The Scriptures are God's Greatest Gift to Mankind

[VictoryinJesus]

GOD'S WORD® Translation
I will bow toward your holy temple. I will give thanks to your name because of your mercy and truth. You have made your name and your promise greater than everything.

For thy mercy, and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy holy name above all.

for your loving kindness and for your truth; for you have exalted your Name and your Word above all.

I bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness, for you have exalted above all things your name and your word.

Makes me think of 1 Corinthians 3:19-23 ...Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours; [22] Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; [23] And ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's.

And,

for your unfailing love and your faithfulness, for you have so exalted your solemn decree that it surpasses your fame.

Ephesians 3:19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

 

[John Caldwell]

We probably should remember in the Hebrew faith God's name and word are inseparable (they are essentially the same). God's word is God's name expressed.

 

[John Caldwell]

We will have to agree to disagree...

And, as I said before, rejecting that the Bible is the word of God is in effect tantamount to rejecting Christ Himself, IMPAHO.

Yes, we have to agree to disagree.

I do agree that the Bible is God's word (as I said in the post you quote).

But Jesus Christ is not the Bible.

The Bible is not greater than or equal to God.

Anytime someone says "___________ is greater than God" they are wrong.

 

[marksman]

Scripture is the greatest gift to mankind, because God has designed it to be used by the Spirit to save the elect who are scattered worldwide.
We do not know who the elect are,so we preach and teach all we are able to reach.
All who are Christian today,were at one point children of wrath even as others Eph.2 :1-3, But GOD who is rich in mercy intervenes.
The word of God is the instrument used by the Spirit. Heb4:12

Where the problem lies is that you read the scripture and know about God but you never get to know God which is far more important.

I had an experience when I was taken up into heaven and met God himself. That did for me what no reading of scripture could do as I got to know him, not about him.

My impression is that most of what goes on in the church is to enable us to know about God, not to know God.

 

[justbyfaith]

Yes, we have to agree to disagree.

I do agree that the Bible is God's word (as I said in the post you quote).

But Jesus Christ is not the Bible.

The Bible is not greater than or equal to God.

Anytime someone says "___________ is greater than God" they are wrong.

He has magnified His word above all His name, according to Psalms 138:2 (kjv).

Going to another translation because you don't like that one is what was prophesied in 2 Timothy 4:3.

Jesus Christ is the Word (John 1:1, John 1:14)...

And the Bible is also the word of God. (This is a first truth.)

This is to say that the Bible accurately portrays to us who Christ is and contains within all of its pages the fulness of what we are to know about Christ. It represents perfectly the nature and character of Christ; and tells us accurately everything that we need to know about salvation in Christ.

 

[justbyfaith]

I had an experience when I was taken up into heaven and met God himself. That did for me what no reading of scripture could do as I got to know him, not about him.

My impression is that most of what goes on in the church is to enable us to know about God, not to know God.

I have also had such an experience.

However, I know that the decision that I made that led up to that experience would not have been made unless I had first had the word of the Lord planted in my heart.

For I was tempted to sell my soul to the devil and the scripture came to mind that I had heard in church three to four years prior to that, that What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and yet forfeits his soul? it was immediately subsequent to this that I prayed, "God I don't know if you're real, but I'm going to start reading Your word and doing what it says; and I know that if You're real You will reveal Yourself to me." God didn't wait: He came upon me in waves of liquid love and I believe that I may have even been in heaven; though my eyes were blinded and I could not see anything; the presence that I felt was overwhelmingly beautiful.

What I am saying is that the preaching of God's word is important because it leads to the salvation of souls.

When we receive salvation, we often get a revelation of who God is that is supernatural.

But what of those who have not yet received such a supernatural revelation?

It is written,

Rom 10:13, For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Rom 10:14, How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
Rom 10:15, And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

 

[justbyfaith]

I do agree that the Bible is God's word (as I said in the post you quote).

Actually, you said the opposite:

His Word is not the Bible.

 

[marksman]

I have also had such an experience.

However, I know that the decision that I made that led up to that experience would not have been made unless I had first had the word of the Lord planted in my heart.

