If you attend what denomination do you attend? Are you in a ministry there? How long have you attended?
Thanks, NHP.
I think AB's comment was unearned, unnecessary, and has a particularly disrespectful edge to it.
I am not advocating church going, but rather truth seeking through the word of God. I know many people don't think the Bible is the word of God but nothing changes the heart like Jesus.
At the moment no I do not attend church. No I don't agree with all of it's teachings which is why I don't attend. If the church doesn't put God, Jesus the Christ, and the Holy Spirit first and if the church doesn't read and preach the "whole" Bible (no cherry picking) and look to it as being it's final authority for faith and practice, then I won't attend church. The denomination I most attended was an Independent Baptist church and Bible church.
I agree M, I agree.
Of course it does.
God made the moon and the sun for lights but also for signs of the time and warnings for us of things to come. Here is a video from a Medical Doctor who studied the Bible in depth to calculate when Jesus is coming back using the moon.
What do you think of this Medical Doctors study of the time we are in
Carazaa, I am aware of and have studied at length Daniels prophecies and the times we are in. In my opinion all who are believers in, that place their trust in, and are followers of Iesous Christos should study prophecy. The only problem I have is when, those who do study prophecy, begin to take it upon themselves to "set" specific dates that they believe said prophecies will happen.
At least six passages (eight if parallel passages are included) specifically warn believers against date-setting. It's enough for something to be stated only once in the Bible for it to be true, but when God says something many times the emphasis should make such assertions even clearer. The specific passages below are listed so we can readily see these important biblical admonitions.
Matthew 24:36 and the parallel passage of Mark 13:32.
Matthew 24:42
Matthew 24:44
Matthew 25:13 and Mark 13:33-37 as a parallel passage
Acts 1:7
1Thessalonians 5:1-2
Absolutely read and study Bible prophecy but absolutely do not try to set dates. To do so is to try to second-guess God which is something we should never do and quite frankly will never be able to do.
I agree and we need to be ready any time. And God tells us that "I do nothing but reveal everything to my people" It is to the ungodly he will come like a thief. Not to us His people. We will know! And I think we will see Jesus in the clouds in our lifetime.
1- I don't attend church, but through listening to those who do attend I get to know what their churches teach. There are differences between their teachings. Some of these differences are big enough for one church to consider others as non-Christian, even inspired/lead by Satan.
2- I also study the Bible independently and have often found my understanding of the Bible to be in disagreement with several fundamental teachings of the churches.
3- Although the churches disagree on various issues there is at least one issue which they appear to be all agreed on - that Adam sinned in the garden of Eden. However, when I study that story in Genesis I just can't see how Adam could possibly have sinned at all.
4- I have discussed this with Christians and we agree that Adam did disobey a very clear instruction. We agree that Adam was aware at the time of his disobedience that the instruction came from God. We are agreed that Adam knew he was being tempted and that he was giving into temptation. My understanding, which disagrees with the teachings of the churches, is that until Adam ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and bad he obviously had no way of knowing good from evil. It is only AFTER he ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and bad that he knew that
a) giving in to temptation is bad, not good
b) disobeying instructions is bad, not good
c) walking around naked is bad, not good
That is why it was only after he ate from the tree he started covering up his nakedness which to him, before he ate from the tree, was neither good nor bad because he had not yet seen or got the concept of good and bad.
Genesis is really very clear about this. So how all churches have managed to agree on turning this one on its head is quite puzzling.
As Christians, we are supposed to reason on all of the scriptures.
(2 Timothy 3:16) All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness,
(1 Corinthians 2:14) But a physical man does not accept the things of the spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot get to know them, because they are examined spiritually.
(Isaiah 43:25-27) I, I am the One who is blotting out your transgressions for my own sake, And I will not remember your sins. 26 Remind me; let us bring our case against each other; Tell your side of it to prove you are in the right. 27 Your first forefather sinned, And your own spokesmen have rebelled against me.
(Genesis 2:15-17) Jehovah God took the man and settled him in the garden of Eʹden to cultivate it and to take care of it. 16 Jehovah God also gave this command to the man: “From every tree of the garden you may eat to satisfaction. 17 But as for the tree of the knowledge of good and bad, you must not eat from it, for in the day you eat from it you will certainly die.”
(Genesis 3:7) Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made loin coverings for themselves.
(Genesis 3:12) The man said: “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, so I ate.”
