It’s not unusual for those who embrace various religious or spiritual beliefs to accuse me of being “confrontational” or “condescending” in the things I post, or in my responses to comments from others. They sometimes suggest that I should find “common ground” spiritually with others, rather than focusing on differences of belief.
Here’s the issue with that kind of thinking—how can someone who is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, and who is compelled by the Holy Spirit to share His truths, find common spiritual ground with those who actually hate His truths (because they cling to false teachings), and who will vehemently fight to prove that their false beliefs are true?
So many folks wrongly believe that doctrinal teachings are ultimately a matter of opinion—as if truth is determined by what someone chooses to believe. And, so often in christianity (the counterfeit of the true faith), as long as different folks find some areas of agreement, then those in the various flavors (denominations) feel they can fellowship with one another, and just “agree to disagree” where there are differences in doctrine.
Messiah Yahoshua said in Matthew 10:34, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Now, what was the context of His statement? He had just been talking about one of the requirements of being able to be given salvation by the Father—confessing Yahoshua before others, which is to endure in belief regardless of any consequences for doing so.
He had just said that those who acknowledge Him before others (which is to endure in belief), He will acknowledge before His Father in heaven; and those who do not acknowledge Him before others, He will deny before His Father. This is also what it means to “call upon” the name of Yahoshua, which is to “invoke, declare, confess, or preach” His name before others.
And, this is the same thing He was talking about in Luke 8:13 when He spoke of those who believe with joy for awhile, but then, during their testing (confessing Him before others—enduring in belief), they fall away, because they never receive the source of life—the Holy Spirit.
Why do folks fall away? It’s usually because they want to fit in with others—they don’t want to be ridiculed, or mocked, or condemned, or ostracized. They give in to the idea of all beliefs coming together in fellowship, which is a lie.
Even Peter succumbed to peer pressure to withdraw from what he knew was true, because the physical Jews gave him a hard time for eating with Gentiles (after Yah had told him to “kill and eat” what had been unclean for them under the law of Moses), as we see in Galatians 2:11-14. Paul rebuked Peter for his error, and called him out for his hypocrisy. Peter didn’t complain and whine that Paul was mean or condescending. No, he accepted Paul’s rebuke, because Paul was spiritually right.
There is truth and there is error. Doctrinal truth doesn’t have varying shades, or degrees. It is absolute. The Holy Spirit’s truths are singular—He doesn’t give different versions of His truths to different people. So, if there is a doctrinal disagreement, either one side is right and the other is wrong, or they’re both wrong.
Moreover, the truths of the Holy Spirit always harmonize perfectly with ALL of scripture (in its original languages and contexts), and with ALL of the Father’s traditions (which include the Father’s Sabbaths, both weekly and annual, the wedding traditions, and the temple ordinances and practices, which are all foreshadows of future-revealed spiritual real substances).
So, if what you believe doesn’t align perfectly with the whole of scripture and with all the Father’s traditions, then it is of men, and not of the Holy Spirit.
Just as Messiah Yahoshua said of bringing a sword and not peace, the Holy Spirit also divides between what is truth and what is error. He is exactly who Hebrews 4:12 speaks of (it says nothing about a book or any scripture—it speaks of the Word, who is the Holy Spirit).
There is ONE truth from ONE Holy Spirit to ONE bride of ONE Bridegroom who glorifies ONE Father.
Anything that contradicts the Holy Spirit’s truth is a lie, and Satan is the father of lies. So, in matters of doctrine, how can one find fellowship with those who embrace the lies of Satan, and claim that they are of the Holy Spirit? 1 John 4:1 is clear that those who are of Yah (have the Holy Spirit) are to test the teachings or beliefs of others to determine if they are also of Yah.
As Paul taught in 2 Corinthians 6:14, believers are not to be “unequally yoked” (which is to maintain an attachment) with unbelievers, and he asked “what fellowship does light have with darkness?” And, in Ephesians 5:11, he exhorts, “And do not have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather even expose them.”
Now, I’m not talking about being nasty or abusive. But, those who are actually indwelt by the Holy Spirit (as opposed to just claiming it, as most in christianity do) are not to “find common ground” with spiritual error. They are not to think that “agreeing to disagree” means there is fellowship between the two.
For those who think that sharing absolute truth without apology or yielding to error is “unloving,” then explain how one can inform someone that his beliefs are false, and also make that person feel good about being told that. Most often, folks like that believe that truth is merely a matter of opinion, which is a lie.
We are not told to make people feel good, we are told to share the truth in love. And, love sometimes feels horrible, when something is done for someone else’s benefit, even if the person initially fights against it. The Holy Spirit uses His truths to draw people to Yahoshua. He doesn’t use lies or half-truths to trick people into believing the truth. He doesn’t find common ground with error in order to entice someone to the truth.
So, if I share the truths of the Holy Spirit and they contradict what you believe, then your response is up to you. You can remain in error, in which case we’ll not find common ground spiritually. Or, you can ask the Holy Spirit to reveal His truth to you, even if that means you’re shown to be in error. That is what happened to me more than a decade and a half ago now (after five decades in christianity, the counterfeit of the true faith).
The watchman is told to warn those who are in danger. If he warns them, but he’s ignored, their plight is their own fault. But, if he doesn’t warn them at all, then their plight is on the hands of the watchman (Ezekiel 33:1-9).
If you don’t agree with what I teach, that’s your choice. But, I will not share what is not true according to the Spirit of truth. So, if you choose to ignore the spiritual teachings I share, and embrace teachings that contradict what I share, your choice is not against me, but the One who compels me to share His truths.
If you think that anything I teach is NOT true, then I heartily invite you to prove that what I teach is false. But, remember, your proof must agree both with the scriptures and the traditions that Paul taught (1 Corinthians 11:2, 2 Thessalonians 2:15), or else it is not of the Holy Spirit. And, if it is not of the Holy Spirit, then it is not truth. If it is not truth, then neither of us has any business believing it to begin with.
I do welcome anyone to prove that anything I teach is false.
For more information: Christianity’s Holy Spirit–Some Water and a Book