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Jesus is the Word of God, so definitely one can believe in the message. Believing in the Word is believing in God. The question that remains is if one believes in the message, and Jesus said he is one with the Father, and "I am", why draw back at this point?I somewhat agree with this. Jesus Christ is the reason for my hope, but I do believe that you can believe in the message Jesus taught and not believe in Jesus. However, as to have hope to have eternal life with Him, probably won't look good unless they repent.
The bubble of existence my wife and I have created for ourselves.1 Peter 3:15: Always be ready to give a reason, an explanation, for your hope.
What is your hope/expectation? What is the reason for it?
One of the most awesome teachings of Jesus is that he rose above the political. He emphasized he was not the Messiah/anointed who would be a political leader. He was anointed/Messiah to bring glad tidings.That G-d may drive and guide me from the Eastern Bloc country in which I live. And/or someone will actually understand and care about the reality that the persecution of some ultimately means grave conseqences for all.
And that is what Jesus promoted, a teaching I've always been in awe of because along with love, goodness, and fun, it also brings peace.The bubble of existence my wife and I have created for ourselves.
We have a loving, fun and comfortable home that we made in a world that has gone mad.
"I have not come to bring peace but a sword. From now on it will be son against father and daughter against her mother. A man's family will be his enemy"And that is what Jesus promoted, a teaching I've always been in awe of because along with love, goodness, and fun, it also brings peace.
Excellent point. I heard this point about Hamas and their analogy of Israel and why it was right for them to behead babies, to even rip them out of the womb. A snake, they say, cannot change what it is. The children of a snake is also a snake.Most people try to "be good" or enact what they perceive to be good for themselves or their community. Even the current terrorists in the group of Hamas believes they are doing something good by killing civilian children and women.
But as the whole world rallies against them and declares that their genocide is good for the world...a person has to question their idea of "good".
I don't know a person alive who makes themselves the villain in their own narrative. Everyone believes that they are a good person with no real qualifications other than what they think or feel. Everyone is "right" but only in their own mind.
He also said, "My peace I leave you, my peace I give to you." There are more verses about Jesus talking about peace. With your verse, Jesus was also giving us a heads up that not all would accept or want this peace, this way of living, so it's not always going to be a walk in the park."I have not come to bring peace but a sword. From now on it will be son against father and daughter against her mother. A man's family will be his enemy"
~Jesus
This may be a point where education fails students. Too many of our issues today are based on subjective feelings rather than objective truths. The transgender issue is a perfect example. Subjective: I feel like the opposite sex. Objective: Chromosomes determine our sex.There is constant conflict precisely because we cannot agree on how to move forward.
I agree, while noting that good also comes from good. (For the moment we'll set aside the proverb that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.)That good comes from bad.
Reason and experience.
You'll have to forgive my proclivities of teasing people I like....and I know a lot of scripture as well.He also said, "My peace I leave you, my peace I give to you." There are more verses about Jesus talking about peace. With your verse, Jesus was also giving us a heads up that not all would accept or want this peace, this way of living, so it's not always going to be a walk in the park.
The one that immediately comes to mind is the one from Isaiah where some of the things people think are good are actually filthy rags. I think of that one a lot.But the passage in Matthew is Jesus talking about the current attitudes of the people in the world including Israel. That people are evil even when they think they are good. And this is actually a quote from an Old Testament prophecy explaining it more in detail. (Check your concordance for a more precise reference)
The one that immediately comes to mind is the one from Isaiah where some of the things people think are good are actually filthy rags. I think of that one a lot.
Is it possible there is an answer to this question....Currently and historically,
I'm a bit concerned about the amount of "hate farming" going on. Everyone is sowing seeds of hate and outrage against others.
There's always been some of it going on since written language and rumor mills were created. But today the sheer volume of it is destroying us.
If we look obtusely at the book of the Gospel of John....the religious leadership was divided on the Theological argument of "Who Sinned? " (which parallels the Calvinism/Arminian debate) and as they argued, the obvious miracle that signified that God was among them went ignored and God himself was ignored.
Fair enough. But it's important to remember that when we become satisfied there is a risk of becoming proud and I think you know where that could lead.I agree, while noting that good also comes from good. (For the moment we'll set aside the proverb that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.)
I've been looking for an answer to that question myself.Is it possible there is an answer to this question....
How can I be a person of unity?
We are all so fond of our own opinions.
Remember, I heard it somewhere myself...I just can't remember where. But it gave me an inkling of understanding what it takes to behead a baby. The fact that we can dehumanize others so easily is heartbreaking. We've been watching that be done here in America with people so easily throwing the terms "racist", "white supremacist", etc. at one another.And BTW....I'm stealing your expression of a snake giving birth to a snake concept.
Is that even important? I think God loves diversity. Especially diversity of thought because that's what leads to truth being discovered.How can I be a person of unity?
We might be on different trains of thought.Is that even important? I think God loves diversity. Especially diversity of thought because that's what leads to truth being discovered.
That's part of it sure. I was also referring to the not so pretty side of diversity too... the conflicts. They serve a purpose. Man must gain knowledge of good and evil. What better way than differences or diversity of thought.We might be on different trains of thought.
Let's begin with where we agree. Yes, God loves diversity. Diverse thoughts, diverse ideas, diversity in problem solving. To have such a discussion everyone has to be open to the ideas of others and how one can help make that idea/s work. I see this at work when we get together because we want to help a particularly difficult student. We are open, we are wiling to give almost everything a try. That is unity.
When I stated a I want to be a person of unity, one way I am a person of unity is I try the ideas of others and report back with the results. However, when I made that statement I was thinking of more difficult issues. Here are a few:
I think of it as the stonewall problem, and ironically enough, it is one I am trying to work out in a thread in this religion forum before I even attempt to enter into a discussion: Racism in the White Church. How do you think this would work? This country thrives on diversity, so we should welcome diversity, including Racism, in White Churches.
- In our country how can I stop the dehumanization we see? People flinging the words racists, bigots, white supremacy around like confetti
- How can we stop babies, children, mothers from being beheaded and burned
- How can we stop our political parties from insulting each other
- How can we end the mutilation of teen genitalia
little secret: it’s the “we” not the “Jesus” doing something there.Protection from all anxiety, as we wait in joyful hope, for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ...
