Strong Man Of God Blog

          Divergence and confusion unnecessarily attend to God’s written Word within professing Christianity during these latter days in part because many have developed their own made to order Bible.  As the Lord led me to write about in my first post of the New Year, there are over nine hundred just English language translations of the Bible in whole or part today as evidence of the problem.¹  A related cause are the falsehoods involved in lying on the Holy Spirit as the source in every case for that many translations rather than owning what it is in ego and the presumed divine concurrence with the right of American free enterprise to produce and bring them to the marketplace.

          Surely, it is not God behind the multitude of English language translations, their divergences, resulting confusion and desolation of souls as well as humiliating scorn of the Christian faith by the watching unsaved world or would someone really try to convince me the Holy Spirit is the “author of confusion” contrary to what Scripture as it is written says (1 Corinthians 14:33, NKJV)?²  Indeed, would He who inspired Scripture millennia ago now, in these latter days actually cater to individual preference in doling out interpretations of it after having the apostle Peter emphatically write, “no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation,” (2 Peter 1:20-21, NKJV)?³

          No, but the same folk that have historically lied on the Holy Spirit otherwise, have not been afraid to tamper with and alter the written Word inspired by Him to benefit all mankind and especially those that are saved through repentance and faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Deuteronomy 31:9-13, 24-26; Psalm 102:12-22, Romans 15:1-6; 2 Timothy 3:14-17)!  The Word of God is “life” to those who love it (Deuteronomy 32:44-47; John 6:63, NKJV).  Consequently, the Lord has commanded that no one should “add to” or “take away from it” without punishment for causing His people to “stumble,” (Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 12:32; Proverbs 30:5-6; Mark 9:42-48; Revelation 22:18-19, NKJV)!

          The ultimate source and beneficiary of the resulting divergence and confusion from the made to order Bible is Satan as I wrote in that January 9, 2022 post!  Moved to gain successes by any means in his war of hatred against God, Satan has deceived and taken advantage of persons as individuals or through sectarian organizations to follow their egos and selfish ambitions to create the many types of English language translations that exist.⁴  Ostensibly however, their objectives are the benevolent good of making the Bible easier to read, understand or less offensive pandering to worldly desires.  Naturally, a number of these such as cults, wittingly produce corrupt, self-serving Bibles. 

          The solution for the time left is for biblically conservative leaders to come into consensus that word for word translations from the original Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic languages be the standard Bibles of primary authority and use.  After this, encourage other types of translations vetted for accuracy and free from modern cultural influence, bias, corruption of or compromise with the plain meaning of word for word translation texts be only supplemental.  Finally too, dissuade the marketing of any new designer translations that cater to vanity, personal preference or present the interpretive slants of preacher media stars as so-called “study notes” that engender divergence and confusion.

          Alas though, fallen, sinful flesh being what it is, the foregoing is just too easy and fraught with unthinkable injury to ego, selfish ambitions, carefully crafted legacies and income.⁵  The kind of doctrinal divergence and confusion that exists within professing Christianity not only from the made to order Bible, but the pride of self-exalted hearts is not new, but a continuation from the time of the Lord’s apostles in the first century when they had to contend sometimes with each other to bring the truth of God’s will in His Word to light with it (Acts 8:9-25, 11:1-18, 15:1-29; Galatians 1:1-10, 2:11-21)!  Shamefully, divisions rooted in narcissism, human loyalties and profit remains prime obstacles to leaders saying “the same thing,” (Acts 20:28-31; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13a, 3; 1 Timothy 6:3-10, NKJV).

          While we live in a nation of freedom, Christians are not free to opinion or teach what we please from God’s Word!  Our first citizenship is in Heaven where we answer to our sovereign Lord reigning with absolute authority (Colossians 3:1-2).  What is written in the Word He Personifies, authenticated, taught and obeyed during His sojourn on earth as well as had the Holy Spirit further disclose to His apostles for us, we are expected to fearfully treat as sacred and live out (John 1:14, 8:13-20, 16:13-15, 17:17; 1 Peter 1:13-21)!⁶  Doing so will give rise to a biblical worldview toward all of this mortal life.⁷  Free enterprise may grant the right to create the made to order Bible, but this does not mean God does or that it will be “helpful,” (Proverbs 14:12; 1 Corinthians 6:12-13, 10:23-24, NKJV).

1 See the January 9, 2022 post, Easier To Read Bibles, under the categories Bible Prophecy and Instruction.

2 Read the May 22, 2022 post, Made To Order Spirit?, under the category, Instruction.

3 There is an excellent set of uniform Bible interpretation principles that are well presented by Dr. R.C. Sproul in his book, Knowing Scripture, and widely taught in reputable
   seminaries  the  world  over.  Sadly  though,  even  many  of the scholars, pastors and teachers that are taught these principles do not apply them!  For this reason, as the
   Lord  has led, I have sought to put the principles and other information into the hands of ordinary Christians to help the willing properly interpret the Bible and get the most
   out of their study of it in the Fruitful Bible Study Self-Paced Video Course now, featured on our Strong Man Virtual Institute’s YouTube Channel.  The video course and op-
   tional (but recommended) Study Guide available for free download in the Strong Man Store replace and expand upon a one sheet document this Ministry formerly offered
   also as a free download.

