Starcrystal said:
I think a lot of people are missing the whole point, and that many perceive the "church" as something that represents God when fopr the most part churches only represent MAN and what he thinks God is like. Jesus is against all such foolishness.
Jesus explicitly founded the Church. Is He against that which Himself did?
John the baptist was out in the deserts like a shaman, and dressed himself in the skins of a camel, which was considered unclean under Jewish law. Yet God chose HIM to introduce Jesus to the world at the river. How would it be today if I walked into some suit and tie church wearing skins and feathers in my hair? Would all heads turn because the church is of MANS spirit and not Gods, and they judge according to appearances?
Indeed, many so-called churches believe that anything with a poor appearannce is evil. The true Church, on the other hand, even has mendicant orders which live in conditions of poverty themselves, so as to not use resources to be destined to those they are trying to help.
On the other hand, it is a great error to think the clothes one wears to Church don't matter. All through the Bible, in both Old and New Testament, we are reminded of how much respect and humility we are to have in God's temple.
It is also gravely wrong to think wealth, in itself, is evil.
For that matter, Jesus chose women who were prostitutes and adulteresses. He didn't choose the fine polished seminary trained religious leaders. I'm afraid the majority of that which claims to be the "church" is nothing but another institution of man: a philosophy of vain wisdom.
The Virgin Mary, the most blessed among all women, was chosen by God as well, and was neither a prostitute nor an adulteress, but the most chaste and modest of all women.
If Jesus chose adulteresses and prostitutes it was so that they would come to repentance and leave their wicked ways behind, not because they had merit for being so.
The church judges, it plays favorites, it holds mans positions in high esteem, in some cases they'll judge you right down to the clothes you wear! They, for the most part DO NOT care for the poor, but rather pick and choose who they'll give to ~ saying we need to be good stewards of OUR money, and only help those who are making some effort to help themselves. Yet I find NOWHERE in the Bible any such teaching. Jesus said give and don't let your left hand know what your right hand does. It says in Acts 2 & 4 that all the TRUE BELEIVERS were all together and had all things common, they shared their goods so that NO ONE LACKED ANYTHING.
And now you think the Gospel has anything to do with your socialistic ideals, which are inherently anti-Christian and materialist.
The early Christian community in Jerusalem (not in other places), had divison of property. It only worked while it was little, and while people held God, and not "social issues" above everything else.
In other Biblical books, we read of repaying for damaged property and of rightfuly lending money for interest.
Solomon, a very godly man, was very rich. So was Lazarus, friend of Jesus.
Upon our Saviour's birth, He was visited both by poor peasants and by rich kings.
I'd rather sense Gods presence up on the mountain under the evergreen trees with some sage burning on a rock altar next to me, listening to the wind and the voice of the Spirit...... that is REALITY and TRUTH. 90% of the stuff in churches is a lot of talk and hype..... I've been a Christian 20 years and seen much. Thank God for lifting the blinders and showing the Truth!
Now your talk almost seems like that of Pagans, whose gods the Bible tells us to be demons.
You are obviously using your feelings to judge what is real and what is not, and such a failed method will never lead you to any real faith. Afterall, Mormons, Wiccans and fundamentalists all base themselves on feelings, and look at how many contradictory places that took them.
