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"Jesus Was Not a “Bible Believer” let Alone an Evangelical" (F-word warning)
Frank Schaeffer/Patheos ^ | 7/22/14 | Frank Schaeffer

Posted on 07/22/2014 2:22:53 PM PDT by Faith Presses On

Jesus certainly was not a “Bible believer,” as we use that term in the post Billy Graham era of American fundamentalist religiosity that’s used as a trade-marked product to sell religion. Jesus didn’t take the Jewish scriptures at face value. In fundamentalist terms, Jesus was a rule-breaking relativist who wasn’t even “saved,” according to evangelical standards. Evangelicals insist that you have to believe very specific interpretations of the Bible to be saved. Jesus didn’t. He undercut the scriptures.

A leper came to Jesus and said, “Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.” If Jesus had been a good religious Jew, he would have said, “Be healed,” and just walked away. Instead, he stretched out his hand and touched the leper, saying, “I do choose. Be made clean,” even though he was breaking the specific rules of Leviticus. Two chapters teach that anyone touching a person with leprosy is contaminated.

The stories about Jesus that survived the bigots, opportunists and delusional fanatics who wrote the New Testament contain powerful and enlightened truths that would someday prove the undoing of the Church built in his name. Like a futurist vindicated by events as yet undreamed, Jesus’ message of love was far more powerful than the magical thinking of the writers of the book he’s trapped in. In Jesus’ day the institutions of religion, state, misogyny and myth were so deeply ingrained that the ultimate dangerousness of his life example could not be imagined. For example his feminism, probably viewed as an eccentricity in his day, would prove transformational.

Jesus believed in God rather than in a book about God. The message of Jesus’ life is an intervention in and an acceleration of the evolution of empathy...

(Excerpt) Read more at patheos.com ...


TOPICS: General Discusssion
KEYWORDS: frankschaeffer; religiousleft
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To: Star Traveler; Salvation

Right, and...


101 posted on 07/23/2014 8:56:48 AM PDT by Mrs. Don-o ("If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." - Jesus Christ - Matthew 19:17)
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To: Star Traveler; Salvation

And...


102 posted on 07/23/2014 9:00:00 AM PDT by Mrs. Don-o ("Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you" John 6:53)
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To: Iscool; Salvation

I like how one Reformed pastor put it best:

“I believe in Once Saved, Always Saved.
I do not believe in Once Prayed, Always Saved.”


103 posted on 07/23/2014 11:51:23 AM PDT by ReformationFan
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To: Iscool

I believe I said Catholics pray to people when they don’t know whether the people are in heaven or hell.

Pray to people or ask for intercession on behalf of people?


104 posted on 07/23/2014 12:52:07 PM PDT by STJPII
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To: Karl Spooner

Karl said snarkily, “It didn’t take you long to misquote him, did it?”

Iscool’s actual words: “They may be in hell, and yet you pray to them...”


105 posted on 07/23/2014 12:57:23 PM PDT by STJPII
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To: STJPII
Pray to people or ask for intercession on behalf of people?

PRAY TO PEOPLE!!! Seen it happen many times...I and others posted the actual prayers on FR threads and you guys still deny that Catholics pray to people...

106 posted on 07/23/2014 3:33:13 PM PDT by Iscool
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To: STJPII

This is stupid. Jesus told you how to pray. And it wasn’t to man or angels. Can not Catholics follow the simplest of instructions?


107 posted on 07/23/2014 4:41:05 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: STJPII

Btw, your intercessor is Chirst and Chirst alone.


108 posted on 07/23/2014 5:06:19 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: af_vet_1981

You bet. I will post it tomorrow. I got to wind down a bit now. I wish I had the remebrence of verses off the top of my head, but God didn’t bless me with that. So I have to work at it.


109 posted on 07/23/2014 5:23:36 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: Karl Spooner
You bet. I will post it tomorrow. I got to wind down a bit now. I wish I had the remebrence of verses off the top of my head, but God didn’t bless me with that. So I have to work at it.

Are you having trouble doing this ?

110 posted on 07/24/2014 8:48:53 AM PDT by af_vet_1981 (The bus came by and I got on, That's when it all began)
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To: af_vet_1981

No, I got it pretty much done. But I thought I would wait for one of your more intelligent days to plant the seed, so to speak. Right now you would just run it through your Vatican spell checker..:)


111 posted on 07/24/2014 8:52:23 AM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: Karl Spooner
No, I got it pretty much done. But I thought I would wait for one of your more intelligent days to plant the seed, so to speak. Right now you would just run it through your Vatican spell checker..:)

Am I to understand that you lot will not be keeping to the code, then?

112 posted on 07/24/2014 1:20:50 PM PDT by af_vet_1981 (The bus came by and I got on, That's when it all began)
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To: af_vet_1981
Am I to understand that you lot will not be keeping to the code, then?

What code? I just would like for the sacred scriptures to be not perverted is all. I can see you are going to that today. If you look at it the right way, I am doing you a favor.

113 posted on 07/24/2014 3:49:09 PM PDT by Karl Spooner
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To: Karl Spooner
What code?

The code is the law.

It is a movie reference. You indicated you would do something and did not follow through. I consider your assertion "Even the Angels said do not pray to us." withdrawn for lack of evidence.

114 posted on 07/24/2014 6:38:37 PM PDT by af_vet_1981 (The bus came by and I got on, That's when it all began)
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