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Excellent post! Our elder made some comments about the workings of the Holy Spirit in his Sunday sermon, ""Remember that His Spirit will not lead us into sin if we let that Spirit lead, guide and direct us. It will not lead us into places that the Lord would not be pleased with; it will not lead us to say words He would not be pleased with; it will not put clothes on us that He would not be pleased with." [see post on http://www.city-data.com/forum/group...ible-talk.html
No it won't lead us there, but we can go there and it won't stop us either.
You are absolutely right. The Spirit of Christ will not force us to obey Him, but I am firmly convinced that if we truly have the Holy Ghost abiding richly within our soul, we are able to resist willfully disobeying our Savior. If we commit a premeditated willful sin, see Heb. 10:[26] For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, [which comes with the gift of the Holy Ghost which Peter says God gives to those who OBEY Him] there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
If we make minor mistakes in our Christian walk, 1John 1:[9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. [10] If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
He is also the advocate between us and the Father; 1John 2;[1]And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: [2] And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
I firmly believe that God hears the prayers of EVERYONE who is truly hungering and thirsting after righteousness as Cornelius was doing in Acts Chapter 10. Christ promised to give the Comforter, the gift of the Holy Spirit to those who do this [See Peter's words in Acts 5:32, where he says that God gives the Holy Ghost to THOSE WHO OBEY HIM. Christ said: ASK AND YE SHALL RECEIVE.
You are absolutely right. The Spirit of Christ will not force us to obey Him, but I am firmly convinced that if we truly have the Holy Ghost abiding richly within our soul, we are able to resist willfully disobeying our Savior. If we commit a premeditated willful sin, see Heb. 10:[26] For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, [which comes with the gift of the Holy Ghost which Peter says God gives to those who OBEY Him] there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
If we make minor mistakes in our Christian walk, 1John 1:[9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. [10] If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
He is also the advocate between us and the Father; 1John 2;[1]And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: [2] And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
I believe that a hunger and thirst for righteousness is essential in doing God's will. Following His commandments is another indication that we have given our lives to Him. And by giving our lives to Him, we become His, and He develops us towards perfection. Our development towards this perfection is a reflection of 'His Story' in all of 'history'.
Realizing the history of God's people helps clear some of the confusion. Remember that Abraham showed the faith that is necessary to please God. And the genealogical progression of faith in the true God went through Isaac, Jacob, Jacob's 12 sons, on down to Jesus. This also was a fractured process, much as denominations are today.
Moses presided over the first Passover, which was a taste of the true blood covering which would come some 2 millennia later in the perfect sacrifice of Jesus, and His blood covers our sin. This is also known as justification.
Jesus' perfect life of doing the will of the Father without sin paved the way for us to follow, and His death was the total fulfillment of Passover. Even though we are mortal and cannot approach God on our own merit, we can give up our lives to Jesus and His blood covers us to make us acceptable in the eyes of God.
Jesus' first coming confirmed the path to justification, and ended the Passover Age. 50 days after Jesus' resurrection, the next stage in the development of God's plan took place, when the Holy Spirit was given as tongues of fire. A new power swept the world, and enabled believers to move further forward in personal development. But we must remember; the Holy Spirit was given in 'earnest'. It was a partial filling, as mortal beings are not ready for a complete filling. This Pentecost infilling was the fulfillment of the first Pentecost; the day that the Law was given. The fulfillment of this feast gives us the opportunity to have the Holy Spirit write the law on our hearts during our lifetimes!
The Christian church, (not an organization, but a believing group of people; because the 'church' is NOT an organization or building, but people), then was born. Not able to be fully filled with the Spirit, the church formed many groups and ideas. But this was God's plan too. The leaven was in the church, and God has allowed it to develop us.
In the Pentecost Age, which began on that day almost 2000 years ago, we have seen many groups come forth. One thing that many Christians continue to forget, is that, God oftentimes speaks through men. If we listen intently, allow the Holy Spirit to be our guide, and compare what is spoken with scripture, we can learn things. It is when we focus on the things that we don't agree with that causes division. It is necessary to know of these errors, but passing them by with the knowledge of the error should be a peaceable act, and not a thing to create animosity. We need to remember, that the unity of the body that Jesus requires in His Bride will not, and cannot be attained in this mortality. Our goal is to individually reach the prize, that is, "Christ in us, the hope of glory". We can taste this now, but it will not be attained until we die and return to earth for our new resurrected bodies, or, if we are among those alive at the time, and remain 'in Christ' we are changed on the spot.
In summation, I believe that the denominations are doing the will of God, in that they have created diversity and trial, along with learning, so as to train us in our individual walks. God has been developing a people that are ready to become the Bride of Christ, joint heirs with Jesus, and an essential part of their development is to learn and become strong, along with developing their ability to give up their own lives in exchange for Jesus' life. We need to bear our cross, and experience the 'fellowship of His suffering'. It's a lot like weight training. In order to become strong, you need resistance training. God is giving us exercise through denominationalism. Our requirement is to realize that this is God's plan for the present day and we don't have to worry about anyone's commitment to God but our own. Love covers a multitude of sin. None of this is a surprise to a God that is all knowing, all powerful, and all present. Can He be surprised or over-ridden? Will He finish His work that He began in us, even when we think all is lost? Yes, He will finish it!
