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Here's verses about it:
Link
Here's a previous discussion I found via advanced search and selecting discussions.
Link
More verses:
Matthew 12:32 "...but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come."
OSAS believers: "Ok, but a Christian would never do that"
"Christians no longer have freewill to sin? Is that true?"
Joshua 24:15 "choose you this day whom ye will serve"
Matthew 7:21-23
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
Hebrews 10:26 "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,"
Hebrews 6:4-6
James 2:14-26 "...faith, if it hath not works, is dead..."
James 2:19 "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
1 Peter 1:13 "...hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;"
Romans 11
John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Matthew 12:31-32
Romans 14:12
1 Peter 1:5 - "...salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."
1 Cor 9:24-27 "run the race", not the 'race was already won.'
2 Peter 3:17
Luke 8:5-18
1 Timothy 4:1
2 Peter 2:20-22
Hebrews 3:12
Galatians 5:4
1 Corinthians 15:2-8
2 Peter 2:20-21
Just 1 scripture shows whether what you said is true or false:
John 1:1
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
"...WORD WAS GOD."
Is Jesus the Word? Yes, John 1:14.
This verse is like kryptonite to those who don't want to believe in Jesus's divinity, because it leaves no room for creative interpretation. Anti-Jesus folks hate this verse and will perform all kinds of mental gymnastics to try to make it mean something else, but it doesn't work. It already means exactly what it says.
But is that the only verse saying that Jesus is God? There's more...
1 John 5:7
Genesis 1:26
Genesis 11:6-7
John 10:30
John 8:19
John 1:1
Philippians 2:5 - 2:8
2 Corinthians 5:19
John 1:3
1 John 5:7
Matthew 28:19
1 Peter 1:2
2 Corinthians 13:14
Deuteronomy 6:4
John 14:10
John 20:28
1 John 5:8
1 John 2:22-24
Isaiah 7:14 - Jesus is called Immanuel which means "God with us"
Matthew 1:23-25
Hebrews 1:8 "But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom."
It's wonderful that you want to be in the House of the Lord. Here are the keys to the Kingdom - per Jesus!
Believe!
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
Be baptized in water and receive God's Holy Spirit!
John 3:5
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
Repent from your sin!
Revelation 3:19
"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent."
Strive to keep God's 10 Commandments.
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Come judgement day, Jesus will be our Judge, he tells us here in scripture below what will he will want from us to enter into his Kingdom.
Revelation 22:12-14
12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Keep your bible close to you, read it and Believe!
God Bless.
Just one verse in the Bible is all it takes to refute the OSAS theory:
Matthew 12:32 "...but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come."
But there's so many more verses too. Paul is the one who said we can have assurance of salvation, but what people often do is the remove the contingent part- this requires us to "follow Jesus!" A Christian is an active Jesus follower. It's a pursuit that involves effort and transforming oneself. Not being slave to sin, but to righteousness. People want their cake and to eat it too, by not following Jesus, enjoying unlimited sin, but also demanding salvation like a spoiled, self-entitled brat. Some Christians even deny this reality. But Jesus already addressed that:
Matthew 7:21-23
"Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven."
Believe it or not, there are even people who don't want to do good. They claim that it's 'bad' to do good works. One should ask, did Jesus say that? If not, does that idea come from God or satan?
John 14:15 "If ye love me, keep my commandments."
I think people would slander Jesus today for doing good works, just like they did back then.
Here are more verses (too many to even paste here):
Hebrews 10:26 "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,"
Hebrews 6:4-6
James 2:14-26 "...faith, if it hath not works, is dead..."
James 2:19 "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble."
1 Peter 1:13 "...hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;"
Romans 11
Matthew 12:31-32
Romans 14:12
1 Peter 1:5 - "...salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."
1 Cor 9:24-27 "run the race", not 'party' or sit on sofa.
Pray to God to know the truth.
You state: "I don't believe there's any special formula for salvation other than surrendering to Christ and receiving His Spirit."
Respectfully, I think there is more to it than you expressed, and I believe Jesus does have "a special formula", and it is outlined throughout the bible. I say this so others will not take lightly their salvation, and hopefully they will study the scriptures on their own, to satisfy themselves that they are really following God's requirements "per the bible scripture."
