call on them or His purpose for them. Sadly, but the church leaders often don’t even know this truth for themselves, so how can they teach it to those they are supposed to lead? They can’t.
Tomorrow we will proceed with our analysis. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your hearts now, as you chew the cud of today’s study.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 3
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
Point #1 of Paul’s teaching states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Since this truth is unknown to Christians today, how can this anomaly be rectified? Paul offers us the solution in Point #2: we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible. We must cease with the programs and activities mentality and return to the Word of God. That’s how to rectify the contemporary church malady.
God calls the Christian. Paul stated it rather bluntly. You can read it yourself and see it. God’s has a purpose in calling the Christian. Again, Paul stated that truth rather bluntly as well. God’s purpose in calling us is not for “impurity” but for “sanctification”.
Someone is scratching his head and musing, “Huh? That doesn’t help me much, teacher! What does it mean?”
Well, it’s like this. In the context of our Bible verses, “impurity” is contrasted with “sanctification”. This makes defining the concept of “impurity” a rather easy task because the concept of “sanctification” is employed extensively in the Bible.
There are three aspects to salvation by faith in Jesus Christ:
1. justification
2. sanctification
3. glorification
When a sinner comes to Savior Jesus by faith and asks Him to forgive his sins and be his Savior, he is born again. He becomes a saint, an adopted son of God by faith in Christ Jesus. At that moment he no longer has any sin. Judge God declares him “Not guilty!” He is justified. Justification is a legal term meaning “not guilty”.
When the saint is promoted to eternity, he receives his resurrection body. This is the same type of body as the resurrected Jesus now has, and will have through all eternity. This is known as “glorification”.
In the interim between being born again and being promoted to eternity—the time during which a Christian remains on earth—the saint is still clothed in his old body of sin. That body of sin (i.e., the sin nature) tempts him daily to live for self and do what seems right in his own eyes.
Unlike the time period before he was born again though, the saint also has a new nature living inside him. The Holy Spirit took up residence in him when he was born again. At that moment he was baptized in the Spirit, born into the Church as a member of the Body of Christ on earth.
The sin nature tempts the saint to live the old way he did before he was saved. The Holy Spirit convicts him of suchlike living and empowers him to live the new way, the way the Lord Jesus lived while on this earth.
Jesus willingly laid aside his prerogatives as God and walked this earth in obedience to the Scriptures, while depending on the Holy Spirit for His success. While remaining on this earth after being born again, the saint is to go and do likewise. This daily process of surrender to the Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit is known as sanctification. It lasts until glorification.
Wow! We’re out of time again. Let’s betake ourselves to prayer and meditation with Jesus now. We’ll meet back here tomorrow, same time, same channel.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Point #1 of Paul’s teaching states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Since this truth is unknown to Christians today, how can this anomaly be rectified? Paul offers us the solution in Point #2: we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible. We must cease with the programs and activities mentality and return to the Word of God. That’s how to rectify the contemporary church malady.
God calls the Christian. Paul stated it rather bluntly. You can read it yourself and see it. God’s has a purpose in calling the Christian. Again, Paul stated that truth rather bluntly as well. God’s purpose in calling us is not for “impurity” but for “sanctification”.
Someone is scratching his head and musing, “Huh? That doesn’t help me much, teacher! What does it mean?”
Well, it’s like this. In the context of our Bible verses, “impurity” is contrasted with “sanctification”. This makes defining the concept of “impurity” a rather easy task because the concept of “sanctification” is employed extensively in the Bible.
There are three aspects to salvation by faith in Jesus Christ:
1. justification
2. sanctification
3. glorification
When a sinner comes to Savior Jesus by faith and asks Him to forgive his sins and be his Savior, he is born again. He becomes a saint, an adopted son of God by faith in Christ Jesus. At that moment he no longer has any sin. Judge God declares him “Not guilty!” He is justified. Justification is a legal term meaning “not guilty”.
