Ephraim has encircled Me
with lies
And the house of Israel with
deceit:
But Judah still walks with
God
Even with the Holy One who
is faithful.
Hosea 11:12
Scripture declares that the doctrine is faithfully declared in His Word. God's promises are sure and we can have explicit trust in their fulfillment and when He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit for this purpose to declare this doctrine we should have no doubt: "Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment" (John 16:7-8). The sin the Holy Spirit comes to convict is that of not believing in Jesus Christ: "of sin because they do not believe in Me; righteousness, because I go to My father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged" (John 16:9-11). You must receive righteousness, the rightfulness of His claims as the Son of God that takes away the sin of the world and be received as a son of God. When it comes to judgment, that is the overthrow of Satan's kingdom and the triumph of light. There can be no question; faith is one of the gifts of the Spirit, a gift from God and this by the very energy of God:
"ἐν ᾧ καὶ συνηγέρθητε (raised together) διά (through) τῆς πίστεως (the faith) τῆς ἐνεργείας (in the workings) τοῦ θεοῦ (of God), τοῦ ἐγείραντος αὐτὸν ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν (you were raised out of (from) death" (Colossians 2:12). Further we are instructed that it was of God's power towards those who believe: ...and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 1:19-20). The second chapter of 1 Corinthians declares that faith comes not by the wisdom of men: "... that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God" (1 Corinthians 2:5). Here is the truth that must be inculcated into our thinking: faith does not rest on argument, on historical or philosophical proof; rather faith is founded upon the testimony of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that demonstrates to our minds and hearts the truth and produces conviction and delight. The testimony of God is given to men by the testimony of the Holy Spirit; therefore unbelief is the rejecting of that testimony. John the Apostle writes: "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things,....but the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him" (1 John 2:20,27).
"ἐν ᾧ καὶ συνηγέρθητε (raised together) διά (through) τῆς πίστεως (the faith) τῆς ἐνεργείας (in the workings) τοῦ θεοῦ (of God), τοῦ ἐγείραντος αὐτὸν ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν (you were raised out of (from) death" (Colossians 2:12). Further we are instructed that it was of God's power towards those who believe: ...and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 1:19-20). The second chapter of 1 Corinthians declares that faith comes not by the wisdom of men: "... that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God" (1 Corinthians 2:5). Here is the truth that must be inculcated into our thinking: faith does not rest on argument, on historical or philosophical proof; rather faith is founded upon the testimony of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that demonstrates to our minds and hearts the truth and produces conviction and delight. The testimony of God is given to men by the testimony of the Holy Spirit; therefore unbelief is the rejecting of that testimony. John the Apostle writes: "But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things,....but the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him" (1 John 2:20,27).
This is what has been taught and hopefully learned: That true Christians receive from Jesus Christ an anointing (an unction); that this anointing or unction is the Holy Spirit; that by means of the the Holy Spirit and this anointing you receive knowledge and conviction of truth; further it is taught that this inward teaching of the Holy Spirit causes them to be believers is abiding and secures them from apostasy: "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My father, who has given them to Me, is grater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand" (John 10:28-29). Here is great truth and joy, the Son and the Father are declared to be One and that by the commonness of both the Father and the Son declaring that no one can snatch His sheep (vs. 26-27) out of their hand is comforting and securing that our faith, a gift from God, testified to His sheep by the Holy Spirit inculcating that faith into our hearts and minds, we are secure and heaven bound on the last day when Jesus comes for His bride. Jesus said: "I and My Father are One" (John 10:30).
The backslider in heart will be
filled with his won ways,
but a good man will be
satisfied from above.
Proverbs 14:14
The LORD is good
Richard L. Crumb
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