My mind is whirling

[xaira]

I've been spending quite a bit of time trying to figure out what Christianity is. There's so many variations - it's so confusing. In Islam, while there was different groups, it was not nearly as theologically deverse. I now consider myself a Christian but I don't even know what that means with the more I research. How does a revert/new/ Christain figure out what the truth is between Protestantism/Catholicism/Orthodoxy? Each claims to be the TRUE followers of Christ. Some claim if you're not with them you're doomed. Why can't being a Christian just mean being a Christian? (Sorry I'm venting my frustration). I left Islam which means in that tradition I'm doomed to hell with no hope. Now I can't even be sure of salvation in Christianity unless I somehow pick the right sect. This is so frustrating.

How can people be so sure that what they follow is the right path?

Last night I had a dream where I obsessively looked for rosary beads. While I don't remember all the details of the dream, I remember that I couldn't rest unless they were wrapped around my wrists. Not sure what that would mean?

 

[Nails74]

How can people be so sure that what they follow is the right path?

Well, assuming the one that you want to follow is Jesus, why not simply read the Scriptures which tell us about Him.

Jesus spoke these things, looked up to heaven, and said: Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son so that the Son may glorify You, for You gave Him authority over all flesh; so He may give eternal life to all You have given Him. This is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true God, and the One You have sent—Jesus Christ. [John 17:1-3]

 

[xaira]

The scriptures seem to be all on how you interpret them based on their translation. I may be wrong about this, but it seems each sect translates and interprets the scriptures based on what they want them to say?

 

[Nails74]

The scriptures seem to be all on how you interpret them based on their translation. I may be wrong about this, but it seems each sect translates and interprets the scriptures based on what they want them to say?

It isn't the translation (in most cases) that is the problem. Find yourself a modern, formal equivalence (mostly word-for-word) translation like the ESV/NASB/Holman and you will be on the right path.

Therefore, dear friends, while you wait for these things, make every effort to be found at peace with Him without spot or blemish. Also, regard the patience of our Lord as an opportunity for salvation, just as our dear brother Paul has written to you according to the wisdom given to him. He speaks about these things in all his letters in which there are some matters that are hard to understand. The untaught and unstable twist them to their own destruction, as they also do with the rest of the Scriptures.
Therefore, dear friends, since you know this in advance, be on your guard, so that you are not led away by the error of lawless people and fall from your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. [2 Peter 3:14-18]

 

[theophilus40]

Now I can't even be sure of salvation in Christianity unless I somehow pick the right sect.

Salvation has nothing to do with picking a sect. All sects have members who are saved and members who are lost. Salvation comes from acknowledging your sins, repenting of them, and believing that Christ died to atone for your sins. If you aren't certain whether you are saved perhaps you can find the answer here:

Answers for Seekers | Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry

This site isn't affiliated with any sect or denomination. I believe the owner is a Lutheran but the information found on the site is useful to people of all denominations. I am not Lutheran but I have gotten a lot of help from the site.

I found out how to be saved by listening to a radio program called Back to the Bible. They are nondenominational and they serve people of all denominations. You might find them helpful in understanding Christianity. You can find out more about them here:

http://www.christianforums.com/t7706751/

 

[fm107]

What matters most is your salvation, not what denomination you are in.

The only way to be saved is to repent of your sins and believe in what the Lord Jesus has done for you (become man, lived a perfect life, died for your sins on the cross and rose again on the third day).

That is it.

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

1 John 4:10
In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Check out this video...

Street Preaching 8 Dec 09 - YouTube

You may also find this website useful: Bible Questions Answered


May God bless you!

 

[xaira]

Thank you Nails74, theophilus40 and fm107 for your quotes and links, I'm looking at them now.

Do you think the following verse is indicative of my leaving and Christianity but finding myself pulled back into it?
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand," (John 10:27-28).

 

[razzelflabben]

I've been spending quite a bit of time trying to figure out what Christianity is. There's so many variations - it's so confusing. In Islam, while there was different groups, it was not nearly as theologically deverse. I now consider myself a Christian but I don't even know what that means with the more I research. How does a revert/new/ Christain figure out what the truth is between Protestantism/Catholicism/Orthodoxy? Each claims to be the TRUE followers of Christ. Some claim if you're not with them you're doomed. Why can't being a Christian just mean being a Christian? (Sorry I'm venting my frustration). I left Islam which means in that tradition I'm doomed to hell with no hope. Now I can't even be sure of salvation in Christianity unless I somehow pick the right sect. This is so frustrating.

How can people be so sure that what they follow is the right path?

Last night I had a dream where I obsessively looked for rosary beads. While I don't remember all the details of the dream, I remember that I couldn't rest unless they were wrapped around my wrists. Not sure what that would mean?

