Could it be that other religions also have spiritual experiences with the Spirit of God? In the last two centuries it was common to think that the Spirit of God is active in all the world's religions. IE, the other deities we hear about, Zeus, Odin, Krishna, Manitou are also all manifestations of the divine Spirit that we otherwise read about in Hebrew or Greek Scripture.
What I found is, isn't it hard to think of a divine ego or self? If God has no single ego or self like us humans, then maybe he has many persons in himself, not just Yahweh and Jesus. So also Zeus is a Spirit of God, Krishna is one, Odin is one. At some places of the bible they call the hebrew God the "God of Gods", the "Lord of Lords".
So I would posit, as a possibility if you want, to recognize all religions under the umbrella of modern christianity. After all the law is only about arguments, the story of Moses and the Law is very upsetting to the human spirit because of the need of submission, and not to love but a violent idea of God. The Jews may have been against evil images of God, but what about evil ideas of God? Could it not be that the Thora must be read spiritually, ie it is not to be followed when it speaks or describes acts against the spirit of love and humility?
What you bring up would conflict with YHVH's explicit instructions to not worship other gods, or to even speak their names.
I think what many of these other 'gods' were, were attributes.. usually of nature.. or of human type feelings or affairs.. like 'god' of war, the Roman mars.. and venus, 'god' of love (and as it turns out jealousy and other less than love things?)
And of course, was the ever popular fertility 'gods' which popular rites mimicked 'fertility'.. Of course the Canaan form of these were very barbaric, especially with the sacrifice of live (resulting unwanted?) babes to the fires of molech (baal molech, or was it molech baal?)
Although I think there must be some true threads weaved into the world faiths - or their 'tapestry' would completely unravel?? And though in some respects, I find the u.s. native american 'great spirit' to more resemble my heavenly Father than the image of Him the myth of hell suggests, and some seem to believe and embrace - Although I'm sure I'm very limited in my understanding of what the perception of the 'great spirit' was/is.. And there are aspects of Eastern belief which are attractive what with monks living on mountain tops dedicated to seeking "He Who is".. (but they're not yet grafted into the root and become part of Israel/God's kingdom).
Does God's Spirit work in these other systems? If so, I'm thinking, to draw people out and into His covenant with mankind of righteousness/'heaven'/life being inherited through faith in Jesus.. But I have thought angels work in the systems as they work every where? Trying to draw to the more nobler things and trends than the so prevalent evil which seems to run rampant whenever able..?
Of course our Father, God of the Bible.. all concerning Him is so very fascinating and full! And though an attribute of love, for instance, man can deify and it basically becomes an idol and able to be filled by lesser spirits, namely evil..
One day all these loose threads will be gathered up into the consum-ation of His Spirit when all untrue falls away and He is "all in all"... Perhaps those 'holy men' on the mountains will find they did catch a glimpse of the True He Who is.. :dunno:
I suppose, like with myself - meditation and astrology, the studies of, did help to lead me to an awareness of God, whereupon I began to seek HIM.. I have long ago turned from those things and into "The Way", I expect all these other beliefs will fall away from the world.. Yet, in the kingdom, I don't believe we will all be exact replicas of one another.. the cultures still somewhat surviving? or not so much culture, but ethnicities with some uniqueness still, yet all one in His kingdom and of the same spiritual mold.. Am I making any sense? :dontknow:
Is it a question(?) of how to be a peacemaker, without compromising any Truth!!
:gsmile:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. John 1
Everything that is of God glorifies Jesus, who is the speaking of the one true invisible God.
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. 3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.
5 For to which of the angels did He ever say,
"You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You"?
And again,
"I will be a Father to Him
And He shall be a Son to Me"?
6 And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,
"And let all the angels of God worship Him." Hebrews 1:1-6
When Paul proclaimed the gospel he did not condemn men for their former beliefs, but he was clear about the fact that YHWH had revealed Himself from the beginning, and that men loved darkness and became futile in their thinking, inventing gods that imitated the creation, rather than the Creator.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. 17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "But the righteous man shall live by faith."