When the saint is promoted to eternity, he receives his resurrection body. This is the same type of body as the resurrected Jesus now has, and will have through all eternity. This is known as “glorification”.
In the interim between being born again and being promoted to eternity—the time during which a Christian remains on earth—the saint is still clothed in his old body of sin. That body of sin (i.e., the sin nature) tempts him daily to live for self and do what seems right in his own eyes.
Unlike the time period before he was born again though, the saint also has a new nature living inside him. The Holy Spirit took up residence in him when he was born again. At that moment he was baptized in the Spirit, born into the Church as a member of the Body of Christ on earth.
The sin nature tempts the saint to live the old way he did before he was saved. The Holy Spirit convicts him of suchlike living and empowers him to live the new way, the way the Lord Jesus lived while on this earth.
Jesus willingly laid aside his prerogatives as God and walked this earth in obedience to the Scriptures, while depending on the Holy Spirit for His success. While remaining on this earth after being born again, the saint is to go and do likewise. This daily process of surrender to the Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit is known as sanctification. It lasts until glorification.
Wow! We’re out of time again. Let’s betake ourselves to prayer and meditation with Jesus now. We’ll meet back here tomorrow, same time, same channel.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 4
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
Returning to Paul’s words to the Thessalonian Christians, we now understand the concept of “sanctification”. The Christian is to spiritually mature, so that every aspect of his life is surrendered to the control of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will lead him according to the Bible, not out of the blue utter directions in his ear.
The opposite of this is the concept of “impurity”. How the saint lived before he was born again, that is what the word “impurity” has reference in the context of Paul’s teaching.
Sometimes man’s “impurity” is gross and vulgar and unfit for expressing in words. At other times the “impurity” is moral and church-going and respectable. What makes it “impure” is that the old sinner does it, and sinners don’t obey the Word of God or love God. Sinners make their own decisions about right and wrong and do what seems right in their own eyes. Sinners make themselves God.
So we learn from Points #1 and #2 that Paul teaches the saints to cease from living their pre-salvation lives, and instead live their born again lives. The reason for doing so is that God calls us to salvation for that very purpose.
And this brings us to Point #3 of Paul’s teaching: the Bible carries the authority of God Himself. Paul actually had the audacity to assert to the Thessalonian saints that, should any of them not obey his teaching, they weren’t rejecting him and his words. Oh, no. They were rejecting God and His Word! The nerve of some people, huh?
Either Paul was a wicked liar for speaking that way, or else he was a lunatic for believing such stuff and nonsense. But wait! There is a third option. Perhaps, just maybe perhaps, Paul was telling the truth.
That was the position of the early church, and it continued to be so through all the centuries. But not so in contemporary USA. Today we prefer programs and activities and man’s words about the Bible. Give the Bible esteemed recognition as God’s very own Word? Put it on a pedestal far above every other book? As paying lip service, sometimes. In Spirit and truth, not so much.
Let us harken to the words spoken by the Apostle Paul, as the Holy Spirit inspired him to present God’s Word to us. Let us recognize the qualitative difference between the Bible and man’s books about the Bible. This difference is comparable to that between gold and fool’s gold. If you aren’t sure of how qualitatively different they are, try spending some fool’s gold at the bank. Prepare to be arrested!
A return to the Word of God—not in word only but in daily feeding alone with Jesus, dear people—the Holy Spirit calls us to this today. Nothing else we do or say will make any worthwhile difference. Apart from the Word of God, the whole Word of God, and nothing but the Word of God, no revival will occur, ever.
As Rule #2 for Bible study teaches, “The Bible is our sole and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.” May Jesus Christ be praised.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Returning to Paul’s words to the Thessalonian Christians, we now understand the concept of “sanctification”. The Christian is to spiritually mature, so that every aspect of his life is surrendered to the control of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will lead him according to the Bible, not out of the blue utter directions in his ear.
The opposite of this is the concept of “impurity”. How the saint lived before he was born again, that is what the word “impurity” has reference in the context of Paul’s teaching.
