In what ways does the Holy Spirit act in you?

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shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
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#61
It may be a limited faith that prevents a person receiving what He has to give.
 
Mar 17, 2021
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#62
"I think",.... we are not to lean on our own understanding, but in ALL things acknowledge Him, and He promises to make our path straight. Leaning on ones own understanding is exemplified but "I think".
He promises to give His confirmation and He always does.
best wishes
Not leaning on our understanding is not turning our brains off and departing from commonsense reasoning. God gave us a Bible to study and to meditate on, that requires that we use our brain to use comprehension 101 to see what God is saying to us in the pages of Scripture.
 
Mar 17, 2021
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#63
It may be a limited faith that prevents a person receiving what He has to give.
Faith involves reading the Bible to find God's will, and doing the Bible to do His will.

Putting faith in visions, dreams, "new" revelations, and sensory feelings is not doing the Bible.

Revelation that is not consistent with written Scripture is heresy.
Revelation that is consistent with written Scripture is superfluous and unnecessary.
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
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#64
No, you have a very limited grasp of how He works. every gift Jesus manifested is available to every believer as we grow in Him.
If you would spend more time with Him than posting here you would be rewarded, Jesus told us clearly in these days most would have an outward form of godliness denying the power, that seems to be where you are.
not spending anymore of His time on this.
best wishes
 

2ndTimothyGroup

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2021
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#65
I'm going to be difficult here as well. I'm not trying to be contentious, but to get you to look closely at the book of Acts, because it is there where we have the evidence of the work of the Holy Spirit. Actually Acts could be named, "Acts of the Holy Spirit".

So, can you compare your sensory experiences with how the Holy Spirit worked in the book of Acts? If you can't find anything like "electricity" or any other sensory experience, even peace and love, then you have to question what you are experiencing.

My view is that if we conclude that the Holy Spirit is moving in us because we feel electrical current, peace or love flowing in us, then we are not concluding on the basis of faith. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, and without faith it is impossible to please God. The definition of faith is the evidence of things not seen (or felt), and the assurance of things hoped for. Therefore faith is trust and dependence on the written promises of God in the Bible.

Faith based on sensory experiences tends toward New Age mysticism. We know that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, gentleness, kindness, patience, faithfulness, goodness, and self-control. But these are not sensory feelings and somehow flow through us. These are how we conduct ourselves as we walk in the Spirit. They are what we practice, ie: acts of our will. We can feel like we do when we trudge off to work on a cold, grey, Monday morning, and yet practice love, joy and peace in spite of how we feel.

If our love, joy and peace is based on how we feel, then when we stop feeling these things, we stop doing them. We get grumpy, depressed and discordant in our actions. But when our love, joy and peace depends on our faith in Christ, then we can feel like what comes out of the backside of a horse, and yet be loving, joyful and peaceful.

Also the true test of walking in the Spirit is what we do at work on a cold, grey, Monday morning when everything goes wrong and the boss comes and chews us out. If you can do love, joy, and peace under those circumstances, then you are walking in the Spirit. Therefore having all sorts of warm fuzzy feelings flowing through you on Sunday at church is really no indication that you are walking in the Spirit.

Of course, the real power of the Holy Spirit working through you is your workmates seeing your love, joy, peace, and patience when your work turns to effluent and the boss is angry at you, and they think to themselves, "Now that guy is a real Christian and the next time he talks to us about the Gospel, we will listen to him."
After reading what you've written, I'd say that you're letting your human knowledge get in the way. Be careful that you don't put our Christ into a box.

Is there an experience that I relate to in Acts? Yes . . . the Damascus Road experience. What happened to young Saul is a relatively unique experience by anyone else in Scripture, and what do we find in Paul? The greatest evangelist the world has ever seen, and he was committed beyond imagination. Why? In an instant, He knew the Truth . . . and that Truth permanently changed him.

Outside of this, I will not be arguing my most Holy, Righteous experience with our Christ. If you want to be ruler and judge, that's fine . . . it doesn't bother me at all, but I certainly won't be sharing my story/experience again. Cheers!
 
Mar 17, 2021
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#66
No, you have a very limited grasp of how He works. every gift Jesus manifested is available to every believer as we grow in Him.
If you would spend more time with Him than posting here you would be rewarded, Jesus told us clearly in these days most would have an outward form of godliness denying the power, that seems to be where you are.
not spending anymore of His time on this.
best wishes
What power do you mean?
Paul said that the power of God is the Gospel of Christ that leads to salvation to those who believe it. When he told the Corinthians that he was going to come to them with the demonstration of the Spirit and power, he meant that he was going to preach the Gospel to them with the Holy Spirit confirming the Word with healing and casting out of demons.

