Beliefs... can anyone clear this? 10 points?

Ok... my religious life in short... I grew up as a christian. I never questioned it. Then, a lot of junk happened with my dad. He is a lisenced pastor. He is also in jail for rape. You could say that's one bad apple. Then, comes my best friends parents. We lived with them for a while. They are christians. The Woman is a narcisist and her husband has been no more than a dog to her for the last twenty years. She used to put all of the kids on the back porch and lock all of the doors. Then, one summer she took my mom across the country leaving me with my dad. Could be three coincidental bad apples... Then, comes the church. I have been to over twenty churches in six different states. Every single one of these churches is a backstabbing sneaky lying bunch of people. Baptist, Prespeterian, Southern Baptist, Non-denominational... Every church that I have been to, has said one thing and done another. According to the bible Jesus hung with the lowly.Beliefs... can anyone clear this? 10 points?
';This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:


that ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour: knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,'; 2Pe 3:1-3.


'; Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.'; Mat 7:21-23


You see, most people think that to be a follower of The Lord, all you have to do is look like you're a follower of The Lord; but we all know looks can be deceiving. God is not the author of deceipt. So, all of the people who dress up every weekend and parapde around looking good for each other are (for lack of a better term) full of ****.


God is calling out for those of us who know His voice to get away from the false system of belief, and to turn to Him. Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. Read the bible (King James only, the rest are doctrinally unsound, including the new king james version).That's all we can do at this point. Read and learn who He really is. These are Jesus' words, ';Luk 21:16 And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.


Luk 21:17 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake.';


Thanks for listening, and may God bless you and keep you. I'm over here at KOHIAH (Yahoo group)Beliefs... can anyone clear this? 10 points?
I'll give you this, MY parable:





You are walking down a dark %26amp; lonely street at night, unarmed, and you encounter a gang. They overpower you, and beat that A$$.





Do you go down that same street tomorrow night, again, unarmed?





Or, do you go down another street, to encounter yet another gang???





A wise unarmed man taketh thee bus.
You are starting to see how people can truly be. We aren't the great people we think we are. You just need to surround yourself with positive people and shy away from the bad apples and you will be fine. There are enough decent people in this world for you to have a family of your own.





Don't give up hope.
Yes, the world is full of sinners and just showing up at church services doesn't turn anyone into a saint. Follow your path of good and you will be okay.





P.S. The actions of those you found to be hypocritical is not an indictment on the whole organization or institution.
People are just people, religious or not.


Nobodies perfect and nobody is all bad but some are just not right.


I'm sure you'll find the same proportion of 'bad apples' in any orchard, but also the the same proportion of good.
Theres hypocritics in any church. They are usually the minority. If all the churchs you went to we all hypocrits and such, find another one. Your right Jesus didn't hang with the stuck up hypocritics.
no religion or philosophy functions in any sort of pure state once it becomes a mass movement; the drift is inevitable - especially once it becomes any sort of obligation rather than a choice.
So you've found a lot of Christians who are hypocrites. I found the same thing.





The question is, where do you go from here?
Try looking into Wiccan, it is based on the old beliefs that people believed long before the catholic church pushed its beliefs. Christianity has always been corrupt from what ive seen.
That all seems rather true to me.





On the other hand, there is you. All that ugliness made you what you are today. My life sucked too. Now I am awesomeness-in-a-can.





the vortex calls for you
Sweetie, welcome to life.
The answer to your question may be in looking at the churches you attended. They all left the guiding Spirit given to the Catholic Church by Jesus Christ when He instituted Peter as the first Pope.
All I can say is SORRY. Wow. Jesus isn't going to be very happy when he gets back, will he?





And more people than we think will be told ';Depart from me, I never knew you';.





I am so sorry. Really.
RELIGION IS WHAT MAN MADE IT, NOT GOD. BE A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST, READ YOUR BIBLE AND PRAY.GOD WILL SEND YOU WHERE YOU NEED TO GO. MAY NOT BE A CHURCH, OR IT MAY BE A GOOD CHURCH.
Man is Flawed only GOD can give you truth always seek his truth and do not be led astray by an Apostate Church or Hedonism..





God Bless...
when you put your faith in man and not in God you will always be disappointed.
try the anabaptists, who are genuine.
Don't give up. God loves you and will always be there for you.





I'll be praying:) x x
*big smiles* Welcome! You are welcome to stay and chat.





Can I make you a margarita?





You know....this IS the first step. Admitting they have a problem.
I have to tell you - I went to parochial school (all Catholic) and International Schools (Belgium and Switzerland - ALL religions) and people are pretty much people.





