THE HOLY SPIRIT
A.W. PINK: THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – CHAPTER 7
This is one of the Divine perfections which is not sufficiently pondered. It is one of the excellencies of the Creator which distinguishes Him from all His creatures. God is perpetually the same: subject to no change in His being, attributes, or determinations. Therefore God is compared to a rock Deu 32:4, etc. which remains immovable, when the entire ocean surrounding it is continually in a fluctuating state; even so, though all creatures are subject to change, God is immutable. Because God has no beginning and no ending, He can know no change. He is everlastingly “the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” Jam 1:17.
First, God is immutable in His essence. His nature and being are infinite, and so, subject to no mutations. There never was a time when He was not; there never will come a time when He shall cease to be. God has neither evolved, grown, nor improved. All that He is today, He has ever been, and ever will be. “I am the Lord, I change not” Mal 3:6 is His own unqualified affirmation. He cannot change for the better, for He is already perfect; and being perfect, He cannot change for the worse. Altogether unaffected by anything outside Himself, improvement or deterioration is impossible. He is perpetually the same. He only can say, “I am that I am” Exo 3:14. He is altogether uninfluenced by the flight of time. There is no wrinkle upon the brow of eternity. Therefore His power can never diminish nor His glory ever fade.
Secondly, God is immutable in His attributes. Whatever the attributes of God were before the universe was called into existence, they are precisely the same now, and will remain so forever. Necessarily so; for they are the very perfections, the essential qualities of His being. Semper idem always the same is written across every one of them. His power is unabated, His wisdom undiminished, His holiness unsullied. The attributes of God can no more change than Deity can cease to be. His veracity is immutable, for His Word is “forever settled in heaven” Psa 119:89. His love is eternal: “I have loved thee with an everlasting love” Jer 31:3 and “Having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end” Joh 13:1. His mercy ceases not, for it is “everlasting” Psa 100:5.
Thirdly, God is immutable in His counsel. His will never varies. Perhaps some are ready to object that we ought to read the following: “And it repented the Lord that He had made man” Gen 6:6. Our first reply is, Then do the Scriptures contradict themselves? No, that cannot be. Num 23:19 is plain enough: “God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent.” So also in 1Sa 15:19, “The strength of Israel will not lie nor repent: for He is not a man, that He should repent.” The explanation is very simple. When speaking of Himself. God frequently accommodates His language to our limited capacities. He describes Himself as clothed with bodily members, as eyes, ears, hands, etc. He speaks of Himself as “waking” Psa 78:65, as “rising early” Jer 7:13; yet He neither slumbers nor sleeps. When He institutes a change in His dealings with men, He describes His course of conduct as “repenting.”
Yes, God is immutable in His counsel. “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance” Rom 11:29. It must be so, for “He is in one mind, and who can turn Him? and what His soul desireth, even that He doeth” Job 23:13. Change and decay in all around we see, may He who changeth not abide with thee. God’s purpose never alters. One of two things causes a man to change his mind and reverse his plans: want of foresight to anticipate everything, or lack of power to execute them. But as God is both omniscient and omnipotent there is never any need for Him to revise His decrees. No. “The counsel of the Lord standeth forever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations” Psa 33:11. Therefore do we read of “the immutability of His counsel” Heb 6:17.
Herein we may perceive the infinite distance which separates the highest creature from the Creator. Creaturehood and mutability are correlative terms. If the creature was not mutable by nature, it would not be a creature; it would be God. By nature we tend to nothing, as we came from nothing. Nothing stays our annihilation but the will and sustaining power of God. None can sustain himself a single moment. We are entirely dependent on the Creator for every breath we draw. We gladly own with the Psalmist Thou “holdest our soul in life” Psa 66:9. The realization of this ought to make us lie down under a sense of our own nothingness in the presence of Him “in Whom we live and move, and have our being” Act 17:28.
As fallen creatures we are not only mutable, but everything in us is opposed to God. As such we are “wandering stars” Jdg 1:13, out of our proper orbit. The wicked are “like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest” Isa 57:20. Fallen man is inconstant. The words of Jacob concerning Reuben apply with full force to all of Adam’s descendants: “unstable as water” Gen 49:4. Thus it is not only a mark of piety, but also the part of wisdom to heed that injunction, “cease ye from man” Isa 2:22. No human being is to be depended on. “Put not your trust in princes, in the son of man, in whom is no help” Psa 146:3. If I disobey God, then I deserve to be deceived and disappointed by my fellows. People who like you today, may hate you tomorrow. The multitude who cried “Hosanna to the Son of David,” speedily changed to “Away with Him, Crucify Him.”