The real power of God is shown in the story of Gregory the Wonderworker. He spent the night in a pagan temple and cast the demon out of the idol. When the pagan priest came the next morning, he couldn't do the supernatural stuff that he could do before, because the demon was no longer in the statue. He then begged Gregory to allow the demon back into the statue so he could do his job as priest. Gregory allowed it, but the pagans around knew that Jesus Christ was more powerful than the pagan demon, and they turned to Christ. Even the priest himself got converted and became the first bishop of the region. That is what the demonstration of the Spirit is all about.
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
13,943
7,853
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#67
After reading what you've written, I'd say that you're letting your human knowledge get in the way. Be careful that you don't put our Christ into a box.

Is there an experience that I relate to in Acts? Yes . . . the Damascus Road experience. What happened to young Saul is a relatively unique experience by anyone else in Scripture, and what do we find in Paul? The greatest evangelist the world has ever seen, and he was committed beyond imagination. Why? In an instant, He knew the Truth . . . and that Truth permanently changed him.

Outside of this, I will not be arguing my most Holy, Righteous experience with our Christ. If you want to be ruler and judge, that's fine . . . it doesn't bother me at all, but I certainly won't be sharing my story/experience again. Cheers!
Pearls before swine..........? good decision 2nd Tim....
blessings
 

Lafftur

Senior Member
Apr 18, 2017
6,896
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#69
Absolutely. Any dream, vision, or experience that goes beyond the bounds of God's Word, is a counterfeit.
So....should Peter have thrown out the vision of all the unclean things on a sheet.......which meant God was allowing the Gentiles in and Peter would VERY soon go to Cornelius’ house......

Just saying......God doesn’t like to be put in boundaries or boxes.....ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD, amen. :love:(y)
 

2ndTimothyGroup

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2021
5,883
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#70
Pearls before swine..........? good decision 2nd Tim....
blessings
I hear what you're saying . . . that said, I want to make sure that PChristenson doesn't feel that I view him as actual swine. Again, I hear you. PChristenson has a solid grasp on Scriptures, in my meager opinion. I was just making a strong point that when we hear of things that we haven't heard of before, we shouldn't be so quick to rule them out. That kind of thinking hinges upon horrific statements from "christians" such as . . . "What I say has been established by the Lord!" Uggg . . . my former best friend of 35 years once felt that way about himself. Well, he felt that way until decades passed and he was able to see that his wretched, pathetic life disqualified all of those ideas that he once held onto like a stick of pride.

My current landlord claims that she has the "favor of the Lord." Yikes. She doesn't pay taxes on her rental income, abuses her beautiful horse, has contributed to causing the elderly man that I've watched for three years to not want to wake up in the mornings, drinks booze while she rides the horse, even refusing to protect him from an aggressive, mid-sized dog that lives about two football fields away. Instead of acknowledging the fear of her 83-year-old tenant, she ignored him completely. But . . . because she has the "favor of the Lord," if a person says ANYTHING that she does not agree with, by default, that person is completely wrong. And of course! For, she has the favor of the Lord! Pft . . . in two years she has shown nothing that resembles a Godly page from the Bible.

I'm 99% PChristenson isn't like the above human with a stony heart. I just like to get people to remember that we're to listen and be willing to learn. We don't have to run around correcting everyone on everything thing goes against our knowledge base. I get it . . . I've done it! I'm guilty! I've wanted to change this about myself for a long time . . . lately I've been feeling like the Lord may have flipped this Spiritual Switch for me . . . and that I am in a period of change for the better. I hope so.

Pchristenson is good beans. I'd recommend that others read what he says.
 

2ndTimothyGroup

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2021
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#71
So....should Peter have thrown out the vision of all the unclean things on a sheet.......which meant God was allowing the Gentiles in and Peter would VERY soon go to Cornelius’ house......

Just saying......God doesn’t like to be put in boundaries or boxes.....ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE WITH GOD, amen. :love:(y)
Amen, smart one. Check this out . . .

John 21:25 NKJV - "And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen."

Since my Bible is only 1490 pages from beginning to end, it sounds like that a bajillion spiritual events took place that we've never heard about. But, because they're not recorded in the Bible, if one of those Spiritual Events took place within the life of another person, it would be discredited because that type of event wasn't Biblically recorded.

Wink . . . it's clear . . . isn't it. haha
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
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#72
There are so many others here I would recommend before that, his posts don't seem mature in the faith that we are commanded to grow in, Heal, cleanse, preach, raise, etc.
Not suggested any are "swine" either, our Creator saw fit to use those words in His Word.
If one is sticking to what is written, that is written as well to show that some will choose to limit Him. The Gospel tells there were so many more acts of Jesus that they would fill all the books of the world if reduced to writing, yet a person who claims to be His limits their unlimited God to what has been given us in scripture.
best wishes
 

Lafftur

Senior Member
Apr 18, 2017
6,896
3,636
113
#73
Not leaning on our understanding is not turning our brains off and departing from commonsense reasoning. God gave us a Bible to study and to meditate on, that requires that we use our brain to use comprehension 101 to see what God is saying to us in the pages of Scripture.
No, try using your HEART instead of your BRAIN.....the heart can understand MORE than the brain.

