Is Christianity a religion of "No?"

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seeking.IAM

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Is Christianity a religion of "No?" Lately I've been thinking of all the CF threads having to do with the, "thou shalt nots" of the faith. Sometimes it seems to me that we spend a whole lot more time as Christians, leastwise here on CF, thinking and talking about what we are not supposed to do rather than what we are supposed to do as Christians. Ethos is a two-edged sword including both the immoral and the moral, or said otherwise, that to avoid and that to embrace.

I think of a college roommate who I thought was one of the most moral persons I had ever met, except that he had never been to church and knew nothing about Christianity. It begs the question, if we as Christians get all the "thou shalt nots" right could we still fall short because we fail to embrace the positive ethos of Christianity...those positive things that we are supposed to do if we are to walk in the way of Christ?

I think there is more to the faith that just avoiding sin. What does it mean to you to walk in the way of Christ other than avoiding sin, and how do you operationalize that in your life or your church?
 

Philip_B

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Is Christianity a religion of "No?" Lately I've been thinking of all the CF threads having to do with the, "thou shalt nots" of the faith. Sometimes it seems to me that we spend a whole lot more time as Christians, leastwise here on CF, thinking and talking about what we are not supposed to do rather than what we are supposed to do as Christians. Ethos is a two-edged sword including both the immoral and the moral, or said otherwise, that to avoid and that to embrace.

I think of a college roommate who I thought was one of the most moral persons I had ever met, except that he had never been to church and knew nothing about Christianity. It begs the question, if we as Christians get all the "thou shalt nots" right could we still fall short because we fail to embrace the positive ethos of Christianity...those positive things that we are supposed to do if we are to walk in the way of Christ?

I think there is more to the faith that just avoiding sin. What does it mean to you to walk in the way of Christ other than avoiding sin, and how do you operationalize that in your life or your church?

I have often reflected that we are Anglican.

The core questions in the Baptism liturgy are 'Do you Turn to Christ, Do you Repent of Your Sins' and at the signification 'Fight valiantly as a disciple of Christ, against sin, the world and the devil, and remain faithful to Christ to the end of your life.'

There is more to faith that the simple avoidance of sin, for we are not a holy huddle. As it is the season I really love the words of the Brian Wren Hymn for All Saints.

All saints? How can it be?
Can it be me, holy and good,
walking with God?
How can we say that we're all saints?
O that we could!

Some Saints touch the divine,
and as they shine, candles at night, holy and bright,
gladden the spirits of all saints,
giving us light.

All saints stumble and fall.
God, loving all, knowing our shame,
longs to reclaim:
standing or falling we're all saints.
Treasure the name!

Come, saints, crowds who have gone
beckon us on, hindrances shed,
joy in our tread,
one in the Spirit with all saints,
looking ahead.​
 
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Carl Emerson

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Good topic...

The answer is Love...

Love delights in doing what pleases Him.

Joy comes from walking in His will daily with a crucified heart and watch Him move and do more than you could ask or think.

His Loving voice leads us into truth and obedience for our own good.

Loving lives dedicated to Him do not need Law, because they are tuned into His heart and know what pleases Him.

This is the relationship He wants - not servants following rules, but friends hearing Him.
 
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Sabertooth

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Is Christianity a religion of "No?"
Only at first.
How many times do you have to tell a toddler "no?"

Is that the only thing that you will ever say to him or her?

"No" is how God establishes boundaries until we get to know His heart.

Example:
One of the things we learn when we first meet Him is,
"Thou shalt not commit adultery."

After we have walked with Him for a while and heard His heart on marriage, adultery is the last thing that we will want to do, but out of agreement with Him; not just because it is in the Ten Commandments.
(Our flesh might still be vulnerable, but our heart gets it.)
 
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timothyu

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Even a cat if caught doing something bad will immediately stop if it is shown and praised for doing something good as an alternative. Saying no or punishing accomplishes nothing. That is not how to appeal to our animal nature.
 
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Sabertooth

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Saying no or punishing accomplishes nothing.
God does not punish His children. He disciplines us (as needed).

He is a hands-on God, and not afraid to spank, as necessary.
He is never abusive; think of it as "Judgment-lite."
(And He is beyond of the reach of social services.:amen:)

“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;
For whom the Lord loves He chastens,
And scourges every son whom He receives.” Hebrews 12:5-6 NKJV
 
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Aussie Pete

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Is Christianity a religion of "No?" Lately I've been thinking of all the CF threads having to do with the, "thou shalt nots" of the faith. Sometimes it seems to me that we spend a whole lot more time as Christians, leastwise here on CF, thinking and talking about what we are not supposed to do rather than what we are supposed to do as Christians. Ethos is a two-edged sword including both the immoral and the moral, or said otherwise, that to avoid and that to embrace.

I think of a college roommate who I thought was one of the most moral persons I had ever met, except that he had never been to church and knew nothing about Christianity. It begs the question, if we as Christians get all the "thou shalt nots" right could we still fall short because we fail to embrace the positive ethos of Christianity...those positive things that we are supposed to do if we are to walk in the way of Christ?

I think there is more to the faith that just avoiding sin. What does it mean to you to walk in the way of Christ other than avoiding sin, and how do you operationalize that in your life or your church?
I could not agree more. Lord Jesus came to give us abundant life, not a more demanding set of rules to follow. Sin is relatively easy to deal with. We are set free from the law of sin and death and we overcome sin by the power of the life of Christ within us. Too many focus on sin because they uncertain of the basis of their salvation. It is entirely what God has done for us in Christ, not what we do or fail to do.