May I suggest simply seeking God with all your heart, soul, mind, exceedingly and letting Him add all these other things to you...Matthew 6:33...Matthew 22:37...I have come to understand, that until we test everything we are taught against scripture, we are too easily led astray by the wolves that seek to destroy us, thus study for yourself, look for signs, as in by this all men will know that you are my disciples....John 13:35, and in this, you will discover, not a religion you can be a part of, but a God who you can put your whole trust and confidence in.

 

[Harry3142]

Xaira-

Christianity teaches that God accomplished himself through his Son, Jesus Christ, what we could never attain. And that accomplishment was his making us righteous as he measures righteousness:

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished - he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:19-26,NIV)

The righteousness which God requires in order for us to have salvation is a righteousness which we can never earn through saying the right prayers, or following the right rituals, or even keeping the right laws. It is a righteousness which we can only obtain one way, and that way is via accepting it as a free gift, totally unearned and undeserved. It is available to us only because God saw fit to pay the just penalty for our sins himself, and thus satisfied his own requirement for justice.

What we are to do is accept that his Son did make the perfect atoning sacrifice in order to cleanse us of our sins and thus enable us to appear before his Father as righteous. And what we do following our accepting his Son's sacrifice is to be done out of gratitude for what we already have been given, namely, our salvation, rather than its being done out of fear.

 

[Nails74]

if you pick the wrong sect will that stop you from getting into heaven? it is so confusing. why doesn't god come down and tell us which one is right (if any)?

Thankfully, God has revealed truth to us in His word (which was not "cobbled together by people many years after the alleged events took place" in response to one of your other posts).

The Christian also has discernment and right reasoning (through regeneration and the Holy Spirit) that can be used to wade through all of the mess out there.

 

[razzelflabben]

Google "Origins of the Written Bible". The biblical stories were passed down orally over hundreds of years before they were ever written down. How can something be trusted word for word if it passed down in this way? No one's mind can keep that amount of text to 100% fidelity in their mind.

look up the accuracy of oral history....it's more accurate than you think and in most cases can be tested to some degree against the evidence of the time, that is archeology, other historians, etc.

Also, search "New Testament on Wikipedia", from the second paragraph:
"The New Testament is an anthology, a collection of Christian works written in the common Greek language of the first century, at different times by various writers... In almost all Christian traditions today, the New Testament consists of 27 books. The original texts were written in the first and perhaps the second centuries of the Christian Era...All of the works which would eventually be incorporated into the New Testament would seem to have been written no later than around AD 150."

The bible was "cobbled together by many people many years after the alleged events took place". How can human reasoning of the holy spirit help us wade through the different popular denominations of christianity (or indeed guide us in making our own brand of christianity) when we are guided by only second hand accounts of the true "word of God"?

and yet, that "cobbled together" library of books, is uncanny in accuracy, consistency, and truth...which testifies that there was another hand involved, that of the living God. You might want to look into the other side of the issue, not just the side that questions the text, but the side that defends it with evidence as well.

 

[xaira]

Are you suppose to repent your sins daily? If you sinned, but didn't repent yet, and died, are you doomed? Isn't that called 'dying with sins on your head?'?
What about the sins you cannot remember?

 

[razzelflabben]

Are you suppose to repent your sins daily?

in the power of the HOLY SPIRIT, you should not be sinning daily, thus there would be no need to repent daily of your sins.

If you sinned, but didn't repent yet, and died, are you doomed?

there is no indication of this in scripture. In fact, it is the unrepentant willful act of remaining in your sin that is condemned, iow's when you defy God and deny His power to overcome sin, thus insisting that you are not repentant of your sin nature.

Isn't that called 'dying with sins on your head?'?

not sure what you would call it, but scripture talks about a judgment for believers, in which their "deeds" will be judged...

What about the sins you cannot remember?

Even the Psalms offer a prayer to God that He would reveal sins, that is search "me" and know if there is any wicked way in "me".

 

[xaira]

in the power of the HOLY SPIRIT, you should not be sinning daily, thus there would be no need to repent daily of your sins. there is no indication of this in scripture. In fact, it is the unrepentant willful act of remaining in your sin that is condemned, iow's when you defy God and deny His power to overcome sin, thus insisting that you are not repentant of your sin nature. not sure what you would call it, but scripture talks about a judgment for believers, in which their "deeds" will be judged...Even the Psalms offer a prayer to God that He would reveal sins, that is search "me" and know if there is any wicked way in "me".

That makes sense. I'm afraid I don't have enough Holy Spirit in me for my numerous habitual sins, especially the ones that involve just thoughts (IE: lustful thoughts, being judgemental, etc). I'm still trying to develop faith. Somedays it's there and others days I'm just too frustrated with trying to understand.
I try to make a habit of asking for forgiveness as soon as I think or do something sinful. But it's difficult to know if that's good enough or if it even counts.

 

[xaira]

I guess I get really confused when people say Jesus died for our sins, but it only counts if you don't sin anymore.

