THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS 4 AVENUES WITH WHICH IT WORKS-WHAT ARE THEY???? SALVATION HANGS IN THE BALANCE..RIGHT HERE,N RIGHT NOW, WE WILL SEE WHAT YOU THINK YOU DON'T KNOW..

THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS 4 AVENUES WITH WHICH IT WORKS-WHAT ARE THEY???? SALVATION HANGS IN THE BALANCE..RIGHT HERE,N RIGHT NOW, WE WILL SEE WHAT YOU THINK YOU DON'T KNOW..

Okay, anonymous users once again prove they need to be kept out. Stephen Collins, I am not putting up with name calling on this thread. Everyone else has been ver respectful. You add nothing but irritation to this discussion. "Supreme Being", interesting, you write exactly the same way as Stephen Collins but SC complained of people being fake by not using their real name. I tend to believe SB and SC are one in the same and he is a hypocrite.

Take a look at the bible. Read every page of it, every word of it and you'll notice some very strong recurring themes. 1. Man tries to over-complicate everything 2. Don't be a dick

LOL  Now, that is a religion that I could follow!  Too bad it's not that simple

I take the bible as literally as I take the works of Tolkien.

I liken the bible to my Mother in law's recipes.  If you follow either one verbatim, it'll leave a bad taste in your mouth.

I tend to believe SB and SC are one in the same and he is a hypocrite.

Actually, *ALL* of the anonymous users are the same person...which makes it that much weirder.....

 

 

I liken the bible to my Mother in law's recipes. If you follow either one verbatim, it'll leave a bad taste in your mouth.

That one made me chuckle

Actually, *ALL* of the anonymous users are the same person...which makes it that much weirder.....

That is weird.  Oh well, I set it for registered only so hopefully we won't have anymore of that nonsense.

I take the bible as literally as I take the works of Tolkien. I liken the bible to my Mother in law's recipes. If you follow either one verbatim, it'll leave a bad taste in your mouth.

Brad:  I take Tolkien Literally.

Karma: That has got to be the line of the year!

Marice and Ziggy: I knew about the church being the bride of christ, but I simply don't get why you wouldn't want to get married to someone if you weren't a Christian.  Wouldn't you want to commit yourself to one person for the rest of your life for no other reason than you loved them?  Why does god have to be part of the equation?  Isn't your love for them enough of a reason?

I love my husband enough.  I'm not married to him because I think it makes god happy.  I'm not faithful to him because I think god wants it that way.  I'm married to him because I love him, and I'm faithful to him because I want to be.  I'm not doing it to please anyone else but myself and my husband.  Yes, there's a sanctity to our relationship but it's a sanctity that WE have created, not something that was imparted upon us by an unseen being.

 

All I know is I believe in a God that is loving and accepting...organized religion is secondary to me (I am catholic, btw). I have no bible quotes or scholarly research to back this up...this is just what I feel in my heart.

Marice and Ziggy: I knew about the church being the bride of christ, but I simply don't get why you wouldn't want to get married to someone if you weren't a Christian. Wouldn't you want to commit yourself to one person for the rest of your life for no other reason than you loved them? Why does god have to be part of the equation? Isn't your love for them enough of a reason? I love my husband enough. I'm not married to him because I think it makes god happy. I'm not faithful to him because I think god wants it that way. I'm married to him because I love him, and I'm faithful to him because I want to be. I'm not doing it to please anyone else but myself and my husband. Yes, there's a sanctity to our relationship but it's a sanctity that WE have created, not something that was imparted upon us by an unseen being.

~shrugs~ I guess I just don't see what the point would be--why be attached if you don't have to? I'm not in that situation, so I really can't say.

why be attached if you don't have to?

Because you want to be attached. Because you love the other person with all your heart and want to be with them for the rest of your life.

Jill--it's an interesting question, and I'm thinking about it. But I don't have an answer yet.

~shrugs~ I guess I just don't see what the point would be--why be attached if you don't have to? I'm not in that situation, so I really can't say.

Eek!  Did you really mean to say "have to"?  I married my husband because I wanted to.  He's my soul mate.  Our commitment came before marriage.  Marriage was just a ceremony to have a party with.  My feelings for him would be the same either way.  "Have to" be attached?.... whhaaattt?  Marriage is a union, not an "attachment".  You do it because you want to, not because you have to.  If you are doing it because you feel like you have to, then there should be some soul searching taking place.

Sorry about getting OT.....

All I know is I believe in a God that is loving and accepting...organized religion is secondary to me (I am catholic, btw). I have no bible quotes or scholarly research to back this up...this is just what I feel in my heart.

