Archive through October 29, 2006 Log Out | Topics | Search
Moderators | Edit Profile

Former Adventist Fellowship Forum » ARCHIVED DISCUSSIONS 5 » My Story » Archive through October 29, 2006 « Previous Next »

Author Message
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 56
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 5:12 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Hello there Chris:

It looks like today is catch-up day. I wish I had time to respond to every post.

Chris, I want to say how wonderful your post was that outlined our security in Christ.
I know that took a lot of time to put that all together. Thank you.

Ramone has given me a homework assignment so I thought I might give you one as well.
Since you did such a great job on the texts that outline our standing and security in Christ, how about doing another list of those texts which could make it look like we could lose our salvation.

The reason I ask this is because no subject is complete until you fully explore both legs, or polls, of truth.

One of the biggest problems with the Christian church is that one group will latch onto one poll of truth and defend it to the death. Another group will grab hold of the other poll of truth and fight like crazy to convince the others that they have all truth.

So many knock down, drag out battles have been fought this way. It is so frequent, that it would be funny if it wasn't so serious.

It would be like Boeing and Airbus getting into a huge fight over whether the right wing or the left wing of an airplane was the most important.

I can just see Boeing setting out to build a plane with only a left wing to prove they were right. And then Airbus, hearing what Boeing was doing, sets out to build a plane with only a right wing.

As ridiculous as that might sound, that is exactly what many Christians and churches do when they argue over truth. They argue for one "wing" of truth and ignore the other.

It takes two wings for a plane to fly. It takes both polls of truth to have a theology that flies.

When you take all the texts that show our security in Jesus and then all the texts that show the threats to that security, then a spiritual plane is created which can fly.

Thanks again for your contribution.

WalkOnWater (TenBLoÿ@hotmail.com)
Grace_alone
Registered user
Username: Grace_alone

Post Number: 246
Registered: 6-2006


Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 5:29 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I would think that if we were doing everything by Jesus' example, then we would have to go to synagogue, be separated by gender during temple and still be sacrificing doves, etc. No?

Also, eating lamb, fish and drinking wine of course!

I don't know very many people who truly "keep" the Sabbath, according to the way the law was laid out, and according to how Jesus kept it.

And I'm also having a hard time finding where the 10 commandments are separated from the rest of the law (all 600+ rules). Jesus would have kept all of those laws as well, wouldn't he?

Wondering,

Leigh Anne
U2bsda
Registered user
Username: U2bsda

Post Number: 290
Registered: 11-2004
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 5:57 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

WOW said "For example, if a text in Paulís writings appears to say the law has been done away with, we must test that against Jesusí Foundation."

One thing to remember is that the law was not done away with during the ministry of Jesus. Jesus was born under the law. He was supposed to keep the law. Galatians 4 says "4But when the proper time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born subject to [the regulations of] the Law,

5To purchase the freedom of (to ransom, to redeem, to [a]atone for) those who were subject to the Law, that we might be adopted and have sonship conferred upon us [and be recognized as God's sons]."


I was just surprised to hear that someone would not take the Bible as a whole to determine God's will.
Susans
Registered user
Username: Susans

Post Number: 44
Registered: 8-2006
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 6:00 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

One of the differences in Adventism and Christianity is that Adventism teaches that Jesus is our example, whereas Christianity teaches that Jesus is our substitute. If Jesus is our example, and showed us how we are to live, then yes, we would be doing all those things that he did. But He is our substitute, and fullfilled the law, by living a perfectly sinless life. Jesus spent His time on earth as a Jewish man, born of a woman, born under the law, as Paul states in Galatians.

One thing that struck me greatly when I studied Galatians was a cross reference in my bible to the council of Jerusalem in Acts 15. There were Pharisees insisting that the Gentile believers who were saved by Jesus must be circumcised and follow the law of Moses. The apostles and elders met and Peter told them of the wonders and miracles that God had done among the Gentiles, and that God confirmed that he gave the Gentiles (that's you and me, by the way) the Holy Spirit just as He did them as Jewish believers in Jesus.

Peter then asks "why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear?" So the apostles and elders told the Gentile believers what requirements they had as believers in Christ. ìAnd so my judgment is that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead, we should write and tell them to abstain from eating food offered to idols, from sexual immorality, from eating the meat of strangled animals, and from consuming blood. For these laws of Moses have been preached in Jewish synagogues in every city on every Sabbath for many generations.î

When I read these verses, I wondered "Now, where is the Sabbath commandment for the Gentiles? It's not there."

