Hi Bluto,
Quote from Post 1047:
Oh boy placid, still denying the Deity of Jesus Christ in spite of the fact that you have been given numerous verses proving His Deity even by God the Father Himself at Hebrews 1:8. But wait, you deny this by making excuses that the passages do not mean what they say.
Response: --- Two things you miss are, the word 'deity' is not in Scripture, and I showed above where neither Jesus nor Christ could be God because of their positions in heaven.
Jesus is the High Priest in the Sanctuary God erected at the right hand side of His throne. --- And Christ is 'seated at the right hand of God.' --- So if Christ was God, He would be sitting beside Himself. --- It says in Colossians 3:
1 "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.
--- Being 'raised up with Christ' means being 'born again by the Spirit of God.' --- Bluto, have you been 'born again'? --- Does the Holy Spirit guide you as you defend this unscriptural doctrine?
--- Secondly, as I said before John 1:3 says:
3 "All things were made through Him (the Word), and without Him nothing was made that was made."
So when you come to Hebrews where it says in 1:
2 God has in these last days spoken to us by His Son (the Word), whom He has appointed heir of all things, 'through whom also He made the worlds.'
--- "Through Whom He made the worlds," --- has to be the Word, who is addressed here, and again in 1:
8 But to the Son He says: "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions."
This Son from heaven, through whom all things were made, was already called God in John 1:1 --- "And the Word was with God and the Word was God."
--- And Jesus was never chosen from among companions, was He?
Quote: So let me try this? It says at John 14:23, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and "WE" will come to him and make "OUR" abode with him." Please notice that Jesus Christ couples Himself with the Father in such a way that He says, "We," and He also says "Our" abode in the person.
Response: --- Another thing to notice is that when Jesus (the vessel) speaks wisdom or prophecy, it can be the Word, Christ, or the Holy Spirit, speaking through Him. --- Also, the Word was called the Son of God, --- Christ was called the Son of God, --- and Jesus was called the Son of God, but each one from a different level. --- And this was before the Day of Pentecost, so they were all manifested through Jesus.
Christ, who came from heaven can say 'WE' because of His relationship with God, but He doesn't have to be God to do it.
On earth, a believer can speak a message by the Holy Spirit that indwells Him, and call God his Father, but he doesn't become the Holy Spirit.
Quote: Now look at John 14:1, "Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in Me." If Jesus Christ is "NOT" God then this would be blasphemous statement. Where in the scriptures are we told to believe in a man only (according to you) that is going to make his abode in a believer along with God the Father?
Response: --- We are given a good verse in John 5:
24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him (God) who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life."
--- This was Jesus' voice, but because the second part is prophetic, it would be Christ that was speaking, "He who hears My word" (the Gospel message of Jesus Christ), --- "and believes in Him (God) who sent "Me" (Jesus Christ)," has (already) that eternal life living in Him, (which is the Holy Spirit.) --- Once we are born of the Holy Spirit we enter into the Family of God, "As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the Sons of God."
--- "And shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life." This is the 'assurance' of salvation, --- when we die as a believer, the Holy Spirit takes our 'saved soul' to heaven with Him.
Quote: And as a side note, can you please tell me who Stephen was praying to with his dying breath at Acts 7:59,60?
Response: --- Stephan was given a vision of Jesus standing at the right hand of God, so God and Jesus were both there in the vision, --- and it says:
59 He was calling on God, and saying, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."
60 Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not charge them with this sin." And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
--- Stephan, as a disciple, would have been with the crowd that watched Jesus die, and heard him commit His spirit unto God, --- and He called on God, as Jesus did, to forgive the people, and not lay this sin to their charge.
--- O that believers today would imitate Christ as Stephen did.