The Unity of the Spirit

Download or read book The Unity of the Spirit written by Taylor Overbey and published by Independently Published. This book was released on 2019-04-08 with total page 246 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: If you have been puzzled over how one Bible could be transformed into the many different Christian doctrines, this book is for you. Some years ago, after my daughter was born, I returned to art school to finish my Bachelors of Fine Arts degree. I was glad to hear about a Christian fellowship on the campus. I asked one of the group leaders when the group met, and he promptly sent me a list of their beliefs, along with a question: "Do you believe these things?" It was a litmus test. He demanded to know if what I believed lined up with his group's doctrine. From previous experience, I knew there was only one correct way to answer: his way.I decided to pray and ask God how I should respond. I sensed God say that I should reply, "It is against my conscience to describe my beliefs outside of the scriptures." The verse I used is the following one.John 10:3636 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?I did not quote a famous theologian, a Christian creed, or a church doctrine to describe my beliefs. I repeated what Jesus said. My response was not the one he was looking for, because later I heard that I was the topic of discussion in that group, and they were even warning their members about me!How anyone reacts is not up to me. And since that day I have decided that I will not use anything else other than scripture to describe my beliefs. The Lord Jesus Christ is my example.After his baptism when Jesus heard his Father say, "This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased," he went into the wilderness for 40 days. He was then confronted by the Devil, who said, "If you are the son of God..." God had said to Jesus, "This is..." and Satan said, "If you are..." How would you respond? What did Jesus use for his response? Did he quote a Jewish creed? How about what a famous rabbi said? Or, did he cite a Jewish tradition? No, none of the above. Here is what he said.ASV Matthew 4:44 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.That is what this book is about. What God said, versus what God never said. What God said will set you free.