Shear the christian message of non jesus material. Is there an element of fear coming from the mouth of jesus in the gospels? Yes, there is, mt25. Ok, i give up.
S
Is there a Christian message without the element of fear/perceived threat?
by nvrgnbk 133 Replies latest jw friends
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Satanus
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BurnTheShips
Shear the christian message of non jesus material. Is there an element of fear coming from the mouth of jesus in the gospels?
Yes. Here are a few texts I dug up real quick:
Matthew 5:22
But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.Matthew 5:29
If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.Matthew 7:13
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
Matthew 7:21-23
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'Matthew 10:28
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
BTS
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myelaine
dear AGuest...
"Actually, the TRUE christian message is completely without the element of fear/perceived threat. That is why it is called the GOOD news. It is a message of love... and life. Those that teach anything else... are false... and originate with the Wicked One. All of them."
yes, the Good News is a message of love and life however you can't deny that there is bad news for those that don't accept Jesus as their savior...Jesus said, "if you deny Me before your friends then I will deny you before my Father"... He also overcame DEATH which means that there is no more death of the spirit...so the bad news is that your spirit lives on away from the presence of God...and all His people...
you can't not have bad news to compare with the Good News or its NO news...
love michelle
p.s. Isn't it the focus of the "wicked one" to lead people to believe that there are no consequences if you deny Jesus?
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myelaine
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the Living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of a new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. Hebrews 12:22-24
love michelle
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myelaine
"you can't not have bad news to compare with the Good News or its NO news..."...
I'm sorry that I said that the Good News would be NO news if there were no bad news. I used a poor choice of words...what I meant when I said NO news is more of a generic kind of news in that a lot of people think that after you die physically you pass on to a "better place" regardless. once again, I'm sorry, I realize that my choice of words made light of Jesus' sacrifice and that is not what I intended in my response to AGuest.
love michelle
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FlyingHighNow
Shear the christian message of non jesus material. Is there an element of fear coming from the mouth of jesus in the gospels? Yes, there is, mt25. Ok, i give up.
That is, if you can believe Jesus said these things. I don't think he did. People do love to control each other. And what stronger thing can use to control that fear? Jesus want's people to learn to their own self control. To control oneself out of fear is not true self control.
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AGuest
May you have peace!
yes, the Good News is a message of love and life however you can't deny that there is bad news for those that don't accept Jesus as their savior...
Yes, but that is not the christian's message, is it? The question was "Is there a christian message..." The christian message is one of love... and life. Anyone preaching/teaching to the contrary is not preaching the GOOD news of the kingdom, which is what the christian message is.
Isn't it the focus of the "wicked one" to lead people to believe that there are no consequences if you deny Jesus?
The consequences are not a result of denying Christ - the consequence... death... is the result of sin. And, because all have sinned... the result is death... to all.
Such death, however, was not just with reference to the fleshly body... but also included the SPIRIT, the person INSIDE the fleshly body... inside the "cup" (vessel) that is our fleshly bodies. Thus, "cleanse the inside of the cup/vessel." To help a faithless Israel do this, a law was given them so as to make sin "manifest"... i.e., show them what it is. NOT so that they could judge one another (which is what they did with it)... but so that they would know what it meant to sin against God... and one another... and what things they were to forgive if done "against" them.
But it is not sin and death of the FLESH that's at issue... for the flesh "is of no use at all." It is sin... and death... of the SPIRIT... the person we are inside the cup! Currently, the flesh returns to the dust. For all who die in the flesh... which is everyone, thus far.
The GOOD news, however, is that... although we may [fall asleep in death] in the flesh... we need not die... IN THE SPIRIT! We need not taste everlasting death, but only temporary sleep! Because, the GOOD news is that... by means of Christ... who CONQUERED death... we can have the fleshly body replaced... with a SPIRIT body... a "white robe/outer garment"... one without sin and death in it... one that can and will... live forever. Death will have no hold on that body. How do we get this body? By eating from the Tree of Life! THAT is the GOOD news: that ANY who eat his flesh and drink his blood... in FAITH and with a clean heart... are in UNION with him... so that HIS blood... the blood of the True God... holy spirit... which is FREE from sin... will preserve their SPIRIT... alive!
The Good news is that once again earthling man can "eat from the Tree of Life... Christ... and live!" Forever! They can eat of the TRUE manna... the "bread from heaven"... the flesh of Christ! ANYONE!! That is why the WTBTS exists: to keep ones FROM doing so!
And if one does not? Then, yes, even the spirit will die. Eternally. For any who do not belong to the Life (John 14:6) because they have not taken advantage of the ransom provided for them.
