Which Bible 7
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Answering Questions
Dear brothers and sisters in
Christ. A few days ago, we covered the
first three of the following questions.
These questions aim at discovering principles to help us find a new set
of text criticism rules. This is just
the start of the process. Please help
point out errors, problems, and questions that you see. Please help find what is missing.
“Some suggestions about where the rules should be
headed. A few of the subjects we should
explore include:
·
What is an accurate
definition of Autographa and where are they located?
·
How were Autographa
historically accessed and how do we access them today?
·
Are the Autographa a single
collection of unchanging documents, or can they be changed? Are there possibly multiple Autographa?
·
What is Inspiration?
·
What is Inscripturation and
how does it relate to Transcription?
·
What is Canonization and
who has authority to Canonize? Is
Canonization fundamentally: an act of God, an act of the Jews, an act of the
Church, or an act of man?
·
How shall evidence be
handled?
·
How do we focus on real
translatable differences, and not on meaningless trivia, or on mere document
counting?
·
What Bible(s) can we
recommend to the Church?”
Today, let’s talk about
Inspiration.
Inspiration. What is Inspiration?
One approach to Inspiration,[1] common among some
conservative Christians, is called Verbal, Plenary Inspiration.[2] This view is so tenaciously and tightly held
by some that, in their opinion, anyone rejecting it is branded a liberal, a
modernist, a heretic, even an apostate.
I want you to know that I have no intention of becoming a liberal, or
imitating liberals in any way. We hope
to show that Verbal, Plenary Inspiration is not what the Bible teaches about
itself: therefore, Verbal, Plenary Inspiration cannot be a conservative
viewpoint.
One use of the term Verbal, Plenary Inspiration states that
plenary relates to the whole Bible: all the words of the whole Bible are
inspired by God. We have no particular
contention with this statement, providing it means that all the words of the
scroll in Jesus’ hands are inspired by God.[3] However, if this statement applies to
anything more or less than the words of the scroll in Jesus’ hands, then we
cannot agree. Moreover, the words of the
scroll in Jesus’ hands are obviously inerrant, perfect in every way.
We have a problem. No
mere man has the power or the authority[4] to open the scroll in
Jesus’ hands. Since this is the case, it
is more than a bit presumptuous, on the basis of an Autographa alone, for us to
claim that we know what books make up the Bible, or what their contents
are. We do not know and cannot know
unless the Son of God and the Holy Ghost are pleased to teach us.
We intend to say much less than what the proponents of
Verbal, Plenary Inspiration say; and we intend to say much more than what the
adversaries of Verbal, Plenary Inspiration commonly say. What we have protested thus far is the use of
Matthew 5:17 and Luke 16:17 to create a doctrine of Verbal, Plenary Inspiration
that guarantees perfection of the letter forms and spelling of the text. Except in special circumstances, as in the
Decalogue, the handwriting on the wall in Daniel, Jesus’ writing with His
finger in the dirt, and like specific cases, this simply cannot be true.
Inspiration, as it is commonly used by conservative
Christians, applies only to the Autographa, the scroll in Jesus’ hands. This is really Super-Ordinary[5] Inspiration. It does not apply to archetypes, ancient manuscripts,[6] translations, or the Bible
in our hands. We intend to show from
Scripture that Inspiration means far more than this, but Inspiration is not the
same as the term inspiration commonly used in society. What society commonly calls inspiration is really
Sub-Ordinary Inspiration. We need to
discover what Ordinary Inspiration is.
Inspiration as it is used in theology (Super-Ordinary), and
inspiration of a beautiful work of art (Sub-Ordinary) seem to be a lot alike,
and many people do confuse or equate them.
We will show that they may be similar, but that they are really quite
different. Finally, we will examine the
Bible guidelines for knowing the difference between Inspiration (Super-Ordinary),
and inspiration (Sub-Ordinary); then discover how Ordinary Inspiration fits in.
