Ever been banned from a forum?

[shibboleth]

I was banned from a forum on Friday. Has that ever happened to anyone here? John Moneypenny had a forum called Gospel For Today. It was similar to TM....very active and lively. Anyway, John finally had to close it down because of all the spammers etc. he had to contend with on a daily basis. Well, one man invited us to come to his site and I did. I quickly found out it wasn't UR, but figured they were open to the possibility because we UR people were invited there.

My first thread stated that I was UR and I used scriptures to prove it. Most people disagreed with me but we were all civil to each other. Over the past 3 months, I brought up UR topics and usually received negative replies. But, I kept chugging away hoping someone would see the truth of God's unfailing love. Seeker was always a big help in refuting many of the false beliefs being spread there.

I was told that I was teaching false teaching by the mods, but I wasn't told I couldn't continue to do so. Seeker put up a thread about the Lucifer myth and it drew lots of viewers and a few comments. Jeff, a mod, published his own thread about the lie of Universalism. He made claims about us that weren't true and were actually down right lies. Two people put up posts refuting his lies and they were taken down. After I read the article, my blood was boiling. I told Jeff he was a hypocit and liar. I told him he was afraid of truth and that's why he took the posts off. I never cussed at Jeff, although I wanted to!!! In an hour or so I was PMd a message that I was banned.

At first I was angry at Jeff for banning me without talking to me or giving me any warning. I have to use my son's computor to look at the site because they banned my IP number also.

This is my 2nd day since being banned, and I know that God caused it to happen for a much greater purpose. I kinda knew my days there were coming to an end because I had stoppped posting as much as I did at first. I was also there to give encouragment to those whose loved ones had committed suicide, because my brother killed himself 10 years ago.

I just wondered if you were banned, if you felt like I do. I have had a laughing one minute, angry the next minute type of 2 days. But there is a purpose in all things that happen to us, and sometimes we don't see it until we walk ahead and look back.

[hopeful]

Hi Shibb,

I have not been banned from a forum but I have loved ones who have been ex-communicated from churches for believing in a saviour of all.  We would have been ex- communicated too, had we still lived in that area.  It boggles the mind how brethren can turn and devour one another but as someone else once said, it's a fear factor.  Fear as a motivator is sickening, resulting it unbelievable consequences...

I feel for you, shibb.  Let the tears flow and the laughter roll.  It's normal.

Hopeful

[Tony N]

Being banned comes with the territory LOL!  ;D
I've been banned a few times since Al Gore invented the internet.

It was probably you calling him a liar and hypocrite which was the final straw. I have posted on message boards that I was sure if these "Christians" had knives and I were in their presence they would have had no problem in stabbing me with all the gusto they had and thinking they were doing God a favor.

They character assassinate and tell all manner of lies. But that is just Satan working in the background trying to get you upset and them upset.

The good news is eventually they will understand God ultimate love for all mankind!  ;D

[shibboleth]

I even rejoice in the fact that Jeff will be with us one day. And we will all be brothers and sisters and the Lord will make all things new.  :)

[Sazzy]

You've gotten alot further than me, dear friend! I'm still in the carnal stage....i.e. I still want to throttle the man!!!!!! I could handle outright disagreement, I could handle outright anger, but Jeff plays dirty and lies....and because he's a mod, he has the edge of the good ol' Ban Button. In other words, when he's losing a fight or argument and can't produce any sort of rebuttal except 'That's Heresy! Filth! Lies!', he just bans you. If I weren't gnashing my teeth so much at him, I'd laugh because he reminds me of a 4 year old brat.

[Livelystone]

Greetings

As long as you are banned for speaking the truth it is within prophecy that evil will be spoken of what is good. Actually IMHO sites that will edit your words to say what you did not say are far more evil than ones who practice self righteousness through purging their membership lists.

Still that does not change the hurt that can come from being falsely accused or shunned for political ambitions and I can feel the pain of ones who are unjustly accused of being apostate. However we all know our own hearts and know that we cannot lie before God and remain within Christ.

So for those who have been banned (I have been banned numerous times) but walk in the right direction it is part of your wilderness experience and IMHO learning to turn the other cheek. Looking back at places I have been banned from I am now grateful however I am not pleased with myself at how I reacted at the times I was banned from different sites.

