i’ve spent three years on a mission to decide about god. i’m not done yet, but i’m a lot closer than i was when i started. after thirty-two years on this rock, three of which i have been seriously, open-mindedly, truthfully searching for Truth (if there is such a thing) here’s what i have come […]
what is justice?
at what point do we say we, or any being, has acted “justly” ? there is lots of chatter on this board — and particularly when my new favorite pet subject (hell’s lack of existence) comes up — about god’s justice. but what do we mean by that? at what point is justice fulfilled? when […]
wonderful podcast: mclaren interviewed about hell
this interview with brian mclaren fits in SO much with how i’ve come to view hell: So, but one of the questions I could raise that might be helpful for you and other people thinking about this, is to say, what is the problem with sin? What’s so bad about sin? Now, I can just […]
six months without any water?
A meditating teenage boy in south-central Nepal is drawing the attention of scientists after attracting huge crowds in the past six months and earning himself the name Buddha-reincarnate. They are mulling over how to examine him without disturbing his meditation. Ram Bahadur Bamjan’s friends, relatives and managers say he has been meditating without drinking water […]
Plankeye (follow up)
There’s been some contention as to my post on “plankeye”. I will concede that we are indeed to “make judgement” — even about people and what they are up to. But the context of the verse you pulled out shows the difference between what Jesus was referring to in John 7 and what he is […]
test everything, hold fast to what is good
i have been asked to post on my practice of exposing this board to beliefs or lines of thinking that i myself do not hold to. this thread is meant to be an answer to that request. in the interest of keeping it clear for those who won’t read more than a few sentences, i’ll […]
why do we have bodies?
i have a question that i’d like to discuss. i’m not looking for “the right” answer, as there isn’t one. you can use bible verses if you like — there are some that are very relevent to the discussion, but i don’t think we can come up with “this is what the bible says about […]
romans 2 is interesting
i got the idea from another website, but decided to try the idea, and found the results startling. i would love to hear some of the questions raised by the text below, but first an explanation of what i’ve done: a) substituted “Christian” for “Jew” b) substituted “Muslims or Buddhists” for “Gentiles” c) substituted “Baptism” […]
seven views of truth
tonight, whilst doing some “light” reading, i came across these seven things that people tend to mean when they speak of “truth”: 1. Reality – Sometimes, we use truth to mean “what’s out there,†or “what’s really, really, real.†2. A human perception of reality – Sometimes we use the term to mean how an […]
all truth is god’s truth
all truth is god’s truth. i love this part of acts: 17:22 So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this […]
on hurting a burgler
assume you live alone, and are home alone, in your apartment, asleep in bed, when you realize that your apartment is being broken into, downstairs. what is the proper course of action for a follower of christ? don’t assume you have, or don’t have, a gun, a bat, a tazer, or any other weapon: all […]
Plankeye
A friend of mine recently wrote: This is the very reason I stopped attending my youth group. It was so unwelcoming. And, there’s something else, too. It seems to me, that rejection from the church crowd holds a bigger emotional consequence than rejection from other crowds. These are, after all, the people with whom you […]
patriotism
patriotism, as most people understand it (regardless of what the dictionary says it “means”) is, in my opinion, not a stance a follower of jesus can take. it means, at its most basic, that one is aligning himself with an agency on earth, rather than with god’s kingdom, where jesus instructs his followers to make […]
“once saved, always saved” ?
let us supposed we have 2 people: billy and franklin (i just pulled those names out of thin air ) i’ll give away the ending of this story first: franklin goes to heaven, and billy goes to hell. now, let us also suppose that billy and franklin are twin brothers: born within minutes of one […]