Posted on 05/19/2011 9:32:25 AM PDT by abigail2
Born in London in 1928 of Jewish heritage, I grew up during the Second World War and knew that members of my extended family were murdered in the Holocaust. The puzzlement at how this could happen affected me from my earliest years.
How could an otherwise civilized society like Germany become so completely immersed in what appeared to be a madman leading a nation in a trance? This was no ordinary madness; trains ran on time, children went to school, the opera performed—the veneer of patriotic normalcy was everywhere and yet the people fought to the death for the beast from the pit. Hitler might have enveloped the entire world had he and his minions not been conquered by force—and recall that beating him was very difficult even with the combined efforts of the most powerful countries in the world. How could the German people ignore or allow the atrocities taking place directly in front of them?
There just had to be some kind of counter-hypnotic system, I pondered as a young man, perhaps what religious people called faith, or listening to one’s conscience, necessitating no other lawgiver. Something common to all humanity just had to be the guiding light and the “lamp unto our feet.” However, this being so, how did we get lost and how might we be found again? It didn’t take me long to realize that there were powerful religious and political forces that never wanted us to find that kind of freedom from the power they have held for thousands of years. Most puzzling was that entangled people tended to be loyal to their corrupters. Like dope addicts with their pushers, most people held fast to their systems, stubbornly defending what they thought of as themselves, which was in reality........
(Excerpt) Read more at fhu.com ...
No offense Conservative Dude but I don’t think there is any doubt the Kingdom is within. How else would you explain the scripture below?
Luke 17:21Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
I think that Scripture has to be taken with all of the many others that teach about the Kingdom of God. And that particular Scripture is better understood as giving a clear contrast to what many mistakenly thought of the Kingdom of God as being an external, political kingdom.
The problem of saying simply, ‘it is within’ is that that sort of implies that it is within everyone, and that everyone has the inherent ability to sort of look within and find it (rather than looking to Christ).
Again, looking at the MANY scriptures that teach about the Kingdom of God (and there are many...and the ones dealing with the Kingdom of Heaven are also relevant), I would offer these points:
1) The kingdom of God/heaven is at the absolute minimum, something very different from the kingdom of man. In the kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven, our normal, material expectations of life and this world are set aside.
2) The kingdom of God is not to be indentified with a visible, earthly kingdom, it is not the return of the golden age of political Israel, or the Davidic Kingdom.
3) The kingdom of God is something that we should earnestly seek after now. All followers of Jesus are called to seek after the Kingdom of God above all else.
4) The kingdom of God includes but is not identical with the mystical, universal Church of Jesus Christ, past, present and future. And being a member of the universal church of Jesus Christ, means that you enjoy the forgiveness, the blessings, the assurance, the liberty, the privileges and the responsibility of being a member.
5) The kingdom of God includes but is not identical with an individual’s salvation. Being part of the Kingdom of God means that you will be admitted to heaven immediately upon your death, and that you will enjoy the resurrection of the body at some point in the future.
6) Being part of the kingdom of God or the kingdom of Heaven, means that you will have power and confidence in prayer, communion with Christ, fellowship with the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, fruit of the spirit, and the promise of continued and ultimately completed sanctification
In summary, if we take all that and try to put all of this into a single, takeaway definition that is succinct enough to commit to memory, here is what I would offer, undogmatically, perhaps you can improve upon this, but here goes:
The Kingdom of God is found whenever and wherever Christ rules in the hearts and lives of His people.
In a separate post, I can provide a list of the scriptures referencing Kingdom of God. But it is easy to do a word search nowadays...but again, there are a bunch.
Wow that is powerful.To me that is the beauty of Christianity. The simplicity. It is actually much simpler and much more powerful than than we realize. I believe that it is not meant to be complicated. Forgive them for they know not what they do.
Thanks for posting this. I have heard so much about this book, its nice to know its available. I’ll read the preview now...
Thanks Ted for that scripture...I’m terrible at scriptures. I know there are many, but I couldn’t come up with one.
Yes indeed...and that goes for Obama you conservatives! He is brainwashed into communism and does not know he is doing evil!
I’m with you! We have to remind people of this because if it is in a book, another person, someone can change the words and fool you. But if it (the truth) is in your heart, no one can take it from you. No one can make you doubt. :)
What do you mean “you conservatives”? Aren’t you one?
Thanks for posting about this book. It sounds very relevant for these times. I will order a copy today and make comments when I’ve finished it. Again thanks!
I wish I knew. It is not groupthink. Although the facets of groupthink are held in common. It’s easily seen in sports at every level. For want of a better term I call it tribalism. The other tribe is your enemy on some level. It is not the spirit of competition. At its worse it’s beyond ugly. Hitler’s marginalization and eventual efforts to exterminate Jews is an extreme example.
Stirring up discontent with the rich vs. poor distraction is another practiced by politicians. They all have their roots in something very basic in human nature. Once someone has chosen a tribe, the committment is almost unshakeable. Neither common sense or logic applies at that point.
People who cling to a political party affiliation when common sense should convince one otherwise is another example.
Thanks netsun7, you can read the preview which is beautifully written at www.fhu.com. They also have a demonstration of hypnosis if you want to see that.
Oh, I know what you mean! I see the same thing you are talking about in the christian churches today. Kind of a bickering among them as they defend their differences...Is that what you mean?
Somewhat, but you usually don’t see that associated with violence.
Where does one find the demonstration of hypnosis?
Thanks for posting, abigail2. (After reading the link provided) This looks like a VERY interesting book. BTTT!
One the home page where the “preview” is look just below...www.fhu.com
Interesting huh? Thanks for all your support... :)Now I’m on vacation!...
Not violence, but it divides...makes one defensive instead of looking for the truth and believing most people are open minded and looking for the truth. BTW...are you THE meatloaf? Or were you meatloaf first?!
BTW...great post and that’s what I was hoping...for the freeper ability to reason together...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.