(Verses cited as end notes)
Like the Bereans, I want to verify everything I hear about God and His words whether they are in harmony with what is written in the Sacred Scriptures (Acts 17:11-1). I am also aware of the warning given in Galatians 1:8 "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed."
God rebuked the people in the Old Testament for not knowing Him (Jeremiah 4:22-2). Our Lord repeated this dressing down on the Scribes and Pharisees, and to many people today (John 8:54-55-3). In Matthew 15:14-4 He called the Scribes and Pharisees, "blind guides leading the blind." Jesus Christ warned His disciples of people who do not know Him and the Father in John 16:2-3-5.
I read that God's chosen people in the Old and New Testament clearly recognized Him. For me, I cannot clearly "see" or recognize the One True God, more so when I read the following verses. For how can I clearly understand that there is only one God when Jesus Who is God has a God?
John 20:17 "Jesus saith unto her…go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." 1 John 5:20 "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life."
From this, I developed an obsession to identify our Lord Jesus and God, so that I can worship the One True God. Thus, this personal testimony:
A casual Bible reader
I used to read the Holy Bible casually like many people. From this, I learned great sayings and their moral lessons -- knowledge that helped shape my values in life, and my interaction with other people. That is how the Holy Bible found its place in my little library.
Occasionally, I also use some verses to defend my religious beliefs. A sample of this is the summary of all the commandments and words of God into a simple: all-in-all doctrine of "Love God" and "love my fellowmen".
The Bible as a casual reading material, however, became my favorite book when I read what our Lord told a Scribe in Mark 12:28 who asked Him, "Which is the first (greatest) commandment of all?" Jesus answered in Mark 12:29 "The first (greatest) of all the commandments is: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord". Then Jesus began enumerating "Love God" and "Love thy neighbor..." (in Mark 12:30-31-6).
I have not heard that first (greatest) commandment from my religious leaders before. Questions began cropping up in my mind about the "ONE LORD AND ONE GOD," whose identity I now realized is a prerequisite to loving Him. While people profess to believe in one God, different groups of Bible believers teach different perceptions of Him, often mistaking "personal relationship" for identity. I was thinking, people unwittingly love a God with different identities -- a strange God!
I was contented with this identification of God. More so, I had the comfort of being in the majority with this belief. And besides, I am familiar with the anecdote about St. Augustine who tried to figure out the "ONE LORD AND ONE GOD" as he walked by the seashore. A child rebuked him by showing the impossibility of transferring the waters of the sea to a small hole he was digging -- so goes the anecdote.
I was fully convinced then with what I believed about God: that He is, indeed, composed of three divine persons. At the baptism of Jesus, the three persons cannot be disregarded. Upon creation God used the pronoun "us" and "our." In the four gospels, our Lord kept on saying the Father had sent Him; and they were relating with each other. In the Epistles, the apostles referred to the three "persons" of God.
Many questions
Later however, I felt an obsession of pinpointing the identity of the "ONE LORD AND ONE GOD." The prerequisite to loving God cannot be kept out from my mind. Even humanly speaking, how can a person love somebody whom he does not know? I know for a fact that KNOWING comes before LOVING. Questions began cropping up in my mind:
- Who is the God of Abraham and the chosen people in the Old Testament? What is His name?
- Who is the God of the Apostles? What is His name?
- Who is our God today? What is His name?
- How many persons of God shall we see in heaven? What is the name of GOD?
Questions are answered!
To my surprise, my questions are answered wherever I open my Holy Bible. Am I too presumptuous to say this is a "miracle?" True, as the popular belief goes, the clear and full recognition of God cannot be comprehended by the inadequate human understanding of "spiritual things" (1 Corinthians 2:14-11). Jesus told Peter when he recognized Him as "the Christ and the Son of the living God," "flesh and blood hath not revealed that unto you" (in Matthew 16:16 -17-12). The Father revealed to Peter Who JESUS really is! Here now is the sixty-four dollar question: people reading the Holy Bible all profess "Jesus is the Christ and the Son of the living God." Yet, they arrive at different perceptions of our Lord and the Father, making God a great mystery. My eyes were opened in reading the Holy Bible that only "a revelation from above" can clearly identify Jesus, as Peter learned 2,000 years ago.
