Is the Bible God’s Total Reliable Truth?
Mike,
Please give me your thoughts on the following.
I am coming to an understanding that the 66 books of the Bible contain God’s truth, but it may not all be God’s truth. God never explicitly declared that the 66 books of the Bible are His inerrant Word.
This is something that the early church men (Constantine) declared along with their own doctrines, such as the trinity and their creeds.
What made me come to this understanding?
1) Paul declaring that Jesus was coming again in his lifetime. The best of men are men at best. There is not a man on this planet that is not deceived in some way.
2) Paul saying some things are from God and then stating that some things are from himself.
3) Some of the accounts of the events in the gospel writings are not all consistent.
4) The Bible stating that Jesus would be 3 days and 3 nights (sign of Noah) in the grave when He was in the grave 3 partial days.My whole belief system is based on the Bible. I think men in their attempts to control other men have made declarations which may not be from God. This is often called ‘tradition’ by Jesus.
So yes, we must test the spirits even as we read the Bible for the Holy Spirit’s leading and his interpretation. Some of the translations are skewed by men.
S____
Hi S____,
I look forward to your e-mail, and I thank you for honestly sharing with me your conviction concerning the Bible.
You have asked me for my thoughts on your conclusions above, and I am going to give you my thoughts praying that the Lord will give you the grace to receive them in the spirit in which they are given. So often when we stand for the Truth, like our Savior, we are accused of blasphemy and of exalting ourselves above others. Nothing could be further from the truth in the case of our Lord, and nothing is further from the Truth for any of His body who know that all things we do – good or bad – were “written in His book before there were any of them.” So there is no room for ever being puffed up about anything, because good or evil, it is the working of the Lord.
Have your fellow church members who are contending over the subject of “free” will discussed these verses in their discussions?
Psa 139:16 Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them. (ASV)
Pro 16:1 The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.
Pro 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.
Isa 45:7 I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.
There really is nothing which we have not “received from the Lord,” and that even includes our own sinful flesh. Either God is working “all things”, or He is not working all things – in which case He would not be truly sovereign.
Rom 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Twice we are told that the sin we do is not us, but sin that dwells in us. Did Satan create our sinning flesh? Did you and I choose to be in marred vessels of clay which are of themselves incapable of avoiding being sinners? No, it was not Satan, and our wills have nothing to do with the fact that we are sinful creatures:
Rom 9:16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Just as Joseph told his bothers, Paul agrees. Twice Joseph tells his brothers that they sold Joseph into Egypt, but then, just like Paul, he goes on to say that it wasn’t really them who did it at all, it was God. He tells them this in Genesis 45, and again in Genesis 50.
Gen 45:4 And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you. And they came near. And he said, I [am] Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt.
Gen 45:5 Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life.
Gen 45:6 For these two years [hath] the famine [been] in the land: and yet [there are] five years, in the which [there shall] neither [be] earing nor harvest.
Gen 45:7 And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
Gen 45:8 So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.
Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it [evil] unto good, to bring to pass, as [it is] this day, to save much people alive.
Twice Joseph tells his brothers that they sold him into Egypt, but then he tells them three times that what appeared to be their own ‘free’ will was actually anything but free. It was really the work of God through unclean spirits “working all things after the counsel of His own will”. That same principle applies to all actions of all men of all time. God is working the falling of our hairs and the falling of sparrows after the counsel of His own will which was predetermined “before the world” was. How much more so is the wicked you and me for the day of evil in each of us?
Mat 10:31 Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.
Luk 12:7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.
Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
If you do not believe this, then I have little hope that we can communicate for very long. On the other hand, if you do believe this, then we will be able to see through all the apparent contradictions you refer to when you say:
3) Some of the accounts of the events in the gospel writings are not all consistent.
While I do not claim to have an immediate answer for every question that concerns the scriptures, I have been given a God-given unshakable faith in that Word.
Here now are my thoughts on your four concerns, as per your request:
1) Paul declaring that Jesus was coming again in his lifetime. The best of men are men at best. There is not a man on this planet that is not deceived in some way.
2) Paul saying some things are from God and then stating that some things are from himself.
