Online home for members of the Body of Christ for the training and promotion of the Children of God as Ambassadors for Christ in the Ministry of Reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-20).
While many sincere and well-meaning, but MISGUIDED Christian pastors, preachers, and teachers, have argued that the word "Allah" is simply the Arabic word for "God", the facts are something quite different.
Even among Islamic scholars there is general agreement that the term "Allah" refers to a pagan deity before Islam came into existence under the leadership of Mohammed. The pre-Islamic Arab culture spoke of 360 gods of which "Allah" was simply just one of them.
The correct Arabic name for "God" is the word "Al-ilah". And it must be stated that it became a generic title for whatever god was considered the highest god.
EVERY Arab tribe used "Allah" to refer to its own particular high god. For example, the moon god called "Hubal" was the god to whom Arabs prayed at the Ka'aba and when they prayed they used the name "Allah".
Historians have said that "Allah" was the chief of the 360 gods that were worshiped in Arabia at the time that Mohammed came to prominence.
Now, some Muslims will become angry when hearing this history about "Allah". They don't want to believe or accept that "Allah" was already being worshipped at the Ka'aba in Mecca by Arab pagans before the time of Mohammed. There is also evidence that the term "Allah" was used by heathen Arabs not only in Arabia but also among the Nabateans.
The name "Allah" was well known in PRE-Islamic Arabia (as even the Qur'an testifies). Even the feminine form of the word is "Allat" (simply means "the goddess"), and is found in many inscriptions from North Africa as well as in Arabic inscriptions prior to Islam. "Allah" is NOT a common name in Arabic for "God". Muslims must use another word or form to indicate any other than their own peculiar deity.
Other gods mentioned in the Qur'an are all FEMALE deities: "Al-Lat" and "al-Uzza" and "Manat" which are represented by the sun, the planet Venus, and Fortune or Destiny. At Mecca they were regarded as the daughters of "Allah"
Among the pagan Arabs before the time of Mohammed, the term "Allah" represented the chief god of their particular pantheon at the Ka'aba with its 360 idols. The central shrine at Mecca, the Ka'aba, is a cube-like stone structure that has a black stone in one of its corners that must be kissed as an ESSENTIAL ritual of the Haj, the pilgrimage that all Muslims must take at least once in their life to Mecca.
REMEMBER: since Satan is the ruler of this World, God allows him a certain degree of latitude of action which most Christians do not fully appreciate. NON-believers of Christ are taken captive by the devil AT HIS WILL. 2 Timothy 2:26.
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In Ephesians 1:13 the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul declares that men are saved and sealed by hearing and BELIEVING the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation. Therefore, here, now, is declared unto you the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation: "that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. BELIEVE today. The time is short.
So There You Have it!
Spread this message to everyone you know, far and wide.
Grace be to you and peace, from God: our Father, and The LORD Jesus Christ.
“And He is the Head of the Body, the Church; Who is the beginning, the first born from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence.”Colossians 1:18 .
We can only touch on the glories of our LORD Jesus Christ and the eternal relationships between this One who is called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, and the redeemed sinner who is already seated with that glorious Savior in the heavenlies.Ephesians 2:6 . Isaiah 9:6 .
When we learn that The LORD Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is mentioned by noun and pronoun more than sixty-nine hundred times in the New Testament Scriptures, you see the impossible task of me trying to describe Him in our relationships in one short article. According to John 21:25 ,“even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written” concerning this One, who is called:
He was in the form of God. Philippians 2:6 . He was with God. He was God. John 1:1-2 . The Father said, “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” “Unto the Son He saith, ‘Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever'”Hebrews 1:6-7 . “Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever”Romans 9:5 . And Thomas said unto Him (Jesus), “My LORD and my God”John 20:28 .
“He is before all things and by Him all things consist”Colossians 1:17 . By Jesus Christ, God made the world and all things. Ephesians 3:9 . In Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Colossians 2:9 . All judgment is committed into His hands. John 5:22 . He knows all things.John 21:17 . God hath appointed The LORD Jesus Christ heir of all things. Hebrews 1:2 . Therefore the Son could truthfully say, “All things that the Father hath are mine.”John 16:15 .