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. 21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.
24 Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. 25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
Paul proclaimed that all mankind is one in creation. He also proclaimed that all mankind will realize that oneness in only one way- through Jesus Christ. Until the last knee bows and the last adversary is annuled, mankind will be practically divided, even if theoretically, or prophetically, united.
So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens, I observe that you are very religious in all respects. 23 For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, 'TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.' Therefore what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; 25 nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; 26 and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we also are His children.' 29 Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. 30 Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." Acts 17
Israel was planted in the earth to be a Lampstand. The Gospel of Mark 12:29-31 mentions that Jesus of Nazareth considered the opening exhortation of the Shema to be the first of his two greatest commandments and linked with the second (based on Leviticus 19:18b): "The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might....The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'
The process through which the kingdom of God is coming is clear. God is subjecting all things to His Son, because only His Son was worthy and placed the love of His Father, and loving His neighbors, above all else."Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross....."
For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil 2)
Jesus has, from the very beginning, been the unifying thread that has been woven through out all that is...
"In the beginning the earth was without form and void and darkness covered the face of the deep....."
God said, "Let there be light" and the Day was born.
"By faith we know the worlds were framed by the word of God"
Now we are without form and void, and darkness covers the face of the deep until the radiance of the Father's glory speaks into our hearts, and the exact representation of His nature shines as the Day within...
"For all those He foreknew He also foreordained to be conformed to the image of His Son"
The mystery of the gospel is Christ in you, the hope of glory, and that is the light that is shining to all who ever lived, and will be seen by all who ever lived, whether in this age or the one to come, because He created the worlds and the ages.
"And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.'" Rev 5:13
As man is emerging from the primordial confusion that followed the fall, he is like the prodigal son, who left the Father's estate and gambled his welfare on riotous living. As mankind begins to rise, in his/her right mind because the fruit of their way is visited upon them, the kingdom of God is the measure of leaven hidden in three measures of meal until all is leavened.
Only those who are willing to be condemned with Jesus Christ are in that leaven, and it is the blood of their shared sacrifice, with Him, that is transforming the whole creation into conformity with His image.
Gen 6;1,2 " And it came to pass when men had begun to multiply on the face of the ground and daughters had been born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair, so they took to themselves wives of whomsoever they chose."
vs 4 " The giants were in the earth in those days, and after that, when the sons of God began to go in to the daughters of men, and sons were born to them, the same were the heroes that were from age-past times, the men of renown."
Job 1;6 " Now there came a certain day when the sons of God entered in to present themselves to Yahweh- so the accuser also
entered in their midst."
Ps 33;6 " The heavens were made by the Word of Yahweh, and all their host by the spirit o His mouth>"
Eph 3;14,15 " For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from Whom every family in heaven and on earth derives it's name"
1 Cor 15;25 " Now He must reign till He has put all His enemies under His feet."
Jude 6 " And the angels who did not stay within their domain but abandoned their proper dwelling, he has kept in always existing
chains in utter darkness for the judgment of the great day."
Jude 9 " But when Michael the archangel, in debate with the devil, was arguing about the body of Moses, he did not presume to
condemn him for blasphemy, but said,
' The Lord rebuke you."
* Looking at Greek, Egyptian, Roman history seems to suggest that they are worshipping and following angels.
* Jacob wrestled with an angel. There was a ladder to heaven with angels going up and down.
* We will have had dealings with angels without even knowing it.
* Interesting how many of these other deities were born on Dec 25.
1 Tim 4;1 " Now the spirit clearly says that in the last times some of the faith will apostasize by being devoted to deceitful spirits
and teachings of demons, by the hypocrisy of liars whose own consciences have been seared."
1 Tim 4;7 " But reject the profane and silly myths;"
2 Tim 4;3 " For the time will come when they will not put up with healthy teaching, but will heap up for themselves teachers in
accordance with their own lust, having itching ears, and they will turn away from listening to the truth and wander
off into the myths."
