The Truth will set/make you free

[Heart2Soul]

Bringing this back to open it up for discussion again.....
I am still gaining new wisdom, knowledge and understanding even more so since the time this was first posted....how about you?

 

[Timtofly]

What I mean is that if we stop continuing in His Word as He says then we can obtain a certain knowledge of His Truth.....and it goes so much deeper than just salvation.

An editorial note: you may want to remove "stop"

 

[Heart2Soul]

An editorial note: you may want to remove "stop"

Prior..."if"....meaning unless we continue to seek Him, His hidden wisdom....then what level we have come to in our knowledge stops growing....some Christian's never cease to be on the milk of His Word....
Ever wonder what the milk is and what the meat is of His Word?

 

[farouk]

Prior..."if"....meaning unless we continue to seek Him, His hidden wisdom....then what level we have come to in our knowledge stops growing....some Christian's never cease to be on the milk of His Word....
Ever wonder what the milk is and what the meat is of His Word?

Consistent doctrine would probably count as strong meat.

 

[farouk]

Bringing this back to open it up for discussion again.....
I am still gaining new wisdom, knowledge and understanding even more so since the time this was first posted....how about you?

@Heart2Soul I also love the passage in Proverbs 8 about wisdom personified.

 

[Heart2Soul]

Consistent doctrine would probably count as strong meat.

The word “milk” in the above quote (Greek gala) means the basic, elemental teachings of Christianity first learned by new believers according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of the Old and New Testaments. The word “meat” in 1Corinthians is from the Greek word “Broma”. Its’ Strong’s number is G1033. It means the deeper, more complete teachings of God’s Word.
Paul addressed several church-related problems in his first letter to the Corinthians. There was one problem that he knew was carnal. This problem was evidence of their spiritual immaturity. Some in Corinth had aligned themselves to certain teachers (Paul, Apollos, Peter). They were causing contentions and divisions in the church by arguing about which preacher was the most spiritual (verses 3 – 23)! Paul thought that teaching the church the deeper truths of God would be a waste of time. After all how could they understand the deeper principles of the scriptures if they continued to entangle themselves in petty debates over who was ‘the greatest!’

Paul contrasts the idea of spiritual “milk” and “meat” in his letter to the Hebrews.

Hebrews 5:12 (KJV) – “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.”

Paul does state, a few verses later, some of the teachings he considers are the “first principles of the oracles of God.”

• Repentance
• Faith in God
• Baptism and its meaning
• The laying on of hands
• The resurrection of the dead
• Eternal judgment (Hebrews 6:1-2)

Hebrews 6:1-2 (KJV) – “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

 

[Heart2Soul]

@Heart2Soul I also love the passage in Proverbs 8 about wisdom personified.

When I was 24 and fully committed my life to Him I prayed and asked the Holy Spirit to teach me His word and where to start...and He said Proverbs.....right off the bat I learned to seek wisdom, knowledge and understanding.

 

[farouk]

The word “milk” in the above quote (Greek gala) means the basic, elemental teachings of Christianity first learned by new believers according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of the Old and New Testaments. The word “meat” in 1Corinthians is from the Greek word “Broma”. Its’ Strong’s number is G1033. It means the deeper, more complete teachings of God’s Word.
Paul addressed several church-related problems in his first letter to the Corinthians. There was one problem that he knew was carnal. This problem was evidence of their spiritual immaturity. Some in Corinth had aligned themselves to certain teachers (Paul, Apollos, Peter). They were causing contentions and divisions in the church by arguing about which preacher was the most spiritual (verses 3 – 23)! Paul thought that teaching the church the deeper truths of God would be a waste of time. After all how could they understand the deeper principles of the scriptures if they continued to entangle themselves in petty debates over who was ‘the greatest!’

Paul contrasts the idea of spiritual “milk” and “meat” in his letter to the Hebrews.

Hebrews 5:12 (KJV) – “For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.”

Paul does state, a few verses later, some of the teachings he considers are the “first principles of the oracles of God.”