But I had a recent experience that really made me think harder about it. My daughter is 12 and best friends for four years now (REAL best friends) with another girl. Her family attend church regularly. My daughter does not (we're pantheists at most).





Nevertheless - my daughter will not abide shunning a kid unless they are violent while her friend constantly places radical negative judgments on other girls for any ridiculous reason - ';too tall, too fat, too - whatever';. My daughter is rethinking her friendship because of what she feels is unfair and bigoted. (We have never nagged her about this - but we expose her to different cultures, lifestyles, people in a positive manner whenever we can.





I think that religion can truly narrow your acceptance of your fellow human by restricting your idea of community to those who believe as you do and those who don't. And it can extend right out into full-blown prejudice.
I am sorry about them, I really am.





But if you are expecting to find a Church to go to that is perfect, who all get along 100% of the time, who are not jealous of each other, who treat each other and the world around them perfectly like Jesus did, You will never find one.





Not one, not anywhere, not ever. The reason?





We are all human, none of us are perfect, a Church is not a bastion for the holly, but a hospital for the sick. We all need Redemption. I spent 40 years in Church and saw the same thing, when I became Catholic, I realized that we are not perfect, and within the Catholic Church we have the Sacraments (tools) to help us stay in God's grace even though we fail. From what I have found the Catholic People tend to be the most humble and accepting because we don't have to judge each other, and our faith is based on humility.





The kind of people you are looking for, they are not in a Church, they are not in a Bar, they are not on this earth, they are in Heaven, and that is where we are trying to get to and why we want to be there.





Peace and God Bless your Search.
Jesus was a Jew. He hung with other Jews; more specifically, members of his own sect. It was important to him that the members of his group represent the group in a certain way, so he laid down a lot of rules and expectations regarding how they were to treat each other. If you take a look at how he treated those who were not part of his group, you see a very different attitude and behavior.





The bottom line is that the minute you decide that you belong in a group made up of people who believe that they are so special that they're exempt from death, what kind of people do you think are going to be in that group? There is something inherently wrong in looking at yourself and other human beings in terms of whether they will be eternally *rewarded* or *punished* after they die. It's the religion itself that is the problem - it divides people and not only attracts, but creates, arrogant, judgmental people who are that much more dangerous for being able to gather in large numbers. The sheer number of them gives the illusion that what they believe is true and that they are right.





My advice would be not to believe anything for which there is no proof, and life gets much simpler, and the people get much nicer, when that is the order of the day. I also advise you to do some reading about the real world, some Carl Sagan or even a little Douglas Adams, and you might find that it's beautiful and awesome enough as it is, when you really understand it.
Well, I dont know you. There are so many angles to that story. But I hope that you find Jesus somewhere. Just remember that Jesus loves you and just because bad stuff happens doesn't make it his fault. A lot of bad stuff happened to me, and I blamed God. Most of it stemmed off my mum dying when I was 9. I thought ';Why couldn't God have let me have her for a few more years. He doesn't need her in heaven!'; But I have grown so much stronger from it and I will see her again someday and I will be able to share my testimony with people and maybe reach their hearts.


Also God hung out with the people who needed him most and who were most open. These were the people at the bottom of the ladder.
Well let me clear up first that I'm not Christian;


nor do I have any desire to ever be again....


but if you're fine with that [or even not :P],


here's my advice:





I wouldn't let the beliefs [or twisted practice] of others ruin a belief for you *if it's something you truly feel/believe yourself*.








Any belief worth having really should be able to survive doubt....but then again, maybe you're doubting it because you don't feel it?


Either way it should come down to how *you* feel...and not b/c of what you've been told or what any religious writings claim; but just because of your own original thoughts/feelings/beliefs on them.





Maybe you need to re-examine how you feel religiously?


there's nothing wrong with deciding to be something other than Christian.....


and as you said you ';never questioned it';,


so maybe it's time you did-


you might come to the conclusion that you really do believe in Christianity; and if so, good for you.


but you might also come to a slightly different conclusion, and that's really just as well.





:] whatever works for you ♥.


----------------------


*edit* wow? what thumbs down fairy was here?


that was a perfectly decent answer D:
Cro, it seems as if you have been through so much. But one thing which seems to come from behind your words is a sense of kindness, Love. I do not feel hatred in your words, and that is a wonderful thing, as I could easily see where someone could find a reason to feel hate in the face of such things.


I do not have an answer for you, other than to tell you something.


I feel you to be a deeply good soul, and whatever direction you take, you will always have that deep goodness within.


It is a credit to see, and I admire it a great deal.


I would respectfully suggest that perhaps instead of religion, you perhaps look at spirituality. Start with the one, you. For it seems that what is inside is truly worth a great deal.


