Excerpt from my devotional this morning at Justin Huffman.org
Humility is submission to God. You may not understand some of the providences unfolding in your life, but you bow down in submission and know God is working his will and accomplishing his purposes. It means believing what God says, accepting what is in His Word and making no attempt to explain it away.
Our nation must humble itself and return to the Father
As a relatively new spiritual person, can anyone tell me why they think the bible has not been corrupted like every single thing we look into?
It seems to me that the bible and religion would be the top targets of cabal infiltration.
Personally? When I read it, I feel it working spiritual magic (for lack of a better term).
I'm also relatively new to the whole thing, but I am very well read in both prose and poetry, as well as (objectively) fairly qualified and substantive as a writer and critic. Very few other works even come close to illiciting the purity of response The Bible does from me. It's rarefied air.
Same thing with Prayer. Again, relatively new to it, but a good prayer hits me in the Soul in a way few other things approach. Even the finest music feels like a pale imitation. And I'm also a musician. 😂
These communications are, I believe, a great gift from God to us, His Children.
Glad you're on the Path. I wish all of us sincere success in being better children.
P.s. I will admit a certain level of ignorance to Gospel Music, as well as Hymnal. Like I said, new to this. But I'm digging and learning.
P.p.s I realize this doesn't really answer your question. But for me, that's how it worked. And the mystical proof I've personally received while reading // praying supercedes any Human Doubt I may experience, flawed as I am. Which is also the topic of the OP. Fitting.
Gotta do the opposite of everything in Red Letters. Then you'll be a shoo-in to the Pearly Gates.
By way of sarcasm and humor you are pointing out that you can't go wrong with the words of Jesus?
Yes. There are those who believe that the OT should not even be part of what Christians believe because it involves a lot of evil from the Babylonian Era. But I am inclined to trust Jesus. I think the worst man could do to his words is obscure them; idk how but I feel like they have some power preventing anyone from truly twisting them.
The Bible is exactly the way it was intended to be. God is perfect, I would argue He already knew how they would use His Word and knew all variations we would make of it. Yet still The Word is perfectly as He intended it to be. If you doubt His Word you doubt His divinity and your faith is hollow.
Now the interpretations of His Word.... that's is where the Word is Corrupted.
Thus it is charged to us
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Psalm 119:11
What I will not store in my heart is any interpretation of another's thoughts of that verse, nor my own faulty understanding.
"If you doubt His Word you doubt His divinity and your faith is hollow." That sounds shockingly close to the kind of dogma normies are programmed to recite.
#1 - You know it is not the word of God. It's translations of translations of oral stories passed down for thousands of years. Human translations. You have the word of humans, some of whom are claiming to pass down the word of God.
#2 - Show me examples in your real life experience that demonstrated blind faith to be anything but a trap. Why would God ask us for blind faith while showing us over and over how it leads to evil?
I'm not saying that your evil for doubting his word. Faith is only blind to those who have not felt the Grace of Jesus in their heart.
Now I'd love to give you an example of faith.
Last summer my grand mother died, a week later my father went to the hospital and should not have made it. They couldn't take his breathing tube out because he kept freaking out. The 3rd attempt I told the doctors that my father would not go back on a tube. So remove it and God will either bring him home or leave him here awhile longer.
I fell to my knees in a field and prayed with every ounce I had. 15 minutes later the hospital called.... my father calmed down and was doing fine.
Now you can brush it up to luck if you like. I know my Father and He knows me. That's all there is to it.
Faith is accepting His control not yours.
There's a difference between faith and blind faith. We aren't discussing faith or God. Only how to trust that the bible is the word. All evidence, all experience, leads me to doubt we have the word in written form. Instead, all evidence leads me to have faith within. And my faith is ringing alarm bells.
I completely understand what you mean. I to struggle with the emotions of its origins and all that alot. When I read the Bible, I read for the guidance I need to move forward in my walk righteously.
There are probably things in the Bible that don't belong.... I do not know. I Trust in the Lord at all times to provide the clarity I need. He always delivers.
All I'm trying to imply
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee - Psalm 119:11
Yesterday I was in a discussion about the Bible and whether we can trust that it is the unaltered Word of God. I would like to investigate this further. Hopefully, I think it answers your question. I am no Bible scholar, I am merely a follower that tries to listen when my heart says to do something.
My argument was not clearly spelled out and I may have not really understood the conversation until the end.
The Word of God (in my opinion) is fully and accurately contained in every version of the Holy Bible. However, I would argue that none of them are unaltered. The differences in translation alone, I believe, supports this view.
When I store scriptures in my heart they go through the checks and balances of the Holy Ghost. In prayer and communication with the Holy Spirit, I am secure in the belief that God only allows His Word to be stored in my heart. All others remain in my head. A futile attempt by my enemy to corrupt that which is uncorruptable... God's Word.
The Bible is the Only Living Record that contains The Word. Fear that it is altered or that you do not posses the means to decipher His Word in its entirety. That is the work of your enemy.
That is only my view. If I am mistaken in this view I know the Lord will give me direction in His time to make sure I see more clearly.
Absolutely. But God is powerful enough to keep the message intact. The NT was written in the first century AD and there still exist scrolls that have been carbon dated from that time period that demonstrate the text is unchanged. (Dead Sea scrolls) But none of that 'proof' really matters. What does matter is the change that occurs within you when you become a believer. At the point that Jesus becomes real to you and you accept Him as God, you "know."
Interesting. But nothing I've experienced in life has shown belief without proof to be anything but a trick leading to hell.
Would God have put us here without the internal tools to succeed in our journey? It doesn't make sense that an external source, not accessible to many, would be required for us to follow our path.
Perhaps because nothing you have experienced in life has been God. You are apparently only now even searching. Have you ever been in love? Prove it. It is quite possible to experience something but not have 'tangible proof' that it is real.
But instead of asking me, ask God. That is the one and only way you will get the answer you are seeking. Here is my suggestion. Humble yourself. That is important and the journey that leads to the destination starts there. Humble yourself. Realize you don't know everything. Realize that you actually know very little. Accept that fact. Then, with all sincerity, lay your concerns out to God. Get down on your knees and say a simple prayer like this, "God, I don't know if You exist. I've had my doubts. But I want to know the truth. If you do exist, please reveal Yourself to me."
That's it. That's it. As long as you are sincere and humble yourself before God, you will get your answer. Guaranteed.
My experiences are more than physical. But point taken. I'll ask.
Thank you for this post. This is the exact subject of morning prayer today. It is very important and I will admit it is one of my greatest struggles.
God Bless.
Agree
Easier said than done.
Hardest easy thing in the world. 😂
Amen!
Amen to that!