Acts 7:55 Stephen - Jesus At The Right Hand
Summary:
First: The Law punished guilt but could not give righteousness. And because the Word of God was ignored there was no man who could mediate truth. Therefore, God sent His own Hand or arm into the physical world to make a covenant. The "Spirit" which rested on Jesus was like a dove and not a man. The seven spirits prophesied were:
AND there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: Isaiah 11:1
And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord; Isaiah 11: 2
And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: Isaiah 11: 3
But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. Isaiah 11: 4
And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. Isaiah 11: 5
Second: The Human Condition:
BEHOLD, the Lords hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: Isaiah 59:1
But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. Isaiah 59:2
Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey. And the Lord saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. Isaiah 59:15
And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. Isaiah 59:16
Paul noted that God "removed His Glory" and Isaiah notes that:
He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak. Isaiah 59:17
God would come to pour out wrath upon His enemies with His Spirit. This is the same image as the creative process, the Flood event and the Red Sea event:
According to what they have done, so will he repay wrath to his enemies and retribution to his foes; he will repay the islands their due. Isaiah 59:18
From the west, men will fear the name of the LORD, and from the rising of the sun, they will revere his glory. For he will come like a pent-up flood that the breath (SPIRIT) of the LORD drives along. Isaiah 59:19NIV
Or 'When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will put him to flight'
This flood is what comes out of the mouth of the "serpent" and it is false teaching. (Rev 12:15-16)
The ARM of God is the Redeemer or Intercessor who "changes clothes" from that of Glory to that of a human "wearing" righteousness and justice:
And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord. Isaiah 59:20
So we have God, the Spirit and the Redeemer but we do not have three "people."
Third: The Promised New Covenant:
As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the Lord;
My spirit that is upon thee, and
my words which I have put in thy mouth,shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seeds seed, saith the Lord, from henceforth and for ever. Isaiah 59:21
It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. John 6:63
God's "Arm" would pour out or expel His "breath" or spirit and the results would be "words."
Fourth: God's right hand will be "Yesha" or salvation and will be a "Him."
The Lord hath sworn by his right hand, and by the arm of his strength, Surely I will no more give thy corn to be meat for thine enemies; and the sons of the stranger shall not drink thy wine, for the which thou hast laboured: Isaiah 62:8
Behold, the Lord hath proclaimed unto the end of the world, Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation (Yesha) cometh; behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. Isaiah 62:11
Fifth: God's Throne is His Covering of Majesty
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. Isaiah 9:7
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King |
Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel,
and his redeemer the Lord of hosts; I am the
first, and I am the last; and beside me there
is no God. Isaiah 44:6
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Wonderful Counselor |
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The Son is |
Mighty God |
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the
ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which
is to come, the Almighty. Revelation 1:8
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Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be
a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel,
and forgiveness of sins. Acts 5:31
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The throne is not a chair but primarily a covering:
Kicce (h3678) kis-say'; kis-say'; from 3680; prop. covered, i. e. a throne (as canopied): - seat, stool, throneFor the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. Hab.2:14
Kacah (h3680) kaw-saw'; a prim. root; prop. to plump, i. e. fill up hollows; by impl. to cover (for clothing or secrecy): - clad self, close, clothe, conceal, cover (self), (flee to) hide, overwhelm. Comp. 3780.
What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols? Hab 2:18Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it. Hab 2:19
But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him. Hab 2:20God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. Hab.3:3
Sixth: Zechariah said of the Branch:
It is he who will build the temple of the LORD, and
he will be clothed with majesty and1. will sit and rule on his throne. And he
2. will be a priest on his throne. Andthere will be harmony between the two.' Zechariah 6:13
Seventh: God emptied Himself or removed His Covering of Glory to live in the tabernacle of human flesh:
Your attitude should be the kind that was shown us by Jesus Christ, Philippians 2:5LIV
who, though he was God, did not demand and cling to his rights as God, Philippians 2:6
but laid aside his mighty power and glory, taking the disguise of a slave and becoming like men. (form of) Philippians 2:7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: Philippians 2:7KJV
Eighth: Jesus poured out the Words from the Father.
If God was made up of three people and the Christian dispensation is that of the Son, then the Son would speak directly from Himself. However, because the man Jesus was still the Arm or Voice of God and the Spirit propelled God's Words, when we hear Jesus we do not hear a robot or an independant "person" but we see and hear that which God makes known to us.