(Genesis 3:17) And to Adam he said: “Because you listened to your wife’s voice and ate from the tree concerning which I gave you this command, ‘You must not eat from it,’ cursed is the ground on your account. In pain you will eat its produce all the days of your life.
(John 9:40, 41) Those of the Pharisees who were with him heard these things, and they said to him: “We are not blind also, are we?” 41 Jesus said to them: “If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now you say, ‘We see.’ Your sin remains.”
(John 15:22) If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin. But now they have no excuse for their sin.
See if this helps.
http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200002643?q=%22+knowing+good+an...
After Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit (Ge 2:17; 3:5, 6), Jehovah said to his associate in creative work (Joh 1:1-3): “Here the man has become like one of us inknowing good and bad.” (Ge 3:22) This apparently did not mean merely having knowledge of what was good and what was bad for them, for the first man and woman had such knowledge by reason of God’s commands to them. Furthermore, God’s words at Genesis 3:22 could not pertain to their now knowing what was bad by experience, for Jehovah said that they had become like him and he has not learned what is bad by doing it. (Ps 92:14, 15) Evidently, Adam and Eve got to know what was good and what was bad in the special sense of now judging for themselves what was good and what was bad. They were idolatrously placing their judgment above God’s, disobediently becoming a law to themselves, as it were, instead of obeying Jehovah, who has both the right and the wisdom necessary to determine good and bad. So their independent knowledge, or standard, of good and bad was not like that of Jehovah. Rather, it was one that led them to misery.—Jer 10:23.
I see an explanation in the last paragraph of the post. It may work for others who have seen Genesis the way I do, that Adam could not possibly have sinned, but it does not work for me.
That explanation cannot change my understanding that Adam and Eve had no concept of good and bad before they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and bad. They were, up to that point, LIKE little babies.That's why they had been walking around totally naked without seeing it as bad. That's why they gave in to temptation as they were incapable of seeing it as bad. That's why they disobeyed a command they must have understood, as the concept of bad did not yet exist in their minds.
Mormons have your same view. Throw out the obvious and forget about reasoning on the scriptures.
"Mormons have your same view" really? They too believe that neither Genesis nor Jesus ever taught about the original sin? I didn't know that. I thought ALL Christians believed in the original sin.
God says that "ALL have sinned and come short of the Glory of God." We all will answer for every idle word, and deed one day" But "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believe in him shall not perish but have everlasting life."
John 3:16
Carazaa
1- I have no problem with "God says that "ALL have sinned and come short of the Glory of God."" but I thought you might have, because if the God who is saying "ALL have sinned and come short of the Glory of God." is the Father then "ALL" then it obviously includes Jesus.
2- In your quote of John 3:16
a) how, where, to who and what for did God give Jesus?
b) how did Jesus become God's "only begotten Son"
c) according to "whosoever believe in him shall not perish but have everlasting life." the Jews don't believe in him so they will "perish and not have everlasting life." However, since Muslims believe in him they shall not perish but have everlasting life.
I attended a catholic church in the area when I was going to church. I was only there a few times. I didn't agree with its teachings, but I wanted to give it a chance. I'm an atheist. I always have been.
Jesus although he was perfect (God), was found guilty due to him choosing to take all my sins and the worlds sins on his own account and so he was found guilty and sinful like all of us.
A Muslim, a Jew, or anyone will go to heaven if they repent and believe in Jesus as deity, God's son. but if they believe he was only a man and a profit, created by God, no.
1- To me "him choosing to take all my sins and the worlds sins on his own account" means
a) if he did that properly then you and the world are sinless and should not be here but in heaven
b) God lied in Ezekiel 18:20 when He promised that “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.”
2- I think "believe in Jesus as deity" is your rule. Jesus did not teach it neither did God command it anywhere. In fact if I followed your rule I'd be accusing Jesus of lying at John 17:3 when he made it very clear that the Father is "the ONLY true God" and at Acts 2:22 no less a person than Peter himself reminds people, saying, "Fellow Israelites, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth WAS a MAN approved OF GOD among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which GOD DID by him in the midst of you, as you yourselves know." Also it isn't just Muslims but even the people who were actually there with and around Jesus, and not just a few of them but "the multitude said, This is Jesus the PROPHET of Nazareth of Galilee". There is no record that Noah or Moses believed that Jesus was God or taught his followers to believe so.
