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Author | Topic: What is a True Christian? | |||||||||||||||||||
purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
quote: Which teachings of his are different from the Jewish teachings?
quote: Can you clarify what these qualities are? What is Christlike?
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
quote: So no one will know if they are a "true Christian" until after they die. Which means no one posting in these Forums can know who is or isn't a "true Christian."
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
IrishRockhound wrote:
quote: Petra wrote:
quote: No I didn't miss that, but it isn't visible when a Christian posts and you said only God can judge that. So by what criteria can we mortals judge? Can we expect a certain level of decent behavior to go along with that acceptance? By your definition all Christians making that claim are true Christians whether they believe in evolution or creationism, or a young earth or old earth; correct? If true, then Christians should respect each other and shouldn't be slinging mud, right? Kinda goes back to the post with the footballer and tennis. If a Christian says he has entrusted his life to Jesus Christ, but his behavior is deplorable, doesn't that negate his claim? If I claim to be a good writer, but my posts are filled with misspellings, lack of punctuation, run-on sentences, and no capitalizaion; wouldn't you question my claim? If one who has entrusted his life to Jesus Christ should act Christlike, what is Christlike?
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
Rockhound,
From the posts I've read, the love/acceptance of God/Christ in whatever variation the denomination interprets (I'm being very very general) doesn't deal with behavior when determining a Christian. I feel that what you have come up against though is a Spiritual Maturity issue. John 5:19-23 reads:
quote: Some Christians accept Christ, but don't always let go of all the fleshly problems. The goal is to work on these as you grow spiritually through Christ. Some don't mature and get so preoccupied with gathering up the tares that they destroy perfectly good wheat. For me personally, I know the limits of my own spiritual maturity, consider the source, turn my self-control on high, and answer as unemotionally as possible. A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
I rest my case.
A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
quote: So true Christians can be broken down into "good and bad?" Doesn't that contradict the following scripture?
quote: Because the bottom of msg 46 is definitely not showing good fruit.
quote: So is it unreasonable to expect decent behavior from one who proclaims to be a Christian? A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
Interesting.
So even though Galatians 5:19-23 reads:
quote: I can't extrapolate from that to use "You shall know them by their fruit" and apply it to Christian behavior unless they are Prophets? (BTW if anyone noticed I typed John the first time I used this scripture, by bad. Too many books open!) A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
quote: Can I say:
quote: Would this pertain to regular Christians?Would Christians still bear bad fruit in this instance? Or are Christians today more like Gurney's 5-in-1 apple tree. Five different varieties from sweet to sour on one tree. A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
quote: I definitely agree with you on that point.Personally, I do expect a certain level of decent behavior from someone who professes to be a Christian. quote: From the way I have heard this phrase, and variations of it, used in this forum and outside, it can be a praise or an insult. Praise when you agree with another Christian's point of view on Bible interpretation, dogma, tradition, etc. and an insult when you don't. When used as an insult, as in a debate or argument, it can serve as a stumbling block for your target by causing them to doubt their position, beliefs, knowledge, etc. I've also seen it used by non-Christians when encountering deplorable behavior from a professed Christian. Variations on a theme: Good Christian, Real Christian, True Christian, etc. IMO the statement has nothing at all to do with whether one has accepted Christ or not. A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
Personally, I expect at least a reasonble attempt at the following in bold:
quote: especially self-control. Any church or Bible study I have been a part of has taught that Christians should strive to exude the above behaviors. Now I realize that we all fall short of this behavioral goal at any given time in our lives; but since a writer chooses what words to write and which ones to edit, I truly see no excuse for harsh or abusive language. A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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purpledawn Member (Idle past 3457 days) Posts: 4453 From: Indiana Joined: |
I don't feel the scripture from Matthew and Luke really says don't ever judge, but instead how you judge others is how you will be judged. Along the lines of "if you don't want something done to you, then don't do it to others."
In reality we have to make judgments about people everyday or at least every other day. I have to judge whether someone is lying to me or not. I have to judge whether someone is trustworthy or not. But, if I make these judgments superficially, then that is how I will be judged.
quote: It is not for the purpose of saying "Oh you did something wrong." It is more to the point of, if this person responds in this manner are they really a Christian? Can I trust what they are saying concerning scripture or anything else pertaining to Christianity?
quote:Making mistakes is human, but I don't agree that being human is an excuse for bad behavior. I have met people who don't have Christ in their life who have shown better Christlike behavior than I have seen in some Christians. quote: Yes, the Bible does say alot about behavior, but unfortunately many Christians don't like to be held accountable to their own standards. That's why I asked what is considered to be Christlike behavior. I know what is in the Bible, but is that what Christians on this thread consider to be Christlike? A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
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