The Holy Spirit is God, a divine Person, not a force or power from God.
He is eternal as God is: Heb. 9:14. He gives eternal life: John 6:63, 2 Cor. 3:6 ( Rom. 6:23 says that God gives eternal life and Jn. 10:28 Jesus says He gives eternal life) Only God can give eternal life.
He was with the Father and the Son "in the beginning" and created all things with them ( Gen. 1:3; Ps. 104:30)
He knows all things: 1 Cor. 2:20. Therefore, he is omniscient and has an intellect (mind). He is able to control a believer's mind ( Rom. 8:6).
He sent the Son into the world with the Father (Is. 48:16)
He regenerates sinners to come to faith and be saved ( Jn. 3:3,8). He baptizes believers ( 1Cor. 12:13, Acts 11:16).
He can be blasphemed ( Mt. 12:31, Mk. 3:29) Only God can be blasphemed.
He vindicated Jesus in raising Him from the dead ( 1Tim 3:16). The Scriptures teach that God raised Jesus from the dead ( Acts 2:24; 10:40; that Jesus raised Himself from the dead ( Jn. 2:19), and that the Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead (2Cr. 4:14).
He is a person just as the Father and the Son are Persons. Not as we think of person in that each human is an individual being, but that He is a divine person unified in the One God.
As a person, He has emotions. He can be resisted ( Acts 7:51), can be pleased ( Gal. 6:8), quenched, grieved ( Eph. 4:30; Is 63:10), insulted ( Heb. 10:29).
As a person, He acts. He speaks ( Rev. 2:7; Acts. 13:2). He inspired Scriptures to be written ( 2Pet. 1:21). He teaches ( Jn. 14:26). He guides ( Jn. 16:13). He convicts of sin ( Jn. 16:8). He contends with man (Gen, 6:3).
In Acts 5 he is called God in the account of Ananias and Sephora, saying they lied to the Holy Spirit in vs. 3 and then reframes the statement by declaring that they have lied to God in vs. 4. Here the Holy Spirit is called God by God's inspiration to Luke.
The Holy Spirit is not a force, nor an emanation from God, not something God created-but a divine Person who united in the Being of God.
I do not take you as being contrary and please forgive me, I am not the best at explaining some things, Scripture is the word of God given to us through the Holy Spirit by the prophets but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son and there are no contradictions, he that doubteth is damned. Man is who makes the contradictions. God called out Abraham when he was 75 years old, Genesis 12:4 and Genesis 12:1 this is after Terah died and Genesis 11:32 says he was 205 years old when he died. Acts 7:4 also says when his father was dead God removed Abraham into this land.
We make the contradiction when we take Genesis 11:27 as saying Terah was 70 years old when Abraham was born. But it says Terah was 70 years old when he begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran, This is saying all three sons were born when Terah was 70 years old and we know that is impossible. Scripture is clear Haran was older because Lot was his son, Nahor married one of Haran's daughters and Haran died before his father Terah.
We have two verses in Scripture that say God called out Abraham after Terah died Genesis 12:1 and Acts 7:4 and Genesis 11:32 says Terah was 205 years old when he died and Genesis 12:4 Abraham was 75 years old, this tells us Terah was 130 years old when Abraham was born, 205 minus 75 = 130 no contradiction.
Studying the timelines is interesting, as knowing how many years from Adam to Abraham to Moses and on. But if we try to use these timelines for any purpose other than our enjoyment, we must know there are different texts and they all do not agree. We can only reach approximately the years from then and now. None of these charts will predict the second coming of Jesus.
There are discussions or debates on the chronology of the age of Terah when Abraham was born. In Genesis 11:26 Terah was 70 years old and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran, in Genesis 11:32 Terah lived to be 205 years old. In Genesis 12:1-4 it looks like God did not call Abraham out until after Terah died, and in verse 4 it says Abraham was at that time 75 years old. If Terah lived to 205 years old and Abraham was 75 when God called him out after Terah died that would make Terah 130 years old when Abraham was born.
The other verse used is in Acts when Stephen was giving his defense, basically a step-by-step of Israel's troubles from Abraham to then. Speaking of Abraham in Acts 7:4 Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.
If Terah was 205 when he died, and God did not call out Abraham until then and Abraham was 75 years old that would make Terah 130 years old when Abraham was born. If that is so it looks like a contradiction but if we look at Genesis 11:27-32 it is clear Haran was the oldest son of Terah and Lot, the son of Heran was a man of some age maybe not much younger than Abraham when God called out Abraham.
If Terah was 70 when he began to have sons, all three were not born at the same time so Terah could very well have been 130 when Abraham was born. So, should it be 70 or 130? It does not change anything meaningful but discussions over chronological charts about 60 years.
Well Oseas, from reading of your beliefs, I'm unable to place where you exactly are with this. You were first dealing with the Name of God in Isaiah. You've now quoted Acts 7:53-58, particularly verse 55, "But he (Stephen), being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God". In the NT, Koine Greek is the language used. If you believe that the Hebrew 'Yahweh' written of God in the OT is a devilish name, does this also apply to the Greek word for God: 'Theos'?
You asked, "what GOD's NAME was manifested by my Lord JESUS?" Yet, reading the rest of your comments, it appears to me that you hold to an "only Jesus is in Heaven" position, that when Jesus was made flesh, "GOD called Himself Jesus.." Really!!! So, as not to be mistaken, are you in that camp, that says 'that since God is in Christ that only Jesus is now in Heaven'? I'm hoping that I've misunderstood you, as we know most assuredly that when Jesus ascended into Heaven, He went back to the Father & is seated at His right Hand ( John 20:17, Acts 2:32,33, Romans 8:34, Hebrews 1:3, 1 Peter 3:22, etc.). So, NOT two Gods, but the One God, with Jesus His Son Who came forth out of God now distinct from Him through the incarnation. Thus He rightly fully claims the eternity of the Godhead (the Alpha & Omega), & also receives the worship of all. So your comments are troubling, if that is your position.
As you and all can see, Satan contamined and corrupted the environment of the heavenly place established by my GOD here, in fact the environment of the first heavenly place, the first Covenant, the Old Testament, and the Jews of the synagogue of Satan, the killers of the prophets of GOD, yeah, by these disguised Jews GOD's Name was forbidden(by breaking the 3rd Commandment,thus the use of HaShem in substitute), yeah, HaShem, another name of Devil to substitute, to replace the true name of GOD,whose NAME they never wanted to hear speaking.
HaShem and the gold calf are the same, idolatry and sorcery of the Jews of the synagogue of Satan
Stephen in His preaching to the Jews said unto them: Acts 7:53-58
53 Israel have received the law by the disposition of angels, and they have not kept it.
54 When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.
55 But Stephen,being full of the Holy Spirit,looked up stedfastly into heaven,and saw the glory of GOD,and JESUS standing on the right hand of GOD,(not on the right hand of HaShen, Jehovah, Adonai, YHWH, Yahveh, or other DEMONS)
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of GOD.
57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,
58 And cast Stephen out of the city, and stoned him:
After their hardness and impenitent heart treasured up unto themselves wrath in this Day of wrath and revelation of the righteous Judgment of GOD;
6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds
But after their hardness and impenitent heart, they treasured up unto themselves wrath against this Day of wrath and revelation of the righteous Judgment of GOD; Unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the Truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
I believe based on Acts 7:2-7 that the 430 years began from the day the "God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was still in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, and said to him, 'Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land I will show you.'", which began the sojourn of the sons of Israel. This would mean that God's first appearance to Abram occurred on the 15th day of the month Nisan, which was exactly 430 years to the day before the children of Isreal left the land of Egypt on the first day of Passover.
It appears from Gen 11:28-32 that Abram told his father he was leaving Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Cannan, but this resulted in his father deciding to go along and take Lot with them. Terah ended up taking the lead in the journey and caused Abram to settle in Haran until Terah's death. Abram was 75 when he resumed his journey and reached Canaan where God told him "To your seed I will give this land." However, he allowed Lot to come with him.
