What is your personal belief system?

Loki

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Loki,

There is an honesty to doubt that shallow, emotion based 'faith' lacks. You get nowhere till you work through something yourself. You can't build a building without a foundation. I have always had an achilles heel for doubt emotionally, and have had to do a lot of work on my foundations, but I have been very blessed by the knowledge I have been able to access and the people in my life.

I won't get on your case, preach at or badger you but if you ever want to, I will be happy to share some of the things I have seen and researched that have turned me from being a 'Doubting Thomas'
Thank you haha, but I'm quite firm in my beliefs regarding Christianity, and I have no need for it. Just like there is nothing I could possibly say here or anywhere that would convince you that Jesus wasn't God and and interventionist "Sky Daddy" God isn't a reality, there is nothing you could provide me that I wouldn't roll my eyes at and dismiss. I believe there are people who are far more inclined mentally to believe in a more fantastical version of reality, and there are those who are not. I'm one of those who are not. I enjoy entertaining the possibility of ghosts and spirits and souls and an astral plane and such, but I don't believe I'll ever be 100% positive of their existence. I'm simply far too skeptic and critical of such things, even when I want to believe in them.
 

Thunderian

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If two people commit a sin, the one who convinced other to do it will have greater punishment because had he not made the other stray away from the right path he would have gone to paradise.
I read the other day on this board that Allah sends devils to tempt people. Can you verify this belief in Islam?
 

Red Sky at Morning

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Thank you haha, but I'm quite firm in my beliefs regarding Christianity, and I have no need for it. Just like there is nothing I could possibly say here or anywhere that would convince you that Jesus wasn't God and and interventionist "Sky Daddy" God isn't a reality, there is nothing you could provide me that I wouldn't roll my eyes at and dismiss. I believe there are people who are far more inclined mentally to believe in a more fantastical version of reality, and there are those who are not. I'm one of those who are not. I enjoy entertaining the possibility of ghosts and spirits and souls and an astral plane and such, but I don't believe I'll ever be 100% positive of their existence. I'm simply far too skeptic and critical of such things, even when I want to believe in them.
Ha ha! I might not believe in the Tax Man but he knows where I'm at!!! You are not the most resolute skeptic the World has known...

'So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

There are two kinds of skeptics, the Thomas kind and the Richard Dawkins kind. Thomas had a very high standard of evidence he required to believe, Dawkins is entirely commited to unbelief...
 

Kung Fu

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I read the other day on this board that Allah sends devils to tempt people. Can you verify this belief in Islam?
Allah(SWT) sends devils to tempt people? I've never heard that one before.

The Devil and his minions, just like humans, have free will and since the Devil promised the Most High that he would try to lead mankind astray he tries to whisper/temp people into doing things that would or could lead them astray. Ultimately it's our choice to act on these temptations.
 

manama

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I read the other day on this board that Allah sends devils to tempt people. Can you verify this belief in Islam?
kind of yes and kind of no

We remember the Devil and Adam and Eve incident right?
in the islamic version of the incident, devil lured Adam and Eve into eating the fruit by claiming it will make them angels so when the entire incident happened, they prayed for God's forgiveness. Allah mentions this in the Quran.

They said, "Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and have mercy upon us, we will surely be among the losers."

At the time when Satan was thrown out of Jannah and promised God that he will lure his servants away from him, Allah mentions this in the Quran

[Iblees] said, "My Lord, because You have put me in error, I will surely make [disobedience] attractive to them on earth, and I will mislead them all
Except, among them, Your chosen servants."
[ Allah ] said, "This is a path [of return] to Me [that is] straight.
Indeed, My servants - no authority will you have over them, except those who follow you of the deviators.
And indeed, Hell is the promised place for them all.

At this time Satan asked God for various things, for the sake of this challenge he made out of arrogance and jealousy
-for immortal life because like humans, djinns also die. But God didn't give Satan immortality, he gave him life until doomsday and he will die along with this world.

