Isn't it strange...

[LilLamb219]

Isn't it strange that sometimes the people who think they know God the best are the ones who reject our Lord and Savior?

I have some friends on FB who post things in a negative way...or misleading way to support their political views and these people aren't Christians...but they think they know who God really is.

Others in their threads are the same trying to use scripture to support their thinking, twisting it of course. Or saying their parents were devout...or even had a father who was a minister so of course they know it all.

 

[John Constantine]

You know, I have been guilty of doing that in the past... until the Spirit of Truth smacked me in the head with this:

John 5:39-40
New International Version (NIV)
39 You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

After years of that smack my head still hurts.

 

[LilLamb219]

You know, I have been guilty of doing that in the past... until the Spirit of Truth smacked me in the head with this:

John 5:39-40
New International Version (NIV)
39 You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

After years of that smack my head still hurts.

Very applicable verse!!

 

[Moses Medina]

Great subject LilLamb, I have fallen for this myself.

 

[LilLamb219]

Oftentimes people will bait you into following a tangent...Luther warned of going off onto tangents in "discussions" (I think it was in Table Talk but I can't remember) and that was very wise advice. They go off on tangents because they feel cornered and don't have enough ammo to keep up the real fight

 

[Forge3]

I can't say for sure I know God only that God knows me. Those that truly know God are like unto Him. And their knowledge cannot be grounded in the intellect but only in humility.

 

[John Constantine]

I can't say for sure I know God only that God knows me. Those that truly know God are like unto Him. And their knowledge cannot be grounded in the intellect but only in humility.

Indeed

That is hard to do at times since Faith without reason is credulity (I believe St. Augustine said that). To discern our intellect from the Wisdom of the Holy Spirit is a test that can only have successful results with a humble attitude and an obedient disposition.

 

[truefiction1]

I can't say for sure I know God only that God knows me. Those that truly know God are like unto Him. And their knowledge cannot be grounded in the intellect but only in humility.

Good.

 

[LilLamb219]

I can't say for sure I know God only that God knows me. Those that truly know God are like unto Him. And their knowledge cannot be grounded in the intellect but only in humility.

God tells us how we can know Him better...by Word and Sacrament (Lord's Supper and Baptism).

 

[Forge3]

Indeed

That is hard to do at times since Faith without reason is credulity (I believe St. Augustine said that). To discern our intellect from the Wisdom of the Holy Spirit is a test that can only have successful results with a humble attitude and an obedient disposition.

Humility is the way. Humility is like the sunflower that always turns its face to the sun. I made a thread about this.

Good.

God tells us how we can know Him better...by Word and Sacrament (Lord's Supper and Baptism).

Yes. And we need to be receptive of course. In littleness we magnify the Lord.

 

[ziggy29]

This is something we encounter a lot.. even among those who consider themselves very devout Christians who attend church regularly. (Sometimes, *especially* among those folks!)

For lack of a better term, these are highly judgmental people who tend to act a lot like the Pharisees. Rather than focus on their relationship with God and working on their own sins, they focus on the sins of others and judge them on the basis of their sins. In other words, these people are all over the splinters in the eyes of others, even as they as they ignore the plank in their own eye. These days I see it more about homosexuality than most other sins, and these folks act like they are somehow "worse" people because of their sins and that somehow, their own sins are less serious and more forgivable. (James 2:10, anyone?)

I'm talking about folks who have divorced and remarried, of folks with tattoos, quoting Leviticus (selectively) to condemn the things THEY don't like while ignoring what they don't disapprove of -- or worse, the sins they commit regularly. And these are the ones that tend to mix religion and politics. (I have no use for that, either in the conservative or liberal camps -- and sometimes people on both sides claim that being the "other" is incompatible with being a Christian.) It drives me crazy sometimes; mixing religion and politics pollutes *both* religion and politics.

 

[Aibrean]

I would say something, but one of the people who are irking me on a certain topic are on this very forum.

So I'll be quiet.

 

[LilLamb219]

Funny how I only see the liberal non-Christians quoting Leviticus in order to mock Christians (on FB).

This is something we encounter a lot.. even among those who consider themselves very devout Christians who attend church regularly. (Sometimes, *especially* among those folks!)

For lack of a better term, these are highly judgmental people who tend to act a lot like the Pharisees. Rather than focus on their relationship with God and working on their own sins, they focus on the sins of others and judge them on the basis of their sins. In other words, these people are all over the splinters in the eyes of others, even as they as they ignore the plank in their own eye. These days I see it more about homosexuality than most other sins, and these folks act like they are somehow "worse" people because of their sins and that somehow, their own sins are less serious and more forgivable. (James 2:10, anyone?)

I'm talking about folks who have divorced and remarried, of folks with tattoos, quoting Leviticus (selectively) to condemn the things THEY don't like while ignoring what they don't disapprove of -- or worse, the sins they commit regularly. And these are the ones that tend to mix religion and politics. (I have no use for that, either in the conservative or liberal camps -- and sometimes people on both sides claim that being the "other" is incompatible with being a Christian.) It drives me crazy sometimes; mixing religion and politics pollutes *both* religion and politics.

 

[ShutterAce]

Along these same lines a few months back I had a coworker ask for help finding a verse. Once I found the verse she told me she needed it to make a point with one of her grandsons. The problem was she had ripped it totally out of context. Her response when I pointed that out was, "I don't care as long as it makes my point."

All I could think then and still do is "WOW! Seriously!":o

 

[LilLamb219]

Yeah, the picking and choosing outside of content, context, etc....is disturbing.

 

[PreachersWife2004]

This is something we encounter a lot.. even among those who consider themselves very devout Christians who attend church regularly. (Sometimes, *especially* among those folks!)

For lack of a better term, these are highly judgmental people who tend to act a lot like the Pharisees. Rather than focus on their relationship with God and working on their own sins, they focus on the sins of others and judge them on the basis of their sins. In other words, these people are all over the splinters in the eyes of others, even as they as they ignore the plank in their own eye. These days I see it more about homosexuality than most other sins, and these folks act like they are somehow "worse" people because of their sins and that somehow, their own sins are less serious and more forgivable. (James 2:10, anyone?)

I'm talking about folks who have divorced and remarried, of folks with tattoos, quoting Leviticus (selectively) to condemn the things THEY don't like while ignoring what they don't disapprove of -- or worse, the sins they commit regularly. And these are the ones that tend to mix religion and politics. (I have no use for that, either in the conservative or liberal camps -- and sometimes people on both sides claim that being the "other" is incompatible with being a Christian.) It drives me crazy sometimes; mixing religion and politics pollutes *both* religion and politics.

Divorce & remarriage is not always a sin.
Tattoos are not necessarily sinful either.

What you really are talking about is hypocrites, and they're found on both sides. But you have to remember it's not always hypocritical for Christians to judge. I see this thing on Facebook that says "don't judge me because I sin differently than you do" and the first thought that comes to mind is "we are told to use the bible to correct and rebuke" but then the second thought is "well, at least someone is acknowledging they're sinning..."

There are some aspects of politics that ARE incompatible with religion. It's not whether you can mix them or not, it's whether your politics follows your religion.