- This topic is empty.
- Posts
Hebrews 11:6 – But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
If an individual desires righteousness he WILL find it!
Hi Rudy,
Our doctrine is drawn from the only source that meets the Mark-the bible. It is the truth. and we are told to consecrate ourselves to truth. There is true doctrine and false doctrine. False doctrine makes men stumble and causes them to be dangerously complacent so our work is to reveal what is written so men can compare their path with what is given to us to follow.
But most will choose the wider more popular path and will have many friends who do the same. Making friends is not our primary aim here but pleasing the master.If a man desires righteousness, God will see to it he is on the right path. When we surrender to him we belong to him, we are not our own. He owns us.
Aye,
He will send him messengers that he may or may not listen to.The price has been paid but the deal must be completed too.If he desires, he will listen! God is Love! He's not standing there waiting to beat us down, he is calling all who will, come unto me!
Psalms 37:3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. 4 Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart. 5 Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. 6 And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday. 7 Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. 8 Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. 9 For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.
True Rudy,
How many lepers were there in Israel when Elisha lived there? How many were cleansed? And how much convincing did Naaman require before he followed the simple request of God through that prophet?Quote (Rudy @ April 18 2005,21:48) Matt 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged. 2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? 4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? 5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. 6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you. 7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? 12 Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. 13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. You shall know them by their fruits! He that confesses Christ and bears fruit is in the Vine!
Hi Rudy,
This speaks of those who are God's children. We have to be born again of water and the Spirit to become a child of God. It is not of man's desire or man's willing but of God. Then the promises are sure for his children. But he stands at the door and knocks. We have to respond and walk to the door. We have to go to the gate and go through it and then he comes and makes his home in us.Man, you sound just like the guy from the church of Christ, he told me I was going to hell 'cause I didn't go to the Church of Christ. He also said the Baptism of the Holy Spirit had passed away. He could quote all scripture necesary to prove his point of view. Guess what, that didn't make him right, and it does not make you right either. The law of the Spirit of Life frees from the Law of sin and death. Knowledge of the path does not mean your on the path. Knowledge of God does not save a man. You must be a doer. The justified man is the doer. Though I know all mysteries and have not love, I am nothing.
You don't seem to understand the power of Yahweh. He is mercy and lovingkindness. He who seeks, he will reveal himself to. It is only up to us to desire to be filled, God fills us. Your knowledge doesn't make you born again, it is the work of God!
Remeber Cornelius and the Ethiopian! The eyes of the Lord see everything about us, we don't have to find him, he is looking for those that want to drink from the well of living waters, and they are available to those who love God and righteousness.
Quote (Rudy @ April 19 2005,00:20) Man, you sound just like the guy from the church of Christ, he told me I was going to hell 'cause I didn't go to the Church of Christ. He also said the Baptism of the Holy Spirit had passed away. He could quote all scripture necesary to prove his point of view. Guess what, that didn't make him right, and it does not make you right either. The law of the Spirit of Life frees from the Law of sin and death. Knowledge of the path does not mean your on the path. Knowledge of God does not save a man. You must be a doer. The justified man is the doer. Though I know all mysteries and have not love, I am nothing. You don't seem to understand the power of Yahweh. He is mercy and lovingkindness. He who seeks, he will reveal himself to. It is only up to us to desire to be filled, God fills us. Your knowledge doesn't make you born again, it is the work of God!
Remeber Cornelius and the Ethiopian! The eyes of the Lord see everything about us, we don't have to find him, he is looking for those that want to drink from the well of living waters, and they are available to those who love God and righteousness.
Good post Rudy. The Doers will receive salvation. I recently posted on a forum that I frequent a subject called “How would it change you?” It basically said what if we knew the exact year that the beast rises on the scene and that year was 2015. Then asked how it would change peoples lives – some people were quite honest and said that they would do more and said they were not doing enough. I included myself as one not fully seeking God with all my heart and soul. If we want to have salvation we must be doers and not just where its convient but with all our heart and soul.Paul
True ,
The saved have to produce fruit consistent with the grace they have received. But that follows salvation and does not cause it surely?Amen Paul!
He who says he is in the light and hates his brother is in darkness. He who says he is born again and causes his brother to stumble is in darkness. He who by the Spirit of God puts to death the deeds of the body lives. He who loves is born of God. He who seeks diligently finds. He who hungers and thirst after righteousness WILL be filled.
The simplicity is mind boggling.
That's the point Nick! We are not the judges of the heart, God is!
Hi,
1 Cor 13.6
'Love is patient. Love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek it's own , is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails”Hey no pressure,
You take what you find useful from here and leave the rest behind. You are very helpful with the insights you offer ,Rudy, but should we not challenge and ask for clarification if doubts and confusions arise. Is it speaking the truth in the spirit of love to not ask?Amen Nick!