We are now in the transition time between the Pentecost Age and the coming age of the Millennium, also known as the Age of Tabernacles, when we will 'tabernacle' with Him. Actually, He will be tabernacling, or 'resting' in us, if we are part of that First Resurrection, and given our lives to Him so that we are 'In Christ'. Just as in the transition from Passover to Pentecost, 1981 years ago, and just as in the transition from the Exodus from Egypt was delayed for 40 years, Pentecost has ended, and we will soon be entering Tabernacles. The timing of this is in God's hands, and will be fulfilled in the fall feasts of some coming year, but we can do God's will in this transition time by giving ourselves to Jesus and allowing our sanctification to develop in His Grace.
I believe that a hunger and thirst for righteousness is essential in doing God's will. Following His commandments is another indication that we have given our lives to Him. And by giving our lives to Him, we become His, and He develops us towards perfection. Our development towards this perfection is a reflection of 'His Story' in all of 'history'.
Realizing the history of God's people helps clear some of the confusion. Remember that Abraham showed the faith that is necessary to please God. And the genealogical progression of faith in the true God went through Isaac, Jacob, Jacob's 12 sons, on down to Jesus. This also was a fractured process, much as denominations are today.
Moses presided over the first Passover, which was a taste of the true blood covering which would come some 2 millennia later in the perfect sacrifice of Jesus, and His blood covers our sin. This is also known as justification.
Jesus' perfect life of doing the will of the Father without sin paved the way for us to follow, and His death was the total fulfillment of Passover. Even though we are mortal and cannot approach God on our own merit, we can give up our lives to Jesus and His blood covers us to make us acceptable in the eyes of God.
Jesus' first coming confirmed the path to justification, and ended the Passover Age. 50 days after Jesus' resurrection, the next stage in the development of God's plan took place, when the Holy Spirit was given as tongues of fire. A new power swept the world, and enabled believers to move further forward in personal development. But we must remember; the Holy Spirit was given in 'earnest'. It was a partial filling, as mortal beings are not ready for a complete filling. This Pentecost infilling was the fulfillment of the first Pentecost; the day that the Law was given. The fulfillment of this feast gives us the opportunity to have the Holy Spirit write the law on our hearts during our lifetimes!
The Christian church, (not an organization, but a believing group of people; because the 'church' is NOT an organization or building, but people), then was born. Not able to be fully filled with the Spirit, the church formed many groups and ideas. But this was God's plan too. The leaven was in the church, and God has allowed it to develop us.
In the Pentecost Age, which began on that day almost 2000 years ago, we have seen many groups come forth. One thing that many Christians continue to forget, is that, God oftentimes speaks through men. If we listen intently, allow the Holy Spirit to be our guide, and compare what is spoken with scripture, we can learn things. It is when we focus on the things that we don't agree with that causes division. It is necessary to know of these errors, but passing them by with the knowledge of the error should be a peaceable act, and not a thing to create animosity. We need to remember, that the unity of the body that Jesus requires in His Bride will not, and cannot be attained in this mortality. Our goal is to individually reach the prize, that is, "Christ in us, the hope of glory". We can taste this now, but it will not be attained until we die and return to earth for our new resurrected bodies, or, if we are among those alive at the time, and remain 'in Christ' we are changed on the spot.
In summation, I believe that the denominations are doing the will of God, in that they have created diversity and trial, along with learning, so as to train us in our individual walks. God has been developing a people that are ready to become the Bride of Christ, joint heirs with Jesus, and an essential part of their development is to learn and become strong, along with developing their ability to give up their own lives in exchange for Jesus' life. We need to bear our cross, and experience the 'fellowship of His suffering'. It's a lot like weight training. In order to become strong, you need resistance training. God is giving us exercise through denominationalism. Our requirement is to realize that this is God's plan for the present day and we don't have to worry about anyone's commitment to God but our own. Love covers a multitude of sin. None of this is a surprise to a God that is all knowing, all powerful, and all present. Can He be surprised or over-ridden? Will He finish His work that He began in us, even when we think all is lost? Yes, He will finish it!
We are now in the transition time between the Pentecost Age and the coming age of the Millennium, also known as the Age of Tabernacles, when we will 'tabernacle' with Him. Actually, He will be tabernacling, or 'resting' in us, if we are part of that First Resurrection, and given our lives to Him so that we are 'In Christ'. Just as in the transition from Passover to Pentecost, 1981 years ago, and just as in the transition from the Exodus from Egypt was delayed for 40 years, Pentecost has ended, and we will soon be entering Tabernacles. The timing of this is in God's hands, and will be fulfilled in the fall feasts of some coming year, but we can do God's will in this transition time by giving ourselves to Jesus and allowing our sanctification to develop in His Grace.
Thanks, Don, for your profound contribution to this thread. I personally believe God is moving in the direction when His people can have the glorious light shining within them and they can be obedient to the admonition of St. Paul in 1 Cor.1:[10] Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." I believe we can lay down our denominational differences when we adhere to the words of Christ in John 7:[17] If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
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