For the born again believer, sin loses its attraction and its power. If people are still bound up after being saved, the duty of leadership is to help them to victory, not beat them up with fear of going to hell.

We should be focusing on the Kingdom of God. It's not enough to keep your nose clean and go to church each Sunday. Christians are commanded to love one another and be in unity. Easy to say. Too much ego and selfishness makes it hard to do.
 
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timothyu

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God does not punish His children. He disciplines us (as needed).
Discipline is a whole nuther ball game. Look what happened to the kids of the 90's who were no longer disciplined for fear of psychological damage. These are the psychologically damaged out on the streets today resulting from that trend, panicking, screaming, crying and having breakdowns because someone dares to disagree with them. Consequences must be taught. That is why Jesus taught the difference between the will of God and the will of man. Man's will oppresses while God's will serves others. Which consequence is the better?
 
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Sabertooth

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How well did that work on Adam and Eve? He even explained the consequences.
I did say that it was necessary at the beginning. It is not His long-term plan.

Since we (His disciples) "see through a glass darkly" [1 Corinthians 13:12], sometimes we are only going to get "no" while being led by the Spirit, until we mature in our understanding. It comes in the form of "Trust Me, don't do this."

Adam & Eve weren't led by the Spirit. We are.

When Jesus equated lust to adultery and belligerence to murder, He extended the reach of those two "nos," not cancel them.
 
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timothyu

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Since we (His disciples) "see through a glass darkly" [1 Corinthians 13:12], sometimes we are only going to get "no" while being led by the Spirit, until we mature in our understanding. It comes in the form of "Trust Me, don't do this."
A way of thinking that benefited the early institutionalised church in spades giving it power and authourity and profitability to boot. But yes God was seen to have said no, not because man was an animal to be trained, but because it was dangerous to the oppressors to declare there was another way. Most people are content to accept 'no', never seeking what involves 'yes'.

Yet the oppressed who were the servants, slaves and women of Jesus' time clearly understood how man's way oppresses yet found new hope in hearing how Jesus wasn't saying just 'no' but explaining an alternative way of life that explained why one way was the 'no' way of man while God's way set them free and by doing so then living a 'yes' life.
 
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Sabertooth

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A way of thinking that benefited the early institutionalised church in spades giving it power and authourity and profitability to boot.
Why are you bringing the "institutionalised church" into this?
With you being non-denom and me being a charismatic non-denom, neither of us are beholden to such. That seems like a "straw man" in this thread.

We cannot be disciples in the sanctification process if we cannot take "no" for an answer from our Paraclete along the way.
 
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Moral Orel

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Since I'm an unbeliever, I'm not going to comment on any religious beliefs, I'm just going to come at this grammatically. Any command can be phrased as a negative or positive. Instead of saying "Do not commit adultery" you can just as well say "Remain faithful to your spouse". Conversely, something like "Have compassion for your neighbor" is the same as "Do not ignore your neighbor in his time of need".

I guess what I'm saying is that no matter how you think you ought to behave as a Christian, it's all in your outlook whether it's positive or negative.
 
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This thread is full of all sorts of reminders why I no longer count myself as a Christian. It hardly sounds humane and/or relevant to actual human lives.
 
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SkyWriting

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eleos1954

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Is Christianity a religion of "No?" Lately I've been thinking of all the CF threads having to do with the, "thou shalt nots" of the faith. Sometimes it seems to me that we spend a whole lot more time as Christians, leastwise here on CF, thinking and talking about what we are not supposed to do rather than what we are supposed to do as Christians. Ethos is a two-edged sword including both the immoral and the moral, or said otherwise, that to avoid and that to embrace.

I think of a college roommate who I thought was one of the most moral persons I had ever met, except that he had never been to church and knew nothing about Christianity. It begs the question, if we as Christians get all the "thou shalt nots" right could we still fall short because we fail to embrace the positive ethos of Christianity...those positive things that we are supposed to do if we are to walk in the way of Christ?

I think there is more to the faith that just avoiding sin. What does it mean to you to walk in the way of Christ other than avoiding sin, and how do you operationalize that in your life or your church?

2nd Corinthians 1:20

20 For all the promises of God are “Yes in Christ. And so through Him, our “Amen is spoken to the glory of God.
 
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NerdGirl

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Is Christianity a religion of "No?" Lately I've been thinking of all the CF threads having to do with the, "thou shalt nots" of the faith. Sometimes it seems to me that we spend a whole lot more time as Christians, leastwise here on CF, thinking and talking about what we are not supposed to do rather than what we are supposed to do as Christians. Ethos is a two-edged sword including both the immoral and the moral, or said otherwise, that to avoid and that to embrace.

I think of a college roommate who I thought was one of the most moral persons I had ever met, except that he had never been to church and knew nothing about Christianity. It begs the question, if we as Christians get all the "thou shalt nots" right could we still fall short because we fail to embrace the positive ethos of Christianity...those positive things that we are supposed to do if we are to walk in the way of Christ?

I think there is more to the faith that just avoiding sin. What does it mean to you to walk in the way of Christ other than avoiding sin, and how do you operationalize that in your life or your church?

It's more of a "do this better, holy, righteous, life-giving thing instead of that lesser, easy, temporarily fulfilling, sinful thing".

You don't get to Heaven or please God simply by avoiding all the sins you can think of.
 
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timothyu

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It's more of a "do this better, holy, righteous, life-giving thing instead of that lesser, easy, temporarily fulfilling, sinful thing".
Yes, doing the will of God rather than the traditional will of self serving man.
 
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