Biblically speaking, the path to Truth is one that ought to be approached carefully; Matthew 7:7 states that if one knocks, the door will be opened. If one seeks, one will find. It would be an amateur mistake to think that just because this passage is true (logic proves the point) that we all ought to rush and find the truth. Some are more comfortable living in a world they’ve embraced and been raised with since a young age. To leave this proverbial world would be like introducing a tropical fish to arctic waters. It could shock the fish into a coma of death.
With Christianity hinging on salvation that is not dependent upon acts, actions, or vain repetitions, the realm of belief; the crux of ones salvation is wholly dependent upon internal beliefs, with “Man looking at the outward appearance, while G-d looks at the heart.” (1 Sam 16:7). This verse was being spoken to David, a shepherd boy who would go on to kill a giant, and was not referencing the judgement call of ones salvation. Keep that in mind.
Were I to write a letter to my friend, Larry, with specific references and statements particular and true to his life, it would be considered foolish for somebody who is not Larry to consider the contents of the letter would be applicable to them. Consider the mailman, were he/she to base their life choices on the contents of each letter they carried, they may discover a wild ride of experiences;
…they would experience the joys of love butterflies as an overseas soldier writes home to his/her lover
…heartbreak from a young child who aimlessly writes a father to return home, while never receiving a letter in return
…anger and resentment from legal threats, divorces, and disputes
…joy and excitement at the news of a newborn child
…warmth and comfort gained from Christmas cards send from distant relatives
The list could go on…
However, it would be quite absurd for a mail carrier to believe and base their life from these letters that were never addressed to them. In fact, opening the letters would subjugate said mail carrier to the wrath of the law.
My question is now why modern day Christianity selectively chooses verses and scriptures in the bible to apply as sources of encouragement, discipline, and regulatory practices that create unhealthy environments?
Jeremiah 29:11 states: 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. However, this passage in no way, shape, or form was written to modern-day people, particularly Christians. Instead, it was written to the Jewish exiles (elders, to be specific) who had survived Jewish exile at the hands of Babylon.
To gain encouragement and life-giving strength from only selective passages not addressed to us is dangerous and hypocritical, as it’s very common to apply the ‘nice’ scriptures in the OT while altogether throwing out the ‘mean’ ones commanding the Israelites to stone children who talked back to their parents. Rather than adopting modern-day stoning, I’m more apt to moving away from isolated passages of ‘scripture’ that were never meant for me in the first place.
This is a short bit of what has been going on in my mind. Night after night, I’ve spent countless hours awake and wondering how I got to be where I am.
Should eternal salvation be completely dependent upon our beliefs, I would be considered foolish to re-examine these beliefs. However, my heart will never fully belief what my mind cannot accept. Acceptance is quite different than understanding; I do not understand the physics and properties that keep me pinned to this earth, but I can accept that gravity keeps me in place to write this blog.
1 + 1 = 2. Anybody who says differently is a fool. A is different than B. Anybody who says they are two in the same is quite blind. That being said, if there are four written accounts of one event, with variations between them; wording, dates, times, or circumstances, somebody must be wrong. To see these clear contradictions and claim all are 100% correct; infallible beyond belief, would be ignorant. To proclaim that these four accounts are not only infallible, but divine and without err, would be idiocy.
To proclaim the Christian bible is ‘infallible’ is, in and of itself, an amateur statement that demands one throw their better judgement out the window in order to believe it. Staying clear of the blatant contradictions that occur in the bible (further reading) it takes little more than a simpleton to see that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John cover the same stories and yet differ in their wording. Thus, four separate accounts of the sermon on the mount cannot be 100% accurate if all four have variations.
My beliefs have taken a sharp blow at the hands of reexamination and study. There are many things which I cannot simply take “as is” when the core of Christianity believes that my eternal salvation is on the line. If this is the case, then we ought to spend every waking moment of our lives to ensure, and be triple-sure that we are not going to be damned for all of eternity.
That being said, we ought to spend the other parts of our lives thanking G-d that we aren’t some miserable sucker born in a country where the christian faith is completely unknown, with no future other than to be damned to Hell and kicked out of heaven by a messiah he/she was never fortunate to have been introduced to, because some disobedient child spent their allowance on candy instead of funding a broke missionary to travel to a foreign country because they felt ‘led’ to go so passionately that they skipped the ‘calling’ of dutiful work to pay their way.
Bet you’ll think twice about passing the offering plate, champ.
If I have committed the cardinal sin of christianity by doubting, then I will spare Christ a swift kick to my behind and take a jump into the flames that I don’t believe to exist the way Sunday schools preach to young children every Sunday morning. (see Hell)
However, if on this path to truth I am fortunate enough to find the answer(s) I have been looking for, then it will be a reward that no man can ever put a price tag on and I will value and appreciate every sleepless hour it created.
No Comments