3) Some of the accounts of the events in the gospel writings are not all consistent.
4) The Bible stating that Jesus would be 3 days and 3 nights (sign of Noah) in the grave when He was in the grave 3 partial days.
My comments on #1:
Paul’s saying “we which are alive and remain…” is in no way a statement that Christ would return in Paul’s own lifetime. Paul even says:
Rom 14:8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the
“We are the Lord’s” is referring to both the living and the dead, not just those who were alive in Paul’s day. He goes on to make this statement:
1Th 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
Both of these verses are primarily spiritual, inward and eternal. But even if taken outwardly, they cannot be fairly made to apply only to Paul’s generation when He plainly tells us that “whether we live of die, we are the Lords.”
I say this in all humility that you do not yet have a grasp upon the meaning of “I am he that is, was, and will be.” That is the very root of our communications to this point. What applies to Christ, applies to His Words. Neither will ever pass away. They are true, they were true, and they will be just as true and as applicable to those in the lake of fire as they are to us today.
Christ said the end would come in the generation in which He lived. Does that make Christ a false prophet, or does that simply make is words spiritual words, the type that “never pass away?”
Mat 24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world [Greek: aion, age]?
The rest of this chapter is in answer to this simply question, “what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world [Greek: aion, age]?
Mat 24:4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
Mat 24:5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
Mat 24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
Mat 24:7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers place s.
Mat 24:8 All these [are] the beginning of sorrows.
Mat 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
Mat 24:10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
Mat 24:11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
Mat 24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
Mat 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
Mat 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
Mat 24:15 When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)“And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)”Christ knew these words would be “read” by many oncoming generations, and He lets us know that the “many called” will not understand what they are reading. “Let him that reads understand.” Christ continues answering the question, “What will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?”
Mat 24:16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
Mat 24:17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
Mat 24:18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
Mat 24:19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Mat 24:20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Mat 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Mat 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
Mat 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here [is] Christ, or there; believe [it] not.
Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if [it were] possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mat 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
Mat 24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
Mat 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
Mat 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
Mat 24:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.“Then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven.” We have been covering this subject of what and where is heaven for several months now in our weekly studies in the book of Revelation at 11 A. M. every Sunday morning live-streaming the studies. If we don’t even know what and where is heaven, then there is no hope of ‘understanding what we read.’ [These studies can be found on the iswasandwillbe.com web site in either audio or written format.]
Christ now continues to answer the question, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world [Greek: aion, age]?”
Mat 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Mat 24:32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
Mat 24:33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.All what things? All the things he has listed off since the apostles asked Him to give them the sign of His coming and of the end of this age. All the things we have just read from verse 3 to 33. Everything mentioned in the previous 30 verses. The very first thing Christ mentions is false prophets. Then He mentions wars and rumors of war and earthquakes in different places. He then tells us that this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations and then the end would come. After this He tells us what we are to do when we see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, then He mentions tribulation such as has never been or ever will be. Twice Christ mentions false Christs and false prophets, and after the second warning tells us that the sun would be darkened and the moon would turn to blood, the powers of the heavens would be shaken, and then the sign of the coming of the Son of man would appear in the heavens.
Verse 32 and 33 put all of this into perspective and tell us that when we see all of this happening we are to know that the end is near, “even at the door.”
Mat 24:32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
Mat 24:33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.Now pay close attention to what Christ says in the next verse:
Mat 24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
Mat 24:36 But of that day and hour knoweth no [ man], no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
Mat 24:37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
Mat 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
Mat 24:41 Two [women shall be] grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
Mat 24:42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.Christ tells us this all happened in His generation, and Peter agrees with Christ. It all happened way back then:
Act 2:14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all [ye] that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
Act 2:15 For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is [but] the third hour of the day.
Act 2:16 But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
Act 2:17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
Act 2:18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
Act 2:19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
Act 2:20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
Act 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.One either believes it or not, but Christ and Peter believed that the end came in their day. Paul says the same thing.