My casual reading of the Holy Bible turned into a rigid and serious one. God must have discerned that I went to Him "with a whole heart that now He seems to have given me a heart to know Him" (Jeremiah 24:7-13). Through the lines in the verses (Isaiah 28:10-14) both in the Old and New Testament, God was introducing Himself! As I opened the Holy Bible, I read that the Father, the God of Noah, made a COVENANT with Abraham and his descendants in Genesis 17:7-15. The descendants of Abraham in the eyes of God are the people belonging to Christ (Galatians 3:28-29-16). I also read that the One making the covenant, or the TESTATOR, had to die to fulfill His TESTAMENT. I read this in Hebrew 9:16-17-17. I did not ask my religious leaders anymore how the God of the Old Testament, a Spirit, could fulfill His Testament.
The Father and Jesus Christ
God seemed to have known my question without expressing it. I just opened my Bible and there before me is a startling revelation: “And without controversy, great is the mystery...GOD WAS MANIFEST IN THE FLESH" (1 Timothy 3:16-18 KJV)! My finite mind questions, "Who is this GOD who manifested Himself in the flesh?" As I opened the Epistle of Paul to the Christians of Corinth, he wrote, "But to us, THERE IS BUT ONE GOD, THE FATHER...and one Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 8:6-19). Then it must be the FATHER, the one and only God, Who manifested Himself in the flesh! God fulfilling His Testament by death was getting clearer. That is that simple by divine revelation!
I knew this before that JESUS, the child born in Bethlehem, the son of Mary Who grew in Nazareth, performed many miracles, and crucified on the cross is the ONE alluded to as the "GOD IN THE FLESH." The prophecy for Emmanuel “God with us” (Matthew 1:23-20) is fulfilled. Jesus' statement, "I and My Father are one" now presents a different dimension from my religious leaders' explanation. The claim of the FATHER in Isaiah 43:11 "I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no savior" perfectly conforms to the revelation about Jesus and the Father.
My finite mind, however, keeps on telling me that Jesus and the Father are two different persons, for they relate with each other. There was a conflict between the dictate of my intellect ("flesh”) and feeling (“blood") with what "is written." This is what is written: "The one and only God, the FATHER (1 Corinth 8:6a-21) manifested Himself in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16-22 KJV), now known as the one and only Lord, JESUS CHRIST (1 Corinthians 8:6b-23)!
I kept on thinking of the PREREQUISITE to loving God: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord." Mark 12:29-24 I know Israel does not only refer to the descendants of Abraham or Jacob but to the chosen people of God today as well. I read this in Galatians 3:28-25. This must be an urgent call!
Jesus, the man, accepted worship since childhood from the Wise Men from the East. He accepted worship from His Disciples and other people, before and after His resurrection, for He must, indeed, be the FATHER IN THE FLESH! Emmanuel “God with us” was hidden from the Jews!
There is only one God, the Father (1 Corinthians. 8:6a-26). Jesus Himself said that "only God should be worshipped and served (Matthew 4:10-27, Revelation 22:9-28). I never thought of that before and I could not accept that our Lord Jesus is the Father in the flesh. This is against the dictate of my "flesh and blood" (or intellect and feeling). However, verses keep on confirming this unbelievable but spectacular truth: Jesus declared as He lay on the cross, "It is finished!" He must have referred to the fulfillment of the TESTAMENT of the Father! Jesus said , "Ye shall die in your sins, for if ye believe not that I AM HE, ye shall die in your sins” (John 8:24-29). In the Old Testament, it is written in Isaiah 52:6, the Father speaking, "Therefore my people shall know my name: therefore they shall know in that day that I AM HE that doth speak: behold, it is I." Now I could see all arrows are pointing to JESUS, the man. Very clear to me now, He is actually the FATHER in the Old Testament!
However, my "flesh and blood" cannot accept "hard facts" because the Father was relating to the Son: "This is my beloved Son in Whom I am well pleased," said the Father (Matthew 3:17-30). On the other hand, the Son told the Father, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do" in Luke 23:34-31. Jesus even told Magdalene, "My God and your God" in John 20:17. How could they be one and the same? My finite mind kept on reminding me blurring the written words.
