Originally posted by Rajk999
I know Christians would like to believe that all Christians have the Holy Spirit in them, but there is just no Biblical support for that.
What you feel inside you is not necessarily the Holy Spirit and is has nothing to do with what Christ said. Here is what he said :
[i]John 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue ...[text shortened]... tinue in the commandments of Christ, is a lifetime of the works which Christ commanded us to do.
I know Christians would like to believe that all Christians have the Holy Spirit in them, but there is just no Biblical support for that.
[/i]
Yes there is.
"Yet if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not of Him." (Rom. 8:9)
If you have the Spirit of Christ you are of Christ - a Christian.
If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ he is not of Christ.
He is not a Christian.
What you feel inside you is not necessarily the Holy Spirit and is has nothing to do with what Christ said. Here is what he said :
It may be true that you "feel" something which is not the Holy Spirit.
That does not change
Romans 8:9 one bit.
John 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
On
THIS side of the resurrection of Christ -
"If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ he is not of Him."
Who is a "disciple" or "Christian"
before the coming of the Holy Spirit may be interesting debate. I mean
Judas Iscariot was one of the "disciples" of Jesus.
I think your argument obscures the simple truth. The Christian is one who has within the Spirit of Christ - the Holy Spirit.
So clearly it is not as simple as proclaiming your belief in Christ and then you get the Holy Spirit in you.
I think you are setting yourself up as a judge.
I think
you want to be the one to "approve" of who is a Christian and who is not.
" ... no one can say, Jesus is Lord! except in the Holy Spirit" (1 Cor. 12:3)
It seems that you want to change this to suit your judgmental approval of who has the right to call themselves a Christian and who does not have that right.
On the surface it appears as your concern for orthodoxy. But I fear beneath the surface is a judgmental attitude that people must pass
your approval to call themselves Christians.
That is just plain nonsense. Neither can you claim that all Christians worth their salt have the Holy Spirit in them. You dont know that.
Christ said
- IF you believe in him
- IF you continue in His word .. that means to keep His commandments.
- THEN you are his disciples.
- THEN the truth shall make them free.
This is more about the
quality of a man's witness.
There are victorious Christians.
There are defeated Christians.
There are backslidden Christians.
There are progressing and growing Christians.
There are Christians at varying levels of maturity.
Obviously, neither Jesus or the New Testament is
ONLY concerned with you becoming a Christian. Much of His teaching concerns a deeper life, a purer consecration, and a maturing spiritual growth.
I think this passage is a good guideline about this -
"However the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, The Lord knows those who are His, and Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness." ( 2 Timothy 2:19)
I like this verse very much.
1.) The Lord Jesus has not problem. He
knows who belongs to Him. Even if you and I do not, still
"The Lord know those who ARE HIS"
2.) The second point is a command to those who ARE His -
" ... depart from unrighteousness". Those who name the name of the Lord, who confess that they are the Lord's should depart from unrighteousness.
This is really all we need. It does not say all who name the name of the Lord have automatically departed from unrighteous living, even though they have been justified. But they are exhorted to do so.
To continue in the commandments of Christ, is a lifetime of the works which Christ commanded us to do.
I have no disagreement. It does not change that the one having the Spirit of Christ is of Christ. Nor does it change that the Lord certainly knows who those human beings are.
And of course it doesn't change His desire and command that, daily, even moment by moment, we abide in Him that He would empower us to depart from unrighteous living - doing His commands.
As a young believer in Christ many of His commands are negative - "Don't do that," "Don't say that." "Don't go there."
Many of the indwelling commands of the living Spirit of Christ are to
not do something we are accustomed to doing. Latter as we grow in the Lord His commands may be more specific then just "Don't".
This is much like a parent raising a child. All parents know that the first word a little child is likely to learn is the word "No". That is after "Mommy" or "Daddy".
Simple Truth of Christ
31 Jan '12 13:25
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