A Query and Verses

The post.

I wasn't sure, at first, what I was going to do with this one. I mean. . . she's mocking the Bible. What's there to blog about? Why you shouldn't mock the Bible? Well, either you believe the Bible and so you already know you shouldn't; or you don't, and you don't think it matters.

One thing that does make me scratch my head: If my husband wrote a book (which he might someday), I highly doubt that no matter what most people thought about it, they would write something like that post mocking it. I could be wrong, but it's just not what most people I know would do, no matter how much they dislike my husband. If they're my friend, they wouldn't do that because they know it would bother me. So. . . . Here's my question: Certainly a lot of unsaved folks have friends and family who ARE saved, who do love God. Why doesn't the love of the unsaved for their friends and family cut off those kinds of things?

Christians hold the Bible very dear because it is a letter from their Father. It's a long letter, but it's also the ONLY letter. The Bible is very precious to us, like a keepsake that was given to a child when their dad promised that he would return from a war or a business trip or whatever. I know that both Threnody and Lalaith have family that are, at least, professing Christians. So why wouldn't you NOT write things like that just for their sake?

Of all the religions in the world, Biblical Christianity and Islam are the only two I can think of where if you don't believe it, you're damned. Every other one - as far as I can recall - has a way out. Catholics have purgatory. Mormons have different levels of heaven. I highly doubt that either Threnody or Lalaith believe in any form of eternal punishment. So, why not leave their family in their supposed blissful ignorance? Why bother them with things like this post when their family's beliefs aren't doing any harm?

I can only think of one answer. The hatred the unsaved have for God and the things of God outweighs the love that they have for their families. Which would mean, on a very basic level, that the hatred the unsaved have for God is so strong that they are actively HURTING their "loved ones." If you have other ideas, please comment.

As for the verses themselves, I'm going to try to go over them briefly in order to help any who might not understand how they fit together. One thing to always keep in mind while reading Proverbs is that these are general truths, not absolute truths. That's why Proverbs 26:4-5 make sense. There's more than one kind of fool. Some you should answer and some you shouldn't. That's why wisdom is so important.

Onward! Proverbs 9:7 - The verse isn't talking about God's disapproval; it's talking about the disapproval of the scoffer. If you correct a scoffer, there's a good chance they won't like you.

Acts 24:16 - Paul says that he's pushing toward that goal. Not that he's achieved it.

Proverbs 28:4 - There are many ways to contend with someone. Living in direct opposition to how someone thinks you should is contending with them. Refusing to stand when the rest of the room does is contending with them. Etc. etc. Contention doesn't just mean words.

I John 5:2-3 - The fallen, sinful heart is not capable of keeping God's commands. Thankfully, God has offered salvation, so that we can love Him AND keep His commandments. (Side note on her paragraph: Hormones don't demand anything. They want; they desire. They can't demand; they don't have that power. That's why it's called "giving in." Your brain makes the decision.)

Romans 7:15-21 - This is nothing that any Christian finds strange. This is the war of the flesh and the spirit, and it is a war. But she left off the end. "Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." Justification is done; sanctification is a process, and this passage is about sanctification. But our Savior is still our Savior, and He doesn't leave us fighting alone. Verse one of chapter 8 - "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus..." Sometimes, the Bible makes more sense if you take out the stuff that men added in like verse and chapter breaks.

I Corinthians 6:19-20 - First, this is for Christians, who are sons, who are told to serve. Do children have to obey their parents? Yes and no. They're supposed to, but they often don't. We're not forced to obey; we're told to obey. We're not slaves; we're children.

Rand Hummel quote: If he's talking about Christians, he's absolutely right. While we WILL sin, we don't HAVE to sin and it is a choice.

I Chronicles16:29 - We can be holy. That's pretty much what salvation is all about. We just can't EARN it.

Titus 2:11-12 - "To all men" is not referring to individuals, but to peoples. Just like God is going to save some out of every nation and tongue and people. It is possible to deny our sin nature. That's part of the glorious liberty with which God has made us free (Romans 8). How do we live godly? The same way we live holy - by God's grace.

I Timothy 6:9 - That isn't talking about rich people; it's talking about people who WANT to be rich. People who want to be rich have a tendency of falling into trouble. Enron, anyone? Money isn't evil; loving money is.

Ephesians 4:22 and Romans 6:12 - The same as the living godly and holy. It's all the same thing.

Romans 8:32 - It's human sacrifice, just not ONLY human sacrifice and also, it wasn't murder on God's part. The "giving Him up" was partly the whole, you know, SEPARATION thing. Like, when you "give up" your kid when they get married. The "giving of the bride" idea. To be sure, Christ died and God killed Him, but it was just because first, Christ took on Himself all of my sins (along with a bunch of others) and that made Him, in a way, worthy of God's punishment though He Himself had never done anything wrong or was in His Person tainted in the least bit by sin.

I thought about splitting it up, but I need to go get lunch around.