What I learned about the Holy Spirit

[ChristianConsFurryGuy]

At this present church age, the Holy Spirit seems to be the one member of the Trinity that is the most vague and indistinct, yet he possesses the most important need for Christians at this present time.

Jesus mentions him in the book of John as a Comforter:

John 14:25-26 (NASB) “These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

The Holy Spirit is the comforter or advocate to the Christian. As the word is translated from Greek. He is the everpresent help and teacher of God's word to the Christian as well as the one who helps us know what we have done and convicts us so we can repent.

The late evangelist Billy Graham once said, "There is not a person anywhere who can be a Christian without the Holy Spirit. There is not a person who can follow Christ without the help of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit sees everything that goes on. He knows what goes on in our hearts. He knows what goes on in our minds. Nothing is hidden from Him."

The Holy Spirit also acts as a convictor, to let us know that we are doing things contrary to God's will for our lives as christians:

John 16:7-8 (NASB) But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the  Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;

No Christian can go about without having the Holy spirit next to you, like Jiminy Cricket to Pinochio as a living conscience.

He also brings insight and teaches those who try to understand the word of God:

Romans 8:26-27 (NASB) In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

The Holy Spirit shows us not only how to understand God's will for our lives, but also provides us insight through His word about how to live for him. Think of him as the home-schooling teacher, leaning over your shoulder and helping you understand things as God sees it:

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NASB)  All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Since mankind has a hard time grasping what God's wisdom is about (1 Corithians 1:18). Therefore its good to have the Holy Spirit as our divine tutor, letting us know exactly how the world according to God should be.

While the Holy Spirit can act as both a teacher and a convictor, He also acts as a comforter and supporter of the Christian when facing trials and difficulties in their walk with Christ. I mean when Jesus mentions him, he actually calls him 'the Comforter'.

While He seems to work mysteriously in the background of a Christian's life, he is a vital and fundamental part of how a Christian even functions in the world. He helps us when we cannot help ourselves and shows us how to live for God rather than for our own selfish needs. If we continue to walk in the Spirit rather than the flesh (Romans 8:4) our lives as Christians can be more purposeful and help bring more aid to not only our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, but through evangelism, bring others into a loving understanding of God.

Blashemy against the Holy Spirit--did I do it?

I went on one of my favorite forums for talking about Christian talk when I saw a recent post from someone who was afraid he might have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit. It seems to be quite the hot topic in many Christian forums and websites. Its highly possible that it's this way due to how enigmatic Jesus told about it:

Matthew 12:31-32 (NASB) “Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

Blasphemy is defined as "the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God". To insult the Holy Spirit or show contempt for him is considered the greatest and unforgiven sin you can commit.

When someone tells me that they committed such a sin, I ask them a question: "Are you still alive?" And I have them check their pulse. If they have one, then they didn't commit such a sin. If you actually had committed such an unpardonable sin, then there is no reason God should leave you breathing!

To prove this, simply look to Acts chapter 5 and the store of Aninias and Sapphira. Because of their actions, Peter called them out on their sin against the Holy Spirit and as a result, they both dropped dead instantly. It shows that God washes his metaphorical hands of those that commit such a sin and no longer puts up with them.

You have to remember that we are all on borrowed lives. When people come up to me to ask "Why does God allow bad things to happen?" I answer, "Why does God put up with us at all and just wipe us out?" He doesn't HAVE to let us live, but he does out of love for us. If you were even capable of sinning such a sin against the Holy Spirit, you wont know until you're finding yourself in Hell.

So if you're reading this and believe in Jesus--you didnt sin agianst the Holy Spirit. In fact, the more I try to learn about the Holy Spirit, the more I find I'm in love with what he does for us. He comforts us in times of trouble, teaches us God's way and wisdom, and keeps us holding to the straight and narrow path to Heaven.

 

[TheWordIsOne]

At this present church age, the Holy Spirit seems to be the one member of the Trinity that is the most vague and indistinct, yet he possesses the most important need for Christians at this present time.

Jesus mentions him in the book of John as a Comforter:

John 14:25-26 (NASB) “These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

The Holy Spirit is the comforter or advocate to the Christian. As the word is translated from Greek. He is the everpresent help and teacher of God's word to the Christian as well as the one who helps us know what we have done and convicts us so we can repent.

The late evangelist Billy Graham once said, "There is not a person anywhere who can be a Christian without the Holy Spirit. There is not a person who can follow Christ without the help of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit sees everything that goes on. He knows what goes on in our hearts. He knows what goes on in our minds. Nothing is hidden from Him."