Gen 13 and 14 shows that there were two stages in Abram's physical separation from Lot, where Lot first chose to sojourn to the cities of the plain of Jordan as far as Sodom, and then became entangled in the war and captivity of those cities, leading Abram to have to pursue the captors to deliver Lot.
I believe Gen 15 took place when Abram on the 15th of Nisan exactly 30 years after the original call God had given when Abram was in Mesopotamia and 400 years before the Passover when Israel left Egypt. If chapter 15 also occurred in the same year that Sarai gave Hagar to Abram when he was 85 ( Gen 16:3) then that would mean Abram had spent 20 years in Haran with his father and 10 years in Cannan continuing to interact with Lot before he had fully separated from his family. This explains why God chose that particular night to finally impute righteousness to Abram's faith and to pass through the sacrifice to make a covenant to give the land as his possession ( Gen 15:18).
The seed of Abram lived 400 years in the Egypt, in that period GOD made to be born Moses, since then GOD worked to fulfill His promise to Abram, it was in the half of the 2nd to the 3rd GOD's work Day,or around 2500 years after Adam(1500 years BC),and in the given period of time, GOD fulfilled His promise to Abram,as follow:
From Abraham to the Exodus really passed 430 years( Galatians 3:17,take a look)
Moses was 80 years when GOD sent him to bring His people out of Egypt,and died at 120 years old.Moses was born around 310 years after Abraham,and lived 40 years at the Egyptian court- Acts 7:23. After,Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh,and dwelt in the land of Midian by 40 years pasturing flocks- Acts 7:30. Then,GOD called Moses,saying:"Come now therefore,and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt".Moses was 80 years old
Moses spent 40 years leading the Hebrew people to the promised land- Acts 7:36,it was around 2513 years after Adam(two Days and half,of GODs' works)
Just a few things, I am sorry you feel you have been lied to, there are different interpretations out there. If we study Matt. 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 together it helps.
I have found when studying the Bible, we should not start with a preconceived idea, it is easy to see Scriptures that fit a picture we have painted in our mind rather than letting the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit reveal the true meaning.
First, Jesus's death and resurrection were hidden from them, Luke 18:31-34. Even after he was crucified, they were distraught and did not understand the fact that he was killed. John 16:16-20 and we have Luke 24:4-6. Not knowing Jesus was going to die would they be asking Jesus about His second coming?
Is all of Matthew 24 about the end time, many combined it with other prophecies to create a picture of the end time. Some of it is obviously about Jesus's second coming but much of it was to prepare them for what they were to endure up to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. False prophets we see there were many before 70 AD, Acts 21:36-38Acts 8:9 and others. If we look at history there were wars, earthquakes, and famine, Acts 7:11 and Acts 11:28.
Many put Matt. 24:15 and Mark 13:14 at the end time with an antichrist, should we not consider what Luke wrote about the same thing, Luke 21:20 that history has recorded?
One other thing why would Jesus say to pray their flee would not be on a Sabbath day? Today would not be a problem with the transportation we have. Back then the gates of Jerusalem would be locked and would be hard to get out and it would take days to get clear, with a pace of 2.5 mph.
I am with you, we sleep in the grave until resurrection the first of those who are chosen and faithful, Rev. 17:14 at Jesus's second coming and the second, the rest of the dead at the white throne judgment/the sheep and the goats and those whose names are not in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire, Rev. 20:15.
Hi GiGi. Just one thought in relation to this 'Gospel' in Hebrews 4:2, "For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them...". We do see words, such as Gospel, which is familiar to us that can compel us to believe that the same word must apply elsewhere in the Bible. In recent discussions about the word 'parable', I showed that what we read of Jesus' parables, do not always have the same meaning in the OT (sometimes, but not always); so we need to express care in reading & understanding.
An example in Acts 7:38, "This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us". Here is a classic example of how a word, with the same spelling can have another meaning (known as 'homonyms'). E.g. in English (current; ring; spring; etc. are such examples). And I understand, the same in Hebrew & Greek (Giannis/Jesse can enlighten us on this). So, if we come to Acts 7:38 with a firm belief that Luke is speaking of the Church we know today as also applying to Moses' day, then we would greatly err. Luke (in v37), was clearly referring to Deuteronomy 18:15, when Moses spoke to the people, but Luke says, "this is he (Moses), that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in mount Sina...". So what is this 'church' comprised of? Can we assume that it must also be the same Church as we have today since 'Israel was saved as well by virtue of Christ's Sacrifice from the Earth's foundation', or, is the 'church' an homonym having another meaning? In Greek, 'ekklesia' is the word for 'church', however, it can also apply to an assembly or gathering of people. And when Luke refers this to the Hebrew rendering, 'qahal', we find that it isn't the Church we know of today, but indeed a 'gathering of God's people, Israel' ( Judges 21:8, 'assembly'; 1 Chronicles 29:1, 'congregation'). So maybe the word 'Gospel' needs similar treatment.
Thanks Gasman for your reply; I'm glad that my answer to you might have been a little helpful. However, your question as to when does a human (whether still in embryonic form or after release from the womb) is equipped with a soul & spirit, can't really be answered irrefutably, simply because the Word is silent on it & very likely the medical profession will never admit it. Though some Scriptures might help us, such as Ecclesiastes 3:19-21; Ecclesiastes 12:7; Luke 23:46; Acts 7:59; James 2:26; and maybe others which seem to show both the importance & destination of the human spirit when the body dies. Then again, the word 'soul' is also used similarly: Matthew 10:28; Matthew 16:26; Revelation 6:9, which seems to further confuse this matter of distinction between soul & spirit. However, as man is made in his Creator's Image, I believe that he needs to be fully equipped with & reflect this fully formed creative work; hence the need for this three-fold aspect of his humanness.
Yet, as you wrote, "Our core values we know for sure but secondary issues we don't", which is what we need to emphasize & build up one another on, rather than on matters we know little or nothing about. Yet, it's always an interesting exercise to ponder even over such things. Blessings.
That explains something that puzzled me for years.
John the Baptist was put in prison, he sent his disciples to Jesus and says are you the coming one, or do we look for another?
THE WORD "ANOTHER" IN GREEK MEANS ANOTHER OF THE SAME KIND. So, he figures this must be the suffering Messiah. Are we expecting the next one to come too?
I believe there are 2 words in the Greek for another.
One is another of the same kind,
allos
The other is another of a different kind. heteros
I believe that word is used in Acts 7:18. "suggesting this Pharoah may have not been Egyptian".
I never applied this to John's questioning.
I just to the popular view, that he was beginning to have doubts.
I never fully believed or understood that being the case.
Thanks for responding, it's been a busy week, sorry for such a late response.
Part 1.
Acts 7:35-38 emphasis is on Moses not the Church. besides this gathering/church is the Nation Israel, Not Christ church "that he would later build mentioned in Matthew 16:18.
Christ have not been crucified yet, so the church couldn't have already been built.
The church was not built on the sacrifices of goats and calves, nor would it be built while the first tabernacle stood.
Church definition.
a calling out that is (concretely) a popular meeting especially a religious congregation (Jewish synagogue or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both
As you mentioned, In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says upon this rock he will build HIS CHURCH.
So, this rock that Jesus mentions in which he will build his Church, is a rock of offence and a stumbling block to the Jews, so this gathering "The Church " is not the gathering in the wilderness.
GIGI
Galatians 3:29. Is not talking about any promises back to the land here on earth. It's not a Kingdom verse at all. It's about a contrast between Salvation by faith and the works of the Law. That's not a land promises!
Theme; Galatians 3:1-2.
Vs 14) That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Also, Hebrews 11 is a chapter about faith!
The new Jerusalem comes down from heaven "After" The Millennium kingdom here on Earth. Revelation 21:1-2.
