Hello, John and Doves,
Hello, Brother Day. You said, in part,
"To those mature believers on this site who do know much more about the whole counsel of God, I encourage you to take the time and effort to biblically correct, in love...."
However, there are those people who are enamored of whatever they say. Like the AC, they give lip service to the idea of tolerance of other's ideas. However, when these same people are confronted with the facts that prove them in error, then they accuse the other party of intolerance. In other words, the followers of the Devil, though they may call themselves Christians [and believe they are saved toward a glorious end], are really promoters of every kind of evil.
In the face of these last days, the angel who was showing things to the apostle John says,
" 'He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.' "
Revelation 22:11
So, in the spirit of the Five Doves, I pick and choose my responses. After all, it is written,
"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
Ephesians 2:10
It is also written,
"We love Him, because He loved us first."
1 John 4:19
So, whatever we do, we do in love, if we are led by his Ruach Ha Kodesh. Therefore, if I choose to let a supposed brother in Christ wallow in error, then that is motivated by love, also. Some who are drunk on error will not give up their "nonsense abuse" until they hit bottom--read, miss the Rapture.On the heels of that, let me say that if a brother who couldn't get his head screwed on straight to save his soul does make the Rapture by God's rather infinite Grace, then we'll happily "talk on the way up."Bottom line? No worries! God did say, after all, that He would send "strong delusion." Perhaps the buck stops at His desk, and He is answering for all the error that passes for spiritual discussion these days. After all, it is written,"Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely."Baruch HaShem Yeshua Ha Mashiach,Mike C.
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Day (23 March 2012)
"Harmless as Doves BUT as Wise as Serpents..."
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Whether you have noticed or not, we have a small number of contributors on Five Doves who are engaged in "double-teaming."
To begin with, their basic theology is faulty; in fact, they are so far out in left field that they need to support each other as no support for their suppositions can be found in the Bible. Secondly, their interests are in issues which are sensationalistic but peripheral to the central messages of the Bible. Thirdly, they often refer readers to extrabiblical (and sometimes overtly unbiblical) sites which they recommend as support for their suppositions.
This is how it works: Dove A will post a letter that lacks sound doctrine and cannot be supported by the clear teaching of the Bible. Dove B responds, taking issue with what Dove A's letter said and pointing out how this thinking cannot be supported by, or is contrary to, the Bible. Dove C immediately posts a defense of Dove A's letter; hence, the double-teaming between Doves A and C. This double-teaming does not center on a commonly-held belief, but rather on the "common need for support relationship" between Doves A and C.
The defense given by Dove C is never based on the whole counsel of God, it rarely even involves a single Bible verse but if it does, it is one verse either taken out of direct context, or without regard to the full context of the Bible. In fact, these contributors seem to eschew responses which ask them to support their letters/suppositions with comprehensive biblical evidence.
Further, this defense commonly ends with something to the effect that "we are so happy that you wrote attempting to criticize us, because now, (from us) you have learned what God wanted you to learn that you were ignorant of ..." Not only is this a very arrogant spirit, but could indicate a cultish/Gnostic mindset ("we have the hidden knowledge; we know the deep things of God"). I am not saying that these contributors (Doves A and C) are not Christians, as God has told us not to judge the heart. However, we are allowed to judge how their theology aligns with the written Word. In fact, we are mandated to judge their fruit! If we do not, the Church suffers, the individual Christian suffers, and the representation of Christ that we present to the world suffers.
This is not a one-time occurrence, but an established pattern. We have many young and/or new Christians on this site. They read one of these posts (from Dove A), and then they read another post (from Dove C) defending Dove A's post, and they assume, (albeit inaccurately), that Dove A and Dove C are unrelated to each other, and so they think, "well, maybe there is something to this (Dove A's theory) because, after all, there is strength in numbers, and Dove A is being supported by Dove C..." That is what is so worrisome, and needs to be addressed, and I believe we all will be held accountable before God if we do not address this.
If you are a baby believer and what some of these posts are writing doesn't seem to line up with the little bit of the Bible that you already know, or if you write a response to one of these letters and it gets "iced" by Dove C who has immediately written in support of Dove A --- don't assume that you must be "wrong" in questioning or taking issue with what Dove A has posted.
Everything you need to know God put in His Word, and you do not need any other source !
Besides which, God has expressed what you need to know very simply in His Word (2 Corinthians 11:3); He wants you to be able to understand it so that you can live it and help others know Him and help them to live it! That is your purpose now, to occupy. That is the duty of all Christians: to know God (continually communicating with Him through prayer, praise and His Word); learning about Him and how you are to live your life, (through the authority of His Word); fellowshipping with and helping other believers (as mandated in His Word, and under the authority of His Word); and spreading to the world the simple and beautiful truth of the Gospel (through both The Word, and through your life).
What some of these contributors are promoting was thrown out of the Church years ago, centuries ago because of its unsuitable preoccupation with matters that God has chosen not to reveal to us; because of it's dangerous propensity to lead new believers astray; and because of its failure to align with the pure doctrine clearly given in the Word of God: THE BIBLE.
To those mature believers on this site who do know much more about the whole counsel of God, I encourage you to take the time and effort to biblically correct, in love, in which I also write, those who promote as "God's truth," things which are not contained in God's Word...for the sake of the Body of Christ, for the sake of the lost, and for Christ Himself.
Remember that Christ in Matthew 10:16 says that He sends us forth as sheep in the midst of wolves, and while He tell us to be "as harmless as Doves," He also tells us to be as "wise as serpents."