-To have the power to cause Fitnah over the children of Adam because Satan can not have any influence over anything unless God gives him the permission to do so, so Satan asked for that permission and he was given so. but this permission wasn't enough for satan because the feeling of love a person has for God is far stronger than the inclination to sin therefore satan asked for another thing again.

-He asked Allah to increase his power and thus God gave him the power and that was for every human child born in this world, at the same time a satan/demon is born to the Devil/iblees/lucifer and this satan stays with the child until his death and keeps trying to whisper evil into his mind.

-He asked for increase again and thus he was given the power to run into the veins of a human like blood and thus when a person who is not evil but really pious feels the urge to sin its from satan. as mentioned in quran

Satan promises them and arouses desire in them. But Satan does not promise them except delusion.


This makes it clear that every person has a devil with him that keeps urging him to sin in a way that the person feels like as if its his own will and thought. however, he only urges the person. To actually go through it depends on the person.

(However, Adam a.s heard this all and also made a dua or prayer to God.)

Adam a.s upon hearing this asked "Oh Allah you have given shaitan so much authority over me so what will you give me. give me something ya Allah"

So Allah accepted his prayer as well and gave us various things.
- For every child born on this earth Allah will appoint two angels over him who will protect him from the evil of Satan.
So, we all have one devil and 5 angels with us at any given time. Two that protect us from the evil of Satan this is why satan can't "Actually" harm any of us, two that write down our good and bad deeds and one that urges us to do good again keep in mind, the angel only urges and whispers in our hearts to do good, to actually do it or not is upon the person.

But since Satan had asked more, Adam a.s also asked Allah to give him more and Allah did
-For every bad deed done by a person he will only be held accountable and punished for that deed alone but for every virtue the reward and blessings will be 10 times the good deed. This made Adam a.s really happy so he asked for more and he was given

-Allah said to him that his mercy and forgiveness will be open until the soul leaves the body, meaning that as long as a person is alive if he keeps asking for God's forgiveness wholeheartedly, God will keep forgiving him.so, the final thing given to Adam was (or whole humanity for that matter) is mentioned in the Quran

Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah . Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."





 

Loki

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Ha ha! I might not believe in the Tax Man but he knows where I'm at!!! You are not the most resolute skeptic the World has known...

'So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."

There are two kinds of skeptics, the Thomas kind and the Richard Dawkins kind. Thomas had a very high standard of evidence he required to believe, Dawkins is entirely commited to unbelief...
If Jesus appeared to me and let me stick my fingers through his holes (giggity?) then I would believe. I'd have a lot of questions for him, like "Why'd you do things so dumb?" But I would believe, heck I think even Dawkins would change his tune in this situation. That's not ever going to happen though.

Are you saying that you have proofs that aren't anecdotal or faith based available to you?
 

Lady

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IMO this video explains it quite well even though the speaker and channel is islamic i would suggest to atleast give this video a try[/QUOTE