Revelation 20:7. And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Acts 7:38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:
Matthew 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock{the LORD Jesus Christ}I will build my church{the Eternal Church, All True Believers throughout history, the ISRAEL OF GOD}; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Mark 4:34 But without a PARABLE spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
The historical events that God records in the Bible are absolutely accurate in their historical account. But God did not record these events in the first instance to give us a history lesson. They are recorded to teach us some aspect of the Gospel which is God's Judgment and Salvation program for Mankind and this World.
And the Book of Jeremiah, like the entire Bible, is exactly that.
I am also so sorry in telling you that you are completely wrong.
Revelation 19:15KJV speaks of the one from whom the own JESUS said he has a NAME that no MAN knew, EXCEPT he himself".
Yes, EXCEPT himself, so you are twisting the own word of JESUS who testified about this one that you call as being him JESUS, erroneously.
For what do you contradict JESUS and get preaching saying the NAME of this one is JESUS?
Actually he is only likeness JESUS- Revelation 1:13-,but he is not JESUS Himself, no,absolutely. And JESUS said that this one doth Judge and make WAR, in fact he is an ambassador of the Lord- Jeremiah 49:14 and Obadiah 1:1KJV- and he bears the insignia of JESUS Himself on his garments as an ambassador of the King Of kings, and Lord Of the lords, according prophecies he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a NAME,yes, a NAME written,that is King Of Kings, and Lord Of Lords.
It is he who was with Moses in flame of fire in the Mount Sina in the name of GOD Almighty in the OT, saying to be the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob- Acts 7:32-33. Take a look. And he was with Moses until his death, and after appeared to Joshua,saying: Joshua 5:13-15
13Joshua was by Jericho,he lifted up his eyes and looked,and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his Sword drawn in his hand:and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him,Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?
14And he said,Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come.And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant?
15And the captain of the Lord's host said unto Joshua,Loose thy shoe from off thy foot;for the place whereon thou standest is holy.And Joshua did so.
Balaam also saw this one of the Lord standing in the way, and his Sword drawn in his hand,saying:behold,I went out to withstand thee,because thy way is perverse before me.
Be careful so, what matters and prevails is the Word of GOD
I am done with errands and need to prepare dinner now. I will be preparing to go out of town tomorrow, so I will be packing tonight. I am not sure if I will get to your request or not. But I recommend that you read the accounts in the gospels of Jesus' resurrection and appearances to His disciples, also Acts 1 tells of the ascension.
You can read the Last Supper Discourse in John 14-16 to see what Jesus said about the Holy Spirit dwelling within believers and when the Holy Spirit dwells in us, the Father and the Son makes their abode in us, too.
1 Corinthians 15 speaks about the resurrection of the dead. And there are several places in John that say He will raise up our bodies on the last day.
There is no place in the New Testament that says that Jesus removed His humanity when He ascended to sit on His throne at the right hand of the Father. Stephen, in Acts 7:55, said he SAW Jesus sitting at the Father's right hand. His eyes saw Jesus and recognized him as the Lord he knew on earth.
If I get time in the next few days I will give you more Scripture.
Stephen in his apology to the Jews among others he said, Acts 7:38, "(7) This is he(Moses), that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:"
Stephen calls the Hebrews in the dessert as church. Why? Because he wanted to show to Jews that the church is not something foreign, but it is actually them. And it was them, the remnant that Paul speaks about in Romans 11:5.
Romans 11:25-27, "(25)For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.(26) And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: (27)For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins"
Blindness in part. The remnant with the nations who now entered the Covenant became the church, God's people, as always. And at the end the rest of Hebrews will enter God's saved people, the church which is the assembly of all saved people since the begining of the world.
And lets not forget that that initial church where unimaginary miracles took place and God showed His power so often was the Hebrew christian church.
So Hebrews and nations separate? No, but together in one.
So, Dispensansional theology? For me No, Covental theology.
Jesus now reigns sitting on top of the throne of David in Heaven over the new Israel, the CHURCH. And His reign will last for ever, as it is written in the Scriptures.
When Jesus first came it was for only the lost sheep of Israel the same for the prophecy of Dan. 9:25-27Matt. 15:24. Jesus instructed the disciples/apostles not to go unto the Samaritans or Gentiles Matt. 10:5-7. He also told them to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit Acts 1:4-5.
And we see they stayed in Jerusalem because they had not yet been told it was time to carry the gospel to the Gentiles and we see the confusion of it in Acts. This did not happen for another 3.5 years. We see in Acts 7 Stephen was in front of the high priest and the other leaders, the same ones who called for Jesus's crucifixion and what they said in Acts 7:54-57 (they cried out and stopped their ears) and killed Stephen. They fully rejected Jesus as the Messiah the Son of God.
Stephen's death as the first Martyr 34-35 AD is 3.5 years after Jesus's crucifixion this would end the 70th week. Jesus confirmed the covenant Himself for the first 3.5 years and Jesus through His apostles for the last 3.5 years.
Then the persecution by the Jews Acts 8:1-4 After this Philip the Evangelist was the first to go to Samaria, and when the apostles heard, Peter and John went to see Acts 8:14-25. Then Saul/Paul's conversion, Acts 9. Peter had his dream in Acts 10 and the mystery of the gospel goes to the Gentiles.
I hope this all though brief will give enough to show my understanding and enough you can study it if you want. Thank you again for having this peaceful and respectful discussion on this important subject.
Hello Donna. There are probably a few reasons why this occurred. In John 18:28, we read that "THEY led Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgement...". And when Pilate told THEM to "judge him (Jesus) according to their law", we can understand that the Sanhedrin (the supreme council & tribunal of the Jews) were involved in laying the charge against Jesus. Also, at that time under Roman rule & law, the hearing of accusations & pronouncing judgement had to be conducted only by the Roman procurator or his deputies & not by the people. As well, with those of Jewry that might have shown sympathy towards Jesus (as One doing nothing worthy of such treatment & death), it was in the Sanhedrin's interest to refer the matter of execution to Rome (in other words, 'let's pass the buck'), to avoid becoming unpopular & losing respect & face with their people.
So, why not in the case of Stephen ( Acts 7:54-60), or the woman taken in adultery ( John 8:3-5), though Jesus skilfully diverted their attention from the woman to themselves? In these passages, we see it was the Jewish religious leaders (the Scribes & Pharisees) & the mob they incited being urged to take the law into their own hands. They believed they were fulfilling the Law, which prescribed that adultery & blasphemy were sins worthy of death ( Leviticus 20:10; Leviticus 24:16). These were not the Sanhedrin (the official Jewish council who would pronounce judgement after due legal processes), though the Council comprised many of these men; they were the religious leaders, acting on their own, filled with religious fury, inciting the mob, determined to take matters into their own hands, believing that they were fulfilling the Law & doing God service.
This is how I understand the difference which you have picked up on: just a few thoughts for your consideration.
John 18:31 Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. The Jews said therefore unto him, It is not LAWFUL for us to put any man to death.
Acts 7:59 And they STONED Stephen ...
Why could that not stone Christ; being unlawful, but they could stone Stephen?
They were under Roman rule when both these events took place.
Does anyone have insight into this, it was important even to be recorded in God's word.
Acts 7:35 This Mosses whom they refused, Saying, who made thee a ruler and a judge? the SAME did God SEND to be a ruler and a deliverer BY THE HAND OF THE ANGEL which appeared to him in the bush.
Acts 7:37 This is THAT MOSSES, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God RAISE UP unto you of you BRETHREN; like unto me; him shall you hear.
Acts 7:38 This is HE, that was IN THE CHURCH in the wilderness WITH THE ANGEL which spoke to him in the Mount Sina......
Hello Deborah. If you look at the following verses, your query should be answered: Revelation 1:1; Revelation 22:8,9,16; which then answers Revelation 19:9,10.