We are told to discern a brother relative to his acts:
Does he commit fornication? Does he lie? Does he cheat? Is he a man of his word? Does he covet? Does he seek riches? Does he boast being full of pride? Does he love his wife as Christ does the church and gave himself for it, or does he lord over her like a general in the army? Does he lust after women? Does he speak crudely? Does he curse? Does he pay his taxes? Does he steal music? Does he steal software? Does he pay his debts? Is he loving and kind to his children?
or:
Does he love? Is he kind? Is he meek? Is he gentle? Is he forgiving? Does he seek to bless? Is he honest? Does he give to those in need?
Does he put on the Lord Jesus, and claim faith in God thru Christ?
We were never told to question a brother's salvation, only to rebuke in love when they fall into sin (works of the flesh). You and I can't discern the heart of a man, only God can do that. To his own master he stands or falls, and yes, God will uphold him!
You guys have been a huge blessing to me. I love each and every one of you. All each of us can do is put ourselves by faith in the hand of Yahweh and the work he did thru Christ for us. We submit ourselves to Him and He will direct yours and my path.
Quote (Rudy @ April 19 2005,00:20) He could quote all scripture necesary to prove his point of view. Guess what, that didn't make him right, and it does not make you right either. The law of the Spirit of Life frees from the Law of sin and death. Knowledge of the path does not mean your on the path. Knowledge of God does not save a man. You must be a doer. The justified man is the doer. Though I know all mysteries and have not love, I am nothing. You don't seem to understand the power of Yahweh. He is mercy and lovingkindness. He who seeks, he will reveal himself to. It is only up to us to desire to be filled, God fills us. Your knowledge doesn't make you born again, it is the work of God!
Remeber Cornelius and the Ethiopian! The eyes of the Lord see everything about us, we don't have to find him, he is looking for those that want to drink from the well of living waters, and they are available to those who love God and righteousness.
Agreed.But I will say that if the Trinity doesn't matter then how does it differ from say, a Moslem's understanding of God or the Jewish understanding? And why should it matter in light of John 3:16f?
The Jews believe in a Messiah, they just didn't think Christ was he. They believe that God is one.
The Moslem acknowledge that Jesus came but that he was not the son of God as God doesn't have a son, just one of the prophets of God. They believe that God is one.
The Trinitarians say that Christ himself is God Almighty, and not only that, but that God is three in One.
I don't know what the mormons believe.So the right belief matter? Did it matter to Jesus? Does it matter to God? Why be a Christian? I know many nice people of different faiths.
Clarification: Islam says Jesus came but as a prophet.
Trinity says Jesus came but as the Almighty God though he was still the son.Is there a difference here with regards to John 3:16f and does it matter on to salvation?
Of course it matters.
We're not talking about those who don't name Christ. We're talking about those who do.
But you and I cannot do the work of the Spirit. We are called to be obedient servants. The work of God is his work. Jesus was our example, he only spoke what He heard of the Father.
You can lead a horse to water, but, you can't make him drink. Unless the Lord draw him, he will not come! Unless he hungers, he will not eat. If he's not thirsty, he won't drink!
We live the life, walk the walk. Love above all, bless those who curse us. We are called to be a light shining in the darkness. A city set on a hill. We are to put on Christ and allow God to do his work.
I've got baptists, methodists, catholics, ex-Jehovah's witnesses, spirit-filled, and not where I work. Some walk the walk better than others. But, so did I at one time. They're master is God of all. The work he does is mostly evident to him, not to me. If I offend one of the least of these, I've done it to Christ Himself, and WILL give account of such. I must be more concerned with living Christ than beating others over the head with Him. So, I believe the best, I trust God to deal with His children, if he gives me a word of encouragement, I give it. If a word of rebuke, that too. But I always ask and look for the motive of my own heart first. You MUST move in the Spirit obedient to the witness of the Holy Spirit within.
If I say anything of my own accord I may do more harm than good. He, as far as I am concerned, is a child of the Most High God. I respect them as such. I trust that God will open their eyes. And, I pray for them daily!
There is only one door, Jesus Christ. I don't know who is knocking, He does.
So Rudy,
Are all these folk within the kingdom in your view? Is there no error? Are they saved simply because they believe in God or Jesus.Does God tolerate as much as we do all the variations in doctrinal themes? Is He really a Father Christmas God who has everyone in the kingdom unless they are really really naughty?
Sadly, in my view, the problem is bigger than what you see and the Body of Christ is a lot, lot smaller. That is not to judge people but we are called to judge doctrines that stop people from finding the Way.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