But the Good News is NOT "come to Jesus or die!" The GOOD news is that Christ died... and was resurrected... to once again be a SPIRIT... but now, a LIFE-GIVING SPIRIT... and ANYONE who partakes of him... can be saved... from Death. Not just "saved"... but saved, literally... from eternal death... of body... AND the spirit.
We mess up when we overshadow the joy of the GOOD news... with the "old" message of death... and destruction. THIS is the message of our Adversary, NOT the Christ. By using FEAR... he, Satan, eventually turns people AWAY from God and Christ... not toward them. And THAT is his focus: to lead us away from God... so as to lead us away from Christ... so as to lead us away... from the Tree of Life... so that we may NOT eat and live forever. His goal is to lead us away from everlasting life... and he uses fear to do it.
But God does not want us to serve Him out of fear... and Christ does not want us to come to him and follow him out of fear. They want us to do it... out of LOVE. For them... and for our fellowman, consisting of those of our own households, our neighbors, strangers, and even our enemies.
Love... TRUE love... casts ALL fear... outside. Outside of where? Outside the SPIRIT realm... which realm is the reality. Here, in the physical realm, there is GREAT fear... because there is a great lack of love. Praise JAH, however... that this is NOT the reality.
I bid you peace!
Your servant and a slave of Christ,
SA
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AGuest
No one can be sure exactly what Christianity is until those embracing Christianity can decide among themselves whether or not they accept the Bible as the Word of God. When questioned they are as slippery as eels.
It was foretold that there would be divisions... and two of the reasons for such divisions is the "scriptures"... and the Bible. Many who profess to be "christian" continually refer back to these, which shows that they either have not yet received the promised holy spirit... the anointing by which is what is to teach us... or that they are still "babes" as to faith and understanding... and so still need to be taught by such ones as Paul, et al. They also show, by continually referring the written law... that they do NOT have the law of Christ... written on their HEARTS.
If they would simply put their gaze on the "copper serpent"... and look at NOTHING AND NO ONE ELSE... they see the glorified Christ. I will quote Paul (because there are those who won't accept the truth of his words without me doing so):
"Therefore, as WE (those of us who HAVE received such holy spirit)... have such a hope, WE are using great freeness of speech, and NOT doing as when Moses would put a veil upon his face, that the sons of Israel might NOT gaze intently at the END of that which was to be done away with (i.e., the END... of the Law!). But THEIR mental powers... were DULLED. For to this present day, the SAME veil remains... UNLIFTED... at the reading of the old Covenant... because... it is done away with... by means of Christ. In FACT... down till today... whenever Moses is read... a veil lies... upon their HEARTS. But when there is turning to the LORD... the veil... is taken away. Now, the LORD... IS THE SPIRIT... and where the spirit of the Lord IS... there is FREEDOM. And all of US (those who have received such spirit, and are taught BY the Holy Spirit)... while WE... with unveiled faces... REFLECT... like MIRRORS... the GLORY of the Lord... are TRANSFORMED... into the SAME image... from glory... TO glory... exactly as done BY the Lord... THE SPIRIT." 2 Corinthians 3:12-18
It is interesting that so many quote... and follow... Paul... and yet can seem to grasp this very simply truth. They don't get it because they are still walking by SIGHT (i.e., what they READ... in "the Bible," etc.)... as opposed to walking by FAITH (i.e., what they HEAR... from the Spirit, Christ)!
But, as my Lord said, it is not for everyone. What makes it FOR someone? Faith. Nothing but. Pure... and simple. Faith... nothing more than the size of a mustard seed. Faith in what? Faith.. that Christ IS alive... and that he speaks. To anyone who wants him to... and who manifest that "want"... by LISTENING... when he does. NOT to the body of flesh... but to the SPIRIT... the "man" we are... INSIDE the body of flesh.
By listening... and obeying... and not hiding it. Regardless of what folks might say about it.
May anyone... anyone... with ears to hear, hear... and get the sense of it.
I bid you peace.
A slave of Christ,
SA
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FlyingHighNow
How do we know which sayings are rightly attributed to him?
There are only a handful of such sayings attributed to Jesus and they contradict everything he did and stood for. Jesus condemened high control tactics as a rule. He did not condemn the Samaritan Woman. He did stand up against most of the priests, scribes and pharisees. He was a champion of the poor and the lowly. So when you find an occasional high control fear tactic, it flies in the face of everything else said about him or by him.
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AGuest
How do we know which sayings are rightly attributed to him?
Ummmm... ask him? Works for me. Every time.
Peace.
A slave of Christ,
SA