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hot_foot_stephWhy does everyone proclaim the Gospel to be so easy to accept...when there's so many confusions?
Jesus said to believe. Now we're saying that there's a DIFFERENCE between intellectual belief and HEART belief. What about those who don't KNOW there's supposed to be a difference? What about those "new Christians" who just go, "I believe this happened. I believe Jesus is the Son of God." Are they really saved, then? If we have to WORK OUT our salvation, and this comes with TIME, are these Christians saved (at the beginning) if they JUST believe Jesus is the Son of God and don't necessarily "feel Him in their heart" or know HOW to "believe in" (as in trust) Him or don't know HOW to do a "personal relationship." Where does it say in the Bible we have to have a personal relationship with Jesus? Jesus never said that. He said "Whoever believes in Me shall have everlasting life." I just...it seems so confusing. And there's so many verses that seem like you have to adhere to them to be saved. Like "If you don't forgive others, your heavenly father won't forgive you." and "if you are ashamed of Me, I will be ashamed of you." These verses seem to put the ticket to salvation on them AS WELL. So what if I don't forgive somebody? What if I'm too nervous to share God with somebody? Can I not be saved? Now, don't get me wrong, I believe one CAN be...but I'm not sure, all of the time, WHY I believe that...and a lot of times I think "oh man! I'm glad I read this verse c'ause this is essential to salvation!" But it's NOT, I mean, logically, it CAN'T be...'cause if you're just supposed to believe to be saved, (and that's all we teach people...what about those who don't study the Bible?) it can't be a ticket to salvation. Otherwise, the answer should be "Whoever reads the Bible and PICKS UP ON all the essential qualities FOR salvation can be saved." But that takes time, right? Can't you just be saved when you want it? Yes, I believe so...but I don't always understand these verses, I guess.
And what about this: 1 John 5:6: "This is the one who came by water and blood - Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is truth." The note, in the NIV, says this: "Water symbolizes Jesus' baptism, and blood symbolizes his death These are mentioned because Jesus' ministry began at his baptism and ended at his death. John is reacting to the heretics of his day who said that Jesus was born only a man and remained so until his baptism. At that time, they maintained, the christ descended on the human Jesus, bu tleft him before his suffering on the cross - so that it was only the man Jesus died. Throughought this letter John has been insisiting thtat Jesus Christ is God as well as man. He now asserts that it was this God-man Jesus Christ who came into our world, was baptized, and died. Jesus was the Son of God not only at his baptism but also at his death. This truth is extremely important, because, if Jesus died only as a man, his sacrificial atonement would not have been sufficient to take away the guilt of man's sin. etc."
I don't get this. Some CHRISTIANS belieev that Jesus was all-human while dying on the cross, 'cause if He was God, too, He would've had an advantage, right? He would have been "special." But some Christians think he was all human during that time...and I mean, I believe he was wholly human, and wholly God...and that they did not necessarily interfere with one another to make him specially capable of doing something super-human. How is that possible? I don't know; but I believe it. And yet, some people don't share that interpretation, and according to this, they're heretics! How is that possible? How can one be a heretic when their intention is not to go against the Bible and claim an untruth (in ignorance of thinking it's a truth) about Jesus? This is what I'm talking about. If it's an "important truth" whether Jesus was BORN God or BECAME God after being baptized....well, some people can't be saved if they don't believe this, right? These "new CHristians" who don't know a whole lot, what if they get this wrong? And yet, they still believe Jesus is God and died for their sins. Gah. I'm probably taking this out of context. I don't believe you CAN'T be saved if you don't believe that Jesus was BORN God or that God LEFT him before he died (which, it DOES say that God turned his back on him...so that interpretation should be valid!!!) , but I don't see why they're called heretics if they do... *sigh* Ugh.
Anyone care to offer their input?
(And yes...I realize it was just a text note, and that one can disagree with those...but still.) And yes, if the Bible says that Jesus was God ALL his life as well as human (which I believe that verse says), then I can see how one would be wrong by NOT believing it, but if they only don't believe that 'cause they've never READ THE VERSE, then how are they heretics if they believe Jesus is God's son, rose, and through him there's eternal life? And even if they HAD read the verse and still disagreed, that doesn't mean they're heretics.
