Posted on 10/12/2018 6:31:26 PM PDT by metmom
"Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 3, emphasis added).
Scripture contains everything you need to know for godly living.
For many years I've watched with deep concern as a significant number of Christians have drifted from a thoughtful, biblical, God- centered theology to one that is increasingly mystical, non- biblical, and man-centered. One of the most disturbing indicators of this trend is the proliferation of extrabiblical revelations that certain people are claiming to receive directly from God.
Such claims are alarming because they dilute the uniqueness and centrality of the Bible and cause people to lean on man's word rather than God's. They imply that Scripture is insufficient for Christian living and that we need additional revelation to fill the gap.
But God's Word contains everything you need to know for spiritual life and godly living. It is inspired and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness so that you may be fully equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16). What more is necessary?
When the apostle John died, apostolic revelation came to an end. But that written legacy remains as the standard by which we are to test every teacher and teaching that claims to be from God (1 Thess. 5:21; 1 John 4:1). If a teaching doesn't conform to Scripture, it must be rejected. If it does conform, it isn't a new revelation. In either case, additional revelation is unnecessary.
God went to great lengths to record and preserve His revelation, and He jealously guards it from corruption of any kind. From Moses, the first known recipient of divine revelation, to the apostle John, the final recipient, His charge remained the same: "You shall not add to the word which I am commanding you, nor take away from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you" (Deut. 4:2; cf., Rev. 22:18-19).
Don't be swayed by supposed new revelations. Devote yourself to what has already been revealed.
Suggestions for Prayer
Ask God to guard your heart from confusion and help you to keep your attention firmly fixed on His Word.
For Further Study
According to 2 Timothy 4:1-4, why must we preach and uphold God's Word?
Studying God’s Word ping
Some seed falls on the path and the birds eat it, some fall in shallow soil and they sprout quickly but the weeds and cares of life choke them out...
Amen - God has already revealed what was, what is and what will be...any new “revelations” are way more likely to be false and designed to mislead us...a friend was going to a Black Church with a female pastor who “spoke in tongues” ... he asked her why the rest couldn’t understand what she was saying...she told him it was because she was on a higher spiritual plane than the rest...I exhorted him to run from that church.
Great advice.
That is one of the major problems I see in the pentecostal movement, a trend towards spiritual elitism.
The * have’s* who look down on the *have not’s*.
Throughout the contemporary West and America many 'scientifically enlightened' Western and American theologians, seminarians and intellectuals take the side of revolutionary humanism in their rejection of belief in Moses in favor of scientism and esoteric biological evolution – pagan materialistic scientism parading as Western science. By the logic of their position they implicitly or explicitly hold that Christ Himself was wrong about Genesis. Pope Francis, Timothy Keller, Leonard Sweet, and many others fall into this category. Having leaped into the scientism and evolution quagmire, they deride, ridicule, demonize, and harshly criticize obedient Christians who refuse to stumble after them. (2 Peter 2)
If you will, do a study on how often in the Bible God spoke, rather than just of laying down doctrine (which is of extremely high importance), but of personal, timely instruction to individuals about a vast variety of subjects. He was, and still is, interested in giving personal guidance and loving instruction.
He will never do anything that contradicts His written Word. But, His written Word shows forth that He is willing to and desires to communicate with His children. Of course if they refuse to see this, through ignorance and unbelief, they will not have this intimate, awesome, two way, living experience with Him. He is gracious though, and will lovingly accept this child and will work with and use this usually well intended child at the level of belief they have.
Granted there are many false, emotionally driven encounters that charlatans and the naive may think that are from God, and are not. It is sad that these false encounters often serve to drive the more careful and grounded Christian from being open to The Living LORD revealing Himself to them through living and true communications. Who can say how much true and living communion they have forfeited through their fear of being decieved, not letting Jesus into their lives in a manner as to truly “sup with Him”.
There is a reason, yes, we are to try the spirits so as not to not get caught up with false spirits. But let us not be so afraid of false spirits that we shut our lives up to all but a secondhand experience with The LORD, as though being satisfied with living vicariously through the people in The Bible, rather than being our own living epistles before God. Let us allow Him to lead us into all that He has prepared for us. Let us not be afraid to believe Him for amazing things, as Jesus, our perfect example modeled for us, and in His manner. God is a loving, mighty, miracle working God. His miracles, and His voice are His glory. May we see the glory of God. May The LORD be magnified.
Man cannot live by bread alone, but by every word which proceedeth out of the mouth of God. (The word proceedeth is not past tense, but more of a tense that suggests on a continual basis).
I think you have raised a very interesting and critical point.
I think there is tremendous over reaction to the excess claims of some. I know someone who makes claims of God speaking to her all the time, her always having a *word* for other people from God to give to them, that she dreams prophetically all the time, etc, etc, and yet this woman has the mouth of a sailor, watches all kinds of awful stuff on TV, claims that God doesn’t care what she does, that He is not concerned if she sins, has a volatile relationship with her husband......
You would not know by how she lives that she is a Christian.
Anyway, people see that sort of thing and the excesses of Pentecostalism and I can see where they are concerned with being deceived.
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