For I was tempted to sell my soul to the devil and the scripture came to mind that I had heard in church three to four years prior to that, that What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and yet forfeits his soul? it was immediately subsequent to this that I prayed, "God I don't know if you're real, but I'm going to start reading Your word and doing what it says; and I know that if You're real You will reveal Yourself to me." God didn't wait: He came upon me in waves of liquid love and I believe that I may have even been in heaven; though my eyes were blinded and I could not see anything; the presence that I felt was overwhelmingly beautiful.

There is a difference. You said "I may have been in heaven." My experience wasn't a maybe. It was a reality that happened. If you have been to heaven, you will know you have. You won't have a maybe experience.

 

[farouk]

There is a difference. You said "I may have been in heaven." My experience wasn't a maybe. It was a reality that happened. If you have been to heaven, you will know you have. You won't have a maybe experience.

@marksman Ephesians 1 says that believers are seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.

 

[justbyfaith]

There is a difference. You said "I may have been in heaven." My experience wasn't a maybe. It was a reality that happened. If you have been to heaven, you will know you have. You won't have a maybe experience.

God hid my eyes from seeing what was there.

It was no maybe in what I felt as the presence of the Lord.

But I believe that the Lord can make His presence felt in that way while we are on the earth also.

So, even as Paul said,

2Co 12:2, I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth; ) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
2Co 12:3, And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth; )
2Co 12:4, How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

I do not know if I was in my body on earth or if my spirit was translated to heaven; but the presence of the Lord that I felt was just as powerful as if I were in heaven itself; and there is no doubt about that whatsoever in my mind. Maybe heaven is even more powerful, though (that would be awesome!).

 

[marksman]

God hid my eyes from seeing what was there.

It was no maybe in what I felt as the presence of the Lord.

But I believe that the Lord can make His presence felt in that way while we are on the earth also.

So, even as Paul said,

2Co 12:2, I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth; ) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
2Co 12:3, And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth; )
2Co 12:4, How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

I do not know if I was in my body on earth or if my spirit was translated to heaven; but the presence of the Lord that I felt was just as powerful as if I were in heaven itself; and there is no doubt about that whatsoever in my mind. Maybe heaven is even more powerful, though (that would be awesome!).

We were not talking about his presence. We were talking about going to heaven. I didn't maybe go to heaven. I did go to heaven full stop.

 

[justbyfaith]

What did you see?

Notice what it says in 1 Corinthians 2:9.

 

[marksman]

What did you see?

Notice what it says in 1 Corinthians 2:9.

I was ushered into the throne room of God and saw him sat on his throne. We hugged each other and I noticed that he was crying so I asked him why and he said he had been waiting for this for a long time. At that moment of time, I knew he was crazy about me.

 

[justbyfaith]

I believe that the sights of heaven were hidden from me because Jesus would send me back and He knew that I would be reading a specific scripture not long afterwards; which might have stumbled me in my faith if He had shown me the sights of heaven.

 

[mjrhealth]

Amen!

@John Caldwell
In my days in the Navy, when I came home from a long stint, all we ever wanted to do was be in one anothers arms, and so it is with our Husband Christ, no better place to be.

God bless

 

[justbyfaith]

@marksman,

But now, I have sinned against you, brother.

Because you have been questioning my experience of heaven, I felt compelled to also question yours.

Abba, I pray that You will hide from his eyes the thing that would stumble him. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

 

[mjrhealth]

As is the Holy Bible.

So when,

Mat 16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
Mat 16:23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.


that is the word of God so God according to you and the bible is satan, since that is Gods word.

Mat_4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

So what Peter spoke was not Gods word was it???

 

[justbyfaith]

We were not talking about his presence. We were talking about going to heaven. I didn't maybe go to heaven. I did go to heaven full stop.

So, you died?

 

[justbyfaith]

So when,

Mat 16:22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
Mat 16:23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.


that is the word of God so God according to you and the bible is satan, since that is Gods word.

Mat_4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

So what Peter spoke was not Gods word was it???

It was contained in God's word as a record of what came from Peter (not God).

You are really grasping at straws here.

 

[marksman]

So, you died?

Did I?