1 Cor 6;3 " Do you not know that we will judge angels, not to mention everyday affairs?"
Quote from: eaglesway on February 14, 2017, 01:34:54 AM
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. John 1
Everything that is of God glorifies Jesus, who is the speaking of the one true invisible God.
God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. 3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.
5 For to which of the angels did He ever say,
"You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You"?
And again,
"I will be a Father to Him
And He shall be a Son to Me"?
6 And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,
"And let all the angels of God worship Him." Hebrews 1:1-6
When Paul proclaimed the gospel he did not condemn men for their former beliefs, but he was clear about the fact that YHWH had revealed Himself from the beginning, and that men loved darkness and became futile in their thinking, inventing gods that imitated the creation, rather than the Creator.
Paul proclaimed that all mankind is one in creation. He also proclaimed that all mankind will realize that oneness in only one way- through Jesus Christ. Until the last knee bows and the last adversary is annulled, mankind will be practically divided, even if theoretically, or prophetically, united.
The process through which the kingdom of God is coming is clear. God is subjecting all things to His Son, because only His Son was worthy and placed the love of His Father, and loving His neighbours, above all else."
"For all those He foreknew He also foreordained to be conformed to the image of His Son"
The mystery of the gospel is Christ in you, the hope of glory, and that is the light that is shining to all who ever lived, and will be seen by all who ever lived, whether in this age or the one to come, because He created the worlds and the ages.
"And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honour and glory and dominion forever and ever.'" Rev 5:13
I once read a quote that went something like this:
All other world religions are men seeking God
Christianity is God seeking men.
Christianity is God coming down to us in the form of Jesus and then in the form of the Holy Spirit.
I can see this in my own life, I sought out God in various ways in my life (Catholic, Christian, Buddhist, New Age, agnostic, etc) but it was only when God came to me that the true inner transformation and relationship began. When I sought out God in other ways before that point, my heart was in the right place but I was just misguided and confused. He is the Way, and I think all who seek God in love and truth have their hearts in the right place as well and they will eventually find Him. If someone is born in another culture or religion, and they seek to know the true God who is Love, and they do this to the best of their ability given their circumstances, I believe they will see Jesus at some point on the other side of this life or the ressurection (I'm not sure how it all works) and they will recognize Him to be the one they were worshiping. But I don't think this can be a blanket statement of all world religions or all people who follow them, including some Christians who may not know what spirit they are of. I think we don't know how it all works precisely and we may be surprised a little, but that doesn't mean all "gods" are faces of the true God who is Love.
[quote author=GodIsLove link=topic=14387.msg203507#msg203507 date=148703726
I can see this in my own life, I sought out God in various ways in my life (Catholic, Christian, Buddhist, New Age, agnostic, etc) but it was only when God came to me that the true inner transformation and relationship began. When I sought out God in other ways before that point, my heart was in the right place but I was just misguided and confused. He is the Way,
[/quote]
:dsunny: :thumbsup:
AN please be careful.....there are other spirits not of God associated with some of these things you mentioned.
better to not go delving into it....just sayin....
Quote from: sheila on February 14, 2017, 04:07:14 PM
AN please be careful.....there are other spirits not of God associated with some of these things you mentioned.
better to not go delving into it....just sayin....
Yup, not delving anymore :) basically because I know in my heart they don't contain the truth (or have slivers of truth like Marie likes to point out). That was in the pretty distant past.
Quote from: GodIsLove on February 14, 2017, 03:54:20 AM
I once read a quote that went something like this:
All other world religions are men seeking God
Christianity is God seeking men.
Amen! I love that!! ..and the rest of your post too, of course..
Quote from: sheila on February 14, 2017, 04:07:14 PM
AN please be careful.....there are other spirits not of God associated with some of these things you mentioned.
better to not go delving into it....just sayin....
Amen!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
..in the distant past for me too.. besides, He is... enough! He fills our cup.. I think some of these things however, are creeping into the churches.. or marching.. even stomping into..? Because, imo, they've let go of the head.. and mostly, have let go of His Word, which is infinitely fascinating, how anyone could be 'bored' with it is beyond me.. unless of course, we consider how it's viewed! With e.t. and all its agony..
