Results 41 - 60 of 562
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Results from: Notes Author: Rowdy Ordered by Date |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
41 | Can unbelievers pray to God? | Prov 28:9 | Rowdy | 133210 | ||
I would have to say in Cain's situation, he did emphatically believe in God. How could anyone deny such a thing? He held personal, one-on-one conversations with him. And apparently, it looks like Cain had learned his lesson and had decided to change his ways. He may have led a Godly life after receiving his sentence. None of us can possibly know. When a sinner "reaches the bottom" of his addiction to sin, then he has two choices continue his dreary path to Hell or look up to God, repent and pray to God and ask for mercy. I'd like to think God hears such a prayer. BUT God "is not mocked." If he knows in our heart(s) that we really have no intention of changing our sinful ways, the scriptures clearly depict the fact that he won't listen. Once again, this kind of attitude shows a lack of belief. Remember even "the devil believes in God and trembles." Hope this helps. God bless. Rowdy |
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42 | "You did not choose Me" | John 15:16 | Rowdy | 133190 | ||
In contrast, I would offer the following: John 8:31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; John 8:32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." John 8:33 They answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, 'You will become free'?" John 8:34 Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. John 8:35 "The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. John 8:36 "So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. and Acts 13:38 "Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, Acts 13:39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses. There's a lot more scripture on this subject so I encourage you to get the WHOLE picture from God, with special emphasis on the NT. God bless. Rowdy |
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43 | Are miracles for today? | 1 Cor 13:8 | Rowdy | 133189 | ||
Thanks, I appreciate your note of support. I just read your profile and can identify with the difficulties of the church there in California. Just about 4 years ago, my wife and I lived in Reno, NV (yeah Sin City), and were glad to move back to the South, a little closer to home. Now I'm a deacon for the second time in my life and both my wife and I are very much active in our congregation. We both have our ministeries and really enjoy the close fellowship in the congregation. Things are also much better in our marriage. God bless you, dear friend. Rowdy |
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44 | Why did the Savior Dread the Cup? | Matt 26:38 | Rowdy | 133170 | ||
Acknowledging all of your post as being good. When I think about this question, I like to emphasize that this was (as far as we know) Jesus' very first time to be separated from His Father. So it's quite possible (just maybe) He didn't know what to expect upon taking on ALL the sins of the whole world and meeting Satan on his turf. We see in the Bible that Jesus was incredibly close to His Father and talked to Him often and with great intimacy. So I'm thinking he was far more desirous of getting out of this dying business because of this separation from God than his concern about the pain and torture of the cross. I can't think of a scripture to support this conclusion so I'll just label this as my opinion. God bless. Rowdy |
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45 | Are miracles for today? | 1 Cor 13:8 | Rowdy | 133168 | ||
Just trying to help with a post from my past. Apparently you and the others of your faith are getting a lot of heat because of your background. I thought I'd try to help you and some others get to the actual root cause of all the controversy. You see, here at the Study Bible Forum, ALL of us believe in ALL of the Bible and the Bible's most emphatic point to us modern earth dwellers in this century is that Jesus Christ is the Living God in charge of this world. He came to this planet of sinful man for the express purpose of saving the souls of ALL mankind, past, present and future with His Perfect sacrifice of His own sinless body and life. IF a person come to the SBF to discuss and exchange views and ideas about all the above, it MUST be done WITH the acknowledgement of that previous statement being ABSOLUTE TRUTH. If we can't get that acknowledgement up front in advance from such a person, everything else is valueless and not really worthy of discussion by anyone, at least to those on the Forum. Now, I myself had absolutely nothing to do with drafting up the rules to the Forum but I try to abide by them. I know Hank and some