Jesus said to believe. Now we're saying that there's a DIFFERENCE between intellectual belief and HEART belief. What about those who don't KNOW there's supposed to be a difference? What about those "new Christians" who just go, "I believe this happened. I believe Jesus is the Son of God." Are they really saved, then? If we have to WORK OUT our salvation, and this comes with TIME, are these Christians saved (at the beginning) if they JUST believe Jesus is the Son of God and don't necessarily "feel Him in their heart" or know HOW to "believe in" (as in trust) Him or don't know HOW to do a "personal relationship." Where does it say in the Bible we have to have a personal relationship with Jesus? Jesus never said that. He said "Whoever believes in Me shall have everlasting life." I just...it seems so confusing. And there's so many verses that seem like you have to adhere to them to be saved. Like "If you don't forgive others, your heavenly father won't forgive you." and "if you are ashamed of Me, I will be ashamed of you." These verses seem to put the ticket to salvation on them AS WELL. So what if I don't forgive somebody? What if I'm too nervous to share God with somebody? Can I not be saved? Now, don't get me wrong, I believe one CAN be...but I'm not sure, all of the time, WHY I believe that...and a lot of times I think "oh man! I'm glad I read this verse c'ause this is essential to salvation!" But it's NOT, I mean, logically, it CAN'T be...'cause if you're just supposed to believe to be saved, (and that's all we teach people...what about those who don't study the Bible?) it can't be a ticket to salvation. Otherwise, the answer should be "Whoever reads the Bible and PICKS UP ON all the essential qualities FOR salvation can be saved." But that takes time, right? Can't you just be saved when you want it? Yes, I believe so...but I don't always understand these verses, I guess.
And what about this: 1 John 5:6: "This is the one who came by water and blood - Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is truth." The note, in the NIV, says this: "Water symbolizes Jesus' baptism, and blood symbolizes his death These are mentioned because Jesus' ministry began at his baptism and ended at his death. John is reacting to the heretics of his day who said that Jesus was born only a man and remained so until his baptism. At that time, they maintained, the christ descended on the human Jesus, bu tleft him before his suffering on the cross - so that it was only the man Jesus died. Throughought this letter John has been insisiting thtat Jesus Christ is God as well as man. He now asserts that it was this God-man Jesus Christ who came into our world, was baptized, and died. Jesus was the Son of God not only at his baptism but also at his death. This truth is extremely important, because, if Jesus died only as a man, his sacrificial atonement would not have been sufficient to take away the guilt of man's sin. etc."
I don't get this. Some CHRISTIANS belieev that Jesus was all-human while dying on the cross, 'cause if He was God, too, He would've had an advantage, right? He would have been "special." But some Christians think he was all human during that time...and I mean, I believe he was wholly human, and wholly God...and that they did not necessarily interfere with one another to make him specially capable of doing something super-human. How is that possible? I don't know; but I believe it. And yet, some people don't share that interpretation, and according to this, they're heretics! How is that possible? How can one be a heretic when their intention is not to go against the Bible and claim an untruth (in ignorance of thinking it's a truth) about Jesus? This is what I'm talking about. If it's an "important truth" whether Jesus was BORN God or BECAME God after being baptized....well, some people can't be saved if they don't believe this, right? These "new CHristians" who don't know a whole lot, what if they get this wrong? And yet, they still believe Jesus is God and died for their sins. Gah. I'm probably taking this out of context. I don't believe you CAN'T be saved if you don't believe that Jesus was BORN God or that God LEFT him before he died (which, it DOES say that God turned his back on him...so that interpretation should be valid!!!) , but I don't see why they're called heretics if they do... *sigh* Ugh.
Anyone care to offer their input?
(And yes...I realize it was just a text note, and that one can disagree with those...but still.) And yes, if the Bible says that Jesus was God ALL his life as well as human (which I believe that verse says), then I can see how one would be wrong by NOT believing it, but if they only don't believe that 'cause they've never READ THE VERSE, then how are they heretics if they believe Jesus is God's son, rose, and through him there's eternal life? And even if they HAD read the verse and still disagreed, that doesn't mean they're heretics.