• Repentance
• Faith in God
• Baptism and its meaning
• The laying on of hands
• The resurrection of the dead
• Eternal judgment (Hebrews 6:1-2)

Hebrews 6:1-2 (KJV) – “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

@Heart2Soul Good source; there's a lot of good material in Vine's.

 

[farouk]

When I was 24 and fully committed my life to Him I prayed and asked the Holy Spirit to teach me His word and where to start...and He said Proverbs.....right off the bat I learned to seek wisdom, knowledge and understanding.

@Heart2Soul Good to be able to look back on one's personal feeding on the Word...

 

[Timtofly]

Prior..."if"....meaning unless we continue to seek Him, His hidden wisdom....then what level we have come to in our knowledge stops growing....some Christian's never cease to be on the milk of His Word....
Ever wonder what the milk is and what the meat is of His Word?

How can we obtain more understanding if we stop reading the Bible?

 

[farouk]

How can we obtain more understanding if we stop reading the Bible?

Good question; I don't think @Heart2Soul is suggesting stopping reading the Word, though.

 

[Heart2Soul]

How can we obtain more understanding if we stop reading the Bible?

NOOOOOOO! Read it, read it again, ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand it, to rightly divide it and to properly apply it.
That you may grow to eat of the meat of the word.

 

[Heart2Soul]

@farouk....the truth of His Word is indeed liberating. When I read Proverbs and realized how powerful our words are....even to the point that it causes death or life....well I began a journey of putting a watch guard over my mouth.
If someone said to my children "get down from there before you get hurt" I would immediately rebuke those words and ask God to cause them to wither up and not manifest.
I wouldn't say things to them like..."you better not go in there the boogeyman will get you"
Because it instills fear in them....neither of my kids fear anything as adults....lol.
I had to practice to stop saying things over myself that were negative
....i.e. why did you do that?! You're such a loser! That was so stupid! Why can't I get it right! I will never succeed....
Etc etc....
Once a word is spoken it can't be unspoken.

 

[Paul Christensen]

Well...yes! Even though God has not shared everything in scripture, to say that there is only one layer to the knowledge in it is foolish! Not that I've ever met anyone who's said that, thankfully! I suppose when we think of it, even the topic of Salvation itself is so dense that really, we could just dig into that for years and years. As bible scholars have been...minds much greater than mine.
The bible says concerning salvation: "It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look." - 1 Peter 1:12




But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. - John 14:26

I think when we realise that God's total mission is to save as many of the lost as possible, and that the Bible shows His plan of salvation which He designed before the foundation of the world, then the Bible, in all its historical twists and turns, makes sense. In my view, the Holy Spirit is in total unity with the Father in His mission to save the lost, and totally supports the commission to go into all the world and make disciples for Christ. Therefore, the insights that He gives us in the written Word are to more effectively equip us to move in the power of the Holy Spirit that when we share the gospel with the unsaved, we see God's awesome power at work.

Paul said, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes". This is why the Holy Spirit teaches us by giving insight into what He is saying to us through the written Scriptures. He is equipping us to harness and use the power of the gospel to get people saved.

I think that a lot of what people call Holy Spirit power, especially when people are observed to shake, jerk, have goosebumps up their spine and call it an anointing, fall over, and other wacky manifestations, it seems to me like the steam is going out through the whistle instead of the driving wheels. These manifestations have nothing to do with the power of the Holy Spirit, but we see His awesome power when we tell someone that Jesus died for them on the cross and that they can live forever if they repent and believe in Him. Because someone being born again of the Spirit of God is an awesome miracle, especially when the transformation takes place right before our eyes.

So it is more than just salvation for us who believe, but equipping through insights into written Scripture and the gifts of the Spirit working through us to get right to the heart of those who need to hear the voice of God and be saved.

