Edification through Reaction and Response

Edification through Reaction and Response

There have been a number of reactions, comments, and statements made from this post. I thought I'd post these for some reading and contemplation. I trust my replies will provide a suitable dispensational interpretation and correction on the doctrinal confusions or inconsistencies that come from mixing or blended dispensational content together. This post is purely educational. I trust you will either be edified by it, or that it will get you digging into the scriptures to prove that what I say is scripturally true. By no means to I try to appear arrogant or boastful. My motivation is to bring us all into seeking truth that is consistent and contextually correct. God bless.

For convenience, I apply bullets and italics to each comment or statement, and I respond to them below each.

Let's begin...

• I suggest anyone reading this thread put their faith in Christ and the Apostles over your new revelations. How God shows His approval of his saints is through the working of miracles. This was evident in the Book of Acts. There have been many saints over the last 2000 years who God has used to perform miracles.

In all honesty I must inform that you are operating under the wrong dispensation. Today we walk by faith, not sight, 2Co.5:7. It was the Jews in the prophetic program that required signs in order to believe their prophets and apostles, 1Co.1:22; Joh.4:48. Why, because God made a covenant with them to do signs and wonders before them, Ex.34:10. He did not make this covenant with us. In addition to that, consider truthfully what the real value of signs and miracles are. During Israel’s exodus they witnessed some of the greatest signs ever recorded, like the parting of the Red Sea and so forth. But soon after they forgot all about that spectacle and worshipped a golden calf. The value of these miracles for them appeared to mean nothing! Jesus performed more miracles than what books can contain, Joh.21:25, yet only 120 were in the upper room at Pentecost. What was the value of his miracles in the eyes of those Jews who wanted to crucify him? Nothing. Zero! Miracles might have a temporary hype and be beneficial to a few, but they are quickly forgotten. Today, there is something more perfect than signs. The completed canon of scripture, Col.1:25, which provides us knowledge and insights into God and His plan for humanity and creation. By studying this book, believing it, and applying it to one’s life it more profound, more powerful, and more permanent than any physical and temporary miracles.

• The devil is an imposter. False ideologies lack the power of God and the presence of the Holy Spirit. The devil comes as an angel of light but he suffocates and destroys souls through innuendoes and heresies and little twists of truth and half-truth and boldfaced lies.

I agree. It is most prevalent in the corrupt modern, copyrighted bibles being published today. These books have twisted and skewed scripture terrible. Thank God that for us English speaking folks, we still have the trusted and authorized King James Bible in which we can still find the pure and inspired words of God. See here.

• There is but one truth. It’s not up for discussion. A man not ordained through apostolic succession is not anointed and has no authority to preach a new gospel. You may think you do but your ideas are heretical. You cannot contradict the 1st century Church and Christ and the Apostles and be speaking truth.

Paul is a chosen vessel of the Lord, Act.9:15. Paul is also ‘the’ apostle to the Gentiles, Rom.11:13. Paul wrote the commandments of the Lord for the Body of Christ, 1Co.14:37. If you choose to ignore Paul, you choose to ignore the entire doctrine directed to the Body of Christ, Eph.3:1-13. Ignore him and you put yourself back under the law, Rom.6:14; Gal.5:1-4. Ignore him and you do not acknowledge the cross work of Christ for your salvation today, 1Cor15:1-4. Ignore him and you forego your membership in the Body of Christ, Rom.12:5; 1Cor.12:12-27; Eph.5:30, your heavenly inheritance, Eph.1:11-20; Php.3:20, and a share in the glory and riches of Christ in the ages to come, Eph.1:18; Eph.4:7-13. Without the writings of Paul, you are without Christ, having no hope, and without God in the world: Eph.2:12-13.

I respectfully challenge you to go and read every one of the references I have placed in my reply and see what the scriptures truly say. My point being that it is not I that is defending the credibility of Paul, but it is the Lord Himself, having chosen and empowered Paul to do His bidding, for the sake of His Name and His purpose.

• You either know you are deceiving people or you are deceived yourself. Why would an all knowing God come to earth and suffer a heinous death of torture for your sins if you yourself have no need to confess them or repent of them? What’s the point of the sacrifice?