God said we would find Him when we seek Him with ALL our heart, He said NOTHING about seeking Him with our brain.

Do you realize that all our decisions are actually based on our emotions, NOT logic.....:unsure:
 

2ndTimothyGroup

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2021
5,883
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#74
There are so many others here I would recommend before that, his posts don't seem mature in the faith that we are commanded to grow in, Heal, cleanse, preach, raise, etc.
Not suggested any are "swine" either, our Creator saw fit to use those words in His Word.
If one is sticking to what is written, that is written as well to show that some will choose to limit Him. The Gospel tells there were so many more acts of Jesus that they would fill all the books of the world if reduced to writing, yet a person who claims to be His limits their unlimited God to what has been given us in scripture.
best wishes
I hear you. I have to admit that at first, I thought it was Pittsburghjoe that we were referring to. That guy seems sharp . . . and PaulChristenson seems good as well. So . . . maybe it's you and me who don't agree on much. lol

And if we don't agree, that's fine with me. I'll chat with anyone who is friendly and willing to listen as much as I am.
 

Lafftur

Senior Member
Apr 18, 2017
6,896
3,636
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#75
Amen, smart one. Check this out . . .

John 21:25 NKJV - "And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen."

Since my Bible is only 1490 pages from beginning to end, it sounds like that a bajillion spiritual events took place that we've never heard about. But, because they're not recorded in the Bible, if one of those Spiritual Events took place within the life of another person, it would be discredited because that type of event wasn't Biblically recorded.

Wink . . . it's clear . . . isn't it. haha
Well...actually it was prophesied in the Old Testament by Isaiah that the Gentiles would come in but, even Peter’s human reasoning could not understand what God’s Will was and the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ were together making Peter aware of what was about to change....or happen.
 

2ndTimothyGroup

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2021
5,883
1,954
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#76
There are so many others here I would recommend before that, his posts don't seem mature in the faith that we are commanded to grow in, Heal, cleanse, preach, raise, etc.
Not suggested any are "swine" either, our Creator saw fit to use those words in His Word.
If one is sticking to what is written, that is written as well to show that some will choose to limit Him. The Gospel tells there were so many more acts of Jesus that they would fill all the books of the world if reduced to writing, yet a person who claims to be His limits their unlimited God to what has been given us in scripture.
best wishes
I should add that I'm getting old and barely even try to remember the personalities that I think exist behind the words written on a page. Maybe it isn't because I"m getting old, but I honestly struggle with remembering who said what . . . oh tell the truth! The truth is, I don't even try to remember who said what, or, who annoyed me for whatever. I don't know why, but God gave me the brain to reset each day, and that means all people start afresh each and every day with me. God Graces me each day, thus I am obligated to Grace each of you each day. I've made mistakes . . . you all can too!

I just love each of ya! And there isn't anything "you" can do about it. :D
 

2ndTimothyGroup

Well-known member
Feb 20, 2021
5,883
1,954
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#77
Well...actually it was prophesied in the Old Testament by Isaiah that the Gentiles would come in but, even Peter’s human reasoning could not understand what God’s Will was and the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ were together making Peter aware of what was about to change....or happen.
Huh. Maybe I don't know what we're talking about . . . here. haha
 

Lafftur

Senior Member
Apr 18, 2017
6,896
3,636
113
#78
Faith involves reading the Bible to find God's will, and doing the Bible to do His will.

Putting faith in visions, dreams, "new" revelations, and sensory feelings is not doing the Bible.

Revelation that is not consistent with written Scripture is heresy.
Revelation that is consistent with written Scripture is superfluous and unnecessary.
Faith works by LOVE.....Love is an emotion of the HEART.

The brain is like a computer, it gets data input and processes it. It’s the Heart that determines what to do with the info.

All decisions are emotional because we are NOT robots. Love has a choice.

Yes, study is good because you’re gathering information “seed from God’s Word” but, we need our heart to seek the Holy Spirit to water the Word which gives us understanding and we grow.
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
13,943
7,853
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#79
Jesus also told us, "My sheep know my voice", notice how He didn't say, "my sheep read my book"?
 

shittim

Senior Member
Dec 16, 2016
13,943
7,853
113
#80
Faith works by LOVE.....Love is an emotion of the HEART.

The brain is like a computer, it gets data input and processes it. It’s the Heart that determines what to do with the info.

All decisions are emotional because we are NOT robots. Love has a choice.

Yes, study is good because you’re gathering information “seed from God’s Word” but, we need our heart to seek the Holy Spirit to water the Word which gives us understanding and we grow.
His guidance by the Holy Spirit ..... is that not other than human emotion?
best wishes