Any answers......??

Hey Julie,

Uhhh...what menageriekeeper said...:laugh:

 

Excellent, excellent advice gb! God is there Julie - he's already 'speaking' to you with these 'coincidences'. Why? Because God craves relationship with His loved ones! All through the Bible this is exactly what God does: God and Abraham; Ruth and Naomi; Jesus and the disciples; Paul and the centurion. This is not 'coincidental' - this is God speaking volumes to you Julie. Forget the 12 stations of the cross; whether you get dunked or sprinkled; whether you go to church with purple and pink polkadots and your friend shows up in gothic plaid. None of this matters. God is calling you -"'you matter to me - you're my daughter and I love you." One of the ways that you can be ABSOLUTELY assured of this is exactly as gb states - read the Bible. I also endorse starting in the New Testament in the Message or NLTse (New Living Translation (second ed.) as gb suggests, simply because either of these translations are easy to read and understand. Don't try to over-analyze when you read - just keep reading. God will start 'speaking' to you where you are on your spiritual journey and when you least expect it. I wouldn't be the least surprised to learn that what He reveals gels with the 'coincidences' you've been going through.

 

Thank you for your honesty and welcome to BB. :wavey:

You can know that it is the Spirit speaking because 1) you are saved (which we will assume for now, and 2) you know your Bible -- and only your Bible.

Think of the Holy Spirit as the "mind of God" --- His thinking on any particular issue. 1Cor 2:16 says "For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ." This says "Beware of those who don't speak out of the word of God." Many men speak into the word of God but the word is very clear to the believer and will not allow the seeking Christian to be fooled long by such men.

So the key for you from what I've read so far is to be a Berean -- 1) take notes, 2) go home and look up the contexts of those sermons, 3) listen to what the Spirit tells your heart, and 4) learn who you can count most of the time.

skypair

 

Matthew 26:
But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his
voice..

How do we know His voice? His voice is the Word of God, Jesus Christ
is the Word of God, so if we believe the Word of God (Bible) in it's true
context, rightfully divided, as well as the true Bible version - we abide
in Him and not another Jesus or another Gospel, nor will we believe in doctrines of demons or hear and heed seducing spirits.

 

If someone came to you and said "Julie, you must keep the 10 commandments to go to heaven", would you follow them, or listen to them?

If they said "Julie, you have believed in Jesus, you must now be baptised and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost to be saved", would you follow them or listen to them?

 

A story

This is a true testimony from a woman at our church...perhaps this will help you.

Soonyum Kim is a elderly lady in her late eighties. She and her husband, Tai, were married in South Korea. He left her behind for a few years while he emigrated to America. Once he was established here, he brought her and their son to join him.

While alone in South Korea, Soon came to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Tai, at the time, was not a believer. She grew in the Lord and loved her pastor and the church which she attended.

Before she left to join her husband, she had a certain trepidation....she was very concerned about her relationship with the Lord. She was a new Christian, did not speak English, and was very worried about finding fellowship in America. Her foremost worry was how was she going to grow in knowledge, understand Bible passages, without her pastor.

Her pastor gave her the BEST advice which might benefit you also, Julie. He said to pray before her Bible study and trust that the Lord Himself would lead her into all understanding. He reminded her that the Lord will always feed his sheep. To this day, some sixty years later, this is what she does....she has an amazing faith and absolutely loves Jesus!

If you are getting confused, Julie, I would take her pastor's advice. I would pray before reading a passage, praying that the Lord would give you understanding. I would also, if I were you, just spend time simply reading the Bible....start going reading through the Bible in one year...the more you are familiar with God's Word, the better you will understand.

I will be praying for you, that the you grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ!

your sis in Christ,
Beth

 

Good post, Beth! :applause: I find God speaks louder in scripture than those who claim to know Him do in sermons.

skypair

 

It can be confusing, skypair!

It isn't that God hasn't blessed the Body with good teachers....no doubt about that...but it can get soooo confusing to get so many different opinions...for a struggling believer or a new believer, I think that can really make it really difficult for them!

 

Opinions are just that---opinions. Too much SYI (Share Your Ignorance) in the church today because the congregation expects too little from itself and its teachers.

Not many reference books are sold in Bible bookstores but rather "quick fix" books. If the church would engage in serious study of the Bible more reference books would be sold.

 

amen

AMEN.....I agree with you!!!

 

1 John 5

Don't know all the specifics about your conversion, but read 1 John 5. The Bible says that you can KNOW you have eternal life. How? By believing God's word. Emotions, etc. can deceive a person. Only two persons in all creation know if you are truly saved or not. God and you. If you repented of your sins, realizing that if you were to die you would spend eternity in hell without confessing your sins, and accepted the work on the cross of Christ Jesus, believing that He arose on the third day according to the scriptures, you ARE saved. You never said how long you have been saved. My advice to you is quit looking around at other people, things, etc. and begin a real search in your own heart as to where you stand with Him. My question to you would be what Peter said, Where would you go outside Christ, He only has eternal life. If you do not stand for Christ in this hour of trial, you will fall for anything provided by the devil, for all things outside Christ are destructive. God Bless You.