As if a miracle, it became very clear to me that JESUS CHRIST in one person performs two roles. As the FATHER, He could now fulfill His testament of salvation. But to Him, His plan for salvation should be supplemented with a “model in humility”. And so, in one body Jesus takes the role of SON to show the “way” (John 14:6)-32, and to serve as “example” for the chosen (1 Peter 1:21)-33. Little by little, my mind begins to accept these two roles of Jesus Christ.
On second thought, I realized this is not hard to comprehend as I see myself as the husband of my wife, and the FATHER of my daughter. My two roles cannot be interchanged, and so with JESUS CHRIST in His two roles. In the end, clear to my mind the secondary role of Jesus as SON will then be merged in one person as the GOD sitting on the Throne as revealed to Apostle John in:
Revelation 4:2 And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
Revelation 5:6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne … a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God …
Jesus the SON showed the Way
Comes now a choice between the dictate of my intellect with what "is written" in the Holy Bible. I realized this is the test for faith in the word as I read Hebrew 11:1-34. I was ready to accept what "is written" blindly. However, is this not divine revelation? As I opened my Holy Bible, there I “saw” JESUS, the Father in the flesh, fulfilling the promised Emmanuel that means “God with us.” Because all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)-35, and all are tainted with sin (Romans 3:10-12)-36. Only JESUS in His human body is the worthy model to show the WAY as our Lord said in John 14:6. Peter wrote of our Lord's example showing the way in 1 Peter 2:21. Paul received this revelation for the “chosen to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29-37) Very clear all these confirm our Lord Jesus' role as model to the chosen in humility.
On the other hand, my belief that Jesus is the Father in the flesh is now standing on the "Rock (1 Corinthians 10:438). However, as model showing the Way to the chosen, Jesus had to pray to the Father (Matthew 26:29-39), ask for wisdom and strength from the Father, and fully dependent on the Father (John 5:19-40), even calling the Father "His God (John 20:17-41)." This is Jesus in His role as SON the perfect model seen by the Disciples! By this time, I learned to accept what "is written," although once in a while, my finite mind keeps standing on the way.
The Holy Spirit and The Father
One more question that needs an answer: WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT? I scanned the Old Testament books and there I read in Ezekiel 44:28-42 and Psalms 16:5where the "Father promised Himself to be the INHERITANCE in His Testament." I never read in the New Testament where God's chosen people received the Father as their inheritance. However, in John 14:26-43, the Holy Spirit had to "be sent" like the Son (John 5:30-44 ) that GOD could complete His plan for salvation.
Jesus told His Disciples that they would receive the Holy Ghost after He was glorified (John 7:39-45 ). It was the HOLY SPIRIT that the Disciples received at Pentecost, when the Father is the promised inheritance! Now it is clear why the Holy Spirit is pictured as a DOVE because the FATHER had to take the characteristics of meekness, gentle that His chosen would not fear receiving Him.
Jesus and The Holy Spirit
The Plan of Salvation made JESUS fulfill His promise in Matthew 28:20-46: "Behold, I will always be with you till the end of the world." This is His commitment to His Disciples in John 14:18-47. Jesus could not have fulfilled this promise if He is not the Holy Spirit! Now it is confirmed in 2 Corinthians 3:17, "The Lord (Jesus) is the (Holy) Spirit”. Are they really three persons as "flesh and blood" dictate? Or, are they one and the same in three different manifestations?
1 Corinthians 8:6 "But to us there is but one God, the Father...and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things…”
Colossians 2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
What is written that touched me: "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord!" And now, I may claim:
1 Corinthians 3:16 "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?"
The name of God
One more riddle in the Godhead that remains unresolved is the NAME of God. Before, when I was still casually reading the Bible, I read many names of the Father in the Old Testament: Jehovah, Yahweh, Lord Almighty, Lord of Hosts, I am that I am, El Shaddai, Rose of Sharon, Lily of the Valley, etc. I found now that those are only titles, for God had not yet revealed His name in the Old Testament. He said in:
Isaiah 52:6 "Therefore my people SHALL KNOW MY NAME; therefore they SHALL KNOW IN THAT DAY that I AM HE that doth speak, behold, it is I."