1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
If you know what and where heaven is, then this all makes perfect spiritual sense, because it all happens “in heaven”, within the hearts and minds of every man in every generation, who is given to understand that what he reads will indeed happen in “this generation” [each person’s own generation] which is reading these words, and “understanding what he reads”. You can read What and Where is Heaven? on iswasandwillbe.com.
The nations, the earthquakes, the heavens and the earth are all within and are all spiritual.
Why are there just two at the mill? Why are there only two in the field? Will 50 per cent of all of mankind be saved when Christ returns? I think not.
Luk 18:8 (b) … Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?
The reason there are only two at the mill and two in the field is because the old-man Adam in each of us will be destroyed, and the new man will be saved. But the one that is “taken” is the one that is destroyed, not vice versa as the false rapture doctrine purports. It will be “as in the days of Noah… the flood took them all away.”
Mat 24:37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
Mat 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.The flood took away the wicked, and the righteous remained.
Pro 10:30 The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth.
There will be an outward and dispensational fulfillment to every word, but if you see a single word of this prophecy as first and primarily outward and physical, then you have completely missed the point. “Let him that reads understand” that Christ, His Words and His Father are all first and primarily spiritual and are on the throne “in heaven” which is “within you.”
Luk 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.We have all “defiled the temple of God, and our first Adam must be destroyed. Once this is seen as being within, then our old Adam within is “destroyed with the brightness of Christ’s coming” within us.
2Th 2:5 Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th 2:6 And now ye know what withholdeth [Greek: katechothat he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [same Greek word translated ‘withholdeth’ in verse 6] will let [Greek: katecho, hold fast, withhold, retain], until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:I hope this all helps you to see that Paul was well aware that Christ’s words would never pass away, and that Christ’s “return” is in the hearts and minds of His elect in every generation that “reads and understands” that He and His Words are, were, and will be.
Mat 24:33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.
Mat 24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.Now, concerning your second statement:
2) Paul saying some things are from God and then stating that some things are from himself.
Paul had no idea that the things he was writing would one day be considered scripture, as Peter declares them to be.
2Pe 3:16 As also in all [his] epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
Do not allow anyone to lie to you and tell you that Constantine or the Catholic church, or anyone else canonized the Bible. That is not so. The books we now consider to be scripture are considered so because “God is working all things after the counsel of His own will”, and God had caused the writings of the apostles and the books of the Bible to be widely accepted as scripture long before the Counsel of Nicea.
So when Paul says…:
1Co 7:25 Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful.
…That does not change the fact that the holy spirit had given Paul “the mind of Christ.”
1Co 2:16 For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
Paul’s writings, according to the apostle Peter, are scripture, even as “the other scriptures.”
For your third concern:
3) Some of the accounts of the events in the gospel writings are not all consistent.
That is true only to the extent that they are not word-for-word the same. It is not true to say that the scriptures contradict themselves though. For example Matthew says “after six days” and Mark says after about eight days.”
Mat 17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,
Luk 9:28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.
‘About eight days’ is certainly after six days, and the very fact that Luke uses the word ‘about’ allows for the difference in these two accounts. Either account is true. It was after about 8 days and it was definitely after six days. That cannot be considered an contradiction by any but those who are seeking to discredit the Word of God. God has not called me to give faith in His Word to anyone. That is a gift of the holy spirit and not of man. God’s words are deliberately written in a manner which will facilitate the unbelief of all those who are not given eyes to see and ears to hear, according to Matthew 13:
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Mat 13:10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?
Mat 13:11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
Mat 13:12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.
Mat 13:13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understandNowhere is it stated that any one verse by itself constitutes true doctrine. The exact opposite is true:
Psa 119:160 The sum of thy word is truth; And every one of thy righteous ordinances endureth for ever. (ISV, LBLA, LITV, RV, YLT)
So whenever we cannot understand God’s Word, it is we who are lacking and not the Word.
As a friend pointed out to me, it does not say ‘Some of thy word is Truth,’ but rather “the sum of thy word is Truth.” If we cannot agree upon what is “Thy Word,” then we need not be discussing what is and what is not Truth.
Joh 17:17 Sanctify them in the truth: thy word is truth.
