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GOOD GIFTS FROM A HEAVENLY FATHER

Apologetics, ,

Matthew 7:11 NLT
[11] “So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.”

Luke 11:13 NLT
[13] “So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.”

Why is there a difference between these two records of Jesus’ teaching? Are they a contradiction or are they saying the same thing in slightly different words?

The key, I think, is in one small word, not in the original text in Luke 11:13, but added by translators to expand on the “good things” in Matthew’s text.

The Holy Spirit’s title, in the Greek text, is ” ‘o pneuma hagios’, translated “the Holy Spirit”. The word ” ‘o” is the Greek definite article translated “the”. Wherever the Holy Spirit is mentioned in Scripture, He is given His full title. This little one-letter word signifies that the person addressed is one-and-only “Holy Spirit”. Nowhere in the New Testament is ” ‘o” omitted when referring to the Holy Spirit.

In Luke’s record of Jesus` words, “… how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him”, there is no
” ‘o” in the original text which means that it cannot be translated as “the Holy Spirit”.

How does this mistranslatiion fit with the teaching of Scripture?

Nowhere in the New Testament are we instructed to ask the Father for the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit was poured out on “all flesh” on the day of Pentecost as God promised and has never or will never been poured out again or withdrawn.

Two incidents in Acts show us how the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out on specific non-Jewish believers as part of the “all flesh”, ie, on Samaritan believers…

Acts of the Apostles 8:14-17 NLT
[14] “When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted God’s message, they sent Peter and John there. [15] As soon as they arrived, they prayed for these new believers to receive the Holy Spirit. [16] The Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them, for they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. [17] Then Peter and John laid their hands upon these believers, and they received the Holy Spirit.”

… on Cornelius, a Roman Centurion and his household….

Acts of the Apostles 10:44-45 NLT
[44] “Even as Peter was saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the message. [45] The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles, too.”

…and on twelve Ephesian believers who had not yet been baptised into Jesus…

Acts of the Apostles 19:1-2, 5-6 NLT
[1]”While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus, on the coast, where he found several believers. [2] “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” he asked them. “No,” they replied, “we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
[5] As soon as they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. [6] Then when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in other tongues and prophesied.”

The Holy Spirit takes up residence in every person who receives God’s promise of salvation through faith in Jesus.

Acts of the Apostles 2:38 NLT
[38] “Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

1 Corinthians 12:13 NIV
[13] “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”

Would Jesus, then, instruct His disciples to ask for the Holy Spirit?

This pernicious teaching in some parts of the church has led to the idea that to be a “spirit-filled“ believer, i.e., one who has received “the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues”, is in a class higher than ordinary believers.

Jesus would have none of that since all of His followers have been immersed in the Holy Spirit through faith in Him. The onus is on the believer to ba “filled” with the Spirit by obeying His leading and by nou quenching or grieving Him.

What did Jesus imply by His teaching in Luke 11?

Let’s go back to the Greek text and look again at the context. Since the Father is greater than earthly fathers, He gives “good gifts” to those who ask Him, good meaning “functional”. The Greek words imply that God will give a holy disposition, mental attitude (words derives from “pneuma” meaning wind or breath). to those who ask for (desire) it.

Is this promise, then, of “good gifts”, the “much more” that the heavenly Father will give, more than basic human needs that earthly fathers provide, to those who ask for ( earnestly desire)
a holy disposition?

This interpretation perfectly fits the whole drift of Scripture. There are so many verses that urge us to seek the Lord, draw near to Him, acknowledge Him, that we cannot ignore Jesus’ assurance that the Father will surely give and do much more that we can ask, think, or even imagine if we ask Him for “holy desires”!

Ephesians 3:20 NLT
[20] “*Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.”

How Much More…

Bible Study, , ,

HOW MUCH MORE…

“But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification.

“For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:15-17.

And the river of grace flows on and on and on!

One man; one sin, condemnation; death – the tragic story of humanity. It took just one act of disobedience to release a Pandora’s Box of terrible consequences on the whole human race and the universe itself which God created perfect to sustain man’s earthly home. Once out of the box, those consequences could never be retrieved and stuffed back.

But we not only have to live with those consequences; we also continue to add to them by agreeing with and perpetuating Adam’s rebellion. And so through one trespass, condemnation and death came on the human race, but into our sorry plight stepped another man…

Paul was quick to explain that what God did to rescue man, not only rescued us from the consequence of sin but also elevated us to a position even greater than we had before the fall. That is so much like God!

Before Adam’s disobedience, the first pair, who were created in His image to share a unity with their Creator, with each other and with the world in which they lived, were the visible expression of the unity in the Godhead. But sin came in, disrupted the unity and brought chaos into the harmony of God’s creation. Not only Adam and Eve were condemned but also the whole human race because each succeeding generation was born with the nature of Adam. And the crux of it all is: we deserved it!

Now here comes the “how much more” bit!

Through the gift of God’s grace (the favour He lavished on us regardless of us), the effects of what Jesus did on the cross flow to all who receive Him and we don’t deserve it. That is the majesty of God’s grace. We deserve nothing but condemnation and death because we have confirmed God’s judgment on us by our own sinfulness. Yet God has provided, not only forgiveness but also much more – righteousness through grace, underserved favour that releases upon us a new status – children of God, and all the privileges and benefits of being God’s kids!

But Paul said that it’s even more than that. Not only are we God’s sons and daughters, but we are also on the same level as His Son – kings, reigning in life through Him and with Him. What does that mean? Jesus showed us what it means to reign in His earthly sojourn. He was never the victim of anyone or anything. He lived in absolute submission to the Father, and carried out the Father’s will in everything He said and did.

“Reigning in life” is not about lording it over other people; it’s about being in control of ourselves by being in submission to God. Now that takes grace! Our natural bent towards selfishness and self-will is still there, wanting to be in charge but, because the Holy Spirit is now resident inside us, representing Jesus to us and giving us the power to submit to Him, we are able to overcome our natural bent and live under His authority.

As we are being set free from our fears, our inhibitions, our misunderstandings and our unbelief to embrace the truth that Jesus, not us, is Lord, so we are able to say “no” to ourselves and “yes” to Him, more and more. The “old man” is dying and the “new man” is coming alive. Circumstances no longer control or terrify us because He is in charge. His peace guards our hearts and minds; His word fills our thoughts and mouths.

And that is reigning in life!

Acknowledgement

THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.