One could compare this to the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai ( Deuteronomy 33:2), when the LORD God came down upon the mount with ten thousand of His saints (angels), of whom it was said (in Acts 7:53), were present & used of God in some way in that delivery. There are various interpretations of this verse, but it can be seen that angels, at least certain angels, played an important part in the impartation of God's Message, which were actually voiced & given by the LORD & the risen Savior.
Hi Dana. You're referring to Hebrews 4:8: "For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day."
In the Greek language, 'Joshua, or Yehoshua' (from the Hebrew), is translated as 'Jesus, or Iesous'. And we find the translators making the same change in Acts 7:45. So, the KJV translators are correct in understanding this Hebrew to Greek change, though as you wrote, it can be misleading to those unfamiliar with the account or reading through those verses very quickly. We can see from Hebrews 4:8, that the writer is referring back to verse 5 ("And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest": Psalm 95:11), & even all the way back to Hebrews 4:1 when the subject of 'Rest' is brought up.
Even though most Bible translations use the word 'Joshua', they are of course translating it correctly, but not according to the original Greek, which the KJV uses, & this name translates to 'Jesus'. If Greek was spoken in the Old Testament days, by all accounts, Joshua, who took over from Moses' leadership, would have been called 'Iesous, or Jesus'.
As for the RC Church changing the Sabbath to Sunday, I can't comment, not being RC. But the Bible shows that after Jesus died & rose from the dead, the early Church worshiped together on the Lord's Day, the first day of the week ( Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 6:2): Sunday. Sunday, to the Church then & now, never became the new Sabbath Day - Saturday always has been the correct Jewish Sabbath Day.
Yeshua is the Hebrew name, and its English spelling is "Joshua." Iesous is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name, and its English spelling is "Jesus." Thus, the names "Joshua" and "Jesus" are essentially the same; both are English pronunciations of the Hebrew and Greek names for our Lord. (For examples of how the two names are interchangeable, see Acts 7:45 and Hebrews 4:8 in the KJV. In both cases, the word Jesus refers to the Old Testament character Joshua.
As for the controversy over the letter J, it is much ado about nothing. It is true that the languages in which the Bible was written had no letter J. But that doesn't mean the Bible never refers to "Jerusalem" or "Judah." And it doesn't mean we cannot use the spelling "Jesus." If a person speaks and reads English, it is acceptable for him to spell things in an English fashion. Spellings can change even within a language: Americans write "Savior," while the British write "Saviour." The addition of a u (or its subtraction, depending on your point of view) has nothing to do with whom we're talking about. Jesus is the Savior, and He is the Saviour. Jesus and Yeshuah and Iesus are all referring to the same Person.
We refer to Him as "Jesus" because, as English-speaking people, we know of Him through English translations of the Greek New Testament. Scripture does not value one language over another, and it gives no indication that we must resort to Hebrew when addressing the Lord. The command is to "call on the name of the Lord," with the promise that we "shall be saved" ( Acts 2:21; Joel 2:32). Whether we call on Him in English, Korean, Hindi, or Hebrew, the result is the same: the Lord is salvation.
Dear Verleen, I wanted to get back to you concerning your first inquiry about the two places that God does not abide. Scripture says that God the Father resides in unapproachable light in heaven as I mentioned in my other post. Scripture also says that God's presence fills the universe, including earth. So, God fills all things with His Presence. Scripture also says that He abides in the believers by the Holy Spirit. Scripture also says that God, our Lord Jesus Christ now sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven but also resides in believers through the Holy Spirit, also. As Richard said, He even oversees hell, as His Presence is everywhere, hell not excluded.
But as to the only please that God does not abide is in unbelievers. He is still Presence in believers due to His omnipresence, but He does not abide in unbelievers as He does in believers.
I would like to list some Scriptures for you to look up on this. I will see how many I can get on this post.
Hi Verleen, I responded to your post earlier today, but the site was having trouble with posts going through. Now that is fixed.
You have posed several good questions and I would like to respond to the last one concerning believing in a God no one has seen.
The first thing that came to my mind was what Jesus said in the gospels. In John 1:18 Jesus said, No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him."
In John 14:9-10 in response to Philip's request for Jesus to show them the Father, Jesus said, "have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father, so how can you say, "Show us the Father?
do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me?....
In these verses Jesus is saying that He is God and that any of the people of His time on earth who saw Him also saw the
Father because of the unified Oneness of the Persons of the Godhead. Jesus, being the Son of God in the flesh, showed by His perfect human life and by His divine expressions in miracles and other divine actions and words revealed to those who saw Him the Godhead and what God was like.
Those who saw Jesus after His resurrection, saw Him in His glory, revealing more of who God is to the disciples, from the women and apostles at the tomb, to the rest of the disciples in the Upper Room, and to 500 0ther persons before the disciples saw him ascend to the Father. A human person cannot appear to people after they die. Jesus was God and He said He was returning to His Father, who was God. Acts 7:56 Stephen at the time he was being stoned said, look, I see heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!" He was seeing Jesus with the Father in heaven as equals.
In the Old Testament, many godly men were visited by God-Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, Ezekiel-to name a few. These appearances were usually described as the Angel of the Lord.
In my post I only listed what I know, not what I believe. My belief is that that person who appears to John in Rev 1 was Jesus, but there are some things that make have some doubts.
1. It it true that in verse 1 Jesus says that He sent an angel to John to reveal him the future. So where do we get to see that angel in Rev?
2. The description of that person resembles very much to the appearance of an angel discribed by Daniel.
3. I know what that person among the 7 candlestichs says to John. He speaks as if though He is Jesus Himself. But this often occurs in OT when angels speak to people as if there were God themselves.
Examples: a. Who spoke to Moses on mount Horeb from within the flame in the bushes? Although it seems it is God in verse 5, it is actually the angel of the Lord (verse 2).
b. To whom Moses was talking to on mount Sinai when he got the 10 commandments and all the other instructions? From chapter 19 onwards it seems that it is God Himself but in Acts 7:38 Stephen says to Jews that it was an angel, "This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:"
c. In Judges 2:1-4, an angel appears to talk to Israeletes but he speaks as if he was God Himself. The same happens with Gideon (chapt. 6). So it seems in many cases in OT an angel sent by God talks as he is God Himself.
(Here I have to state that many believe that the angel of the Lord who often appears in OT is (a pre-incarnation) Jesus in the form of an angel)
So those things make me have some doubts about who is the person who speaks to John, Jesus or an angel?
Acts 6:8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.
Acts 7:55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
As you said Brother Jesse "Under the influence of God's Spirit, it is fascinating how people can function in various situations.
Apart from God's spirit we would be on the other side of the stoning.
Acts 6:8 and throughout ch 7 you see a God's spirit filled vessel emphasized in the power of Stephen.
And in Daniel 4:1-37 you see the humbling record of King Nebuchadnezzar by the Lord.
NOTICE THE DECREE;
"Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him. Daniel 4:16.
NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S RESPONSE;
"The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? Daniel 4:30.
THE HUMBLING BY THE LORD!
While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.
And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. Daniel 4:31-32.
THE RESULTS OF THE HUMBLING;
"Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase. Daniel 4:37.
The Holyspirit is powerful, mysterious, and always active in diverse ways.
Under the influence of God's Spirit, it is fascinating how people can function in various situations. Take for instance the stoning of Stephen in Acts Chapter 7.
In Acts 7:59, it says, "And they stoned Stephen, while he was calling upon God." And this is the thing that Stephen said first of all when they were stoning him. He said Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
It reminds me of Luke 23:46, "And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said Father, into thy hands I commend my Spirit. And having said thus, He expired (or gave up the ghost.)"
And the second thing Stephen said in Acts 7:60 is just as fascinating:
"And he (Stephen) knelt down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, do not lay this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep," (or died).
Again, Jesus on the cross, in Luke 23:34, Jesus said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." And they parted His garments and cast lots.
It's one thing for Jesus to say that. But Stephen also, while they're putting him to death, he says, Jesus receive my spirit, and don't lay this sin to their charge.
