Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God from above the clouds, anointed to some day soon become king over all, taught about His words being spirit and truth. You could take words of Lord Jesus by the letter like you could say obedience to the lesson of the Good Samaritan is to carry oil and wine everywhere and always travel by ass and look out for people who have been mugged and use the oil and wine to tend their wounds then take them on the ass to a public house but never phone an ambulance. Doing it the literal way you could be (falsely, unbeknown to you) confident of being literally righteous by your own measure and claim it is God's measure and claim you do this by faith but at the same time refuse first aid training because it is modern and involves bandages and maybe discourages use of oil and wine and asses but suggests calling for an ambulance. Then you might ignore traffic victims and say they do not count because they were not mugged. You could even be silly enough to only do it all on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho and then have a feast to help you do it and make it all a legal religious rite.
Or you take the teaching by its spirit in how it was meant - keep the gist of it and be kind to those really in need with the resources you have but get first aid training as a confidence boost and precaution then get involved with first aid helping in emergency situations when you come across them.
It is the spirit of Jesus' words anyone should keep who wants eternal life from Jesus in Jesus' way. Hence the words are spirit and truth so keeping the truth they teach you is as important and more inportant than keeping the literal words - keeping the gist of the words, so to speak.
He also spoke of a Spirit who would come like a well of living water and well up within those who accept His words. His disciples explained that this Spirit came into the world to do this after Jesus returned above the clouds to God. This is the Holy Spirit. Both senses of spirit are closely related but distinct. This Holy Spirit like an angel can actually speak to people addressing them but many find it difficult to accept He is a person. I would say He certainly is a person I have heard speaking into my inner being: speaking to my spirit perhaps. My spirit or yours is another use of the term again and refers to something within us that is part of us and may be dead but brought alive by the Spirit God sends.
Or you take the teaching by its spirit in how it was meant - keep the gist of it and be kind to those really in need with the resources you have but get first aid training as a confidence boost and precaution then get involved with first aid helping in emergency situations when you come across them.
It is the spirit of Jesus' words anyone should keep who wants eternal life from Jesus in Jesus' way. Hence the words are spirit and truth so keeping the truth they teach you is as important and more inportant than keeping the literal words - keeping the gist of the words, so to speak.
He also spoke of a Spirit who would come like a well of living water and well up within those who accept His words. His disciples explained that this Spirit came into the world to do this after Jesus returned above the clouds to God. This is the Holy Spirit. Both senses of spirit are closely related but distinct. This Holy Spirit like an angel can actually speak to people addressing them but many find it difficult to accept He is a person. I would say He certainly is a person I have heard speaking into my inner being: speaking to my spirit perhaps. My spirit or yours is another use of the term again and refers to something within us that is part of us and may be dead but brought alive by the Spirit God sends.
