Enemies in the forum....

[StormyOne]

Mat 5:43-48 You have knowledge that it was said, Have love for your neighbour, and hate for him who is against you: (44) But I say to you, Have love for those who are against you, and make prayer for those who are cruel to you; (45) So that you may be the sons of your Father in heaven; for his sun gives light to the evil and to the good, and he sends rain on the upright man and on the sinner. (46) For if you have love for those who have love for you, what credit is it to you? do not the tax-farmers the same? (47) And if you say, Good day, to your brothers only, what do you do more than others? do not even the Gentiles the same? (48) Be then complete in righteousness, even as your Father in heaven is complete.

Some here seem to think that I am "the enemy" or just another in a long line of enemies... if that is your belief... then the bible is clear what needs to be done... Love your enemies...

For the record, I do not consider any of you here (or those who were here and left) my enemies. You all are my brothers and sisters in Christ... in spite of our differences, our different views, in Christ we are related, and I will treat you as such....

 

[Windmill]

Yes yes this is great and all.

Honestly, I don't know what the big deal is. Okay, you're a little controversial, and I'll admit, you're giving off the appearance of being on the edge of being a non sda, but oh well, as long as you don't flame and give evidence for your reasons I don't care so much.

 

[honorthesabbath]

It's amazing what people do in the name of "love". "Here honey, let me bash your beliefs in your own house and show you how much I love you". Then the abusive husband--"oh sweetheart, I LOVE you so much--THWACH!!! The cheating wife who straightens her hair and make-up before walking in the door of her home and gives the unsuspecting husband a BIG kiss and tells him how much she LOVES him. I submit that the love LOVE is tossed around a lot by some who have no idea what that word incurs. You see, the devil is the master goater. He incites ppl to anger and then points his finger at them and then gets other ppl to accuse them of not having love.

1Pe 3:8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:

Do you see here that the scriptures say that showing love is being COURTEOUS?? How courteous would it be of me to enter into someones home and immediatley begin to criticise the decor? Or to say that their home smelled bad and kick the cat??

Part of Christian love is to know when to keep ones mouth shut. If you KNOW before you speak that your going to hurt or enrage someone--then hold your peace. Provoking to anger is not a Christian trait.

I call upon those who feel it their duty to constantly develope threads and topics that are demeaning to the faith of others to STOP. You know who you are and you know what you are doing and it is NOT of love. This behavior is not unique to CF--the same ppl go from SDA forums across this internet spreading their hate and vemon in all of them. As a matter of fact, one does a "copy and paste" of his threads in many forums, KNOWING the results!

Well--I could say much more, but I'm going to follow the bibles advice and "hold my tongue". Mt 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

 

[HoneyDew]

While you are being indignant regarding Stormy's posts and threads, I am sure if it were about JWs or the RCC, for example, you would not nearly be so irate. Let me see you defend the faith of others and then I will believe you that this is not self-serving.
You might not realize how much Stormy loves the Adventist church. And that is why he wants us to open our eyes and clean up our mess. Your wanting to keep public things hidden, when the world already knows about it and has access to that information is naive.
Furthermore, your analogy is incorrect. When you cite going into another's home and criticizing their decor and kicking their cat, you forgot one thing. This is Stormy's home too. The forum and the Adventist church belongs to him as well as it does to you. He is not an "outsider" but a part of the family, if you wish, and is therefore at liberty to dust and mop. It might not be comfy for you, to see him all busy, but it might be a blessing to others who have allergies.

 

[TrustAndObey]

I have to wonder if loving our enemies makes them any less of an enemy. I'm not talking about Stormy, just in general. I think it's totally possible to love someone but still know they aren't good for you and want to cause you harm....otherwise they wouldn't be your enemy at all, right?

The Bible tells us to pray for our enemies. I don't always feel like doing it but it is the right thing to do. The Bible never promises they won't be our enemy after we pray for them though. It doesn't change the fact that they are an enemy, it just changes how you choose to deal with them.

For the Bible to acknowledge that we will have enemies means we can't "take them out", we just have to love them. Sometimes that means not listening to them (by whatever means that takes) or walking away from them.

Personally I can't stand being around people that are negative all the time (again I'm making a general statement, not talking about Stormy). Negative people suck the life force out of you. Certainly I'll pray for them, but they are still an enemy to my views on life and how I choose to see things.

The Mosaic Law of having to pay for the sins of our fathers was done away with. We should learn from past mistakes, certainly, but we also have to move on.

I saw this quote somewhere "I wouldn't have made a very good Jesus. I have a really hard time paying for the sins of others." It's true, if we didn't commit the sin or have anything to do with it, and it's over, then it's not our sin to worry about. Jesus washed away their sins, if they asked, and gave them a clean slate. We don't know if they asked or not, we just have to hope that they did and be confident that Christ cleansed them from all unrighteousness the way He does us.

 

[HoneyDew]

Praying for them, would make them NOT be your enemy anymore. If you pray and they are still your enemy, then your prayers are in vain. Praying for them should change you. And I use the word "you" in a general way in this post.

 

[TrustAndObey]

Praying for them, would make them NOT be your enemy anymore. If you pray and they are still your enemy, then your prayers are in vain. Praying for them should change you. And I use the word "you" in a general way in this post.

