{"id":6837,"date":"2014-04-06T01:00:42","date_gmt":"2014-04-06T05:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allandouglas.dougbittinger.com\/blog\/?p=6837"},"modified":"2025-04-21T01:56:40","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T05:56:40","slug":"spirit-led-conclusions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/spirit-led-conclusions\/","title":{"rendered":"SPIRIT-LED CONCLUSIONS"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Calvin<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 One of our problems with honest Biblical interpretation is that we want our Bible to specifically address every issue.\u00a0 We want it to give simple, pat answers to all our complicated questions.\u00a0 When it does not, we twist and bend certain passages to give us our desired result.\u00a0 We tend to manipulate the Word of God to suit our own interpretation.\u00a0 We will not accept the Bible’s limitations.<\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The truth is, the Bible does not explicitly supply us with easy solutions to all our problems.\u00a0 It is not so much an answer book as it is a study guide.\u00a0 For this reason it is dishonest to make certain passages say things never intended.\u00a0 The Bible is\u00a0God’s inspired Word on many issues and it gives us direction and guidelines for all issues, but a specific conclusion on so many matters is ours to discover.<\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In no way does this minimize the authority of Holy Scripture.\u00a0 In reality it allows the Bible to point to something greater.\u00a0 If the Bible had told us everything, there would have been no need for the Holy Spirit.\u00a0 Jesus told the disciples before His departure that He had much more to tell them, but they were not\u00a0ready to grasp it.\u00a0 He announced the coming of the Holy Spirit who would lead them into all truth.\u00a0 Here, then, is our clue for approaching today’s complex issues.\u00a0 Our Lord has not left us without a\u00a0Leader.\u00a0 \u00a0We must seek\u00a0the guidance of the Holy Spirit.\u00a0 <\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Of course, a question arises.\u00a0 How do we know our understanding is of the Spirit?\u00a0 For one thing, it will be consistent with the scriptures.\u00a0 It will reflect the spirit of Jesus as He dealt with the issues of His day.\u00a0 There will be no malice or jealousy in the way we discuss our opinion.\u00a0 We will be open to what others have to say on the matter.\u00a0 We will be firm in where we search for truth, but not dogmatic in our decisions.\u00a0 We will leave room for the Holy Spirit to correct our mistakes and redirect our thoughts.<\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 A closed mind on any issue cannot enjoy the fruit of the Spirit.\u00a0 We are not sufficient within ourselves to have all the answers.\u00a0 We do not own the scriptures and neither do we own the Holy Spirit.\u00a0 We must allow them the freedom to speak to us whenever and however they choose.\u00a0 <\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 There is a wonderful peace in permitting the Holy Spirit to control our lives, even our interpretation of scripture.\u00a0 Love is a marvelous tool for learning.\u00a0 It equips our mind and emotions to discern truth and error without agitation.<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

     One of our problems with honest Biblical interpretation is that we want our Bible to specifically address every issue.  We want it to give simple, pat answers to all our complicated questions.  When it does not, we twist and bend certain passages to give us our desired result.  We tend to manipulate the Word … Continue reading “SPIRIT-LED CONCLUSIONS”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[98],"class_list":["post-6837","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-matters-of-faith","tag-bible"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6837","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6837"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6837\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19155,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6837\/revisions\/19155"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6837"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6837"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6837"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}