How can the Holy & Righteous God live in Corrupted Beings?

[AdHoc]

On 3/25/2024 at 4:17 PM, Vine Abider said:

This righteousness is accomplished by the work of Christ and is imputed to us by simply believing in Him - and then we are fit to be filled with His Spirit, Who will supply our every need!!!

Therefore, the Christian life is simply two main things: His Righteousness & His Supply!   

A short word on this magnificent theme.

Many think that God can do what He pleases. But God is subject to His nature. Contrary to common belief, God is restricted in some areas. For one, He is 100% righteous. So, He cannot just extend mercy how He likes. Justice must first be satisfied and then only can He even think of letting somebody off the just deserts of their actions. Another attribute is that His councils are immutable. If He says that man will rule the earth, it will come to pass that man rules the earth. Further, if He says that He is holy, watch out! Moses, Korah, and Uzzah found that out to their detriment. Aaron was clever. He did exactly as the Lord commanded when he went into the Holy of Holies. He would have lasted just short of a second if he made one mistake.

God cannot just impute His righteousness. He needed a Man to establish it first and then impute that righteousness to men. You can see this in John 7:39. God would not give the Holy Spirit to men when He had not had the full experience of salvation which included Christ's resurrection. If you trace Christ's movements from Golgotha he not only did all the necessary to pay our terrible account, but He had to present Himself in the Holy of Holies in Heaven. His resurrection had to be ratified and His resurrection was which made it apparent (the literal meaning of "glory") that all sins had been paid for.

But our Lord Jesus did not only establish righteousness according to the Law. He went over and above Law. Law cannot demand that the guiltless pay for the guilty. Jesus Christ could legally refuse to pay for somebody else and would have remained righteous. This knife-edge decision is perfectly illustrated by Jesus, for the one and only time in His existence, showing reluctance to do the will of the Father. "Father, if it is POSSIBLE; let this thing go" (Matt.26:39). And then two more signs follow the internal condition of this lovely Man. He sweats blood and He cries "my soul is dead". In Matthew 10:28 we are told that that is the thing to fear - the death of the soul at the hand of God. It is "Gehenna" - the place of nonstop burning, used interchangeably with the Lake of Fire (The rendering of it as "hell" in the KJV is incorrect but transmits the right idea).

When a Christian has God's righteousness imputed to him/her, it is not a static attribute of the eternal God. It is a hard-fought, day-to-day, hour-to-hour existence of self-denial and selfless dedication to matters way past the Law of Moses.  The righteousness imputed to the Christian is the 100% end of any personal aspirations of the one man who didn't have to do it. The human price was horrendous, but He was also God. His righteousness is thus made eternal though it remains that of a Man.

What is imputed to the Christian is the personal setting aside of all rights by the most perfect Man Who ever lived, yet, who lowered Himself to be counted among criminals so that God could apply this to criminals to elevate them to the standard needed to be the Temple of God. I'm afraid this is too much for my finite brain. I accept it intellectually, but is held by faith alone.

[other one]

On 3/24/2024 at 5:16 PM, Vine Abider said:

How is this possible for the perfect God to live in imperfect man?

By the righteous covering we get from Jesus when we make/allow him to be our Lord.

[Vine Abider]

6 hours ago, Neighbor said:

"So how can this One indwell impure, corrupted man?'

As I understand it: He can't!

God is Holy, He cannot abide that which is not holy  (Perfect).

Man is not perfect, cannot become perfect for imperfection, like virginity, cannot be restored. 

It is an irreconcilable problem, except that God has reconciled the problem in Christ Jesus taking on himself that imperfection covering it in his own shed blood.

It is only by God that (any) man that accepts the sacrifice made for them by Jesus is seen by His Father as perfect and holy.  God the Holy Spirit perhaps has the nastiest of duty and privilege, that of making the specific call to each person to turn about from sin against God to worship of Jesus as God lord and savior. 

Anyway, that is the way I see it. 

And that's it!  It is impossible for the holy God to live in unholy man, accept that He has provided the Perfect Sacrifice and thereby made us righteous, so He can now dwell in us!

[FJK]

1 hour ago, AdHoc said:

A short word on this magnificent theme.

Many think that God can do what He pleases. But God is subject to His nature. Contrary to common belief, God is restricted in some areas. For one, He is 100% righteous. So, He cannot just extend mercy how He likes. Justice must first be satisfied and then only can He even think of letting somebody off the just deserts of their actions. Another attribute is that His councils are immutable. If He says that man will rule the earth, it will come to pass that man rules the earth. Further, if He says that He is holy, watch out! Moses, Korah, and Uzzah found that out to their detriment. Aaron was clever. He did exactly as the Lord commanded when he went into the Holy of Holies. He would have lasted just short of a second if he made one mistake.

