For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” [Matthew 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36] And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. (II Peter 1:16-18)
The most important thing we have to do if we profess to be Christians is believe the Word of God! We are not Christians if we don't believe the Word of God! For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” (Romans 4:3) What did Abraham believe? What God said, whatever God said! Before Jesus was born, Abraham was saved because he believed the Word of God! So what is salvation? Believing the Word of God!
This can not be stressed enough! Too many people call themselves Christians, but they don't believe everything written in the scriptures. No, we may not understand everything, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My [Jesus] name, He will teach you all things,..." (John 14:26) Remember, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. ... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-2, 14)
Two things, first Jesus Christ is the Word of God in the flesh, so we must believe the Word of God as recorded in the scriptures, and we must believe in Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God; Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2) As confirmation that we are saved, the Father will send the Holy Spirit in Jesus name. “And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven." (Luke 12:10; Mark 3:29)
The Holy Spirit "...will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I [Jesus] said to you." (John 14:26) Therefore, the Holy Spirit confirms the Word of God to be the Truth. God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (I Corinthians 2:10-13)
Secondly, the books of the Bible are eyewitness accounts, and not people's feelings or opinions. And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (II Peter 1:19-21) The same Holy Spirit that fills us when we become saved is the same Holy Spirit that wrote the scriptures, by the hand of men. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
Once we are sure that we truly believe the Word of God, then we have to continue Studying to show thyself approved unto God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (II Timothy 2:15) Not only will we ...be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; (Colossians 1:9) but we will also be better able to know when we are hearing false teaching or being taught by a false teacher.
The most important thing we have to do if we profess to be Christians is believe the Word of God! We are not Christians if we don't believe the Word of God! For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” (Romans 4:3) What did Abraham believe? What God said, whatever God said! Before Jesus was born, Abraham was saved because he believed the Word of God! So what is salvation? Believing the Word of God!
This can not be stressed enough! Too many people call themselves Christians, but they don't believe everything written in the scriptures. No, we may not understand everything, "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My [Jesus] name, He will teach you all things,..." (John 14:26) Remember, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. ... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-2, 14)
Two things, first Jesus Christ is the Word of God in the flesh, so we must believe the Word of God as recorded in the scriptures, and we must believe in Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God; Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2) As confirmation that we are saved, the Father will send the Holy Spirit in Jesus name. “And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven." (Luke 12:10; Mark 3:29)
The Holy Spirit "...will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I [Jesus] said to you." (John 14:26) Therefore, the Holy Spirit confirms the Word of God to be the Truth. God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (I Corinthians 2:10-13)
Secondly, the books of the Bible are eyewitness accounts, and not people's feelings or opinions. And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (II Peter 1:19-21) The same Holy Spirit that fills us when we become saved is the same Holy Spirit that wrote the scriptures, by the hand of men. For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
Once we are sure that we truly believe the Word of God, then we have to continue Studying to show thyself approved unto God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (II Timothy 2:15) Not only will we ...be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; (Colossians 1:9) but we will also be better able to know when we are hearing false teaching or being taught by a false teacher.
But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. (II Peter 2:1-3)
Peter would refute the Gnostics and Antinomians. Gnostics taught that in addition to believing in Christ, one must also receive esoteric knowledge, that salvation could be gained through secret knowledge. Antinomians taught that since salvation was by grace alone, the requirements of the moral law were irrelevant. (*Strong's Key Word Study Bible notes) Both of these teachings were false and lead to dangerous lifestyle choices that are outside of the Will of God and contrary to scripture.
If we don't know the Word of God for ourselves, we can hear something that sounds good to our natural mind; but remember, the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” [Isaiah 40:13] But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:14-16)
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 [Job 4:18; Job 15:14-16; Jude 1:6]; 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 [Genesis 7]; and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly [Genesis 19:1-29;Jude 1:7]; and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds) [Genesis 18:16-33, 19:29]— then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,... (II Peter 2:4-9)
God knows how to and will deal with all the false teachers, who leads anyone astray with their false teaching. Jesus warned, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin [*to stumble], it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea." (Matthew 18:6; *Mark 9:24) We just have to make sure that we are one of the ones who, if we teach, study and rightly dividing the word of truth; and when we are being taught, that we have the mind of Christ, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
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