Herein is solid comfort. Human nature cannot be relied upon; but God can! However unstable I may be, however fickle my friends may prove, God changes not. If He varied as we do, if He willed one thing today and another tomorrow, if He were controlled by caprice, who could confide in Him? But, all praise to His glorious name, He is ever the same. His purpose is fixed, His will stable, His word is sure. Here then is a rock on which we may fix our feet, while the mighty torrent is sweeping away everything around us. The permanence of God’s character guarantees the fulfillment of His promises: “For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee” Isa 54:10.
Herein is encouragement to prayer: “What comfort would it be to pray to a god that, like the chameleon, changed color every moment? Who would put up a petition to an earthly prince that was so mutable as to grant a petition one day, and deny it another?” S. Charnock, 1670. Should someone ask, But what is the use of praying to One whose will is already fixed? We answer, Because He so requires it. What blessings has God promised without our seeking them? “If we ask anything according to His will, He heareth us” 1Jo 5:14, and He has willed everything that is for His child’s good. To ask for anything contrary to His will is not prayer, but rank rebellion.
Herein is terror for the wicked. Those who defy Him, break His laws, have no concern for His glory, but live their lives as though He existed not, must not suppose that, when at the last they shall cry to Him for mercy, He will alter His will, revoke His word, and rescind His awful threatenings. No, He has declared, “Therefore will I also deal in fury: Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in Mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them” Eze 8:18. God will not deny Himself to gratify their lusts. God is holy, unchangingly so. Therefore God hates sin, eternally hates it. Hence the eternality of the punishment of all who die in their sins.
The Divine immutability, like the cloud which interposed between the Israelites and the Egyptian army, has a dark as well as a light side. It insures the execution of His threatenings, as well as the performance of His promises; and destroys the hope which the guilty fondly cherish, that He will be all lenity to His frail and erring creatures, and that they will be much more lightly dealt with than the declarations of His own Word would lead us to expect. We oppose to these deceitful and presumptuous speculations the solemn truth, that God is unchanging in veracity and purpose, in faithfulness and justice. J. Dick, 1850.
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A.W. PINK: THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – CHAPTER 6
The sovereignty of God may be defined as the exercise of His supremacy — see preceding chapter. Being infinitely elevated above the highest creature, He is the Most High, Lord of heaven and earth. Subject to none, influenced by none, absolutely independent; God does as He pleases, only as He pleases always as He pleases. None can thwart Him, none can hinder Him. So His own Word expressly declares:
A.W. PINK: THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – CHAPTER 5
In one of his letters to Erasmus, Luther said, “Your thoughts of God are too human.” Probably that renowned scholar resented such a rebuke, the more so, since it proceeded from a miner’s son; nevertheless, it was thoroughly deserved. We too, though having no standing among the religious leaders of this degenerate age, prefer the same charge against the majority of the preachers of our day, and against those who, instead of searching the Scriptures for themselves, lazily accept the teaching of others. The most dishonoring and degrading conceptions of the rule and reign of the Almighty are now held almost everywhere. To countless thousands, even among those professing to be Christians, the God of the Scriptures is quite unknown.
Of old, God complained to an apostate Israel, Thou thoughtest that I was altogether as thyself. Psa 50:21. Such must now be His indictment against an apostate Christendom. Men imagine that the Most High is moved by sentiment, rather than actuated by principle. They suppose that His omnipotency is such an idle fiction that Satan is thwarting His designs on every side. They think that if He has formed any plan or purpose at all, then it must be like theirs, constantly subject to change. They openly declare that whatever power He possesses must be restricted, lest He invade the citadel of man’s “free will” and reduce him to a “machine.” They lower the all efficacious Atonement, which has actually redeemed everyone for whom it was made, to a mere “remedy,” which sin-sick souls may use if they feel disposed to; and they enervate the invincible work of the Holy Spirit to an “offer” of the Gospel which sinners may accept or reject as they please.
The “god” of this twentieth century no more resembles the Supreme Sovereign of Holy Writ than does the dim flickering of a candle the glory of the midday sun. The “god” who is now
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Surah 3:21 – What Does The Quran Really Teach?
Surah 3:21
As to those who deny the Signs of Allah and in defiance of right, slay the prophets, and slay those who teach just dealing with mankind, announce to them a grievous penalty.
