Shyguy, can't help noticing your avatar is of a cannabis leaf, is this maybe the root of your question?
I've been there done that myself, i could be wrong maybe you just like the picture, but with you saying about dreadlocks also seems to fit to me that you may be one who likes the hashish and maybe Christians speak against this that you do.
Please correct me if i'm wrong, but the argument of close minded Christians usually comes from those who don't want to recognize their sins as such and lay them at the cross.
I know the cannabis issue and maybe other issues of what's sin or not can be debated.
But there is one way to serve God and it's not our own, it's Gods way by His love, that is what fullfills our hearts, His pure way just like His son lived is the way we see as perfect and the way we want to live our selves prepared to be hated and even suffer the persecution He did before us for us.
God shows us a greater way and fulfillment than any drugs or alcohol, or anything this world can offer us that we may see as some treasure, the treasure is not of this world but of God, the true treasure He gives us that fulfills our hearts, the unselfish pure love, that we want for all.
I've lived in the world and by the pleasures of it, and there is nothing that compares to Gods love, it's useless and vain compared to Gods love, there's no good of the world or ourselves before we come to Christ, He offers us good, a greater way than all the world, the true secret of the world and how to live in it.
To live by Gods word, is to live by the true bread of life, it nourishes us with true goodness.
To live by the world and any useless pleasure it offers you is just that usless and vain.
The love of God is the true secret, not wanting for ourselves, but taking joy in the love we can show others.
In deed yes, but moreso than that for even the world can do good deeds, for they may want to give to the hungry, but to even give them food that can fullfill their stomach is nothing compared to the food that can fulfill their hearts.
Christ preached the Gospel the true bread of life, this is what is to be preached throughout the whole world, not sitting idlely in front of our t.v. screens or listening to worldly music or chilling out in the pub or having a session.
What fruit is of these things.
I've listened to worldly music and watched films and t.v and there's nothing of these things only to show us how so many are lost and have to fullfill their lives with this.
Sure t.v. and music can be used to preach the Gospel and gloryfy God, but worldly music and t.v ect. no good comes from, it brings forth no good fruit, and will perish with the world, these worldly things are not of God, sure you can say cannabis is, it's His creation, but what fruit does it bring forth to the glory of God only sitting lazly getting high for your own pleasure.
I say this not to judge you and probably fit what you see as a close minded Christian, but i want no evil for you, or to take any good from you, i only want you to grow in and see the pure love of God, and this as the true beauty of life, there is nothing greater in life than living by the pure love of God, there is no greater purer fullfillment, why desire to do that which brings forth no fruit, when you can do what can bring forth much.
Why waste our time and money on that which is fruitless, when there's so much fruitful work crying out to be done.
I'm not condemning you for what you may or may not do, but to see what our lives here are for, and how we can use our lives vessels to His great love being filled with it, and directing all who thirst of His fountain where they can get fullfillment.
For we are witnesses of this gift unseen, if we are then called by His name, we are then to be witnesses of it, not living by things that are not a witness of His love, but living witnesses of what's in our hearts showing the world it's light, witnesses of His name not just by name but by witness of what we do by the love that's in us.
For if we carry the name of Christ and are no different from and still live by the things the world does, then what witness are we, of our saviour who came to save us from the world, from the man of a sinful nature which all of the world live by, to show us the glorious path of living by His love of being fullfilled with His beauty.
For Christ lived all by the will of the Father, there was no blemish in Him, this is the mans name we carry, but much more than a man, for He did nothing of himself for his own gain as a man but all for us for our good, to inherit the glorious gift of God.
So we now witnesses of Him, are judged by His name that we carry, so if we call ourselves of Him to want His good for others that He died for for us, then what do we show others of His name when we still seek idlely of our gain in worldly things, when this is not what Christ was about.
What harm you can say is there in tatoos or whatever, but what good is of them, and what witness is of them to gloryfy the name that you now carry.
Not that we should look down on or judge any of such, but let them say this is my scars of old, not continue in fruitless worldly ways.
For we can reach out to the world knowing the world they live in, for we once did, but we offer a hand to help them out of it, not to mingle ourselves therein so we then don't even recognize of what we are saved from.
I admire close minded Christians who stick to Gods word and let their minds be formed to His ways and close out the influences of the world.
But this doesn't mean rejecting sinners and looking down on them as if we being self righteous, for we know we of ourselves are no better than them, but by the grace of God have been saved ourselves and want the same for these, living a life before them as servants to them to show them His love, not being converted to their ways, but being pure before them in Gods ways, for Gods way is the treasure we live by, and this is what we are witnesses before them of.
Why show the world we're of the world, we're of God not the world, and are witnesses of Gods love, not what the world loves and it's idle pleasures, for their pleasures are witnesses of their worldly ways, their singers sing of it, their movies promote it, the life they live is of it and the pleasures they live by and what they see as important to life.
The world is witness to the world and it's fruitless ways, but we are witnesses of God and His true fruitful ways.