:Chinscratch: perhaps that's why some are still searching.. elsewhere(!) And i have no doubt that is why nonbelievers search elsewhere! :faint:
If I saw a worshiper of Mars, Odin, Quetzalcoatl, or even Moloch who was behaving morally, refusing to take part in wars and sacrifices, and seriously following their conscience then I might suspect that they were worshipping our true God while misunderstanding a few details(just as every christian misunderstands a few details). Those religions are clearly not inspired by God though(encouraging war, sacrifices, prostitution, and hard-heartedness in general). If powerful beings that go by those names exist, then they must have been created by God and are more like siblings to us(and probably evil unless they have changed) rather than beings that have a right to be worshiped. I doubt such beings are real though. Maybe there are beings that are given as much power(but not authority) as polytheists have imagined their idols to have or that could be classified as some sort of deities(depending on how we define "deity") but that is all very speculative and God is the only one we ought to worship(and all other beings are sustained by him).
It is possible that some religions are devolved and twisted from true teachings of God. It wouldn't surprise me if some false religions were started by true prophets but got corrupted some time later.
I think we can love people of other religions and regard them as being as much our spiritual family as other christians. A difference in religion does not have to be a matter of disowning other children of God and refusing to associate with them, love them, etc. I believe that christianity is the truest religion(that a religion can't get any truer) and I want other people to know the truth(just as any muslim that cares about christians wants us to believe in islam). We all believe in falsehoods and we all believe in truths. A person is a follower of God insofar as they follow their "inward light"(as quakers would call it) and resist evil. None of us are perfect followers of God and christians are not necessarily always the best followers(we are often the worst) despite us having access to the writings of the apostles, the gospels, etc(which is our advantage over other religions except for when we misuse them)
Here is an old post of mine from facebook.
"I was just thinking again about exclusivism, inclusivism, and pluralism. I think it seems absurd that people are going to be walking into the "pearly gates" asking "Where am I?" or mistaking God for some pagan deity. How can we truly experience heaven if we don't even know who God is, who created us, who saved us, ect? I believe God will save us all from all the lies we believe about him. I can't respect the beliefs of any pluralist who believes that our creator does not care about us believing in falsehoods about him or that will accept our brokenness to the point of not doing anything about it(our brokenness). I am very confident that I am probably mistaken(even seriously mistaken) about a LOT of things about God but I trust God will correct that.
I guess I would say that I lean pretty strongly towards exclusivism but believe that everyone will be corrected of the lies, misunderstandings, and ignorance about God. False beliefs are excluded but not those who abandon such beliefs(and all will abandon their false beliefs). Maybe we will still be ignorant about God or not able to comprehend everything about him(maybe we will need more refinement and learning) but I think he will at least save us from lies and sin before we enter any place worthy of being called heaven."
"Every knee shall bow, whether in heaven or on earth or under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father."
Jesus is the "radiance of the Father's glory and the exact representation of His nature" and no one comes to the Father but by Him. He is the Door to the sheepfold, the Gateway into the kingdom of heaven.
Acts 4:10... let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health. 11 He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved."
Phil 2:8-11... Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death [a]on a cross. 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus loves everyone, He does not agree with everyone. As His disciples, we are called to love everyone- but not to agree with everyone.
Quote from: eaglesway on February 17, 2017, 07:11:13 PM
Jesus loves everyone, He does not agree with everyone. As His disciples, we are called to love everyone- but not to agree with everyone.
I believe in loving everyone, but seeking to use as accurate as possible discernment led by the Spirit and the scriptures; I believe it's clear in scripture that agreeing with/"accepting/including", counting everyone as "spiritually in tune", etc., is not accurate or the truth. There are clear specific passages that demonstrate this.
Avoid myths and legends
15"If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them."
John 14:15 - 21
Not all know the truth. Those who recognize Jesus as Lord will know the truth.