How would any of us react to that? I probably would have said, "Lord, receive my spirit, and let all of your judgment fall on these guys!"
But when a person is under the influence of God's Spirit, it is fascinating how that person can function when put in various difficult situations.
He is eternal as God is: Heb. 9:14. He gives eternal life: John 6:63, 2 Cor. 3:6 ( Rom. 6:23 says that God gives eternal life and Jn. 10:28 Jesus says He gives eternal life) Only God can give eternal life.
He was with the Father and the Son "in the beginning" and created all things with them ( Gen. 1:3; Ps. 104:30)
He knows all things: 1 Cor. 2:20. Therefore, he is omniscient and has an intellect (mind). He is able to control a believer's mind ( Rom. 8:6).
He sent the Son into the world with the Father (Is. 48:16)
He regenerates sinners to come to faith and be saved ( Jn. 3:3,8). He baptizes believers ( 1Cor. 12:13, Acts 11:16).
He can be blasphemed ( Mt. 12:31, Mk. 3:29) Only God can be blasphemed.
He vindicated Jesus in raising Him from the dead ( 1Tim 3:16). The Scriptures teach that God raised Jesus from the dead ( Acts 2:24; 10:40; that Jesus raised Himself from the dead ( Jn. 2:19), and that the Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead (2Cr. 4:14).
He is a person just as the Father and the Son are Persons. Not as we think of person in that each human is an individual being, but that He is a divine person unified in the One God.
As a person, He has emotions. He can be resisted ( Acts 7:51), can be pleased ( Gal. 6:8), quenched, grieved ( Eph. 4:30; Is 63:10), insulted ( Heb. 10:29).
As a person, He acts. He speaks ( Rev. 2:7; Acts. 13:2). He inspired Scriptures to be written ( 2Pet. 1:21). He teaches ( Jn. 14:26). He guides ( Jn. 16:13). He convicts of sin ( Jn. 16:8). He contends with man (Gen, 6:3).
In Acts 5 he is called God in the account of Ananias and Sephora, saying they lied to the Holy Spirit in vs. 3 and then reframes the statement by declaring that they have lied to God in vs. 4. Here the Holy Spirit is called God by God's inspiration to Luke.
The Holy Spirit is not a force, nor an emanation from God, not something God created-but a divine Person who united in the Being of God.
I do not take you as being contrary and please forgive me, I am not the best at explaining some things, Scripture is the word of God given to us through the Holy Spirit by the prophets but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son and there are no contradictions, he that doubteth is damned. Man is who makes the contradictions. God called out Abraham when he was 75 years old, Genesis 12:4 and Genesis 12:1 this is after Terah died and Genesis 11:32 says he was 205 years old when he died. Acts 7:4 also says when his father was dead God removed Abraham into this land.
We make the contradiction when we take Genesis 11:27 as saying Terah was 70 years old when Abraham was born. But it says Terah was 70 years old when he begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran, This is saying all three sons were born when Terah was 70 years old and we know that is impossible. Scripture is clear Haran was older because Lot was his son, Nahor married one of Haran's daughters and Haran died before his father Terah.
We have two verses in Scripture that say God called out Abraham after Terah died Genesis 12:1 and Acts 7:4 and Genesis 11:32 says Terah was 205 years old when he died and Genesis 12:4 Abraham was 75 years old, this tells us Terah was 130 years old when Abraham was born, 205 minus 75 = 130 no contradiction.
Studying the timelines is interesting, as knowing how many years from Adam to Abraham to Moses and on. But if we try to use these timelines for any purpose other than our enjoyment, we must know there are different texts and they all do not agree. We can only reach approximately the years from then and now. None of these charts will predict the second coming of Jesus.
Hope this helps if not let me know.
God bless,
RLW
There are discussions or debates on the chronology of the age of Terah when Abraham was born. In Genesis 11:26 Terah was 70 years old and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran, in Genesis 11:32 Terah lived to be 205 years old. In Genesis 12:1-4 it looks like God did not call Abraham out until after Terah died, and in verse 4 it says Abraham was at that time 75 years old. If Terah lived to 205 years old and Abraham was 75 when God called him out after Terah died that would make Terah 130 years old when Abraham was born.
The other verse used is in Acts when Stephen was giving his defense, basically a step-by-step of Israel's troubles from Abraham to then. Speaking of Abraham in Acts 7:4 Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell.
If Terah was 205 when he died, and God did not call out Abraham until then and Abraham was 75 years old that would make Terah 130 years old when Abraham was born. If that is so it looks like a contradiction but if we look at Genesis 11:27-32 it is clear Haran was the oldest son of Terah and Lot, the son of Heran was a man of some age maybe not much younger than Abraham when God called out Abraham.
If Terah was 70 when he began to have sons, all three were not born at the same time so Terah could very well have been 130 when Abraham was born. So, should it be 70 or 130? It does not change anything meaningful but discussions over chronological charts about 60 years.
I hope this makes some kind of sense.
God bless,
RLW
You asked, "what GOD's NAME was manifested by my Lord JESUS?" Yet, reading the rest of your comments, it appears to me that you hold to an "only Jesus is in Heaven" position, that when Jesus was made flesh, "GOD called Himself Jesus.." Really!!! So, as not to be mistaken, are you in that camp, that says 'that since God is in Christ that only Jesus is now in Heaven'? I'm hoping that I've misunderstood you, as we know most assuredly that when Jesus ascended into Heaven, He went back to the Father & is seated at His right Hand ( John 20:17, Acts 2:32,33, Romans 8:34, Hebrews 1:3, 1 Peter 3:22, etc.). So, NOT two Gods, but the One God, with Jesus His Son Who came forth out of God now distinct from Him through the incarnation. Thus He rightly fully claims the eternity of the Godhead (the Alpha & Omega), & also receives the worship of all. So your comments are troubling, if that is your position.
As you and all can see, Satan contamined and corrupted the environment of the heavenly place established by my GOD here, in fact the environment of the first heavenly place, the first Covenant, the Old Testament, and the Jews of the synagogue of Satan, the killers of the prophets of GOD, yeah, by these disguised Jews GOD's Name was forbidden(by breaking the 3rd Commandment,thus the use of HaShem in substitute), yeah, HaShem, another name of Devil to substitute, to replace the true name of GOD,whose NAME they never wanted to hear speaking.
HaShem and the gold calf are the same, idolatry and sorcery of the Jews of the synagogue of Satan
Stephen in His preaching to the Jews said unto them: Acts 7:53-58
53 Israel have received the law by the disposition of angels, and they have not kept it.
54 When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.
55 But Stephen,being full of the Holy Spirit,looked up stedfastly into heaven,and saw the glory of GOD,and JESUS standing on the right hand of GOD,(not on the right hand of HaShen, Jehovah, Adonai, YHWH, Yahveh, or other DEMONS)
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of GOD.
57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,
58 And cast Stephen out of the city, and stoned him:
After their hardness and impenitent heart treasured up unto themselves wrath in this Day of wrath and revelation of the righteous Judgment of GOD;
6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds
But after their hardness and impenitent heart, they treasured up unto themselves wrath against this Day of wrath and revelation of the righteous Judgment of GOD; Unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the Truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
Get ready
It appears from Gen 11:28-32 that Abram told his father he was leaving Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Cannan, but this resulted in his father deciding to go along and take Lot with them. Terah ended up taking the lead in the journey and caused Abram to settle in Haran until Terah's death. Abram was 75 when he resumed his journey and reached Canaan where God told him "To your seed I will give this land." However, he allowed Lot to come with him.
Gen 13 and 14 shows that there were two stages in Abram's physical separation from Lot, where Lot first chose to sojourn to the cities of the plain of Jordan as far as Sodom, and then became entangled in the war and captivity of those cities, leading Abram to have to pursue the captors to deliver Lot.
