Debating Christianity

Beth · September 18, 2003, 22:44:44

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Narrow Path
Silver Member
USA
126 Posts
Posted - 14 September 2003 : 00:46:25
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Standing but a step from His heavenly throne, Christ gave the commission to His disciples. "All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth," He said. "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations." "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15. Again and again the words were repeated, that the disciples might grasp their significance.PREACH THE WORD, GOD'S WORD AND NOT MAN'S VERSION OF IT. Upon all the inhabitants of the earth, high and low, rich and poor, was the light of heaven to shine in clear, strong rays. The disciples were to be colaborers with their Redeemer in the work of saving the world.

The commission had been given to the twelve when Christ met with them in the upper chamber; but it was now to be given to a larger number. At the meeting on a mountain in Galilee, all the believers who could be called together were assembled. Of this meeting Christ Himself, before His death, had designated the time and place. The angel at the tomb reminded the disciples of His promise to meet them in Galilee. The promise was repeated to the believers who were gathered at Jerusalem during the Passover week, and through them it reached many lonely ones who were mourning the death of their Lord. With intense interest all looked forward to the interview. They made their way to the place of meeting by circuitous routes, coming in from every direction, to avoid exciting the suspicion of the jealous Jews. With wondering hearts they came, talking earnestly together of the news that had reached them concerning Christ.

At the time appointed, about five hundred believers were collected in little knots on the mountainside, eager to learn all that could be learned from those who had seen Christ since His resurrection. From group to group the disciples passed, telling all they had seen and heard of Jesus, and reasoning from the Scriptures as He had done with them. Thomas recounted the story of his unbelief, and told how his doubts had been swept away. Suddenly Jesus stood among them. No one could tell whence or how He came. Many who were present had never before seen Him; but in His hands and feet they beheld the marks of the crucifixion; His countenance was as the face of God, and when they saw Him, they worshiped Him.
But some doubted. So it will always be. There are those who find it hard to exercise faith, and they place themselves on the doubting side. These lose much because of their unbelief.

This was the only interview that Jesus had with many of the believers after His resurrection. He came and spoke to them saying, "All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth." The disciples had worshiped Him before He spoke, but His words, falling from lips that had been closed in death, thrilled them with peculiar power. He was now the risen Saviour. Many of them had seen Him exercise His power in healing the sick and controlling satanic agencies. They believed that He possessed power to set up His kingdom at Jerusalem, power to quell all opposition, power over the elements of nature. He had stilled the angry waters; He had walked upon the white-crested billows; He had raised the dead to life. Now He declared that "all power" was given to Him. His words carried the minds of His hearers above earthly and temporal things to the heavenly and eternal. They were lifted to the highest conception of His dignity and glory.

Christ's words on the mountainside were the announcement that His sacrifice in behalf of man was full and complete. The conditions of the atonement had been fulfilled; the work for which He came to this world had been accomplished. He was on His way to the throne of God, to be honored by angels, principalities, and powers. He had entered upon His mediatorial work. Clothed with boundless authority, He gave His commission to the disciples: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations," "baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." Matt. 28:19, 20, R. V.

The Jewish people had been made the depositaries of sacred truth; but Pharisaism had made them the most exclusive, the most bigoted, of
all the human race. Everything about the priests and rulers--their dress, customs, ceremonies, traditions--made them unfit to be the light of the world. They looked upon themselves, the Jewish nation, as the world. But Christ commissioned His disciples to proclaim a faith and worship that would have in it nothing of caste or country, a faith that would be adapted to all peoples, all nations, all classes of men.

Before leaving His disciples, Christ plainly stated the nature of His kingdom. He called to their minds what He had previously told them concerning it. He declared that it was not His purpose to establish in this world a temporal, but a spiritual kingdom. He was not to reign as an earthly king on David's throne. Again He opened to them the Scriptures, showing that all He had passed through had been ordained in heaven, in the councils between the Father and Himself. All had been foretold by men inspired by the Holy Spirit. He said, You see that all I have revealed to you concerning My rejection as the Messiah has come to pass. All I have said in regard to the humiliation I should endure and the death I should die, has been verified. On the third day I rose again. Search the Scriptures more diligently, and you will see that in all these things the specifications of prophecy concerning Me have been fulfilled.

It is critical to understand the importance of the Word and how it should be interpreted. Do not allow those that are in ignorance to decieve you into believing the resurrection of Christ was used as a "secret" or "hidden" message.

Stick to the sound doctrine and reject the worldview.

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Beth

Beth · September 18, 2003, 23:44:47

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Narrow Path
Silver Member
USA
126 Posts
Posted - 16 September 2003 : 00:51:59
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What the Gospel of Thomas relates as well as other Gnostic text.

1. Belief in "sercret" knowledge only bestowed upon the elite.
2. No belief in the physical resurrection of Christ but rather it being "symbolic".
3. Whoever achieves gnosis become no longer a Christian but a Christ.
4. Belief in a femine Divine power that supercedes God the Father.
5. Belief that the God of the OT is flawed and actually imperfect. Which leads to the conclusion that sin is a result of God and not man's choice.
6. Belief in many "gods".
7. Various panthiestic influences are detected especially in the Gospel of Mary.

Does not really fit in with the Monothiestic view huh?

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Beth

Beth · September 18, 2003, 23:50:29

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Tab
Silver Member
USA
193 Posts
Posted - 16 September 2003 : 01:12:06
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quote:
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Originally posted by Narrow Path

Does not really fit in with the Monothiestic view huh?

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Monotheism is a joke. Do you really think it makes a difference if you worship one single consumate deity or several deities? The two are very very similar in concept and they both promote the anthropomorphic concept of God(s) as a deity. The real opposite of mono/polytheism is belief in the nonanthropomorphic god. There's a real difference in thought.

Anyway that wasn't what I wanted to make a point of in this post.

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Belief that the God of the OT is flawed and actually imperfect. Which leads to the conclusion that sin is a result of God and not man's choice.

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Think about this just for one second. God is a supposedly all knowing deity. Yet, he created Adam and gave him the choice to eat of the fruit. As he is all knowing, he surely forsaw adam's partaking of the fruit, and therefore created him merely so that adam could disobey him and sin. First of all good job God. Second of all in that light, God created man so that he could sin - fall, and then return. Why would God do this? Wtf was god thinking? He created man so that man could separate from God and through that separation, realize what man was. Thus the only purpose of man is to realize God and rebecome one with him.
Sounds a lot like the concept of the one substance splitting into differentiation in order for it to realize and rebecome itself. So, either God was incredibly stupid, or he had something larger in mind.

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ph34r the sumomo

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Edited by - Tab on 16 September 2003 01:13:21

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Beth · September 19, 2003, 00:07:54

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Originally written by:
Narrow Path
Silver Member
USA
126 Posts

quote:
Posted - 16 September 2003 : 01:31:50
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The wisdom of God is foolish to the wise.

COunt your blessings that he is giving us a second chance.

And about the polythiesm.........

14 Do not worship any other god, for the LORD , whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.

Gnostic thought is WWWWWWAAAAAAAYYYYYYY off of what the Bible is teaching. It is not too hard to see that.

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Beth · September 19, 2003, 00:11:59

The following post was relocated to this thread from another thread by the moderator:

Originally written by:
Tab
Silver Member
USA
193 Posts

quote:
Posted - 16 September 2003 : 02:01:41
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Originally posted by Narrow Path

God is foolish to the wise.
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agreed

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ph34r the sumomo