Comments by Joan Boney:
If we are the elect of God, and if we are keeping our heart right with God, if another church person comes to us and speaks and we find we are grieved with that church person's words, we must understand that it is the Holy Spirit in us who is grieved with that person's words.
Ephesians 4:30 And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
This is a warning to us concerning those words that grieve us and perhaps a warning concerning that church person who carried those words to us.
I usually pray when I am troubled by another person's words, and after I pray, God will often have me warn that person.
God might even have me avoid that church person.
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Concerning the end times:
Jesus warns us:
Matthew 24:3-5
4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
5 For many shall come in MY name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
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But we do not have to be deceived by church people for the HOLY SPIRIT is in us and will trouble us when HE is grieved by their word.
Don't try to explain away the warning of God given by the Holy Spirit.
Examples:
* At Word of Faith, when I attended the Sunday School Class, this happened:
Our teacher read the following scripture:
Mark 10:9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
Then our teacher said, "But God has not joined some of them together."
(He was basically explaining away the words of Jesus in Mk. 10:9 and making an excuse for those who divorced and wanted to remarry.)
We laughed ... But later God showed me what Paul said in the following scripture:
I Cor. 6:15-18
16 What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith HE, shall be one flesh.
17 But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
Paul is telling us that at the time of sexual intercourse the two people become one flesh even if they are not married in the sight of man. Thus at the time of sexual intercourse they are joined together in the sight of God and made one flesh by God.
Our teacher blasphemed the word of God in the Bible when he tried to explain away marriages by that which he said.
It seemed humorous to those of us who had not yet been enlightened to the truth, that at the time of sexual intercourse the two become one flesh.
Today, I would not find this teacher's statement humorous. I'm sure I would be grieved by HIS Word and I would know these words, though clever, were not of God and I would be warned about this man, who later admitted to me that he was committing fornication.
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If a pastor or other minister says something that troubles us, we should we warned that it is the Holy Spirit who is being grieved by that word of that minister.
Therefore we should take what he said to God in prayer and ask God about this.
And if Bible is involved we should look at that scripture and ask God to give us HIS Wisdom on that scripture.
James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
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If an individual comes to us saying he is a Christian, and then he speaks something which grieves us, we must learn to recognize that the grief is actually the Holy Spirit in us who is grieved.
And we must take this grief to God in prayer, discussing that which this person has said to us in person or by letter or email or telephone call.
For the Holy Spirit carries such things as love, joy, peace and we will not be grieved by the Holy Spirit.
If we are sinning at the time, God might send us correction and "trouble" us so we can be saved.
But either way, we must deal correctly with words that bring grief or trouble.
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Recently I was troubled by a dream. When I awoke I was praying immediately asking God what this dream meant. In the dream, water was running down the walls and columns inside my house. (I don't have a house.) At first, I felt I needed to adjust my thinking on one doctrine that I had been considering. Then approximately 2 weeks after this dream and my prayer, God showed me to make an adjustment in bookkeeping records. (I did that immediately, as soon as I understood that which God was showing me.)
If we need to make a change God will show us.
If we are doing something in a wrong way or committing sin, God will show us.
Then we rejoice that God showed us and we make appropriate changes quickly, as soon as we understand what God is saying to us.
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But we must stop allowing ourselves to be deceived by other people who call themselves Christians.
If we are grieved by words carried by another person who says he is a Christian, we must stop and pray about those words that grieved us.
We must not explain away warnings from God as we have often done in the past.
We must learn another way in this period of time as we draw nearer to the end and the return of Jesus where HE gathers the elect of God.
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Jesus says:
Matthew 24:4 "Take heed that no man deceive you."
We never look for wrong doing. We keep a good heart. But if we are grieved by another person's words, then we admit to God in prayer that we are grieved by these words, and we let God show us what to do, and let God correct our own heart if needed, or we let God warn us if the other person was in error.
(We might have to carry correction to that person who spoke in error and if he failed to hear the godly correction, we will probably have to do the following.)
Titus 3:10-11
11 Knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself.
Many who think they are Christians have never been born again though they have attended church all their lives. They do not have the Spirit of God unless they have been born again.
So they will speak things to us which grieve us! Beware!
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