How do I enter the Kingdom of God and leave the bondage of the enemy?
How can we know anything about anything
To try to explain truth to him who loves it not is but to give him more plentiful material for misinterpretation. George Macdonald
Do we have to make a choice between science and the Bible?
NO!
That is NOT where the problem is, but that is what everyone seems to want to talk about.
Take science as an example.
How can we know anything about the created material world around us?
How can we know anything from what we can see using natural sciences?
We all see the same things in the material world,
but we don't come to the same answers.
Why is that?
How can we know anything about the Bible and what it teaches?
Every person believes different things about the Bible and how it should be read.
Why is that?
Same scientific facts. Different answers.
Same Bible. Different answers.
Why is that?
The true question is this: How do we come to our answers that we get
from what we can see through science
or what we can read in the Bible?
How do we think about what we see using science or what we read in the Bible?
How do we analyze what we have seen and read?
How do we interpret what we have seen and read?
We use logic, but logic always has a foundation. Jesus talked about building on the Rock.
That Rock is Jesus Christ. He is the true foundation.
There are also the false foundations of the ungodly.
An example might help.
Question: Why do you believe in evolution?
Answer: Because my science teacher told me that evolution is scientific fact.
Question: Why do you believe your science teacher?
Answer: because he agrees with the textbook he assigned us to read.
Now, we have asked, "Why?" twice.
If we continued to ask, "Why?" we would come down to the foundation of this person's thoughts.
When we get down to the foundations, there are no more questions that can be answered.
So where to the foundations come from?
There are three possibilities.
- things that we make up, pulled from the air
- demonic lies
- divine revelation
Question: Why do you believe in creation?
Answer: Because God revealed this to me. He spoke to me through the Bible and gave me His faith
so that I could believe Him.
See how quickly we got to the foundation.
This is a belief that has a foundation that is solid and that cannot be moved.
In reality, the things that we make up, that are pulled from the air,
are actually from demons and all the lies of demons spring from the prince of demons, Satan.
So these are one and the same.
Divine revelation comes from the Almighty, Creator, God, Jesus Christ.
So there are only two choices, but how do we know there are only two choices?
Because God has revealed this truth to us.
The question then is how do we tell the difference between the revelation that comes from God
and the lies of Satan?
The answer is that everyone who sincerely wants to do the will of God will know.
Jesus said, "If you really want to obey God, you will know if what I teach comes from God or from me"
The rejection of the revelation that comes from God is not an intellectual problem.
It is a moral problem.
Jesus said, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you:
For everyone who asks receives; and he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks it shall be opened."
*
Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?
If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to those who ask him?
Matthew 7:7-11 *
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.
You can set the truth before someone, but you can't make anyone believe
those things that they don't want to submit to.
They have to want to obey God.
How frequently it is brought to our attention that nothing good can be done if the will is wrong! Reason alone fails to justify itself. Richard M. Weaver
Jesus said, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free" (John 8:32)
"If we are not prepared to buy the truth at the cost of our own humbling we shall not receive it"
Lies appear to have no price upon them.
They seem cheap and they abound everywhere.
But for the truth there is always an obvious price to pay.
"[God] has set a day when He will judge all the world's people with fairness.
And He has chosen the man Jesus to do the judging for Him.
God has given proof of this to all of us by raising Jesus from death" (Acts 17:31).
"There is a judge for the one who rejects Me [Jesus] and does not accept My words;
that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day" (John 12:48)
That also stands for every person who speaks the utterances of Jesus.
When we hear them, we hear Jesus Christ, and we either accept or reject.
Every person who follows Jesus Christ is commanded to only speak His utterances and not their own.
"When we love others, we know that we belong to the truth, and we feel at ease in the presence of God" (1 John 3:19)
Ravi Zacharias did two open forums in a university.
On the second night, one man told him that he had brought two Atheists in the night before
who said that the arguments presented were so strong that they could not contend with them,
but they were going to remain Atheists because that is what they prefer to be true.
In another case of just listening to an unbeliever and drawing out his reasoning,
the unbeliever finally came to his foundations.
They turned out to be assumptions that were pulled from the air.
When asked why he believed his basic assumption,
the unbeliever looked startled and blurted out,
"I guess I'm making the whole thing up."
It was quite a revelation to him since he hadn't even known that he had any assumptions.
However, he decided to remain an Atheist because he didn't want God to rule over him.