 

[razzelflabben]

That makes sense. I'm afraid I don't have enough Holy Spirit in me for my numerous habitual sins, especially the ones that involve just thoughts (IE: lustful thoughts, being judgemental, etc). I'm still trying to develop faith. Somedays it's there and others days I'm just too frustrated with trying to understand.
I try to make a habit of asking for forgiveness as soon as I think or do something sinful. But it's difficult to know if that's good enough or if it even counts.

repentance, not just confession is necessary for forgiveness, but if you are truly repentant of your thought sins, learn from scripture...take your thoughts captive and put those thought on the things that are noble, good, honorable, etc. II Cor. 10:5 and Phil. 4:8 I've seen this work time and time again. While you are practicing taking your thoughts captive, seek God and the power of the HS revealed in you. If you seek Him, He will be found, but you have to seek Him rather than your own pleasures....oh, and never forget that we grow in Christ, it isn't that one day we wake up and our temptations are gone, we grow more and more Christ like as we learn to live in the power of the HS

 

[razzelflabben]

I guess I get really confused when people say Jesus died for our sins, but it only counts if you don't sin anymore.

if that were a true statement, then this verse would not be in the bible. Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

 

[paul1149]

I guess I get really confused when people say Jesus died for our sins, but it only counts if you don't sin anymore.

That's not the way it works. Jesus gives salvation up front, independent of our works or righteousness, when we sincerely believe (Rom 10.6-11). He's the Author and Finisher of our faith - not we (Heb 13 I think). And what He has begun, He will finish (Php 1.6).

There simply is no contest between grace and sin. Grace based on the shed precious blood of the Son of God is far greater. It completely swallows up sin, and one day death, just as light defeats darkness when the two confront each other.

The answer does not lie in which sect you join. Do not place yourself in bondage to man's understanding, even including that of Christians. Once the disciples saw someone preaching Christ, who was not from among them, and they were affronted. Jesus said to let him be, for "whoever is for me is not against Me". God sees the heart, and knows how to work things out. We are all works in progress, and indeed we may change our beliefs in certain areas as we mature in understanding.

It's natural for a new believer to think she has to dot all her "i"s and cross alll her "t"s. Theological understanding is a good thing in its place, but when the desire for it causes confusion, doubt, uncertainty and fear, it is not a good thing. Essentially we have placed our mind back on the throne, rather than being all about simple obedience to Christ and the Gospel. This reflects the Greek strain in our culture, where the intellectual is stressed separately from the whole person. The Hebrew culture did not operate like that. It was much more holistic. And that is the model the Bible presents to us as well.

Keep abiding in Christ, in His peace, His faith and His love and His joy. He will show you what you need to know in due season. Don't allow any issues to disturb your position of trustful rest in Him.

 

[asiyreh]

Inevitably you will fall on your journey towards becoming the person your loving Father in heaven wants you to become.

We who are in Christ do not run in fear from the Law, the law only tells us, how short we have fallen and reminds us of our need for Christ. It's like a mirror, not a list of offences that stand against you.

But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. John 5:45​

First of all relax, you are now safe, rest in Christ while you study his word. Your journey working toward the example Jesus left for you can begin when you are ready. Listen for the still quite voice of the Holy Spirit. He will guide you in love toward a less sinful life, toards working for the Kingdom of God feeding the poor and curing the blind. You now live under the protection of The Lord and Saviour who died for you.
He has exchanged his blood for yours, his righteousness for your unrighteousness. Now be still.

I’m not perfect, I fall into sin sometimes, while I work toward becoming the person my loving Father wants me to be. Do I worry?

No...

The only reason I do the things God wants me to do is because I love him, I no longer run in fear. If you are living in fear then your hopes are set on Moses, your hopes are set on the Law.
Christ alone is the way the truth and the Life.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2​

Satan is known as the accuser, Satan will use God's Holy Law to accuse you.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:

“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down. Revelation 12:10​

And now look, with new eyes, eyes of someone who belongs to Jesus:-

Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. Colossians 2:14-15


The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, Proverbs 9:10​

The end is comfort, peace and stillness

Try not to get too caught up with the whole denomination problem.
Our Salvation is in Christ alone...


As one of the earlier posters said, there's people in all denominations that have been reborn in Christ. And there's people in all denominations who haven't. Most likely the people that are shouting - you must belong to our denomination haven't been reborn in Christ. Not for me to make that judgement of course, but I suspect the statement is largely correct.

 

[football5680]

If you hold the core beliefs of Christianity and live a good life then you will be fine. If you believe Jesus is the son of God, he died on the cross for sins and then resurrected then all you must do is live a good life and hold to the teachings of Jesus. People can differ in their interpretations so much within Christianity because unlike many other religions Christianity speaks directly to an individual, not a group.

Islam for the most part deals with how an entire community should operate, while Jesus speaks directly to an individual. The Sunni-Shia divide occurred due to political differences.