Tag: christian
Where is the Love?
Is it just me, or does every election mark a more hateful society? People are actually wishing death on all those who are on a different political side than they are. THIS SHOULD NOT BE! Yeah, I know that discussions with others on the other political side can get frustrating, and can tempt you to say words that you shouldn’t, but the Bible says:
Romans 12:20-21
20 But If your enemy is hungry, feed him.
If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
For in so doing
you will be heaping fiery coals on his head.
21 Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good
Holman Christian Standard Bible
No it isn’t saying that fiery coals are nice, it is figurative, have you ever been really mad at someone and they return that anger with a favor? When you were younger your Mom probably told you “No” a lot, and you being a child of course got angry. But all she had to do was pull out a cookie or other nice thing and she was your favorite person again. If however you were being a brat that day you might throw the cookie across the room in a temper tantrum. You are an adult now, you don’t have to get angry like that. Show them the love of God. If they become more even tempered, you may earn yourself a friend, or at very least make it harder for the person to think that your side is terrible. If they throw their cookie across the room like a toddler throwing a tantrum, you have gotten your revenge without bringing yourself down to their level. Pray for them, and move on.
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Stop judging according to outward appearances
We are told in the Bible to
John 7:24 King James Version (KJV)
Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.
Yet how many of us have interrupted someone and started shooting off at the mouth before they were done saying what needed to be said? How many of us have seen posts being shared on social media and commented on them based off the title alone, only guessing what is in it? I know that I am guilty, but I now realize the depth of my error.
I posted a video on Facebook yesterday featuring two Christians, and a man who recently renounced his faith. After watching the video, I believe that deep down inside that he is really a troubled Christian rather than an atheist, after all, he still WANTS CHRISTIANITY TO BE TRUE. But this particular person wasn’t really the reason that I shared the video, many people have endured a crisis of faith where they needed someone that understood the issues to talk to. The two guys that he was talking to did. I felt that everyone could learn to allot from their conversation. Instead, they spent their time judging the state of this guy’s heart.
This made me so cranky I almost deleted my Facebook account (a lot of other things were happening too.) I turned snappy so the people in question may have had their day ruined too. If they didn’t want to watch the video they should have just scrolled on passed without judging something that they know nothing about. It may mean a considerable reduction in how much we post, and how much we respond to, but I highly suggest we spend less time sharing and more time making sure we know what we are sharing, instead of guessing about the content.
This is the video that I shared.
Does Jesus Endorse Blind Faith? | Stand to Reason
Taken out of context, John 20:29 is often used to justify faith without evidence. Greg looks at the whole passage to clarify the true meaning of the verse.
God is not your Grandpa
Many people had Grandparents that they were able to visit at least a semi-regular basis. Your Grandparents then probably started trying to catch up on all the loving they wanted to give you while you were apart, which included expensive or too many toys, way too much sugar, letting you leave your spinach on your plate, by the time you came back home your parents, no matter how much they missed you, secretly dreaded bringing you back home. The reason for this is that your grandparents had spoiled you rotten! Many kids favorite phrase for weeks afterword was “But grandma and grandpa let me…!”. Your grandparents could afford to spoil you, your parents could not. If you didn’t eat properly most of the time, you would not grow up to be healthy, if you got all the toys you wanted all year, you would never learn the value of hard work and a dollar. or even appreciate Christmas or your birthday. If they said yes all of the time, you would not be able to handle it the first time your boss said “No”…
If by some circumstance you had to live with your grandparents permanently, instead of your parents they would have to start treating you like regular parents pretty quickly, or you would not succeed in life.
Many people seem to think that God is more like a Grandfather, rather than a father. Name your blessing and claim it, just like you did with Grandpa. However, he is our father. He gives us rules, because he loves us, and knows what would happen if he gave us everything we want. We would be spoiled rotten! We have all seen or heard of kids that grew up in the lap of luxury, with few rules or expectations put on them, who never heard the word no. Many of these kids stay kids well past their 18th birthday and are objects of ridicule to many. God knows that a huge portion of us would end up the same way if he gave us everything we want. He does not want us to be objects of ridicule, he wants us to be responsible adults who work for his kingdom. So he isn’t a Grandfather that lets us name it and claim it.
When we are with him in Heaven we will be mature enough to handle a grandfather in heaven 24/7 but not now.
My book recommendation from my Affiliate Amazon.com. If you buy the book via my link SmartChristian.net will receive a portion of the proceeds.
Where Is God When It Hurts? by Philip Yancey
A book that every believer should read. If you are not facing hard times now, you will at some point. If you have already read this book, it will make the tough times a bit easier to bear.
Smart Christian.net 
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