We are forgiven, apart from anything we have done. In Colossians 2:13, our Apostle Paul tells us that we are "forgiven of all trespasses [in Christ]". In Ephesians 4:32 it is written, "God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you", and Colossians 3:13, "even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye". We are forgiven (past tense), not because we confess our sins, but because of Christ’s finished cross work on Calvary. The point of the sacrifice of Christ was to free us of all guilt, having imputed his righteousness to us. Christ’s heinous death has done it all for us. Glory to God. Before God we are perfect in his sight because we have been transferred into the administration of Christ. God’ judges us by the work and righteousness of Christ, not by the administration of Adam in which we are still condemned and guilt of sin.

• And if your self reflection lacks humility or obedience then how can you cultivate true charity toward God or your neighbor? what is the point of being a Christian if Christians are no better than sinners? An Atheist would look at your theology and find no rationale in it.

The second part of my post speaks of self-reflection and humility. As for cultivating true charity towards God and our neighbour is not about confession of sin. Confessing sins is not going to contribute to your growing in Christ. We grow in Christ and become ensamples for our neighbours by studying the Word of God and having the knowledge we gain in the Word to influence our thoughts, actions, and speech through obedience to it. It is obedience to the Word that causes us to walk by the spirit and please God. This is how we live, and move, and have our being in God.

• The point of Christianity is to imitate Christ and to become holy. The only way to do this is by examining your conscience daily. Fear of the Lord means you love him so much you do not want to offend him by your actions. Repentance heals the sinner and gives him grace to overcome the near occasions of sin in the future. Like a good Father, the Lord helps us if we are penitent.

Yes, Christianity is to imitate Christ, according to the example Paul sets (1Co_4:16; 1Co_11:1; Php_3:17) but we imitate Christ through walking in obedience to the knowledge we have of the Word of God within us. Paul writes,

Rom_8:13  For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

It is not repentance that provides us the ability to overcome, but it is to walk according to the Word of God, which is to walk in the spirit and thus mortify the flesh.

• You proclaim that Jesus commissioned his disciples to start a Church only to have it fail and then, miraculously, after 1500 years of wandering without a true plan of salvation, it rose again like the phoenix in a new form and commissioned a new dispensation by new theologians who have no apostolic succession and who all disagree on the one true apostolic truth in order to be saved? Sounds like the devil’s work there. Read what the early Church fathers actually taught. This will help you discern scripture exegetically.

I do not ‘proclaim’ anything. It is the Bible that lays all this out prophetically. The Jerusalem church started in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost. But due to the unbelief of Israel, this short work, Rom_9:28 was not ended, but ‘suspended by God. The whole prophetic program was halted, and God raised up Paul for a new grace program to save humanity through GRACE by the cross of Christ, which was now available, Rom_5:10-11; 1Co_2:7-8. Once this grace program ends, the prophetic program is reinitiated when Daniel’s 7-yr Tribulation begins, Dan.9:27, and Israel is purged and saved, and then enters into the Millennial Kingdom as kings and priests, Ex.19:5-6. Israel will literally rise again like the phoenix because they will be ‘born in a day’, Isa_66:8, when Christ comes in his second coming and pours out his spirit upon them when they call on his name, Jer_31:31-34. Prophecy provides us all we need to know to understand the timeline of God’s redemption plan. God has painted the picture clearly enough for us to understand the blinding of Israel, the mystery program of Paul, and the end times when Israel comes again into pre-eminence.

• God is unity. God is Trinity. God is Truth. He is all knowing, and perfect virtue. Man is imperfect and unholy and constantly in need of salvific grace. To deny this truth is a form of pride and a disservice to humanity who is in desperate need of grace at this time in world history. The false gospel just doesn’t cut it anymore. The devil is everywhere and has gained power due to our own sin and negligence as a church. If we are “sick” we cannot win the battle for the Lord.

I completely agree with you that God is unity and truth and in trinity as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Yes, God is omniscient and perfect in every way. I have never denied this truth in word or writing, ever. You are reading these things from your personal perspective that obviously does not agree with understanding the Bible rightly divided. I don’t say I know it all, but I am confident in my interpretation and understanding of scripture that I am motivated to write my posts and encourage people in the Word. 

Thank you for all your statements and questions. It does provide dialog that is useful for readers that can educate and encourage them beyond the initial post.

Grace and peace to you.