God revealed His name when Jesus commanded His Disciples to "baptize in the NAME of the Father, in the NAME of the Son, and in the NAME of the Holy Spirit"(Matthew 28:19). The Apostles executed this command when Peter "baptized in the NAME of JESUS CHRIST (Acts 2:38 )." Philip "baptized in the NAME of JESUS CHRIST (Acts 8:12 )," and Paul "baptized in the NAME of the Lord JESUS (Acts 19:5)." Nowhere in the Bible can I find the Apostles baptized "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
No wonder it is written in Philippians 2:10 “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;” This was long ago prophesied in the Old Testament, “I have sworn by myself…That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.” (Isaiah 45:23). And this will last forever Zechariah 14:9-48
"Son sitting at the right hand of God"
The last riddle in the "mystery" of God is, how could the “Son be sitting at the right hand of the Father" when they are one in BODY as just revealed? I never asked my religious leaders anymore. I simply trusted what "is written" more than the opinion of the men I believe before are authority of the Bible.
Without asking God, He knew what was bothering me. I simply opened my Holy Bible and, there, God explains "right hand of the Father" to mean POWER OF GOD (Exodus 15:6-49), Jesus told His Disciples as confirmation, "HEREAFTER shall the Son of man sit on the RIGHT HAND OF THE POWER of God (Luke 22:69). Indeed, the Everlasting Father in His physical form is the "right hand of God" for in JESUS, the person of God, dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily written in Colossians 2:9-50. And so,
Isaiah 9:6 'For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father…"
Now I realized that "my neighbor need not tell me, 'Know the Lord,' for I am the least of God's chosen people who fully and clearly recognize my God:
Hebrew 8:11 "And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest."
"Plurality" of God
God and the Lord is no longer a mystery to me as I was made to believe before. The "plurality" of God in the phrase "Let us make man in our image," and at the baptism of Jesus, along with other incidents showing the Son relating to the Father, and vice versa, are but the dictate of my "flesh and blood." In truth, the word “us and our” are just parable as they relate to the three manifestations of God. True, I realized that human wisdom cannot be used in understanding the word of God. He alone can and should explain His words. And through His explanation, God reveals His clear identity. I was a LOST SHEEP before, now the SHEPHERD found me and carries me in His arms.
Isaiah 40:11 "He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom…"
CLEAR IDENTITY OF GOD CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF HIS WORDS
I was greatly susprised, and now having a different view of the message of God. Not realizing before, the truth is God is speaking in PARABLES!
Psalms 78:2 I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old: Ezekiel 20:49 Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! they say of me, Doth he not speak parables? Mark 4:34 But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
The story of Abraham told to leave Haran and his relatives, and the Israelites freed from slavery in Egypt, were just the “letter” or literal understanding of many Bible readers. But now, very clear to me God is alive from the “life” I find in His words.
Abraham from "Haran" to "Canaan"
Abram, Abraham's name before, was like a "little child" (Isaiah 28:9-51, Matthew 11:25-51) in the eyes of God. In total submission, he followed God's directive without asking any question. This is God's way of following Him:
Genesis 12:1-2 "Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing."
Genesis 12:4 "So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him…and… he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife… and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came."
Literally speaking, Abraham was to leave Haran and go to Canaan. Haran and Canaan are places. Therefore, Abram was to leave a "land" and go to another "land." It is written:
Exodus 3:8 " Canaan…a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey…"
As revealed, God is speaking in parables. Man is symbolized by "land" in the following:
Genesis 3:19 "… till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."
Genesis 18:27 "And Abraham…said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes."
Therefore, Abraham was simply commanded to move from one "land" to another "land" -- or from his "previous state" to "another status" as man. These are the "two states or status" of man, before and after being chosen by God:
THE NATURAL MAN (Before)
The Natural Man does not yet have the Spirit of God. Without the Teacher, man cannot understand the spiritual language of God.
1 Corinthians 2:14 " But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
In the eyes of God, the Natural Man is spiritually dead.
Proverbs 21:16 "The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead.
Being a Natural Man is spiritual Haran that God told Abram to leave. If Abram was spiritually dead as a Natural Man, therefore he could not "see the light," or "hear the voice of God," and "walk on the spiritual Way." Truly so, Abram had to leave spiritual Haran.