Sometimes man’s “impurity” is gross and vulgar and unfit for expressing in words. At other times the “impurity” is moral and church-going and respectable. What makes it “impure” is that the old sinner does it, and sinners don’t obey the Word of God or love God. Sinners make their own decisions about right and wrong and do what seems right in their own eyes. Sinners make themselves God.
So we learn from Points #1 and #2 that Paul teaches the saints to cease from living their pre-salvation lives, and instead live their born again lives. The reason for doing so is that God calls us to salvation for that very purpose.
And this brings us to Point #3 of Paul’s teaching: the Bible carries the authority of God Himself. Paul actually had the audacity to assert to the Thessalonian saints that, should any of them not obey his teaching, they weren’t rejecting him and his words. Oh, no. They were rejecting God and His Word! The nerve of some people, huh?
Either Paul was a wicked liar for speaking that way, or else he was a lunatic for believing such stuff and nonsense. But wait! There is a third option. Perhaps, just maybe perhaps, Paul was telling the truth.
That was the position of the early church, and it continued to be so through all the centuries. But not so in contemporary USA. Today we prefer programs and activities and man’s words about the Bible. Give the Bible esteemed recognition as God’s very own Word? Put it on a pedestal far above every other book? As paying lip service, sometimes. In Spirit and truth, not so much.
Let us harken to the words spoken by the Apostle Paul, as the Holy Spirit inspired him to present God’s Word to us. Let us recognize the qualitative difference between the Bible and man’s books about the Bible. This difference is comparable to that between gold and fool’s gold. If you aren’t sure of how qualitatively different they are, try spending some fool’s gold at the bank. Prepare to be arrested!
A return to the Word of God—not in word only but in daily feeding alone with Jesus, dear people—the Holy Spirit calls us to this today. Nothing else we do or say will make any worthwhile difference. Apart from the Word of God, the whole Word of God, and nothing but the Word of God, no revival will occur, ever.
As Rule #2 for Bible study teaches, “The Bible is our sole and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.” May Jesus Christ be praised.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
Does the Bible Contradict Itself? – Part 1
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes [Proverbs 26:4-5].
“Looky there! A contradiction in the Bible! I knew it! I knew! The Bible does too contain errors! See! This proves it!”
Such are the rantings of typical worldly gainsayers. They search high and low, devoting themselves exclusively to disproving the Bible. They spend inordinate amounts of time sniffing like an old hound dog for the evidence to “prove” what they’ve already determined to be the case. They are staunch card-carrying activists in the anti-Bible brigade. The motto of this organization is, Don’t confuse me with the facts. I’ve already made up my mind!
But is there really a contradiction in Proverbs 26, between verse 4 and verse 5? A lot is at stake here, doctrines like,
• Biblical inerrancy
• Biblical infallibility
• Holy Spirit inspiration
We mustn’t be slapdash in drawing conclusions based on appearance, dear friends, lest we enjoy having egg on the face! As Rule # 4 for Bible study states: When something in the Bible is not understandable or seems in error, consider that our understanding is more likely in error than is God’s! Amen to that.
“Okay then, teacher,” challenges our local skeptic. “You think you know so much. Explain the contradiction if you can.” And then he sits back on his haunches, a smug look on his face and his chest puffed outward several inches.
Why thank you for the invite, my dear gainsayer. I’ll be glad to…only I didn’t say I could explain everything, only that we mere mortals are more likely in error than is God. Plus I can’t explain the contradiction because there is no contradiction. It is circular reasoning to assert that something nonexistent exists, and then demand that it be explained! Nice try though. It seems to work out there among the worldly folk.
The so-called “contradiction” is merely ostensible, on the surface, superficial. Those who are content to go by first impressions might see one. But to understand the Bible, we must learn the truth of Proverbs 2:4, that we search for the truth as hard as we would search for buried treasure. Half-hearted and perfunctory rituals won’t cut it, dear friends.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
“Looky there! A contradiction in the Bible! I knew it! I knew! The Bible does too contain errors! See! This proves it!”