All of the promises of God are yea and amen in Christ Jesus. 2 Cor. 1:20 .
This is the Savior who was made after the power of an endless life. Hebrews 7:16 . This is the LORD of Glory who for sinners was crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:8 . Is it any wonder He could say, “I am He that liveth, and was dead; and behold I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and death”Revelation 1:18 . “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the LORD, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty”Revelation 1:8 .
The Scriptures, the Written Word, testify of Jesus Christ, the Living Word. John 5:39 .
This Christ is the Head of the Body, the Church. Sinners saved by grace are members of that Body. “And they two shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery; but I speak concerning Christ and the Church”Ephesians 5:31 .
The LORD Jesus Christ is the true vine and sinners saved by grace are the branches. John 15:1-8 .
“Our LORD Jesus Christ who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him”1 Thessalonians 5:10 . This Christ is the same, yesterday, today and forever. Hebrews 13:8 . He is:
“The Shepherd and Bishop of our souls”1 Peter 2:25 .
“The Author and Finisher of The Faith”Hebrews 12:2 .
“The Apostle and High Priest of our confession”Hebrews 3:1 .
This is the Christ who died that “He should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad”John 11:52 . “That in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him”Ephesians 1:10 . The believer is in Christ. Romans 8:1 . 2 Cor. 5:17 . Christ is in the believer. Galatians 2:20 . Colossians 1:27 .
The believer in Christ is accepted in the Beloved; he is complete in Him; is a new creature in Him and is free from condemnation in Him.Romans 8:2 . Ephesians 1:6 . Colossians 2:9 . 2 Cor. 5:17 .
The believer is a Joint‑Heir with Christ. Romans 8:17 . So, if God hath appointed Christ heir of all things, what does it mean to be a Joint‑Heir with Him? Take a look:
He Himself said, “I am the Resurrection and the Life” “I am the Bread of Life” “I am the Light of the World” “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life” “Before Abraham was, I am.” “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.”
He is the one Mediator between God and men. 1 Timothy 2:5 .
He is the Good Shepherd; He is the Great Shepherd; He is the Chief Shepherd. John 10:11Hebrews 13:20 . 1 Peter 5:1-3 . Therefore Christians say along with the Apostle Paul:
“But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our LORD Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.”Galatians 6:14 .
All of the Eternal Purposes of God are centered in that Only Begotten and Well Beloved Son with Whom He was well pleased; that One who was ever the eternal bosom‑companion of His Father; and not only that, but they are centered in that cross of Calvary where that Son, obedient unto that cruel death, was made sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
We will be singing His praises for all eternity and will never tire of hearing of His glories. “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom and strength, and honour and glory and blessing”Revelation 5:12 .
So we are rejoicing in the fact that we are serving and worshiping a living, resurrected, glorified Saviour, who is our Advocate at God's right hand, where He ever liveth to make intercession for those who are saved. But let us remember that it is one thing to know Him as the Saviour from the penalty of sin, while it is something different to daily acknowledge Him as LORD, knowing Him with Paul in the fellowship of His sufferings and in the power of His resurrection. Philippians 3:10 .
As Disciples of Christ, we are not to be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. And surely no Christian can consistently be a member of any fraternal organization whose members dishonor our LORD and/or deny His Deity.
“All men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father”John 5:23 .
Let us never receive the teaching of any man or woman, that the eternal Christ was the “creation” of the eternal Father before the world began. The LORD Jesus Christ of the Bible said, “He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father”John 14:9 . After the order of Melchisedec, Christ is without father or mother, beginning of days or end of life. Hebrews 7:3 . He is pre‑existent, co‑existent with the Father and self‑existent. He was called “God” by the Father.Hebrews 1:8 . Romans 9:4-6 , 1 John 5:20 . Isaiah 9:6 . John 1:1-3 .
“Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:” “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:” “And he is before all things, and by him all things consist”Colossians 1:15-17 .
