I continue to encourage you to trust the Holy Spirit in you to guide you into truth; this includes trusting that same Holy Spirit to guide you away from that which is not truth. Another way to say this is that when you dare to follow the guidance which comes from within, you will always be increasing in your knowledge of God (who is Truth) and letting go of any false concepts you have been holding onto —that which Jesus calls the tradition of men
and for which we lay aside the commandment of God
(Mark 7:8). I stress this point because doubting my ability to hear for myself was by far the single biggest hindrance to what I feel is my own spiritual understanding and development.
I distinctly remember that when I was first exposed to alternative readings of Scripture, my head would go tilt.
Though my heart would be singing as I considered the possibility that this good news might indeed be true, there was still the nagging voice in my head telling me that if I dared believe this I would certainly be deceived and would probably go to hell. But because I had uttered the prayer wherein I had made the commitment to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit inside, I continued to read and listen to anything that felt like the living water
that Jesus said was inside and little by little ceased considering all those interpretations that generated fear rather than the peace, quietness and assurance which come to us when we accept the free gift of righteousness (Romans 5:17-18 For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. Isaiah 32:17 (KJV) And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.)
Now, for the first time ever, I can read all the books of the Bible with joy, not fear. Sometimes I can scarcely contain my joy when I see a Scripture in a way I could never see it before. And I hear myself exclaiming, Of course, that is what Jesus was saying. Why couldn’t I see it before?
I know now that I couldn’t see it before because, like Adam, I was afraid —afraid of the Presence of God, afraid that what I was reading was too good to be true.
My friend Mark Flint just recently called my attention to this Scripture:
2Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
The following paragraph is taken directly from his email to me:
What you are saying about
the personality we have put onreminds me of my favourite scripture which is,we all with unveiled faces beholding as in a mirror the glory of God are being changed into his image from glory to glory as by the Spirit of the Lord(or something very close, from 2Corinthians 3:18).Being changedis referring to our soul taking on the attributes of our spirit —which isthe glory of Godthat we behold as in a mirror. It is so amazing. When you look in a mirror you do not see another person, but yourself. So how can the scripture say we see the glory of God in the mirror? Amazing, no? I believe it is saying, Keep your gaze on the real person you are in the spirit and everything else will come into alignment just bybeholdingyour true self.
My heart began to sing as I read that comment. Of course, that is what that Scripture is saying!
The Holy Spirit inside me was bearing witness
to its truth.
This is how it works. If anything you have read on this website has made your heart sing or made you wish that what you read might possibly be the truth, then I encourage you to continue reading. We will continue on this spiritual journey together, as we are cutting through the Gordian Knot of orthodox Christianity and unveiling the beautiful, amazing simplicity that is in Christ.