Such are the rantings of typical worldly gainsayers. They search high and low, devoting themselves exclusively to disproving the Bible. They spend inordinate amounts of time sniffing like an old hound dog for the evidence to “prove” what they’ve already determined to be the case. They are staunch card-carrying activists in the anti-Bible brigade. The motto of this organization is, Don’t confuse me with the facts. I’ve already made up my mind!
But is there really a contradiction in Proverbs 26, between verse 4 and verse 5? A lot is at stake here, doctrines like,
• Biblical inerrancy
• Biblical infallibility
• Holy Spirit inspiration
We mustn’t be slapdash in drawing conclusions based on appearance, dear friends, lest we enjoy having egg on the face! As Rule # 4 for Bible study states: When something in the Bible is not understandable or seems in error, consider that our understanding is more likely in error than is God’s! Amen to that.
“Okay then, teacher,” challenges our local skeptic. “You think you know so much. Explain the contradiction if you can.” And then he sits back on his haunches, a smug look on his face and his chest puffed outward several inches.
Why thank you for the invite, my dear gainsayer. I’ll be glad to…only I didn’t say I could explain everything, only that we mere mortals are more likely in error than is God. Plus I can’t explain the contradiction because there is no contradiction. It is circular reasoning to assert that something nonexistent exists, and then demand that it be explained! Nice try though. It seems to work out there among the worldly folk.
The so-called “contradiction” is merely ostensible, on the surface, superficial. Those who are content to go by first impressions might see one. But to understand the Bible, we must learn the truth of Proverbs 2:4, that we search for the truth as hard as we would search for buried treasure. Half-hearted and perfunctory rituals won’t cut it, dear friends.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
Does the Bible Contradict Itself? – Part 2
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes [Proverbs 26:4-5].
Proverbs 26:4 does not have to do with the same concept as in verse 5. The first half of each verse is worded identically, except that the words “Do not” in v.4 don’t occur in verse 5. But it is the second half of each verse which identifies the subject matter. Let’s vet them and see.
Both verses tell why we should or should not answer a fool according to his folly. The context for v.4 is that, if we do, you yourself will be just like him. The teaching is simple enough when we consider the context. To be “just like him” we must behave just like him. The context, then, has to do with our behavior. The fool scoffs and scorns, sneers and jeers, and generally acts contemptible. If I respond to him with the same behaviors, I will be just like him. Am I not right?
Now let’s vet verse 5. In this verse we are told to answer a fool according to his folly, the exact opposite of verse 4. This is what leads the gainsayers to bluster windy speeches about Biblical contradictions. However, the second half of the verse furnishes the context, and it is not the same context as we saw in verse 4. Listen to verse 5: or he will be wise in his own eyes. In v.4 the person who answered the fool in his folly was the subject. In v.5 the fool is the subject. Very different contexts, you see.
The reason why we MUST answer the fool in his folly is to refute his foolishness. Otherwise he (and many like him) will be emboldened to persevere with their foolishness. We want to disperse the darkness with the light, not turn away and permit the darkness to persevere. So we gently and systematically set forth the errors of the fool’s way, while simultaneously laying out the truth in plain English for all to understand.
Verse 4, then, teaches that we mustn’t respond to the fool in his folly by imitating his folly. He scoffs, but we don’t. He sneers, but we don’t. He jeers, but we don’t. Otherwise we are being fools in their folly along with him! And that doesn’t get rid of the foolishness, does it?
Contrariwise, v.5 teaches that we must respond to the fool in his folly by being prudent and self-controlled, gentle and humble, yet still bold and adamant with respect to the truth. In that way his folly is exposed, both by noting his lack of logic and by presenting the true logic.
