Results 81 - 100 of 494
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Results from: Notes Author: stjones Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
81 | If He came today would He turn away fro | OT general | stjones | 23936 | ||
Hi, Bob; Glad you found the informtation useful. I should add that when they are 14, kids in our church are given the opportunity to join after a pretty vigorous Communicants' Class. At that time, they make a public profession of faith. If they were not baptized previously (i.e. as infants), they are baptized at the same time. I would not be offended if either of my daughters chose to be baptized again. If they came to believe that the Presbyterian understanding of baptism was incorrect and their infant baptism "didn't count", I would hope they would do as you did. After all, God knows our hearts; I don't suppose he is offended at a sincere desire to discern and do his will. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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82 | Give the difference of evil and wickness | OT general | stjones | 26189 | ||
Thanks, Steve; I admire your discernment. ;-) ;-) I also appreciate yours, including those few I may disagree with. One of the things to like about this forum is the (usually) thoughtful and sincere posts. Ok, enough of the group hug. Peace and grace Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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83 | What is the right amount to tithe. | OT general | stjones | 54485 | ||
Hi, JF; That's certainly a valid thought, but it begs the question. The fact is I keep some of my paycheck; I suspect most Christians do. So I guess the question is, how much do I keep? Well, that's not entirely up to me since the government waltzes off with some of it before I even see it and I have no control over that. My answer is that I tithe the gross. It amuses me to think that I'm paying God's taxes for Him, but that's the way it works out. Say I gross 100 silver coins a day and the total tax bite is 30 pct - 30 silver coins. At the end of the day, I have 60 silver coins left. God got 10 of them off the top and I kept 90. But the government takes its slice of the whole 100 silver coins. So I pay 3 silver coins on God's share and 27 on my share. Of course, those 3 coins are deductible, so I may get some of them back in April. At least I don't have to worry about tithing the refund.... But God loves a cheerful giver, so I don't mind. :-) Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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84 | What is the right amount to tithe. | OT general | stjones | 54513 | ||
Amen, brother. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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85 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72330 | ||
Thanks, Ray; It always astounds me when Christians go along with the fiction that we all "worship the same God". Our God is the Father of our Savior; the god of Islam isn't. And you're right about the Holy Spirit and the Trinity. A falsehood about Christians sometimes spread by Muslims is that we are polytheistic, having three gods. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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86 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72403 | ||
Hi, Taleb; Thanks for the interesting reply. I admit I'm not a student of the Qur'an although I have read parts of it, especially what it has to say about Jesus. Your Lebanese friend's father must have been accomplished exegete to prove Jesus' claims from what the Qur'an says. You said "Sorry to say, the end result has not been what I had prayed". But as you know, you don't know what God will do with a seed once planted. So you keep up the good work too. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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87 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72426 | ||
Hi, Taleb; Thanks for the education - a fair exchange perhaps for a little encouragement. May God bless you as you continue to work in a very challenging vinyard. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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88 | end times | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 23761 | ||
Hi, Kalos; It's an old joke, but it applies to me: I'm not a premillenialist or a postmillenialist; I'm a panmillenialist - it'll all pan out in the end. Peace and grace, Steve |
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89 | end times | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 23776 | ||
Thanks, Kalos. You too. Peace and grace, Indiana Jones, formerly "Steve" (too many Steves around here) |
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90 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 27947 | ||
