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LATEST SEMINARY CLASS
I could say a lot about seminary. I think it's a system in need of some major reform. I have some time to think about what I'm going to do about that as I have completed my last class for a while last night. Our adoption process keeps me out of seminary for next quarter, so I'll have to evaluate what to do next Spring.
Anyway, this seminary class was on the first 1600 years of church history. Here's what I’ve been reminded of in my History Class- primarily in the 500 pages I read for the class:
- Christianity has a long history, not all of it good. Not all of it I want to claim, but I can’t change the past, I can only influence the future.
- Sin really screws things up in the church, society, government, and people.
- “Christians” have killed a lot of people in defense of heresy. In fact, it seems as though to kill those who don’t believe in the orthodox way was pretty much universally accepted for centuries… and in some of the most horrific and ungodly ways imaginable. This is ridiculous in light of the fact that Christians were at one time the ones persecuted in this way before governments accepted it as part of the social fabric.
- The Monastic movement was actually birthed out of the lack of persecution and people getting lazy with their convictions when it was no longer illegal to be a believer in Jesus.
- People are willing to die for their religious convictions. Millions and millions of people have died for their faith beliefs throughout time.
Buy way of a so what clause, 5 questions I’m stewing on as a result:
- Who would not want to claim my faith actions as part of their Christian History and would I be glad they did not?
- How has sin influenced me?
- What do I do as a Christian that is acceptable by Christendom today, but counter the teachings of Jesus?
- How has the legality of my faith resulted in an unhealthy friendship with the world in me?
- What convictions do I hold deeply enough to die for?
6 comments:
Great questions for all of us to ask ourselves.
When I was in Seminary I remember learning about and reading writings by some of those Christians who killed heretics. In particular I remember reading about how many of the first Anabaptists were put to death. The justification the killers used was that by being heretics, heretics were making it worse for themselves and others in eternity - so the killers were doing the heretics a favor by killing them before they could heap more wrath upon themselves. Scary stuff, and stuff I have a hard time picturing Jesus doing or supporting.
It goes along with your other observation, that many times our walks with Jesus are largely influenced by our surrounding culture. Sometimes we turn our own points of view into articles of faith. Stripping that extra stuff away to get closer to the heart of what Jesus wants is a real challenge.
Answer to Q3: Voting for Obama
Anonymous man or woman: did you vote? If so, for whom and why would Jesus have done whatever you did?
I did not vote for President but I voted for/against several propositions.
Honestly, why pretend to have a clue if Jesus would vote, let alone for whom? All we can know is what is revealed and that the Lord sovereignly places people into these positions of power. Churchill, Hitler, Gerald Ford, Obama, etc.
I will pray that Barack Obama would be seriously and quickly discipled in the Word of God, that he would instantly begin putting off his corrupt and evil worldview, and replacing it with convictions that reflect the mind of God.
My question to "Christians for Obama": Why vote and expend your efforts to place a man in office whose worldview is so far from the mind of God and whose view of human life is so low?
I'll continue this conversation if you tell me who it's with.
You chose to not vote for a president. I chose to vote.
I have explained my reasoning for why I voted as I did extensively in the post you referred to and in the comments of that post. We obviously disagree on my conclusions.
I agree, I don't think I have a clue who Jesus would vote for.
You ask good questions, Brian! Could take a long time just to think through each one...
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