Words to be found in theology textbooks:
• inerrancy: the Bible contains no errors
• infallibility: the Bible is absolutely trustworthy and doesn’t lead us astray
• inspiration: the Holy Spirit (Who is God) led God’s chosen men to write down His Word in such a way that their personalities were included (i.e., they were not mere robots or automatons), but with the Holy Spirit still overseeing the process so that what was written was exactly what the Lord wanted written, no more and no less.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
Proverbs 26:4 does not have to do with the same concept as in verse 5. The first half of each verse is worded identically, except that the words “Do not” in v.4 don’t occur in verse 5. But it is the second half of each verse which identifies the subject matter. Let’s vet them and see.
Both verses tell why we should or should not answer a fool according to his folly. The context for v.4 is that, if we do, you yourself will be just like him. The teaching is simple enough when we consider the context. To be “just like him” we must behave just like him. The context, then, has to do with our behavior. The fool scoffs and scorns, sneers and jeers, and generally acts contemptible. If I respond to him with the same behaviors, I will be just like him. Am I not right?
Now let’s vet verse 5. In this verse we are told to answer a fool according to his folly, the exact opposite of verse 4. This is what leads the gainsayers to bluster windy speeches about Biblical contradictions. However, the second half of the verse furnishes the context, and it is not the same context as we saw in verse 4. Listen to verse 5: or he will be wise in his own eyes. In v.4 the person who answered the fool in his folly was the subject. In v.5 the fool is the subject. Very different contexts, you see.
The reason why we MUST answer the fool in his folly is to refute his foolishness. Otherwise he (and many like him) will be emboldened to persevere with their foolishness. We want to disperse the darkness with the light, not turn away and permit the darkness to persevere. So we gently and systematically set forth the errors of the fool’s way, while simultaneously laying out the truth in plain English for all to understand.
Verse 4, then, teaches that we mustn’t respond to the fool in his folly by imitating his folly. He scoffs, but we don’t. He sneers, but we don’t. He jeers, but we don’t. Otherwise we are being fools in their folly along with him! And that doesn’t get rid of the foolishness, does it?
Contrariwise, v.5 teaches that we must respond to the fool in his folly by being prudent and self-controlled, gentle and humble, yet still bold and adamant with respect to the truth. In that way his folly is exposed, both by noting his lack of logic and by presenting the true logic.
Words to be found in theology textbooks:
• inerrancy: the Bible contains no errors
• infallibility: the Bible is absolutely trustworthy and doesn’t lead us astray
• inspiration: the Holy Spirit (Who is God) led God’s chosen men to write down His Word in such a way that their personalities were included (i.e., they were not mere robots or automatons), but with the Holy Spirit still overseeing the process so that what was written was exactly what the Lord wanted written, no more and no less.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Deuteronomy: Volume 5 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. For more info please visit these sites to purchase my books:
http://www.amazon.com/Randy-Green/e/B...
You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 1
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
When I was a wee tot, mom told me to take the garbage sack to the can. I responded, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to school, the teacher wanted me to turn in my homework. I challenged her, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to the job, the boss told me to bring him the report I was supposed to have finished. I told him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I opened my Bible to read it, the Lord instructed me… I told Him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
Okay. So I made all that up. Sadly, though, it’s all too common, with today’s affluent middle class morality reigning supreme. Even worse, most folks will look at my first three willful responses, and they will find them outrageous. But when it comes to the fourth willful response…well, no biggy.
The Word of God doesn’t hold much authority in the eyes of the people of today’s world. Truth be told, the Bible is contemned by nearly everyone. Oh, I know the word “Bible” is often bandied about in a reverent sense. That only makes it all the worse, when those doing the bandying don’t read it much.
It is a sign of the times—one which clearly spells out how far down the road of apostasy we have gone in the good ol’ USA—that even in churches which still claim allegiance to the Bible, the folks predominantly are Bible illiterate, or at best semi-literate. Perhaps, just perhaps, they can tell you that Noah built the ark and David slew Goliath. But pass a Bible competency exam. Fat chance! Don’t hold your breath.
