CurveLight
Rookie
- Oct 16, 2009
- 9,768
- 317
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- Banned
- #1
We are all familiar with verses like Jn 3:16 + 14:6 which are often used to claim "Salvation" is found only through "accepting Jesus as your personal Savior." For now, let's set aside the fact Jesus never actually said that and go only with the common Christian myth that accepting Jesus is Salvation. For those who adhere to that dogma how do you explain Jesus' words saying we are to pray to God to "forgive our sins as we forgive those who sin against us?" (Lk. 11:4) If forgiveness from God is on the condition we forgive those who sin against us then the Get out of Hell Free card is a token of cherry picking. It's lazy theology.
I accepted Christ on March 28, 1999 and was Baptized on July 30, 2000 so I am not some agnostic or curious atheist. The idea of blanket forgiveness from God for all we have done wrong is a sweet, but dangerous fantasy. Jesus did not specifically address the issue of forgiveness in the Lord's Prayer because he needed a filler line. He did it to highlight the fact forgiveness from God is found in our forgiveness of others. This is what he preached, practiced, and gave his life defending.
The main message in that one line is forgiveness from God is not found in a cure all ceremony. It is a lifestyle. By teaching people to just "accept Christ as their personal Saviour" a false teaching of Christ is being presented and the fallout is in obvious abundance. Instead of more Christians focusing on Jesus' teachings they follow bigotry in many forms. Islam gets blamed for terrorism. Gays get blamed for hurricanes. Women are blamed for abortion.
All of that bigotry, hatred, and ridiculous ignorance is born out of a failed theology. People are taught if they "accept Christ" they are forgiven but what they are not taught is what Jesus actually stated. When they do not have the Peace that was promised they look around for someone to blame and they tend to blame anyone who has not "accepted Christ" as they have.
Instead of cherry picking Jesus apart all of us Christians have a heavy burden of examining everything he said and not just what makes us comfortable.
I accepted Christ on March 28, 1999 and was Baptized on July 30, 2000 so I am not some agnostic or curious atheist. The idea of blanket forgiveness from God for all we have done wrong is a sweet, but dangerous fantasy. Jesus did not specifically address the issue of forgiveness in the Lord's Prayer because he needed a filler line. He did it to highlight the fact forgiveness from God is found in our forgiveness of others. This is what he preached, practiced, and gave his life defending.
The main message in that one line is forgiveness from God is not found in a cure all ceremony. It is a lifestyle. By teaching people to just "accept Christ as their personal Saviour" a false teaching of Christ is being presented and the fallout is in obvious abundance. Instead of more Christians focusing on Jesus' teachings they follow bigotry in many forms. Islam gets blamed for terrorism. Gays get blamed for hurricanes. Women are blamed for abortion.
All of that bigotry, hatred, and ridiculous ignorance is born out of a failed theology. People are taught if they "accept Christ" they are forgiven but what they are not taught is what Jesus actually stated. When they do not have the Peace that was promised they look around for someone to blame and they tend to blame anyone who has not "accepted Christ" as they have.
Instead of cherry picking Jesus apart all of us Christians have a heavy burden of examining everything he said and not just what makes us comfortable.
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