The thing is, all of what you just described seems like arbitrary, made up stuff, no offense intended.
I mean, how do you know you aren't just talking to yourself when you think it's God?
You would know if you were close to God yourself.
Then why did you mention it as something that was possible at all?
Because it is, anything is possible.
Couldn't the guy who thought the other guy was becoming demon-filled have been demon-filled himself?
this kind of stuff can go on forever if you don't have some standards for evidence.
Because I know the guy pretty well, I don't feel like he would be demon filled.
If you base your whole life on evidence about God from others, you will never find God.
I told you, God is within yourself, you don't need church or anybody (including me) to find him, just the bible as a guide.
All I can say is that the guy who was thought to be demon-filled by the other guy is very lucky he wasn't born during the Dark Ages. There's a great chance that he would have been killed by the all-powerful Christians by now.
Ah you fell into that trap as well. "The all powerful Christians" you speak of probably weren't really acting within God's word when they did stuff like that. If people do things that are clearly against Jesus's teachings, then they aren't "in christ" and will be judged for thier actions. Read the bible to find out the answers to that.
It was and is precisly the the reason for me not to be catholic. I am not putting down catholic people(or judging them), just the set of stantards that religion goes by. They seem to have added alot of stuff over the years. It is what works for me.
Both are assumptions to me, I'm afraid, that are believed only through blind faith.
The first was an assumption, the second is not. The bible teaches about where the devil is.
[qs]
Romans
14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[3] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing. 20Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
21So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
[.qs]
Sin is orchestrated by the devil. God allows it. You choose whether to act on it or not.
The thing is, "beliefs not in line with the bible" has changed constantly depending upon the denomination, nation, culture, politics, socioeconomic factors, time in history, etc.
Yes yes and yes! That is why you must find the truth yourself. No matter how bad the rest of the world is, God's true word will always be there for you.
Feelings are funny things. Very maleable and not always the most reliable indicators of reality.
You are a woman, please tell me you never follow your instincts.
The truth is not maleable, and is 100% reliable.
You probably didn't keep records of the things you prayed for, either, and you probably didn't pray for very specific things, kept track of when they were supposed to happen by, and you probably didn't make note of all of your prayers that didn't get answered.
Yes I did. Yes I asked for very specific things.
I will not go into how to pray here. I will say part of praying is abiding in God.
You also have probably not considered that your prayers might be answered by a God or gods other than the Christian God you think is answering them. Or perhaps there are invisible alien life forms with superpowers who are causing things to sometimes go in your favor.
That statement makes no logical sense whats so ever. Knowing the bible would help you to understand that. Even not knowing the bible it makes no sense.
Or, maybe sometimes your prayers are answered, and sometimes they aren't, because life sometimes goes your way, and sometimes it doesn't, regardless of your prayers.
Prayers are always answered. It just not might be the answer you were looking for, or come within the time you expect it to. The reason for this is always reaveld to you eventually.
Did you keep track of your blessings before tithing? Might be more confirmation bias here.
Or, it could be many other mundane factors that you just aren't paying attention to, such as being a happier person since joining a supportive social group (which happens to be religious) made you more effective at work, so you get more comissions or got a raise, or whatever.
Yes I keep track of my blessings, and it isn't limited to just work.
I own my own business, and the business has more than tripled since I started tithing 4 months ago.
As far as a supportive social group goes, I belonged to more than I have time for, before I got "saved". In a town where the population is about 3500, and you know 1000 of them, and get along with all of them, my social life was just fine.
As a non-believer, I would definitely say your inner peace is self-inflicted.
People decide to have inner peace without God all the time. I did. My husband did. A lot of my friends did, too.
Don't sell yourself short.
I am happy for you. But I say it could be better with God. It would only enhance the peace you now have. I had peace before too.
God should only enhance your life, not become a burden. Its a positive thing, not a negative thing. If you feel when you are looking for God that it is one of the later, then something is wrong.
Don't confuse man with God. The number of "true christians" this thread speaks of, IMO is very few indeed. It is an opinion based on facts.
For example, I was watching a priest on the catholic channel last night, and he was trying to tell me that singing and dancing with the Lord is not the way God intended for us to worshipp him. That we should be quiet and in solitude. I won't quote all the passages in the bible but here is the way the first "christians" reacted when the Holy Spirit fell on them:
Acts 1
4On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5For John baptized with[1] water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
Acts 2
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
1When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[1] as the Spirit enabled them.
5Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? 9Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11(both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs--we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" 12Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?"
13Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine.[2] "
(They were drunk in the spirit)
Psalm 150
4 praise him with tambourine and dancing,
praise him with the strings and flute,
Psalm 149:3
Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with tambourine and harp.
Also here is the way in which I think we as christians should live.
Acts 4
The Believers Share Their Possessions
32All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. 33With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. 34There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
If the whole world was like this, what a wonderful place it would be indeed.
If I was to listen to that priest on TV, I would never experience the true way to worship God. Now look how many people are following that way that the preist was teaching. Look at what they are missing. Their own instruction manual (the Bible) teaches them this, but they don't do it. What does this tell you about religion, and man?
I know I just opened up a can of worms, but I don't care.
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