So if someone told you that they hated you and were going to kill you, if you prayed for them you wouldn't have to fear them anymore? They wouldn't still be your enemy going after your life? Even David said he hated his enemies with perfect hatred.

 

[HoneyDew]

So if someone told you that they hated you and were going to kill you, if you prayed for them you wouldn't have to fear them anymore? They wouldn't still be your enemy going after your life? Even David said he hated his enemies with perfect hatred.

No, you call the police.

 

[TrustAndObey]

Agreed. So no matter how hard I prayed for them they are still my enemy. I can love them with all my heart, but they still want to cause me harm. Enemies come in all shapes and sizes and degrees, but we all have enemies nonetheless. Praying for them doesn't change that.

 

[HoneyDew]

So, who is your enemy?

Is there another word perhaps that better describes others, especially in this forum? I ask because it seems a strong word to use.

 

[TrustAndObey]

Here's the dictionary definition of an enemy:

1 : one that is antagonistic to another; especially : one seeking to injure, overthrow, or confound an opponent
2 : something harmful or deadly
3 a : a military adversary b : a hostile unit or force

It may sound like a strong word, but it really is an easy definition. Anyone that is antagonistic of you or wants to harm you in any way. They can't have your best interests at heart and love you.

You can harm people psychologically or physically, either way if that is what you do then you are that person's enemy. They can pray for you all day long, but if God doesn't convict you to show them love back, you are their enemy.

 

[StormyOne]

Here's the dictionary definition of an enemy:

1 : one that is antagonistic to another; especially : one seeking to injure, overthrow, or confound an opponent
2 : something harmful or deadly
3 a : a military adversary b : a hostile unit or force

It may sound like a strong word, but it really is an easy definition. Anyone that is antagonistic of you or wants to harm you in any way. They can't have your best interests at heart and love you.

You can harm people psychologically or physically, either way if that is what you do then you are that person's enemy. They can pray for you all day long, but if God doesn't convict you to show them love back, you are their enemy.

Thank you for that definition, I have not done any of those things in my opinion.....I am not trying to overthrow, injure, confound, nor have I seen anyone here as an opponent... I am just asking questions... (granted the questions running through my head are not the normal fare) and I am not nor have I been malicious..... IMO.....

 

[TrustAndObey]

Thank you for that definition, I have not done any of those things in my opinion.....I am not trying to overthrow, injure, confound, nor have I seen anyone here as an opponent... I am just asking questions... (granted the questions running through my head are not the normal fare) and I am not nor have I been malicious..... IMO.....

But Stormy, you're the one that used the word, not me. It's the title of your thread here. HoneyDew asked me what an enemy is, and I told her the dictionary definition. I never once said you are my enemy.

My enemies are people that want to harm me in some way. People that scrutinize everything I say or antagonize me.

 

[StormyOne]

Here's the dictionary definition of an enemy:

1 : one that is antagonistic to another; especially : one seeking to injure, overthrow, or confound an opponent
2 : something harmful or deadly
3 a : a military adversary b : a hostile unit or force

It may sound like a strong word, but it really is an easy definition. Anyone that is antagonistic of you or wants to harm you in any way. They can't have your best interests at heart and love you.

You can harm people psychologically or physically, either way if that is what you do then you are that person's enemy. They can pray for you all day long, but if God doesn't convict you to show them love back, you are their enemy.

T&O help me to understand why God wouldn't convict you to love them in return.... Jesus said there were 2 commandments. Love God, and love your neighbor. He said love your enemies... so why wouldn't He convict you? He commanded that it be done....

 

[StormyOne]

But Stormy, you're the one that used the word, not me. It's the title of your thread here. HoneyDew asked me what an enemy is, and I told her the dictionary definition. I never once said you are my enemy.

My enemies are people that want to harm me in some way. People that scrutinize everything I say or antagonize me.

I used that word because when people suggest that I hate the church, that I am dissatisfied, when they suggest that I move on, then based on that someone is or has perceived me as "the enemy."

 

[woobadooba]

Stormy, you are not the enemy here!

Let me tell you what the enemy is...

Are you ready...

Questions!

They just don't like our questions because we are thinkers, and not mere reflectors of other men's thoughts.

 

[catlover]

T&O help me to understand why God wouldn't convict you to love them in return.... Jesus said there were 2 commandments. Love God, and love your neighbor. He said love your enemies... so why wouldn't He convict you? He commanded that it be done....
__________________
Good point, does loving thy neighbor include criticizing one's deeply held beliefs about religious matters?

 

[StormyOne]

__________________
Good point, does loving thy neighbor include criticizing one's deeply held beliefs about religious matters?

Criticism should be avoided... asking questions about what one believes is a different issue though.....

 

[catlover]

Genuine questions are on matter, inflammatory questions are another.

 

[StormyOne]

Genuine questions are on matter, inflammatory questions are another.

No doubt.... as are rhetorical or snide ones... while i cannot speak for all here who have asked questions, I can say that I have attempted to ask only thought provoking questions.... granted I don't know what thoughts will be provoked, but if it leads to discussion and a better understanding I am all for it...