John 3:5
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
1 John 5:3
"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous."
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
John 14:21
"He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him."
Jesus tells us that he will be our Judge, and he tells us what he will be looking for in us in order to enter into the Kingdom: Revelation 22:12-14
God Bless.
Sounds like a lot of fun. Thanks for the invite!
You're all invited over for horseshoes.
I would like to echo what Brother Chris has shared. As he has shared, that word mansion is the Greek word that means dwelling place. Some believe that we will each get our own mansion in heaven someday, but unfortunately the word MONE in Greek never refers to "mansions" as we know a mansion to be. They are dwelling places.
But here is something that is interesting. The word MONE is only found in two places in John Chapter 14. Verse 2 and verse 23 are the only two places that the word is found. In verse 23, it is sort of like a bookend. Jesus starts out be saying, "In my Father's house are many dwelling places."
Now in verse 23, Jesus answered and said if a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our (abode/MONE) with him. Again, same word, MONE. So where's the dwelling place? It's right here. It's me, you, and every other believer who has Christ dwelling in them. We are the dwelling places. Jesus says we will come and make our abode with him.
Now in verse 2, it makes it sound like Jesus is doing that in heaven. But He has to go in order to come back. He can't send the Holy Spirit until He leaves. He's getting ready to prepare a place for us. But right now, we are the many mansions, or many dwelling places spoken of in John 14:2.
Amen! (I like your name!)
I also believe John 14:6 is paramount to our salvation, but do you think we can disregard any other scripture from Jesus? Can we just pick and choose scripture that we like, or that suits our lifestyle? (Is it that Easy) How about the following scripture?
John 3:5
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Revelation 22:12-14
12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Matthew 7:21-23
21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
So, are we to believe in John 14:6 and then be of no concern with Christ's gospel and other scripture that instructs us on how we must live our lives in order to enter into the Kingdom of God?
God Bless.
I agree, it's a disaster. Everyone wants to create their own interpretation of scripture, rather than read and accept the GOD'S WORD at face value. God made the main message simple for everyone to understand, yet many want to make it so complicated.
It really brings home this scripture:
Matthew 7:14-15
14Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
FEW THERE BE THAT FIND IT! Jesus knew that few will preserver with HIS WORD!
Next here you go:
15Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Many church's/congregations today seem to be more concerned with growing the congregation, and increasing their income, than preaching the WORD.
This scripture is so true:
2 Timothy 4:3
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;"
Something said here by Jesus that is so simple and easy to understand, but many will still turn their backs on Jesus:
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Happy Sabbath Day, and God Bless.
The highlighted verse above is so important in this discussion. Jesus is saying that there is no other way to God (and therefore heaven) accept through Jesus. There is no wiggle room here. If we are open to tolerance in this verse then we are teaching against Jesus Himself. I need to say that again, Jesus is saying that there is no other way to God other than through Him (Jesus). Not by being good. Not by going to church. Jesus alone. That doesn't mean we need to be intolerant in areas of the Bible that are not specifically clear. Some draw divisions over end times discussions. Other draw divisions over the mode of baptism. Other divisions come over the way we need to evangelize.
My point is that I believe that far too often within Bible believing churches, we (the church) have become the chords of disunity where none need to exist. The Bible shows that we need to show the love and unity to a lost and hurting world. It is important to study the Scripture and seek diligently for what it says, however we all need to be humble when we approach the words of God and to err on the side of love and unity whenever possible without disregarding the clear teaching of God's word. Praise Him!
Regarding the thief on the cross, I will reiterate previous responses directed at this issue. God can have mercy on whomever he pleases, please see the scripture below:
Romans 9:18 "Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth."
It sounds like you have an issue with God choosing who he wants to have mercy on? If so, your argument is not with me, it is with God!
When Jesus forgave the thief on the cross it was "a special act of mercy" for the thief, and NOT a message "to all mankind" to go ahead and keep sinning and as long as you believe in Christ you will be saved. That is a FALSE MESSAGE with a cult like following. The devil and his demons believe, based on your doctrine "of believe only" they go to heaven too!!
