Posted on 01/14/2011 5:57:52 PM PST by topcat54
Evangelical book catalogs promote books such as Planet Earth: The Final Chapter, The Great Escape, and the Left Behind series. Bumper stickers warn us that the vehicles occupants may disappear at any moment. It is clear that there is a preoccupation with the idea of a secret rapture. Perhaps this has become more pronounced recently due to the expectation of a new millennium and the fears regarding potential Y2K problems. Perhaps psychologically people are especially receptive to the idea of an imminent, secret rapture at the present time. Additionally, many Christians are not aware that any other position relative to the second coming of Jesus Christ exists. Even in Reformed circles there are numerous people reading these books. Many of these people are unaware that this viewpoint conflicts with Scripture and Reformed Theology.
(Excerpt) Read more at reformed.org ...
Who writes your material? It's a gas. Reminds me of the one about why baptists don't have oh, nevermind.
The way God obviously defines Israel in virtually every relevant verse Old and New Testaments—the blood children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Try again....
1 Corinthians 9 19For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. 23I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings.
Romans 14 1As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lords. 9For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
?> 10Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11for it is written,
"As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God." 12So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. 14I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.
16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. 21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble. 22The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.
I know you weren’t. It happens all the time anyway. I found that as long as I don’t let myself get too hungry, it’s not really a problem.
If, for some reason, I get really hungry, a hard workout shoveling the snow or missing a meal for some reason, being around food is a REAL struggle.
Thanks for the prayers.
Funny thing is, if a Protestant smokes or drinks a Catholic’s first reaction is *What kind of Christian are you?!?!*
There seems to be this unwritten code of conduct that smoking and drinking is incompatible with a good Christian testimony and everyone knows it.
I don’t have a problem with an occasional glass of wine for someone but if I suspect that people will be judging my Christianity based on whether I partake or not, I won’t.
I do not want to give them cause to stumble or question my commitment.
Now, if I have that figured out, any clergy of any denomination ought to have that one figured out.
What I’ve noticed is that there are precious few Evangelicals or Protestants who smoke, for the simple reason that they consider their body the temple of the Holy Spirit and feel an obligation to care for it. Not to mention being a good ambassador for Christ.
Perhaps you didn't understand the point. No one is saying we should place rules and laws over someone and basing their salvation on it. There are some today even that make abstaining from meat (on certain days or periods) a practice of their religion and count as sin anyone who does not follow it. They also restrict who can marry - imagine that.
That said, we have friends who ARE vegetarians and when we invite them to our home for a meal we only serve vegetarian foods. We show them respect this way. When we go out to eat with them, they are fine if we order meat in our meal. They show us respect in that as well. So this, I think is Paul's point. He can do without rather than offend someone. Would you still smoke around someone who didn't like smoke? Would it bother you to see your pastor drinking in a bar, coming out of an x-rated movie, chain-smoking? That was the real point anyway. I don't think very highly of grossly overweight preachers either. Their testimony should be important to them as it reflects their relationship with the Lord and those who look up to them.
How about you answer my question first. Of whom do you think Jer. 31,32 & 33 are speaking?
In fact, if you want to see Inquisatorial, check out the difference between posts 1025 (me pointing out prominent Protestant shepherds of their flocks) and post 1032 (a “let’s ignore all the previous post/thread says so we can attack Christianity”).
Perhaps it's only unfinished in the sense that there are more people, I believe many more people, that will come to Christ before He returns to judge the earth. That includes many more Jewish people.
will Israel ever cease being a nation before me.
What does that mean? E.g., how has Israel been a nation for the last 2000 years? Is it nation in terms of land or is it nation in terms of covenant or is it nation in terms of Jesus Christ the king? What does the prophecy mean (in relationship to Christ) and how do you know whether or not it's been fulfilled?
Oh but you are man/individual driven. Otherwise the homosexual issue among the very Priesthood would not have been sustained by the very men you are claiming are focused on God and His word. Both those who commited those acts and those who sheltered them. And still today they are all dragging their feet.
In my opinion...the laiety needs to take a huge stand.... stand against these Priests. Because those in leadership, who you claim to be focused on God, aren't even remotely close to God...rather an accessory to those crimes and totally man/individual focused, and are certainly doing little to combat this.
These Priests are not just faulty, as you say, they are mortal sinners in the hands of an angry God...and the leaderhip equally as such by failing to act on Gods behalf and comletely rid the church of these creeps. If I look over the course of years at your Priesthood...well the proof is in the pudding as we continue to see this day.
Like you did in post 1,210?
And you can ask a poster which church he attends or which group he has joined. But if he does not answer or says he does not want to answer, then drop it.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.