Leigh Anne, the 10 commandments are NOT separated from the rest of the law. All 613 laws given by God to Moses, what is called "The Law of Moses" were the Old Covenant. This covenant was ratified with the blood of sacrifice, and Israel responded by saying "All that the Lord has said, we will do". There was NO separate sacrifice when the 10 words were given. It was all ONE law, the Covenant with Israel. And Paul says in Colossians, that Jesus nailed this to the cross, all the laws and ordinances that were against us.
We now are no longer slaves to the law of sin and death, but to the law of life in Christ Jesus.

Susan

(Message edited by susans on October 28, 2006)

(Message edited by susans on October 28, 2006)
Grace_alone
Registered user
Username: Grace_alone

Post Number: 247
Registered: 6-2006


Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 6:18 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Susan, I absolutely agree. If you're going to claim to claim that the law has not been abolished, then you have to keep ALL of the "not abolished" laws.

Jesus fulfilled the law so we wouldn't have to!
Susans
Registered user
Username: Susans

Post Number: 45
Registered: 8-2006
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 6:26 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Yes, you can't pick and choose. Jesus fulfilled the law because we could not.
Snowboardingmom
Registered user
Username: Snowboardingmom

Post Number: 203
Registered: 11-2005
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 8:30 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Walk -
As soon as I posted that second post (it was meant to clarify), I knew it would cause confusion. My focus at the time was on the New Covenant, and the seal of the Holy Spirit, etc., and that is why I said it was the foundation of the Church. My thinking was in that direction. But yes, Jesus is the foundation of the Church, by which we know Him and do His will through the Spirit. I would have been more accurate to say that God is the foundation of the Church (it's really the entire Trinity that forms and impacts the believers that make up the Church).

I'm sorry I wasn't very clear. My two year old was starting to get mischevious and I didn't take the time to complete my thought.

Yes Susan, I agree, you can't pick and choose and Jesus is our substitute, not our example. (That's another one of those recent learning curve things!)

Grace
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 57
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:20 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Dear Grace<

You and several others have said, "Jesus is our substitute, not our example."

But 1 Timothy 1:16 says, "Ö I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, CHRIST JESUS MIGHT DISPLAY HIS UNLIMITED PATIENCE AS AN EXAMPLE FOR THOSE WHO WOULD BELEIVE."

In other words, Jesus wants us to be an example of Christ's patience to those around us so they too can believe and follow His example of patience.

In 1 John 2:6 we read, "Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did."

From this text, we see that He is to be our example and we are to walk as He walked.

I could go on and on.

Of course Jesus is our substitute. That is totally clear in scripture. But there are many texts which show He is also our example.

As I have said before, every truth has two legs. In this case:
One leg of truth is that Jesus is our substitute.
The other leg of truth is that He is our example.

Get those two truths together and the gospel has power. It is like an airplane with two wings instead of one.

WalkOnWater (TenBLoÿ@hotmail.com)
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 58
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:30 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Dear Susan:

You say, "Yes, you can't pick and choose. Jesus fulfilled the law because we could not."

That is totally TRUE!!

However, fulfilling the law does not mean the law is gone or discarded.

Obeying traffic laws fulfills our obligation to the laws of the road but that fulfillment does not do away with the law, it just means we do not come under the condemnation of a Highway Patrolman.

God bless,

WalkOnWater
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 59
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:44 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I wonder why Paul says, "the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good."? Romans 7:12

Riverfonz
Registered user
Username: Riverfonz

Post Number: 2209
Registered: 3-2005
Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:57 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Walk,

I agree with you that Jesus is our example, but primarily He is our substitute. There needs to be a proper balance. Adventism tipped the scales so far in the direction of law and as Jesus as the Model Man etc.

I also happen to agree with you that the moral law was never done away with. There can be a tendency to overstate the case because of the Sabbath issue. As Dennis Fischer has said many times, the Sabbath was never a moral law even to the Jews, it was always ceremonial. Just because it was in the Decalogue does not make the Sabbath a binding moral law. The Sabbath was uniquely a ceremonial law for Israel. Jesus is the substance of what the Sabbath pointed to.

Having said the above, I don't believe that the moral imperatives of the Decalogue were ever done away with. I dislike this terminology. The moral imperatives of the Decalogue are eternal moral laws for all people, but the Sabbath was clearly not a moral imperative. The clue that the Sabbath was ceremonial and pointed to the salvation we have in Christ which is all of grace and none of works is illustrated quite well in Numbers 15:

32"While the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. 33And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation. 34They put him in custody, because it had not been made clear what should be done to him. 35And the LORD said to Moses, "The man shall be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp." 36And all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death with stones, as the LORD commanded Moses."

The fact that Sabbathbreaking demanded the death penalty shows that it went far beyond a moral law, as the punishment wouldn't fit the crime.