Unless you are born again, you will lose out. You can't enter the Kingdom of God.
Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the <"" />kingdom of God. John 3:4 (Read all of John 3 for a more complete understanding.)
Literally, this is the Water of the Spirit. Baptism is part of salvation, but being born only requires the Water of the Spirit.
God, through the Spirit of Christ, drops His faith into your heart and reveals His way to you. His way is Jesus.
- You admit to God that you have been wrong.
- Sin: You receive Jesus as your Savior from your sins and your sinful nature.
- You ask forgiveness.
- You leave all your allegience to your sinful nature and to Satan.
- You commit to obeying Jesus and seeking Him.
- God forgives you and receives you as His own child and your family affiliation and slavery to Satan is broken by the power of Jesus' blood.
John 3
1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.--
22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized.
23 And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized.
24 For John was not yet cast into prison.
25 Then there arose a question between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying.
26 And they came unto John, and said unto him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan, to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same baptizeth, and all men come to him.
27 John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.
28 Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him.
29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.
30 He must increase, but I must decrease.
31 He that cometh from above is above all: he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of the earth: he that cometh from heaven is above all.
32 And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony.
33 He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true.
34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.
36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
2 Timothy 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
Mark 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
Note that in Mark 16:16, not believing results in being damned, but not being baptized is never mentioned in Scripture as resulting in being damned.
Luke 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
Romans 10:9 because if thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved:
2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
Being born again is a one-time occurrence, but there are ongoing and increasing benefits, free gifts, that are also part of salvation. Note that sanctification is also a part of salvation. Scripture indicates that is progressive from glory to glory and that it is by the Spirit of God as indicated also here. Belief in the truth is also progressive as indicated by 1 Corinthians 13, where it says that we will one day know as we are known.
Back to top
How to be Born Again
How Can I Wipe The Slate Clean And Start Over? (Go)
How Can I Be A Christian? (Go)
How can I know Jesus and know God? (Go)
Why must I believe in Jesus to be saved? (Go)
How Can I Be Saved And Go To Heaven? (Go)
How Can I Know God? Only Through Jesus Christ. No Person Can Come To the Father but by Jesus. (Go)
What is God's purpose in opening the door so I can be born into His Family? (Go)
Is it too late for me to be saved? Have I gone too far to be forgiven? (Go)
Why do I need to be saved? From what? You need to be saved from slavery to sin and all the lies . . . and from the second death. (Go)
How To Get To Heaven (Go)
With Free Salvation Being Such a Great Offer, Why Would Anyone Reject the Offer? (Go)
There Is A Cost To Receiving Jesus As Your Savior (Go)
Experience The Ultimate--FREE! (Go)
Can God have fellowship with me without saving me from my lower nature? (Go)
How do we know if we have been good enough to make it into heaven and avoid hell? You can know that you are not. (Go)
Don't All Ways Lead To God? No. There is One Way. Jesus (Go)
God's Love Is So Great That He Gave His Only Unique Son So We Would Not Have To Be Cut Off From Him In Hell. (Go)
God's Purpose Is To First Bring You Back Into His Family. (Go)
How to Start Toward Fulfillment and Satisfaction - To successfully fulfill your purpose in life, you must . . . (Go)
The Reality of Christ, the Head of the Body (Go)
God's Own Pattern: Get Into the Family--then Grow to Complete Fulfillment (Go)
What if I don't want Jesus but just live to please God? (Go)
How great is God's love? (Go)
Those Who Reject God Are Actually Rejecting Love (Go)
Why Would Anyone Go Through The Mental Gymnastics Required To Rationalize Rejecting God's Free Salvation? (Go)
Why do some people deny that God exists? (Go)
God Has a Purpose; That We All Be Conformed to the Image of His Son, Jesus. Will you miss it? (Go)
Causes of Failure: Destructive Ways that Will Stunt Growth and Defeat Fulfillment (Go)
What is the good news (gospel) and why should I care? (Go)
How does the Christian Spirit differ from the Secular Humanist spirit? (Go)
How Can A Loving God Allow Pain And Suffering? God Uses Suffering. (Go)
Bible Dictionary: Define Born Again, Definition of Born Again (Go)
John 3:16 What does it really mean? (Go)
Questions and Answers
Do Jews go to hell? (Go)
Accusation: Circular Reasoning (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why is it so hard for PhDs to believe? (Go)
Answers For Evolutionists And Atheists (Go)
Questions and Answers: Atheism's Problem With Logic--Why Atheists Can't Logically Hold Their Opinion (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does The Bible Teach A Flat Earth? NO. (Go)
Questions and Answers: Can I do anything and be saved? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Feedback Questions Regarding Mutations (Go)
Questions and Answers: Feedback Question About Supposed Contradictions in the Bible (Go)
Questions and Answers: How Do You Debate a Team of Atheists Who Harass You at Work? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is meant by against such there is no law in Gal 5:23? (Go)