of the others don't like it when I fail to cite book, chapter and verse when I make a statement but that's because I've cited it before in a previous post. Anyway, we ALL from an early age in life learn that we must play by the rules when we join an organization. Now your decision is really quite simple: either acknowledge the ABSOLUTE TRUTH of the statements above or refrain from posting statements of your own to the Forum. That of course DOES NOT mean that you can't read and enjoy the posts you see on the Forum. Also some of the folks on the Forum cite their own E-Mail address so you could attempt to communicate directly with them in that manner. Now the basic reason for this rigid requirement is simply to keep the Forum in some semblance of order and you know we're commanded to do that, 1 Cor 14:40. Without giving Christ His due according to His Last Will and Testament, we ALL do Him a serious dishonor and we would have to pay dearly for such an infraction at Judgment Day. There's one more subject of interest: Cults. There's been several questions back and forth about this and of course the word means different things to different people. But the one basic thing that it means to Forum participants is that a person who refuses to acknowledge the truth of Jesus as cited above would be considered to be a member of a cult. Now I realize that probably doesn't please you but I'm afriad that's a fact that's well reconized throughout the vast majority of Christendom. I do sincerely hope this clarifies the whole matter for you and the other participants of your faith. I really wish no ill toward you or anyone else. I'm afraid that's just the way things are done here at the Forum. I also pray God will bless you as you study Him AND His Son in His Word. Maintain an open mind AND an open heart to His Will. Pray often about this subject. -- God bless. Rowdy |
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46 | Is the rapture biblically supported? | 1 Thess 4:17 | Rowdy | 132567 | ||
As I alluded to in my previous post, on this very important subject, I'm certain that God would be very clear about something so incredibly vital and important to the whole world. In my mind, all the actual scriptures from God's Word you've cited are referring to the end of the world and Judgment Day immediately following thereafter. Again, I emphasize I see nothing from God's Word which paints a clear picture of anything or any phase of events between this world and the ultimate Judgment Day as clearly depicted by Jesus with the parting of sheep and goats, the straight and narrow way versus the broad way to Hell. Please enlighten me with actual scriptures from the Bible depicting this rapture or the 1000 year reign of God with beings from this earth over other beings from this earth. God bless. Rowdy |
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47 | Titus 3:5 and washing of regeneration | Titus 3:5 | Rowdy | 132566 | ||
In my opinion, the reason for the splintering of the Lord's church is much like that of "opening of Pandor's box." Once the apostacy happened, which was inevitable as predicted by the Apostles throughout the NT, it was virtually impossible to get the church back to Her Original and Perfect condition as installed by the Holy Spirit in Acts 1-2. This basic "method of operation" for mankind was started long ago starting in the Garden of Eden, after the flood, substituting kings instead of God installed judges on through to Jesus time. The Isrealites rejected the prophets throughout the OT...it's simply not within mankind on the whole to prefer God's guidance on this earth. We see this principle further endorsed by Jesus with words about Judgment in Matt 7:13 "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 "For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. We humans are finite; we're physical whereas our God infinite and spiritual. His thoughts and ways are so far above our thoughts and ways, so in our present condition, there's no way the bulk of mankind would ever qualify to be in the presence of God. This alien relationship also applies to the church or anything else started by God. All Creations by God always start off perfectly...it's left up to mankind on earth to mess them up. If this begins to sound like I'm down or slamming human-kind too much, that's because we tend to think too much of ourselves; just look at this growing trend of humanism. But "with God, we can do all things." That's the most important conclusion to draw from all this. I hope this helps and God bless. Rowdy |
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48 | What is your opinion on this? | 1 Cor 7:19 | Rowdy | 132271 | ||
Amen, and preach on, dear friend!! Thanks for the additional support and scripture. God bless you and all those who actually hear AND obey His Words. Rowdy |