I think if we can keep at the forefront of our consciousness that all things that happen unto us happen for our good it will certainly help to maintain the proper perspective on our trials........ they are merely lessons and tests designed to make you better rather than bitter.

Blessings

Doug

[Tony N]

For this were you called,
seeing that Christ also suffered for your sakes,
leaving you a copy,
that you should be following up in the footprints of Him

Who does no sin,
neither was guile found in His mouth;

Who, being reviled, reviled not again;
suffering, threatened not,
yet gave it over to Him Who is judging justly,
1Peter 2:21-23

[studier]

I was banned from a forum on Friday. Has that ever happened to anyone here? John Moneypenny had a forum called Gospel For Today. It was similar to TM....very active and lively. Anyway, John finally had to close it down because of all the spammers etc. he had to contend with on a daily basis. Well, one man invited us to come to his site and I did. I quickly found out it wasn't UR, but figured they were open to the possibility because we UR people were invited there.

My first thread stated that I was UR and I used scriptures to prove it. Most people disagreed with me but we were all civil to each other. Over the past 3 months, I brought up UR topics and usually received negative replies. But, I kept chugging away hoping someone would see the truth of God's unfailing love. Seeker was always a big help in refuting many of the false beliefs being spread there.

I was told that I was teaching false teaching by the mods, but I wasn't told I couldn't continue to do so. Seeker put up a thread about the Lucifer myth and it drew lots of viewers and a few comments. Jeff, a mod, published his own thread about the lie of Universalism. He made claims about us that weren't true and were actually down right lies. Two people put up posts refuting his lies and they were taken down. After I read the article, my blood was boiling. I told Jeff he was a hypocit and liar. I told him he was afraid of truth and that's why he took the posts off. I never cussed at Jeff, although I wanted to!!! In an hour or so I was PMd a message that I was banned.

At first I was angry at Jeff for banning me without talking to me or giving me any warning. I have to use my son's computor to look at the site because they banned my IP number also.

This is my 2nd day since being banned, and I know that God caused it to happen for a much greater purpose. I kinda knew my days there were coming to an end because I had stoppped posting as much as I did at first. I was also there to give encouragment to those whose loved ones had committed suicide, because my brother killed himself 10 years ago.

I just wondered if you were banned, if you felt like I do. I have had a laughing one minute, angry the next minute type of 2 days. But there is a purpose in all things that happen to us, and sometimes we don't see it until we walk ahead and look back.

So that is where you have been LOL! Well, getting banned hurts, but at least you were there to encourage that member who lost a family member to suicide, that is probably why you were there in the first place.

Craig

[LaurieJo]

I was banned from a forum on Friday. Has that ever happened to anyone here?

Hi Shibboleth....I've been praying for you, sis.  Try to keep in mind that there are many intelligent people on that forum who aren't blind to Jeff's "bait and ban" tactics....and I'm sure there are many who would agree that he is the worst type of person to be a moderator.  I've been the recipient of a few cyber-stonings by IBs, RCs, and calvinists on non-UR boards...heartbreaking when they won't even try to listen, but they've been so indoctrinated with the fear of ET that they often react in an un-Christ-like way----unloving and intolerant toward anyone who would dare to challenge their manmade doctrines and their twisted interpretations of scripture.

(((hugs)))

[shibboleth]

You've gotten alot further than me, dear friend! I'm still in the carnal stage....i.e. I still want to throttle the man!!!!!! I could handle outright disagreement, I could handle outright anger, but Jeff plays dirty and lies....and because he's a mod, he has the edge of the good ol' Ban Button. In other words, when he's losing a fight or argument and can't produce any sort of rebuttal except 'That's Heresy! Filth! Lies!', he just bans you. If I weren't gnashing my teeth so much at him, I'd laugh because he reminds me of a 4 year old brat.

Well you know I didn't feel that way yesterday or Friday. But, I was just thinking about all the ET crowd and how, when we are all reunited with God, we will hug and love on each other. This is definately not me doing this, I can't forgive those who hurt people I care about in my own self. And if he had banned my posts and taunted me for not answering him, I would be angry too. Loving our enemies doesn't mean we trust them or confide in them. Jeff is still a sneaky snake, and you know what the Bible says about snakes.

