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To: DouglasKC
Another example of my point. You can follow the letter of the law and not actually have intercourse with a woman who is not your wife, but if you look lustfully at a woman you have committed adultery in spirit.

The spirit of the law is more important than the letter of the law.

If you base your faith on faithful observance, replicating the means and practices or language of observance in the time of Jesus rather than concentrating on turning your heart towards Jesus, you have put form over function and have built your faith upon a foundation of sand rather than stone.

Christians worship on Sunday, they eat pork, many are or have historically been uncircumcised, they celebrate Christmas with the remnants of Yule celebration and celebrate Easter with remnants of a fertility festival. This is our European heritage, and I don't believe for a second that God has a problem with it, otherwise the Holy Spirit would not have found such fertile soil among our cultures pagan fore-bearers.

Function over form. The spirit not the letter.

But go ahead and tell people to not get Christmas Trees, to not paint eggs for Easter; for me that time would be better spent telling them about the love of Jesus the Christ.

265 posted on 10/27/2008 10:24:50 PM PDT by allmendream (White Dog Democrat: A Democrat who will not vote for 0bama because he's black.)
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To: allmendream
Another example of my point. You can follow the letter of the law and not actually have intercourse with a woman who is not your wife, but if you look lustfully at a woman you have committed adultery in spirit. The spirit of the law is more important than the letter of the law.

Okay then let's take your example and apply it to the sabbath. If you're breaking the sabbath in your heart than it doesn't matter if you're keeping the sabbath physically. If you're not committing adultery in your heart, then you're sure not going to be committing it physically. And if you're keeping the sabbath in the heart, you're sure not going to be breaking it physically.

Form follows function.

If you base your faith on faithful observance, replicating the means and practices or language of observance in the time of Jesus rather than concentrating on turning your heart towards Jesus, you have put form over function and have built your faith upon a foundation of sand rather than stone.

The phrase "turning your heart toward Jesus" is meaningless without an objective definition. For example, the objective definition of love for neighbor is:

Rom 13:8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
Rom 13:9 For this, "YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET," and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF."
Rom 13:10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Comprehend what Paul is saying. If you truly, really, do love your neighbor wit Godly love, then you WILL physically and spiritually appear to be keeping the ten commandments. Your outward actions can be nothing else because LOVE is causing the outward appearance. Yes, it's possible to be hypocritical and appear to "love your neighbor" but inside you can despise and hate your neighbor.

John makes the same point in a different way:

1Jn 2:1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;
1Jn 2:2 and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world.
1Jn 2:3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.

If the spirit of God is in us, we will appear to be keeping his commandments. We can do nothing else. It IS the spirit of Christ, and he will not sin, he will not break his own commandments, if we let him actually live through us.

1Jn 2:4 The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
1Jn 2:5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him:
1Jn 2:6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.

If someone appears to be keeping God's commandments, there are two things that can be said: Either he really does have the love or God or he's pretending to. But if someone is not physically keeping God's commandments than we can be sure of one thing: He's lying, according to John, if he says he's doing God's will...doing something pleasing in God's sight.

Christians worship on Sunday, they eat pork, many are or have historically been uncircumcised, they celebrate Christmas with the remnants of Yule celebration and celebrate Easter with remnants of a fertility festival. This is our European heritage, and I don't believe for a second that God has a problem with it, otherwise the Holy Spirit would not have found such fertile soil among our cultures pagan fore-bearers.

This is culture and tradition overriding scripture and God's spirit.

But go ahead and tell people to not get Christmas Trees, to not paint eggs for Easter; for me that time would be better spent telling them about the love of Jesus the Christ.

Those who have the love of Christ and let Christ live through them have ceased to do their own will and do the will of our father in heaven. His will, his love, won't lead us into sin by breaking his laws because sin is harmful to us.

267 posted on 10/28/2008 7:00:11 PM PDT by DouglasKC
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