68 lines
3.1 KiB
Plaintext
68 lines
3.1 KiB
Plaintext
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Msg #: [210/226] Base: PAGAN-Spirituality
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Date : 13 Oct 93 20:50:44 Stat: Sent
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From : Jim Taylor
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To : All
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Title: On Christian Responsibility
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@INTL 93:9609/0 93:9004/0
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Having made an initial stab at defining the difference between Christian
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Believers and Christian Faith-Holders, I would like to present my ideas
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concerning the responsibilities of a Christian in a forum such as this
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one.
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First of all, all Christians are responsible to represent Christ as best
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they are able to. The success with which any of us manage to do this will
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tend to vary. Sometimes we will do it well; other times we will fail.
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Secondly, all Christians should be able to be at least as civil, as open
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minded, as cordial, and as supportive of others, as anyone on this echo.
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Those who cannot achieve this, demonstrate the falsehood that Christianity
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is an inferior religion, for ignorant fanatics. This IS a falsehood, and
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Christians who give this impression, disgrace their Lord by doing so.
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Thirdly, Christians ought to have a sense of humor--after all, who in all
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the earth is more ridiculous than we are?--but should never be mockers.
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What is a mocker? S/he is a person who makes jokes at the expense of
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others, for no purpose except to poke fun at them. If one has another
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purpose, and IF that purpose is to teach the other person something that
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everyone needs to know, then possibly that is not mockery; however, it is
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borderline, and should be avoided when possible.
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Fourthly, Christians should at all times remember that people are led
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to Christ BY EXAMPLE, not by being harrangued by tract-wielding, Bible-
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thumping loud-mouths! On this echo, proselytizing is absolutely
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forbidden, though it is always legitimate to answer another person's
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questions. But in other places, even though proselytizing may not be
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forbidden in those other places, the Christian needs to realize that if
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s/he has to convince people with words, s/he is NOT convincing them by
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her/his own life, so something is drastically wrong. When this is the
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case, the Christian needs to stop preaching Christianity and start LIVING
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Christianity.
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Finally, the Christian's responsibility to non-Christians is NOT to "save"
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them. Only GOD can truly save people; no man or woman can save another
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person. True Faith-Holders will know that God is able to save whomever
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He chooses, if they are not determined to destroy themselves. So let God
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do it--it's His job, not yours!
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"So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows
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mercy." (Romans 9:16)
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* Z
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* F O S
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* E
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Light & Life,
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Jim
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--- DB 1.54/003113
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* Origin: Home of the PODSnet Co-Moderator, SPIRITuality Echo (93:9500/2)
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SEEN-BY: 102/943 128/101 9000/2 10 9001/0 9004/0 1 9006/0 9007/0 9008/0
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SEEN-BY: 9660/0 9680/0 9690/1 9800/0 9900/0
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@PATH: 9500/2 0 9600/0 9004/0
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