In addition to Believing, we must be baptized in water, receive the Holy Spirit, also REPENT, and lead a good christian life following the gospel of Jesus Christ.This is Jesus/God stating all of this throughout the bible, and in the following scripture:
John 3:5
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Revelation 22:12-14
12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Do you believe the above scripture? If you believe the above scripture, and if you love Jesus you will follow HIS advice! If you turn your back on the above scripture, Jesus has already said that he will be our JUDGE, and he will judge us according to HIS WORD!
If you can't believe the above scripture from Jesus/God, your disagreement is not with me, it's with God!
God Bless.
God made a special exception for the thief. It is also very probable that the thief never had a chance to hear the WORD of God, hence God can make these kinds of exceptions. But, you, and I, and many others, have heard Jesus Christ's gospel, and we are supposed to be following Jesus. If we turn our backs on Christ's commandments, or HIS WORDS, we will not be treated like the thief, because we have been forewarned by Jesus what he expects from us!
2 Peter 2:21
"For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them."
John 3:5
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Matthew 24:35
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away."
Read and believe!
God Bless.
I believe that your message is incorrect, and it conflicts with God's true message.
God can have mercy on whomever he pleases.
Romans 9:18
"Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth."
The example that you stated of Jesus forgiving the thief on the cross was "a special act of mercy" for the thief, NOT a message to "all mankind" to go ahead and keep sinning and just say that you believe in Christ and you will be saved. That message of just believing is a FALSE MESSAGE! Even the devil and his demons believe, are they going to heaven too?
We must not only believe, we must be baptized in water, receive the Holy Spirit, also REPENT, and lead a good christian life following the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Jesus/God's message is plain for all to see. We can't just ignore what Jesus instructs us to do. There is so much scripture of Jesus telling us what we need to do, to enter into the kingdom.
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Revelation 22:12-14
12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Do you believe the above scripture? If you believe the above scripture, and if you love Jesus you will follow HIS advice! If you turn your back on the above scripture, Jesus has already said that he will be our JUDGE, and he will judge us according to HIS WORD!
God Bless.
Yes, you are correct about water baptism according to Jesus.
We should believe in what Jesus states in scripture below:
John 3:5
"Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
Note: Don't let men confuse you, always test the scripture by comparing what Jesus tells us. The only way to God is through Jesus.
John 14:6
"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Many today will turn their back on Jesus, and preach another Gospel that differs from what Jesus taught. They will say many things to try to convince you to turn your back on Jesus and God.
If the gospel or scripture, or man's word's don't match what Jesus says in scripture, it really means nothing. Jesus will be our Judge and he will make the decision on whom enters the Kingdom.
Revelation 22:12-14
12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
God Bless.
Even many professing christians forget or just ignore to keep Holy the weekly seventh-day Sabbath, which God implemented for memorializing His creation. It is the 4th commandment, and God asks us to make sure to remember it.
Exodus 20:9-11
9Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: 10But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: 11For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
How can we honor God today, and prove to Jesus that we really love Him?
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Happy Sabbath Day!
You chose to put emphasis on belief which even satan and demons may believe. But other verse emphasize your actions such as repentance, confession, baptism, faith, love, or obeying God.
A small percent of Christians believe it's impossible for them to ever lose their salvation, despite whatever future sins they choose to commit, but the Bible doesn't say that. We can have assurance of salvation IF we follow Jesus Christ. It assumes that Christians (Christ followers) are actually following Christ and obeying Him!
This seems like a no-brainer, but should be stated, because there are indeed many Christians using their hope in salvation as an excuse to sin- as if they have an unlimited hall pass or something, ignoring the fact that sin is highly disrespectful to God, like spitting on Him, and assuming you know better than Him, and turning your back on Him. Think of a selfish and stubborn 4-year old throwing a tantrum in front of his parent.
They're told they're saved in sermons and that the race is already won and so they go commit all kinds of sins and try to enjoy themselves as they turn their back on Jesus. Some may even blaspheme the holy spirit, which the Bible clearly says is an unforgivable sin. The Bible also says to fear God- fear the one who can send you to hell. God is a loving fair God, but some people falsely assume He's a genie in a lamp there to serve you. Nope, it's the opposite. You are the servant... to righteousness. Romans 6:18, John 14:15. I don't hear this message very often and feel it's my moral duty to remind of this and to try their best to genuinely follow Jesus and to stay on course and avoid sin. Some may need to hear this today and it might be a perspective they've never heard.
