There is an additional question that I would like to hear the respondents answer in this thread:
Why do you believe that Jesus is the son of God?
I have struggled with this question for a few years now. I'm told by so many people that Jesus is the son of God and that the only way into heaven is through him. Still my brain begs for proof.
It says:
"How do I know that he actually rose from the dead, and was not just removed from his grave?"
"Did he really preform miracles, or was he just a doctor that had knowledge of medicine and health?"
"There are only three years of his life that are really accounted for, where was he from birth to 30? Was he in Nazareth, Egypt, Bethlehem, or somewhere else?"
"Was he actually proclaiming himself to be The Messiah, or was he simply trying to tell everyone that he was a son of God, just like we are all sons or daughters of God?"
I have really had problems with this for a very long time. I consider myself a Christian because I believe in the teachings of Jesus Christ. I believe in his message of Love, peace, and faith in God. I still have problems believing he was actually divine. I feel that many Christians are so intent on pushing his divinity onto people that his message is lost. God gave me the gift to think these things, and I don't feel he will punish me for questioning what people have told me.
This quote from Jesus has always made me very curious:
"For I am the way the truth and the light, there is no way to God except through me."
Now if you just change one word in this phrase:
"For I am the way the truth and the light, there is no way to God except through myself."
I guess I just have a lot of questions about the religion that are unanswered, not questions about God. I have no doubt that God is real and works in our lives everyday. I would be very interested in speaking with people more about Jesus. You probably won't get me to believe that he was actually divine, but I still want to discuss it.
JMississippi
JMississippi, with all due respect, if you believe in the teachings of Jesus Christ, which are documented in the Holy Bible, then you have to believe in everything else that is documented in there as well. All the questions you have raised are clearly answered in the Bible. If you don't believe they happened, then how can you believe in Jesus' teachings, or even that He existed? The Bible is very clear on the Divinity of Christ.
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I guess I just have a lot of questions about the religion that are unanswered |
To believe Jesus Christ is the son of God takes faith. You can't prove it scientifically. You can't use logic and reason to come to know this Truth. If you could, it wouldn't be faith now would it. I don't just believe he is the son of God, I know it. I know it because I have felt the Spirit witness this to me in my soul. This isn't something one can explain to another, in my opinion. However, I believe any one who wants to truly know it for themselves can.
The issue is, one has to really want to know the truth and be wiling to make what ever changes are necessary in their lives to acknowledge the truth when it comes. If someone is just skeptical because they refuse to ever believe in something that can't be proven in scientific terms, they will never know because faith is a requirement to know. That is part of what God expects of us.
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"Was he actually proclaiming himself to be The Messiah, or was he simply trying to tell everyone that he was a son of God, just like we are all sons or daughters of God?" |
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"How do I know that he actually rose from the dead, and was not just removed from his grave?" |
I apologize for my poor wording on this subject. You are right FunBikerChick, I should have worded this as, "Do you believe that the Bible is accurate?" It is truly all a matter of faith. I don't have faith that we as human being could ever do justice to God. I believe we skew things and change them to fit our needs and desires. To answer your question Malexander, I consider myself a christian because I still do believe that Jesus Christ stands for a divine message of peace. (Like a Buddhist believes in Buddha's message.) I guess I just know in my heart that man is responsible for the Bible, and therefore I feel that it isn't right to just believe in these words without taking it with a grain of salt. Rather I read the bible as a tool to help me better understand how God works, and how he worked in these earlier peoples lives. My questioning of the divinity of Jesus was intended to get ideas from other people about the varying interpretations of Jesus. I apologize for bringing this up; I realize now that such a moot point is going to do nothing more than offend people. Again, I apologize if I have offended you.
JMississippi
Along with funbikerchick, I have a strong spiritual knowledge of Jesus Christ's divinity. I also have a similar knowledge of the Bible, while recognizing that it has gone through many different human hands.
There are other books of scripture that I also know the truth about, which support, verify, and even expand upon the Bible's message about the divinity of Jesus Christ.
I believe, as has already been stated rather aptly, because of the witness I've received through prayer and scripture study -- in other words, actively seeking for the knowledge for myself. I do believe the Bible to be the word of God, and as far as it is translated correctly, I believe the words it holds for all of us are true. Though it has been brought forth by men, I believe that the Bible has withstood the test of time to persist to our day for our benefit by the hand of God. How else would any of us know about Jesus Christ and God the Father if we didn't have the Bible?
It is through the testimony of the Bible and other scriptures that we learn of Jesus Christ and his divine mission. If we know that the scriptures are the word of God, then we know Jesus is the Messiah. We "know" this by actively seeking for the truth and confirmation from the Holy Ghost. Throughout the scriptures, we are invited to do just that: "ask, seek, knock" and it shall be opened unto you.
In my opinion, of course.
Roz
Offtopic but, JMississippi said:
You haven't offended anyone, JM. You asked for viewpoints, and that's pretty much what you're getting! We're just discussing the topic that you brought up, which is what the Forum is all about. |
Does Jesus claim to be God? You need look no further than the gospels of the Bible to find out what Jesus says. Matthew, Mark, Luke all show Jesus words do not claim to be God or the only way to heaven. John is a different book, with most of his quotes not in the rest of the gospels, but most of them directly claim to be God. One would think such bold claims in John would be recorded in the other gospels, but they aren't.
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Luke 10 25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" 27He answered: " "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind"[c]; and, "Love your neighbor as yourself."[d]" 28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." |
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Mark 10 17As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" 18"Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good-except God alone. 19You know the commandments: "Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother."[d]" |
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matt 15 23Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us." 24He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." |
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mark 7 26The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. 27"First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." 28"Yes, Lord," she replied, "but even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." 29Then he told her, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter." |
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If Jesus was the light of the world, then why was he only sent to Israel? |