Posted on 10/15/2001 6:54:40 AM PDT by malakhi
| Statesmen may plan and speculate for liberty, but it is religion and morality alone which can establish the principles upon which freedom can securely stand. The only foundation of a free constitution is pure virtue. - John Adams |
Why Steven, you sound positively refreshed this morning! ;o)
When Proddies say "MY Bible," it sounds like it were your individual posession rather than the common possession of Christians and the Church's (I use church in its most general sense) gift to you. And believe it or not, good Catholics pray to God--that's Fahter, Son and Holy Spirit-- morning and night with no priest in attendence. But we don't just do this alone but in concert with all the faithful , living and dead. Nothing in scripture tells us that the faithful departed are indifferent to our needs just because we cannot see them anymore.
Catholicism attempts to invalidate the Word of God with traditions of men, and inserts itself between man and God. There is one mediator between God and man, the Man, Jesus Christ.
Translated: The Bible, as interpreted by men who have rejected the authority of the Church hiearchy, is the sole rule of faith and nothing not explicitly stated in the Bible is the word of God. The problem I see is that nothing in the New Testament explicitly says this.
Becky
The list I gave was of the passages considered by Jews to be messianic. Genesis 3:15 would be on the Christian list of messianic passages, but isn't on the Jewish list.
Same here. I'd have to read over 1,000 posts, and I just don't have that kind of time! Besides, the arguments are the same, so we can pretty much just pick up where we left off.
I have to say, the Packers looked a lot better this week than they did the week before against the Vikings.
You know, I've been attacked ever since I came here. I've asked good questions and met with either more attacks or silence. I don't know which is worse. So, once again, choosing to honor my Father by not striking back I slink back into cyberspace and make you another offer: Don't ping me to simply waste your time and mine and I will yet again leave you to your persuits on a wing and a prayer.
ALL: Good morning, everyone. Hope y'all had a good weekend.
| Monday, October 29, 2001 | ||
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Looks like wau.org has their act together this week ...
When you were baptized into Christ, you were given a brand new start in life. God freed you from slavery to sin and washed you clean. He opened the way for the Holy Spirit to be your constant guide. In the Spirit, you can follow up on this new start, overcoming every inclination and temptation to sin and fulfilling the royal law of love. It can sound so promising, but there's a catch. None of this will happen unless you cooperate with God and let yourself be "led by the Spirit" (Romans 8:14).
Who among us doesn't fall short? And yet, even in our failures the Spirit reaches out and calls us to repent and sin no more. Over time, as we learn to respond to the Spirit's leading, God's plan for us is fulfilled. And what a wonderful plan it is!
Just think: From before time began, the Father intended you to share in his very life. Before you took a single breath, it was already his plan to fill you with the Spirit. He even created you with a capacity for divine life. Ask yourself, "If I don't fulfill that capacity, am I experiencing all God has for me? Or am I somehow missing the mark?" Can you really say that you have all the resources within yourself which you need to live in this world and make it to heaven? Without the Spirit, can you make sense of suffering and death?
Don't settle for less! Don't be half-alive, like someone who is sleepwalking! God has awesome possibilities in mind for you. Don't give in to the pull of the world! Have you noticed how quickly self-centered and prideful thoughts come to the fore when you're not seeking God's will? We all need the Lord to lift us up every day. Let's ask him to give us the power to walk according to his Spirit, in the fullness of his love!
"O Lord and Giver of life, how wonderful are your works--more wonderful than I can imagine! Lead me so that I may become the person you created me to be."
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Have a great day, everyone.
Oh Happy Day in Happy Valley! Providing the counter to the adage "Nice Guys Finish Last," Joe Paterno got his 324th win, making him major college football's winningest coach ever. Way to go, Joe.
The Nittany Lions were facing an early third quarter 27-9 deficit and rolled out 20 straight points to win 29-27. The ironic point was that JoePa failed to go for two on the last touchdown, which set up Ohio State for a game winning field goal attempt. Proving that often winning relies as much on heart as it does on strategy, the Lions blocked the attempt, sealing the victory.
SD
And the Vikes looked worse.
Welcome back, guys. How was the break? Going back and trying to catch up would be futile ... besides, as angelo said, it's all just the same material rehashed. You'll learn nothing new.
I do have one question, though ...
Who 'dat beatin' up dem Rams?!!!!!
The part us Proddies don't understand is that if you're in a room with God (metaphor-cly speekeeng), why do you talk to Mary to get her to say something to God. If we're not separated at all from God (which you correctly adduce from the Romans passage), then we can pray with confidence to God.
I'm sorry that was way too clearly stated, and without vitriol. I'm not sure how to respond. :-)
Oh yeah, it has to do with the amplification of our prayers. We certainly take our petitions to God first, then ask for backing from our fellow Christians in the Communion of Saints, on earth and in heaven.
SD
Jesus entire life and ministry on earth was for the purpose of establishing examples of how we were to conduct ourselves, and how we were to minister the Gospel to "every living creature". He never came here to set up some heirarchy of "clergy and laity" to set some select few over the masses, and for those select few to be the ones that could exercise God's power. When Jesus sent the Disciples out to preach the Gospel and gave them the charge to bind and loose, heal the sick, raise the dead, etc., that was before Jesus died and rose again. The Disciples returned, rejoicing that even demons were subject to their command, and Jesus replied that they should rather rejoice that their names were written in the Book of Life. The Bible teaches the priesthood of the believer, and Jesus said "The works that I do shall ye do, and greater than these, because I go to the Father". The power of binding and loosing is in the context of spiritual warfare, and each believer is involved in that. It is not limited to just the select few.
My question about Papal infallibility was not connected to this issue, I left out a word in typing. It should read "And DO you believe in Papal infallibility?"
Wrong. If the church is the body of Christ, that makes the mother of Jesus the mother of all of us
In the sense that we are adopted into the Family of God, I can see how you'd say that. Sorry, but Catholics seem to have a very exagerated and overbearing view of motherhood, almost to the point of a disguised form of fertility worship. There's nothing wrong with honoring your mother, loving her, and holding her in high regard, but this goes beyond that. I love my mother, I esteem her greatly, I would do anything for her. Catholics raise Mary to almost co-equal status with Jesus, in saying that she was sinless, a perpetual virgin, etc. If Mary was sinless, then there was no need for Jesus to be born, she could have done what He did, as the "Daughter of God". It is a gross perversion of scripture to elevate Mary to such a status. It's WRONG!
I notice nobody took up the issue of how we know we are being truly led by the Holy Spirit.
I beg to differ. I gave an answer. If you imgine you can be saved then loose your salvation, you are NOT being led by the spirit. If you are saved YOU KNOW, because you know it is not you, but Jesus who is keeping you, and Jesus does not fail. Praise God for that.
You're right, you did say that. I apologize. But I didn't see anyone else address it, or more specifically, address how we know that the Spirit is leading us to a true understanding of doctrine.
SD
I did see that. I beg your pardon.
You have repeatedly stated that you see a lot of ignorance here. I can only be amazed that you are surprised that statements like the ones you have made (and I'm not talking about doctrinal statements) are met with something less than enthusiasm. We don't mind people with other viewpoints on here. Just don't pretend that you're smarter than everyone else.
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