 

[Heart2Soul]

I think when we realise that God's total mission is to save as many of the lost as possible, and that the Bible shows His plan of salvation which He designed before the foundation of the world, then the Bible, in all its historical twists and turns, makes sense. In my view, the Holy Spirit is in total unity with the Father in His mission to save the lost, and totally supports the commission to go into all the world and make disciples for Christ. Therefore, the insights that He gives us in the written Word are to more effectively equip us to move in the power of the Holy Spirit that when we share the gospel with the unsaved, we see God's awesome power at work.

Paul said, "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes". This is why the Holy Spirit teaches us by giving insight into what He is saying to us through the written Scriptures. He is equipping us to harness and use the power of the gospel to get people saved.

I think that a lot of what people call Holy Spirit power, especially when people are observed to shake, jerk, have goosebumps up their spine and call it an anointing, fall over, and other wacky manifestations, it seems to me like the steam is going out through the whistle instead of the driving wheels. These manifestations have nothing to do with the power of the Holy Spirit, but we see His awesome power when we tell someone that Jesus died for them on the cross and that they can live forever if they repent and believe in Him. Because someone being born again of the Spirit of God is an awesome miracle, especially when the transformation takes place right before our eyes.

So it is more than just salvation for us who believe, but equipping through insights into written Scripture and the gifts of the Spirit working through us to get right to the heart of those who need to hear the voice of God and be saved.

Well precisely, it is more than salvation, it is seeking and seeking and never stop seeking His Wisdom, knowledge and understanding....His Kingdom....His hidden wisdom...to know the mysteries of God.
As far as how people react to the presence and anointing of the Holy Spirit I cannot know if it is real or not unless I am there and it would be easy to identify if it is of the flesh or indeed of the spirit.
When I pray and all of a sudden I feel His presence, my flesh gets goose bumps all over it.....and sometimes I cry tears of joy of just knowing He is there with me.
But this is what I am speaking of....I didn't have a spiritual relationship when I first got saved...I was only 7....so all I had was head knowledge....but as I grew and started getting a deeper understanding then it started becoming a spiritual knowledge.
So new born Christians are just learning the basics....it's hard to teach them about spiritual things when they are still very carnal.

 

[Rita]

Bringing this back to open it up for discussion again.....
I am still gaining new wisdom, knowledge and understanding even more so since the time this was first posted....how about you?

I posted way back and said it was a good post (the OP ) kind of read it with fresh eyes this morning xx
I think many Christians believe there are only two levels of growth, childhood and maturity.........many proberbly don’t even realise they are stuck in the middle. I was definitely stuck, but not sure it was because of theology, I was just plain stuck in a mindset all of my own making !!!!!!!
Rita

 

[Heart2Soul]

I posted way back and said it was a good post (the OP ) kind of read it with fresh eyes this morning xx
I think many Christians believe there are only two levels of growth, childhood and maturity.........many proberbly don’t even realise they are stuck in the middle. I was definitely stuck, but not sure it was because of theology, I was just plain stuck in a mindset all of my own making !!!!!!!
Rita

Yeah that can happen as well....I wish I could share openly some hidden wisdom He has shown me....but I don't want to jump ahead of the Holy Spirit...only He knows when a person is ready to receive a deeper revelation.

 

[marksman]

John 8:32
The Truth will Set You Free
31So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples. 32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33“We are Abraham’s descendants,” they answered. “We have never been slaves to anyone. How can You say we will be set free?”…

I was praying and meditating on this yesterday and this is what the Holy Spirit spoke to me.
His Word is Truth and it is Truth on many levels....to the newborn in Christ....the Truth that set them free is Salvation through Christ....to the saints growing from the milk of the Word the Truth that sets free is the foundations of the teaching of how we are to walk in the spirit and not the flesh....to those who are into the meat of His Word the Truth that sets us free is learning how to operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit and to battle the enemy using our authority in Christ....then to those who are able to get to the higher calling the Truth that sets us free is the hidden wisdom of God that shows us the mysteries of God.....