THE SPIRITUAL MAN (After)
God told Abram to go to Canaan, "the good and large land flowing with milk and honey." Simply stated, Abram was commanded to move to "another state" of becoming a Spiritual Man -- the spiritual Canaan. This is the characteristic of a Spiritual Man.
1 Corinthians 2:16 "For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ."
True to the message, Canaan is "flowing with milk and honey." As a SPIRITUAL MAN, Abram later known as Abraham must have "flowed milk and honey" in him with the word of God.
1 Peter 2:2 " As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby." Psalms 119:103 " How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
The message of Abram leaving Haran and going to Canaan was seen in the Disciples of our Lord before and after He had chosen them. What had they known about the "sweet milk and honey" in the word of God before our Lord took them with Him?
I say now that I also see myself in Abram moving from Haran to Canaan. I have "moved" from being a Natural Man to a Spiritual Man as evidenced by the joy in clearly understanding the great message of the word of God. As God changed the name of Abram to Abraham, so do I also see myself formerly called "the son of the devil" (John 8:44-50) and now called "a son of God." I realized this is "born again" (John 3:3-5)-51 that our Lord was referring to when He talked to Nicodemus who did not understand spiritual things, although he was knowledgeable of the law.
God promised Abram to make him a "great nation." Can I also claim that promise? Literally, of course, not. But spiritually, God will never be remiss with His promise:
1 Peter 2:9 " But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light."
God told Abram to leave his relatives in Haran. Can I also claim to have left my father, mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters? Literally, of course, not. But spiritually, yes; otherwise, I could not have understood this great message of the words for being a SPIRITUAL MAN. These "are my spiritual relatives" I left as a NATURAL MAN:
Deuteronomy 13:6 " If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known…"
Look, how God speaks His distinct "spiritual language." The spiritual relatives refer to the SOUL! The attributes of the SOUL are the intellect and feeling. Truly so, the SOUL is what enticed me to serve a " God " I did not know. Did I not worship " God " whom I did not know before I left my "spiritual relatives" or "my own soul?" My intellect and feeling made me content worshipping God I considered a great mystery incapable of clear identification.
However, after I left spiritual Haran and reached spiritual Canaan, I am no longer enticed by my own soul. I now love and worship the One True God of the Holy Bible that I clearly recognize and identify. He is no longer a mystery to me because I am in spiritual Canaan , the "land flowing with milk and honey."
It is with this identification of myself with Bible characters that I find my "name" written in the BOOK OF LIFE. There could be no other book that is the source of eternal life except the Holy Bible.
Israelites in Egypt
Exodus 3:7-8 " And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey..."
God took His people from Egypt, the land of slavery. Before clearly recognizing the One True God, I thought this story was just a Biblical epic that is a reminder of the atrocity inflicted on God's people, their grand escape, and the glorious victory of God's power.
Suffering in Egypt
In the story, the Israelites suffered physically in the hands of Pharaoh. I could clearly identify myself with the Israelites. While they suffered physically, in my case, I suffered spiritually from erroneous doctrines I thought came from God. The enemy masquerading as an "angel of light" deceived me.
2 Corinthians 11:13 " For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness…"
Without knowing the Truth, I was like a blind groping in the dark following every doctrine about God and His words. Religious deceptions and delusion were inflicted on me. I was bound and held in prison. I was a spiritual slave in the eyes of God.
Deliverance from slavery
However, just as God delivered the Israelites from slavery, I was also delivered from spiritual slavery by the power of Truth.
John 8:32 " And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
They crossed the Red Sea without drowning. I also passed through the spiritual Red Sea without drowning from the religious traditions, unscriptural practices and spiritual dominion of people. Here, "sea" symbolizes people:
Revelation 17:15 " And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest…are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues."
In the wilderness
In their grand escape, God guided, protected, and nourished the Israelites in the wilderness. They were fed with Manna and provided with water from the Rock as they roamed the wilderness.