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49 | Denounce militant Islam? | Matt 5:44 | Rowdy | 132214 | ||
Hank, my dear friend, it does sometimes seem that you're trying to pick a fight. I don't think I would have made such a statement as Alien's which you quoted but I don't really see any cause for the statement you've made. In the words of Voltaire from centuries ago, "I may disagree with you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." As long as a statement isn't in defiance of scripture or a slam against the Godhead, we really should try to be open-minded to a person's position and level of maturity in Christ, especially we can't possibly know each other very well over the internet/Forum. Regardless as to how you take this statement from me, I wish God's blessings on you and your. Rowdy |
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50 | An Admission of an Atheist | Ps 53:1 | Rowdy | 132178 | ||
Both of these quotes are quite thought provoking. Thanks for sharing. God bless. Rowdy | ||||||
51 | An Admission of an Atheist | Ps 53:1 | Rowdy | 132145 | ||
I guess almost everybody has heard the joke about the man who waits to be saved after he gets stuck on his porch when a flood invades his yard. He turns down neighbors driving by and offering him a means of escape. He claims God will rescue him. Finally he goes to the rooftop where he declines both a boat and a helicopter saying the same thing. Then he dies and asks God why did he not rescue him. God's famous reply: "I sent your neighbors in a car and then a boat and a helicoptor. Why did you turn them away?" Just because an atheist turns a blind eye to all the wonderful evidence in the world proving the existance of God, that doesn't mean that the evidence disappears or negate the fact that God is alive and well. God bless. Rowdy |
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52 | Is the rapture biblically supported? | 1 Thess 4:17 | Rowdy | 132142 | ||
Pardon me for interjecting but permit me to submit a question. I acknowlege readily enough the verses above are certainly referring to the hereafter. But why and how do you conclude that this and all other related verses from the Bible are NOT referring to the first few seconds/minutes of the beginning of Judgment Day? Please explain. God bless. Rowdy |
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53 | is it wrong to wear fine clothing | 1 Tim 2:9 | Rowdy | 132046 | ||
"Land of Goshen" Did you wake up on the wrong side of the Forum, maybe in another universe? It seems you have gone off on the half of the world that doesn't agree with your jaundiced opinion. I would like to encourage to take maybe another minute of your precious time and study all of my posts and you'll see I don't make hasty judgments and I certainly don't take them lightly. In my post to EdB, I was giving praise where praise was due. I do agree with you, christian ladies displaying their bodies in such a matter so as to entice men to think lewd thoughts is certainly NOT what God prefers and I think EdB acknowledged as much in his post. However, apparently this lifestyle can be addicitive like drugs. So, I'm satisfied with the maturity that EdB has shown that he knows what he's doing with the souls of these young ladies. He understands the weight of such a burden and I'm certain he's in constant prayer about it all the time. My big question to you is What are you doing to eliminate this kind of sinful activity where you live? With an attitude in need of an adjustment like it is, I would suggest your moving to a big huge city where you can apply your skills and knowledge of God's Word and there I'm sure you'll be promptly humbled by God. I do hope this has been enlightening to you. Regardless, God bless. Do continue studying and praying on this matter and above all, pray for humility. When you post such a statement, please do the recipient a favor and be clear about what you're criticizing in their post. Please don't waste our time. Thanks and again, God bless. Rowdy |
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54 | Love/Feed/Tend His Sheep | Mark 6:34 | Rowdy | 131500 | ||
