Christian/Muslim ThreadsQuestions directed to both Muslims & Christians..Hi again Elsa, You have many questions in there, so let me try and answer them for you. some I have else where, so I will link you to those places if that is okay? But first let me explain something. In my last post to you, I said that the God head is made up of three distinct Essences... Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Remember, this is GOD we are talking about and any example I give to try and explain this to you will never be adequate, but the Bible is very specific.. God is three in one and each "part of God" is a person in His own right, and has a specific function within the Godhead. God the Father is always the one who has the authority.. Jesus constantly said that He is here to do the will of the Father who is in heaven. You might say, that God the Father is the brains behind the plan. The bible says in John 1 that that plan was that God would come in the flesh, as a man and would live as a man amongst us. But notice, whilst He is being a man.. He NEVER stops being God. He is.. the God-man. Not the man who becomes God.. but the God who becomes man. In John 14-16 this God-man, promises His disciples that when He leaves them and returns to the Father, He will send a Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who will live in them and will be with them always. This Holy Spirit, is God the Holy Spirit, the third essence of the God Head who indwells every believer, and restores to the believer, the spiritual nature that died when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden. Every human born since that time, has been born spiritually dead, and needs to be "born again" in the spirit to be acceptable to God. Now, to your questions 1. Can you now see how this is possible? When Jesus the God-man took our sins on Him, He wasn't just suffering physically, He was suffering spiritually. God cannot be in the presence of sin. His holy nature prevents Him from being there, and for those few minutes on the cross, God the Father turned away from the man part of the God man and could no longer tolerate Him.. all the wrath of God that should have been directed on us, was taken away... and placed on Jesus. At that moment, for the first time in eternity, the unique God head had a fracture in it's relationship and knew what it meant to be out of relationship with each other.. but notice, God the Son.. was still God, even though He was man dying on the cross. This was so beautifully depicted in the Passion, by that one tear drop that God the Father cried from heaven.. this truly was God the Father who loved us so much, He sent His Son to die for us. 2. I know it's hard to understand, but hopefully my answers have helped answer this one... God could not take sin on Himself.. only as He became a man could He do that. God cannot die, so something very wonderful had to happen. something only in the possibilities of God... and in Galations 4 we are told that this was all planned, so that it happened in the fullness of time.. or just at the right time. This wasn't about the Romans, or the Jews taking the life of a man for causing problems in a small outback Roman stronghold, this was about GOD deciding that NOW was the time for Him to bring about the forgiveness of our sins by taking them on Himself in the only way He could.. as a man. 3. Believer has answered this part of your question so I'll leave it at that, but please if you want to ask furthur questions, you know you can. 4. I think you have seen that it does say that Jesus is God.. the Ancient of Days.. .. picture the scene at the throne of God in heaven in Revelation chapter 4.. the angels.. the seraphim and cherubim, cry out " Holy Holy Holy, is the the Lord God Almighty, Wo was and is and is to come" Chapter 5 then follows with acclamation of the lamb who is in the right hand of him who sat on the throne and who is the only one worthy to break the seals of the scroll that is held by the Lamb. Revelation 5:6 then declares Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing IN THE CENTRE OF THE THRONE encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns, and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. .. and the four living creatures and the and the 24 elders fell down and worshipped." Now.. this whole chapter shows the three members of the One God and their interplay and it is described in imagery and words that seem to depict three individuals.. yet now read Revelation 7 They are before the throne of God and serve Him night and day in this temple and He who sits on the throne will spread His tent over them. Never again will they hunger, never again will they thirst. The sun will not bear down upon them, nor any scorching heat. FOR THE LAMB AT THE CENTRE OF THE THRONE will be their shepherd, He will lead them to springs of living water, and God will wipe every tear from their eyes." Now compare that with Revelation 21, where similar words are used... Then I saw the new heaven and the new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem coming out of the heaven from God, as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God Himself will be with them and be there God. he wil wipe every tear from their eyes. The very thing the Lamb would do in chapter 7, is repeated here, as the very thing God will do. This thought is repeated in Revelation 22:3 where it says The throne of God AND the Lamb will be in the city and his servants will serve him. Notice the play on words, the two identities.. God AND the Lamb become the ONE who will be served. and later in chapter 22, Jesus says I am the the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. .... I Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star, . The Spirit and the bride say "come" and let him who hears say "come" Whoever is thirsty, let him come, and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life." 5. No.. the mediator is not between God and God.. but between God and man. A mediator is one who comes and explains something fully that is of interest to two parties. Jesus as our mediator came to explain God fully, and in Hebrews 9:15 it explains why which leads to your final question, about those who died before Jesus came. Hebrews is an excellent book to read and it answers so many questions, but look specifically at this verse in Hebrews 11: 39-40 As I said on the weekend.. they looked ahead to Christ's coming.. we look back on his coming, and together we receive the promised forgiveness of sin, and life eternal. History, is just HIS story.. no matter when in history we live. This is very long, but how can you keep such things short. I'm looking forward to keeping on talking to you Elsa. Please keep writing. God bless Carol. |
🌈Pride🌈 goeth before Destruction
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