tenac,
Good afternoon, we have had a lot of snow here so i've been out shoveling it all morning. lol
Yes I read the John MacArthur link and it's the basic christian tenants he talks about.
Maybe I got this dicussion off on the wrong foot by my questioning the bible as being the 1 and only 'word of god', that wasn't my intent.
In 2005 I was in trouble with the law, sitting in jail and my life in tatters. the day of jury trial i was sitting in my cell and i picked up the bible and was reading mathew when they called me. the last verse i read was mathew 5:25. "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny."
I knew at that very moment that i was at a cross roads. I took a deal and went to prison even though i was innocent of the specific crime i was accused of. Not only did that moment change my life and lead me on a path to peace in my heart, but it also saved my wifes life, literally. had i not taken the deal i would have stayed in california. she ended up having a brain aneurysm and had we still lived on our 9 acre ranch, no one would have found her for days. she ended up following me to nevada and was at our apartment in reno when she had the aneurysm. the apartment staff found her, called 911 and because of that she is alive and well today. all due to jesus's words and the changing power of them. I have prayed everyday since then that god show me the truth, wherever it lead me. I have been lead to areas i never thought i would be and the one constant in this journey is gods leading me away from organized religion and the dogma they teach. god has lead me to many many writings and the one thing they all have in common is love. I have come to believe the bible and other religions to be full of contradictions.(that, to me, does not detract from their wisdom and knowledge and the power to change peoples lives)
My spiritual roots come out of christianity and though i believe in the changing power of jesus's words, i also know jesus is not the first 'man god' to say them. many men have come before him, born of a virgin, preaching gods word, dying and being resurrected. It is a common theme throughout mans history, dating back to before ancient sumeria. When I try to get deeper into fellowship at church I am always told i am not saved because of my views on the bible, yet peace and transquility reign in my heart. I dont understand how 'christians' believe in a book when jesus says the kingdom of heaven lies within you. I dont understand how christians justify the god of the bible as a unconditionally loving god when it says right in the bible that god WILL NOT forgive you if you fail to believe in 'him'. As a parent that is the biggest contradiction that stands out to me. I could never dam my children to a life of suffering just because they chose not to believe me as their father. Yet the bible says 'we love because he first loved you'. If I learned my undying and unconditional love for my children from god, then it must not be the god of the bible or else there would be limits on my love. Could you dam your children to a life without you?
I dont know. I am searching for answers to these issues and because My spiritual life started with jesus i keep coming back to the christian church to see if i can be given a logical answer, but yet none exist.
My heart is still, my faith is strong and my life is blessed and yet as far as so called christians are concerned, i am lost and on the path to damnation. I call myself a 'gnostic christian' because i believe god talks to us as individuals, just as i talk to each of my children as individuals.
If I feel the peace of god in my heart, believe in the changing power of christs words yet do not think he is god, how can the bible be right when the spirit of peace is within me?
So when I see ppl of faith I like to see the extent of their faith, whether it lies in the good book or beyond. That is why I ask
Peace to you
masko
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