As I tried to explain in my Post no 131453, it appears that God recognizes in the best of mankind, we usually muster up enough love between family members and maybe even a few select friends as shown in: Luke 6:27 "But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. 29To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. 30Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. 31And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise. 32"But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. 35But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. 36Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful. The real difference as portrayed above is when we as God's children learn to truly love the most common sinner amongst us, even when he's NOT our friend. We should always love the sinner but hate his sin. Yes, I agree, that's tough to do. That's what makes us human and separates us from God, and separates His Thoughts, His Ways from our thoughts and ways. Surely you've experienced this kind of worldly love in your lifetime. We humans (especially Americans) think so casually about love. I've said it before and will repeat myself: We'll turn to the most treasured being to us (our spouse) on this planet and tell her we'll love her forever and minutes later exclaim with delight we love our favorite food when it's put down in front of us. We humans are so fickle. We love that same person one minute and an hour later fight like cats and dogs over a stupid TV show and whose turn it is to watch their favorite show after promising we'll strive to spend quality time together. No, my friend only God can show us what real, genuine true Agape type love really is. He did it with the sending of His Son for all of us, even the most vile sinner that's ever lived. Would you have done such a thing with your most prized and beloved son or some other family member? Would you have given up that sweet innocent child for some scumbag who doesn't really deserve to be spat upon in the world's judgment? No, I doubt if I would have done such a thing either. That, my friend is what distinguishes between these two kinds of love. You ask "Why? How can this be possible?" I don't really know. All I know is I read it in my Bible and it's endorsed so many, many times by God's Words AND His Actions. Yes, His Actions speak louder than His Words as do ours. Which level of love will we strive for? I'm going to do my best to obey my God and strive for His. Sure, I'll fail and will continue to fail but I'll get back up and continue to try because He told me to. Do continue studying and praying on this, my friend. God bless. Rowdy |
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55 | Love/Feed/Tend His Sheep | Mark 6:34 | Rowdy | 131491 | ||
Greek Words for Love, Part 3 (and to think, I trimmed it down greatly): So the point our Lord is making is that the value of an emotional, affectionate 'philos' love is based on how connected it is to true godly 'agape', sacrificial, love, which in the case of Peter, relates to Peter's feeding, i.e., teaching and taking care of our Lord's sheep, i.e., believers; especially since they belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. One can have 'philOs', affectionate love for someone but not have agape sacrificial, responsible, active, helpful, kind and truthful 'agape', godly love. It, (the 'philOs' love), then would have very limited worth or value, being unconnected to godly love. Some contrasts between agape and philia are as follows: Philia - Agape Natural - Learned Emotional - Volitional Discriminatory - Non-discriminatory Conditional - Unconditional Pleasure - Preciousness Delight - Esteem Liking - Prizing Because of - In spite of Fails - Never fails Looking forward to your response. God bless. Rowdy |
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56 | Love/Feed/Tend His Sheep | Mark 6:34 | Rowdy | 131490 | ||
Greek Words for Love, Part 2: In respect of agapaO as used of God, it expresses the deep and constant love and interest of a perfect Being towards entirely unworthy objects, producing and fostering a reverential love in them towards the Giver, and a practical love towards those who are partakers of the same, and a desire to help others to seek the Giver. [Kenneth Wuest states, (Wuest's Word Studies, From the Greek New Testament, Vol 3, Eerdmans Publishing Co, Grand Rapids, Mi, 1992, no 28, p. 62]: "'Phileo' is a love which consists of the glow of the heart kindled by the perception of that in the object which affords us pleasure. It is the response of the human [soul] to what appeals to it as pleasurable... The word was used to speak of a friendly affection. It is a love called out of one in response to a feeling of pleasure or delight which one experiences from an apprehension of qualities in another that furnish such pleasure or delight. 'Agapao' on the other hand, speaks of a love which is awakened by a sense of value in the object loved, an apprehension of its preciousness. [Cp. Rev 22:15; Mt 6:5; 10:37; 23:6; Lk 20:46; Jn 11:3, 36; 16:27; 1 Cor 16:22] B) PASSAGES TO CONSIDER 1) AGAPE-SACRIFICIAL-SERVING-OF-OTHERS-LOVE VS PHILEO-AFFECTIONATE-LOVE a) [Jn 21:15-17]: (v. 15) "When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon son of John, do you truly love ["agapas"] Me more than these [disciples]? 