4 As I asserted in the sixth footnote of that January 9^th post, Satan’s attack on the Bible is a very important strategic move meant to undercut the good God intends through
   its purity (Psalm 19:7-8) and destroy the corrupters along with those corrupted by its altered content (2 Peter 3:14-17)!

5 I have repeatedly and painfully not only witnessed this truth, but experienced it among church pastors, elders and other religious authorities during my born again journey. 
   Most  recently,  I  could not in good conscience join or accept the pastorate of a church because the pastor’s legacy tainted by disobedience to God’s Word they expected
   me to uphold, was deemed more important than the repentance that would have allowed me in.  In all of my similar experiences over the years, the religious have chosen
   to  view me as lacking the requisite humility to pay my dues and follow leadership rather than see the biblically taught priority behind my choices and actions (Acts 4:7-19,
   5:26-29).

6 This is the heart of every aspiring strong man and great woman of God I write about in my book, The Strong Man Of God Back To Basics.  It is available with the compan-
   ion  Strong  Man  Of  God  Men’s Group Study and Great Woman Of God Women’s Group Study in the Strong Man Store, at your favorite internet bookseller or brick and
   mortar bookstore.

7 A  biblical  worldview  stands  on  the  foundational practice of objectively reading, understanding and purposely applying God’s Word as it is written just as the Lord Jesus
   and  every  godly  person  named in the Bible does.  Once again, it is not what you or I think, feel or believe, it is what does God’s Word say?  See my May 31, 2015 post,
   What  Does  God’s  Word  Say?, under  the category, Instruction.  At this hour lack of a biblical worldview is widespread in professing American Christianity and among its
   leaders  as  a recent study by the Cultural Research Center directed by Dr. George Barna at Arizona Christian University reports.  This means that many are already com-
   promised  and  ill-equipped  to make a faithful stand for Christ in a culture that is intensifying its hostility toward our God and His Word they are failing to fully love and em-
   brace as “the truth,” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12, NKJV).

          Of the Persons that are the triune God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), none perhaps, has been more widely misconstrued and corruptly misused by sinful mortal flesh since the first century A.D. than the Holy Spirit.  His promised arrival for His special mission among believers in Jesus Christ came exactly fifty days after the Lord’s death, burial, resurrection and ascension on the Jewish “Day of Pentecost” in 33 A.D. (Luke 24:46-49; John 20:19-23; Acts 1:4-11, 2:1-4, NKJV).  In spite of ample biblical instruction about who He is and what He does, many professed Christians down through the centuries have created countless made to order falsehoods about the Holy Spirit’s Person and work.¹

          One of the major falsehoods is the erroneous teaching that the Holy Spirit is only a New Testament phenomenon; on earth since the first century exclusively for the indwelling and benefit of Christians.  This falsehood has led directly to another which asserts that the Holy Spirit removed from the earth, also necessitates the removal of Christians He indwells.  Others well intended and correctly over the centuries have written in detail on the Person and work of the Holy Spirit drawing as we all should, straight from the Scriptures.  I write the following brief introduction of the Holy Spirit who like the Father and Son cannot be made to order, to expose the falsehoods I address in this post.

          The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the three Persons that are the “one,” “true God,” (Deuteronomy 6:4; John 17:3, NKJV)!  He is first identified in the Bible as “the Spirit of God” at work in the creation of the physical universe, the earth and all its creatures as well as the plurality of “Us” at the creation of man (Genesis 1:1-26, NKJV).  As marvelously seen first at creation, the Spirit of God waited on the Word of God to speak what were their purposed unified plans with the Father to bring it into existence through the exertion of divine power!  He is therefore, the actualizing Agent of the will of the triune God who always moves in harmony.  He is holy because God in nature is (Daniel 4:1-9)!²

          For this reason He is identified as the “Holy” Spirit to also distinguish His divine, eternal Person from the spirits of men and angels He has created (Genesis 2:7; Numbers 16:20-22; Psalm 104:4).  Beyond creation, the Holy Spirit is the source of every mighty miracle not performed by angels at His direction including for example, the judgment of the flood, confusion of human languages, plagues on Egypt and Red Sea parting in the Old Testament (Genesis 7:11-24, 11:1-9; Exodus 8:16-19, 14:10-31).  He was also the source of wisdom and abilities among those used in and inspiration of the men who wrote it (Genesis 41:1-16, 37-40; Exodus 31:1-11, 35:30-35; Daniel 2:1-23; 2 Peter 1:16-21).

