My dear readers,

Answering Remaining Questions from Calvary Pandan Church Camp 2022 (10)

Question 1: My friend is a new believer. She said that she reads the Bible mechanically. But after she started speaking in tongues, she immediately felt a strong thirst for the Word of God and began diligently studying the Bible. Due to this, she will not hear from me on the dangers of Charismatism. How can this personal experience of hers be explained?

Answer 1: Personal experiences cannot be explained by others and therefore it is not their duty to explain them. What can be done, using the Bible, is to evaluate the gospel that your friend believes in. Ask her to share what the gospel is and her testimony of salvation. One thing is evident: she says she reads the Bible “mechanically” (“superficially?”) which means she does not understand the Bible. But all who are born again in Christ have been given the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to understand the Bible that is spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians 2:12-14: “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” We know that the tongues of the Charismatics are gibberish. It is a delusion for those who force themselves to speak them. For those who experience it “supernaturally,” it is probably of the evil one as their tongue is also unintelligible gibberish.

The strong thirst for the Bible without understanding the Bible does not mean anything beneficial, just like a hearer of God’s Word without obedience. There are many theological professors who spend their lives studying and teaching the Bible in the original languages who are not born again in Christ! They teach the Bible in liberal or modernistic or neo-evangelical seminaries and Bible Colleges. It is always those who keep practising the will of God (i.e. obey the Word of God) who will enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 7:21-23: “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”

Question 2: During one of your messages, you mentioned that angels can still sin, that’s why the archangel Michael when contending with the devil was careful in what he said. I thought that the elect angels are fixed in their state of holiness and cannot sin just like the elects of God in heaven. Can you also clarify if it is possible for the Lord Jesus Christ to fall into sin when Satan tempted Him?

Answer 2: The text from Jude is Jude 9: “Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.” There are basically two views regarding the fall of angels. The first view is that the angels fell before man fell into sin in the Garden of Eden. According to Revelation 12, it was one third who chose to fall with Lucifer (later known as Satan or the devil). After this incident, the remaining two thirds of the angelic beings remained in their state of perfection, never to fall again. The second view is that the remaining two thirds of the angelic beings can still fall nowadays. It is to be noted that in either view, once an angel falls into sin there is no salvation.

Hebrews 2:14-16: “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.” The potential to sin will always be there in all angels as there is no record of any change in their disposition after the fall of one third of all the created angelic beings. Therefore, the temptation for angelic beings remains real. They can still fall but whether they will fall or not is another issue. If you hold to the first view (which is my view) that the good angels remain as good angels and none fell or will fall, do note that it does not mean they CANNOT fall.

In the case of whether it is possible for Christ to fall into sin when He was tempted on earth (also known as the “impeccability” of Christ), my view is that Christ was tempted in all points just as we are, but was without sin (cf. Hebrews 4:14-16: “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”)

The phrase “be touched with the feeling of our infirmities” means “commiserate with man’s feebleness.” One view is that Christ being the Son of God and the Son of man and His Sonship, God forbids Him to fall into sin. This means that Christ did not have the potential to fall. He was impeccable. He could never fall no matter how He was tempted. The other view is that Christ could fall but did not fall, otherwise his temptation would not be real. If it was not real then how could He “be touched with the feeling of our infirmities” as our great High Priest? Both views believe that Christ did not sin when he was tempted. My position is the latter view.

Christ took on flesh and blood like us who live on earth but was without sin. Man’s four states as revealed in Holy Scriptures:

(a) BEFORE the fall of man, man had the potential to sin, i.e. MAN CAN SIN, for Adam did sin.

(b) AFTER the fall, man is in a state of depravity whereby he is in bondage to sin, i.e. MAN CANNOT NOT SIN.

(c) AFTER salvation in Christ, Christians are no longer in bondage to sin, i.e. they CAN NOT SIN, they have the power from God to live holy lives and not succumb to sin, even though they may still succumb at times since they are not perfect.

(d) AFTER glorification, Christians will be in a state of permanent perfection and holiness, i.e. they CANNOT sin at all and will be free from temptation.

When Christ became the second Adam (cf. 1Corinthians 15:45), which state of man was Christ at?

He became like man (the perfect state of the first Adam) with the potential to sin, i.e. CAN SIN, but thank God He did not sin unlike the first Adam who could sin and did sin. If Christ CANNOT sin at all (i.e. the fourth state), He would have been like man in glorification. If He was like man in glorification, then how could the temptations be real when He can never sin? The word “temptation” would have to be redefined when it is applied to the incarnate Christ! Then how could He “be touched with the feelings of our infirmities” and understand man’s struggles and weaknesses (like hunger and thirst and tiredness) as our legitimate great High Priest? Also, Christ being “in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin” would not be true because he was not “as we are” before glorification.

Christ’s time on earth ought not to be understood as “at certain times His deity dominated and at other times His humanity dominated.” If it is, it would mean that Christ faced life’s challenges as two persons (and not as one, the God-man), sometimes more God and less man, and vice versa. Such a view of Christ is unscriptural as Christ suffered and was also tempted in all points like us, but without sin, being the God-man all the time.