A Paduan, if you walk on water what happens is you walk on water.
Faith? Real or wishful thinking?
by kevin221 15 Replies latest jw friends
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funkyderek
Joseph
Pure faith is real and error should it exist is easily corrected if one is faithful
Does it matter what the subject of one's faith is? If I have faith that Islam is the true religion, will I be "easily corrected" if I remain faithful? -
Valis
The one phrase that catches my eye in reference to egoism and faith is this..
the true religion
When we assume that there is a religion with all the answers and a direct channel to Dog, then we expose our egoistic reason for believing in a religion period. There are so many religions in the world and each has major flaws that can be disproven by science, but they each have their own facets that we might be able to use in making our lives better. Which is perhaps the closest thing to spirituality I care to get next to. I really think that those who exercise faith without some wisdom to keep the egoism in check, are defeating thier own purposes, and knocking on the goddam door on Saturday mornings.
Sincerely,
District Overbeer of the "faithless and indiscreet" class
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AGuest
May you all have peace... and may I respond? Thank you!
My dear ones, faith is not as 'intangible' as you all would make it out to be. It is VERY real... and not abstract. We are in fact given examples of faith so that we know this:
Noah - Heard God tell him to build an ark. Was it enough that he heard? No. Rather, he PROVED his faith in what he heard... by BUILDING the ark!
Rahab - Heard that she was supposed to hide the spies, because they were God's people. Was it enough that she heard? No. Rather she PROVED her faith in what she heard... by HIDING the spies!
Faith... dear ones... is the ASSURED EXPECTATION. That means one is CERTAIN of what one EXPECTS, so that if one HEARS God speak to them and tell them that something WILL occur and that such one must DO something... such one DOES it... because such one is CERTAIN that the thing will occur.
A contrary example of this is Jonah: God told him to go warn Nineveh. But Jonah did not WANT to go, nor did he believe that what God had told him would occur. Of course, he eventually went. And then... what he was told did NOT occur! Which made him quite angry! But Jonah knew what he heard, so that when the storm came upon the boat he was taking to Tarsus, he told the men that it was because of him. He KNEW it! The issue, however, was not would God follow through, but that God could, if he WANTED to, also turn back His denouncement in the name of mercy. Jonah needed to learn that lesson.
It is the same with me and those like me, those who truly are members of the Body of Christ: we HEAR... and obey (to the greatest of our ability, based not on our faith - for we indeed heard - but on our courage!) I have been coming here for some time, and to other forums as well, speaking what I have 'heard', from Christ, by means of holy spirit. Am I concerned that others don't hear it as well? Not really, for I KNOW what I hear... and who it is that is speaking to me... so that I deliver the message. And I am but a messenger, an instrument of another's will. That's it; that's all.
Many of those before us spoke or acted, with no TANGIBLE evidence of the direction they had been given. But.... THEY knew it... as do I and those like me! I am sure that they, like me, are TRULY sorry that not all 'hear', and were as willing to help those who wished to do so, just as I am. But... you can only LEAD a horse to 'water'... as they say. The 'drinking' of it... is up to it, yes?
Faith, then, my dear ones, is the ASSURED... EXPECTATION... of things HOPED FOR... the EVIDENT DEMONSTRATION (meaning, the receiver also received EVIDENCE, by means of a DEMONSTRATION... which for ME is a VOICE that I can most certainly HEAR, as well as visions that I most certain SEE) of... REALITIES (not falsehoods, but very real things)...
THOUGH NOT BEHELD! You can NOT 'hold' it with your PHYSICAL eyes, ears or other senses. Why? Because such things are from one SPIRIT... Gods', by means of Christ... to your SPIRIT! Not from His spirit or flesh... to your flesh!
May any that has ears hear... what the SPIRIT says in regard to what is faith... as well as the invitation of that Spirit... and the Bride... to "Come! Take 'life's water'... free!"
A slave of Christ,
SJ
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The_Bad_Seed
Noah - Heard God tell him to build an ark. Was it enough that he heard? No. Rather, he PROVED his faith in what he heard... by BUILDING the ark!
Rahab - Heard that she was supposed to hide the spies, because they were God's people. Was it enough that she heard? No. Rather she PROVED her faith in what she heard... by HIDING the spies!
Prove to me Noah and Rahab existed.
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AGuest
"Prove to me Noah and Rahab existed."
And then what?
A slave of Christ,
SJ