Remember that God is clearly ONE God. However, He manifests Himself as Father, Son and Spirit; or Speaker, Word and Breath:
Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. John 5:19
I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me. John 5:30
For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 49 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak. John 12:50
Ninth: He saw the Glory reconnected to Jesus Christ:
But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, Acts 7:55
And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Acts 7:56He did not see God because no man has or can see God who is pure or Holy, invisible Spirit.
Tenth: He Prayed to God and Called Him Lord Jesus:
And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young mans feet, whose name was Saul. Acts 7:58
And they stoned Stephen,
calling upon ------God, and
saying, --- --------Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. Acts 7:59
Eleventh: Thomas had acknowledged that Jesus was both Lord and God:
And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. John 20:28
God put off the clothing of glory and put on Jesus who was then full Deity:
For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily Colossians 2:9 .
Stephen did not see two on the throne. He saw the visible or "seeable" form of God in Jesus Christ. This agrees with the prophecy of Zechariah.
NOW of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne (power) of the Majesty (greatness or Divinity) in the heavens; Hebrews 8:1
A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. Hebrews 8:2
And Paul said that:
For our conversation (community) is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Phil 3:20
The Name of the "Branch" would be Jesus or Joshua meaning "Jehovah-Saves." This is the usual hyphenated name showing that the Spirit God works through visible agencies.
And no one has ever suggested that Yehwah is composed of three people.
Until the liberal nineteenth century the trinity definitions largely treated God as three personae. This word literally means three masks or three roles. The Biblical trinity was designed to refute the pagan triads of real persons (often dead people) of father, mother and son. However, the Trinity is now defined as neo-trinitarianism which sees God as a family consisting of three members of the God clan or family. They are One God in that they are made of the same "god stuff" as three men are one because they are made of the same "man stuff."
The word "person" was substituted to show that "God is dead," or at least sitting on a chair having completed His personal dispensation of Law. Christ, too, having finished the "Christian dispensation," sits beside the Father. The other "person" as Holy Spirit is uniquely equipped to make this the "age of the Holy Spirit." The only way to make this work is to have three co-equal gods but ranked one, two and three. Tillich, Karen Armstrong and others note that this would have been heresy earlier in history.
It is possible to "make God in our own image" by trying to cut Him up like a pecan pie. While God often describes Himself in human terms, we should not see three co-equal persons (a person is a people) standing side-by-side or face-to-face working as a committee of God family members. Rather than describing Himself as three gods Who are One only in that they are made of the same "God stuff," they are "three" as the One Lord God demonstrates Himself in the sense that a human is made up of body, soul and spirit or mind. In making this comparison, Paul showed that a person with the Spirit of God has the mind of Christ:
This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. -- 1 Corinthians 2:13NIV
The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. -- 1 Corinthians 2:14
The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment: -- 1 Corinthians 2:15
For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. -- 1 Corinthians 2:16
Spirit is a neuter word. It was an existing word meaning wind or breath. Because the wind is invisible but carries great power, it was the word God used to show that He is pure (holy) Spirit Who cannot be seen. He does not live in the dimension of time (past, present and future) or space (left-right, forward-backward or up-down).
Yet, God created this space-time universe for His own glory. Therefore, when He "reaches in" to manipulate the world, He "decides" with his "mind" or "spirit" and then makes Himself an "arm" or "shoulder" or "nostril" or "mouth" double-edged sword. These are all human terms used to illustrate God's Spirit power over the physical universe.
Therefore, Paul in the above passage shows that God's Spirit or Mind is the Mind of Christ.
This agrees with the fact that Spirit in Hebrew and Greek speaks of the mental attributes of man or God. When Scripture speaks in terms of a personal pronoun, the Spirit is the Spirit of Christ. This is why Spirit is a Him as Wisdom is a She. The word mind has much the same meaning as spirit.
In other articles we have noted that the prophecies of the Old Testament and the statements in the New Testament show God "making a round trip and more." For instance,
Because there was no human Intercessor and there obviously was no junior member of the God family to send, God sent Himself as Intercessor and Redeemer or, to us, as His Arm.
Zechariah and others prophesied of One God as King and Priest on one throne. There would be harmony between them both or between the two (Offices).
God is "clothed in majesty" and is not visible to human eyes. Therefore,
The Word, as God, laid aside His garment or clothing of majesty and glory.
He occupied the "tent" of a human body previously "prepared for Him."
