Testing the Spirits

[Sue J Love]

 

[bowwow]

I'll say it again...

"Whose doctrine is 'truth'? The Evangelicals, Catholics, Pentecostals, Calvinist, SDA'S, JW'S, Independent Fundamentalist - KJV only Baptist folks? Is pre-trib truth? Is OSAS Truth? Is soul sleep truth? Is Trinity truth? Is speaking in tongues truth? Is TULIP truth? What is the truth about HELL...a word that's NOT found in many of the earliest translations? Do we go to heaven or paradise when we pass? These are just some of the disagreements."

So who has the Truth?

 

[Sue J Love]

I'll say it again...

"Whose doctrine is 'truth'? The Evangelicals, Catholics, Pentecostals, Calvinist, SDA'S, JW'S, Independent Fundamentalist - KJV only Baptist folks? Is pre-trib truth? Is OSAS Truth? Is soul sleep truth? Is Trinity truth? Is speaking in tongues truth? Is TULIP truth? What is the truth about HELL...a word that's NOT found in many of the earliest translations? Do we go to heaven or paradise when we pass? These are just some of the disagreements."

So who has the Truth?

God does. His Word does. We just have to read it in context. So many false doctrines are formed from people teaching the Scriptures out of their appropriate context. We cannot possibly, in one writing, include all the context, obviously, but we should give Scripture references so that others can go to the Scriptures themselves to see what they say in context. But, for example, the letters (which are now Bible books) written by Paul need to be read as one whole letter. Imagine that you wrote someone a letter in which you were trying to tell them something, but someone took something you said out of context and interpreted in a way you did not say it or mean it, if read in the right context. It is the same way with the Scriptures. We need to study them in their context and then compare Scripture with Scripture, too.

Let me give you a practical example. Many people are teaching Ephesians 2:8-9 as the gospel message and they are convincing people, probably by the thousands, that God requires no works of them at all and that works of any kind have nothing to do with their salvation. But then read verse 10, which is part of the same lesson, and it says that we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus FOR GOOD WORKS which God prepared in advance that we should WALK IN THEM. And then compare verse 10 to these other passages of Scripture:

John 15:1-11; 1 Corinthians 15:58; 2 Corinthians 9:8; Galatians 5:6; Ephesians 2:8-10; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 1:9-14; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; 2 Timothy 2:21; Titus 2:11-14; Titus 3:8; James 2:17 which also talk about the biblical importance of works.

But this can get somewhat confusing because the Scriptures also teach that we are not saved by our works, that our salvation is not of our own doing. Now, that last part is important to this discussion, because that is speaking of works which are of our own doing, not the works God prepared in advance that we should walk in them. The Bible teaches us against trying to earn our salvation by our own fleshly "good works" such as some of the Jews were trying to do and to convince the Christians that they needed to do, which all had to do with things outward, not matters of the heart and of our intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ. But God requires obedience to him as part of saving faith and that if we do not obey him, and if we keep on sinning against him, that we will not have eternal life with God, regardless of what we profess with our lips. And you can read about that in these verses (read them in context):

[Matt 7:13-14,21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

So, be a student of the Scriptures yourself. Read them one book and one chapter and one verse at a time, prayerfully, seeking God and the truth. And interpret what they teach as a whole unit, not as individual verses which, taken out of context, can be made to say what they do not teach if taught in context. When the Lord led me, at age 54, to begin reading the Bible from beginning to end, and then beginning to end again and again, and then the Psalms through Revelation over again, and then one whole book at a time, for over a period of about 12 years straight, and he had me write out what he was teaching me from those Scriptures each day, I learned all kinds of things I had wrong before. I learned so much that way. And then he let me start reading and studying the Scriptures without having to read the entire book, for by this point I was very familiar with the context. But I still look up things. I am still learning. So, I would recommend starting with Romans and just read it word for word and pray and ask the Lord to lead you to the truth. I hope that helps.

 

[bowwow]

God does. His Word does. We just have to read it in context. So many false doctrines are formed from people teaching the Scriptures out of their appropriate context. We cannot possibly, in one writing, include all the context, obviously, but we should give Scripture references so that others can go to the Scriptures themselves to see what they say in context. But, for example, the letters (which are now Bible books) written by Paul need to be read as one whole letter. Imagine that you wrote someone a letter in which you were trying to tell them something, but someone took something you said out of context and interpreted in a way you did not say it or mean it, if read in the right context. It is the same way with the Scriptures. We need to study them in their context and then compare Scripture with Scripture, too.

Let me give you a practical example. Many people are teaching Ephesians 2:8-9 as the gospel message and they are convincing people, probably by the thousands, that God requires no works of them at all and that works of any kind have nothing to do with their salvation. But then read verse 10, which is part of the same lesson, and it says that we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus FOR GOOD WORKS which God prepared in advance that we should WALK IN THEM. And then compare verse 10 to these other passages of Scripture:

John 15:1-11; 1 Corinthians 15:58; 2 Corinthians 9:8; Galatians 5:6; Ephesians 2:8-10; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 1:9-14; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12; 2 Timothy 2:21; Titus 2:11-14; Titus 3:8; James 2:17 which also talk about the biblical importance of works.

But this can get somewhat confusing because the Scriptures also teach that we are not saved by our works, that our salvation is not of our own doing. Now, that last part is important to this discussion, because that is speaking of works which are of our own doing, not the works God prepared in advance that we should walk in them. The Bible teaches us against trying to earn our salvation by our own fleshly "good works" such as some of the Jews were trying to do and to convince the Christians that they needed to do, which all had to do with things outward, not matters of the heart and of our intimate fellowship with Jesus Christ. But God requires obedience to him as part of saving faith and that if we do not obey him, and if we keep on sinning against him, that we will not have eternal life with God, regardless of what we profess with our lips. And you can read about that in these verses (read them in context):

[Matt 7:13-14,21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]

So, be a student of the Scriptures yourself. Read them one book and one chapter and one verse at a time, prayerfully, seeking God and the truth. And interpret what they teach as a whole unit, not as individual verses which, taken out of context, can be made to say what they do not teach if taught in context. When the Lord led me, at age 54, to begin reading the Bible from beginning to end, and then beginning to end again and again, and then the Psalms through Revelation over again, and then one whole book at a time, for over a period of about 12 years straight, and he had me write out what he was teaching me from those Scriptures each day, I learned all kinds of things I had wrong before. I learned so much that way. And then he let me start reading and studying the Scriptures without having to read the entire book, for by this point I was very familiar with the context. But I still look up things. I am still learning. So, I would recommend starting with Romans and just read it word for word and pray and ask the Lord to lead you to the truth. I hope that helps.

I don't need your recommendations. Thanks anyway.

 

[Sue J Love]

I don't need your recommendations. Thanks anyway.

Someone else might, though.