Hi, Nolan; With all due respect (and that's a fair amount!), I disagree. These passages make it clear that Judas committed a grievous sin. So have we all. Probably the most damaging passage is John 6:70, where Jesus calls Judas "a devil". The phrase "a devil" doesn't show up anywhere else in the NT, so it needs to be approached with some thought. The Greek word translated as "devil" is defined in Strong's as "prone to slander, ... false accuser, slanderer, ... applied to a man who, by opposing the cause of God, may be said to act the part of the devil or to side with him." Most of the time (34, to be exact), the word is preceded by the definite article "the" which makes it clear that it refers specifically to Satan. In four places, it is used indefinitely - this passage in John and 1 Tim 3:11, 2 Tim 3:3, and Titus 2:3 where it is translated as "false accuser" or "slanderer". Elsewhere in John's gospel (13:2), "the" devil (the one and only) is said to have "prompted" Judas (NIV) or "put it into his heart" (NAS) to betray Jesus. So the motive for betraying Jesus came from Satan, not from Judas himself. Judas, like all of us from time to time, was guilty of succumbing to Satan. And he was certainly a false accuser, so it possible that Jesus used the word in that sense. I don't think John 17:12 reveals Judas' fate; I think it describes his condition. The word "perished" (as in this passage) is also translated nearly as frequently in the NT as "lost". Given the context, Judas had clearly not yet "perished", so he must have been "lost". I think the other passages convey a similar message. But Jesus came to seek and save the lost and no one - not even Judas - is beyond his reach. The fact remains that Judas repented. Martyr said that if he had accepted Jesus, he wouldn't have hanged himself. But at that time, nobody knew what it meant to "accept Jesus". The thief on the cross didn't utter the "sinner's prayer"; Peter hadn't given his Pentecost sermon yet; there were no letters from Paul. Judas might well have called upon the name of the Lord and beed saved. (Rom 10:13) My point is not to prove that Judas is in Heaven; I don't know where he wound up. But if he truly repented - and returning the money and killing himself is pretty strong evidence - he might be in Heaven. Jesus' unconditional love and atoning sacrifice could cover even Judas, a truth for which I am eternally grateful. Peace and grace and a blessed and merry Christmas to you and yours Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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91 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 27997 | ||
Hi, Nolan; If I have you and Tim arrayed against me I know I've written something that requires further thought. But having thought about it a bit more, I'm inclined to defend my position. (That position, by the way, is NOT that "Judas went anywhere but hell". I said I didn't know where he wound up; I still don't know.) The various translations of Matthew 27:3 certainly do hold open the possibiliy that Judas truly repented. In these four, for example, the Greek word is translated as either "seized with/felt remorse" or "repented": [NIV] When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse ... [NASB] Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse ... [KJV] Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself ... [RSV] When Judas, his betrayer, saw that he was condemned, he repented ... Is this a word unrelated to true repentance? It is the same word that Jesus used in Matthew 21:28-32, translated first as "changed his mind" and second as "repent": [NIV] "What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, 'Son, go and work today in the vineyard.' 'I will not,' he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. "Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, 'I will, sir,' but he did not go. "Which of the two did what his father wanted?" "The first," they answered. Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him." The second use is clearly related to gaining entrance to the Kingdom of God. We don't know what was in Judas' heart and so don't know if he truly repented. English translations of Matthew's gospel may not prove that he did, but they certainly leave it as a real possibility. The other passages are inconclusive. Judas in either Heaven or hell could not be a part of the disciples' earthly ministry, so they replaced him. "His place" might have been the field where he died - that was probably the last they'd heard of him. "Better if he had not been born"? Yes, far better than to be the one who betrayed Jesus. Perhaps Judas in his remorse/repentance figured that out and did what little he could to correct the error of his birth. What the Bible does not say is that Judas went to hell. It says he committed a grevious sin and the consequences of his sin were terrible. It describes the earthly cost to him - remorse, suicide, and universal contempt. It does not say that the cost included eternal damnation. I am not willing to judge Judas' heart. And I am not willing to assume that the actions of a man clearly driven by remorse and self-loathing were improper and somehow prove that he did not really repent. What I am willing to do is express thanksgiving to a God who could - and perhaps did - forgive even Judas. Peace and grace Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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92 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 27999 | ||
Hi, Tim; Please see my (lengthy) response to Nolan. Peter's sin was vastly different from Judas' so I don't think they can be equated. I agree that Judas' actions after realizing what he had done seem wrong, but I don't see how he could have known what was right. He couldn't ask Jesus; he dared not go to the disciples, the religious leaders had betrayed him ("What do we care?") and until Jesus, everything he knew about God had come from them. As I said in the original post, I just don't know and I can't see that the Bible provides a definitive answer. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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93 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28007 | ||