What the whole world considers to be the Christian Bible may in various translations have the punctuation marks in the wrong place, it may have chapter and verse breakdowns which were not inspired of God, but the holy spirit, and not man, has seen to it that “the sum of thy word” is still to this day, the Truth, and it is in that Truth (Christ) that you and I are cleansed and sanctified.
Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Yes, the Father is “greater than” the Son.
Joh 14:28 Ye heard how I said to you, I go away, and I come unto you. If ye loved me, ye would have rejoiced, because I go unto the Father: for the Father is greater than I.
Joh 14:29 And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe.
Joh 14:30 I will no more speak much with you, for the prince of the world cometh: and he hath nothing in me;
Joh 14:31 but that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave me commandment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence.Anyone who does not acknowledge that the Father is greater than the Son is blinded by God, and is struggling against and “idle of the heart” (Eze 14). But if you cannot see in the following verse, that Christ is the Word of God and that Yahweh is that same Word, then you simply cannot see the words of Christ “at any time” as spiritual and not dispensational.
Joh 5:37 And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form.
In your latest e-mail you referred to Christ’s words on this subject as applying only to the people to whom Christ was speaking at that time and not to all the people who lived in the Old Testament who we are told “saw Yahweh.” If you insist on such a dispensational approach to words which we are plainly told “never pass away,” then you will never be able to believe this verse of God’s ‘is, was and will be’ Words:
Joh 1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
And there is this:
1Co 10:9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.
It was Christ who was being tempted when ‘Yahweh’ brought Israel out of Egypt. It was Christ who spoke to and was seen of Adam and Eve, Cain, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, those to whom He showed Himself, and with whom He spoke in the book of Judged, Moses, King David and the prophets. If anyone was either seen or heard, it certainly was not “the invisible God” of whom we are told:
1Ti 6:13 I give thee charge in the sight of God [the Father], who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
1Ti 6:14 That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
1Ti 6:15 Which [“Lord Jesus Christ”] in his times he [“Lord Jesus Christ,” as directed of His Father] shall shew, who [“Lord Jesus Christ”] is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
1Ti 6:16 Who [Christ] only hath immortality, dwelling in the light [The Father] which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom [ be] honour and power everlasting. Amen.is our mediator between us and His Father, “the light” in which Christ dwells, and who no man hath seen no can see.”
1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
But “the man Jesus Christ, as that “one mediator,” is also “the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;”
Rev 17:14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
This is clearly speaking of Christ, “the Lamb, and He is called “Lord of lords, King of kings, and the blessed and only Potentate.” To the natural man that might sound like the scriptures are saying that there is no king, lord or potentate, above Christ, but to the mind of the spirit, which is “the Words that I speak unto you,” there is no problem at all in understanding that “He is excepted which did put all things under Him.”
Why is that not also true when we read that this “King of kings, Lord of Lords, the blessed and only Potentate” who “dwells in the light that no man can approach unto” is called “the Almighty?” What is the difference between the “only Potentate, King of kings, Lord of Lords” and “the Almighty?” Of course there in none, and while it is understood that Christ is under the Father, it is also understood that He alone is the recipient of all of these titles given Him by His Father, simply because:
Col 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
Yes, of course the Father has the power of the throne, but it has pleased the Father to have us to look to His Son in order to get to know Him.
Col 1:12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
Col 1:13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated [ us] into the kingdom of his dear Son:
Col 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, [ even] the forgiveness of sins:
Col 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
Col 1:16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether [ they be] thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
Col 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all [ things] he might have the preeminence.
Col 1:19 For it pleased [ the Father] that in him should all fulness dwell;
Col 2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
Col 2:10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:When “the heavens are opened, whether we understand it or not, the Father first shows us His Son. That is His call, and it is the only way we will ever get to know the Father who no man ever has or can otherwise see.
Rev 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
Rev 19:12 His eyes [ were] as a flame of fire, and on his head [ were] many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
Rev 19:13 And he [ was] clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
Rev 19:14 And the armies [ which were] in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
Rev 19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
Rev 19:16 And he hath on [ his] vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.Christ made it clear that there is only one way to ever see the Father:
Joh 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Joh 14:2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if [ it were] not [ so], I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Joh 14:4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.