The Holy Spirit also acts as a convictor, to let us know that we are doing things contrary to God's will for our lives as christians:

John 16:7-8 (NASB) But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the  Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;

No Christian can go about without having the Holy spirit next to you, like Jiminy Cricket to Pinochio as a living conscience.

He also brings insight and teaches those who try to understand the word of God:

Romans 8:26-27 (NASB) In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

The Holy Spirit shows us not only how to understand God's will for our lives, but also provides us insight through His word about how to live for him. Think of him as the home-schooling teacher, leaning over your shoulder and helping you understand things as God sees it:

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NASB)  All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

Since mankind has a hard time grasping what God's wisdom is about (1 Corithians 1:18). Therefore its good to have the Holy Spirit as our divine tutor, letting us know exactly how the world according to God should be.

While the Holy Spirit can act as both a teacher and a convictor, He also acts as a comforter and supporter of the Christian when facing trials and difficulties in their walk with Christ. I mean when Jesus mentions him, he actually calls him 'the Comforter'.

While He seems to work mysteriously in the background of a Christian's life, he is a vital and fundamental part of how a Christian even functions in the world. He helps us when we cannot help ourselves and shows us how to live for God rather than for our own selfish needs. If we continue to walk in the Spirit rather than the flesh (Romans 8:4) our lives as Christians can be more purposeful and help bring more aid to not only our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, but through evangelism, bring others into a loving understanding of God.

Blashemy against the Holy Spirit--did I do it?

I went on one of my favorite forums for talking about Christian talk when I saw a recent post from someone who was afraid he might have blasphemed against the Holy Spirit. It seems to be quite the hot topic in many Christian forums and websites. Its highly possible that it's this way due to how enigmatic Jesus told about it:

Matthew 12:31-32 (NASB) “Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

Blasphemy is defined as "the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God". To insult the Holy Spirit or show contempt for him is considered the greatest and unforgiven sin you can commit.

When someone tells me that they committed such a sin, I ask them a question: "Are you still alive?" And I have them check their pulse. If they have one, then they didn't commit such a sin. If you actually had committed such an unpardonable sin, then there is no reason God should leave you breathing!

To prove this, simply look to Acts chapter 5 and the store of Aninias and Sapphira. Because of their actions, Peter called them out on their sin against the Holy Spirit and as a result, they both dropped dead instantly. It shows that God washes his metaphorical hands of those that commit such a sin and no longer puts up with them.

You have to remember that we are all on borrowed lives. When people come up to me to ask "Why does God allow bad things to happen?" I answer, "Why does God put up with us at all and just wipe us out?" He doesn't HAVE to let us live, but he does out of love for us. If you were even capable of sinning such a sin against the Holy Spirit, you wont know until you're finding yourself in Hell.

So if you're reading this and believe in Jesus--you didnt sin agianst the Holy Spirit. In fact, the more I try to learn about the Holy Spirit, the more I find I'm in love with what he does for us. He comforts us in times of trouble, teaches us God's way and wisdom, and keeps us holding to the straight and narrow path to Heaven.

Those who are still under God’s divine law
There are those who did not receive the seal of the Holy Spirit yet
Psalm 78:11
For those who remain under the law, there are several categories

A Question
What is the mark of Christ? To receive, first to understand what is Seal of the Holy Spirit is.

Note Gal 1:11-17 But I certify you, brethren, which the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.

John 3:31-36 (NKJV) He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.
And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.
He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.
For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.
The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.
He who believes in the Son has everlasting life, and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."

Certified means “to seal.” In a society where many could not read, seals were used to convey a clear message, even to the illiterate.
A seal indicated ownership to all and expressed a person’s personal guarantee. To receive Jesus’ testimony is to certify that God is true regarding what He has sealed.
In 2 Peter 2:4-11 (NKJV) For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodlily; and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked

2 Peter 2: 8 for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)--
then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries, whereas angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord.

1 Corinthians 6:2-4 (KJV) Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things pertaining to this life?
If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.

Note Gal 1:11-17 But I certify you, brethren, which the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.
For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God and wasted it:
And profited in the Jews' religion above many my equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of my fathers.
But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:
Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me, but I went into Arabia and returned again unto Damascus.

