Call In Bob George p384 (10-12-18)
Bob George, on People to People radio for over 30 years, answers common and tough questions by various callers across the country. The first caller, Katy, shared a personal story about her husband leaving her, resulting in struggles with anxiety of the future while pondering over the possibility of reconciliation and restoration. Bob George tenderly reaches out with truth and insight, full of compassion and offered an opportunity for both her and her husband to receive further biblical instruction. The second caller, Matt, had a question in regards to those people today who call themselves Apostles, and a more vague question about people calling themselves as the first lady or first family of their church. Another caller, Larry, asked specific questions in regard to Acts 19:1-7 pertaining to how the Holy Spirit is received. The final caller, Randy, asked a question that many people ask : “How do I know I am saved beyond a shadow of a doubt?” as he expressed his struggles with faith and doubt.
Katy shared personal information and Bob asked a few more questions to discern where she was coming from. Bob keyed in on a comment that she made about how she is working on thinking positively. Bob shared that positive thinking is not in line with biblical truth. He instructed her to think truthfully rather than think positively. He encouraged her to live one day at a time, explaining how anxiety is thinking about the future, usually with bad thoughts. Only Christ is in the realm of knowing the future. In response to her asking more information on how to think truthfully, Bob instructed her to realize where bad futuristic thoughts come from, not from God but Satan. Bob also provided insightful information as to the root cause of divorce. The root cause of divorce is to try to get spiritual needs met, such as unconditional love and acceptance, from a spouse. Unconditional love and acceptance can only from Jesus Christ. The priority focus of a believer is to make his body available to Jesus Christ, for him to live in you and through you. He quoted from Ephesians 1:6 and Romans 8:38-39 to reinforce to her the love God has for her, the unconditional love and acceptance, that can only come from Jesus Christ and not a spouse.
Ephesians 1:6
“To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”
Romans 8:38-39
“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Bob George then offered resources that both her and her husband can listen to that would provide the renewing of the mind in hopes for their future reconciliation and restoration.
Matt, the second caller, asked if it is right for people to claim to be Apostles today. Bob shared that Apostles were only those people who were with Jesus and through whom the canon of scripture came to be written down. Prophets are also those people through whom God spoke verbally and such was not yet recorded down in scripture. Now that all scriptures have been written down, with the canon now closed today, the offices of Apostle and Prophet do not exist today. And if any group is calling people Apostles or Prophets today, then they are deceivers and no one should be listening to or involved with them. And, to his more vague question, implying that certain people are put ahead of others, was really nonsensical in same manner as calling Bob George the first family of People to People.
Larry asked a question in regards to Acts 19:1-7 about how the Holy Spirit is received. Acts is not meant to be a book for doctrine and is more a record of the transition period between the Old Covenant under law and the New Covenant under grace. As such, Apollos and other Jews were familiar with John’s baptism of repentance that preceded the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Many Jews in this transitional time period were not yet born again, having never heard of the Holy Spirit. They lacked the understanding and instruction in order to have life imparted to them. But once hearing the clear and full gospel message, and believing that message personally, then they received the gift of the Holy spirit. Larry also asked a separate but related question: Can one receive the Holy spirit by the laying on of hands? Bob emphatically answered no, and explained that scriptures in early church showed Holy Spirit received with or without the associated act of laying on of hands. Indeed, those who did receive Holy Spirit upon their belief while laying of hands was performed, their receiving had to be verified and confirmed. One cannot read Acts for doctrine.
The last caller, Randy, asked a common yet important question: “How do I know I am saved beyond a shadow of a doubt?” Bob shared the full gospel message, emphasizing that one needs to believe what God says about sin, about your condition in sin in Adam, why Jesus came to earth, and the receiving the righteousness of God by faith. He shared Jeremiah 17:9 and 2 Corinthians 5:21 with Randy.
Jeremiah 17:9
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
2 Corinthians 5:21
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
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