The Truth that sets us free is there throughout our growing walk with Him and it is a continual Truth....some get bogged down and stuck in just one area of it through religious doctrines and cannot continue any further....others move on to the deeper truths but lack simple faith to believe for it to happen for them (it only happens for others)...not seeing themselves in the likeness and image of Him...and for those it takes longer to move forward....but to those who reach the higher calling they have attained the Truth that sets them free from lacking faith of any possibilities....that nothing is impossible to God...they can walk on water like Jesus....move mountains....cast out demons...heal the sick....make the blind to see and the deaf to hear....they are the true disciples of Christ....following His example in every way....

Here is hope....the Bible says...John 16:13
However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.

So what level of Truth are you at right now? I urge you to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you to deeper levels of truth....to open your eyes to see and your ears to hear what He would have you to know at this point of your spiritual walk....line upon line...precept upon precept....Amen.

P.S. Jesus said IF you continue in my Word....

I am glad you have said that because from what I read here it is anything but the truth that sets people free. Here are some examples.

The Reformed faith sets people free.
What the denomination believes sets you free.
Quoting one verse of scripture sets you free.
Believing you are right and everyone else is wrong sets you free.
Speaking in tongues sets you free.
The church sets you free.
Singing raucous songs sets you free.
Having a leader who is God sets you free.
Letting the congregation do only what you want it to do sets them free.
Doing the same thing every week sets you free.
Avoiding walking in the Spirit sets you free.

I am sure you can add to this list without any problem.

 

[Heart2Soul]

I am glad you have said that because from what I read here it is anything but the truth that sets people free. Here are some examples.

The Reformed faith sets people free.
What the denomination believes sets you free.
Quoting one verse of scripture sets you free.
Believing you are right and everyone else is wrong sets you free.
Speaking in tongues sets you free.
The church sets you free.
Singing raucous songs sets you free.
Having a leader who is God sets you free.
Letting the congregation do only what you want it to do sets them free.
Doing the same thing every week sets you free.
Avoiding walking in the Spirit sets you free.

I am sure you can add to this list without any problem.

Well that's what those on the milk do...when we really start getting hungry for a deeper truth and seek it then we will find it.
So those who are spiritual (like Paul was saying) have to have patience to teach those who are carnal with humble spirit remembering from whence we came...being fed on the milk.

 

[Prayer Warrior]

John 8:32
The Truth will Set You Free
31So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples. 32Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33“We are Abraham’s descendants,” they answered. “We have never been slaves to anyone. How can You say we will be set free?”…

I was praying and meditating on this yesterday and this is what the Holy Spirit spoke to me.
His Word is Truth and it is Truth on many levels....to the newborn in Christ....the Truth that set them free is Salvation through Christ....to the saints growing from the milk of the Word the Truth that sets free is the foundations of the teaching of how we are to walk in the spirit and not the flesh....to those who are into the meat of His Word the Truth that sets us free is learning how to operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit and to battle the enemy using our authority in Christ....then to those who are able to get to the higher calling the Truth that sets us free is the hidden wisdom of God that shows us the mysteries of God.....

The Truth that sets us free is there throughout our growing walk with Him and it is a continual Truth....some get bogged down and stuck in just one area of it through religious doctrines and cannot continue any further....others move on to the deeper truths but lack simple faith to believe for it to happen for them (it only happens for others)...not seeing themselves in the likeness and image of Him...and for those it takes longer to move forward....but to those who reach the higher calling they have attained the Truth that sets them free from lacking faith of any possibilities....that nothing is impossible to God...they can walk on water like Jesus....move mountains....cast out demons...heal the sick....make the blind to see and the deaf to hear....they are the true disciples of Christ....following His example in every way....

Here is hope....the Bible says...John 16:13
However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.

So what level of Truth are you at right now? I urge you to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you to deeper levels of truth....to open your eyes to see and your ears to hear what He would have you to know at this point of your spiritual walk....line upon line...precept upon precept....Amen.

P.S. Jesus said IF you continue in my Word....

I was surprised to see that this thread is almost 2 years old! It's been brought back to life.