The “good” churches with the “real” Christians have sunk so low, that the word “Bible” has replaced the actual Bible! I’ll leave it to your imagination what this means for the professed Christians in the more liberally inclined churches. Apart from a real Holy Spirit time of refreshing, methinks it is curtains for America. No government election will alter our course either, dear friends.
Personally, I love to read my Bible every day. I can’t get enough of it! Take, for instance, the Apostle Paul’s words in the two verses we quoted to begin this study. Read them attentively, musing on what he emphasized and what his underlying assumptions are. I note three points of emphasis. They are:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
We will continue this topic on the morrow. For today let’s hie off to the prayer closet alone with Jesus for a spell.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
When I was a wee tot, mom told me to take the garbage sack to the can. I responded, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to school, the teacher wanted me to turn in my homework. I challenged her, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I went to the job, the boss told me to bring him the report I was supposed to have finished. I told him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
When I opened my Bible to read it, the Lord instructed me… I told Him, “No! You can’t tell me what to do!”
Okay. So I made all that up. Sadly, though, it’s all too common, with today’s affluent middle class morality reigning supreme. Even worse, most folks will look at my first three willful responses, and they will find them outrageous. But when it comes to the fourth willful response…well, no biggy.
The Word of God doesn’t hold much authority in the eyes of the people of today’s world. Truth be told, the Bible is contemned by nearly everyone. Oh, I know the word “Bible” is often bandied about in a reverent sense. That only makes it all the worse, when those doing the bandying don’t read it much.
It is a sign of the times—one which clearly spells out how far down the road of apostasy we have gone in the good ol’ USA—that even in churches which still claim allegiance to the Bible, the folks predominantly are Bible illiterate, or at best semi-literate. Perhaps, just perhaps, they can tell you that Noah built the ark and David slew Goliath. But pass a Bible competency exam. Fat chance! Don’t hold your breath.
The “good” churches with the “real” Christians have sunk so low, that the word “Bible” has replaced the actual Bible! I’ll leave it to your imagination what this means for the professed Christians in the more liberally inclined churches. Apart from a real Holy Spirit time of refreshing, methinks it is curtains for America. No government election will alter our course either, dear friends.
Personally, I love to read my Bible every day. I can’t get enough of it! Take, for instance, the Apostle Paul’s words in the two verses we quoted to begin this study. Read them attentively, musing on what he emphasized and what his underlying assumptions are. I note three points of emphasis. They are:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
We will continue this topic on the morrow. For today let’s hie off to the prayer closet alone with Jesus for a spell.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
You Can't Tell Me What To Do! - Part 2
For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification. So, he who rejects this is not rejecting man but the God who gives His Holy Spirit to you [1 Thessalonians 4:7-8].
The good ol’ USA mentality today is this: “You Can’t Tell Me What To Do!” Christians even adopt this mentality when it comes to the Bible. The Apostle Paul had a thing or two to say about this. We concluded yesterday’s study by noting three points of emphasis in Paul’s words to the Thessalonian Christians:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
Dear friends, it excites me to learn those three truths! Look around us at the good ol’ USA today. Visit some churches and pay close attention. Few folks know that God calls them, much less that He did so for His own specific purpose. Oh, you may well hear some words spouted which say otherwise. But points #2 and #3 in our list testify otherwise.
If I claim to be a Christian, then the Lord called me into His family. Apart from God’s call I wouldn’t have come. Sinners—and anyone born of Adam the First is a sinner—but sinners just don’t go seeking God on their own. The chief characteristic of sin is that it rebels against God and His Word. It doesn’t embrace God and His Word!
How do I know that? Well, it’s like this. God taught it to me…in the Bible. And that is the problem today. Folks don’t understand Rule #2 for Bible study: “The Bible is our sole and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.” Once we become distant and aloof from the Word of God, we perforce become distant and aloof from God. It cannot be avoided. Just ask those in the Church of Ephesus (cf., Revelation 2:1-7).
