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Subject: The Mystery of God Author: tim [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] Date Posted: 12:56:52 09/19/04 Sun It's nice to have this forum to share my personal views on life and I especially enjoy getting thoughtful feedback from people, even if their opinions differ from mine. I just feel honored to have folks that care enough to visit here. I'm still waiting for A-bo to sign my guestbook, but whoever he or she is, I do appreciate their comments. You to biker bob! Rather than trying to debate my position "on sin", though I think people made some excellent points, especially about abortion, it's important for me to emphasize where I'm coming from when I try to convey my position on these extremely controversial issues, especially around such personal decisions. I believe life is an incredible mystery and each person needs to come to their own conclusion, or conviction on what is right or wrong for them at any given point in time. The bottom line for me - and I'm sure I've got plenty of surprises ahead in terms of being convicted of my own personal transgressions against God and man - is that Christ, as Paul wrote, holds all the 'hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge.' He said, in his letter to the Colossians, that it was his purpose that the believers there 'may have the full riches of complete understanding' and that they may come to know 'the mystery of God, who is Christ.' - Col 2:2-3 Today as I was reading exerpts from 'John of the Cross', a philosopher and Christian mystic born in the 16th Century, who's writings have inspired millions down through the ages, I found a passage from his 'Ascent of Mount Carmel, book 2, paraphrased by David Hazard in, 'You Set My Spirit Free' that speaks to this mystery in a way that is straightforward and clear. This passage speaks volumes to me today, as I look to God to give me answers to all the difficult questions of this mysterious life. He writes: "Our faith must be firmly built on the foundation of Christ himself. This is the era of grace and the gospel - that is the way God has chosen to bring our souls under His good rulership. It has not only been spoken to us, it has been lived out before human eyes... Jesus, God's Son, is His living Word - He has no other. Having spoken His true message to us altogether in this one Word, once and for all, He has no reason to speak anything that would replace this Word... Therefore, if anyone seeks God, asking Him for a vision or revelation of some so-called "higher truth," he must beware that he is not acting foolishly, possibly committing an offense against God. Far better that this man learn what it means to fix his eyes upon Christ - to see the utter humility, love, and obedience revealed in His life. Take care! When you seek some new "word" from God - a new method or means to live the spiritual life - you are in danger of pushing aside the one perfect Word that He has given us already. It is as if we are saying to God that this Word is not enough to satisfy. Perhaps God is speaking to you now saying: 'If I have spoken all things to you in my Word, which is my Son, and I have no other Word to say to you - what other answer can I give you? what higher revelation than His very Life, which is your Way to ascend to me? Fix your eyes on Him alone, for in Him I have spoken and shown you everything. If you live in Him, you will find more than you could ever ask or even imagine (Eph. 3:20). You ask for special guidance, answers to prayers, which are the smaller part - the least of what I would give you. If you fix your eyes upon Christ, I will give you all. For He is my complete Word and answer for you. He is the fullness of my goal and ambition, hidden for so long and now openly revealed to you (Eph. 3:7-12). Do you not understand that I have already spoken to you, even before you seek me or pray? I have already answered you...in giving Jesus to you as your brother, companion, master. He is your ransom and your prize... If you seek me for answers when you are in need of comfort and consolation, consider my Son - subject to me in all things, bound by His love of me, and afflicted - and you will fiind the rarest treasures opened to you, all the wisdom and wonders of God, which are hidden in Christ (Col 2:3). Nothing that you seek can be as satisfying to your soul, no other answer as beneficial, as seeing Christ with the eyes and understanding of your inner man. For as my apostle, Paul, said, 'I resolved to know nothing...except Jesus Christ and him crucified' (1 Corin. 2:2). In all things, see that you are guided by the 'law' of Christ made man...He himself is our means to remedy our spiritual weakness and ignorance. For by living in Christ, we find abundant 'medicine' for all our spiritual ailments...Nothing, not even so-called supernatural revelations, can replace the one and greatest Word... from Ascent of Mount Carmel: Book 2, Chapter 22 (John of the Cross). I'm not sure what anybody else thinks about all this, but as I said, it speaks volumes to me today. I know that life is a mystery, but I believe the apostle Paul and John of the Cross, were men who knew where the answer to these mysteries could be found. I seek to share these answers with my friends and family through this forum. Have a nice day! [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]

Replies:

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: tim [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 07:18:29 10/15/08 Wed The Choice of Life or Death: From Deuteronomy chapter 30, starting in verse 11, "For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off. It is not in heaven that you should say, 'who will ascend into heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it? Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it? But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it. See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil, in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgements, that you may live and multiply; and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you go to possess. But if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, and are drawn away, and worship other gods and serve them, I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess. I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore CHOOSE LIFE, that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the LORD your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them." Deuteronomy 30:11-20 As the Bible says, it is NOT a big mystery. I felt I should correct myself from before if I suggested such. The Word of God makes it clear and we can believe it and receive it or not. The choice is always ours. But as I write this, I am pleading with those who may actually take the time to read and listen to what the Lord is saying here. I have set before you LIFE (the truth, the way) and DEATH, blessing and cursing; therefore choose LIFE! Choose the Blessing! JUST DO IT! Choose the Way that leads to Life. Jesus, the Messiah, the One who came from heaven to show us the Way. His offer still stands. While there is breath there is HOPE. The mystery of God is NOT a mystery at all! T.O. 10/15/08 [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: tim [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 15:50:02 08/29/09 Sat I've said it before, but it will bear repetition, Forgiveness is for all people everywhere. God's forgiveness for sin is a free gift and it came in the form of the spotless lamb of God. For God so loved the World that He gave us Jesus. It is in and through Jesus the Christ the only begotten Son of God that we have been reconciled to the Father by having our sin removed as far as east is from west. By acknowledging His free gift, we acknowledge the Giver of Gifts, the Father God. awesome! As a father of two twenty something, children, I can attest to the 'acknowledgement of the Father' concept. For my children to acknowledge me, is a big deal. I don't take it lightly. Have I always been deserving of their acknowledgement? As their father, yes! As THE FATHER, who is in all and knows all, no! I have certainly made my share of mistakes as a father, as has my own father and his before him and so on. But just as we are to honor our parents (the 5th commandment and the first with a promise attached), God the Father, is also looking for our acknowledgement. The heavenly Father is ultimately the ONE we are all directed to acknowledge and we do it by honoring His Son whom He gave as a love offering and in accepting Him we are honoring our Father; the Word clearly states that as we honor Him, He in turn will honor us. Have you honored your father today? [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Biker Bob [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 09:32:12 09/11/09 Fri My father lives in Texas and he doesn't talk to any of his kids. He would not recognize any of his grand children either. I think that honoring that would be hard. Wake up Tim you are half dead. Time slips by everyday and this pre-occupation with your invisible friend is one giant waste of time. The mistake you make is in ignoring the here and now for the imagined afterlife which you seem to think will some how be easier. A constant state of anything is unreasonable in a world where change is the only constant. What are you going to do in the after life? Sit on a cloud and smile forever? Use your brain work hard and enjoy this time. If as you say we are all forgiven anyway what do you have to loose? Mystery is a nice way of saying it. I prefer The Misery of God because that is exactly what the belief system causes over and over again. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: tim [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 15:14:50 09/13/09 Sun Once again, I thank you Mr. BB for your response to my post. You always give me good fodder to keep up the message of hope that is inside me. Honoring our parents is not based on their meriting it, but rather it is an unconditional response that according to the Bible is returned with a promise from God's word of long life to those who give it! Like the commandment of love, which Jesus said supercedes all the other commandments, it is unconditional and is expected of us, no matter who does what to us. Not that we need to be doormats, but because forgiveness sets a prisoner free (the one who forgives gets set free!). The 'good news' or gospel message is all about this forgiving others as we ourselves have been forgiven by God when He sent His Son to die for us and take away all of our sins (that's the whole wide world!). But like any gift it must be received in order to benefit those for whom it was given! WE don't have to wait for everlasting life. It starts in the crappy here and now, when you accept Jesus as Lord and Savior AND, it goes on forever! Every day we are down here can be a dress rehearsal for the real thing. Do you think it will be any less beautiful in heaven? or for that matter, any less depressing in hell than what it can be like NOW for those who are experiencing it? For anyone that is going through hell today; I've got one thing to say, just KEEP GOING!!! God brings us new mercies each morning and all we have to do is, acknowlege His presence (presents) and as my biker friend says, enjoy the day because, whether you are experiencing heaven or hell today, TODAY is the only day you will ever have to live. Submit to God, resist the devil and HE MUST FLEE! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Biker Bob [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 18:37:02 09/13/09 Sun Avoidance does not equal a win in an argument Tim. You keep spinning the same tired yarn. God. Jesus and all that junk in the bible doesn't matter. While the basic belief is harmless a constant preoccupation with the scripture is a waste of time. You may as well be reading comic books. Go ahead and ignore factual history if you want. Imagined history doesn't count. There is no Ark and there was no rising from the dead. Its all a myth just like the Greek gods. Jesus is as real as Medusa, or in reality unreal. God didn't give up his son so people could kill him either. Its a story written a long time ago by many people to control others. We are eating ground Bison tonight! I guess that Bison doesn't rate, raised for food, shot in the head and eaten by humans. Hmmmm Good! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: tim [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 11:42:34 09/19/09 Sat I cannot, nor will not argue Truth. As the Bible says, 'the sower sows the Word'. Faith comes in the form of a seed. It gets planted in men's hearts and where there is good ground it grows up and matures! If you are experiencing conviction from the words sown in this forum, Rejoice! It means that God has planted the seed of faith in your heart. If you continue to hear the word spoken (it helps to build your faith by reading the word of God outloud!) - Rom 10:17 says, 'and faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God." It will not be long before the seed sprouts up and just like in the natural world the spiritual man grows from the water and light of God's Word. But it remains the responsibility of the hearer to tend to this work daily. Exposing yourself to the light and the water of God's Word every day will bring about the speedy growth of the spirit in the inner man. As this takes place the seedling will be transformed into a mighty tree that will withstand the winds of doubt and the cares and trials of this life that will come against every believer... Without the Word of God, I don't know where I'd be! T.O. 9/19/09 happy birthday isaac! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Biker Bob [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 19:01:28 09/28/09 Mon Without the Word you would still be on earth in one form or another. There is no magic and you can't travel without a rig. Physics rules and the rest is just talk. Does the Bible talk about Black holes? What about our seemingly endless universe? Does the Bible talk about other life forms we have not encountered yet? We exist therefore others must in an infinite space? What about the time space relationship and the fact that most of the starlight seen in the sky is millions of years old by the time we see it? If the bible is the last word how come it lacks this information? I find this an indication that its probably not the last word about anything. God is concept not a mystery. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Bio-Mass Bob [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 19:32:37 11/22/09 Sun Last night we went to the Bob Cat for a burger and a beer as we often do. As we headed for the door a group of folks passed us. A smiley faced guy handed me a post card. I took it not thinking. As I entered the Bob Cat I looked at the picture on one side. Two men cowering in a barren rubble landscape. A central light came down in front of them. I flipped it over and found a 800 number where I could get a free copy of the Book of More Man. It sounded kinda Gay. I thought for a moment, More like the book of Moron. How come people need to shove their belief structure into the faces of those who didn't ask for it? It is not constructive in any way. Why the smile? Is it to disarm? Why not just state your GD purpose? Hey I am stumping for my lord. I am distributing junk mail for Jesus. Just say it right out front. A bunch of cowards really. [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Joek [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 06:39:19 12/19/09 Sat I'll never forget the time (years back) a couple of older ladies knocked on my bachelor apt door and I opened it only to have them walk right in and start talking Jesus this and Jesus that. I wanted to kick them in the ass, but they being 'ladies', made it a no-go. After about 10-15 minutes of me being patient I told them I had to tend to some business, so they asked if they could leave me some material to read on my own. Not just flyers either. They loaded me up with all sorts of hard-cover material, that was intended to convert me. They said they would be back in a few days to retrieve the "borrow" books from me. As they walked out the door, I tossed the whole package deal in the trash. 3 days later, sure enough they came calling. I just watched from inside without opening the door. They were quite persistent, and walked around the apt building knocking on every available door. They finally gave up and left a note asking me to return their material. Of course, by now it was in the landfill where it belonged. I suppose I'll go to hell over such juvenile behavior, but hey, it made me laugh so hard, it drew tears.....tears of joy! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Telebob [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 07:37:45 12/19/09 Sat It is a mystery to me why people fall for all that crap. Its hard enough to find good workers and then see people working really hard at something that produces nothing. Go figure, they could be out having fun enjoying life. Instead they go around and annoy 99% of the people they talk to. Wake up Silly people! [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Telebob [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 05:34:50 12/23/09 Wed Tim you should read this book. http://richarddawkins.net/godDelusion Very hard to ignore [ Post a Reply to This Message ]

[> Subject: Re: The Mystery of God Author: Tim [ Edit | View ] Date Posted: 11:54:47 12/24/09 Thu You came dangerously close to being deleted once again my non-silly (godless) friend. Thankfully, I waited and did not act immediately upon reading your comments... Because alas, God has given me the ability to respond to your comments here on this Christmas Eve Day 2009. It is a timely answer and with God given "response ability" (to some silliness) that I share these scriptures with you and anyone else that visite here and has the ears to hear them. Thanks be to God! The psalmist says in the fourteenth psalm, verse one, "The fool has said in his heart, 'there is no God.' " and in chapter 12 of Proverbs, "The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But he who heeds counsel is wise." and Psalm 1: "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he (the silly man) meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree, planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he (the silly one) does shall prosper." The rest of that psalm refers to the foolish man. I won't emphasize this here because it's not good news for the fool, but you all can look it up - remember the fear of the Lord (that's revererential fear) is the beginning of wisdom!! And everybody who would be 'silly' needs to start there. In the New Testament and chapter 1 of the First letter to the Corinthians, Paul (the silly) writes to all who would be: "The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us (the silly ones) who are being saved it is the power of God, for it is written; 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.' (Is 29:14) Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. (wow, what an i r o n y!) For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we (again the silly ones) preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks (all those who would be silly too), CHRIST (is) the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God (what you call silliness) is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." (1 Corin 1:18-25 NKJV - with parenthesis added by this writer) And finally, to confirm my own silliness in light of all that has been said above: I Corin 2:27-31: "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world (I'm in that number!) to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world (again that's me!) to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you (the silly ones) are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God -- and righteousness and sanctification and redemption (that's good new to the silly!) -- that as it is written, He who glories, let him glory in the Lord." NKJV (except for parenthesis which are mine.) And all the 'silly' ones said, AMEN! and GLORY to GOD! Holy Christmas to ALL! from the downside up Kingdom T.O. 12/24/09 [ Post a Reply to This Message ]