That is why Paul in Colossians 2:16,17 says this:

16"Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. 17These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ."

I don't know how much clearer a text like this can be about the fact that the Sabbath command waa fulfilled in Christ.

Stan
Colleentinker
Registered user
Username: Colleentinker

Post Number: 4866
Registered: 12-2003


Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 11:55 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Walk, two things: When John says we must walk as Jesus walked, he is not referring to "law-keeping". He is referring to living according to the Spirit instead of according to the flesh. Jesus was the only human ever born with a living spiritóconceived by the Holy Spirit. He had no need to be born again. He was alive from the moment of conception.

The miracle of his blood opening the new, living way to the Father made it possible for humans to be connected, literally, to God again for the first time since before Adam sinned. When we believe in Jesus, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit and brought to life. Now we must live according to the Spirit, not according to the flesh. Now we submit our temptations and desires to Him instead of trying to overcome by self-control.

If we are to live as Jesus lived, we will submit and surrender to Jesus, offering ourselves as living sacrifices, becoming like Him in our sufering and even death (Philippians 3:7-11). Living as Jesus lived means living as sacrificesóit's not referring to achieving obedience to the law. Living in Christ and submitting to the Holy Spirit's influence is not at all the same thing as keeping the law.

Jesus is not primarily our example. We cannot hope to be what Jesus was. He is God, and He is our once-for-all sacrifice. We can only know that He will make us victorious and cover us with His righteousnessónot our own. When God counts us righteous, he looks at Jesus and considers His perfection to be ours if we are in Him.

Second, the parable of the seeds in Matthew 13 explains the problem of "losing salvation". The seeds that fell on the stony ground and those that fell in the weeds actually sprouted and grew plants. The former put down not roots; they withered when theheat came. The latter were puny and choked by the cares and concerns of life. Neither set of plants had a chance of survival.

Many people appear to accept Jesus. They give mental assent to Him, or they embrace a false understanding of Him, or they hang onto Jesus with one "hand" while continuing to indulge themselves on the other hand. These people have not submitted themselves to Jesus.

Judas is a perfect example: he followed Jesusówas even a disciple. He went out with the other 11 when Jesus sent them out, healing casting out demons, doing the works of God by the power of God. Yet he was unconverted. His works were excellentóand he was admired and considered a loyal Christ-follower.

But when push came to shove, Judas was not sold out to Jesus. He was compromised; he had other agendas he cared for besides the kingdom of God. He was lost.

The Bible warns people not be consistent, to act wtih integrity; to honor Jesus and not trample the blood of the covenant.

Those who do sin against the Holy Spirit and are not known by Jesus are those who have not committed their entire lives and heartsóincluding all their "sacred cows" and cherished beliefsóto Jesus no matter what the cost or how much change or upset it would cause.

We cannot always tell by looking when someone has not sold out to Jesus. But God knows. When our lives are hidden with Christ in God, we have then died (Col 3:3). At that point Christ is our lifeóour life is not ours; it is His. His resurrection life is what brings us to eternal lifeóand we cannot be "unborn" once we are truly born again. We cannot lay down the life of Christóonce it is ours, we are Hisósustained and nourished and kept by His own resurrection power.

Colleen
Susans
Registered user
Username: Susans

Post Number: 50
Registered: 8-2006
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 6:42 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

One of the most valuable things I learned as I was leaving Adventism was to take the bible in context. It's one reason I'm hesitant to post and refer to verses because they don't always give the whole picture, as has been pointed out very well.

It was interesting that 1 Timothy 1:16 was used to support the idea that Jesus is our example,and because he had patience we are to have patience too.

Walk said "In other words, Jesus wants us to be an example of Christ's patience to those around us so they too can believe and follow His example of patience". (Walks' emphasis of caps on the last part of Jesus primarily being our example following His example did not carryover in my copying his post)

I went back and read the verses surrounding this verse to get the context. What I see is that Paul is saying that Jesus had saved him even when he had been a blasphemer, a persecuter, and a violent man, that Jesus had patience on him and saved him. Paul was saying the reason he had been shown mercy was to encourage others that Jesus had displayed his patience as an example for those who would believe on him, to encourage them that Jesus would have mercy on them as well. Not so we would follow the example Jesus here and have patience ourselves.

Here is a portion of 1 Timothy 1 from the NIV:

12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service.

13 Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief.

14 The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

15 Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinnersóof whom I am the worst.

16 But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life.

17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
-----------------------------------


Now, I am not saying that we should not have patience. It's a fruit of the Holy Spirit. If we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit as the redeemed, as Jesus was indwelt with the same Holy Spirit, we WILL have patience, but that's not what this text is saying.