I believe Gen 15 took place when Abram on the 15th of Nisan exactly 30 years after the original call God had given when Abram was in Mesopotamia and 400 years before the Passover when Israel left Egypt. If chapter 15 also occurred in the same year that Sarai gave Hagar to Abram when he was 85 ( Gen 16:3) then that would mean Abram had spent 20 years in Haran with his father and 10 years in Cannan continuing to interact with Lot before he had fully separated from his family. This explains why God chose that particular night to finally impute righteousness to Abram's faith and to pass through the sacrifice to make a covenant to give the land as his possession ( Gen 15:18).
The seed of Abram lived 400 years in the Egypt, in that period GOD made to be born Moses, since then GOD worked to fulfill His promise to Abram, it was in the half of the 2nd to the 3rd GOD's work Day,or around 2500 years after Adam(1500 years BC),and in the given period of time, GOD fulfilled His promise to Abram,as follow:
From Abraham to the Exodus really passed 430 years( Galatians 3:17,take a look)
Moses was 80 years when GOD sent him to bring His people out of Egypt,and died at 120 years old.Moses was born around 310 years after Abraham,and lived 40 years at the Egyptian court- Acts 7:23. After,Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh,and dwelt in the land of Midian by 40 years pasturing flocks- Acts 7:30. Then,GOD called Moses,saying:"Come now therefore,and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt".Moses was 80 years old
Moses spent 40 years leading the Hebrew people to the promised land- Acts 7:36,it was around 2513 years after Adam(two Days and half,of GODs' works)
God bless
Just a few things, I am sorry you feel you have been lied to, there are different interpretations out there. If we study Matt. 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 together it helps.
I have found when studying the Bible, we should not start with a preconceived idea, it is easy to see Scriptures that fit a picture we have painted in our mind rather than letting the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit reveal the true meaning.
First, Jesus's death and resurrection were hidden from them, Luke 18:31-34. Even after he was crucified, they were distraught and did not understand the fact that he was killed. John 16:16-20 and we have Luke 24:4-6. Not knowing Jesus was going to die would they be asking Jesus about His second coming?
Is all of Matthew 24 about the end time, many combined it with other prophecies to create a picture of the end time. Some of it is obviously about Jesus's second coming but much of it was to prepare them for what they were to endure up to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. False prophets we see there were many before 70 AD, Acts 21:36-38 Acts 8:9 and others. If we look at history there were wars, earthquakes, and famine, Acts 7:11 and Acts 11:28.
Many put Matt. 24:15 and Mark 13:14 at the end time with an antichrist, should we not consider what Luke wrote about the same thing, Luke 21:20 that history has recorded?
One other thing why would Jesus say to pray their flee would not be on a Sabbath day? Today would not be a problem with the transportation we have. Back then the gates of Jerusalem would be locked and would be hard to get out and it would take days to get clear, with a pace of 2.5 mph.
I am with you, we sleep in the grave until resurrection the first of those who are chosen and faithful, Rev. 17:14 at Jesus's second coming and the second, the rest of the dead at the white throne judgment/the sheep and the goats and those whose names are not in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire, Rev. 20:15.
God bless,
RLW
An example in Acts 7:38, "This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us". Here is a classic example of how a word, with the same spelling can have another meaning (known as 'homonyms'). E.g. in English (current; ring; spring; etc. are such examples). And I understand, the same in Hebrew & Greek (Giannis/Jesse can enlighten us on this). So, if we come to Acts 7:38 with a firm belief that Luke is speaking of the Church we know today as also applying to Moses' day, then we would greatly err. Luke (in v37), was clearly referring to Deuteronomy 18:15, when Moses spoke to the people, but Luke says, "this is he (Moses), that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in mount Sina...". So what is this 'church' comprised of? Can we assume that it must also be the same Church as we have today since 'Israel was saved as well by virtue of Christ's Sacrifice from the Earth's foundation', or, is the 'church' an homonym having another meaning? In Greek, 'ekklesia' is the word for 'church', however, it can also apply to an assembly or gathering of people. And when Luke refers this to the Hebrew rendering, 'qahal', we find that it isn't the Church we know of today, but indeed a 'gathering of God's people, Israel' ( Judges 21:8, 'assembly'; 1 Chronicles 29:1, 'congregation'). So maybe the word 'Gospel' needs similar treatment.
Yet, as you wrote, "Our core values we know for sure but secondary issues we don't", which is what we need to emphasize & build up one another on, rather than on matters we know little or nothing about. Yet, it's always an interesting exercise to ponder even over such things. Blessings.
That explains something that puzzled me for years.
John the Baptist was put in prison, he sent his disciples to Jesus and says are you the coming one, or do we look for another?
THE WORD "ANOTHER" IN GREEK MEANS ANOTHER OF THE SAME KIND. So, he figures this must be the suffering Messiah. Are we expecting the next one to come too?
I believe there are 2 words in the Greek for another.
One is another of the same kind,
allos
The other is another of a different kind. heteros
I believe that word is used in Acts 7:18. "suggesting this Pharoah may have not been Egyptian".
I never applied this to John's questioning.
I just to the popular view, that he was beginning to have doubts.
I never fully believed or understood that being the case.
God bless
Thanks for responding, it's been a busy week, sorry for such a late response.
Part 1.
Acts 7:35-38 emphasis is on Moses not the Church. besides this gathering/church is the Nation Israel, Not Christ church "that he would later build mentioned in Matthew 16:18.
Christ have not been crucified yet, so the church couldn't have already been built.
The church was not built on the sacrifices of goats and calves, nor would it be built while the first tabernacle stood.
Church definition.
a calling out that is (concretely) a popular meeting especially a religious congregation (Jewish synagogue or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both
As you mentioned, In Matthew 16:18 Jesus says upon this rock he will build HIS CHURCH.
So, this rock that Jesus mentions in which he will build his Church, is a rock of offence and a stumbling block to the Jews, so this gathering "The Church " is not the gathering in the wilderness.
GIGI
Galatians 3:29. Is not talking about any promises back to the land here on earth. It's not a Kingdom verse at all. It's about a contrast between Salvation by faith and the works of the Law. That's not a land promises!
Theme; Galatians 3:1-2.
Vs 14) That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Also, Hebrews 11 is a chapter about faith!
The new Jerusalem comes down from heaven "After" The Millennium kingdom here on Earth. Revelation 21:1-2.
Revelation 20:7. And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
See Part 2.
Acts 7:38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:
Matthew 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock{the LORD Jesus Christ}I will build my church{the Eternal Church, All True Believers throughout history, the ISRAEL OF GOD}; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Mark 4:34 But without a PARABLE spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
The historical events that God records in the Bible are absolutely accurate in their historical account. But God did not record these events in the first instance to give us a history lesson. They are recorded to teach us some aspect of the Gospel which is God's Judgment and Salvation program for Mankind and this World.
And the Book of Jeremiah, like the entire Bible, is exactly that.
I am also so sorry in telling you that you are completely wrong.
Revelation 19:15KJV speaks of the one from whom the own JESUS said he has a NAME that no MAN knew, EXCEPT he himself".
Yes, EXCEPT himself, so you are twisting the own word of JESUS who testified about this one that you call as being him JESUS, erroneously.
For what do you contradict JESUS and get preaching saying the NAME of this one is JESUS?
Actually he is only likeness JESUS- Revelation 1:13-,but he is not JESUS Himself, no,absolutely. And JESUS said that this one doth Judge and make WAR, in fact he is an ambassador of the Lord- Jeremiah 49:14 and Obadiah 1:1KJV- and he bears the insignia of JESUS Himself on his garments as an ambassador of the King Of kings, and Lord Of the lords, according prophecies he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a NAME,yes, a NAME written,that is King Of Kings, and Lord Of Lords.
It is he who was with Moses in flame of fire in the Mount Sina in the name of GOD Almighty in the OT, saying to be the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob- Acts 7:32-33. Take a look. And he was with Moses until his death, and after appeared to Joshua,saying: Joshua 5:13-15
13Joshua was by Jericho,he lifted up his eyes and looked,and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his Sword drawn in his hand:and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him,Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?