Brothers and Sisters in The LORD,
What Does The Quran Really Teaches is given so you may know the truth about Islam, what Mohammed actually taught and what The Quran actually teaches. As I come across verses in The Quran that teach doctrine that is contrary to what the public receives from Islam, I will post them, or any other verses we should be awary of.
Most people are unaware of what The Quran actually teaches, especially Christians. Please understand that this is not an attempt to incite discord, on the contrary. This is to sow seeds of love, and that you may know that people who follow the teachings of Mohammed and the Quran are lost, just as we were when we were children of the evil one until Our LORD and Saviour JESUS freed us from this evil system. We combat darkness with light, we combat ignorance with salt, and we combat evil with good. Our LORD goes before us and with us in this war. Remember,
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12 NKJV
and,
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NKJV
The prince of this world, satan has blinded all that who are not of The LORD, to the truth. So we, must speak GOD’s truth! The Koran is an evil book of lies that are holding people captive in an evil ideology. You knowing the truth about what it actually teaches will help you to rescue those that are lost in it. But, above all, pray to your FATHER who is in Heaven that HE will give sight to those that are blinded, pray that their hearts may be opened to the truth, and show them love where they have been taught to hate.
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WEEKLY BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH EXCERPT: CHAPTER 6 OF THE FALL OF MAN, OF SIN, AND OF THE PUNISHMENT THEREOF
BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH 1689 SPURGEON EDITION
CHAPTER 6 OF THE FALL OF MAN, OF SIN, AND OF THE PUNISHMENT THEREOF
Paragraph 1. Although God created man upright and perfect, and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon the breach thereof,1 yet he did not long abide in this honor; Satan using the subtlety of the serpent to subdue Eve, then by her seducing Adam, who, without any compulsion, did willfully transgress the law of their creation, and the command given to them, in eating the forbidden fruit,2 which God was pleased, according to His wise and holy counsel to permit, having purposed to order it to His own glory.
1 Gen. 2:16-17
2 Gen. 3:12-13; 2 Cor. 11:3
Paragraph 2. Our first parents, by this sin, fell from their original righteousness and communion with God, and we in them whereby death came upon all:3 all becoming dead in sin,4 and wholly defiled in all the faculties and parts of soul and body.5
3 Rom. 3:23
4 Rom 5:12, etc.
5 Titus 1:15; Gen. 6:5; Jer. 17:9; Rom. 3:10-19
Paragraph 3. They being the root, and by God’s appointment, standing in the room and stead of all mankind, the guilt of the sin was imputed, and corrupted nature conveyed, to all their posterity descending from them by ordinary generation,6 being now conceived in sin,7 and by nature children of wrath,8 the servants of sin, the subjects of death,9 and all other miseries, spiritual, temporal, and eternal, unless the Lord Jesus set them free.10
6 Rom. 5:12-19; 1 Cor. 15:21-22,45,49
7 Ps. 51:5; Job 14:4
8 Eph. 2:3
9 Rom. 6:20, 5:12
10 Heb. 2:14,15; 1 Thess. 1:10
Paragraph 4. From this original corruption, whereby we are utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil,11 do proceed all actual transgressions.12
11 Rom. 8:7; Col. 1:21
12 James 1:14-15; Matt. 15:19
Paragraph 5. The corruption of nature, during this life, does remain in those that are regenerated;13 and although it be through Christ pardoned and mortified, yet both itself, and the first motions thereof, are truly and properly sin.14
13 Rom. 7:18,23; Eccles. 7:20; 1 John 1:8
14 Rom. 7:23-25; Gal. 5:17
A.W. PINK: THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – CHAPTER 4
What controversies have been engendered by this subject in the past! But what truth of Holy Scripture is there which has not been made the occasion of theological and ecclesiastical battles? The deity of Christ, His virgin birth, His atoning death, His second advent; the believer’s justification, sanctification, security; the church, its organization, officers, discipline; baptism, the Lord’s supper, and a score of other precious truths might be mentioned. Yet, the controversies which have been waged over them did not close the mouths of God’s faithful servants; why, then, should we avoid the vexed question of God’s Foreknowledge, because, forsooth, there are some who will charge us with fomenting strife? Let others contend if they will, our duty is to bear witness according to the light vouchsafed us.
