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Crystal Dragon - I'm afraid your question is two steps ahead of Christianity right now.
We're never going to be a 100% accurate but with practice we can improve our percentage. You know you don't come up with the yes or no response yourself.
"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." John 10:27
That's certainly so, but this is something that could be said of innumerable theologians, bishops, teachers, and witnesses to church happenings through the years. To say that the "Church Fathers" are more than that or unimpeachable in whatever some of them have written or endowed with divine authority is going too far.Well, those early Church fathers are not on par with Holy Scriptures, but throughout the early centuries in combating the several Christological and Pneumatological heresies that arose, their writings were instrumental in defining the Faith of the Church.
We can ask ourselves questions that have yes or no answers as well and get an answer. And sometimes we hear an answer that one might think is from God but it ends up not working out. Again, how can we know?
But thing is how can we know if what we hear is relying on God? How can we tell it's not just our own minds?
Let me say it like this: we cannot tell if it's God or not, because a human cannot discern it on our own. However, the Spirit teaches us how to do it. By praying, being still and listening to the Spirit, eventually we will learn how to recognize His voice. He has to reveal his presence to us first. He does this when we obey His commandments. John 14:21
We are told to test all the spirits. 1 John 14:3 The passage refers to false prophets, but since false prophets are created by Satan's lies, this passage can be applied to ourselves as well.
We cannot ask a question, and then listen for a voice. Our brains will just make something up. We have to wait for God. Sometimes it takes a while, and He teaches through Scripture mostly, and through experience and trials. And through mistakes.
It comes with practice. We get to know Him better through reading His word, prayer and most of all doing the commandments. Then it will just happen easily, and God will make it clear to you that it is Him. He is not a God of confusion.
Given what has come from individual readings of Scripture without any consideration of the faith of the ancient fathers, I think I'll stick with considering what the fathers have had to say as being sort of a guide. For example, one thing that the fathers did was to compose a statement of Christian belief, which we read, or sing, in Church to this day. This is the Creed. The Creed protects against interpretations of Scripture that lead to an understanding that the Christ is no the Divine Word of the Father, of one essence with Him. The Fathers fought this heresy, called "Arianism", which was the production of an Alexandrian priest whose own interpretation of Scripture was that the Christ was the first "created" being. There are those today whose own reading of Scripture leads them to this conclusion. Some of these people are members of this very forum. These would do well to read the fathers. They should start with the polemical works of St. Athanasius the Great.That's certainly so, but this is something that could be said of innumerable theologians, bishops, teachers, and witnesses to church happenings through the years. To say that the "Church Fathers" are more than that or unimpeachable in whatever some of them have written or endowed with divine authority is going too far.
But if you now say that they are NOT on a par with Scripture, the point may be moot. That's not what I understood you to be saying in your earlier post ("God pretty exclusively speaks to us through His Word: Scripture, and the commentaries on Scripture found in the writings of the ancient fathers of the Church").
But that's the doing of the wider church, not the select group called "the Fathers."Given what has come from individual readings of Scripture without any consideration of the faith of the ancient fathers, I think I'll stick with considering what the fathers have had to say as being sort of a guide. For example, one thing that the fathers did was to compose a statement of Christian belief, which we read, or sing, in Church to this day. This is the Creed.
Why would we? What makes us think that God somehow failed to make his revelation correct or complete in Scripture?I'm not referring to different interpretations of Scripture. One thing we need is answers to questions that aren't addressed in Scripture.
It's said that over 400 times in the Bible we find the words “thus says the Lord.” The Bible is also described as proceeding from the mouth of God, as in Matthew 4:4.If we didn't need to hear His voice, Scripture would say just keep reading and studying and you'll realize the answer to your questions..
That's certainly so, but this is something that could be said of innumerable theologians, bishops, teachers, and witnesses to church happenings through the years. To say that the "Church Fathers" are more than that or unimpeachable in whatever some of them have written or endowed with divine authority is going too far.
But if you now say that they are NOT on a par with Scripture, the point may be moot. That's not what I understood you to be saying in your earlier post ("God pretty exclusively speaks to us through His Word: Scripture, and the commentaries on Scripture found in the writings of the ancient fathers of the Church").
I tend to say if the speaking tells me to do something unbiblical, then its not Him. If the voice makes me feel some sort of hesitation or guilt, its not Him. THOUGH... sometimes I know He may have us do something we are uncomfortable with, so being hesitant could be nerves. Like I am a shy person who can't handle crowds or attention. So if He put on my heart to share my testimony at church, I'd panic. But He always has a reason for what He asks.
One thing we need is answers to questions that aren't addressed in Scripture. Scripture says we can hear His voice.
That is actually not correct. The wider Church was in turmoil over the Arian controversy, with many either not knowing what the Church actually believed or even worse, accepting the Arian teaching. The Church's understandings were discussed and defined by Church leaders at ecumenical councils. These councils and their proclamations have been a large part of forming Christian Tradition, which believes in God as a Triunity of Divine Persons.But that's the doing of the wider church, not the select group called "the Fathers."
Very well, the WHOLE church wasn't initially on the same page, but the councils were not gatherings of those people revered today as "the Church Fathers."That is actually not correct. The wider Church was in turmoil over the Arian controversy, with many either not knowing what the Church actually believed or even worse, accepting the Arian teaching.
if what you are hearing doesn't match of with Scripture then you did not hear anything from the LORD.
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