Grant

define what it is to be a hypocrite in this situation. if we were claiming to be perfect and sinning, thats hypocrasy. if we're claiming to make an effort towards perfection, and fall short at times, thats different.

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Hey.

MickinEngland

Hmm... holy is a bit of an oldfashioned word, but it means 'apart', and that's certainly how true christians feel, because we don't want to be part of this crazy world..
In fact the bible tells us to reject the stupid world, to free yourself from it.
I rejected it years ago and have felt great ever since.
Sadly, many are too wimpy to reject it, even though the bible's rooting for them to do so..
"Jesus saved you from the empty way of life handed you by your forefathers" (1 Pet 1:18 )
"Don't love the world or the things in it,otherwise the love of God is not in you" (1 John 2:15-17)
"Set your mind on things above,not on things on the earth" (Col 3:2)
"A friend of the world is the enemy of God" (James 4:4)
Jesus tells us -"God has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners...to release the oppressed" (Luke 4:18 )


Remember, Jesus said the greatest man ever to be born was a world-rejecting hippy type named John the baptist who lived in the desert eating locusts and wild honey, and dressed in rough camel skins -

MickinEngland

Chill mate, I for one don't give a spit what Organised Religion says, I just string with that carpenter guy who said -"You have one teacher, me" (Matt 23:10)
And he's not looking for groupies, he's looking for pals -"You're my friends if you follow me. I don't call you servants, but I call you friends, for all things that I heard from my Father I have made known to you." (John 14:14/15)

You're right to give Org Rel the boot,the wackos in it turns more people off Jesus than Satan does, but make sure you don't give Jesus the boot at the same time or there'd be no end to it, you'd have to give the entire bible the boot too, and everything in it like giants, ghosts, aliens, UFO's, replication of matter, time travel, the Matrix etc..

Jeff Cross

I'm a techno-noob, so I don't know how to quote bits and pieces. But I wanted to give my take on SithLord's idea about controlling people. If I wanted to control people, like in my cult-leader fantasies, I would definitely NOT tell them that salvation is just as valid on your deathbed as it is right now. I would want them doing exactly as I said right now. And I would provide no other source of information, like the Bible. I, and I alone would possess the super-secret knowledge that would save them from damnation, so they'd better do what I say, or else! In reality, any of us can read a bible and make up our own minds. Anyone who claims to have esoteric knowledge, or some complicated formula, will probably have you drinking Kool-aid in the jungle some day.
George's point: I'm going to put it in my own words. Nobody's perfect. There are no degrees of imperfection. Only perfect, and not perfect. So the guy who steals pens from work is imperfect. And Adolph Hitler is imperfect. The guy who steals pens realizes his error, believes in Jesus, and for the next 50 years, moves to Calcutta and takes over for Mother Teresa.
Hitler orders the extermination of millions of people. He's in a bunker, and realizes the error of his ways, believes Jesus, then dies.
They both go to Heaven. Hey, wait a minute! That's a total rip-off for the goody-two shoes guy! Not fair!
Somebody asked Jesus how these Johnny-come-latelies could get the same deal as everyone else. He told a parable about a guy who owned a vineyard. He hired someguys at dawn, to work for a day's wages. He hired some more guys at noon, tea time, and 5 pm. At the end of the day, he paid them all a full day's wage. The guys he hired at dawn felt ripped-off. The owner basically said. "Look, I paid you what I said I would. It's none of your business what I pay them. It's my vineyard."
Anyway, hypotheticals always tend to be on the extreme end; if I knew a mass murderer, or became one, I'd be more interested in how that last-minute repentance would work.
I really don't care how the soda machine works. When I'm thirsty, I want to put in a dollar and have a Coke come out. If I saw someone put in a dollar ten times, and ten Cokes came out, I might want to try it. Even if the other person told me that a monkey was inside the machine, taking my dollar and dropping out a Coke.
I do everything for selfish reasons. I pray, and I feel better. I'm kind to others, and I feel better. I don't know how it works, but I get results.
Could you repeat the question? lol