Another interesting thing I read in 1 Timothy, and I'm so thankful, Walk, that you referred to this, is found in the preceeding verses concerning the Law. Also from the NIV:

3 I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer

4 nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's workówhich is by faith.

5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

6 Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk.

7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.

8 We know that the law is good if one uses it properly.

9 We also know that law is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers,

10 for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurersóand for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine

11 that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
-----------------------------------------


The law is for pointing out sin to sinners. That is the purpose of the Law. It's not a "standard of living" for the Christ-follower because we are no longer under that Law, we are under Christ.

Your analogy of Jesus fulfilling the Law and our fulfilling the law about speeding is flawed, Walk. We ARE still under the law of the road. If I don't speed, I may obey it today, but tomorrow if I speed, I have not obeyed and will have to appear in court if I am stopped by the Highway Patrolman. I did not fulfill it, I only obey it, and each time I disobey it, I certainly am under the condemnation of that law.

Furthermore, just because one person obeys that law, that does not mean it's fulfilled for every person who travels the road and are subject to the laws of the road. ONE person cannot fulfill this law for EVERYONE. There is also no mitigation when you are under this law. The law does not say "if you drive a red car, you are not bound to obey the laws of the road". No, each person MUST obey, and obey ALL THE TIME, EVERY TIME, in order to fulfill that law and never be under the condemnation of that law.

But this is the difference in the gospel: Jesus is the second Adam. Jesus fulfilled the law perfectly ONCE AND FOR ALL. He was sacrificed ONCE for sin, and sat down at the right hand of God the Father. IN HIM, we have fulfilled the law. What the law could not do in the flesh, Jesus did in the Spirit. When we are in Christ, we have HIS righteousness, HIS perfect fulfillment of the law once and FOREVER. We are no longer under that LAW, whose purpose is to condemn us to death, but under the LAW of Christ. This is the gospel. And it's that gospel that reconciles us to God, and it's the ONLY way we are EVER reconciled to God. Romans 5 explains that very clearly. The Law given to Moses actually came in so that sin would increase. Think about that one.

Paul says in the passages above that those who continue to teach the law in the church are promoting false doctrine and don't know what they are talking about. That controversies and meaningless conversation inhibit God's work. So, I will follow this counsel and end my remarks about the Law. I will endeavor to know nothing except Christ and Him crucified.

Colleen is right that we cannot always tell who is in Christ and that many appear to accept Jesus. I do not see in the bible where you are in danger of losing your salvation if your faith and trust is in Christ and you have been born again and SEALED with the HOLY SPIRIT.

1 John 3:18 speaks about those who leave the church and are in essence, antichrists. They were never born again in the first place, but they were in the church along with the redeemed.

Listen, this time from the NASB:

18 Children,it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming,even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour.

19 They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.

20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know.

When we come to Jesus, no one can take us away from Him. Jesus said so Himself. Those who turn away, were never His to begin with.

Susan
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 60
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 7:41 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Dear Colleen,
I find much to agree with in your last post. Thank you.

I have several areas of concern. But rather than hitting them all at once, lets look at them one at a time.

Very briefly I would question your statement:
"We cannot lay down the life of Christ."

If Satan, who had an even more intimate knowledge and relationship with Jesus, could lay down the life he had in Christ to choose another master (himself), why would it be TOTALLY IMPOSSIBLE for me to lay down my life in Christ and choose another master?

If Adam and Eve, who were perfect in Christ, could lay down the "eternal security" they had, in Him, why can't I?

To accept what you are saying would mean that once I truly become a Christian, God takes away my free will to choose Him or not choose Him. The problem is that without free will, true love is not possible.

You are presenting a view of God I have spoken with Hank Hanegraaff about. He appears to teach the same thing you do on this subject. Then He also applies this to the redeemed in heaven. He says God keeps heaven safe for all eternity by removing the free will of the redeemed.

Now he does not use those words. They sound bad! So instead he says "God actualizes our choices so we can only choose good, never evil. Put in plain language (which, I fear, Hank is not very good at) God removes free will in the area of choices so we can only choose good and never evil.

Now my question to Hank is, ìIf God removes free will in the area of our choices in order to keep heaven safe, why on earth didn't God do that with Satan and save Himself and all of us a whole lot of trouble?!? ì

You and I were raised in a church which often lived a message of Eternal Insecurity. I can fully understand your desire to balance things out.

But just as Eternal Insecurity is an extreme in one direction, Eternal Security is an extreme in the opposite direction. The truth lies in the middle.

That is why I keep harping on the fact that EVERY truth has TWO LEGS.

