Smythe wrote:Because nobody wants to hear it.
Nobody EVER wanted to hear it.
Everybody has asked you to stop! For crying out loud, every. single. topic.
You don't appear to respect us, or our intellect in any way, shape or form. This is why we argue against you, and why we're asking you to stop.
It's not because we hate your religion (i do, but that's besides the point) It's because you're forcing it down our throats.
It's not our fault you've fucked up your life, somehow, some way. But we can't help you.
You can only help yourself, and we ARE NOT your outlet.
Are you willing to consider the point that you might be wrong?
See, this is the kind of question that has been presented to me, but I am one who seeks the truth, so it did not fall on deaf ears, and I had already sought the truth for myself so that I was certain that I would not be wrong in what I said, did, thought or believed for the rest of my life. We are talking about foundations here. In fact, that exact usage is given here:
For understanding, this whole chapter applies,
http://bible.cc/luke/6.htm, but for this point I am mentioning just the end part of it:
American Standard Version, Luke 6:46-49 wrote:“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? “Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. “But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”
New International Version, Luke 6:46-49 wrote:“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
So the very thing you are accusing me of, not having sought the truth for myself, is what I have done for myself and what I am telling you to do. So you see, we are really reading the same book here, so to speak...
I am saying this because you have claimed that I am arrogant and implied that I am some sort of extremist, when in fact we are both saying the same thing: that each person must seek the truth for themselves. You want me to leave you alone and respect your beliefs, but the flaw in your desire is that it does not say that you seek the truth of a genuine understanding of things, but rather, that you would even be an extremist yourself in that you would serve only your own heart and desires. See, if you do this kind of thing, then you become a slave to the vagaries of your imagination. But the truth sets you free. The Truth is Jesus Christ, God's Word and God's One Salvation for all those who would listen to God through Him alone. But you don't know this to be true, since you have not sought the truth or understanding of this for yourself yet. Am I right about that? Some of you have said you read the Bible, but it would seem you mistook it for a volume of fantasy or science fiction rather than listening to what God had said therein.
Taxi: I like how you are thinking about what perspectives are. It has been my understanding that a perspective is a limited understanding of something identifiable (something you can point to and say, "there it is", even abstractly) that is based upon a person's considered experiences up to that point, which then becomes a prompt for further investigation... i.e., consideration of additional experiences.
Is it so unbelievable that you, a fellow human being, are incorrect about something and overall perhaps more limited in your understanding than you ought to be given a lack of seeking the truth of its matter? We make mistakes when we fail to investigate, and believe me, persecution is FAR from the investigatory procedure, which in fact leans toward mutual understanding rather than hatred and vengeance. But in order to understand, each of us must first WANT to understand, which naturally means SEEKING understanding, ie., seeking the truth of a matter through further investigation. Then you will know whether or not Jesus Christ's words are God's words, and whether they will do you good or harm.
With God, it is OK to acknowledge that you are weak, for we all are weak and mortal and have limited understanding based upon our capacities as we were created by God. But we must do good with what we do have. God has said that nevertheless, despite all hardships in life, "My mercy is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Thus, it has been taught me by God the constant phrase: "I am weak, but God is Almighty. I am weak, but God loves me."
So you can either try to hide the truth from yourself, or you can seek it for yourself with a vengeance, with a
focused need akin to great passion and fervor.
..
Listen to me, friends. We all make mistakes. But the only defense we have is this: "The Lord is my Righteousness and my Salvation." Therefore, you should know God and Jesus your infinite salvation.