Churches today—and Christians comprise churches, so this means Christians today—but we’ve substituted programs and activities for the Bible. We’ve substituted doctrinal statements, Sunday School booklets, and other assorted varieties of man’s words about the Bible, for the Bible itself.
To build today’s church requires mega money for high tech toys, and the latest fad book on “effective” church programs and activities. But tell the old old story, proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, train up the saints in the Word of God and promote daily quiet time alone with the Lord with Bible opened and man’s books closed? No one cares about that anymore, so why waste our time?
Waste our time, indeed! If we don’t build the church God’s way, we don’t build the church. It matters not how many pews are in the “sanctuary” or how many good folks fill the pews. What matters is how many sinners die and saints rise out of death. What matters is how much spiritual maturity God’s leaders in the church foster in these newborn lives.
Point #1 of our Bible verses states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Trouble is, folks in the churches today don’t know this truth, much less personally experience God’s call on them or His purpose for them. Sadly, but the church leaders often don’t even know this truth for themselves, so how can they teach it to those they are supposed to lead? They can’t.
Tomorrow we will proceed with our analysis. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your hearts now, as you chew the cud of today’s study.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
The good ol’ USA mentality today is this: “You Can’t Tell Me What To Do!” Christians even adopt this mentality when it comes to the Bible. The Apostle Paul had a thing or two to say about this. We concluded yesterday’s study by noting three points of emphasis in Paul’s words to the Thessalonian Christians:
1. God calls the Christian for His purpose
2. we learn of His call and purpose from the Bible
3. the Bible carries the authority of God Himself
Dear friends, it excites me to learn those three truths! Look around us at the good ol’ USA today. Visit some churches and pay close attention. Few folks know that God calls them, much less that He did so for His own specific purpose. Oh, you may well hear some words spouted which say otherwise. But points #2 and #3 in our list testify otherwise.
If I claim to be a Christian, then the Lord called me into His family. Apart from God’s call I wouldn’t have come. Sinners—and anyone born of Adam the First is a sinner—but sinners just don’t go seeking God on their own. The chief characteristic of sin is that it rebels against God and His Word. It doesn’t embrace God and His Word!
How do I know that? Well, it’s like this. God taught it to me…in the Bible. And that is the problem today. Folks don’t understand Rule #2 for Bible study: “The Bible is our sole and final authority in all matters of faith and practice.” Once we become distant and aloof from the Word of God, we perforce become distant and aloof from God. It cannot be avoided. Just ask those in the Church of Ephesus (cf., Revelation 2:1-7).
Churches today—and Christians comprise churches, so this means Christians today—but we’ve substituted programs and activities for the Bible. We’ve substituted doctrinal statements, Sunday School booklets, and other assorted varieties of man’s words about the Bible, for the Bible itself.
To build today’s church requires mega money for high tech toys, and the latest fad book on “effective” church programs and activities. But tell the old old story, proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, train up the saints in the Word of God and promote daily quiet time alone with the Lord with Bible opened and man’s books closed? No one cares about that anymore, so why waste our time?
Waste our time, indeed! If we don’t build the church God’s way, we don’t build the church. It matters not how many pews are in the “sanctuary” or how many good folks fill the pews. What matters is how many sinners die and saints rise out of death. What matters is how much spiritual maturity God’s leaders in the church foster in these newborn lives.
Point #1 of our Bible verses states, “God calls the Christian for His purpose”. Trouble is, folks in the churches today don’t know this truth, much less personally experience God’s call on them or His purpose for them. Sadly, but the church leaders often don’t even know this truth for themselves, so how can they teach it to those they are supposed to lead? They can’t.
Tomorrow we will proceed with our analysis. Allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your hearts now, as you chew the cud of today’s study.
To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Joshua: Volume 6 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please go to:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B005PJ761C
https://sites.google.com/site/heavenl...