I absolutely agree that we must love everyone, but we must also walk in the Spirit of truth.
D.
:iagree: each at their own time
yes, and yes :)
If you love Christ truly, you love His law. There is a tendency in UR to toss aside the law (although many don't in this forum). I learned to love the Law through the writings of Dr Jones and of late Origen. Of course, you have to love the Spirit of the law and not the letter. Christ is in the law and when I say the law I am referring to the entire Old Testament.
These may seem like merely historical narratives of a cruel nature but while they are very much historical, they are more importantly allegorical in that they represent on several levels the spiritual journey of coming out of the bondage of sin and into the spiritual perfection that prepares the saints for the duty to reign with Christ and join Him in the work of restoration as sons of God. The Law also represent the work of Christ for the OT gives us insight into the details of His earthly work as well as His heavenly work. Seeing Christ in the Law is by far the best way to fall in love with the OT.
If you lack eyes to see, I suggest two things. First, get the Treasury of scriptural knowledge which is a cross reference book and when you read the New Testament see how many times it quotes the OT. Second, read Origen who was an early Church father and UR teacher and understood the spiritual sense of the Law. His homilies on Genesis and Exodus are a great read. Also Dr Stephen A Jones has all his writing free and His also understands the law and is a UR believer.
I am a believer in Jesus and I fasten salvation and heavenly life with its beginning of the cross. When the son of the creator of the cosmos dies for our behalf, how much worth is that? I think it is of eternal and infinite worth. That's why all of our sins are in fact taken care of, and it's not all about faith because the way we speak about faith is a very human way and about a human affair, and not as godly as we make ourselves believe. Faith simply fastens to something that is not human, that is divine and godly, and it is this divine and godly thing which saves us, not the belief itself. That's how christian believers get saved into heaven and that's how atheists and other religions' members get saved into heaven too. We as firstfruits in this life already, they later. The hellfire things mentioned in scripture just refer to the bad life we get if we don't have Jesus, and the purgatorial cleansing after death that we will probably all undergo and which is a healing and restoration and not something painful.
The other deities like Zeus, Odin, Manitou, Krishna etc are all smaller spirit beings of whom Yahweh is the Father just like He is our Father. The religions have told all kinds of untruths about them, they were more gods of the theatres and such. In old times people had no computers or tv or radio, so religion was for entertainment and spending time, and not always for serious investigation and pious living. Especially Zeus had thousands of bulls sacrificied to him and in that the hellenic religion was worse than judaism.
We all must return to Yahweh in love. That is the true religion, and if we have made mistakes we can go to Jesus for forgiveness and a correction that is painless and kind and humble.
Quote from: anti_nietzsche on April 01, 2017, 06:44:00 PM
I am a believer in Jesus and I fasten salvation and heavenly life with its beginning of the cross. When the son of the creator of the cosmos dies for our behalf, how much worth is that? I think it is of eternal and infinite worth. That's why all of our sins are in fact taken care of, and it's not all about faith because the way we speak about faith is a very human way and about a human affair, and not as godly as we make ourselves believe. Faith simply fastens to something that is not human, that is divine and godly, and it is this divine and godly thing which saves us, not the belief itself. That's how christian believers get saved into heaven and that's how atheists and other religions' members get saved into heaven too. We as firstfruits in this life already, they later. The hellfire things mentioned in scripture just refer to the bad life we get if we don't have Jesus, and the purgatorial cleansing after death that we will probably all undergo and which is a healing and restoration and not something painful.
The other deities like Zeus, Odin, Manitou, Krishna etc are all smaller spirit beings of whom Yahweh is the Father just like He is our Father. The religions have told all kinds of untruths about them, they were more gods of the theatres and such. In old times people had no computers or tv or radio, so religion was for entertainment and spending time, and not always for serious investigation and pious living. Especially Zeus had thousands of bulls sacrificied to him and in that the hellenic religion was worse than judaism.
We all must return to Yahweh in love. That is the true religion, and if we have made mistakes we can go to Jesus for forgiveness and a correction that is painless and kind and humble.
