David, it's not the fact that you bring up the bible. The bible is our model and I take it very seriously. First off, and I mean this as lovingly as I can, do you not see how you come across in your posts? And I'm not talking about just responses to my posts, I'm talking about most of your responses.
You tell us how we "should" feel and act and you say its according to the bible, but sometimes it's more your interpretation of the bible than anything. And I have never seen you post that we should just disagree. Rather you would like to keep telling us, and schooling us, and even suggesting homework for some of us unsolicited. I am not alone.
And it would be helpful if you would say that this is how you interpret the bible instead of acting like you are speaking for God Himself which you are not.
You have some very solid beliefs. None of them are bad. But presentation is everything and the way you come across is that you know more than the rest of us about the bible and Christianity and everything basically and if we don't agree than we aren't Christian enough or whatever. I don't see any compassion in your posts or empathy or grace or mercy. That may be just me interpreting your posts wrong but that's how I feel. IMO, Jesus is my model, and with the exception of the religious leaders leading the people astray, he never went around pointing out everyone else's sin and telling them they were going to hell if they didn't believe in Him. He exemplified Himself by how He lived. He had compassion on prostitutes and immoral women and men. I just don't agree with you on that issue and never will and it doesn't make me right and you wrong or vise versa, it just makes us people that see the bible and our purpose differently.
Thanks for sharing and clarifying. I really think you should have approached me via PM which would have been the more appropriate manner having a discrepancy with a fellow Believer, because that is the biblical mandate on how to handle such matters.
I don't know why so many Christians view the Bible as being ambivalent on matters that are clearly identified and defined in The Bible ; I don't find the great majority of Biblical Mandates 'a matter of interpretation' at all...and instead find them axiomatic (without the need for debate because they are so evidently addressed in scripture) . Now, I do understand that we are all on different levels of our Christian Walk and understanding the Bible properly...so allowance must be given for that.
I believe there is a time for just disagreeing...but not when Gods Word makes something so plain , understandable , and applicable for daily living. We can agree to disagree on Neutral things which the Bible doesn't address , but if the Bible DOES address it concretely , then really it should be a given that we both agree with that. The Bible is the final Court of Aribitration .. the place we go to get our instruction as 2 Tim. 3:16 explicitly states.
Im afraid you are in error of Jesus never going around pointing out sins and telling people they will be lost for eternity if they don't repent. In fact, that IS the good news Gospel that saves , and Jesus didn't pull any punches when it came to people being lost forever if they don't trust him and repent. I believe, today, many Christians see Jesus as totally humble, meek, tolerant, passive, etc...where he wasn't like that all the time ; in fact, we are told in scripture that many people who followed him turned away because of his direct language ...and the highest Religious Leaders of his day hated him for his Gospel message . So, Jesus was very confrontational regarding sins and he even got in peoples faces and attacked what thier whole life had been about up till then.
At the risk of sounding self righteous which I don't mean to sound...theres probably a good chance that I do know the Bible better than the average Christian on C.F. because I have diligently studied it , debated many issues using it as the truth source , and have helped many people understand it more accurately in dialogue ., since 1986 .
What ive noticed with certain C.F. Posters ...is that they espouse or believe in the pseudo-biblical / a hybrid version of personal feelings with 'some' biblical truth.... or they put a great deal of trust in their personal feelings because they've always held to a particular feeling on something....regardless of what Scripture says ...or at times so it seems, that they aren't even interested in what The Bible reports on as far as truth. I reside in the deep South where its termed 'The Bible Belt' , yet when I moved down here from the North, I was shocked at how precious few Christians even read The Bible as evidenced by some of their closely held feelings which didn't coincide with the Bible in the least. 'The Bible Belt' isn't based on most People reading it..rather...its a term to signify that theres a church almost on every corner , and, most people here are conservative in their personal and political beliefs. Personally, I think its a travesty that Christians don't have the desire or see the need to immerse themselves in Gods Word which is one important way of coming to know and love God better and to be used more fully . The BIble changes us in a dramatic fashion , for, its our power source for Christians.
So in closing, I think if any apology from myself is required, I think it would have to be for me to get a hold of the fact that People vary greatly in their Christian Walk and oftentimes not even understanding many fundamental teachings of the Bible .... and for Me not to assume that the Bible is where all Christians go to get their truth. That, coupled with Me not driving home an explicit biblical teaching in such a solid manner .
