quote:"All I notice from those who are against is broken families, with a lot of bitter feuding._ And what I hear preached is how wrong that guy is and how wrong this person is._ Does'nt that speak volumes?"
yeah Quaffie it does. God has given us a ministry of reconciliation, not condemnation. BTW aint no such ministry as "heresy hunting" or ministry office as "heresy hunter". And if it didnt come from God, I wonder who?
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Now, one of the things faith preachers have been accused of is saying that we are like little gods. So here's the explanation:
Are we little gods?
Word of faith preachers who teach that Christians are "little gods" have gotten plenty of flak for it. But what does the Bible say?
Man was made a little lower than God
Psalms 8:5 -- You made him a little lower than God and crowned him with glory and honor.
Most Bibles translate this verse as "a little lower than the angels". But the Hebrew word here for "angels" is actually "elohiym" or "God".
The Psalmist goes on to say in verses 6-8: "You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas."
The passage is obviously talking about Adam, the first man created directly by God (verse 5: You made him
). The preceding context of creation also supports this (verse 3: When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place).
So, Adam was like a little god (of course, he was not God!), until he sinned and forfeited his authority over to Satan.
Adam was given great authority
Genesis 1:28-30 -- God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground-everything that has the breath of life in it-I give every green plant for food." And it was so.
It sure looks like Adam was like a little god over the earth.
You are gods
Believe it or not, the Bible does say that of believers!
Psalms 82:6 -- "I said, 'You are "gods"; you are all sons of the Most High.'
Again, the Hebrew word here for "gods" is "elohiym" or "God".
Are Christians "sons of the Most High" or children of God? Yes, so it follows that we are also "gods" (small "g", of course) according to this verse.
In the New Testament, Jesus himself quoted this verse when the Jews wanted to stone Him for claiming to be God.
John 10:34-36 -- Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; 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?
It's not very different today -- there are Christians who want to "stone" other Christians for claiming to be gods! The latter are simply honouring what Christ has done for them.
A better covenant
So far, we have only looked at the Old Testament. Christians are now under a superior New Covenant (Romans 5:15-19). This means that Christians have it better than Adam, that is, they are in a better position today than Adam.
How so? Adam was not seated in heavenly places with Christ Jesus, but Christians are!
Ephesians 2:6 -- And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
So, if Adam was like a little god before he fell, and if Christians today are in a better position than him, doesnt that make them "little gods"?
King-priests
But if Christians find it hard to swallow this, they should at least believe that they are a king-priest in Christ Jesus, and start living like one!
1 Peter 2:9 -- But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.