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved”Acts 16:31 , while there is still time!
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In Ephesians 1:13 the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul declares that men are saved and sealed by hearing and BELIEVING the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation. Therefore, here, now, is declared unto you the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation: "that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. BELIEVE today. The time is short.
So There You Have it!
Spread this message to everyone you know, far and wide.
Grace be to you and peace, from God: our Father, and The LORD Jesus Christ.
“For ye are the children of God by Faith in Christ Jesus”Galatians 3:26
Only Christians are the children of God, and only because of the Faith in and of, the LORD Jesus Christ. Children of God!
God is not some impersonal principle, or some unknown inanimate force. God is a living, personal God. Some religious people know Him as the Supreme Being, but His children know Him as God the Father. Ephesians 1:3 , 1 Peter 1:3 and 2 Cor. 11:31 .
“Neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him”Matthew 11:27 . “God is Spirit”John 4:24 . “God is light”1 John 1:5 . “God is love”1 John 4:8 . “Our God is a consuming fire”Hebrews 12:29 .
“This is life eternal that they might know Thee, the ONLY true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent”John 17:3 .
This excludes all other gods. The ONLY true God is known as “The God of Peace”Hebrews 13:20 . “The God of all Comfort”2 Cor. 1:3 . “The God of all Grace”1 Peter 5:10 . “The Father of Mercies” 2 Cor. 1:3 . “The Father of spirits”Hebrews 12:9 . “The God of Hope” Romans 15:13 . This same God is known in the Old Testament Scriptures as the “God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” “The Lord which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.”
When we believe and receive Christ, we are instantaneously born of God and become the children of God. John 1:12-13 . Then we belong to the Household of God. Ephesians 2:19 . “For which cause He (The LORD Jesus Christ) is not ashamed to call them brethren.” Hebrews 2:11 . The LORD Jesus Christ said, “Go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father, and to my God, and your God.”John 20:17 .
The Bible is very clear in its teachings that a person has to be born into the Family of God. One of the lies of Satan is that ALL men are the children of God. To be sure all have their being in God; for there is no life apart from the living God. BUT, it is one thing to be born of blood, the will of the flesh and of man; but something ENTIRELY DIFFERENT and separate to be born of God. John 1:13 .
Now, for example, the Prodigal Son had departed FROM his father’s house: some saints do, in this way, depart from God’s House and return. But NO UNSAVED one was ever IN God’s House. Remember, through unbelief, Adam departed from God and took the whole human race with him.
Now, to those religious “enlightened” men who rejected Him, the LORD Jesus Christ said, “Ye are of your father, the devil.”John 8:44 . To another the Apostle Paul said, “Thou child of the devil.” Acts 13:10 . Also, “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil.”1 John 3:10 . Therefore, we see there are two kinds of children in the world, and the cross of Calvary stands between them.
What a sad day it will be when the great multitudes of religious people who are asserting sonship without obtainingRegeneration, will stand with all their guilt and sin uncovered before the true and Holy God in that awful Day of Judgment! Some religious self-righteous sinners are trying to behave like children of God without having experienced regeneration, without having received His Divine nature, the new birth which is the imperative for Divine sonship. Read Titus 3:5-7 .
Remember, it is one thing to be born of human parents within the natural law of procreation; it is another thing to be born of God by the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. That which is born of the flesh is flesh. “Ye must be born again, ‘from above,’ of the Spirit” How? By believing and receiving Christ, as your LORD and Savior. John 1:12 .
“He that hath the Son hath the Father.”1 John 3:1-7 .
“And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying ‘Abba Father.”’ Galatians 4:6 .
“The Spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God; and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.”Romans 8:17 .
“The Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved Me.”John 16:27 .
When the Apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians these words, “my God shall supply all of your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” Philippians 4:19 , he was confirming the statement of The LORD Jesus Christ, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him.”Matthew 7:11 .