[Pierac]

I have been banned from two sites, however, the second site e-mailed me back and canceled the ban and reinstalled my post. They got to thinking about what they did, eventhough they still disagreed with the information. They turned out to be really nice. Also I made sure I was always kind. I never called them names even when the debates got hot and heavy, but boy did I get it a few times.  ;)

[crlnray]

Hi Pierac,This is the first From I have been on,so if my question sounds dumb,please know it is because I just don't know.Why were you ban? did you brake the rules or what?I don't want to do some thing to get baned.crlnray

[Pierac]

Hi Crlnray

They disagreed with my theology that's all.  :o The problem was they could not explain it way with scriptures so it was easier to just delete my post and ask me not to come back.  Don't worry, they do not do that here. Even if they disagree they respect your right to seek the truth. They know how to agree to disagree here. Very nice people to work through issues with, of course no site is perfect. They will get an occasional new person who might be rude but they usually don't stick around long.  8)

Paul

[GraceFull]

I've never been banned from a forum, but I was banned and all my posts removed from an online Bible study of Beth Moore's (ironically called "Believing God"), and this was even BEFORE the Holy Spirit had brought me to the truth of UR, but I was well on my way to that revelation, and excitedly on fire about the (new to me) truth of God's grace. Prior to being banned, I had received e-mails from several other study participants who were definitely interested in God's truth contained in my posts (I received only one negative e-mail). When I was banned, I was shocked and really hurt at the time, but in looking back, I can now see that God had me exactly where He wanted me (as He does all of us at all times), and that I had the privilege of being used by Him to plant seeds of His truth. It's sad to say, but I believe a large percentage of Beth Moore's Bible-study participants worship Beth Moore herself, but I also believe that God used her studies (I participated in others in the IC) in bringing me to where He presently has me - it's all part of the journey.

[martincisneros]

I got banned from Matt Slick's discussion boards, but back then that was sorta the Christian Universalist version of water baptism.  That was sorta the unofficial "initiation" process back in the day!  Ya kinda weren't a Universalist until Matt had thrown you out by the ear!!

Got banned from a youth ministry's discussion boards too.  They've since had to take the whole website down, because it soured the whole board when they posted that they absolutely wouldn't tolerate UR being taught there.

I can't remember which translation this is.  Might be the Message translation where Jesus said that if they ban you from this discussion board, then shake the internet dust from your fingers and move on to the next discussion board - because you won't have covered all of the discussion boards before the Son of Man comes

[lovetruth]

sounds like getting banned feels a lot like getting kicked out of or ostracized from church.  my sympathies to you all who've had to deal with it.  keep your eyes on Jesus, the Author and perfecter of our faith Who, for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame. don't even look at them?  what do they know?  is He smiling? 

[Casstranquility]

Yes, I've been banned, but only for a week, so does it really count? I was pretty mad, though, since they didn't tell me it was only for a week, and they didn't even give me a warning or anything, although they did give other members warnings without banning them. Perhaps my offense was too great. I posted that I was a Christian Pantheist who didn't believe in hell. On that board it is against the rules to say that you are a Christian if you don't agree with a whole bunch of lalalala. Uh, I mean, if you don't believe what they believe. :) It was also against the rules to say "Hell does not exist" as a fact instead of an opinion.

[shibboleth]

I've never been banned from a forum, but I was banned and all my posts removed from an online Bible study of Beth Moore's (ironically called "Believing God"), and this was even BEFORE the Holy Spirit had brought me to the truth of UR, but I was well on my way to that revelation, and excitedly on fire about the (new to me) truth of God's grace. Prior to being banned, I had received e-mails from several other study participants who were definitely interested in God's truth contained in my posts (I received only one negative e-mail). When I was banned, I was shocked and really hurt at the time, but in looking back, I can now see that God had me exactly where He wanted me (as He does all of us at all times), and that I had the privilege of being used by Him to plant seeds of His truth. It's sad to say, but I believe a large percentage of Beth Moore's Bible-study participants worship Beth Moore herself, but I also believe that God used her studies (I participated in others in the IC) in bringing me to where He presently has me - it's all part of the journey.



How easy it is to make someone an idol. We don't think we are, but all the signs are there. We wait breathlessly for any new revelation human idol of ours speak and  we defend them with our whole being. I had a few human idols of my own, and thank God, I'm really careful about that nowadays. I'm glad you got to plant seed with all the people who were hungering for truth. I know it will bring a harvest someday.