God cannot just impute His righteousness. He needed a Man to establish it first and then impute that righteousness to men. You can see this in John 7:39. God would not give the Holy Spirit to men when He had not had the full experience of salvation which included Christ's resurrection. If you trace Christ's movements from Golgotha he not only did all the necessary to pay our terrible account, but He had to present Himself in the Holy of Holies in Heaven. His resurrection had to be ratified and His resurrection was which made it apparent (the literal meaning of "glory") that all sins had been paid for.

But our Lord Jesus did not only establish righteousness according to the Law. He went over and above Law. Law cannot demand that the guiltless pay for the guilty. Jesus Christ could legally refuse to pay for somebody else and would have remained righteous. This knife-edge decision is perfectly illustrated by Jesus, for the one and only time in His existence, showing reluctance to do the will of the Father. "Father, if it is POSSIBLE; let this thing go" (Matt.26:39). And then two more signs follow the internal condition of this lovely Man. He sweats blood and He cries "my soul is dead". In Matthew 10:28 we are told that that is the thing to fear - the death of the soul at the hand of God. It is "Gehenna" - the place of nonstop burning, used interchangeably with the Lake of Fire (The rendering of it as "hell" in the KJV is incorrect but transmits the right idea).

When a Christian has God's righteousness imputed to him/her, it is not a static attribute of the eternal God. It is a hard-fought, day-to-day, hour-to-hour existence of self-denial and selfless dedication to matters way past the Law of Moses.  The righteousness imputed to the Christian is the 100% end of any personal aspirations of the one man who didn't have to do it. The human price was horrendous, but He was also God. His righteousness is thus made eternal though it remains that of a Man.

What is imputed to the Christian is the personal setting aside of all rights by the most perfect Man Who ever lived, yet, who lowered Himself to be counted among criminals so that God could apply this to criminals to elevate them to the standard needed to be the Temple of God. I'm afraid this is too much for my finite brain. I accept it intellectually, but is held by faith alone.

This seems to suggest there are rules that are imposed on God that he must follow.

Which leads me to ask, who imposed these rules on him and who enforces them to make sure he obeys them?

 

[Sower]

 

 

   "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:

old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new"

                             2 Corinthians 5:17
 

[Vine Abider]

45 minutes ago, FJK said:

This seems to suggest there are rules that are imposed on God that he must follow.

Which leads me to ask, who imposed these rules on him and who enforces them to make sure he obeys them?

 

He did. He said it.  God can't lie.  His own righteousness demands it, otherwise we're all on shaky ground (i.e. "toast")!

[FJK]

33 minutes ago, Vine Abider said:

He did. He said it.  God can't lie.  His own righteousness demands it, otherwise we're all on shaky ground (i.e. "toast")!

When God speaks something it becomes true, the universe changes according to the words God speaks.

That's how he created it (Genesis 1:3), and if he speaks differently the universe and all that is in it responds accordingly.

He is not limited by mans concept of him, mans concept of him is what is limited.

[AdHoc]

2 hours ago, FJK said:

This seems to suggest there are rules that are imposed on God that he must follow.

Which leads me to ask, who imposed these rules on him and who enforces them to make sure he obeys them?

 

Language is given by God to transmit ideas. It has rules to make those transmissions clear and consistent. If God cannot tell a lie, He is restricted. My language, written clearly, said that the restriction came from His nature. I cannot state it more plainly. If it seems to you that some outside person imposed rules, my language was obscure. It can happen. May the reader judge.

[AdHoc]

1 hour ago, FJK said:

When God speaks something it becomes true, the universe changes according to the words God speaks.

That's how he created it (Genesis 1:3), and if he speaks differently the universe and all that is in it responds accordingly.

He is not limited by mans concept of him, mans concept of him is what is limited.

It is a sad thing when such a profound theme ends in this. The word "becomes" means that it was not originally so, but that it changed. Wouldn't it be better if you said: "When God says something it IS Truth"?

17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth (Jn 17:17).

 

[FJK]

56 minutes ago, AdHoc said:

It is a sad thing when such a profound theme ends in this. The word "becomes" means that it was not originally so, but that it changed. Wouldn't it be better if you said: "When God says something it IS Truth"?

17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth (Jn 17:17).

 

Bo, that would not be a better word, and it does indicate that God can change things.