Where do great ideas come from? We commonly say that they are inspired, and
so they are. We do not believe that men,
in and of themselves, come up with such brilliance. Man is simply not that smart.[7] We believe that such brilliance comes from
outside of man, either from demons, or from God and His holy angels. We do not believe that any mere man is
deserving of any title, copyright, or patent: all of these are gifts from
God. Whenever, such brilliance is
inspired in unbelievers, we believe that it is the work of God’s Common Grace.[8] Characteristically, we like to take credit
for such things as though they were our own, but that is simply stealing; and the
failure to give the Glory to God, where it belongs. We do have crowns, but we will cast all of
them at the feet of Jesus Christ our King: for He is the giver of every single crown
and human glory.[9] Inspiration is much more than Common Grace in
action.
Finding a Biblical Definition
“I will take the Spirit which is on you
[Moses], and will put it on them … The Lord
came down in a cloud … and took of the Spirit that was on him [Moses], and gave
it to the seventy elders: and … when the Spirit rested on them, they
prophesied, and did not cease. But …
Eldad and … Medad … the Spirit rested on them … and they prophesied in the camp
… ‘Eldad and Medad prophesy in the camp.’
Moses said … ‘Would God that all the Lord’s
people were prophets,[11] that the
Lord would put His Spirit on them!’
”[12]
“I say to you, ‘Ask, and it shall be given
you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; and he who seeks
finds; and to him who knocks it shall be opened. If a son asks for bread from any of you
fathers, will he give him a stone? Or if
he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a
scorpion? If you then, being evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children: how much more shall your heavenly
Father give the Holy Ghost to those who ask Him?’ ”[13]
“Verily, verily,[14] I say to
you, ‘He who believes on Me, the works that I do, he shall also do; and he
shall do greater works than these; because I go to My Father ... He shall give
you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of
truth … you know Him: for He dwells with you, and shall be in you ... I will
not leave you comfortless: I will come to you … you shall know that I am in My
Father, and you in Me, and I in you … We will come to him [you], and make Our dwelling
with him [you]. … The Comforter, Who is the Holy Ghost, Whom the Father will
send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your
remembrance, whatever I have said to you.”[15]
“It is expedient for you that I go away: for
if I don’t go away, the Comforter will not come to you; but if I depart, I will
send Him to you … when He comes, He will reprove the world of sin,
righteousness, and judgment … when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will
guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He
shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to come. He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine,
and shall show it to you. All things that
the Father has are Mine: therefore I said, that He shall take of Mine, and
shall show it to you.[16]
“When … Pentecost came … suddenly a sound
came from heaven as a mighty rushing wind … and they were all filled with the
Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them
utterance … [about] the wonderful works of God ... God says, “In the last days I
will pour out My Spirit on all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall
prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream
dreams … I will pour out My Spirit on My servants and handmaids in those days
and they shall prophesy … I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the
earth beneath; blood, and fire, and smoke vapor … the sun shall be turned to
darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and notable day of the Lord
comes … Jesus of Nazareth … you have
taken, … crucified, and slain: Whom God has raised up … David … being a
prophet, and knowing that God … would raise up Christ to sit on his throne … spoke
of the resurrection of Christ … being exalted by the right hand of God, and
having received the promise of the Holy Ghost from the Father, He has shed
forth this, which you now see and hear ... they … said … ‘What shall we do?’ … Peter
said … ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ … and
you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost’ ... and fear came upon every soul:
and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.”[19]
“There is … no condemnation to those who are
in Christ Jesus, who walk … after the Spirit … the law of the Spirit of life in
Christ Jesus has made me [you] free … so that the righteousness of the law
might be fulfilled in us [you], who walk … after the Spirit … those who… are after
the Spirit [mind[20]] the
things of the Spirit ... to be … spiritually minded is life and peace ... you are
… in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in you ... if any man does not have
the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His ... if Christ is in you … the Spirit is
alive because of righteousness ... if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from
the dead dwells in you, He Who raised Christ from the dead shall also bring your
mortal bodies to life by His Spirit Who dwells in you ... if you through the
Spirit mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live ... as many as are led by
the Spirit of God, are the sons of God ... you have not received the spirit of
bondage … you have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba,
Father. The Spirit itself bears witness
with our spirit, that we are the children of God … if children, then heirs;
heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ … we also, who have the firstfruits
of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the
adoption: namely, the redemption of our body … likewise the Spirit also helps