Exactly!  I think we are less threatening to others as we Beleive.  And Accept.  WHile others must convert.  I can accept Jill, Dharma and karma simply because they beleive as well. Not the same creed, but the same principals.  And in the end, that is what Jesus is telling us.

I am the way means follow my examples.  It does not mean you have to be of one mind and one path.  The way is through his teachings.  And those are truly universal!

You get a cookie!

I am the way means follow my examples. It does not mean you have to be of one mind and one path. The way is through his teachings. And those are truly universal!

Nicely said Dr. Guy.  Setting a good example is much more attractive than saying "I am right, you are wrong, you need to believe the way I do". 

I have no bible quotes or scholarly research to back this up...this is just what I feel in my heart.

That's the beauty of faith though, you don't have to "back it up" or prove it.  It is like explaining why you fall in love with one person and not another.  It can't be forced, it just is.  Thanks InBloom.

Have you ever talked with an elderly person who could recall minute details from early in his or her life? Dates, what the weather was like on a certain day and so on? Some of the authors of the New Testament were among those who witnessed the life, death and ressurection of Jesus Christ. I don't believe any of the details contained within those beautiful books were the output of moldy minds looking back through the fuzzy lense of time. I believe the Bible is a God-inspired collection of writings.

Do you believe in an all-powerful God who wrote the laws of nature and has absolute command over His creation? If you do, then answering the above questions is easy. And it was six days... But who's counting

I've met my match!! I finally found someone that sounds like me!! Nicely said.

I don't believe any of the details contained within those beautiful books were the output of moldy minds looking back through the fuzzy lense of time

Like you said, that's what you believe. As for elderly people remembering things long ago with great detail, I know more elderly people with creative memory who argue with each other over what truly happened. I believe they "remember it exactly" in their mind but that doesn't mean it is accurate. Not to mention that St. Paul, the main author of the NT never met Jesus so what "memories" was he going by? He actually even persecuted christians until he "had a vision of Jesus".

I believe the Bible is a God-inspired collection of writings.

People can believe it was inspired by God without taking it word for word. Mankind had a whole lot of tampering with it. Again, St. Paul changed things in the OT that he believed didn't need to be followed. So does that mean God said one thing and then changed his mind and told St. Paul to change it? Or could it have been a political move?

To those of you who take the bible literally, do you believe in capital punishment?

To those of you who take the bible literally, do you believe in capital punishment?

I dont take it literally, but I dont believe in capital punishment either.

People can believe it was inspired by God without taking it word for word. Mankind had a whole lot of tampering with it.

I think that's great. Couldn't agree more!

Thanks Andy. I just tend to think that if you are busy trying to take it word for word you are apt to miss the bigger picture. And why is it such a terrible thought that God passed lessons through men and due to the imperfect nature of man, it got a little messed up along the way? You can doubt the accuracy of the retelling of details yet still get the message, can't you?

But I am not one who believes there are restrictive, specific rules for reaching out to God. I don't believe you have to attend a church or pray in the name of Jesus or Mary or anyone else. I believe you can reach out in your own way and still find answers.

"It's a book; it was written by aging men 70 years after the fact..." Have you ever talked with an elderly person who could recall minute details from early in his or her life? Dates, what the weather was like on a certain day and so on? Some of the authors of the New Testament were among those who witnessed the life, death and ressurection of Jesus Christ.

The NT was written from about 70 AD to about 100 AD.  Jesus died around 30 AD.  So, that is 40 to 70 years after he died.  They have done a lot of research on human remains from the middle ages (which would start 300 years after the NT was completed).  Do you know how old the "old" people were?  45 years old.  So, if Jesus was in his 30's when he died, he was quite "old" for the time period.  To think that somebody met him when they were 5 years old and was able to write detailed accounts of him before they died at 45 doesn't seem very likely, and the later stories obviously weren't written by anyone who would have been alive when he was. 

Have I seemed hostile toward christians on this thread? I need to know because as far as I can tell I posed questions with the intent of learning about how others think. I think I got a lot of insight from it and thought it was a very respectful conversation but a certain blogger recently accused me of being hostile toward christians. I just can't figure out where that came from.

To those of you who take the bible literally, do you believe in capital punishment?

I take it literally and figuratively (posted somewhere above), and I do believe in capital punishment.

I don't think you've seemed hostile on this thread.

Thanks for answering both questions HC! No judgement either way on capital punishment, just trying to see what people feel about it and where they are coming from.