'Yes, Lord,' he said, 'you know that I love ["philO] you.' Jesus said, 'Feed My lambs.' (v. 16) Again Jesus said, 'Simon son of John, do you truly love ["agapas"] me?' He answered, 'Yes, Lord, you know that I ["philO"] you.' Jesus said, 'Take care of My sheep.' (v. 17) The third time He said to him, 'Simon son of John, do you love ["phileis"] Me?' Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time 'Do you love ["phileis"] Me?' He said, 'Lord, you know all things; you know that I love ["philO] you.' Jesus said, 'Feed My sheep.' " Notice that Peter uses the verb form "philO" that is rendered 'love' in answer to the Lord Jesus Christ Who uses another verb, "agapas" for the first two times He asked Peter His question, 'Do you love Me?' There is an obvious emphasis on the issue of whether or not Peter loves the Lord with "agapas" love with His two repetitions of this word, especially after Peter answered in the affirmative albeit with "philO": "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love [philO] you." The difference between the two verbs can hardly be a simple choice of possible synonymous words for literary style purposes, especially with our Lord's repetition and Peter's use of another word for love, "philO". The intent of writer John which is readily observable is to report the words of our Lord and Peter and not do any editorializing for the sake of style or change of meaning. In the light of Peter's earlier three time denial of our Lord where he said he did not even know Him, (18:17, 25, 27); our Lord's three fold question paralleling Peter's threefold denial gave Peter an opportunity to restore his committment of agape and phileo love and of being a faithful disciple. Notice that Peter was hurt when our Lord asked him the question for the third time, (v. 17), which points to a difference in meaning between the two words, agapas and philO Peter's use of "philO" love instead of "agapas" love is striking and points to a difference of meaning. It is normative to respond to a question using the same verb if the same meaning is intended. And the converse is also true: It is basic to normative rules of language, context and logic that a response to a yes or no question that (1) goes beyond yes or no (2) changes the wording of the question (from agape to phileO forms) (3) leaves parts of the question out/unanswered ('more than these' ignored) usually implies an evasion of the question, i.e., a change of meaning. Just as a husband's response to his wife's question, 'Do you love me more than your job?' (Husband): 'You know that I have great affection for you' points to an evasion on all 3 counts; so Peter's response to our Lord's questions indicates an evasion of the intent of the question with a response that has changed the parameters of the question from (1) a single absolute yes or no (2) agape to phileO love (3) love Me 'more than these' to not addressing 'more than these' at all. Notice that our Lord's third question of 'Do you love me?' uses the verb "phileis". This parallels Peter's use of "phileo" love twice before in response to our Lord instead of "agapas". If the integrity of author John's account of this conversation is to have any validty, surely the verbs used here are an accurate rendering of that conversation which implies (my correction) a difference of meaning. Please read Part 3. Thanks and God bless. Rowdy |
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57 | Love/Feed/Tend His Sheep | Mark 6:34 | Rowdy | 131489 | ||
Greek Words for Love, Part 1: I must admit, I didn't dream there was so much information on the internet about this subject, www.biblestudymanuals.net/love.htm. If you'll check out this website, you'll see I had to leave a great deal of information to squeeze on this exerpt. Please forgive. The bottom line is that although I do agree with you there is some small controversy on this subject as you mentioned. But a thorough study as has been cited on this website leads any serious Bible student to one single conclusion and that is there's a very real and distinct different type of love reflected in these two words. Everything about our God is far superior to anything you and I could ever think about man. Nothing we can do or say can even come close. So I must disagree with you, dear friend. I do hope you'll re-study the topic and pray about it. LOVE: A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE I) AGAPE LOVE A) INTRODUCTION [The New Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the NT, Joseph Henry Thayer, Hendrickson, Peabosy, Ma, 1981, p. 3]: "agapaO ..... to love, to be full of good-will and exhibit the same... to have a preference for, wish well to, regard the welfare of ... often of the love of Christians towards one another; of the benevolence which God in providing salvation for men, has exhibited by sending His Son to them and giving Him up to death... of