Thewhitedove Posted March 27, 2021 Group: Advanced Member Followers: 3 Topic Count: 70 Topics Per Day: 0.04 Content Count: 461 Content Per Day: 0.25 Reputation: 384 Days Won: 1 Joined: 04/14/2019 Status: Offline Share Posted March 27, 2021 (edited) There are so many Christians with a strong relationship with the Lord. I know that God impresses certain things on me. He does the same with others too, and yet their 'message' can be totally different to mine, even when it's about the same thing. I know a lot of people say that God has shown them that we will be raptured out of the world very soon, before the Tribulation. Yet in my spirit, I feel that the pre-Tribulation rapture is false doctrine. My closest Christian friend (I have very few) strongly believes that the pandemic is a worldwide hoax and the vaccines are part of an evil plot, and are nothing but wicked. Having prayed and fasted to find my answer to this situation, I feel that God is leaving this up to my own judgement. I have read up on several scientific websites written by scientists who are Christian, and they have explained the science in light of Scripture and I feel that this is a neutral area with very little moral/spiritual significance. I dont feel that having the vaccine is Satanic. Scripture tells us that God will give His wisdom to those who humbly seek it. I have humbly sought it and this is what He has told me. So how is the wisdom that He has given me superior or inferior to the wisdom that he has given others? I know there will be many who respond to this with an opposing view...but why is their insight from the Lord different to mine? They will believe that their view carries more weight because God told them, but God told me too, and I walk with Him closely. Does this make sense? People talk about a great deception coming in the last days: I feel that this will be a religious deception, not a deception pertaining to worldly things. There are so many Christians who feel convicted of one thing and others who feel no conviction at all. So, what is this all about? How come there are so many discrepancies? Edited March 27, 2021 by Thewhitedove 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tzephanyahu Posted March 27, 2021 Group: Diamond Member Followers: 0 Topic Count: 69 Topics Per Day: 0.03 Content Count: 1,625 Content Per Day: 0.79 Reputation: 2,033 Days Won: 1 Joined: 09/10/2018 Status: Offline Share Posted March 27, 2021 19 minutes ago, Thewhitedove said: So, what is this all about? How come there are so many discrepancies? The short answer is that many Christians cannot differentiate between their own intuition and the voice of God. It's a pandemic in the Body today and has been for decades. Once they have made statements like "the Lord said to me/revealed to me..." you can be sure they won't back down at all - even if contradicting facts and Scripture are found thereafter. It seems that everyone is a prophet or a teacher these days. And many are less fearful in saying "the Lord said..." over "I personally think... " Love & Shalom 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Adams Posted March 27, 2021 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 25 Topic Count: 61 Topics Per Day: 0.03 Content Count: 9,606 Content Per Day: 3.96 Reputation: 7,796 Days Won: 21 Joined: 09/11/2017 Status: Offline Share Posted March 27, 2021 1 hour ago, Thewhitedove said: I know a lot of people say that God has shown them that we will be raptured out of the world very soon, before the Tribulation. Yet in my spirit, I feel that the pre-Tribulation rapture is false doctrine. Read my topic 'Futurism' and see how all that came about. Blessings! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deborah_ Posted March 27, 2021 Group: Senior Member Followers: 6 Topic Count: 13 Topics Per Day: 0.00 Content Count: 791 Content Per Day: 0.25 Reputation: 880 Days Won: 0 Joined: 07/07/2015 Status: Offline Share Posted March 27, 2021 This has a always been a problem - which is why Scripture tells us to test the prophets (e.g. I Corinthians 14:29). We are so very easily self-deceived, in many areas of life. The people who say "God has told me such-and-such" probably genuinely believe that. But be suspicious if what God has personally told them conveniently lines up with their prior beliefs. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tristen Posted March 31, 2021 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 9 Topic Count: 3 Topics Per Day: 0.00 Content Count: 2,377 Content Per Day: 0.63 Reputation: 1,356 Days Won: 1 Joined: 01/26/2014 Status: Offline Share Posted March 31, 2021 Hello TWD, For what it is worth, I think you are doing the right thing seeking God for yourself. All of us are corrupted in some respect – which is why we all need our Saviour. We all have a flesh that is both weak, and contrary to the Spirit (Mark 14:38, Galatians 5:17). We all have biases, and agendas, and desires. And we have people we respect, and allow to influence our conclusions. There is so much noise in the world – coming at us from both outside, and inside our own heads. God speaks to us through that storm in a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:11-12). It can sometimes be easy to confuse God's voice with the noise – especially if we are inclined to agree with the noise. Occasionally, God has spoken to me in ways and means that are unambiguous – leaving me in no doubt as to the origin of the communication. But in most things, I hear from God in a gentle unction – in which case I try to be very cautious, and seek confirmation, before making the dogmatic claim that “God told me … ”. I think many Christians could do with a bit more humility when it comes to declaring what God supposedly told us (as though that was the end of the matter). On the other side of that coin, we also need to have the grace to let people “work out their own salvation” (Philippians 2:12); remembering that they are probably just sincere believers (like us) doing the best they know how with the knowledge they have. In that vein, we should endeavour to provide a safe enough atmosphere to allow people to say, “I really thought that was God, but now I think I probably missed it”. With regards to issues like the rapture, I think God is as clear in scripture as He intended to be. On some topics, God is repeatedly explicit, but with other topics God left enough room for respectful disagreement between sincere Christians. The rapture seems to be one of those doctrines with somewhat limited scriptural support. I would be suspicious of anyone claiming that they have personally received God's final word on the subject. With regards to the vaccine, let God guide you. I personally tend to be sceptical of conspiracies; and especially if they require many conspirators (as would be the case for a pandemic hoax). Some people seem to be easily enticed by the idea that they have found some special knowledge that is not widely available to everyone else – and just run with it – even confusing it with God's voice. Now that does not necessarily mean the conspiracies are not true – but we can pray, and then trust God; that He will open our eyes to any dangers. Let His peace guide us, and not the noise generated by conspiracy theorists. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Adams Posted March 31, 2021 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 25 Topic Count: 61 Topics Per Day: 0.03 Content Count: 9,606 Content Per Day: 3.96 Reputation: 7,796 Days Won: 21 Joined: 09/11/2017 Status: Offline Share Posted March 31, 2021 (edited) On 3/27/2021 at 7:51 AM, Thewhitedove said: People talk about a great deception coming in the last days: I feel that this will be a religious deception, not a deception pertaining to worldly things. You are quite correct in my mind. The deception and falling away began in the 1st to 2nd century and got way out of hand by the fourth. The Lord allowed this because we are sovereign beings made in His Image. He generally lets us chose for ourselves, even if it is incorrect. This goes against what some folk teach and is a real problem unless you know your scriptures well. Too many chiefs and too few followers might be a good thing. However spiritual anarchy has risen to new heights with the advent of the WWW. I find that the the later scripture writers (NT) inevitably repurpose the Tanakh (their bible) and thus I see much that the modern church misses right there. Edited March 31, 2021 by Justin Adams Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billiards Ball Posted March 31, 2021 Group: Diamond Member Followers: 3 Topic Count: 5 Topics Per Day: 0.00 Content Count: 1,502 Content Per Day: 0.66 Reputation: 662 Days Won: 0 Joined: 02/05/2018 Status: Offline Share Posted March 31, 2021 On 3/27/2021 at 3:51 AM, Thewhitedove said: There are so many Christians with a strong relationship with the Lord. I know that God impresses certain things on me. He does the same with others too, and yet their 'message' can be totally different to mine, even when it's about the same thing. I know a lot of people say that God has shown them that we will be raptured out of the world very soon, before the Tribulation. Yet in my spirit, I feel that the pre-Tribulation rapture is false doctrine. My closest Christian friend (I have very few) strongly believes that the pandemic is a worldwide hoax and the vaccines are part of an evil plot, and are nothing but wicked. Having prayed and fasted to find my answer to this situation, I feel that God is leaving this up to my own judgement. I have read up on several scientific websites written by scientists who are Christian, and they have explained the science in light of Scripture and I feel that this is a neutral area with very little moral/spiritual significance. I dont feel that having the vaccine is Satanic. Scripture tells us that God will give His wisdom to those who humbly seek it. I have humbly sought it and this is what He has told me. So how is the wisdom that He has given me superior or inferior to the wisdom that he has given others? I know there will be many who respond to this with an opposing view...but why is their insight from the Lord different to mine? They will believe that their view carries more weight because God told them, but God told me too, and I walk with Him closely. Does this make sense? People talk about a great deception coming in the last days: I feel that this will be a religious deception, not a deception pertaining to worldly things. There are so many Christians who feel convicted of one thing and others who feel no conviction at all. So, what is this all about? How come there are so many discrepancies? Did the people of the NT have to deal with false teachers and bad doctrine, in abundance? Did the NT writers warn those to come they'd face the same challenges? Do all Christians interpret all of the Bible the same way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneLight Posted March 31, 2021 Group: Royal Member Followers: 22 Topic Count: 1,294 Topics Per Day: 0.21 Content Count: 31,762 Content Per Day: 5.23 Reputation: 9,763 Days Won: 115 Joined: 09/14/2007 Status: Offline Share Posted March 31, 2021 We have to take into account that we all have different issues, are walking in different situations and are at different places of maturity when it comes to how God leads us, even through the same scripture verses. Yes, there are false teachers, but that can be seen if one is a Barean in their studies. Just because someone is being led differently doesn't make them a false teacher. It means they are just walking through different circumstances then we are. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BK1110 Posted March 31, 2021 Group: Worthy Ministers Followers: 22 Topic Count: 87 Topics Per Day: 0.03 Content Count: 6,884 Content Per Day: 2.42 Reputation: 9,632 Days Won: 4 Joined: 07/18/2016 Status: Offline Birthday: 11/10/1986 Share Posted March 31, 2021 There are a lot of different types of people, from all types of cultural and familial backgrounds, at different levels of Christian maturity, who came to salvation through teachings from various pastors/people who themselves are different...it doesn't surprise me. Though there are certainly many who blurt out "the Lord/Jesus told me" as if it were normal or common. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marathoner Posted March 31, 2021 Group: Royal Member Followers: 16 Topic Count: 71 Topics Per Day: 0.05 Content Count: 10,202 Content Per Day: 7.07 Reputation: 13,194 Days Won: 99 Joined: 05/24/2020 Status: Offline Share Posted March 31, 2021 (edited) Edit: posted in error. Edited March 31, 2021 by Marathoner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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