“Pray to thy Father”Matthew 6:6 . This is the instruction of the Son, our LORD and Savior. So prayer should be directed TO the Father, THROUGH the Son, with the Holy Spirit making intercessions for us. Romans 8:26 . God delights to be addressed as“Almighty God, Our Heavenly Father, the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved”Acts 16:31 , while there is still time!
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In Ephesians 1:13 the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul declares that men are saved and sealed by hearing and BELIEVING the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation. Therefore, here, now, is declared unto you the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation: "that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. BELIEVE today. The time is short.
So There You Have it!
Spread this message to everyone you know, far and wide.
Grace be to you and peace, from God: our Father, and The LORD Jesus Christ.
“If ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you” John 15:19 .
I’ve heard someone say: “The Child of God has three great enemies, the external, the internal, and the infernal.” He was referring of course, to the world, the flesh and the devil. They are all three very real enemies, and we only have to look about us today to see how the Children of God are being affected and defeated by them.
When we read of the exploits and achievements of the faithful saints of God in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, we find it is recorded by God concerning them, “Of whom the world was not worthy”Hebrews 11:38 . The world NEEDS the servants and faithful witnesses of God, but is NOT worthy of them.
The Children of God, when it comes to conduct, hope, and habit, should be altogether different from the people of this world. Whenever the difference is not noticeable in a Christian’s life, he should pause to examine his life and change his conduct. Because of enmity, criticism, and persecution of an unfriendly world, the experience of a normal Christian is a life of suffering, yet a life of rejoicing in the LORD Jesus Christ.
When the Grace of God finds a sinner it finds him or her, “having no hope, and without God in the world”Ephesians 2:12 . It finds them walking “according to the course of this world, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind” Ephesians 2:2-3 . It is needless to say that anyone who is walking according to the course of this world is walking contrary to the will of God; but the sinner can walk in no other way. How sad the sight, however, when the saint, The Child of God, is seen walking according to the course of this world. Many of the saints of God in this age are so worldly that you would never classify them as saints on account of their walk. Think about how that grieves Him who gave us ALL things!
Concerning His disciples, Christ said, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” John 17:14 . But, He also said, “These are in the world”. The sinner is in the world and of the world; while the Child of God is in the world, but not of the world. Dwell on that.
“Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul!”1 Peter 2:11 . The Children of God are considered by God as strangers and pilgrims on Earth, but, whose citizenship is in Heaven, sojourning in a land where their King, the LORD Jesus Christ, has been rejected, and where He is still despised as no other one in all this world is. It was Christ, who said, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you” John 15:18 .
The task of the Child of God, then, is to walk with Heavenly behavior in a world where the conditions and circumstances are unfavorable and the environment anything but conducive to such behavior; to walk among people who are rebels against God and His Heavenly Laws.
The Children of God are instructed to walk as becomes saints in the midst of fornication, and all uncleanness, and covetousness, filthiness, foolish talking and jesting. Ephesians 5:2-3 . Christ prayed for His disciples, “I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil”John 17:15 .
The Lord does NOT want his disciple to be a recluse in a monastery, but wants him right in the midst of this wicked and ungodly world to touch the world and YET not to he touched BY the world. Get it?? Good!
God wants His Children to keep themselves “unspotted from the world” James 1:27 . “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God. Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is an enemy of God.”James 4:4 . How difficult it is for some of God’s Children to give up the world; BUT if a Child of God loves Christ in sincerity and in truth and will be faithful in his testimony, he will not only give up the world, but the sinners of the world will give him up, when those sinners find that they cannot bring him to the place or compromise.
Contact without contamination; association without fellowship, is the relation of the saint to the sinner.“For then must he need go out of the world”1 Corinthians 5:10 .
“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”1 John 2:15 . Now you all know full well that this command is not to the sinner; for he can love nothing but the world and its sin. He may grow tired of it at times and yearn for something that will satisfy the longings of the soul, but he is in the world and of the world, walking according to the course of the world. This command is to one who has been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the Body of Christ. How sad the experience of Demas which has been repeated by many a Christian, “For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica” 2 Timothy 4:10 . This companion of the Apostle Paul did the very thing Christians are told not to do: “Love not the world”
Now, there are three Greek words translated into the English word, “World”. One is the inhabited earth; one is the created world, and the other is this Age. Christ died to deliver us from this present evil age. Galatians 1:4 . Satan is the god of this age. 2 Cor. 4:4 . And, remember, Demas did not decide to go to Thessalonica on the impulse of the moment. His decline was gradual.