There are two things concerning the Foreknowledge of God about which many are in ignorance: the meaning of the term, its Scriptural scope. Because this ignorance is so widespread, it is an easy matter for preachers and teachers to palm off perversions of this subject, even upon the people of God. There is only one safeguard against error, and that is to be established in the faith; and for that, there has to be prayerful and diligent study, and a receiving with meekness the engrafted Word of God. Only then are we fortified against the attacks of those who assail us. There are those today who are misusing this very truth in order to discredit and deny the absolute sovereignty of God in the salvation of sinners. Just as higher critics are repudiating the Divine inspiration of the Scriptures; evolutionists, the work of God in creation; so some pseudo Bible teachers are perverting His foreknowledge in order to set aside His unconditional election unto eternal life.
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STUDY BY VERSE: GENESIS 1:1 / JOHN 1:1-2
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Let’s look and compare two passages in GOD’s Word that speak about a ‘beginning, Genesis 1:1 and John 1:1-2. This can serve as a starting point for a detailed word study about the beginnings of the Creation and the Deity of Our LORD…………..
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The Jehovah’s Witnesses and Jesus Christ: A Biblical and Theological Appraisal – By Bruce M. Metzger
While conducting research for an article regarding the New Living Translation of the Bible, I came across a rather insightful article by Bruce M. Metzger. It was posted on a site called Bible Research, By Michael Marlowe. It appears to have a creative commons license, so I am posting it here as well. In it, he give a brief, albeit concise summary of the cult/sect. Featured is the view Jehovah’s Witnesses have and espouse concerning Our LORD and Saviour JESUS CHRIST, and aberrent view I might add. We as Christians must always be prepared to give a response for the hope that is within us 1 Pet 3:15-16.
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WEEKLY BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH EXCERPT: CHAPTER 5 OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE
BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH 1689 SPURGEON EDITION
CHAPTER 5 OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE
Paragraph 1. God the good Creator of all things, in His infinite power and wisdom does uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and things,1 from the greatest even to the least,2 by His most wise and holy providence, to the end for the which they were created, according unto His infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of His own will; to the praise of the glory of His wisdom, power, justice, infinite goodness, and mercy.3
1 Heb. 1:3; Job 38:11; Isa. 46:10,11; Ps. 135:6
2 Matt. 10:29-31
3 Eph. 1;11
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A HANDBOOK OF CHRISTIAN TRUTH: 3. WHY BELIEVE IN THE BIBLE?
Why Believe the Bible?
The pivotal question of Christianity centers around the Bible itself. If this book is only a record of the religious quest of the Hebrew peoples, and if it deals only with their hopes, aspirations, and accomplishments in their upward search for God from polytheism to monotheism, then it cannot be the Word of God as we use that term here.
We believe that the Bible is God’s word to man. We hold that from cover to cover, from Genesis to Revelation, the book is God’s whole counsel to man and that it is without error in whole and in part.
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Deception in The Body of CHRIST: Contemplative / Centering Prayer (CCP) Part 3
Part 3
Like Spiritual Formation, Contemplative /Centering Prayer (CCP) entertains several definitions as well. Remember what we learned from the link above from GotQuestions.org:
Contemplative prayer, also known as “centering prayer,” is a meditative practice where the practitioner focuses on a word and repeats that word over and over for the duration of the exercise. While contemplative prayer is done differently in the various groups that practice it, there are similarities. Contemplative prayer involves choosing a sacred word as the symbol of your intention to consent to God’s presence and action within.
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A.W. PINK: THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – CHAPTER 3
God is omniscient. He knows everything: everything possible, everything actual; all events, all creatures, God the past, the present and the future. He is perfectly acquainted with every detail in the life of every being in heaven, in earth and in hell. ”He knoweth what is in the darkness” Dan 2:22 . Nothing escapes Hs notice, nothing can be hidden from Him, nothing is forgotten by Him.
Well may we say with the Psalmist, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it” Psa 139:6 . His knowledge is perfect. He never errs, never changes, never overlooks anything. ”Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do” Heb 4:13 . Yes, such is the God with whom “we have to do!”
“Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, Thou understandest my thoughts afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue but, lo, O Lord, Thou knowest it altogether” Psa 139:2-4 . What a wondrous Being is the God of Scripture! Each of His glorious attributes should render Him honorable in our esteem. The apprehension of His omniscience ought to bow us in adoration before Him. Yet how little do we meditate upon this Divine perfection! Is it because the very thought of it fills us with uneasiness?