our infirmities: for we do not know what we should pray for … but the Spirit … makes
intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And He Who searches the hearts knows what the
mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according
to God’s will … for whom He foreknew, He predestined to be conformed to the
image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.”[21]
“No man speaking by the Spirit of God calls
Jesus accursed. No man can say that
Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost ... there are diversities of gifts,
but the same Spirit ... the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each man for
the profit [of all] ... to one is given the word of wisdom by the Spirit; to
another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to another faith by the same
Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit … all these work by
the one and selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man as He wishes ... by one
Spirit we are all baptized into one body … and all have been made to drink into
one Spirit ... that there should be no schism in the body; but that the members
should have the same care one for another ... when one member suffers, all … suffer
… when one member is honored, all … rejoice … you are the body of Christ, individual
members of it ... God has set [apart] apostles, prophets, teachers, miracles,
gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues … covet earnestly
the best gifts: and yet I show you a more excellent way ... though I speak with
the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity,[22] I am
become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal ... though I have the gift of
prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have
all faith, so that I can move mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing … though
I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,
and have not charity, it profits me nothing ... charity never fails … prophecies
fail … tongues cease … knowledge vanishes ... we know in part, we prophesy in
part ... when … the perfect comes … the part shall be done away ... When I was
a child, I spoke, understood, and thought as a child … when I became a man, I
put away childish things ... now we see … dimly; but then face to face: now I
know in part; but then I shall know even as also I am known ... now faith,
hope, and charity abide … but the greatest of these is charity ... pursue charity,
and desire spiritual gifts, but rather that you may prophesy ... he who speaks
in an unknown tongue does not speak to men, but to God: for no man understands
him; although in the Spirit he speaks mysteries … if I pray in an unknown
tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful ... I will pray
with the Spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with
the Spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also … if any man think himself
to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write
to you are the commandments of the Lord.
Let all things be done decently and in order.”[23]
“Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace. There is one body,
and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord,
one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and
through all, and in you all. But to
every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ
... He gave some: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers: for
the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of
the body of Christ. Till we all come in
the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect
man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That we henceforth be no more children,
tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine … speaking the
truth in love, may grow up in Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ
… be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and put on the new man, which after
God is created in righteousness and true holiness ... and grieve not the holy
Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed until the day of redemption ... for the
fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth … be not drunk
with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to
yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody
in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the
Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to
another in the fear of God ... Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be
able to stand against the wiles of the devil: for we wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but against principalities, powers, the rulers of the darkness of
this world, and against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of
God, so that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all,
to stand. Stand therefore, having your
loins girt about with truth; having on the breastplate of righteousness; your
feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all taking the
shield of faith wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of
the wicked; take the helmet of salvation; and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God: praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit,
and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” [24]
It is a shame that we needed to condense these wonderful verses
to emphasize the work of the Spirit, and develop the meaning of
Inspiration. We beg the reader to return
to these passages again and again: please read them through from one end to
another until they are carved into your soul — Exodus 33; Numbers 11; John 14;
17; 20; Acts 2; Romans 8; 1 Corinthians 12-14; and Ephesians 4-6. There are, of course, many other verses on
this same subject, but to quote them all would require a quote of the entire
Bible.
Inspiration in Broad Strokes
We use the word inspiration with at least three distinct
meanings: Super-Ordinary Inspiration, Ordinary Inspiration, and Sub-Ordinary
Inspiration.