As a general rule The Children of God, today, are not plunged out into the world with its lust and pride in one shot. FIRST comes the neglect of the Bible, THEN the neglect of prayer, and THEN the lack of testimony; and then, of course, regular fellowship with UN-believers; after that, one questionable amusement and then another.
How many thousands of worldly Children of God there are in our great wicked cities who were once faithful Children of God back in the home town or city or out in the country church. They have been swept out into the current of the world, and find it hard to shake off its strong grip and give up the pleasures of sins. They are sad, poor, and miserable. How beautiful and attractive the prince of this world tries to make this ungodly age for God’s Children. But Christ is so much more attractive, when we know Him intimately and love Him sincerely.
The Body of Christ, is the light of the world. The Body of Christ in the world is God’s program; but the world IN the Body of Christ, is Satan’s plan. It is all right for the ship to be in the water; it is all wrong for the water to be in the ship. The assembly, or congregation, of The Body of Christ, that lowers its standards to meet the demands of the world will lose its spiritual power and blessing. Unconquered pride leads many Children of God to court favor and position in this world.
“Be not conformed to this world” Romans 12:2 . The Apostle Paul said, “I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10 . The desire to be popular with the world is a great temptation. Many Children of God, especially young people, want to avoid all appearances that would cause them to be considered peculiar. Let us always remember that Christians are traveling to heaven, while sinners are traveling in the opposite direction, toward the sorrows of the second death; that the Cross of Christ stands between the Child of God and the sinner. The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul wrote, “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14 . This has always been one of my favorite Scripture verses.
If it took the death of the LORD of Glory, such suffering of such a Savior, to separate us from the world, certainly we should stay separated unto Him.
He said to His disciples: “In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 . “As He is, so are we in this world.”1 John 4:17 .
This is what makes the “Worldly Child of God” such a Paradox.
“This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”1 John 5:4 . “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth.” Colossians 3:1-2 .
God hath shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of The LORD Jesus Christ, and He wants us to be“blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom we shine as lights in the world.” 2 Cor. 4:6 ; and Philippians 2:15 .
No worldly Child of God can be a shining light; but is invariably a stumbling block. “And through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died.”1 Corinthians 8:11 . “Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.”Romans 14:17 . Surely, we do not want some poor sinner to stumble over our inconsistent lives, when we should be doing our JOBS as Ambassadors for Christ in the Ministry of Reconciliation. 2 Cor.5:18
It is a good thing to ask ourselves this question: “Can others see Christ, in ME?”; for God says, “Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men.” 2 Cor. 3:2 . “They may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation” 1 Peter 2:12 . “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time”Colossians 4:5 . Sinners are closely watching the steps of those who name the name of Jesus Christ.
Now, while the sinner should get his eyes off man and on to Christ, the Child of God is The LORD Jesus Christ’s representative on earth, and should always be to the sinner an example and proof of the Power of Gospel over sin.
Because of his great sin, King David received these words from God: “Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die” 2 Samuel 12:14 . The sinful deeds of a Child of God will always cause the enemies of Christ, to blaspheme. Is that what you want??
You have heard the story of the blind man carrying the lantern. Someone asked him if the light kept him from running into others. He said, “No, I carry the light to keep others from running into me these dark nights.” Every Child of God should carry such a bright light that sinners would not stumble over them in these dark days.
The Almighty God, the LORD Jesus Christ, desires, “that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” 1 Peter 2:9 . That you, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” 1 John 2:15-17 .
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In Ephesians 1:13 the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul declares that men are saved and sealed by hearing and BELIEVING the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation. Therefore, here, now, is declared unto you the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation: "that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. BELIEVE today. The time is short.
So There You Have it!