This made God visible through an image of Himself
Jesus claimed that the Spirit "Father" was with Him. He had the Father in Him. When you saw the Son you saw the Father. Thomas made the great confession which enfolded Lord (ruler) and God (Sole Creator) into One body: Lord, Jesus Christ (or Spirit anointed)
After His crucifixion, Christ promised to return as the One Comforter and Spirit of Truth. This Comfort was to continue teaching in Spirit form to keep the apostles from being orphans.
He taught, suffered and died as a man to "manifest God in the flesh."
He was validated by His resurrection by His own Glory.
He was reclothed with the Majesty or Glory He, as God, laid aside to become human.
He returned on the day of Pentecost as Father-Son to indwell the apostles as promised. The name in which all authority was vested was Jesus or Jehovah-Saves.
He saw God on the Throne but He spoke to Jesus Christ.
Jesus appeared as the "Spirit of the Lord" Who taught Paul and responded to the needs of others.
He is Almighty God and Father in that believers are adopted as sons unto Jesus Christ.
Our citizenship is transferred to the Spirit realm where the total God lives within and walks among the "building blocks" of His "Temple" which is the church, the body of Christ over which He is Head which, naturally, contains the Spirit or Mind of Christ.
The "fruit of the Spirit" in our lives is wrought by Christ in us as we are in Him.
He will come again as the Son of Man to receive us to Himself so that we can witness the great Glory He laid aside to put on the garment of Majesty and Glory.
Martin Luther Denied that there were two persons on the throne
Jesus spoke to the masses with parables because they were blind and deaf because they really didn not want to hear Him. With this in mind, it is possible to hear Stephen describe what He saw on the throne of God and the throne of Christ and with Whom He spoke. Bruce notes that:
"Christ's present position of supremacy is described in the Pauline writings as being "at the right of God."... The apostles knew very well that they were using figurative language when they spoke of Christ's exaltation in these terms: they no more thought of a location on a literal throne at God's literal right hand than their twentieth-century successors do... Martin Luther satirizes "that heaven of the fanatics ... with its golden chair and Christ seated at the Father's side, vested in a choir cope and a golden robe, as the painters love to portray him!" (F. F. Bruce, Epistles, 132-33. The quote from Martin Luther is from Werke, Weimarer Ausgabe 23, 131)
God's prophesied plan was recorded by Zechariah who showed that God would rule as King and Priest. "They" will sit on one the one throne and throne of Christ and there will be "harmony between the two":
Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the (1) Lord. Zechariah 2:10
And many nations shall be joined to the (2) Lord in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the (2) Lord of hosts hath sent me unto thee. Zechariah 2:11
As Jesus agreed that the Shema or the statement that God is One is the starting point of any creed, Paul agreed that the mystery of godliness or "the gospel scheme" is:
And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness:
- God was One
- manifest in the flesh, Still One
- justified in the Spirit, Still One
- seen of angels,
- preached unto the Gentiles,
- believed on in the world,
- received up into glory. 1 Timothy 3:16 The same glory he laid aside to become man.
God is Spirit, or as the King James Version might say that He is a Ghost. This means that God is immaterial--does not have flesh, bones or blood--and He is invisible. Now, we understand that a ghost and that ghost's materialization so that we can see it are not two "ghost persons." Rather, the entity in the form of a ghost takes off its invisible garment, puts on a garment like a human and is seen in the form of a human being.
The Lord and the Lord Sit as One on One Throne
Zechariah prophesied that Messiah would bear the name of Jehovah-Saves, Joshua or Jesus. The One God would be a King and a priest and they would sit on one throne.
And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord: Zechariah 6:12
Even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall (1) bear the glory (Majesty NIV), and shall (2) sit and rule upon his throne; and (3) he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace (harmony) shall be between them both. Zechariah 6:13
And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the Lord, and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto you. And this shall come to pass, if ye will diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God. Zechariah 6:15
Therefore, the Throne of God and Throne of Christ are one and the same.
The Psalmist sees the Lord sending the Lord to sit at the Lord's Right
THE Lord (Jehovah) said unto my Lord (Adonai), Sit thou at my Right, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. Psalm 110:1 Correction: * This should be Adoni see review below.
The Lord shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. Psalm 110:2
Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties Psalm 110:3
The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. Psalm 110:4
The Lord at thy Right shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath. Psalm 110:5
Jesus said that no man can see God
Some in the Old Testament claimed to have seen God. We know, however, that they saw a visible manifestation of God often called an angel. We know this because Jesus Himself said:
No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him . John 1:18KJV
No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him. John 1:18NAS
No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. 1 John 4:1
The Son is "at the side" of the Father to reveal the Father nature of God to mankind. At the side or in the bosom comes from the Greek:
Kolpos (2859) kol'-pos; appar. a prim. word; the bosom; by anal. a bay: - bosom, creek.
