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DEAR PRECIOUS BRO AND SIS,

NO, I wasn't meaning per se, you necessarily. I *DID* feel in some of your phrasing, sentences that what I'm talking about was lurking uncomfortably close. I suppose if Holy Spirit affirms to you what I was saying as applying to you in any degree, then you'd probably do well to take it to heart. But I was mostly raising a warning in general as triggered by what I felt as I read some of your phrases.

Am NOT trying to take the edge off God's Word for the masses or anyone else. I have been learning the hard way in my life and walk with God that He tends to be lightening-bolty with fewer people than my humanness would tend to be that way with. . . and that at some point He has been very stern with me about taking too much of such a stance too often and too strongly. He has emphasized that HE ALONE HAS THE PERSPECTIVE AND WISDOM AND LOVE TO DIRECT AND ADMINISTER SUCH RIGHTEOUS ANGER.

Of ALL people I know, I have more experience with God's Goodness and severity/suffering. I would not want to dare give the impression that God is never severe etc.

You are quite right about the merciless abortions and about the first part of that Scripture. IN FACT, THAT FIRST PART IS ONE REASON I PREFER TO ERR ON THE SIDE OF MERCY.

YES!!! I BELIEVE IT'S CRUCIAL TO: read the Word and see what G~d loves and what He hates and conform accordingly. . . . and that most do far too little of such in daily practice.

I did NOT say anything about NOT warning. I think if you review my life on FR you will find that I have stuck my neck and about everything else out to be chopped off quite above average for beleivers hereon--WARNING, WARNING, WARNING. I think you may misconstrue my erring on the side of mercy as erring on the side of failing to warn. They are TWO very DIFFERENT THINGS. I'm surprised you would accuse me of failing to warn hereon!!! I'm just as "in-your-face" with rampant warnings in other spheres of my life. I take Scriptures about warning very, very seriously.

Yes, Moses didn't get his way all the time by any means.

I do believe not "clearing the guilty" speaks of an attitude of the heart as well as behaviors. Growing up in the A of G church, I often felt like I had to repent and be rebaptized every time I frowned else I'd miss Heaven. God's Grace and Salvation are more robust than that. He is very keenly intent about the attitudes of our hearts in terms of punishment earning guilt.

Thank you for the thoughtfulness and caring of your post. I appreciate your "iron-sharpening-iron" relationship.

God's rich blessing to you both.

LUB,

>NO, I wasn't meaning per se, you necessarily. I *DID* feel in some of your phrasing, sentences that what I'm talking about was lurking uncomfortably close. I suppose if Holy Spirit affirms to you what I was saying as applying to you in any degree, then you'd probably do well to take it to heart. But I was mostly raising a warning in general as triggered by what I felt as I read some of your phrases.

I didn't feel any conviction of the Holy Spirit, but rather that I was falsely accused. You said here:

>You mentioned Jonah. God was happy to be more flexible with regard to Ninevah and was stern with Jonah because he wanted the destruction to follow through as originally slated. I think we must be cautious and averse to taking on Jonah's attitude toward Ninevah regardless of how much the U.S. may DESERVE such an attitude.

Jonah had said, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown." They repented from the king of Ninevah on down. There was no middle lukewarm compromise. God wasn't "more flexible" as they believed the prophet. He also wasn't "more flexible" 120 years later when they fell away and he destroyed them then. You inferred above that "we" must not take Jonah's attitude which you defined as wanting to stamp out Ninevah. I simply said that is not our attitude. Our attitude is this:

Ps 37:30 The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.

Those who don't want to repent and who love their sin unto death are annoyed by that.