IMO this video explains it quite well even though the speaker and channel is islamic i would suggest to atleast give this video a try
Thanks. The part I can agree with is how the remembrance of Jesus our Messiah's birth has been so corrupted by the RCC when it melded the pagan Winter Solstice celebration into the birth of Christ. The birth of Christ many believe was actually around harvest time in Israel.
Given the difficulties and the desire to bring pagans into Christianity, “the important fact then … to get clearly into your head is that the fixing of the date as December 25th was a compromise with paganism” (William Walsh, The Story of Santa Klaus, 1970, p. 62).
Here are some Bible facts that help determine the time of Christ's birth:
1. We know that shepherds were in the fields watching their flocks at the time of Jesus’ birth (Luke 2:7-8).
Shepherds were not in the fields during December
2. Jesus’ parents came to Bethlehem to register in a Roman census (Luke 2:1-4).
Such censuses were not taken in winter...
3.If Jesus Christ wasn’t born on December 25, does the Bible indicate when He was born?
The biblical accounts point to the fall of the year as the most likely time of Jesus’ birth, based on the conception and birth of John the Baptist.
Since Elizabeth (John’s mother) was in her sixth month of pregnancy when Jesus was conceived (Luke 1:24-36), we can determine the approximate time of year Jesus was born if we know when John was born.
John’s father, Zacharias, was a priest serving in the Jerusalem temple during the course of Abijah (Luke 1:5). Historical calculations indicate this course of service corresponded to June 13-19 in that year ( The Companion Bible, 1974, Appendix 179, p. 200).
It was during this time of temple service that Zacharias learned that he and his wife Elizabeth would have a child (Luke 1:8-13). After he completed his service and traveled home, Elizabeth conceived (Luke 1:23-24). Assuming John’s conception took place near the end of June, adding nine months brings us to the end of March as the most likely time for John’s birth. Adding another six months (the difference in ages between John and Jesus) brings us to the end of September as the likely time of Jesus’ birth.
 

Red Sky at Morning

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If Jesus appeared to me and let me stick my fingers through his holes (giggity?) then I would believe. I'd have a lot of questions for him, like "Why'd you do things so dumb?" But I would believe, heck I think even Dawkins would change his tune in this situation. That's not ever going to happen though.

Are you saying that you have proofs that aren't anecdotal or faith based available to you?
Perhaps...

Depending on how things play out on the world scene in the near future, we might be in the verge of some very specific prophetic fulfillments contained in Isaiah 17 1-3, Psalm 83 and Ezekiel 38...

There is a very odd phrase in one on the 'Minor Prophets' (meaning he wrote a short book!) Habakuk 1:5 which reads..

"Look among the nations,
wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told."

Christians since the first disciples have thought Jesus could return at any point and we have become familiar with the ignored figure clutching a Bible in the street, with his 'A' board reading 'The End us Nigh'!

These passages are as yet unfulfilled and are specific prophecies which could not be engineered describing certain world events that may happen before the events warned of in Revelation.

If they do in fact play out, I think those who have not made their mind up may get one last chance to take Jesus at his word before things get a whole lot worse.

I include a link outlining how current world developments seem to be setting the stage for such events. If these things happen it must beg the question 'how did the writers of the Bible know?'

I also appreciate to the skeptical mind such ideas are as plausible as saying that Dobby the House Elf delivered this information to me on a unicorn, but if you ever saw 'Back to the Future' just think of me as Marty trying to tell Doc about the guys with the van in the car park...

 
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Red Sky at Morning

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If Jesus appeared to me and let me stick my fingers through his holes (giggity?) then I would believe. I'd have a lot of questions for him, like "Why'd you do things so dumb?" But I would believe, heck I think even Dawkins would change his tune in this situation. That's not ever going to happen though.

Are you saying that you have proofs that aren't anecdotal or faith based available to you?
Last one, I promise... The book of Nahum, tucked away again in the Minor Prophets describes the fall of Ninevah (Mosul) and some interesting imagery makes it sound like a second fulfillment of that message is underway. If it is happens the way one interpretation has it, it will be on the news for sure...

Just flagging this one at the moment...
 

Todd

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Christian (unorthodox) I.e. I am a follower of "the way" rather than a follower of the Pauline gospel. "The way" is what the Chruch in Jersualem lead by the disciples of Jesus was called in the first century.
 

Lady

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Hi Todd, welcome!
How are you informing yourself about The Way? Are there documents, scriptures that you are drawing from that teach you The Way?
By the way (no pun intended!) are you aware that this teaching of The Way has been around for awhile? As in, modern times, I mean.
I had an old boyfriend who called me up to tell me about Jesus and what he was learning about the way. Little did he know that I had become a born again believer since our last contact. This was early in my "walk" with Jesus Christ.
Also, a friend of mine in the Portland area is currently learning about The Way.
I am, so far, a little ignorant of the teaching. Are you able to clue me in on what your new learning is?
 