This might be the hollow place made by a loose garment at the chest. Therefore, This speaks of "the Lord's eternal and essential relation with the Father." Christ, in the form of God, put off His own Glory like a garment and put on a body of flesh. After He ascended He sat down on the throne beside His glory He put off to become a human.
Christ was God or Spirit from all eternity
John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me. John 1:15
And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace. John 1:16
For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. John 1:17
No one has ever seen God,
but God the One and Only,
who is at the Father's side, has made him known. John 1:18NIV
The Word Who created all things with no one without or beside Him, was with God because He was God. Using symbolic language which Jesus said hid the mystery "from the foundation of the world," the Psalmist set the stage for God being clothed with symbolic garments:
BLESS the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, thou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Psalm 104:1
Who coverest thyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain: Psalm 104:2Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind (Same as Genesis 1:2 spirit): Psalm 104:3
Thou sendest forth thy spirit (winds), they are created (bara): and thou renewest (rebuild) the face of the earth (Adamah or red land). Psalm 104:30
His Glory was laid aside on the throne of God to become a visible Son
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Philippians 2:5
Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: Philippians 2:6But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: Philippians 2:7 (emptied Himself or removed His garment of Glory)
but laid aside his mighty power and glory (or emptied Himself), taking the disguise of a slave and becoming like men. Philippians 2:7LIV
When the Word was in the form of God this does mean that He was like a "cousin" or another "kin." On earth, when Jesus appeared in another form He did not cease being Jesus:
After that he appeared in another form (morphe or adjustment of parts) unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country. Mark 16:12
Christ became another but He did not become a different Person.
Therefore, when God came in the form of a man He did not cease being the full Deity. When He laid aside His full power and "laid it on the symbolic throne" a similar word states that the Word Who became Jesus "laid aside" His Deity to demonstrate God as a servant of mankind and not a gruesome Molech who loved to hear the screams of burning children:
He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. John 13:4
When the Word was in the bosom of the Father, He was in "the folds of the garment" or a bay as "safe haven" representing God. The Word of God simply "took off" his fullness as God and laid the garment of glory on the "throne." When He returned to His glory, He sat down beside the "garment" He laid aside. When He put it back on, he could see the glory of God but when he spoke, he spoke to Jesus.
As a man, God "put on" the garment or tabernacle (tent) of a human being without losing His identity as full Deity. Therefore, God without His Throne or garment of power was in Christ connecting mankind back to God in His Glorious state. Mankind cannot see pure or Holy Spirit. Therefore, God reconnects with mankind through His powerful Word:
To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:19
God, as pure or Holy Spirit, was in Christ, Who was man, and Jesus as the "Right of God" or the "finger of the Spirit" or the "Rock" or the "Manna" displaying the image of the invisible "light" by Jesus who fully demonstrated the life God wants His children to live.
The "garment" or "throne" or power of a person is their human body. The body without the spirit is dead. Therefore, to a human, the greatest sacrifice would be to lay down the tabernacle of flesh for another person. Notice that God laid down His life or power in the human body called Jesus:
Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 1 John3:16
Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. John 10:17No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father. John 10:18
All that we think of as God is involved in every act:
PAUL, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) Gal 1:1
And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. 1 Thess 1:10But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Rom 8:11
Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. John 2:19
Again, when Jesus laid aside His "form of a human" He did not cease being God. Remember, that God is still invisible. he saw the glory which, to him, was to see God as Moses saw Him. The ancestors of the men who would kill he saw the Shekinah or glory of God on the face of Moses, understood that He was reflecting the image of God and revealing God in the Book of the Covenant, but did not want to see "God" or hear His Words. As a fulfillment, he saw this glory and the religious people murdered him.
Majesty often describes God on the throne. The Right of Majesty or the invisible God has always meant the invisible Spirit's extension of power into the visible, human dimension often as Light. Therefore:
The first thing He saw was the Glory of God and the man Jesus:
But he, being full of the Holy Ghost (as revelation), looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, Acts 7:55
And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God. Acts 7:56
Stephen never sees the "unseeable" God. Rather, Acts 7:55 shows that when He sees God he really sees Jesus with the Glory He left to become human with him
Others see Jesus at the right of the throne or the right of the Majesty and glory. Being at the right of God simply meant, in fulfillment of prophecy, that Messiah was the right or right shoulder of God. He was God's ARM sent as Intercessor when no man could do the job. This meant that He was the form of God which moved from the Spirit dimension into the physical dimension to perform His own work. Revelation will see One on the throne and the Lamb at the center, or over the center.