14And he said,Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come.And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant?
15And the captain of the Lord's host said unto Joshua,Loose thy shoe from off thy foot;for the place whereon thou standest is holy.And Joshua did so.
Balaam also saw this one of the Lord standing in the way, and his Sword drawn in his hand,saying:behold,I went out to withstand thee,because thy way is perverse before me.
Be careful so, what matters and prevails is the Word of GOD
I am done with errands and need to prepare dinner now. I will be preparing to go out of town tomorrow, so I will be packing tonight. I am not sure if I will get to your request or not. But I recommend that you read the accounts in the gospels of Jesus' resurrection and appearances to His disciples, also Acts 1 tells of the ascension.
You can read the Last Supper Discourse in John 14-16 to see what Jesus said about the Holy Spirit dwelling within believers and when the Holy Spirit dwells in us, the Father and the Son makes their abode in us, too.
1 Corinthians 15 speaks about the resurrection of the dead. And there are several places in John that say He will raise up our bodies on the last day.
There is no place in the New Testament that says that Jesus removed His humanity when He ascended to sit on His throne at the right hand of the Father. Stephen, in Acts 7:55, said he SAW Jesus sitting at the Father's right hand. His eyes saw Jesus and recognized him as the Lord he knew on earth.
If I get time in the next few days I will give you more Scripture.
Stephen in his apology to the Jews among others he said, Acts 7:38, "(7) This is he(Moses), that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:"
Stephen calls the Hebrews in the dessert as church. Why? Because he wanted to show to Jews that the church is not something foreign, but it is actually them. And it was them, the remnant that Paul speaks about in Romans 11:5.
Romans 11:25-27, "(25)For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.(26) And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: (27)For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins"
Blindness in part. The remnant with the nations who now entered the Covenant became the church, God's people, as always. And at the end the rest of Hebrews will enter God's saved people, the church which is the assembly of all saved people since the begining of the world.
And lets not forget that that initial church where unimaginary miracles took place and God showed His power so often was the Hebrew christian church.
So Hebrews and nations separate? No, but together in one.
So, Dispensansional theology? For me No, Covental theology.
Jesus now reigns sitting on top of the throne of David in Heaven over the new Israel, the CHURCH. And His reign will last for ever, as it is written in the Scriptures.
GBU
Part 2
When Jesus first came it was for only the lost sheep of Israel the same for the prophecy of Dan. 9:25-27 Matt. 15:24. Jesus instructed the disciples/apostles not to go unto the Samaritans or Gentiles Matt. 10:5-7. He also told them to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit Acts 1:4-5.
And we see they stayed in Jerusalem because they had not yet been told it was time to carry the gospel to the Gentiles and we see the confusion of it in Acts. This did not happen for another 3.5 years. We see in Acts 7 Stephen was in front of the high priest and the other leaders, the same ones who called for Jesus's crucifixion and what they said in Acts 7:54-57 (they cried out and stopped their ears) and killed Stephen. They fully rejected Jesus as the Messiah the Son of God.
Stephen's death as the first Martyr 34-35 AD is 3.5 years after Jesus's crucifixion this would end the 70th week. Jesus confirmed the covenant Himself for the first 3.5 years and Jesus through His apostles for the last 3.5 years.
Then the persecution by the Jews Acts 8:1-4 After this Philip the Evangelist was the first to go to Samaria, and when the apostles heard, Peter and John went to see Acts 8:14-25. Then Saul/Paul's conversion, Acts 9. Peter had his dream in Acts 10 and the mystery of the gospel goes to the Gentiles.
I hope this all though brief will give enough to show my understanding and enough you can study it if you want. Thank you again for having this peaceful and respectful discussion on this important subject.
God bless,
RLW
When we die do we automatically get to go to heaven or do we have to wait until the resurrection?
MountHoreb Reply: I personally can't recall at the moment Jesus giving any details
regarding The Apostles quick resurrection.
But We do have evidence of Jesus Resurrection Luke 24:46. when he died he was on the earth as an
invisible spirit Acts 1:3. Jesus as an invisible spirit ( john 4:24) has the ability to materialize into a human
Luke 24:3,5; Acts 1:9-11 . All angels Can transform themselves Luke 24:4; Luke 24:36
We also have an example of Apostle Stephen who was stoned by the infuriated High Priest.
he knew it meant his death for speaking the truth. notice what he said at Acts 7:54-60;
We have proof that Stephen appealed (prayed) to Jesus in Heaven Acts 7:59.
To no disappointment: Jehovah ( Psalm 83:18) Only selected or Chosen a few
to go to heaven according to Revelation 14:1,3. notice the scripture said "from Earth" (redeemed or taken from)
Not all are picked as presidents only one is. and there are those selected under him. Revelation 20:4,6
HOPE THE SCRIPTURES ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION: Psalm 37
So, why not in the case of Stephen ( Acts 7:54-60), or the woman taken in adultery ( John 8:3-5), though Jesus skilfully diverted their attention from the woman to themselves? In these passages, we see it was the Jewish religious leaders (the Scribes & Pharisees) & the mob they incited being urged to take the law into their own hands. They believed they were fulfilling the Law, which prescribed that adultery & blasphemy were sins worthy of death ( Leviticus 20:10; Leviticus 24:16). These were not the Sanhedrin (the official Jewish council who would pronounce judgement after due legal processes), though the Council comprised many of these men; they were the religious leaders, acting on their own, filled with religious fury, inciting the mob, determined to take matters into their own hands, believing that they were fulfilling the Law & doing God service.
This is how I understand the difference which you have picked up on: just a few thoughts for your consideration.
John 18:31 Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him according to your law. The Jews said therefore unto him, It is not LAWFUL for us to put any man to death.
Acts 7:59 And they STONED Stephen ...
Why could that not stone Christ; being unlawful, but they could stone Stephen?
They were under Roman rule when both these events took place.
Does anyone have insight into this, it was important even to be recorded in God's word.
God bless you.
Acts 7:35 This Mosses whom they refused, Saying, who made thee a ruler and a judge? the SAME did God SEND to be a ruler and a deliverer BY THE HAND OF THE ANGEL which appeared to him in the bush.
Acts 7:37 This is THAT MOSSES, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God RAISE UP unto you of you BRETHREN; like unto me; him shall you hear.
Acts 7:38 This is HE, that was IN THE CHURCH in the wilderness WITH THE ANGEL which spoke to him in the Mount Sina......
God Bless You!
One could compare this to the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai ( Deuteronomy 33:2), when the LORD God came down upon the mount with ten thousand of His saints (angels), of whom it was said (in Acts 7:53), were present & used of God in some way in that delivery. There are various interpretations of this verse, but it can be seen that angels, at least certain angels, played an important part in the impartation of God's Message, which were actually voiced & given by the LORD & the risen Savior.
In the Greek language, 'Joshua, or Yehoshua' (from the Hebrew), is translated as 'Jesus, or Iesous'. And we find the translators making the same change in Acts 7:45. So, the KJV translators are correct in understanding this Hebrew to Greek change, though as you wrote, it can be misleading to those unfamiliar with the account or reading through those verses very quickly. We can see from Hebrews 4:8, that the writer is referring back to verse 5 ("And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest": Psalm 95:11), & even all the way back to Hebrews 4:1 when the subject of 'Rest' is brought up.
Even though most Bible translations use the word 'Joshua', they are of course translating it correctly, but not according to the original Greek, which the KJV uses, & this name translates to 'Jesus'. If Greek was spoken in the Old Testament days, by all accounts, Joshua, who took over from Moses' leadership, would have been called 'Iesous, or Jesus'.
As for the RC Church changing the Sabbath to Sunday, I can't comment, not being RC. But the Bible shows that after Jesus died & rose from the dead, the early Church worshiped together on the Lord's Day, the first day of the week ( Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 6:2): Sunday. Sunday, to the Church then & now, never became the new Sabbath Day - Saturday always has been the correct Jewish Sabbath Day.
