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The Holy Spirit

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Why is it important to know the Holy Spirit? The Christian life is not hard. It is impossible. It is a miraculous and supernatural life. Christianity is not what you do for God, but what He does for you, in you and through you by His Spirit. The problem is not God, but us. We limit Him in our lives. The problem with many of us is not because God does not want to help us. God has provided everything; the only problem is our ignorance or refusal to avail of His provision. The Holy Spirit is a divine person, sent to indwelling, guide, teach, empower the believer, and convince the world of sin, of righteousness, and of Judgement. The Doctrine of the trinity states that God is one and that the three persons of the trinity. The Greek words in verse 16 for “another counselor” are: - Allos (“another of the same kind”) - pkrakletos (Comforter, Advocate) This Spirit is “of the same kind” as God the son. He is our parakleto or one who comes to our aid. and comforts us and provides an

What is the meaning of the cross?

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Simply put, the meaning of the cross is death. From about the 6th century BC until the 4th century AD, the cross was an instrument of execution that resulted in death by the most torturous and painful of ways. In crucifixion a person was either tied or nailed to a wooden cross and left to hang until dead. Death would be slow and excruciatingly painful; in fact, the word excruciating literally means “out of crucifying.” However, because of Christ and His death on the cross, the meaning of the cross today is completely different. In Christianity, the cross is the intersection of God’s love and His justice. Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). The reference to Jesus as the Lamb of God points back to the institution of the Jewish Passover in Exodus 12. The Israelites were commanded to sacrifice an unblemished lamb and smear the blood of that lamb on the doorposts of their homes. The blood would be the sign for the Angel of Death to “pass over”

What Are You Hearing about Jesus?

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"She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe. For she thought to herself, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition." Mark 5:27–29, NLT Perhaps like the woman with the issue of blood in the Gospels (see Mark 5:25–34), you are facing an impossibly hopeless situation in your life. It could be a debilitating sickness, a marital situation, a financial crisis, or a prolonged challenge. In the natural, the future looks dismal and there appears to be no reason to hope. If that is you, I encourage you to believe that you too can experience the kind of breakthrough this woman experienced. Imagine: for twelve long years, she had watched helplessly as her condition went from bad to worse no matter what she tried. Most of us would have given up. How did she find hope in the midst of her hopelessness? What gave her t

Tendre l'autre joue, sérieux ?

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Grace

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“The very center and core of the whole Bible is the doctrine of the grace of God.” –J. Gresham Machen “Grace” is the most important concept in the Bible, Christianity, and the world. It is most clearly expressed in the promises of God revealed in Scripture and embodied in Jesus Christ. Grace is the love of God shown to the unlovely; the peace of God given to the restless; the unmerited favor of God. What is Grace?: Christian Quotes About Grace “Grace is free sovereign favor to the ill-deserving.”(B.B. Warfield) “Grace is love that cares and stoops and rescues.”(John Stott) “[Grace] is God reaching downward to people who are in rebellion against Him.”(Jerry Bridges) “Grace is unconditional love toward a person who does not deserve it.” (Paul Zahl) Grace is most needed and best understood in the midst of sin, suffering, and brokenness. We live in a world of earning, deserving, and merit, and these result in judgment. That is why everyone wants and needs grace. Judgment kills. Onl

Does Hebrews 6:4-6 mean we can lose our salvation?

Hebrews 6:4–6 states, “It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance.” This is one of the Bible’s most difficult passages to interpret, but one thing is clear—it does not teach that we can lose our salvation. There are two valid ways of looking at these verses: One interpretation holds that this passage is written not about Christians but about unbelievers who are convinced of the basic truths of the gospel but who have not placed their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. They are intellectually persuaded but spiritually uncommitted. According to this interpretation, the phrase once enlightened (Hebrews 6:4) refers to some level of instruction in biblical truth. However, understanding the words of Scripture is not the same as being regenerated by the Holy Spirit. For