Super-Ordinary Inspiration
Super-Ordinary Inspiration is a real observable conversation
between YHWH and a man or woman. It is
not merely a voice in the head, an inner dialog with God. It may begin with such inner dialog but until
it reaches the level of real observable conversation it has not attained to the
fullness of what we mean by Super-Ordinary Inspiration.[25]
Super-Ordinary Inspiration requires that the human partner
in the conversation have the gift of the Holy Ghost. Without this gift we expect that man has no
more ability to speak with God than a dumb animal has to speak with man. However, this gift of the Holy Ghost is the
necessary, but not the sufficient condition of Inspiration: conversation does
not have to take place. Conversation is
the sufficient condition, if conversation takes place the gift of the Holy
Ghost will always be present and active.[26]
Super-Ordinary Inspiration is used to describe God’s primary
authorship of Scripture, most commonly through the means of conversation with a
prophet, who is also inspired.
“Inspiration:[27] There can be no doubt
that Scripture is θεόπνευστος; Exhaled might have been a better term for the Holy
Ghost’s activity.[28] However, we believe that Exodus 33:11 best
describes the normative nature of this Inspiration and there is nothing verbal
or plenary about it. A better
description would be inspired conversation or inspired prophetic
utterance. This conversation was a two
way street between the parent and the child, which leaves room for the child’s
inability to fully grasp eternal thoughts and for the child to express himself
freely in his own words. Nor was it
limited to one man, Moses.”[29]
In Super-Ordinary Inspiration,
both sides of the conversation are inspired: God’s side, because He is God; man’s
side, because he is elevated to a wisdom that is above the ordinary. Such inspired persons are commonly called
Prophets in the Old Testament, and Apostles in the New Testament. This is why The Church is “built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Jesus Christ himself
being the chief corner stone.”[30] In both Testaments these human instruments
are also titled, The Slaves of God.[31]
Ordinary Inspiration
Ordinary Inspiration is called ordinary because it is the
ordinary experience[32] of all Baptized
Christians.[33] If this is not your experience, perhaps you
will consider examining yourself from the words of Doctor Luke.
“I say to you, ‘Ask, and it shall be given
you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; and he who seeks
finds; and to him who knocks it shall be opened. If a son asks for bread from any of you
fathers, will he give him a stone? Or if
he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a
scorpion? If you then, being evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children: how much more shall your heavenly
Father give the Holy Ghost to those who ask Him?’ ”[34]
Ordinary Inspiration may involve inner dialog, Bath Kol
(secondary revelations or private inspirations), meaning a real gift of the
Holy Ghost. The gift of the Holy Ghost
commonly, but not exclusively, results in prophesying or proclamation. Such prophesying may be characterized by
predictions of future events, but more frequently it has to do with
proclamation of truth or preaching.
There is no way to verify these Bath Kol (secondary revelations or
private inspirations) and so they rarely become Super-Ordinary Inspiration. To become Super-Ordinary Inspiration they must
be verified. Such verification would
ordinarily require public recognition (witnesses) and official reception by God
in His Tabernacle or Temple (God completes the conversation after the fact).[35]
The gift of the Holy Ghost finds its fulfillment on the Day
of Pentecost, 33 AD, when the gift of the Holy Ghost is given to every member
of The Church, and from that point forward at baptism.
Jesus promised the future indwelling of the Holy Ghost, of
Himself, and of the Father (“We will … make our dwelling”). This indwelling includes the teaching
ministry of the Holy Ghost, which will guide The Church into all truth: we note
that this is a growth process and not a single completed and finished act. It includes giving God’s Word to The Church. It is associated with the Resurrection. It is made effective beginning with the Day
of Pentecost in 33 AD where it is associated with the Glory of God in tongues
of fire, the miraculous ability to speak foreign languages without learning them,
prophesy, visions, dreams, and various signs.