Questions and Answers: How Can I Be Saved And Go To Heaven? (Go)
Questions and Answers: How Old is the Earth? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Is The Bible Literally True? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Unanswered Evolution Questions (Go)
Questions and Answers: Is There A Gallup Poll That Shows 35% Believe Darwinism? (Go)
Questions and Answers: 24,000 original manuscripts and changes in some newer translations (Go)
Questions and Answers: Am I Saved? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Atheist Asserts that Revelation Is Unreliable (Go)
Questions and Answers: Atheist Posits that Atheism Is the Default Opinion (Go)
Questions and Answers: A Loaded Question Is Asked and Answered (Go)
Questions and Answers: Can Our Prayers be Empowered by the Blood of Jesus (Go)
Questions and Answers: Christian Reader Questions the Meaning of the Word, Cult (Go)
Questions and Answers: God knew everything before he created the heavens and the earth, so why did God make people who he knew in advance would turn on him and go to hell? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Clever use of language to cloak an evil intent (Go)
Questions and Answers: In practical terms what does true repentance involve in daily life? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Prerequisites for Repentance (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the basis for your statement that no new genetic information is produced or created? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What Is The Difference Between Being In Love and Loving (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the difference between tongue and tongues? Are they the same or different? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the role of the deacons in this situation? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What makes you think that only your view of Jesus is accurate? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What Will the Holy Spirit Do or Not Do? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What would you say to someone who doesn't want to repent because he thinks life will become dull and boring? (Go)
Questions and Answers: When you go God's way instead of your own, what will rule in your heart? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Where did Noah live before the flood? (Go)
Questions and Answers: How can we know which assumptions are valid? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What About Socialism And Reckless Governmental Spending? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What About The Bible--doesn't It Say The Earth Is About 6,000 Years Old? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Are There Three Incompatible Principles In The Bible That Show Inconsistency? NO. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What Is Wrong With Theistic Evolution? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Evolutionists Can't Find Answers to these Questions. At Least None that Make Sense. (Go)
Questions and Answers: Are Super-Germs an Example of Evolution in Action? (Go)
Answers For Scoffers Who Claim That The Bible Can't Be Trusted. (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why do some people deny that God exists? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does Evil Exist? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Evolutionists Claim That Similar Features In Fossilized Skeletons Prove Evolution. Is There Any Truth To This Claim? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What are some of the ways that evolutionists use words to confuse? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What are false credentials and how do evolutionists use them? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why Is There All of this Religious Zeal for Selling Evolution? (Go)
Questions and Answers: How have the schools teamed up with Hollywood to spread a myth about the Scopes Monkey Trial? (Go)
Questions and Answers: How can you recognize junk science and speculation cloaked as science? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Feedback Question: Is it too late for me? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Feedback: Evolution has nothing to do with creation (Go)
Questions and Answers: Feedback: We have staked the whole future (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does geology really show convincing evidence for a world-wide flood? (Go)
Questions and Answers: We are not saved by good works, but are we saved to good works and holiness? What does the Bible say? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Can there be love without God? No. There can be no love without God. God is love. Every good and every complete gift comes from Him. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the name of the way that God made to provide love, joy, peace, and freedom? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Here Is A Quick Explanation Of Why Evolution Is Religious Dogma Of Many Cults And It Is Not Science (Go)
Questions and Answers: What will set you free? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Feedback Question: James 5:13 (Go)
Questions and Answers: Doesn't the Bible say that some of those alive at Jesus' time would not see death until they saw His Kingdom and His coming in glory? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Will I Miss Life and the Kingdom of God and Fulfillment Without Jesus? Yes. Without Jesus There is no Life. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the foundation, the basis, of evolution? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why isn't Naturalism a valid assumption? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why aren't liberal thinkers open-minded? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the 5-fold ministry and why is it important? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What are the Scriptural Christianity Teachings? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why do so many people try to conform to such nonsense as evolution? They want to fit in, so they pretend. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What does the Bible say about the government of the church? (Go)