          The same Holy Spirit was in the earth overseeing God’s activity leading up to and enabling the foretold miraculous incarnation of the eternal “Son” and “Word” of God in the womb of a Jewish virgin (Isaiah 7:10-14; Matthew 1:18-25; John 1:1-5, 14-18, NKJV); initiating the New Testament of the Bible again, written by men carried along by Him (Luke 1:1-4; 2 Peter 1:12-15, 3:1-2, 14-16; 1 John 1:1-4)!  He came from Heaven on Pentecost not as if for the first time, but in a special, dramatic way to fulfill the words of the prophets and Christ who taught new birth by the Holy Spirit was required to “see” and “enter the Kingdom of God,” (Joel 2:28-32; Matthew 3; John 3:1-8; Acts 2:5-39, NKJV).³

          While the eternal life of believers and His manifold ministry in and through us hangs on Him, the Holy Spirit is also busy in the world with other divine assignments (John 7:37-39, 14:15-26, 15:26-16:15; 1 Corinthians 2:6-16, 12:1-13; 2 Corinthians 1:20-22).  His work includes restraining lawlessness until God’s perfect time to allow the rise of the Antichrist, greater evil and deception before the return of Christ (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12).⁴  He does not leave the planet.  He simply steps out of the way of restraining.⁵  This work of the Spirit is independent of Christians though, He certainly uses us in the war with Satan to be salt and light as well as preach the Gospel, make, baptize and teach disciples in all the earth as Christ has commanded (Matthew 5:13-16, 28:19-20; Jude 20-23).

          Given the level of sophistication attending to much of the false teaching going on within professing Christianity in these latter days coming from what are supposed to be trusted “Christian” sources in the media and many church pulpits, it is imperative that you and I know God’s Word for ourselves.  This is accomplished through purposely studying the Bible which every Christian ought to be doing as a matter of daily spiritual discipline.  The Lord by the Holy Spirit leads me to challenge men that would be strong men of God in Christ’s image to do this very thing in my book, The Strong Man Of God Back To Basics.⁶  I now, challenge all Christians to adopt this discipline and teach how to make Bible study more profitable in our new Strong Man Virtual Institute video course.⁷

1 The  greatest  of all falsehoods (and insult) is to describe the Holy Spirit as an “it” which this first paragraph plainly counters by speaking properly from the Bible of His
   “Person and work.”

2 Hence,  it  is  also  accurate  to  say “Holy Son” and ‘“Holy Father’” to the glory of God (Luke 1:35; John 17:11, NKJV)!  Too, in eternal nature and character as God the
   Holy  Spirit  is “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, righteousness, and truth” among other divine attributes (Gala-
   tians 5:22; Ephesians 5:9, NKJV).

3 That the Holy Spirit had filled and come upon mortal flesh among those used in the Old Testament for God’s causes has already been established in this post (see also
   Numbers  24:2  and  1 Samuel 10:9-13).   A few men were even indwelt by Him lifelong (Numbers 27:15-18; Deuteronomy 34:5-12; Joshua 1:5, 24:14-31; 1 Samuel 16:
   11-13; Psalm 51:11).  However, the new birth the Lord Jesus speaks of and requires is for all the redeemed beginning among the Jews as took place in the first century
   with a still later fulfillment to come and is what the prophet Ezekiel also spoke of as “a new heart” in connection with God’s New Covenant; the indwelling presence and
   working of the Holy Spirit intended to be with His beneficiaries forever (Jeremiah 31:31-34, 32:36-41; Ezekiel 11:16-21, 36:24-28; John 14:16, NKJV)!

4 While  some  would  like to believe the mortal Church on earth is powerful enough to restrain lawlessness in the world originating from Satan (1 John 2:18), the lawless-
   ness  that  has  been  displayed  among  our guilty, unrepentant members and local assemblies throughout history to this very hour fully discloses this haughty belief as
   false  (1 John  3:4-24).  As such, we just like ancient Israel have brought grief to the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 63:7-10; Acts 7:51-53; Ephesians 4:25-32; 2 Timothy 3:1-9).  No,
   only the Holy Spirit eternally greater and mightier than Satan can and has restrained his lawless plans and works until now!

5 The  mistaken  teaching  the  Holy Spirit leaves the earth moving out of the way of lawlessness arises from among those who also teach His departure is tied to the rap-
   ture  of  Christians before any have to suffer tribulation resulting from the increase in evil.  This being so, how does anybody get saved (which those who teach this doc-
   trine assert people will while previously unprepared, backslidden Christians also return to Christ) since the Holy Spirit convicts of sin and brings to new birth or after, get
   the help Jesus promises from Him if He is gone from the world with the Church?  As I write this, lawlessness continues its uptick as the Holy Spirit gradually relaxes His
   restraint  and  we  are still here on earth with Him.  How glad I am about that since without His companionship, comforting, helping and strengthening presence in me, I
   would not be faring very well as I am sure our persecuted brethren suffering all over the world concur (Romans 8:26-28)!

6 The  book  is  available  with the companion Strong Man Of God Men’s Group Study and Great Woman Of God Women’s Group Study in the Strong Man Store, at your
   favorite internet bookseller or brick and mortar bookstore.

7 View the first session of the Fruitful Bible Study Self-Paced Video Course to get an overview on the Virtual Institute’s YouTube Channel.  The video course replaces and
   expands  on the one sheet free download, Seven Principles Of Bible Interpretation, the Ministry previously offered.  An optional Study Guide for the video course is now,
   available for free download in the Strong Man Store.