While the common Jews accepted Jesus gladly, the trained doctors of the Law understood him to say that Jesus, who claimed to be God, was making Himself known as God. This enraged them and they fulfilled Isa 6; 29 and could never understand the "spirit" behind the "letter":
Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, Acts 7:57
And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young mans feet, whose name was Saul. Acts 7:58
Jesus was to be "another prophet" like Moses. They rejected Him because He claimed to be fully God. Now, they murder him because he sees the proof that Jesus was what He claimed to be.
(The man), Jesus, cried with a loud voice and commended (placed alongside for safekeeping) His Spirit into the Father's "hand." Then He gave up His human spirit. (Luke 23:46)
When the "tabernacle" or "fold of the garment" of His flesh died, Jesus, the man, put His spirit into the Father's hand.
For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, 1 Peter 3:18
To Call upon the Lord is to Speak to Lord Jesus
Stephen called upon God by calling upon Lord Jesus:
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A similar expression in the Psalms reads:
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And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. John 20:28
The nature of the Godhead is revealed in many symbolic ways to enrich our small grasp of the Spirit dimension. It is important in being informed by the pictures of the Godhead in different forms that we do not deny God by denying that the entire goal of the Old Testament was to dispel ignorance about pagan gods by proving that God is numerically One. At the same time, He reveals Himself primarily in three dimensions.
"Deism is a carnal sense which wants to keep God at a distance from us. If God is sitting on his throne without caring about what is going on in the world, that leaves the world to us. This is exactly what the Enlightenment and industrial society needed. They could not tolerate a God who is continually involved with the world. They had to have a God who gives the world its initial movement, then sits beside it without disturbing the businessman in his affairs and the creators of industry." (Paul Tillich, A History of Christian Thought, edited by Carl E. Braaten, p. 265).
The statement in a bulletin read: "God cannot communicate in human languages." The clear implication was: "But I can for a price." The demand for a direct operation of the Holy Spirit and the use of "exciting" musical worship is, in the Old Testament, a code word for those who were tired of God and His Word and wanted something which would "fill the church with people disguised as empty pews on Sunday night."
The throne of Christ show One God upon one throne as is fitting just as Zechariah predicted and as He saw when "crying" to the Lord was "saying" to Christ. Acts 7:55 does not teach that there are two on the throne.
Kenneth L. Sublett
Thanks for the following correction.
Dear Sir,
I noticed as I perused your website, that in your quote of Psalms 110:1, you stated that the Hebrew word for the phrase 'my Lord' was 'Adonai'
i.e. The LORD said unto 'my Lord (Adonai)'
I should point out that this is in fact, incorrect! The actual word there is adoni NOT Adonai! Although they appear to be similar words, these two distinct words serve different purposes. Adonai (which occurs about 449 times in the Hebrew OT) is solely used in reference to Almighty GOD whilst adoni (in all of its 195 occurrences which therefore must include Psalms 110:1) is solely used in reference to human masters/lords (and occasionally angelic lords); that is, adoni is never used in reference to Almighty God!!
Although Strong's Concordance does not clearly show the two distinct Hebrew words being used, it does indicate their distinction by assigning the number 113 to 'my lord' in
Ps. 110:1, whereas Adonai has the number 136 e.g. Ps. 110:5.
From what I gathered about how these two words are used in the Hebrew Masoretic text,
the form ADONI ('my lord'), a royal title (I Sam. 29:8), is to be carefully distinguished from the divine title ADONAI ('my Lord') used of Yahweh; the generally accepted fact is that the masoretic pointing distinguishes divine references (adonai) from human references (adoni).
It can easily be seen why one would think that Adonai is being used when reading our bibles, because the translators of our English bibles capitalised the 'L' (hence Lord) giving the impression that the word Adonai is being used here (incidentally the RSV & NRSV bibles corrected this, therefore, Psalms 110:1 reads "The LORD says to my lord").
Nevertheless, the fact yet remains that the word Adonai does not appear in Psalms 110:1; it is the word adoni!
Therefore, I ask, is it possible that your website's quote could be amended to reflect this?
I hope the above info is of some help to you
Yours In Christ,
adam_pastor@hotmail.com
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