Joh 14:5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?
Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.
Joh 14:8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.
Joh 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?
Joh 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.
Joh 14:11 Believe me that I [ am] in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works’ sake.The “wrath of Almighty God” is also called “the wrath of the Lamb,” because Christ and His Father are one, and the Father has given Christ “every name that is named,” which certainly includes the names ‘everlasting Father, the mighty God and Almighty God… the fulness of the Godhead bodily.”
Rev 6:16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
Php 2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
Php 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of [ things] in heaven, and [ things] in earth, and [ things] under the earth;
Php 2:11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.It glorifies the Father when we glorify Christ, and acknowledge Him as “Jesus Christ the Lord,” as this very verse does:
Rev 1:8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.
It is true that Christ is not over the Father, but it is not true that Christ is not called “the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the ending… the Lord which is was and which is to come, the Almighty.”
You are, of course, correct in acknowledging that all these things are true only under and through His Father, but you are not correct when you say that Christ cannot be called the Almighty, and you are not correct when you say that He was speaking only to those who were there at that time when He said you have not seen His form or heard His voice. Again, Christ’s Words are spirit and are not dispensational.
Joh 1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
I learned in dealing with my own Father, that when someone says that ‘God has shown me such and such,’ that it is futile to argue with ‘God.’ It is in love that I tell you that you do not yet see the Is, Was and Will Be Christ, whose Is, Was, and Will Be Words of God will never pass away. It was for this very reason Christ came to this earth. He was sent ‘to reveal the Father’ and in the process reveal that the ‘I Am’ of the Old Testament was actually the Word of God, Christ Himself.
Joh 8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I Am.
What in the world is Christ telling us here, if it is not that it was He who was speaking throughout the entire Old Testament.
Exo 3:4 And when the LORD [ Yahweh] saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
Exo 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Exo 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD [ Yahweh] God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.All of these patriarchs saw and talked with Yahweh, yet Christ said no man had ever seen the Father “at any time.” Again, Christ’s words are not dispensational but are eternal.
Mat 24:34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
Mat 11:27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
Luk 10:22 All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.His Father sent Christ to be the Savior of the world, and His Father gave Him a name that is above every name. In like manner Christ has sent His elect to be the saviors on Mount Zion, and that seems more blasphemous to most Christians than calling Christ “the Almighty.” Yet both are true, and the Father is still the sovereign God of the universe.
1Co 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
This “one God” has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world, and His Son in turn has sent His elect to be the saviors of the world:
Oba 1:21 And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.
Christ identifies with His elect just as His Father identifies with Him. They are one in unity as you say and we need to believe and teach that unity of Christ in us and we in Him and He and us in His Father, who, through Christ, is in us.
Joh 17:18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
Joh 17:19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Joh 17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
Joh 17:21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
Joh 17:22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
Joh 17:23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
Joh 17:24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.It is given to Christ to give us eternal life:
Joh 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any [ man] pluck them out of my hand.
Joh 10:29 My Father, which gave [ them] me, is greater than all; and no [ man] is able to pluck [ them] out of my Father’s hand.
Joh 10:30 I and my Father are one.
Joh 17:1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
Joh 17:2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.Who gave Christ that ability? Of course it was His Father!
4) The Bible stating that Jesus would be 3 days and 3 nights (sign of Noah) in the grave when He was in the grave 3 partial days.
Three days and three nights is a parable. It has to be so because Christ did not speak without, that is with any other method, using a parable:
Mat 13:34 All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:
Mar 4:34 But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.I have written on this subject already, so I hope you will not mind reading what has already been written. Here is the link:
Was Christ Three Days and Three Nights in the Grave?
What either of us thinks is really in the Lord’s hands. I want only to know what is the mind of Christ and His Father, and I place myself at their mercy. God knows when either of us need to be humbled, and I pray that He will both humble me and at the same time give me the strength to be faithful to His Word.
Your brother in Christ,
Mike
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