David Miller wrote: >> It seems to me that if we believe the Bible, we have >> to believe in revelation from outside the Bible because >> that is what the Bible teaches. In other words, it is >> a contradiction to say you do not believe in revelation >> from outside the Bible and also say that you believe >> in the Bible.
Judy wrote: > I don't think so DavidM. What would be the point? The point is that Jesus Christ leads us into a living relationship with him through the spirit rather than a religious relationship with words written in ink on paper. Judy wrote: > This would add to God's Word which He has expressly > forbidden, You are misunderstanding what the Scriptures teach in this regard. Let me explain from experience what these verses mean and then quote the passages so that you can see that what I teach about this is true. Understand that I am not a vacuum, but rather I have thoughts and feelings and interpretations of my own. Therefore, when the Word of the Lord comes to me through the Spirit, after it has been received within my spirit it comes to my mind. Immediately at that point I have my own understanding and perceptions of the Word and what it might mean. There is a tendency for a person to add to the word or take away from it, based upon my own understanding. As we experience this, we learn that we might actually corrupt the word of prophecy that comes to us, adding our own heart and desire to what the pure Word of the Lord is. Therefore, knowing these things, we learn the importance of not adding to the Word or taking away from it. This concerns that actual Word given, and not the idea that we cannot receive another Word later, or even a revelation that might clarify the first Word. Let me give you an example from the Bible so that the focus isn't upon me. I've already been called a cult leader and not a Christian, so if I use some personal examples it will likely be twisted in various ways just out of spite to try and make me look bad. Let's look at an example of a New Testament prophet named Agabus. And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus. And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles. And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done. (Acts 21:10-14 KJV) In this example, the Word of the Lord to Agabus was that Paul would be bound by the Jews in Jerusalem and delivered into the hands of the Gentiles. Now the temptation of Agabus could be to ADD to this word. For example, he may have been tempted to say, "Thus says the Holy Ghost, do not go to Jerusalem, for if you do, you will be put into prison." But that really was not the Word of the Lord. That would have been ADDING to the word of the Lord. Let's consider the other example of taking away from the Word of the Lord. If Agabus were a little timid and was afraid of being wrong in his assertion, he might say, "brother, I don't have a good feeling about you going to Jerusalem. I sense there might be some problems with the Jews if you go there. Please pray about this." Well, that would have been taking away from the Word of the Lord, because the Word was that Paul would be bound by the Jews and delivered into the hands of the Gentiles. The point is that the teaching of Scripture not to add to the Word of the Lord or take away from the Word of the Lord is not a teaching that revelation has ceased. It is a teaching that we need to keep the Word of revelation pure and separate from our own thoughts and interpretations. We need to make a distinction between what the Word of the Lord is and how we interpret the Word of the Lord. Following are three passages that warn against adding to or taking away from the Word of the Lord. Notice that the teaching in Deuteronomy did not cause prophets and revelation to cease after the Torah was complete. Likewise, the passage in Proverbs did not cause revelation to cease. Neither should we assume that revelation ceased after the book of revelation warned not to add to or take away that particular revelation. Consider the passages themselves now in light of what I have just taught: Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. (Deuteronomy 4:1-2 KJV) Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him. Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar. (Proverbs 30:5-6 KJV) For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. (Revelation 22:18-19 KJV) Judy wrote: > also it would justify all of the extra Biblical > confusion such as rc tradition which the rcc > claims is holy and places on the same level as > the scriptures. Being open to truth outside the Bible does not automatically justify all extra Biblical teachings. We must recognize that there are indeed falsehoods and false spirits in the world, and therefore we must exercise judgment. Judy wrote: > Could you show me an example of what you would consider > to be extra-Biblical revelation DavidM? The passage I quote for you above with Agabus in Acts 21 would be an extra-Biblical revelation. This was something that he did not learn from studying the Scriptures. It was a revelation he received from the Holy Spirit. Most all of the teachings of Paul the apostle are also extra-Biblical revelation. Here what he said to the Galatians: But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. (Galatians 1:11-12 KJV) So what he taught, although confirmed by the Scriptures (Paul often points his readers to the Hebrew Scriptures concerning what he teaches), was actually from revelation through the Spirit. Judy wrote: > I just visited a Church we used to attend the ministry > of which are led by extra-biblical prophecy and six > years ago they followed one of these "words" and built > a huge monolith of a building that seats 5,000+. It > is just 1/3 full and they are struggling to pay for it, > but they just got a "word" that God is going to pay it > off. Is this the kind of thing you are talking about? The Holy Spirit is able to guide people in their building projects, but most of these type prophecies are carnal. Men often have vain ambitions of empire building that the Spirit does not care about. On the positive side of this, I remember once looking into buying a house in Tampa to use for a ministry house for young men to be discipled in the Lord. This was completely by revelation. I was praying and saw a house and the spirit told me to go find it. Every time during my private time in prayer, this would happen. So I got in my car and started driving around Tampa, asking the Lord to show me where to go. I found this house. At first, I wanted to buy it myself, thinking that this was what it was all about, but in prayer the Lord gave me a revelation about a certain young man in our home church indicating that he wanted him to buy that house. This man was a prophet of the Lord and so I went to him and showed him the house and spoke to him about it. The Lord also spoke to him and confirmed the Word which I had received. Some other brothers in the church also agreed that God's hand was in this thing. The house was old but a fairly large corner house in the inner city. It sat on two large lots. The asking price of the house was something like $56,000. When it came down to making an offer on the house and concluding the business transaction, this other prophet had a word from the Lord to offer $22,000. I thought he was nuts. I said, "are you sure that the Lord told you that? They might just refuse to do business with you for offering so little." He said he did not understand it, but he knew what God said. So he made that offer and they ended up agreeing on $26,000 for the property. The whole matter was a great blessing, and many good men lived in that house, some men being discipled in the ways of the Lord, and other men who tutored others in the ways of the Lord. In fact, one of those men is a member of this list today (Michael Douglas). :-) Peace be with you. David Miller, Beverly Hills, Florida. ---------- "Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man." (Colossians 4:6) http://www.InnGlory.org If you do not want to receive posts from this list, send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and you will be unsubscribed. If you have a friend who wants to join, tell him to send an e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and he will be subscribed.