Blessed be.
This felling you have is correct.You worship GOD in spirit and in truth.Jesus is real and his love is real.Place no confidence in men.Look the church system of OUR LORDS day murdered him..... Believe me this world is far worse than the world OUR LORD lived in.Did not OUR LORD warn us of this when he said if these things are done when the tree is green what will happen when it is dry.The message for today is comeout from among them and be ye seperate.Your heart is right before GOD and he knows you.You don't go to church to be saved The Father draws you to The SON.This is happening to you.Trust in JESUS and read his WORD and do as that leeds you. your servent david
My Dear,


You have seen some stuff in Christian churches and it was not good. The feeling of betrayal must be in your heart.


As I started my Christian walk, I too was deeply hurt by so called Christians who were not living the right way. For awhile I turned my back and wondered if there were so much as one Christian left alive. I had a desire to serve God but did not begin to know how due to the things I had seen. I finally cried out to God and ask Him to show me one true Christian. He did and I still did not follow His teaching for many years afterwards


If any one would have asked me if I were a Christian, I would have said yes but I was so far from living the life. I was a sad miserable person claiming something that was not rightfully mine. I flirted with God and was in a terrible mess. I think the people you mentioned might have been or still are in the same position I was in, just different types of sin involved. Pray for them as they need it and go to God and ask Him for help. He will not deny you if you are really seeking Him. Then forgive these people, forgiveness does not mean that what they did was right; just like Jesus does not say that what we do is right when He forgives us. It just means that you are going on with your life and seeking Gods forgiveness.


No matter where you go to church, Satan will be there. That does not mean the people are all Satan, as Jesus even said to Peter, “get behind me Satan” Jesus was not calling Peter Satan but He realized that in a moment of weakness, Satan was working through Peter,


Peter went on to be a mighty man of God.
I am so sorry you had to go through all of that. I am convinced that everything bad I go through will be for a greater purpose. Some of the greater purpose I will understand while I am here on the earth. Some of it I won't understand at all until after my life is over, but I am totally convinced of it!





I have learned is that I cannot look to people to show me what my faith in God should be like. They will almost always disappoint me. I need to look to Jesus and he won't disappoint me. Jesus hung out with the lowly for a purpose. He didn't go there to imitate them, but he did enjoy and love all people.





Don't give up, keep looking for a good church. When you find a good one, hold on to it. You'll be glad you did :)
Christianity founded a moral code and thus attempts to uphold it. Unfortunatley, God doesn't enforce this code. People do and people are quite failable.





Seems to me that you have met some bad people in your life. Don't let that discourage you from finding the good. Just because someone states they are a christian does not mean they are God incarnate and a good person.





If you believe in the scripture, believe in God. If you have lost your faith in people, don't believe in man. As a whole, humans have screwed up nearly everything we touch.





According to the bible Jesus hung with the lowly, but that doesn't mean he condoned them. He forgave them.








If men were angels, we wouldn't need government.


-James Madison
I'm glad that you have opened up about what's bothering you sweetheart. I cannot apologize enough for the way you have been treated, especially by God's people.


I want to try to explain all of this in reality. I want you to understand and to know the truth.


Until we get to the place in Christ where He breaks us, that is to show us fully our sinfulness to the depths of our hearts that it really exists, we live our lives as religious frauds, as Pharisees. It is not preached in the church at all from what I have seen. Everyone thinks you pray a sinner's prayer and then you just somehow are automatically sanctified but it doesn't work that way. It takes years for our hearts to get into the sinful condition they are in, and it takes God and us time together, making Godly decisions and choices, walking in the Light, and then over time we are purified. But if we choose to walk in the flesh, hurting ourselves and others, we hinder our purification and we can even stay in our sinful nature forever, all we have to do is be lazy about doing what we know is right.


Jesus is the only way to the Father, you must never let go of that; there is no other way to be saved and you know this deep in your heart.


The people you are dealing with have not been broken by Christ yet and they may not want to be; it is a difficult process because our flesh is strong and it wants to have its own way.


Jesus said in John 14:6 ';I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father, but by me.'; And you know John 3:16 ';For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have eternal life.';


Feel free to contact me if you need to talk.
Uh, every person in every one of those churches was a horrible person? Are you SURE of that?





Myself, I'm and atheist, and so see no need for any religion, but I think you must be over-generalizing.





There's also Unitarian -- which is a group with NO dogma; people can be Unitarian and think whatever they think. You might look into that, if you like the Sunday church experience.





If you're expecting moral perfection, you ain't gonna find it anywhere -- every does something that's not 100% uh, Kosher, so to speak. That includes atheists, Hindus, and the rest.