Posts by Billy1000

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

Thank you for your answers

JWFacts I know exactly what you are speaking of, i may not of experienced it personally but you are correct.

Christadelphians which in many ways are very similar to JW do separate themselves from the public or as some call it the worldly.

We will quite openly abandon a person once they decide to leave and in most cases cut all ties with them.

This i believe is wrong on two counts 1) Due to just a normal moral code and 2) because it goes against the very teachings that they are trying to protect

I did not know however of how much pain and anguish it has caused to so many people

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

atomant - i do not think the link worked, unless you are just telling me to read my bible??

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

Thank you for your replies

OneGenTwoGroups - So after 14 years of being an Elder you decided that you no longer believe in the teachings of the bible.. can you tell me how you came to that realization. I personally feel it is always good to have doubts about any belief whether that be spiritual or not, so you can make sure that we are not just going along with the crowd and conforming as was the case in my younger years... we have had people in our Ecclesias that the same thing has happened, the are a leader within the community then vanish as they no longer believe

Mephis - I would say i am similar to you however have gone the similar way, i love history and used that to prove to myself that the Bible is real, especially what i stated before with the prophecies in Daniel especially.

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

I am sorry if i have caused offence, but i have not had one reply actually saying why they believe what they do, mostly it is the fact that they can't believe it anymore.

I am here, (i have also contacted the Jewish faith and the Catholics) i want to discuss the things not simply you state what you think then i do me. If this isn't the place for that fair enough.

I am not here to convert or preach, but that is what a discussion is actually talking about why people have certain thought processes about different things.

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

How about this, obviously a lot if not all have either grown up in or know people inside the JW society.

So why all the hate, most people in here have made up their mind to leave and i am guessing everyone has different reasons, but why come back to a forum to discuss?

I am intrigued, we have similar things happen with us.

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

Don't get me wrong i am not preaching but seeing where my own beliefs line up with the people and religions around me.

I was not coming here to convert anyone but merely have a discussion

Obviously everyone here has made their mind up as to why they no longer believe, and that is something that needs to be investigated also.

Steve2 i find that quite insulting as i never insinuated that no one here knew what they where talking about.

The reason i started to do this was so i could gain opinions and beliefs other then the ones i have been told all my life, is that not fair enough.

How can a person really decide their path in life, without ever looking around. Instead of the path someone has been pushed onto.

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

I have to admit i am a little confused, probably 80% of the people who have replied seem to be atheist or agnostic. Yet frequent a JW forum.

I believe the way to salvation is through God, and to those who have said it is a contradiction that to get eternal life you have to be baptized.

To that i would say this.

In any religion does partaking in the bread and the wine get you any closer to God... the answer is NO

It is what it reminds us of, the sacrifice of Christ to save us. The bread and wine is simply the catalyst to remind us of that fact and without remembering Jesus in our life taking the B & W is moot.

Just like baptism, does being dunked in water do anything to save any of us... the answer is NO

However it is a symbol of the fact that we have dedicated our life to serving God, his Son and his teachings.

So i believe if any man or woman dedicates their lives to God, Christ and his teachings even though they have not been physically "baptized" the effect is the same, because it is the mental and spiritual baptism which is important.

To others who say that they no longer believe because there is no proof, to that i would say you were wrong.

For me i only need to look at the prophecies of Daniel. In which it is outlined the passing of the torch from one super power to the next first in Daniel 2 then expanded on in Daniel 7 and then even further later on in the book.

Even Roman scribes have mentioned Christ often referred to as Christus... corroborating that he did exist.

There are a lot more i could go into.

The blessings whatever you may believe they will be are not for one group of people or one religion but for those who believe and love God and his son and follow the teachings

I hope i have explained myself

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

Yes i was raised a Christadelphian, however i left when i was 18 and re-joined when i was 21.

Yes i would agree with you that many people and many religions believe that unless you are part of their religion you have no hope

However i believe and i know that many others believe now that that is not true

It was once believed that when a person is part of the "right" religion you get a free pass to whatever blessing you believe to be coming

I do not think this way, more Christ says three things to get eternal life.

Love thy God

Love Thy neighbour as thyself

Repent and be baptised

I believe whatever the religion if you do these things you will be given the blessings through the grace and mercy of God

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

I am not on here to start an argument, more of a discussion regarding the bible.

83

Christadelphian

by Billy1000 in

my name is stephen and i am new to the forum.

i am a christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father.

in no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused.

Billy1000

Hello Everyone

My name is Stephen and i am new to the forum

I am a Christadelphian and through my discussions with fellow members of my Ecclesia it has inspired me to reach out to other religions to find out exactly what others believe to enhance my own faith and further bring me closer to our heavenly father

In no way do i mean disrespect if it has been caused

I have many questions

Firstly i would like to ask

- What does your faith believe to be the blessings that were spoken of.

In particular the promises in the garden of Eden, Abraham and David

The Edenic Promise

Genesis 3 v 15 - And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.

(We believe this points forward to the messiah defeating sin, we believe that this was Christ, and through his death and subsequent resurrection he was able to defeat sin, and allow hope for all)

The Abrahamic Promise

Genesis 12 v 2-3 - And i will make of you a great nation, and i will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonours you i will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

(We believe this points forward to the Jewish people taking and maintaining the promised land, however this also points forward to the final days when the land and the kingdom will be set up forever, however that being said in Galatians it is stated through our love for God and his son we can become apart of the promises)

The Davidic Promise

2 Samuel 7 v 12- When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood,and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a housefor my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’”

(We believe that this points forward to Gods son, who we believe to be Christ who would set up the throne of God on Earth forever)

I would love to get your opinion on these as i think it is important for my journey.

I thank you in advance for your responses

Regards

Stephen