Specific to this prophecy is that Jesus of Nazareth is seated on the
throne of David by His Resurrection from the dead, from which throne He
receives the Father’s promise of the Holy Ghost, Given to The Church.[36]
The Holy Ghost gives a wide variety of inspired gifts. These gifts are Bath Kol unless they are
verified by understanding in the church.[37]
Ordinary Inspiration is used to
describe secondary revelations. In the
case of the seventy these appear to be personal. In the case of Jonah, his personal Todah
becomes a matter of Temple record.
We are most concerned with the
manner in which these Ordinary Inspirations, secondary revelations relate to
the preaching, study, and teaching of Scripture. We conclude that these activities are
impossible without the special gift of the Holy Ghost. It is the Holy Ghost Who opens the Bible for
us. It is the Holy Ghost Who guides The
Church as a whole into all truth. If
this is not true then all Bible preaching, study, and teaching are absurd works
of human vanity. Not only is the human
preacher or teacher dependent on the gift of the Holy Ghost, but he trusts that
he acts as the voice of Jesus, and that the Holy Ghost will take his words and
apply them to the hearts of the congregation as He, the Holy Ghost sees
fit. Hence all Bible preaching, study,
and teaching are sacramental, coming only as the gifts of God. Since we are so dependent on the gift of the
Holy Ghost, it is absurd to conclude that such inspiration and gifts have
ceased.
Should the preacher take credit
for such art or give the glory to God for it?[38] Is it for St. John’s glory that he could
preach with a golden mouth?
Moreover, both the Old and New
Testaments speak of a wide variety of other Ordinary[39] Inspirations activities
coming from the same inspiration of the Holy Ghost: visions, dreams, miracles,
the unity of The Church, apostles, healing, tongues, charity, faith, hope,
prayer, singing, blessing, thanksgiving, evangelism, and shepherding: to name a
few. Pentecostals, by-and-large claim
all of these gifts; they appear to be correct in this view. We have no warrant to call Pentecostals wrong
in such matters. When such things occur
in private, they are for that individual, almost exclusively. This is not to say that they can never become
of public interest. If my brother or
sister claims that God told him or her to give one thousand dollars to
such-and-such a need, who am I to question his or her faith. The Scripture does not condemn these things,
but rather praises them as the norm of Christian life.
We have every right to hope the
Bible will be obeyed concerning the orderly use of such gifts within the public
meetings of The Church. The Scripture
does not approve of parading these things about in pride. If they can be used to help a brother or
sister, so be it, let them be used modestly, quietly, even secretly. Paul takes great pains, both in Corinthians
and in Ephesians to condemn childish behavior in the use of the gifts of the
Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is fully God
and we must take great care that we never offend Him by treating Him
frivolously, or by trivializing His gifts.
This is a serious life and death matter.
Is the iconographer who spends
countless hours in Bible study and prayer justified in believing that his or
her work is written, not painted, and that it was inspired by the Holy
Ghost? Should the iconographer take
credit for such art or give the glory to God for it.
Not one of these things can be
claimed as our own. They are all the
gifts of God, and to Him belongs all the glory.
Sub-Ordinary Inspiration
Sub-Ordinary Inspiration is
called sub-ordinary because it falls so far short of what God wishes us to
be. We are designed to be free. We are designed to fly. Please. Come. Fly
with us.
“I say to you, ‘Ask, and it shall be given
you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; and he who seeks
finds; and to him who knocks it shall be opened. If a son asks for bread from any of you
fathers, will he give him a stone? Or if
he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a
scorpion? If you then, being evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children: how much more shall your heavenly
Father give the Holy Ghost to those who ask Him?’ ”[40]
Why should we continue to limp
through life, when the gifts of God are ours for the sincerity of our asking? Come, discover the purposes God has in our
suffering. Learn how trial develops our
true character. Oh Yes, we’ll crash a
few times while we’re learning to use our new wings; but for all that pain we’ll
never regret it. Please. Come. Fly.