WEEKLY BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH EXCERPT: CHAPTER 4 OF CREATION
BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH 1689 SPURGEON EDITION
CHAPTER 4 OF CREATION
Paragraph 1. In the beginning it pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,1 for the manifestation of the glory of His eternal power,2 wisdom, and goodness, to create or make the world, and all things therein, whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days, and all very good.3
1 John 1:2,3; Heb. 1:2; Job 26:13
2 Rom. 1:20
3 Col. 1:16; Gen. 1:31
Paragraph 2. After God had made all other creatures, He created man, male and female,4 with reasonable and immortal souls,5 rendering them fit unto that life to God for which they were created; being made after the image of God, in knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness;6 having the law of God written in their hearts,7 and power to fulfill it, and yet under a possibility of transgressing, being left to the liberty of their own will, which was subject to change.8
4 Gen. 1:27
5 Gen. 2:7
6 Eccles. 7:29; Gen. 1;26
7 Rom. 2:14,15
8 Gen. 3:6
Paragraph 3. Besides the law written in their hearts, they received a command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil,9 which while they kept, they were happy in their communion with God, and had dominion over the creatures.10
9 Gen. 2:17
10 Gen. 1:26,28
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David Barton Tour
Very few people are aware and really understand that our country The United States of American was founded on J
udeo-Christian principles. We boast about our ‘freedom’ as afforded to us by living here, but are desperately ignorant of where this freedom is derived. The rights that we hold so dear, that we onced enjoyed, given to us by GOD, are quickly and systematically being disolved. Few people realize that, what we once enjoyed, we no longer. Our world is changing and proceeding just as Our Heavenly LORD JESUS said it would.
I came across something that will be of great interest to you. This is a video from David Barton, Founder and President of WallBuilders, a national pro-family organization that presents America’s forgotten history and heroes, with an emphasis on our moral, religious and constitutional heritage. He is conducting a tour of the Nations Capital detailing forgotten history, our Christian heritage. So the next time someone mentions separation of Church and State, you’ll know how to respond
David Barton Tour:
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A.W. PINK: THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – CHAPTER 2
The decree of God is His purpose or determination with respect to future things. We have used the singular number as Scripture does (Rom 8:28, Eph 3:11), because there was only one act of His infinite mind about future things. But we speak as if there had been many, because our minds are only capable of thinking of successive revolutions, as thoughts and occasions arise, or in reference to the various objects of His decree, which being many seem to us to require a distinct purpose for each one. But an infinite understanding does not proceed by steps, from one stage to another: “Known unto God are all His works, from the beginning of the world” (Act 15:18).
The Scriptures make mention of the decrees of God in many passages, and under a variety of terms. The word “decree” is found in Psa 2:7, etc. In Eph 3:11 we read of His “eternal purpose.” In Act_2:23 of His “determinate counsel and foreknowledge.” In Eph 1:9 of the mystery of His “will.” In Rom_8:29 that He also did predestinate. In Eph 1:9 of His “good pleasure.” God’s decrees are called His “counsel” to signify they are consummately wise. They are
WEEKLY BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH EXCERPT: CHAPTER 3 OF GOD’S DECREE
BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH 1689 SPURGEON EDITION
CHAPTER 3: OF GOD’S DECREE
Paragraph 1. God hath decreed in himself, from all eternity, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely and unchangeably, all things, whatsoever comes to pass;1 yet so as thereby is God neither the author of sin nor hath fellowship with any therein;2 nor is violence offered to the will of the creature, nor yet is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established;3 in which appears His wisdom in disposing all things, and power and faithfulness in accomplishing His decree.4
1 Isa. 46:10; Eph. 1:11; Heb. 6:17; Rom. 9:15,18
2 James 1:13; 1 John 1:5
3 Acts 4:27,28; John 19:11
4 Num. 23:19; Eph. 1:3-5
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WHAT IS YOUR VIEW OF THE ALMIGHTY?
What is your view, or opinion if you will of The Almighty (El Shaddai – GOD Almighty, see The Word Learned @ the right) I remember when I really first came to faith. You know that time when you get serious about GOD, or so you think that it was all your doing, I mean that you decided you would come to GOD? No, it wasn’t you, it was HIM, remember what Our LORD said:
Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. John 15:16 KJV
Thinking back to that time, I recall having an insatiable desire to know any and everything I could know about GOD. I look back on this time in which could only be described as The FATHER drawing me to HIMSELF John 6:37, 39, 44, 10:39. I am sure you have gone thru, or are going thru something simular. And it can be no other way because The HOLY SPIRIT is in us and it is HIS responsibility to comform us into the image (Imago Dei)Rom 8:29. You know that verse says that we are ‘predestined’ i.e., The LORD decided, Our Heavenly FATHER determined that we would be conformed, to become HOLY and Blameless Col 1:22 Children in HIS sight.