Good post in my opinion. There are so many on Tentmaker that I miss when absent, including you anti-Nietzsche. Glad to see you back from time to time.
I love the fact that , God in His mercy and grace never ever gives up on us .
Unlike our human frailty , we give up on God and this causes great harm , I have seen this with my own eyes .
When we go to Babylon for seeking Gods face /presence and the trap is laid .
We are so blessed because of the truth is before us and that twisting of the truth is behind us now .
I say this because the bowls of Gods wrath is the trap laid for Babylon in all of Revelation and the double portion is to destroy
Her by the Spirit of Truth and By the Word of Truth that is a fire of Gods Love burning jealousy , that any and all pride of self sustaining as ruling over anyone else ever , shall be removed permanently.
This Law and Standard is the TRUTH that sets us free , and in Christ we are free indeed .
God says keep praying for our enemies , I wondered what this meant and it is enemies of the CROSS OF CHRIST , THE CROSS IS THE FOUNDATION LAID /WORD OF GOD That has marked the truth of the new covenant of making'' all things'' NEW , Living things that Praise GOD and know Him and Loving Him first and more most for their salvation and not only their own , but the salvation of the whole world !!! and worry no more in whom can be saved for God is able ... :HeartThrob: :dsunny:
from the Great Multitude
...14"Sir," I answered, "you know." So he replied, "These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation;
they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
15For this reason, 'They are before the throne of God and serve Him day and night in His temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.
16Never again will they hunger, and never will they thirst; nor will the sun beat upon them, nor any scorching heat....
Covered by the Blood of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world .... and now we know whom saves us all ..
I think this passage sums it up for me:
Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon and set it by Dagon. 3 And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set it in its place again. 4 And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only Dagon's torso was left of it. 5 Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon's house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day. (1 Samuel 5:1-5)
Jesus Christ is the only true ark of the covenant, and the falseness of religion will be found bowed to the ground without head (spiritual understanding) or hands (spiritual works) before Him.
Quote from: Shev on April 03, 2017, 09:00:06 AM
Jesus Christ is the only true ark of the covenant
This is making me imagine the ark of the covenant with Jesus huddled up inside. :winkgrin:
Quote from: DanielB on April 03, 2017, 01:50:53 PM
Quote from: Shev on April 03, 2017, 09:00:06 AM
Jesus Christ is the only true ark of the covenant
This is making me imagine the ark of the covenant with Jesus huddled up inside. :winkgrin:
Ha ha - and that reminds me of how most people interpret the symbols in Revelation! :laugh:
Quote from: Shev on April 04, 2017, 12:54:58 AM
Quote from: DanielB on April 03, 2017, 01:50:53 PM
Quote from: Shev on April 03, 2017, 09:00:06 AM
Jesus Christ is the only true ark of the covenant
This is making me imagine the ark of the covenant with Jesus huddled up inside. :winkgrin:
Ha ha - and that reminds me of how most people interpret the symbols in Revelation! :laugh:
Nothing more dangerous than , reading a Spiritual book , with and carnal mind . yikes :winkgrin: :laughing7:
It's my thought that the other gods are all spirit beings who are not on the level of Jesus Abba who is the spirit present everywhere in the Cosmos and in uns and in these spirit beings that are not rightfully called gods. But in a sense they can be called gods because God calls humans gods too. There is a certain lightness to divinity which is the reason we often misjudge whether they are present with us or not, because we crave the deep and heavy presence of God and not the light feathery touch so much. Our minds are caught up in sin and judgment and not in the surrender of Christ who wants to save us from sin and judgment. The whole matter of Christ's judgment is not about jewish Torah morality but about being caught up into God the everpresent spirit, so we would not be small idiots knowing nothing except hate and violence. We need inspiration and Christ provides that plentifully, also through other deities of the world who are children of Yahweh too.
:dsunny: :thumbsup: GOD is the Father of lights and never changes His intense Light /Spirit is always A CONSTANT BRIGHTNESS OF COMING . More Light and knowledge of Him , filling our hearts with His HOLY SPIRIT working and destroying the darkness within us all .