2 Peter 2:20-21
God bless. Jesus is coming soon. The time is now to be prepared.
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
Those who ignore God's WORD in return for the promises of man, and a so-called easy way to heaven can't end well.
Matthew 7:14
Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
God Bless.
How we walk in this world is for our conscience ( 1 Peter 2:18-21), If we are treated badly, how we respond is recorded in our conscience regardless of how justified we fill to repay the wrongful treatment. I know we have all done this in the past but through the grace of God and the sacrifice of our Savior Jesus we can repent and He will cleanse our conscience.
I feel this is the dwelling place that Jesus repaired that the first Adam polluted with sin and through when we repent the Holy Spirit continues to wipe the spots to keep us clean. In John 14:1-4 that many have a different understanding of, what this speaks to me is, this is just before Jesus was going to be arrested and crucified. Later in the chapter Jesus told them He would ask the Father to send the Comforter to them in His name.
Jesus told them He was going to prepare a place for them, He said in His Fathers house are many mansions. The word mansion is monai meaning an abiding, an abode or dwelling place. Jesus was going to the cross to shed His blood and pay the penalty of sin that the first Adam put on mankind.
The union that the first Adam had with God before sin came in is now restored through the sacrifice and the blood of the Lamb of God His only begotten Son and Jesus' resurrection from the dead, now this union can again be with man through the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus.
The first Adam broke the union with God the last Adam repaired the union that is why I use the name Immanuel/Emmanuel God with us, again.
After the first Adam sinned God communicate through angels, and the prophets until Jesus and God communicated directly through Him. When Jesus as the high priest sprinkled His own blood in the holy of holies not made with hands, God now communicates directly to us, the union has been repaired. We are now His family, sons and daughters.
I hope this is enough for you to understand what I meant if not please let me know.
In the love of Jesus
RLW
not from men or woman.
But if the bible is not quoted from the bible;
would wisdom still be of much value?
Jesus quoted his fathers words perfectly ( John 8). and the prophets
spoke from God ( Psalm 83:18)
Who is much wiser? Who is wiser to instruct mankind?
God ( Psalm 83:18) and his Son?
2 Timothy 3:16,17;
2 Peter 1:20,21 (holy spirit John 4:24)
John 17:3
John 14:6-28
Psalm 1:1-3
or
Men and many books?
Jeremiah 10:23
Romans 3:23
Ecclesiastes 12:12-14
Psalms. 146:3, 4
Hope you like
these scriptures.
1. Isaiah 7:14 - People called Jesus Immanuel which means "God with us"
2. John 10:30 "I and my Father are one."
3. John 8:19 "if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also."
4. John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
"Word WAS God."
5. Philippians 2:5 - 2:8 "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:"
"form of God"
"equal with God"
6. John 1:3 - All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
Jesus made everything.
7. John 14:10 "Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works."
8. John 20:28
"And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God."
9. 1 John 5:8 "And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one."
10. Genesis 1:26 - "And God said, Let us make man in our image"
"Let us make" - plural.
What I gather from this is they are different but the same. We will probably never 100% comprehend this until after this life. The Son is not the Father and the Father is not the Son, but it says they made everything together, are in each other, have similar form, they both have great power to do miracles, and both are referred to as God in the Bible.
In these verses, He tells them of the special power & authority that they would have because they belonged to Him. That which they bound or loosed on Earth, would be bound or loosed in Heaven. This was particularly in relation to Church discipline (vv 15-17) but could also have implications in other Church matters. Likewise, if they came to agreement on some matter that they presented to God, they would receive it. This can only be understood as the disciples remained faithful & sought the mind of Christ in their conduct & affairs of others and as a special grace afforded them.
And whenever they come together to address these things or to spend time in worship, Christ would be in their midst. Certainly, Jesus was speaking about His Spirit Who would direct them, prompt them & give them discernment in all that God had planned for their lives & ministry. But after the Spirit came upon them & indwelt them on the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit took up permanent residence, when in my understanding, Matthew 18:20 no longer applied. Jesus was now positionally in Heaven at the Father's right Hand, but as He said earlier to them, "if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you." ( John 16:7). As Jesus departed, the Comforter (the Holy Spirit) was sent to them, so that whether they were together as a group of disciples or apart from each other somewhere in the World ministering, they would never be without the Holy Spirit, for "He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you" ( John 14:17b).
