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Many around here make the accusation that I worship the Bible and not Christ - which is not true. It all starts with one's relationship with Christ, and understanding the role the Bible plays in one's walk with the Lord.
In this case however, this seems like an exact case of what others accuse me of - worshiping (or being overly focused upon) the Bible and not Christ - and yet look where Thrillobyte is now - far from Christ (not calling you an atheist).
Very interesting dynamic in play here....
So what chapter and verse leads one to this conclusion?
I tend to see thrillobyte as being CLOSER to Christ because of is experience. SO how shall we measure this "chasm" you claim exists between a child of God and God?
So what chapter and verse leads one to this conclusion?
I tend to see thrillobyte as being CLOSER to Christ because of is experience. SO how shall we measure this "chasm" you claim exists between a child of God and God?
His testimony is what lead me to that conclusion. What he says about Jesus is not what Jesus says about Himself... so I don't know how you figure out him as being closer to Christ.
Serious question - what were you expecting as a response from God?
Only what you get back when you pray. I mean what holds you to the Christian faith except you have successful communication with the Holy Spirit and feel his presence and have your prayers answered and received wisdom and understanding about a confusing passage in the Bible that you didn't understand before but a light bulb went on over your head and you said, "Ahhh, now I understand." I don't recall receiving any of this.
Only what you get back when you pray. I mean what holds you to the Christian faith except you have successful communication with the Holy Spirit and feel his presence and have your prayers answered and received wisdom and understanding about a confusing passage in the Bible that you didn't understand before but a light bulb went on over your head and you said, "Ahhh, now I understand." I don't recall receiving any of this.
Well - there's a few things that hold me to Christ.
His ministry of reconciliation (coming to earth, His death, His resurrection)
His ministry to me on a daily basis
His coming ministry after I leave the earth
I have grown to love Him over time.
But you are right in stating there needs to be some communication with the Holy Spirit, whom God provides to those who believe in Jesus Christ.
For me - my initial communication was not about figuring out a confusing passage - but suddenly believing the gospel message of Christ and understanding what He has done. As far as understanding confusing Scripture - sometimes I would inquire, and it would take months for something that seemed unrelated to occur - that God would use to click on the light bulb in my head.
Well - there's a few things that hold me to Christ.
His ministry of reconciliation (coming to earth, His death, His resurrection)
His ministry to me on a daily basis
His coming ministry after I leave the earth
I have grown to love Him over time.
But you are right in stating there needs to be some communication with the Holy Spirit, whom God provides to those who believe in Jesus Christ.
For me - my initial communication was not about figuring out a confusing passage - but suddenly believing the gospel message of Christ and understanding what He has done. As far as understanding confusing Scripture - sometimes I would inquire, and it would take months for something that seemed unrelated to occur - that God would use to click on the light bulb in my head.
His testimony is what lead me to that conclusion. What he says about Jesus is not what Jesus says about Himself... so I don't know how you figure out him as being closer to Christ.
What good is it to love those who love you?....Jesus said something like this once upon a time.
You are angry about the expectations PEOPLE gave you. They have nothing to do with God OR Christ, Thrill. The refusal to THINK when reading the human recorded writings is responsible for the retention of ancient ignorance and superstition. Christ's life and death provided a completely unambiguous message about the TRUE NATURE of God . . . in complete opposition to the barbaric and savage belief of our ignorant primitive ancestors. In true blind acceptance of the barbaric thinking of our ancestors . . . the religious leaders simply perpetuated the same nonsense despite 2000+ years of accumulated knowledge and understanding. It is a travesty . . . but it is NOT God's fault nor is it Christ's fault.
Quote:
Originally Posted by thrillobyte
Maybe God predestined me to hell from the foundation of the world, like the Calvinists believe.
All I know is that the Testaments are replete with promises that God will come or reveal himself to you if you call upon him. I called repeatedly and God never came nor did he reveal himself to me. It was like I was talking to empty air. You get to feeling foolish pretty fast calling into the sky for God so many times over 40 years or so, assuming I was a teen when I began taking Christianity seriously after a traumatic run-in with the Children of God cult, and not hearing the slightest whisper of a response.
In the thread, "Anyone ever hear the audible voice of god" plenty of people claim they have. So why does God play favorite? Why does he speak to this Christian and not to that one who really needs him? Would millions of people be dropping out of Christianity at such an alarming rate if God was trying to hold onto his children by at least revealing enough of himself to them that they said, "Okay, I see now that you are real and I'm in it for the long haul."
This is the biggest question I have about Christianity: Why is God allowing millions of his children to fall away/leave the Christian faith without so much as lifting a finger to reveal himself to them so they will believe and repent????
People are dropping out of the faith, all faiths actually in record numbers and there's not a glimmer from God to do something about it. It's like he really doesn't care whether people stay or leave.
Now if you're deist, this makes perfect sense because a deist believes God doesn't interfere in human lives. He provided the spark of life for evolution to start, set natural laws in motion, and left it at that. A Christian has no explanation for why millions of parents of children with cancer pray and pray and pray on God's promise of asking for anything in his name, and millions of their children die anyway. The striking thing is that statistically their death rates are completely in line with the death rates of ALL children around the world. Christians get no free passes from God for being Christian.
Many Christians dodge the question by saying, "Paul said that in the end times people would fall away from the faith", but that's just a cop-out. I have to remind people time and time again that Paul and the apostles and church members believed they were in the end times in 50 AD--that Jesus return was imminent in their lifetimes so that's why Paul said, "We [including Paul himself] shall not all die..." Paul genuinely believed he was going to be raptured with all his church. Paul was NOT looking forward to 2000-3000 years into the future when he talked about the end times.
I resonate with your angst about the problem of evil and suffering, Thrill. But by what evidence did you conclude that God is supposed to do something about that? The "red in tooth and claw" aspect of the nature we inhabit here on earth doesn't remotely suggest it. Giving us Dominion over the earth does not suggest it. Telling us we have to overcome and endure to the end does not suggest it. So . . . why would you expect it???
I resonate with your angst about the problem of evil and suffering, Thrill. But by what evidence did you conclude that God is supposed to do something about that? The "red in tooth and claw" aspect of the nature we inhabit here on earth doesn't remotely suggest it. Giving us Dominion over the earth does not suggest it. Telling us we have to overcome and endure to the end does not suggest it. So . . . why would you expect it???
Well, I don't....anymore. Perhaps I was naïve to believe that God would intervene if I just called upon him. I mean that's what I was taught all my life. I never had a real crisis until I had a life-threatening bout of clinical depression---the kind brought on, not by sad events, but by a serious chemical imbalance that caused me to drop from 175 to 145 lbs in three months, despite cramming myself with 2500 calories/day to try to hold onto my weight. Going for nights w/o sleep; myoclonic jerks all night and intermittingly during the day when I was at rest; absolutely bereft of any energy. I was headed for death; my heart would have buckled under the strain a short while longer. I had my local church come to pray over me.
Nothing. The depression and the symptoms went on.
Finally, I said, "To hell with the prayer thing" and went to see a shrink who immediately put me on a tranquilizer to stop the jerks, and an antidepressant. Within 6 months I was back to normal, except that I had weakened my heart and am now diagnosed with early stage CHF, due the DR's think to the episode.
Who cured me, God or science? I have my answer. What would you say?
Well TD, if we listen to the voice of our gut feeling(the good shepherd) it can be so for us in our experience. Jesus never taught that our leading in life came from having our face in the bible and learning bible verses.
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