• Hence all the anxiety and trouble which he had had in regard to their departure from the doctrines which he had taught them. He closes the whole subject of the epistle by this tender and affecting language, the sense of which has been well expressed by Crellius: "I have shown my apostolic authority, and proved that I am commissioned by the Lord Jesus. I have stated and vindicated the great doctrine of justification by faith, and shown that the Mosaic law is not necessarily binding. On these points may I have no more trouble. I have enough for my nature to bear of other kinds. I bear in my body the impressive proofs that I am an apostle and the sufferings that require all my fortitude to sustain them.
• These marks received in the service of the Lord Jesus, and so strongly resembling those which he himself received, prove that I am truly engaged in his cause, and am commissioned by him.
• These wounds and sorrows are so many, that I have need of the kindness and prayers of Christians, rather than to be compelled to vindicate myself, and to rebuke them for their own wanderings."

For I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. The word here rendered "marks" στιγματα means, properly, the marks or brands which are pricked or burnt in upon the body. So, Slaves were sometimes branded by their masters, to prevent their escape; and so, devotees to an idol god sometimes caused to be impressed on themselves the name or image of the divinity which they adored. Herodotus (ii. 113) mentions a temple of Hercules in Egypt, in which if any slave took refuge and had the sacred brands or marks impressed on him, στιγματα he thereby devoted himself to the god, and it was not lawful for anyone to injure him. Many have supposed that Paul here says, in allusion to such a custom, that he had the name of the Redeemer impressed on his body, and that he regarded himself as devoted to him and his cause. It seems to me that, by these marks or brands, he refers to the weals which he had received in his body; the marks of stripes and sufferings which he endured in the service of the Redeemer. Comp.

2 Corinthians 11:24,25. He had repeatedly been scourged. He bore the marks of that on his person now. They were the evidence that he was devoted to the Saviour. He had received them in his cause, and they were the proofs that he belonged to the Lord Jesus.
He had suffered for him and had suffered much. Having thus suffered, and having thus the evidence that he belonged to the Saviour, and having by his sufferings given ample proof of that to others, he asks to be freed from further molestation. Some had in their body the marks of circumcision, the evidence that they were disciples of the law of Moses; others had perhaps in their persons the image and name of an idol to which they were devoted, but the marks which he bore were the weals which he had received by being again and again whipped publicly in the cause of the Redeemer. To that Redeemer, therefore, he felt united, and from that attachment, he would not allow himself to be diverted.
How often has an old soldier shown his scars with pride and exultation as proof of his attachment to his country! Numerous scars, the loss of an arm, an eye, or a leg, are thus the much-valued and vaunted pledges of attachment to liberty, and a passport to the confidence of every man who loves his country. "I prize this wound," said Lafayette, when struck in the foot by a musket-ball at Germantown, "as among the most valued of my honors." So Paul felt in regard to the scourges which he had receipted in the cause of the Lord Jesus. They were his boast and his glory; the pledge that he had been engaged in the cause of the Saviour, and a passport to all who loved the Son of God. Christians now are not subjected to such stripes and scourgings.
But let us have some marks of our attachment to the Lord Jesus. By a holy life; by self-denial; by subdued animal affections; my zeal in the cause of truth; by an imitation of the Lord Jesus; and by the marks of suffering in our body, if we should be called to it, let us have some evidence that we are his; and be able to say when we look on death and eternity, "we bear with us the evidence that we belong to the Son of God." To us, that will be of more value than any ribbon or star indicating elevated rank; more valuable than a ducal coronet; more valuable than the brightest jewel that ever sparkled on the brow of royalty.
(*) "bear" Colossians 1:24

 

[Waggles]

At this present church age, the Holy Spirit seems to be the one member of the Trinity that is the most vague and indistinct, yet he possesses the most important need for Christians at this present time.

For the Spirit-filled Pentecostal Christian the Holy Spirit is not vague and indistinct.
Apart from being truly the Comforter and the Spirit of truth He is also the Spirit of power and a sound mind.
And the baptism of the Holy Spirit gives us a wonderful prayer language - often referred to as speaking in tongues - whereby the Spirit-filled Christian can pray directly to God by His Spirit.

>For who speaketh in a tongue speaketh not to men, but to God; for no one heareth; but in spirit he speaketh mysteries. 1Corinthians 14:2
>For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding [mind] is unfruitful. 1Cor 14:14
>And in like manner the Spirit also helpeth our infirmity: for we know not how to pray as we ought; but the Spirit himself intercedeth mightily for us with groanings unutterable; Romans 8:26

Jud 1:20 But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
21 keep yourselves in God’s love, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.

 

[ChristianConsFurryGuy]

This is awesome, guys. this is the kind of discussion we need!

 

[TheWordIsOne]

remember to thank God and not the Catholic Church

 

[TheWordIsOne]

a question what would you gives up at the altar, there are 3 altars mentioned in Exodus Leviticus what does each one represents?
Stone is my name, but I have copper on my feet, and I wear yellowish-orange suit