Merry Christmas, Tim; At least one day we'll know one way or the other. It's certainly nothing important enough to come between friends. It's almost a hobby with me to imagine (without contradicting Scripture) a God who is bigger and more surprising than I thought. I figure no matter what I come up with, my brain is still way too small to contain him. It helps keep me from thinking that I have him figured out. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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94 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28044 | ||
Hi, Nolan; All excellent points. But I must continue in my ignorance - I simply do not know Judas' heart or God's final judgment on him. I appreciate the fact that you have relied on Scripture to support your conclusion. A lot of commentators have been cited in this thread, all claiming that Judas went to hell. I finally went to the commentaries and study Bible that I use to see what those writers thought. Not one of them addressed Judas' ultimate fate. I take this to mean that there are scholars who, like me, cannot find sufficient evidence in the Bible to declare with certainty what that fate was. I guess they are as ignorant as I am. ;-) Peach and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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95 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28094 | ||
Hi, Nolan; I'm sorry to have offended or upset you. I hope you can understand that I am unable to succumb to mere numbers and opinions and abandon what I understand the Bible to say or not say. As for your effort being "in vain", it was if your intent was to bludgeon me into submission - I do not share your certainty about Judas' fate. We obviously disagree; I had thought it could be respectfully. Despite all the impassioned assertions by you and others, the Bible does not explicitly say that Judas went to hell. It does not explicitly say that his repentence was of an inferior variety. It does not explicitly say that "his place" refers to hell. It does not explicitly say that "better to have never been born" is equivalent to damnation. These are all valid interpretations of what the Bible says, but they are not explicit statements. The interpretations offered by you and the others are plausible. I would have thought that by my uncertainty of Judas' current whereabouts I was acknowledging that. He may indeed be in hell. But other interpretations consistent with the rest of Scripture are possible too. Perhaps the certainty that Judas is in hell arises not from anything the Bible explcitly says but from a fervent desire to see him there. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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96 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28184 | ||
Hi, Hank; Yes and no. The answer is not important. Seeking the answer is. Such questions challenge me do two things that I don't usually do - dig deep into a single verse or two and think out of the box (mine, not the Bible's) about God. Just another example of the journey being more important than the destination. Happy New Year to you too. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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97 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28189 | ||
Hi, Nolan; Bad choice of words, "bludgeon". So I'll apologize - hopefully the last apology in this thread. Iron sharpens iron. As I told Hank in another reply, you and Tim and kalos challenged me to do two things I don't do as often as I should - (1) dig deeply into a verse or two and (2) think out of the box (mine, not the Bible's) about God. We disagree on the answer but sometimes seeking the answer is its own reward. So I hope you agree that our tussle had value. I just checked myself over - a few bruises, no blood, no permanent damage. I hope it's the same with you. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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98 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28209 | ||
Hi, Nolan; Agreed. 100 percent. No apologies. Amen! Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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99 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28327 | ||
Hi, serenetime; Scroll up about 20 messages or so in this thread to the one entitled "Greetings martyr! The Bible says that... " posted by my good friend Nolan Keck Sun 12/23/01, 12:06am. If you read down through that thread, you will find a most ... um ... lively exchange about this passage and what it means or doesn't mean. Enjoy. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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100 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 28589 | ||
Hi, Radioman; There are people who grow up believing that the Bible says God helps those who help themselves. ;-) Don't you suppose that if God wanted us to know Judas' fate he would have revealed it in unequivocal language? Instead the Bible says (1) it was Satan acting in Judas and (2) Judas repented (or felt remorse, depending on the translation). This is the message of the plain text. There is no passage anywhere in the Bible that says with similar clarity "Judas was condemned" or "Judas didn't really repent" or "Judas went to hell". I appeal to everyone weighing in on this question to consider Augustine's admonition "In Essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. In all things, love." If knowledge of Judas' fate were essential in God's eyes, I am confident that he would have come right out and said it through one of the NT writers. There is room for sincere Christians who study and believe the Bible to disagree on this. There is no point in choosing up sides and beating each other up or insulting one another over this. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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