Questions and Answers: There Are Many Key Questions That Evolutionists Must Answer If It Is To Be Considered As A Hypothesis, Let Alone A Theory (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the work of the Holy Spirit? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the manifestation of the sons of God? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does the government have a responsibility to protect the citizens? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Time Management: Is There A Way That I Can Get Everything Done? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Standing in Judgment: What About All the Things that Are Wrong with the Church? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What Is The Basis Or Mechanism That Would Allow Evolutionism's Claims To Work? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What do the Scriptures teach how God designed the Church? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What did Satan mean when he said to Eve, you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil? What god's was Satan referring to? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What Is Really Wrong With Our Public Schools And Why Have They Failed So Miserably? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What Is the Difference Between Relativism And the Belief in Absolutes? (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is true liberty all about? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why Can't God Accept Me Just As I Am, Sin And All? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Has Anyone Ever Found A Real Error In The Bible? No. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the Church; How should it be governed? (Go)
Questions and Answers: I am an Atheist and have not history of violence. Have you ever even read your Bible and it's history of violence? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Some skeptics claim that there are errors in the Bible. Is there any truth to this claim? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does The Bible Say That It Is The Infallible Word Of God? Yes. (Go)
Questions and Answers: Are There Contradictions In The Bible? No! (Go)
Questions and Answers: Should we have a passion and zeal to read the Bible today? Yes. (Go)
Questions and Answers: Is Distant Starlight A Problem For Creationists Or Evolutionists? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does Real Science Support Evolution And An Old Earth? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Does the Founder Principle Support Evolution? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Can You Believe The Bible Literally? (Go)
Isn't God's way like a smorgasbord where you can pick and choose what you want or don't want? No. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What is the change in the fulfillment of the royal law under the New Covenant (Go)
Questions and Answers: How you can know if you are saved and have received the Holy Spirit (Go)
Anti-Bible Anti-God Comment Claims that God supported Bashing Babies Against Rocks (Go)
Anti-Bible Anti-God Comment Claims that God supported child abuse in Judges 11:29-40 (Go)
Anti-Bible Comment Claims that Exodus 21:1-11 says that the God of the Bible allows slavery, including selling your own daughter as a sex slave (Go)
Anti-Bible Commenter Tries To Reverse the Burden of Proof (Go)
Questions & Answers: Will God remember all your sins and remind you of them on the judgment day? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Can a Christian Lose Salvation? (Go)
If you do not believe in Jesus Christ and his teachings you can never be a Muslim (Go)
Comment: You use your website (very carefully) to advocate religious propaganda. There is so much inaccurate information on there. (Go)
Comment: Terrorists who commit suicide bombings and other atrocities are only Muslim by name (Go)
Comment: Reader Claims There Is No Difference Between Islam and Christianity (Go)
Comment: Sweeping Generalizations? (Go)
Questions and Answers: Why is Islam a False Religion? (Go)
Comment: Reader Claims that the Bible isn't the Exact Word of God but Claims that the Quran is. (Go)
Questions and Answers: Please help me to connect the old testament ministers to the new testament fivefold offices clearly stating the similarities of these offices. (Go)
Questions and Answers: What About the Kangaroo in Australia Only? Does That Prove Evolution? (Go)
I Feel So Empty and Alone Inside (Go)
Author/Compiler
Last updated: Sep, 2011
|
more info: mouseover or click
There is so much more for you.
This is what you have been missing.
Don't let anyone deceptively keep you from fulfilling your destiny and God's purpose for your life.
God has established the pattern of Scripture, for life and for the Church.
You can feel free to use the Contact Form further down on this page to ask any question regarding this pattern of Scripture.
The Church, the Body of Christ, and discernment of this Body, is the method that God is using to finish the work in His Body.
The Body of Christ, God's Temple, is built up by that which every joint supplies, building each other up in love,
and the Temple must be built according to the pattern of Scripture.
We believe the Holy Scriptures teach:
- The 5 apostolic ministries (Ephesians 4:11)
- The nine gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:8-10)
- Local congregations overseen by elders and deacons (Titus 1:5)
- Every member having and being a ministry in the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:11)
- Being led by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14)
- The gathering together of the Body of Christ (Genesis 49:10, John 17:21)
|