Posts by Evanescence

64

Christians - Can you Ever Lose your Salvation?

by gumby in

below is a common view of a christians viewpoint of salvation.

see if you christians here agree, and answer how you feel about whether salvation can be lost.

section 7: salvation

Evanescence

That is interesting Gumby I have been reading a bit about that myself...

No, Christians does not have a free licence to sin, once we accept Christs sacrifice on the cross we become God's children, and this even involves Fatherly disciple from the Father as mentioned in Hebrews 12

I also heard somewhere that if you have been a christian all your life but at the last minute you turn against God and reject him and his grace everything you did gets forgotten

The Catholic Church believes in Purgatory, eversince no sinful being can enter heaven you get purged in purgatory before you enter heaven.

You go through this while on Earth and is completed in purgatory, you could view purgatory as the gateway to heaven.

Of cause you are still forgiven and going to heaven, you just have to go through this process first.

So if you live life sinning and not having a care in the world, God will correct you, he focuses on our eternal salvation.

Mortal Sin

1. Grave matter

2. Full consent in doing it

3. Full awareness of it.

they are the three conditions of mortal sin, a christian must confess and repent especially if the sin is mortal.

God sent prophets to the city of Israel in the OT urging for them to repent and turn from their ways, thus resulting in destruction and punishment eversince they would not repent. They broke their covenant with him. So thats an example set to us today.

Evanescence

52

Where did God go??

by fairchild in

it has been over 10 months now since i stopped going to the kingdom hall.

i had imagined how i would really find my way to god now that i was no longer being misled by the wts ( for - profit) publishing company.

i kept reading the bible, because people on jwd had told me how i would see it in a different light.

Evanescence

On a more serious note.. as suicide was mentioned a few posts ago.. can anyone answer this question for me.. How many people (including the JWs) say that "God will not put a heavier load on us than we can carry" I have always wondered.. if that is true, then why do people commit suicide? Don't they commit suicide because they are too burdened by their misfortunes? Once again, to me this points away from God's existence.

I believe that God does not give us more than we can handle, we may be pushed to our limits, and yes while one is suicidal they feel burdened.

I admit I felt very much burdened and thought that life was rather empty and pointless and there is not much point in going on. When you are depressed you struggle to see the positive and i've noticed that depressed people without realising it push away and refuse help.

People feel the suicide is the cure, a way to end all your pain, but it is not! Suicide is not the answer....

In a way suicide is a selfish act, can you think of the pain you would cause everyone around you? They start to blame themselves even if the person wrote a suicide note claiming that its no one's fault it still lingers as pain and guilt in everyone's hearts.

Suicide is a Mortal sin to God, and he would hate it if we took our lives....

Satan however would love it... Thats what the devil does he constantly whispers lies in our ears convincing us that suicide is the answer, all your suffering and pain will end.

I will quote the T.V series Medium "People who jump off a cliff find that once they are 3 quarters down, their problems are fixible"

*well it was along the lines of that anyways*

So its about having faith, God can help you through your adversities and healing does take a long while, heck I am still recovering from depression, it can take years, but in the end you are a stronger and better person and you gain so much wisdom from it all.

The Catholic church believes in "purgatory" no sinful being can enter heaven, we also go through suffering on earth and what is not finished on earth gets finished off in Purgatory before you enter heaven. So enduring through suffering goes well when it comes to the time of judgement.

At the time of adversity the depressed person would feel pinned down by adversity and would want to give up.... a way to decribe depression would be to be in an endless fog, pressed down by a huge weight, in a huge maze, falling in a never ending hole etc.

But you will find your light at the end of the tunnel, we all have our burdens to bare.

A life without burdens is no ordinary life.

In peace,

Evanescence

52

Where did God go??

by fairchild in

it has been over 10 months now since i stopped going to the kingdom hall.

i had imagined how i would really find my way to god now that i was no longer being misled by the wts ( for - profit) publishing company.

i kept reading the bible, because people on jwd had told me how i would see it in a different light.

Evanescence

he he, no, the whole point of the joke was that satan is the operator/receptionist.

Ok, I'm not the best at jokes...

Evanescence

52

Where did God go??

by fairchild in

it has been over 10 months now since i stopped going to the kingdom hall.

i had imagined how i would really find my way to god now that i was no longer being misled by the wts ( for - profit) publishing company.

i kept reading the bible, because people on jwd had told me how i would see it in a different light.