Spread this message to everyone you know, far and wide.
Grace be to you and peace, from God: our Father, and The LORD Jesus Christ.
All true Christians believe in three Persons in one God‑head: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Three in One and One in Three, and the One in the middle died for me. The LORD Jesus Christ said, “Baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”Matthew 28:19
The personality and deity of the Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Trinity, are clearly set forth in the Scriptures. Christ said, “And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter (or Paraclete).” John 14:16 . This is the same word translated “Advocate.” 1 John 2:2 . When Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit, he lied to God. Acts 5:3-4 . “And the Holy Spirit said”Acts 13:2 . “The Holy Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered”Romans 8:26 .
In the Old Testament Scriptures the Second and Third Persons of the God‑head were latent; in the New Testament Scriptures they are patent. Christ, beginning with the Book of Matthew is patent; The Holy Spirit, beginning with the Book of the Acts is patent.
The dispensation of the Holy Spirit was ushered in after the resurrection of the Son of God. Before the Son of God went to the cross “the Holy Spirit was not yet given” John 7:39 .
When The LORD Jesus Christ was here on earth, He said:
Therefore the Holy Spirit is a Person as truly as is God, the Father.
Now, PAY ATTENTION, It is unscriptural for any Christian to pray for, or to seek for, more of the Holy Spirit.However, It is all right to pray that the Holy Spirit may have more of the child of God.
It is likewise unscriptural to ask God to send down the Holy Spirit from Heaven. When Christ was on earth He said, “I came down from heaven.” The Bible says that the Holy Spirit has been sent down from heaven. 1 Peter 1:12 . How foolish would John have been, had he looked up to heaven and prayed for God to send down from heaven His Son, when John’s head was leaning on His bosom at the time. It is equally as foolish for a Christian with the Holy Spirit in his bosom to pray that the Third Person be sent down from heaven today.
Note: in Ephesians 1:3 and Ephesians 1:19-23 that the Christian has all blessings and power and therefore it is unscriptural to seek a second blessing called Holy Spirit baptism.
The Holy Spirit bears witness of the resurrection of the believer’s sonship. Romans 8:16 . He is the believer’s assurance of his incorruptible inheritance at the LORD’s coming. Ephesians 1:14 . Therefore he is the witness of the LORD’s return. Ephesians 4:30 .
Just as truly as there is one Father and one Son, there is one Spirit, and one Body. Ephesians 4:4 . And, just as truly as there are infidels in the congregations preaching another Jesus, there are fanatics in the congregations preaching another spirit. 2 Cor. 11:4 .
The world cannot receive the Spirit. John 14:17 . The Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. John 16:8 . If the sinner under conviction yields to the Sinbearer, he is drawn by the Spirit to the Son. John 6:44 . Then he is born of the Spirit.John 3:5 .
As no one can work for salvation, which is a free gift from God, no one can work for the Holy Spirit. We receive the Holy Spirit by the hearing of The Faith. Galatians 3:2 . The Holy Spirit is given unto believers. Romans 5:5 . Therefore we do not have to agonize or go through physical contortions or have others put hands on us in order to receive the Holy Spirit. I pray I am being clear on this! It’s important.
Notice the three persons of the Trinity in these verses: “Now He which establisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; Who hath sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts” 2 Cor. 1:21-22 . The proof that we are in Christ, is the Spirit in our hearts. By this Spirit we are sealed when we BELIEVE. Ephesians 1:13 . “After that ye believed” in this verse is properly translated from the original, “having believed”
No Christian is ever sealed because of an interval between the time of believing and the time of sealing; but every Christian is sealed by the Holy Spirit, because he believes the Gospel of Grace of his salvation. Moreover he is sealed unto the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:30 .
No Christian could possibly have the experience of the certain disciples whom Paul met in Ephesus. They had previously received John’s message and baptism, which have had no place in the Body of Christ since that time. Acts 19:1-5 . Paul’s question should be correctly translated, “Having believed, received ye the Holy Spirit.”Acts 19:2 . Take NOTE: The anointing which the believer receives when first he believes abides in him. 1 John 2:27 .
