by William J. Stewart We continue to look at the claim made by some that God speaks directly to them. Today, we want to consider some texts about the Holy Spirit, and the emphasis on the written word in the Bible. John 14:26—But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My…
Category: Spirit Realm (Angels
God Talks To Me (2 of 3)
by William J. Stewart Does God speak to folks directly, by visions or in dreams today? Many in the religious world will answer yes, citing personal experiences as evidence. As we noted last week, such claims cannot be authenticated, and the messages attributed to God by people are often contradictory. There are several New Testament…
God Talks To Me (1 of 3)
by William J. Stewart Occasionally I’ve studied with folks who claim God speaks to them. Typically their claim to divine revelation is made when something comes up in a Bible discussion they disagree with. The claim is essentially, “God said this to me, so I don’t have to obey that.” Does God speak directly to…
Guardian Angels
by William J. Stewart Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 18:10) Jerome, in his commentary on Matthew 18:10, stated, “how great the dignity of the soul, since each one has…
The Spirit Realm, #4
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 by William J. Stewart Google “demon list” and you will discover site after site telling you about a myriad of demons. In these lists you’ll find everything from odd names (Bifrons, Jinn, Lamia) to human actions (gossip, lying, rape) or emotions (pride, grief, jealousy)….
The Spirit Realm, #2
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 by William J. Stewart There are several occasions recorded in the Bible of interaction between the spiritual and physical realms. This should not surprise us: our Creator is a Spirit and He has made us in His image (despite being in the flesh, we…
The Spirit Realm, #1
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 by William J. Stewart The existence of a spirit realm and activity in that realm is mentioned throughout the Bible. In fact, there are a number of texts that seem to indicate the Lord gave angels a measure of responsibility over the nations. Deuteronomy…
Spirit and Soul, part 2
by William J. Stewart Last week, we looked at the words “spirit” and “soul”, and more specifically, the two Hebrew words which are primarily rendered in this manner. We will continue our consideration of the same this week, addressing now the Greek words psuche and pneuma. In defining the word psuche, Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon provides two primary definitions: 1)…