Evanescence

Personally I believe that suicide is included in our destined hour to die. I don't think we "choose". I don't think we ever have a choice regarding the hour of our death, just like we don't have a choice regarding the hour of our birth. Just my thoughts..

I find that when you feel suicidal its more when you are pressed down by a great deal of adversity, I and many of my friends have been through that path.

But I am glad I chose life over death, because later on your life starts to improve, its all about enduring through adversities. You look back and glad that you did not suicide. Healing does take time and of cause is definatly not an overnight job.

Everyone has a purpose in life, and suicide is only fullfilling the devils wish as he wants us dead, he doesn't want us to fullfill our lives purpose, so anything to stop us he will do, we don't need to take our suffering into our own hands, we can entust them to God. I made a thread here that you may be interested in looking at, http://www.christianforums.com/t2321567 I hope that helps Evanescence

52

Where did God go??

by fairchild in

it has been over 10 months now since i stopped going to the kingdom hall.

i had imagined how i would really find my way to god now that i was no longer being misled by the wts ( for - profit) publishing company.

i kept reading the bible, because people on jwd had told me how i would see it in a different light.

Evanescence

"Thank you for calling Reality. We're sorry, but God has just stepped out of the office momentarily, or is with another customer. Please leave a message after the beep, or press 0 for Satan."

Shouldn't it be dial 666 for Satan? Evanescence

52

Where did God go??

by fairchild in

it has been over 10 months now since i stopped going to the kingdom hall.

i had imagined how i would really find my way to god now that i was no longer being misled by the wts ( for - profit) publishing company.

i kept reading the bible, because people on jwd had told me how i would see it in a different light.

Evanescence

I understand what you mean Fairchild... and a death is sure sad.

You would find that those other ways would have less of an effect, people may be ignorant and not care.

Like in the old testament with the city of Israel God sent prophets and called for them to repent but they did not so in the end he had to use disaster to get them to be aware of the situation.

I believe that we all have our purpose in life and have our "hour" when we die... thats why act such as suicide is considered very much a violation eversince you chose your own time to die.

I'm sure many religions teach somthing along the lines of that.... like the other day my sisters friend died, she was walking along the beach and all of a sudden she just dropped dead there was nothing wrong with her health... she just died So maybe its to do with the time sort of destiny of death.

Thats just my little theory anyways....

Remember it was God that gave us life.... he is known as the God of life, not the God of death.

Evanescence

11

Wohoo ... saw Bob in the flesh!

by Simon in

.

live in concert that is ... brilliant .

can't remember the playlist but he did some real classics from the entire range of his recording career.. now, i only have to see girls aloud and have them bring elvis back from the alien base and life will be complete

Evanescence

lol and here I was thinking of "Bob-jane T-marts"

got the jingle stuck in my head now Bob Jane T-marts

Evanescence

52

Where did God go??

by fairchild in

it has been over 10 months now since i stopped going to the kingdom hall.

i had imagined how i would really find my way to god now that i was no longer being misled by the wts ( for - profit) publishing company.

i kept reading the bible, because people on jwd had told me how i would see it in a different light.

Evanescence

But if God created us, then I don't understand why he couldn't be a bit more clear as to who exactly he is and what exactly he expects of us.

There is a huge division in the churches yes.... have you looked into history on why that may be? we are all humans and there are people out there that start new things and others who interpretate differently.

e.g. you see the four gospels, 4 people witnessed the one thing but wrote the case out a bit differently... its like that a lot today...

Satan would love to get the truth harder to know.... like the path to heaven being narrow while the path to hell being broard.

I know that people from all different churches weather it be Catholic, prodestant or Baptist etc. people from all those churches have a personal relationship with God, he does understand the complication that arises in the world today.

Do not give up on finding the truth, maybe post on some christian boards, I recommend this one www.christianforums.com it has people from all the churches.

And maybe you could try attending some churches in your area, or looking at some christian websites.

Remember we all have free will, and its the free will that people chose to turn against God, its our sins we have to pay for, thus the cause to some of the suffering in the world today, other peoples sins.

Not all suffering is bad, suffering can be a blessing in disguise. Disasters like Earthquakes and Hurricanes brings the world closer together and the people become stronger and learn more about brotherhood.

Like the Tsmarmi appeal that happened at the end of 2004 and the start of this year I feel did bring everone closer together and the world was more awakened by their surroundings and it was a sort of a reminder to many others of the blessings they do have in their lives.