Yeshua is the Hebrew name, and its English spelling is "Joshua." Iesous is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name, and its English spelling is "Jesus." Thus, the names "Joshua" and "Jesus" are essentially the same; both are English pronunciations of the Hebrew and Greek names for our Lord. (For examples of how the two names are interchangeable, see Acts 7:45 and Hebrews 4:8 in the KJV. In both cases, the word Jesus refers to the Old Testament character Joshua.
As for the controversy over the letter J, it is much ado about nothing. It is true that the languages in which the Bible was written had no letter J. But that doesn't mean the Bible never refers to "Jerusalem" or "Judah." And it doesn't mean we cannot use the spelling "Jesus." If a person speaks and reads English, it is acceptable for him to spell things in an English fashion. Spellings can change even within a language: Americans write "Savior," while the British write "Saviour." The addition of a u (or its subtraction, depending on your point of view) has nothing to do with whom we're talking about. Jesus is the Savior, and He is the Saviour. Jesus and Yeshuah and Iesus are all referring to the same Person.
We refer to Him as "Jesus" because, as English-speaking people, we know of Him through English translations of the Greek New Testament. Scripture does not value one language over another, and it gives no indication that we must resort to Hebrew when addressing the Lord. The command is to "call on the name of the Lord," with the promise that we "shall be saved" ( Acts 2:21; Joel 2:32). Whether we call on Him in English, Korean, Hindi, or Hebrew, the result is the same: the Lord is salvation.
Nehemiah 9:7, Acts 7:2,
Hopefully helpful
But as to the only please that God does not abide is in unbelievers. He is still Presence in believers due to His omnipresence, but He does not abide in unbelievers as He does in believers.
I would like to list some Scriptures for you to look up on this. I will see how many I can get on this post.
Dwell: Is.57:15 Is. 8:14 Ex. 25:8 Lev. 26:11 Deut. 26:15 1 Kgs. 8:30 Ps 46:4 Joel 3:4
Zech.2:11
Jn. 1:14 Jn. 4:23 Jn. 14:7 Jn. 14:10 2Cor. 6:16 Eph 2:22 Eph.3:16-17 Col. 1:19 1Tim.6:16 2 Tim.1:14
Heb. 11:9 Rev. 21:3
Heaven: Gen. 24:3 Ex. 16:4 Jos. 2:11 2 Chr. 6:14 2 Chr. 714 1Kgs. 8:23 1Kgs. 8:27 1Kgs. 8:30 Ps. 2:4
Ps. 11:4 Ps.73:25 Ps. 108:5 Ps. 115:3 Ps. 115:16 Ps. 139:8 Is. 40:22 Is. 66:1 Jer. 23:24
Dan.2:19 Mt. 6:9 Mt, 7:21 Lk. 24:51 Jn. 12:28 Acts 7:49 Acts. 7:55 Eph. 1:20 Eph. 4:16 Col. 4:1
1 Th. 1:10 1 Th. 4:16 Heb. 1:3 1 Pt. 3:22 Rev. 21:2 REv.21:10
Earth: Is.66:1 Jer. 23:21 Mt. 5:35 Acts 7:49
Evil: Hab.1:13 Job 34:22 Ps. 119:15 Mt. 7:23 Lk. 13:27
There are more, but hopefully will support my thoughts.
You have posed several good questions and I would like to respond to the last one concerning believing in a God no one has seen.
The first thing that came to my mind was what Jesus said in the gospels. In John 1:18 Jesus said, No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him."
In John 14:9-10 in response to Philip's request for Jesus to show them the Father, Jesus said, "have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father, so how can you say, "Show us the Father?
do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me?....
In these verses Jesus is saying that He is God and that any of the people of His time on earth who saw Him also saw the
Father because of the unified Oneness of the Persons of the Godhead. Jesus, being the Son of God in the flesh, showed by His perfect human life and by His divine expressions in miracles and other divine actions and words revealed to those who saw Him the Godhead and what God was like.
Those who saw Jesus after His resurrection, saw Him in His glory, revealing more of who God is to the disciples, from the women and apostles at the tomb, to the rest of the disciples in the Upper Room, and to 500 0ther persons before the disciples saw him ascend to the Father. A human person cannot appear to people after they die. Jesus was God and He said He was returning to His Father, who was God. Acts 7:56 Stephen at the time he was being stoned said, look, I see heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!" He was seeing Jesus with the Father in heaven as equals.
In the Old Testament, many godly men were visited by God-Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, Ezekiel-to name a few. These appearances were usually described as the Angel of the Lord.
In my post I only listed what I know, not what I believe. My belief is that that person who appears to John in Rev 1 was Jesus, but there are some things that make have some doubts.
1. It it true that in verse 1 Jesus says that He sent an angel to John to reveal him the future. So where do we get to see that angel in Rev?
2. The description of that person resembles very much to the appearance of an angel discribed by Daniel.
3. I know what that person among the 7 candlestichs says to John. He speaks as if though He is Jesus Himself. But this often occurs in OT when angels speak to people as if there were God themselves.
Examples: a. Who spoke to Moses on mount Horeb from within the flame in the bushes? Although it seems it is God in verse 5, it is actually the angel of the Lord (verse 2).
b. To whom Moses was talking to on mount Sinai when he got the 10 commandments and all the other instructions? From chapter 19 onwards it seems that it is God Himself but in Acts 7:38 Stephen says to Jews that it was an angel, "This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:"
c. In Judges 2:1-4, an angel appears to talk to Israeletes but he speaks as if he was God Himself. The same happens with Gideon (chapt. 6). So it seems in many cases in OT an angel sent by God talks as he is God Himself.
(Here I have to state that many believe that the angel of the Lord who often appears in OT is (a pre-incarnation) Jesus in the form of an angel)
So those things make me have some doubts about who is the person who speaks to John, Jesus or an angel?
GBU
Acts 6:8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.
Acts 7:55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
As you said Brother Jesse "Under the influence of God's Spirit, it is fascinating how people can function in various situations.
Apart from God's spirit we would be on the other side of the stoning.
Acts 6:8 and throughout ch 7 you see a God's spirit filled vessel emphasized in the power of Stephen.
And in Daniel 4:1-37 you see the humbling record of King Nebuchadnezzar by the Lord.
NOTICE THE DECREE;
"Let his heart be changed from man's, and let a beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him. Daniel 4:16.
NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S RESPONSE;
"The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? Daniel 4:30.
THE HUMBLING BY THE LORD!
While the word was in the king's mouth, there fell a voice from heaven, saying, O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee.
And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will. Daniel 4:31-32.
THE RESULTS OF THE HUMBLING;
"Now I Nebuchadnezzar praise and extol and honour the King of heaven, all whose works are truth, and his ways judgment: and those that walk in pride he is able to abase. Daniel 4:37.
The Holyspirit is powerful, mysterious, and always active in diverse ways.
God bless.
In Acts 7:59, it says, "And they stoned Stephen, while he was calling upon God." And this is the thing that Stephen said first of all when they were stoning him. He said Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
It reminds me of Luke 23:46, "And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said Father, into thy hands I commend my Spirit. And having said thus, He expired (or gave up the ghost.)"
And the second thing Stephen said in Acts 7:60 is just as fascinating:
"And he (Stephen) knelt down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, do not lay this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep," (or died).
Again, Jesus on the cross, in Luke 23:34, Jesus said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." And they parted His garments and cast lots.
It's one thing for Jesus to say that. But Stephen also, while they're putting him to death, he says, Jesus receive my spirit, and don't lay this sin to their charge.
How would any of us react to that? I probably would have said, "Lord, receive my spirit, and let all of your judgment fall on these guys!"
But when a person is under the influence of God's Spirit, it is fascinating how that person can function when put in various difficult situations.