“They that wait on the Lord shall renew
their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and
not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”[41]
Sub-Ordinary Inspiration rarely
involves inner dialog. It is a work of
Common Grace. “It is the goodness of God
that brings men to repentance.”[42]
Sub-Ordinary Inspiration is also
used to describe the gifts of Common Grace.
These are gifts of God’s glory, as well.
However, they fall far short of the gifts of the Holy Ghost, which are
exclusively given to The Church.
Shall the creative engineer,
inventor, or scientist claim credit for such work, or shall, being bought to
ones knees, will one be driven to cry out for the gift of the Holy Ghost. Herod made his choice.[43]
Yours in Christ,
Augie-Herb
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biblical_inspiration,
http://www.opc.org/new_horizons/Inspiration.html, inspiration of scripture, http://home.earthlink.net/~ronrhodes/Inspiration.html,
http://carm.org/bible-inspired, and http://www.theopedia.com/Inspiration_of_the_Bible
[2]
Literally, every word: but typically every letter and serif on a letter
(Matthew 5:17; Luke 16:17). Greek ἰῶτα ἓν ἢ μία κεραία and μίαν κεραίαν do not correspond exactly with
Hebrew yod and those marks that distinguish daleth or nun from resh. Indeed, there is no exegetical reason to seek
a Hebrew meaning at all. Iota and yod
might have a crude correspondence.
Keras, on the other hand, means horn, and is far more conspicuous than
tittle, usually counting the number of kings in a nation: hence, indicating the
individual laws in the Decalogue.
Pressing Jesus’ declaration to details of spelling minutia is at best
dubious. More likely, His meaning is
that each of the ten “words”, which are really ten sentences, in the Decalogue
will stand exactly as they are written.
There is no disagreement or doubt about what they mean. Even though we will draw a conservative and
strict view of Inspiration, we doubt that Jesus intended His words about ἰῶτα
and κεραία to be pressed to all Scripture, or even beyond the Decalogue at
all. The focus of the Gospels and the
New Testament is on the defense of the Decalogue, and not on legal minutia such
as dietary requirements. Plenary simply
refers to all the words, without condition or qualification: we suspect that it
is untrue that God is always so concerned about the exact wording in every
passage.
[3] Revelation 5
[4] είτε ἡ δύναμις ή ἡ ἐξουσία
[5]
Linguists appear to prefer supra and infra, but those terms seem obscure, who
would know what we were talking about.
Hyper and extra might also work, but in ordinary use super and sub are
easier to grasp.
[6]
Unless, of course, the particular manuscript accidentally happened to be a lost
Autographa fragment, in which case we would be ignorant of what we held anyway.
[7] 1
Corinthians 1:26
[8]
Unless, of course, it is demonic in origin: diabolical or evil genius, and the
like. Such demonic works are real
enough, but they are counterfeits of and stolen from God’s true genius. They exist in the world because it is not yet
time in God’s plan for them to be cast into the Lake of Fire (Revelation 19:20;
20:10, 14-15; 21:8). The Lake of Fire is
prefigured in the Brazen Altar, where sin is confessed and symbolically
destroyed. In our sincere confession, we
cast our sins into the Lake of Fire in abhorrence of them, and longing for
their absolute annihilation. However,
sinful beings are not annihilated in the Lake of Fire.
[9]
Revelation 4:10-11
[10]
Exodus 33:11
[11]
Moses’ words are prophetic, being fulfilled in Acts 2
[12]
Selections from Numbers 11:16-17, 24-29
[13]
Luke 11:9-13, all the children of creation are invited to ask. No son of Adam or daughter of Eve is excluded
from this great invitation. People are
condemned because they never ask, seek, or knock. The invitation is open, none are turned away.
[14]
not “truly, truly;” but rather “in all reality:” ἀμὴν
emphasizes the realistic nature of the thing, often an unseen thing,
nevertheless very real.