Todd

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Hi Todd, welcome!
How are you informing yourself about The Way? Are there documents, scriptures that you are drawing from that teach you The Way?
By the way (no pun intended!) are you aware that this teaching of The Way has been around for awhile? As in, modern times, I mean.
I had an old boyfriend who called me up to tell me about Jesus and what he was learning about the way. Little did he know that I had become a born again believer since our last contact. This was early in my "walk" with Jesus Christ.
Also, a friend of mine in the Portland area is currently learning about The Way.
I am, so far, a little ignorant of the teaching. Are you able to clue me in on what your new learning is?
The Bible....I am not part of some religious sect or cult named "The way" or anything like that. I simply choose to use that description because that is what the Bible says about the first century believers in Jerusalem. The term "Christian" was first given to converts of Paul outside of Jerusalem. By saying I am a follower of "the way", I am making a subtle distinction between Pauline theology and theology primarily based on the teachings of Jesus and the disciples that he taught and trained face to face.

I have no intention of arguing about Paul with anyone, anymore. I simply choose to put emphasis on the words of Jesus over the words of Paul. And yes, I do attend a Christian Church, that I would consider a "Pauline" church, only because I have yet to find a "Jesus' words only" Church in my area.
 

Todd

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Ok, it sounds as if you are of the same beliefs as when we last interacted!
Would you say you agree with the points in this article? http://www.brentcunningham.org/?p=842
For the most part yes! It certainly goes along with what I have always said about Jesus' statement that "he is the way, the truth and the light"...all descriptions of the Torah in the Old Testament. Jesus equated himself with the Torah, yet most "Christians" throw the Torah as if it obsolete.

I like the articles all encompassing description of the Torah as " God’s self-revelation given to humanity". I beleive my description of the Torah as God's guidance and instruction for living, fits well into the premise of the article, also.
 

Thunderian

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The early church consisted predominantly of Hebrews from the twelve tribes of Israel. James was certainly talking to beleivers in Christ the Messiah.
I agree, but James isn't addressing the Jews of the early church. He is addressing believing Jews during the Tribulation.
 

Todd

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I agree, but James isn't addressing the Jews of the early church. He is addressing believing Jews during the Tribulation.
Uhm yeah...first of all he wasn't talking to just Jews...it's to all twelve tribes. Second, the Hebrew Christians of the first century were experiencing tribulation. Acts 8:1 speaks of the dispersing of the Hebrew believers after Stephen was presecuted and killed. There is absolutely no reason to think James was writing to people in the future!
 

Lady

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For the most part yes! It certainly goes along with what I have always said about Jesus' statement that "he is the way, the truth and the light"...all descriptions of the Torah in the Old Testament. Jesus equated himself with the Torah, yet most "Christians" throw the Torah as if it obsolete.

I like the articles all encompassing description of the Torah as " God’s self-revelation given to humanity". I beleive my description of the Torah as God's guidance and instruction for living, fits well into the premise of the article, also.
I appreciate the author's insights with the statement that John wrote 1:1 with calling Jesus the "logos" which is relatable for the Torah followers, since they called the Torah "the way."

However, my Kjv states in John 1:1, In the beginning was the Word [logos] and the Word was with God and the Word was God....I believe it. I believe Jesus Christ is God incarnate.
 

Thunderian

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What makes you believe that?
The Bible is predominantly a Jewish book. The only books that are directly for Christians during the church age are Romans through Philemon, and some of Acts. The rest are MAINLY for believers of different dispensations, and mostly for Jews.

The dispensation we are currently enjoying -- salvation by grace through faith alone -- will end at the Rapture of the church. After that, works will again be necessary for salvation. During the Tribulation, God will be dealing with Israel again as a nation, which is why James specifically addresses the twelve tribes. If he was addressing the church, his greeting makes no sense, since it excludes any believers who are not Jewish.
 
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