Judy, when I say "focus" I'm not talking about
visualization or concentration.
Hi Debbie:
Sure am glad to know that....
I'm talking about staking my life on the fact
that God loves us, letting God's love be my "ground". Then that shapes how I
see myself and other people. Yes, the walk is supernatural, and by faith.
Thankfully, we have Christ's life given to us. (I think this is what David and
others have been saying all along, actually.)
Yes, I can agree that all of the
above is good....
But in your post to Lance, didn't you
insist on our cooperation/submission? How does this
happen?
It happens as we receive the seed (Word)
and act on it. Scripture teaches that we are saved by
receiving the ingrafted Word which is able to save our soul - and IMO
this is where the division occurs between the two factions on TT. I
would'nt be interested in scripture if I believed as some do that it is only
the perception of men which I may or may not be able to comprehend
depending on how much enlightenment thinking I have unconsciously
absorbed.
Relationship: do you pray?
I do
To whom?
I pray to the Father in the Name of
Jesus
Is there love between you and him, and does that
alter you in real time?
Yes; he loved me so much that He sent His
only begotten son to die for me; and I love and serve the Son by doing what He
says so that I may fulfill the will of the Father by being conformed to His
image.
Is he actually alive and there for you to trust
in, or is it a desription of him you are trusting in?
I don't have a description of Him Debbie -
do you? On my part it is totally a "faith" transaction. I believe
His Word.
Of course he is revealed to us in his Word. But
he is also alive and present.
This is what intrigues me. How do you mean
"He is also alive and present" apart from His Spirit and His
Word?
The point about uncertainty/confidence did not
come through; in fact, it got turned into its opposite. I will try to think of
another
way of saying it.
BTW, I enjoyed the post about trusting,
praying, and not being anxious. It was right on.
I'm glad (I did too) and thanks for letting me
know,
Grace and Peace, judyt
Debbie
writes:
Another "bicameral" statement made on
TT is that love is the sum of the commandments.
I love "disobedient people" better when I focus
on God's unquenchable love for us. Where else could our love come from?
Just focusing
or visualizing love or the "incarnation" will not make it happen in us
outside of walking in his ways and dealing with our issues - this walk is
supernatural. Our flesh nature recoils against loving enemies and blessing
those who curse us.
I also find that the more my faith revolves
around the person of Christ and a relationship with him rather than
insistence on a set of correct doctrines, the more genuinely alive and
active it becomes. Life is relationships; it can't be built on less.
I'm not
understanding this "person of Christ" you all talk about because we have no
way to know Him outside of His Word. He tells us that "if we continue in His
Word" then we are His disciples and we will know the truth and the truth
will make us free (Jn 8:31) and "if we love Him we will do what He says" -
(would you consider all of this "correct doctrine?) If so my question
then is - "how does one have a relationship with Jesus aside from
agreement? Today I had a new aquaintance tell me that "friends
can agree to disagree" which is fine but I don't see this in God's Word
applying to Jesus and I wouldn't say I have a "relationship" with this
lady. Paul exhorted the Church to all be saying the same
thing.
And that brings me to your earlier post, about
"majoring on" the inconclusivity of interpretation when we should be
"confident in God's word". I know it doesn't seem this way to you, but
acceptance of this kind of uncertainty IS confidence in God's word--as
something greater than the shape forced on it by our reason or
traditions, able to continue to renew and change our thinking (more
than once, nudging us along a path).
Do you reckon Satan would have left if
during his time of temptation out there in the wilderness Jesus was full of
this kind of "doubt and uncertainty" about what Deuteronomy really was
saying to God's people? I mean there were plenty of years in there for
reason and tradition to have come on in. Why wasn't that a problem for
Him?
It is confidence in God and his ongoing
covenant story rather than in the principles,
generalizations, or jots-and-tittles we try to extract from
it. The canon in its entirety argues for greater
diversity than any one piece of it, and if you take this seriously
(So-and-So thinks differently, and may be right!), it makes for not-insignificant uncertainty. It's not
hard to allow uncertainty at the margins of our thinking,
but harder to submit our ideological "darlings". If you think
that some of us who so loudly profess this aren't always much good at
carrying it out, you are right! Debbie
Well
Debbie. Jesus is our Lord and Master and He left us an example that we
should follow in His steps. If he were looking for greater diversity
and acting in "uncertainty" this may be an option - but He wasn't and He
didn't. Faith is the name of the salvation game and without faith it is
impossible to please Him. Our choice today is what our faith will rest
in. The Word of God, or the words of men.
Grace and Peace,
judyt
