Replies

Thank you again for sharing your insights and testimony! I’ll consolidate my reply here to save on bandwidth (LOL!)

I strongly agree with you that Christ came to establish a family. That is the theme from Genesis to Revelation: First Cause and Final Cause, Alpha and Omega. The next heaven and earth is the end of this heaven and earth. And there are no religions in Revelation 21-22.

You don't find God he finds you.. (Jaws theme)..

LOLOL!

If your in the family of God its O.K. to be a heretic..

LOLOL! Although the term usually applies to those who disagree with the dogma of the Roman Catholic Church, one could say that the Pharisees considered Jesus Christ, God enfleshed, a “heretic” with regard to Judaism.

Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God. – John 5:18

Many assemblies of men over the ages have concluded that they alone possess insight to God’s will and everyone else is therefore lost, doomed, ignorant, separated or whatever.

That makes me very sad indeed because no such assembly of men can protect itself from the tendency to fabricate doctrines and traditions – Judaism couldn't, Catholicism couldn't, etc.

Some of the doctrines and traditions of men can be as innocuous as the color of the clothing a minister or priest wears - or simply a waste of time - but some can spiritually lethal turning hapless followers away from God Himself. (Mark 7:7)

Personally, I eschew all of the doctrines and traditions of men across the board. I have cast all my burdens on the Lord, thrown all caution to His wind. My fate is in His hands. I believe Him and trust Him. That makes me a Christian, plain and simple.

But others are more comfortable relying on the counsel of their religious leaders, which is also fine by me. God didn’t make us with a cookie cutter. The foundation of New Jerusalem is made with twelve different gemstones.

Besides, many of the splits such as between Barnabas and Paul resulted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ being spread further and faster.