There is one Spirit and one baptism.Ephesians 4:4 . When an individual is born into the family of God, by the work of the Holy Spirit, he is taken into, and made a member of the Body of Christ. The work of the Holy Spirit which puts the believer into the Body of Christ is called, “Baptized in or by the Holy Spirit”1 Corinthians 12:13 .
People who call themselves Christians are doing all sorts of peculiar things today in an effort to receive the Holy Spirit baptism. Some are being taught that believers receive the Holy Spirit WITH them when saved by faith in the finished work of God, repentance and water baptism; and then they must pray and tarry and yield for a second work of grace in order to receive the Holy Spirit IN them. THIS teaching is contrary to the Word of God and has wrecked the faith and sanity of many converted people.
Some of these false teachers often quote the experience of Peter and the Eleven who were saved with Christ in the days of His flesh, and then were baptized by the Holy Spirit after His resurrection. Let us remember that they were His disciples before His death, that is, before the Holy Spirit was given. John 7:39 . They were with Him while He was under The Law, preaching the Kingdom of Heaven message to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. Galatians 4:4 . Matthew 10:1-5 . Those disciples had the unique experience of living, as disciples of Jesus, before His death and resurrection in the Old Testament and also after His resurrection in the New Testament.
As it would be impossible historically to have such an experience today, it would likewise be impossible for any believer to have their experience in receiving the Holy Spirit as an act subsequent to regeneration or conversion.
Now, the Christian, who is sealed with the Holy Spirit, can grieve the Holy Spirit and can quench the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 4:30 . 1 Thessalonians 5:19 . It is the duty of every Christian to walk in the Spirit. Galatians 5:16 . All Christians are temples of the Holy Spirit but very few of them are walking in the Spirit in the degree that they should. When a Christian walks in the Spirit he manifests the Fruit of the Spirit, against which there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23 . He fulfills the righteousness of the law.Romans 8:4 .
All true Christians have been baptized by the Holy Spirit, but how few today are obeying the Word of God in this command, “Be filled with the Holy Spirit”Ephesians 5:18 . The Christian who has the sweetest fellowship with the LORD, who experiences the greatest joy of salvation, who serves God with the greatest power, who triumphs over the world, the flesh and the devil, is the one who is filled with the Holy Spirit.
The believer is thus filled just in the proportion that he is yielded to the will and way of the LORD in worship, prayer, Bible study, testimony, and practical Christian service.
Tarrying Meetings for members of the Body of Christ to receive the Holy Spirit are unscriptural. However, Prayer Meetings for an increase of The Faith, willingness and obedience to receive the power of Ephesians 1:19-23 are altogether Scriptural. No believer receives the Holy Spirit on the installment plan. Believers filled with the Holy Spirit will exalt Christ.
During the “Acts” period, the thirty plus years from Acts 1:1 to Acts 28:31 , there were several baptisms, “Holy Spirit baptism”in fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy, “water baptism” and “baptism into the death of Christ”Acts 2:16-38 . Acts 19:1-7 . Romans 6:3-4 . Joel prophesied concerning the “last days” particularly concerning Israel’s kingdom age. Joel 2:28-30 , concerning the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, will not be fulfilled during this “grace” period. Whatever we may have in mind when we speak of Holy Spirit baptism, let us never forget that the anointing of the Holy Spirit is a once‑for‑all anointing. 1 John 2:27 ; that the sealing, anointing and baptism, of, in, or by, the Holy Spirit is always a past experience with the true Child of God!
“But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified” John 7:39 .
“What! Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are NOT YOUR OWN? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit which are God’s.”1 Corinthians 6:19-20 .
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In Ephesians 1:13 the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul declares that men are saved and sealed by hearing and BELIEVING the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation. Therefore, here, now, is declared unto you the Word of Truth, the Gospel of your Salvation: "that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. BELIEVE today. The time is short.
So There You Have it!
Spread this message to everyone you know, far and wide.
Grace be to you and peace, from God: our Father, and The LORD Jesus Christ.