the love which led Christ, in procuring human salvation to undergo sufferings and death... of the love with which God regards Christ..." [Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, W. E. Vine, Fleming H. Revell, Old Tappan, N. J., p. 20]: "Agape and agapaO are used in the N.T. (a) to describe the attitude of God toward His Son, John 17:26; the human race, generally, John 3:16; Rom 5:8; and to such as believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, particularly, John 14:21; (b) to convey His will to His children concerning their attitude one toward another, John 13:34, and toward all me, 1 Thess 3:12; 1 Cor 16:14; 2 Pet 1:7 (c) to express the essential nature of God, 1 John 4:8. Love can be known only from the actions it prompts. God's love is seen in the gift of His Son, 1 John 4:9, 10. But obviously this is not the love of complacency, or affection, that is, it was not drawn out by any excellency in its objects, Rom 5:8. It was an exercise of the Divine will in deliberate choice, made without assignable cause save that which lies in the nature of God Himself, cp. Deut 7:7, 8. Love had its perfect expression among men in the Lord Jesus Christ, 2 Cor 5:14; Eph 2:4; 3:19; 5:2; Christian love is the fruit of His Spirit in the Christian, Gal 5:22. Christian love has God for its primary object, and expresses itself first of all in implicit obedience to His commandments, John 14:15, 21, 23; 15:10; 1 John 2:5; 5:3; 2 John 6. Self-will, that is, self-pleasing, is the negation of love to God. Christian love, whether exercised toward the brethren, or toward men generally, is not an impluse from the feelings, it does not always run with the natural inclinations, nor does it spend itself only upon those for whom some affinity is discovered. Love seeks the welfare of all, Rom 15:2, and works no ill to any, 13:8-10; love seeks opportunity to do good to all men, and especially toward them that are of the household of the faith, Gal 6:10. Please read Part 2. Thanks and God bless. Rowdy |
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58 | Sound Doctrine Rooted in the Scriptures | Matt 24:24 | Rowdy | 131466 | ||
Truer words have never been posted. Amen, dear friend. God bless. Rowdy | ||||||
59 | Love/Feed/Tend His Sheep | Mark 6:34 | Rowdy | 131453 | ||
I've heard the same is true about the Greek words in these three different questions and Peter's three different responses. To me, it seems pretty clear when one uses the Greek dictionary to clarify these two words. Correct me if I'm wrong. But as I understand it, agapao means "to give love without conditions, i.e. as God does" whereas phileo means "simple family love," i.e. between brothers or sisters. Again IMO, it seems that Jesus realized that Peter and His other disciples were NOT at that particular moment in time, quite ready to love their fellow man like God does. But Christ was willing to accept Peter's resolution to love his fellow man as a brother or a sister. Later on, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit in spiritually maturing Peter, we finally see that Peter does grow to love his fellow man with God's type of love without conditions. He even goes to the cross (according to tradition) believing in the Words of his Lord and Master. What a contrast: this willingness to die compared with his cowardly fear (like the rest of us) in the garden. We also see this kind of love in Peter's letters as we do throughout the NT. So once again, God realizes it's a refining process. First, He gets us off the addiction for sin and turned on to the prospect of spending eternity with Him in Heaven and spending time with our fellow christians here on earth. Then He assists us with the help of the Holy Spirit in graduating us from the kind of love offered by the world, i.e. eros to phileo and eventually gets us to at least appreciate His type of love, given freely to our fellow man without conditions. Hopefully, we as His children actually learn to prefer this kind of love as Christ showed on the cross. Then at that time, we can truly feel forgiveness for our sins because we've learn to completely forgive our fellow man as discussed in Jesus' parable of the debtors. Again, correct me if I'm mistaken on any of this but I'd be interested in your full opinion anyway. I really appreciate your quick response. I hope the storm didn't mess up too much of your life. God bless. Rowdy |
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60 | What about christian as a name? | Acts 11:26 | Rowdy | 131430 | ||
I'm sorry, I forgot to sign off with my name but I posted this article to the Forum. That's what you get when you in a rush. Mr. Graham actually authored the article in a christian publication. God bless. Rowdy |
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