To repeat myself, given your background (and mine too) I can totally understand why one would want to emphasize the security leg. But the fact is, we do injustice to the Gospel of Jesus Christ every time we diminish one of those legs and take the other leg to an extreme.

That is why I suggested Chris do a list of those texts which show we can lose salvation. Only when we have both legs of truth, both sides of the coin, can we take it to the bank and it has full value.

God bless,

WalkOnWater
U2bsda
Registered user
Username: U2bsda

Post Number: 291
Registered: 11-2004
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 8:17 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

WOW,

Have you been able to finish Apapetos' questions?
U2bsda
Registered user
Username: U2bsda

Post Number: 293
Registered: 11-2004
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 9:20 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Christians tend to fall all over the Calvinist/free-will spectrum. As someone who is free-will in thinking although not Arminian what stands out to me is how a person answers this question?

Can a Christian be lost if they sin?

I do find the Bible clear on that answer. No! There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. One thing that Adventists have yet to understand is the nature of man and how man has a spirit. That spirit is what is reborn. Our dead spirit was reborn into the kingdom of God and have become partakers of the divine nature. We are no longer sinful beings. We may sin, but that is because we do not fully understand who we are in Christ. We are righteous! 2 Corinthians 5:21 says "21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." Christians can stand before God with confidence because we have been made righteous.

Ephesians 2 says "4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

We have been seated with Him in heavenly places. A sinful being and God cannot co-exist. Adam and Eve had to leave the garden when they sinned and their spirit died. The sins that a Christian does are against his nature. A lost person will sin without thinking about it because that is his nature. A Christian will think about it and think about it before he chooses to sin. Does that sin mean the Christian is not saved or has to rededicate his life to God? No! The Chrisitan should repent and go on learning about who he is in Christ and how he should start acting like the righteous person he already is.
Flyinglady
Registered user
Username: Flyinglady

Post Number: 2953
Registered: 3-2004


Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 10:15 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I have been reading all this thread and have not said anything until now. When I was a rebellious SDA I told God to change me all at once in an instant, because I was tired of sinning. I knew nothing about our spirit at the time. I am sure that caused Him to laugh. When I think of it now, I laugh at myself. What I have seen God do with me, and I am sure with each of us, is change us one thing one at a time. I know, I do not realize He is changing me/my spirit until something comes up and, hey I do not want to do it. Knowing me, I think that if God changed me all at once, I would not like myself because I am used to me and that would be painful, emotionally. So He changes me a little at a time and I become accustomed to the change as He continues to change my spirit/me.
Just my thoughts on this sinful human who loves Jesus Christ with all that my human heart can love. He is truly awesome.
Diana
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 61
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 10:39 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Thanks for the good testimony Diana.
Walkonwater
Registered user
Username: Walkonwater

Post Number: 62
Registered: 9-2006
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 10:59 am:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Some Thoughts...

TWO TREES:
In the center of Garden of Eden were two trees. The Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve were told by God not to eat of one of them. Apparently, there was no logical reason to eat of one and avoid the other. They were both beautiful, and had appealing fruit. Logic did not help one determine which tree was bad. The only reason was, GOD SAID SO.

TWO RIVERS
Skip down a couple millennia. God told Elisha to tell Naaman to wash in the Jordon River. Naaman objected, ìIíll wash in the clean waters of my home land, thank you very much!î Hey, doesnít human logic say, ìclean water would remove a disease better than dirty.î? But just as we saw in the Garden of Eden, God sometimes makes commands which defy logic. We have to do them simply because GOD SAID SO.

ONE COMMAND
Skip to the Ten Commandments. There is only one commandment for which there really is no good human logic. I mean, ìWhat logical difference does it make if I worship God
on Saturday, or Sunday, or Wednesday afternoon?î (And there are tons of people who say that very thing.)

NOW, NOTICE THIS
The Tree of Knowledge was in the center of the Garden.
The Sabbath commandment is in the center of the Ten Commandments.
Violating either one of those commands was punishable by death.
(Doesn't that sound a little extreme, logically speaking?)

Could it be God put both commands there for NO LOGICAL REASON, other than the fact that there are times we follow Godís commands simply because GOD SAID SO?

Could this be a test? A test to see if I follow human logic or choose to simply obey because GOD SAID SO?

Just thinking out loud...

WalkOnWater
Tricia
Registered user
Username: Tricia

Post Number: 28
Registered: 3-2006
Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 12:00 pm:   Edit PostDelete PostPrint Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Diana, your post is so, so true! Thank you for that.

Blessings to you,

Tricia

Topics | Last Day | Last Week | Tree View | Search | Help/Instructions | Program Credits Administration