How Does This Sound to You?
Jesus said that they are an adulterous and wicked generation that seek after signs, and he seeks after signs, and yet, we are friends.
He that offers fleshly and worldly music to God is blaspheming God, and he does that, and yet, we are friends.
God said that He would preserve every one of His Words, and that a curse is on anyone who adds or takes away from His Words, and he does not believe God preserves every Word and he both adds and takes away from those Words, and yet, we are friends.
God said that a woman that wears a man's garment is an abomination to God, and she does that, and yet, we are friends.
God said that a friend of the world is an enemy of His and that if someone loves the world and the things of the world, the love of the Father is not in him, and he loves worldly things, and yet, we are friends.
The Lord says that anyone who preaches a false gospel should be accursed, and he does that when he either rejects or changes the doctrine of repentance, and yet, we are friends.
Jesus said He fulfilled all righteousness by subjecting himself to the baptism by immersion of John the Baptist, and he sprinkles, not immerses, and says that sprinkling infants is also an option, and yet, we are friends.
Jesus said that grace comes by faith alone and that we take the element of the Lord's Table in remembrance of Him, and he believes and proclaims that the bread and cup are a means of grace, and yet, we are friends.
The Lord says that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump, so that we are to mark and avoid those who teach and apply a different doctrine and practice, and he won't separate from those who continue with wrong doctrine and practice, and yet, we are friends.
Don't get me wrong, he is either passively or actively rebellious against plain teaching of Scripture, and yet, we are friends.
None of this is personal. We are just having an honest discussion. We have really grown as human beings by airing our differences and we are better friends because of it.
We believe the very same on unity. We believe that what is most important is that despite our differences, which are many, we still get along fabulously.
Oh, one more---A man who drives his car up and over the curb to kill a child playing in his front lawn is a despicable human being, and he does that, and yet, we are friends.
Again, don't get me wrong; none of this intended personally, all simply to provoke discussion and promote some thinking out there. I think we can talk about all of these things and still be friends.
Can't we all be friends?
Thank you friend.
sir you had said that jesus is god who created jesus mary did right? mary is not god or his father so it is just common sense sir thats why their is b.c before christ that means that jesus was not god
ReplyDeletePerhaps we are not looking at many issues today in the same way God Himself does! He calls those who hate Him His enemies, not His friends - yet modern Christendom wants everyone as their friends. They love the wolves more than the sheep, love the hirelings more than the true shepherds, love man's philosophies more than God's Word, love plurality more than the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life...
ReplyDeletePsalms 119:128 Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way.
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteRespectfully, you show some convoluted reason to arrive at a false conclusion. The Word is truth. Jesus is Immanuel, God with us. That He created man (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16, 17) does not contradict that He could be born. With God, all things are possible. Instead of submitting the Bible to your reasoning, you should submit your reasoning to God. That is what we call "living by faith."
"But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
ReplyDeleteThat ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust."
Matthew 5: 44-45
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I think the hardest thing for human beings to do, is to love one another. Yet we are commanded to love, not just those who are easy to love, but those who are not.
That's the thing, Rachman. What is love? And what is friendship? And how do we love God? These things are not excluded from God's holiness, justice, and separation.
ReplyDeleteSounds like that interdenominational thingymajig called fundamentalism, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteSo, are there only two categories -- Friends and Enemies? Or are there more?
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think? From Scripture, where could you show me that there is any other category? I like to say, "You're either a ministry or a minister."
ReplyDeleteAnd John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbade him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us.
ReplyDeleteLuke 9:49-50
These are the verses that immediately come to mind. Maybe my interpretation is skewed. And I don't even remember all the examples that you gave in the post. But I get the impression that anyone that doesn't agree with you about anything you believe Scripture addresses (which is about everything) is your enemy.
I know you and I don't agree about everything, AND I don't feel like I'm your enemy. But reading you makes it hard for me to tell who you put in the enemy category and who is in the friend category -- if there's only two categories.
I do believe that there are degrees of separation. People are placed in different categories in Scripture. Ultimately, however, it is light/darkness, right/wrong, truth/error. Some are not with you at all. Some are a lot with you. Some are a lot with you and moving the wrong direction. Some are almost entirely with you and moving the right direction. Some are right with you and moving the wrong direction. Some are right with you and moving with you. We are required to be patient. We are required to strengthen, support, and warn.
ReplyDeleteThe point of the blog mainly came out of seeing this "we are friends" thing all over the place. Two people, for instance, that are on different poles of the worship issue and yet they are friends. Would God be friends with someone offering false worship?
Sometimes friends are made of the strangest circumstances. Many times a common enemy will bring enemies together as "friends."
ReplyDelete