Today, those who have been saved by the Blood of the Lamb & have the Holy Spirit residing, are never alone to face the World or the various matters coming before them. The Spirit of Jesus is there to minister to our every need & when we worship together, He is present in us & with us.
Is the Holy Spirit a person?
Jehovah's is a spirit ( Psalm 83:18; John 4:24). and he made his Angels spirits ( psalm 104:4);
and he blew his spirit into Adam nostril "the breath of life." when a men or human dies, his breath goes out. and the spirit returns to God (not the flesh itself.. because the body is flesh made from dust - Genesis 2:7).
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, these qualities is his spirit. this he has created men in his image to display these qualities to take care of the earth. -
Galatians 5:22,23
According to Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus said go therefore baptizing in the name of the father, the son and the holy spirit (the accurate term is holy spirit because John 4:24 accurately says spirit). Also, Jesus is not God ( John 5:19) but he was raised up as a spirit again; and he is a Angel.- John 14:28
Point: God can give his spirit to anyone to serve his purpose- Luke 1:35. if we worship God, we must worship with spirit and truth- john 4:24. anyone who want to worship in truth...should believe in the word of God ( 2 Timothy 3:16,17). by this God will give his spirit and truth will speak.
To illustrate: person 1, person 2, and person 3 are all different people. God will and can give his spirit to person 2 to carry out a particular task. God may want person 2 to completes that task fully. he may use person 3 or person 1 to do something completely different or accomplish the same purpose. (so yes the spirit basically belongs to God, because he is a spirit and the source of distributing that spirit to accomplish his purpose.- Genesis 1:1,26,27 ). no human can force God to do this or that. he is the boss of the spirit.- Isaiah 43:11-13
hope these scriptures help.
It's best to understand the Holy Spirit (& Jesus) as living parts or emanations from the One God. Just as Jesus, before His incarnation (i.e. coming to Earth in human form) was the Word of God ( John 1:1-14), so to the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God sent out to accomplish God's Will. Neither the Word of God (Jesus) nor the Holy Spirit are ever independent of God - all are equally One & eternally One - God wouldn't be Who He is without the Word & the Holy Spirit.
But when we read in the Bible of the Holy Spirit's Attributes & Work, we are actually seeing God manifesting Himself in the out-working of His Spirit. If you look up the following Scriptures, you can see God the Spirit manifested in a few ways:
a. He is intelligent ( 1 Corinthians 2:10,11)
b. He has feelings ( Ephesians 4:30)
c. He has a will ( 1 Corinthians 12:11)
d. He teaches ( John 14:26)
e. He guides ( John 16:13; Romans 8:14)
f. He commissions ( Acts 13:4)
g. He commands ( Acts 8:29)
h. He contends ( Genesis 6:3)
i. He intercedes ( Romans 8:26)
So, the Holy Spirit is not simply a force or a power of God, as some want to believe. He is God Himself because He goes about His Work as God desires (i.e. as if God was on Earth doing it). Nothing the Spirit does is contrary or independent of God, just as Jesus on Earth, perfectly fulfilled God's Will through His Words, His Life, His Work, & His Death (you can read Jesus' wonderful prayer to His Father in this respect). I hope that has been a little helpful. May the Spirit (the Living God) help you as you meditate on these things from the Word.
Hebrews 12:2
James 1:2-4
John 14:2
Revelations 21:4
1 Corinthians 6:3
Hopefully it's helpful & encouraging.
Amen. I agree, and if I could pick only one scripture from the entire bible that summarizes what God really wants from us, it is Jesus speaking to us in this Scripture!
John 14:15
"If ye love me, keep my commandments."
I would not want to look Jesus in the eyes on judgement day and tell him (Jesus Christ) who will be the Judge, that I ignored his request! We all need to think about this.
Here is Jesus speaking to us thru apostle John 30-40 years after his death on the cross - in Revelation below:
Revelation 22:12-14
12And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. 13I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Here is Jesus still saying the same thing to us 30-40 years after his death! Keep his commandments, and we will be judged for our good or bad works.
So the argument that the apostle Paul and others can teach anything different than what Jesus taught throughout the ENTIRE BIBLE, is debunked by Jesus himself in the above scripture!
God Bless.