149. (iv) THE LORD CONFERS THESE BENEFITS ON THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN HIM.
The Lord confers these benefits, which are meant by the sending of the Holy Spirit, on those who believe in Him. That is to say, He reforms them, regenerates them, renews, quickens, justifies and cleanses them from evils, and so eventually saves them. This is proved by all the passages in the Word which attribute salvation and everlasting life to those who believe in the Lord, and which were quoted before (107). In addition there is this:
Jesus said, If anyone believes in me, as the Scripture says, streams of living water will flow from his belly; He said this about the spirit, which those who believe in Him are to receive, John 7:38-39.
Also this:
The witness of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy, Revelation 19:10.
The spirit of prophecy means the truth of doctrine drawn from the Word. Prophecy always means doctrine, and to prophesy means to teach it; the witness of Jesus means confessing one's faith in Him. His witness has a similar meaning in this passage:
Michael's angels defeated the dragon by the blood of the Lamb, and the word of their 1 witness. And the dragon departed, to make war on the remainder of His seed, who kept the commandments of God, and bear witness to Jesus Christ, Revelation 12:11, 17.
Poznámky pod čarou:
1. 'His' in the Latin, but corrected in the author's copy.