God does help people through their suffering if they let him, as in the bible it says "God's inflicks wounds but he also bandages up"

God does care, if you seek him you will find him

Evanescence

32

why i dont love god

by saturdaymorningblues in

jw
friends

.

first of all i find it very hard to pray...i dont like the way we have to talk into the air hoping he is listening.. i dont like the way he expects us to do his will no matter what.. i just dont like god..i hate his way of doing things and i dont like that he has permitted his creation to suffer whilst we are living.. ill never love jehovah

Evanescence

G'day Saturdaymorningblues

first of all i find it very hard to pray...i dont like the way we have to talk into the air hoping he is listening.
i dont like the way he expects us to do his will no matter what.
i just dont like god..i hate his way of doing things and i dont like that he has permitted his creation to suffer whilst we are living.
ill never love jehovah

At first prayer may be a bit hard, and it does require faith which does sound rediculus to some... But if you seek God with all of your heart you will find him... God does answer our prayers and help us through our time of suffering. We have our own free will, but we must obey God's laws, do not kill etc. because it is our sins mainly that are making this world a bad place.... many times other people cause you grief, thats how the old saying works "treat others the way you would like to be treated" Some people may chose to dedicate their whole life to God, others may chose to live more independantly on their own lives.... but the main thing is to love God, he loves us and to keep his law in our hearts.... Think about what causes most of the suffering in the world... its more sin which God hates, his laws are there to protect us and for our own good. not all suffering is bad, of cause they are bad at the time but they can really be blessings in disguise, you learn to become a better person. Good comes out of adversities. Suffering makes us stronger and even more "Wiser" Saturday, God does love you and cares for you.... and he really would love it if you would talk to him.

i like playing my drums, i like big band jazz, i love good food..i dont like suffering and i dont like prayer because i can never be sure him up there is listening plus the fact that im not babtised and i dont do his will so i dont expect him to even hear my prayers.

You definatly do not have to be baptised to have your prayers be heard, as I said earlier praying requires faith and trust... give God a chance. awsome you play drums? I play guitar and sing

there are times when i have cursed jehovah most vilely when im really pissed off and then i'll feel bad later and offer an apology later.

That guilt certainly means something.... God is real and he is there, and his Holy Spirit is there to guide you, the Holy Spirit is inside you.

for example my health is suffering, i have some kind of skin problem like exema which keeps me awake itching and in pain
and its at times like that when i wanna curse god in the most hurtful way so that he will feel the pain and discomfort i feel when im trying to sleep and cant because my skin is itching so badly.

My goodness sorry to hear you are in pain God understands your pain, and he is sad to see you upset, he is offering you help and comfort, take it Remember Jesus (if you believe in the Trinity is God himself) went through a lot of suffering and died on the cross, he overcame the world. Remember we all have our own cross/burden to bear, we all suffer at one point in our lives.... so your not alone... some people picture a normal life with no suffering or pain... just a normal everysay life going to school or work, doing homework eating going to bed etc. But that is not a "normal" life at all if you think about it.

i also dont like god's way of loving,
telling me i shouldnt sin when my skin is itching like crazy doesnt help me
if anything it makes me more frustrated.
i dont feel i get what i need from god so i say to hell with him.

When you are suffering yes its hard not to sin, right at this point it is just best to endure and have faith, discuss with God all of your weakenesses and frustration, even tell him of your anger.... He does love you, and your suffering proves of it (Hebrews Chapter 12) God is not just some "crime and punishment" or "do this or i'll kill you" Thats not a very correct image of him.... God is our Father, our best friend, our family... Focus on his Love, mercy and forgiveness, you seem to be forgetting that....

I notice that David stayed tight with God even though he called God all kinds of vile things.

Thats the thing, God is merciful and loving, and he gets insults and critisism all the time, but he is patient, God is love, and love is kind and patient.... perfect love never dies. This site may be good to look at, it has a whole lot of God's promises all in category's http://www.intouch.org/myintouch/exploring/promises/index_77684.html oh and Welcome Evanescence

39

Bible Believers 'Only'

by Golf in

jw
friends

what are your favorite notable bible passages, why and how does it affect your life?

i have a few such as; "for if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing he is dececiving his own mind.

"also from presumptuous acts hold your servant back; do not let them dominate me.

Evanescence

There is a good webite here, http://www.intouch.org/myintouch/exploring/promises/index_77684.html

Evanescence