[shibboleth]

I got banned from Matt Slick's discussion boards, but back then that was sorta the Christian Universalist version of water baptism.  That was sorta the unofficial "initiation" process back in the day!  Ya kinda weren't a Universalist until Matt had thrown you out by the ear!!Matt Slick with Carm? I was there a few times, but now you can't be UR if you want to be on the forum [/

Got banned from a youth ministry's discussion boards too.  They've since had to take the whole website down, because it soured the whole board when they posted that they absolutely wouldn't tolerate UR being taught there.

I can't remember which translation this is.  Might be the Message translation where Jesus said that if they ban you from this discussion board, then shake the internet dust from your fingers and move on to the next discussion board - because you won't have covered all of the discussion boards before the Son of Man comes

Very funny!!!

[crlnray]

Hi Paul,I just didn't know what it meant,now that I do I have been ask not to go to church here,And ask to not take part in a bible study.They didn't ask me to leave just not to take part.They didn't like the way I answered some of the questions.So now that I know what it means,you are better off,God Bless.coronary

[ChuckK3]

I have never been banned from a forum, but was put on restriction once for arguing UR.  I was accused falsely of making a threat against the person I was arguing with.  It hurt at the time, but I also felt the forum administrator didn't like me anyway.  The restriction has since been lifted, but I seldom go to the forum anymore, even though I have not been banned for inactivity.  It's only because I have many friends on that forum (that were actually made on another forum) that I even go there from time to time.

Chuck

[Pierac]

crlnray,

I do not understand? There is no church here? Only a search for knowledge. Were you asked not to post from a moderator? I hope not, of course unless you disregarded the forum rules. Or did you get ripped by a fellow poster? I have never been asked not to post here but many times have had my beliefs challanged. I welcome the challange because if I'm wrong there is no better way to find out than to have fellow believers read your post and give you a different prespective. That's is what growing is all about. So what happened here to you?  Were you asked not to post? 

Paul

[BenJasher]

I have been permanently banned from the same forum 3 different times! Of course I signed up again from another computer with another username.  They absolutely did not like UR by the time I finally left that bunch altogether. But they had a few "bait and ban" hypocrites over there as well.

When I first came here, under the username BenJasher on the old board, I was still feeling the sting of being  thrown out. Of course I can get mouthy and rude when I get mad. (I think one of the mods referred to me as invective; whatever that means.) Someone had baited me with a trap and I fell for it, then I lost my temper when the trap was sprung. I said some things I would have been better served to have not said when I left. When the Head Admin threatened me publicly to ban me, I told her to go ahead, because I had been thrown out of better whore-houses when I was in the Navy. (That statement pretty well sealed my fate)

Bottom line from this invective smart-aleck: If you were sharing the message of God's unlimited love with someone who worships a very small God, and you got banned for it; go right ahead and find yourself another place to share some good news. Rejoice in the fact that you have made it into the company of those who have been persecuted for their faith. Great is your reward.

But there is a caveat to that. I deserved what I got. Peter tells us that if we suffer for doing something wrong, there is no credit for it.  (1Peter 2:19-20)  If you were innocent, that is a completely different story. I wasn't innocent.

Be well blessed and firmly established in His Love.

[hopeful]

Hi Paul,I just didn't know what it meant,now that I do I have been ask not to go to church here,

Hi Crlnray,   

Could this be a typo?  Did you mean to type "there" instead of "here"?

 

Hopeful

[crlnray]

Hi Paul, Sorry I didn't mean this form.The church that I went to here in this town,ask me not to come back any more.I had read Smiths teaching on tithing And the preacher said we had to tithe or we would be cursed,I dissagred with him,and tried to show him what the Bible said,he didn't want to hear that,so he said it would be better if I didn't come back.The Bible study was one I was taking on line,I found it and though they were searching for the truth.But it was the same thing the churches taught.And they wanted you to learn what they taught and not ask questions.I had ordered a book from Tentmakers I was upset so I called Geary,and he help me get on here.I thank God for that.I have had no problem here.Sorry I didn't make it clear.I hope I didn't get any one else confused.Thanks for bring this to my attention.crlnray