James 1 Good and Perfect Gifts
...16Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.
17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.
18He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we would be a kind of firstfruits of His creation....
As His little children /offspring of Light causing to shine though the darkness , unless this Light is darkness , how great is this darkness , the Word of truth speaks to us by the Spirit of truth also to LIVE and declaring this first fruits/ offspring as holy or not holy unto GOD until it is completed in His working of its power over the world ..
We can never judge Gods working salvation by the sight of the outward appearance of things of this world .
As little children of His , we trust His Wisdom and keep asking for His FULL LIGHT to come release upon all, the darkness this world is so wrapped up in .
:HeartThrob:
I think we can love people of other religions and regard them as being as much our spiritual family as other christians.
not scientologists...... :banana: :banana: :banana:
While we, at Tentmaker Ministries are glad Carlton Pearson has abandoned the traditional belief that most people are going to endlessly burn in Hell, we do not hold to some key positions which seem to come from Carlton Pearson's teachings. We do NOT believe all mankind is presently saved. At present, our Father is calling out a people among the Gentiles to be joined with a people called out of Israel of old who will become a many-membered Body of Christ who will one day set all creation free from its bondage to corruption. To enter Christ's Body, one must be born from above. Most people will NOT be born from above in this lifetime, they will be called by the Word of God, Jesus at a later time. But as sure as Jesus is both the Lord of the living AND THE DEAD and as sure as He has the keys to both Death and Hell/hades, all of those who died in Adam (which is all humanity) will be made alive in Christ. The grave does not stop He who has all power and authority. When Jesus' enemies are destroyed, the last one being death, then Jesus will gather all mankind and deliver it to God the Father that our Father may be "all in all." (1 Cor. 15:22-28)
We do not believe members of other religions are saved at this time. Salvation should be just as much our possession on this side of the grave as on the other. We, who have been given salvation should be sharing that salvation through the fruit in our lives by being joined to Christ. We should be ministering to the lost through the gifts of the Holy Spirit He has deposited in us. We should be the salt of the earth, we should be its light. If God wanted to save the entire planet today, He easily could. But He has a plan. In that plan, salvation is extended to people in an order, that order extends beyond our present age. We also believe in evangelism. People come to Christ through the gospel, through preaching the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. - Gary Amirault
:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
:iagree:
There is much to be gained by the salvation we have been granted who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. There is much to be lost for those who reject Him in this life. He has spoken it Himself, and all His apostles have confirmed this and explained/expressed it in many plainly spoken epistles to the ecclesia. Altho our mission and vision differs greatly from those who believe in eternal torment or annilation of the adversaries, we nevertheless affirm that "Now" is the time for salvation and "Today" is the opportune Day to hear His voice -for all, including those within the faith.
For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. 14 If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. 15 If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. 1 Cor 3
We are not given the details of what it means to be "saved, yet so as through fire", but according to Jesus and Paul and Peter and John's revelation, the better way is to be reconciled by grace through faith, and as our trials are difficult in this life, the trial of the adversaries may be even more difficult in the age to come- whatever it is- even tho our promise is that all trial will eventually lead to repentence, mercy, reconciliation and restoration.
This salvation is offerred through faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord, and as every enemy is made a footstool for His feet, whether in this age or the one to come, it will be by submission to Him and His divine Lordship of love and righteousness that all will eventually be "gathered into one in Christ Jesus"(Eph 1:9-11) and all will be "reconciled to Himself through the blood of His cross"(Col 1:15-20).
For "God has put all things in subjection under his feet." But when it says, "all things are put in subjection," it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all. 1 Cor 15:27,28
All things will be subjected and then gathered into one in Jesus, and then He will return all authority to the God who will be "all in all". This is not some indefinte universal spirit but the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, whose will is that no man will perish, but that all will come to repentence(turning around, a change of heart) in Christ.
I agree with jabcat and eaglesway.
We are saved through Christ, alone, and must preach it and spread the Word here and now.
D.