[15]
Selections from John 14:12-26
[16]
Selections from John 16:7-15
[17]
John 17:14
[18]
John 20:22
[19]
Selections from Acts 2
[20] φρονοῦσιν, here, and φρόνημα in verses 6 2x, 7
and 27, which are related to the noun for diaphragm, emphasize the focused
activity of the νοῦς, the
mind (see Romans 1:28; 7:23, 25). Paul
writes about the rigorous employment of the intellect; the vigorous, yet
humble, use of the mind. This is not
about the emotions or about the will; this is about hard thinking, and thinking
hard (Romans 12:3 2x, 16 2x; 14:6 4x; 15:5 — such repetition is always
emphatic). TDNT, Volume 9, page 220-235:
Georg Bertram (1896-1979) has a fascinating word study on this topic.
[21]
Selections from Romans 8:1-25
[22]
Love is a very inadequate rendering of this word in American society, where
love has come to mean anything and everything.
This word αγάπην
is best defined by the Law and the Gospel.
In the Law we see that we are forbidden to be slaves, especially of
idols; or to enslave our fellow men.
This is what it means to love God and love our neighbor. This is what it means to honor Father and
mother. In the Gospel we see Jesus lay
down His life for us, and we should lay down our lives for the brotherhood. The kingdom of God is the kingdom of
absolution, debtlessness, faith, forgiveness, freedom, healing, hope, kindness,
justification, mercy, reconciliation, restoration, and sinlessness. No one may enter this kingdom who hates these
things. This word αγάπην is far more than a
warm fuzzy emotion. It has a price, the
blood of Jesus. At least charity conveys
the notion that αγάπην
is something given.
[23]
Selections from 1 Corinthians 12-14
[24]
Selections from Ephesians 4-6
[25]
Exodus 33:11
[26]
Numbers 11:17
[27]
Breathed out, not breathed in, we simply avoid the term expiration because of
its negative connotation in the English language.
[28]
Acts 1:16; 2:4; Ephesians 3:5; 1 Thessalonians 1:5; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter
1:21
[29]
from Which Bible 5
[30] Ephesians
2:20
[31]
We believe that this title, The Slave of God is the highest human dignity
possible. Invariably The Slave of God is
a bearer of the Word. We cannot conceive
of a higher honor.
[32]
for example, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
[33]
Numbers 11:29; Acts 2, this is the baptism of Jesus or the baptism of the Holy
Ghost, which are one and the same thing.
There are a wide variety of views about water baptism and its
association with the baptism of Jesus.
We are not here debating any of these views.
[34]
Luke 11:9-13, all the children of creation are invited to ask. No son of Adam or daughter of Eve is excluded
from this great invitation. People are
condemned because they never ask, seek, or knock. The invitation is open, none are turned away.
[35]
Numbers 11:25, 26, the prophecies of the seventy are not Super-Ordinary, we
have no idea what they were. However,
the prophecies of Daniel and Jonah were later recognized by the Jews. Jonah is received in Solomon’s Temple. Daniel is received by Jesus.
[36]
John 14:26; 16:13; 17:14; 20:22; Acts 2
[37] 1
Corinthians 12-14; Ephesians 4:7-16; the panoply in Ephesians 6:10-20 may also
speak of inspired gifts.
[38]
One cannot give glory to God without confessing that it was God’s inspiration
that made the work, whatever it may be, possible.
[39] These
were not ordinary in the Old Testament, they were rare. The single major difference between the Old
Testament Church and the New Testament Church is that the New Testament Church
has been given the fullness of the Holy Ghost.
[40]
Luke 11:9-13, all the children of creation are invited to ask. No son of Adam or daughter of Eve is excluded
from this great invitation. People are
condemned because they never ask, seek, or knock. The invitation is open, none are turned away.
[41]
Isaiah 40:31
[42]
Romans 2:4
[43]
Acts 12:23
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