I cannot find a single incident in my life where I missed those spiritual "lucky breaks" bestowed to the Israelites. Like them, I was fed with spiritual Manna when spiritually hungry and was given spiritual water when thirsty, with the words of God by the Holy Spirit's revelations. Manna symbolizes the word of God, while water symbolizes the Holy Spirit (John 7:38-39-52). This Testimony is only a part of my spiritual nourishment.
Great parables are now unveiling great message to me (Deuteronomy 29:29-52). "Revealed things" are those that are written, while "secret things" are the unwritten words (Revelation 10:4-53). The things about the Father, Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit are written in the Holy Bible; hence, no longer a mystery to me.
"Land flowing with milk and honey" and "born again"
Finally, the Israelites were settled in Canaan, the "land flowing with milk and honey." Was this fulfilled literally-physically? Nothing of that sort was ever found in Canaan . This is one proof that God is speaking "spiritual things", He is “speaking in tongues”. The story of the Israelite's slavery and their deliverance, and everything related to it, serve as spiritual food of God's chosen people all the time.
I am settled in spiritual Canaan where, as promised, I find the "land flowing with milk and honey." This Testimony is an example and proof. Who can refute that what we hear now is not as sweet as "honey" and nourishing as “milk” from the word of God? Who can refute that Abraham's leaving Haran and going to Canaan is the spiritual message of what Jesus Christ told Nicodemus:
John 3:3 … Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Yes, now I am settled in spiritual Canaan, which is but a shadow of the reality. God's plan of salvation will be finally fulfilled in heaven. It is sincerely hoped that others who are in the same predicament as I had been will also find the Shepherd.
END
Warning:
Human doctrines of identifying Jesus Christ totally disregard the following truth:
John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
2 Corinthians 3:6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
2 Corinthians 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
The “Oneness doctrine” is considered the most deceptive of all doctrines in identifying “Jesus Christ”. Satan impersonates Jesus Christ:
Revelation 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
“beast” – actually is Satan (Revelation 12:9-51)
“earth” – symbolizes man (Jeremiah 22:29-52)
“lamb” – symbolizes Jesus Christ (John 1:29-53)
End notes...
Acts 17:11-1 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
Jeremiah 4:22-2 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.
John 8:54-3 Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God 55 Yet ye have not known him…
Matthew 15:14-4 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.
John 16:2-3-5 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.
Mark 12:30-6 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
James 2:19-7 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
Jeremiah 4:22-8 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.
John 8:54-9 Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: 55 Yet ye have not known him; but I know him…
Zechariah 14:9-10And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
1 Corinthians 2:14 -11 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Matthew 16:16-12 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Jeremiah 24:7-13 And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
Isaiah 28:10-14 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
Genesis 17:7-15 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
Galatians 3:28-16There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Hebrew 9:16-17 For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. 17 For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.
1 Timothy 3:16, KJV only-18 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
1 Corinthians 8:6-19 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
Matthew 1:23-20 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
1 Corinthians 8:6-21 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things…
1 Timothy 3:16 KJV-22 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit…
1 Corinthians 8:6-23 … and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
Mark 12:29-24 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
Galatians 3:28-25 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians. 8:6a-26 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things…
Matthew 4:10-27 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
Revelation 22:9-28 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
John 8:24-29 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
Matthew 3:17-30 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Luke 23:34-31 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.
John 14:6-32 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
1 Peter 1:21-33 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
Hebrew 11:1-34 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Romans 3:23-35 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Romans 3:10-36 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
11There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Romans 8:29-37 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
1 Corinthians 10:4-38 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
Matthew 26:29-39 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.
John 5:19-40 Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
John 20:17-41 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.
Ezekiel 44:28-42 And it shall be unto them for an inheritance: I am their inheritance: and ye shall give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession.
John 14:26-43 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
John 5:30-44 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
John 7:39-45 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
Matthew 28:20-46 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
John 14:18-47 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
Zechariah 14:9-48 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
Exodus 15:6-49 Thy right hand, O LORD, is become glorious in power: thy right hand, O LORD, hath dashed in pieces the enemy.
Colossians 2:9-50 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
John 8:44-50Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
Isaiah 28:9-51 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
Revelation 12:9-51 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth,
John 7:38-39-52He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
Jeremiah 22:29-52 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord.
John 1:29-53 Behold, the Lamb of God - The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
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