it's getting better

[anti_nietzsche]

I've been a believer for some years, but only recently it dawned on me that the distinction between paganism and authentic christianity is that christian, supposedly, live in love. Paganism is very dark in comparison. I am not THAT educated on paganism, but it seems like paganism doesn't have this strong emphasis on forgiveness. God actually says in the bible, when speaking to pagans, that unlike the idol "gods", the True God is someone who forgives. And Jesus in the parable of the prodigal son makes clear HOW God forgives ... that He forgives HAPPILY, GLADLY, that He is really moved by the fact that someone wants to return to Him. THAT is something huge. We don't have to be scared of God, because God simply is happy when people return to Him, so much that He shifts all His attention from the innocent and makes a feast for the returned sinner.

In paganism you don't have real forgiveness, you have some strange rituals but there is no heart in them. The idols are not real gods, they are not even persons as the bible makes clear frequently: they have mouths but cannot speak, ears but cannot hear, eyes but cannot sea. Paganism, essentially, is man making a bong with stone, with death rather than with life. And Jesus came that we may have more life.

Sometimes christianity speaks too much about the problem of sin than about the problem of death. Let me explain ... sin is something which leads to death. The righteous thing to do for a human is to love His neighbor, if he doesn't love his neighbor his relationship with him is going to slowly die. That is why sin is so awful - it leads to death. If I am not helping someone needy, my ability to be merciful will die. If I am a habitual liar my love of truth would die. If I am fornicating, the innocence of my sexuality will die. This is all very very horrible.

But in Jesus this is remedied. God forgives us that we brought so much death into the world. The consequences of sin are meted out on Jesus, not on us. This means, Jesus will work on our behalf and makes good our sins in us. He gives us faith so we would do like He tells us to. He does the main work, we just obey and follow and avoid the worst. Jesus is big and tough, and infinitely wise. He knows what to do and God the Father knows Jesus' ability too. The bible says Jesus was resurrected for OUR SAKE! Yes, that means exactly what it sounds like ... Jesus didn't die and go to hell and come back just to enjoy the ride. No, in fact God made a covenant with us in Christ and devotes Himself to us. If Jesus would have risen without it helping us, if still some would be condemned forever, in the eyes of God it would have been all in vain. God's love is completely REAL! Love is what unites the lofty God to the lowly human - humans can understand it. We know it means that we find help in suffering and that we don't hurt those we love, except maybe in medical circumstances when there needs to be a surgery or something.

Which brings us to the age old christian paradox. We want to believe that God is love and yet we also want to believe that God hates some humans so much that He would torture them forever. No wonder many people can't believe that. We have not been made by the God of love to believe in such a travesty. We humans know fairly well what love is. We don't listen to it much, that is true, and this is why we're sinners. But we know love when it meets us. Jesus gives us this love and we can know that we receive it and that we can reciprocate it. We don't have to bent ourselves and create a metaphysical idea of love that justifies Eternal Torment. Instead we can look at that Jesus God who teaches us forgiveness. God is saying to us, I have set you free already. You can live again. You can be happy again. Just be a bit wiser now and stay with Jesus and be in the river of life and become like My son!

Which idol gives something like that? How can Thor show us this love? How could Aphrodite? How could Mammon and Career, the UN or the republicans? Idolatry imprisons us. Only in YWHW, in His Son Jesus do we have forgiveness! And that is for us all, not just for a select few. It's not a puny rill or trickly, it's a huge broad and infinitely long river of life!

[Molly]

 :thumbsup:

The quality of mercy is not strain'd,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:
'Tis mightiest in the mightiest: it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown;
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God's
When mercy seasons justice. Therefore, Jew,
Though justice be thy plea, consider this,
That, in the course of justice, none of us
Should see salvation: we do pray for mercy;
And that same prayer doth teach us all to render
The deeds of mercy.

--Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice

[eaglesway]

Anti_nietzsche, that was a beautiful, enlightening and encouraging post.