Відео

There's a lot in your message worth meditating on. I'd like to consider just your last sentence. There's a drama on at the moment called The Boys. Ask someone what it's about and they'll say something like "it's a superhero show about what happens if the people who get superpowers are selfish and immortal rather than heroic ". There's a lot wrapped up in the words "it's a superhero show". If you were a time traveller not familiar with the genre and you watched The Boys then the surface superhero-show details would catch your attention more than the second half of the description. You might then discover other superhero shows had come before, and conclude that since there was no one canonical account of what superheroes there were or how they came to get powers, they should all be discarded. But that's missing the point. The superhero stuff is just the carrier wave. A vehicle to explore a deeper idea. So too are ancient stories. There were whole genres, like flood myth, that worked a lot like superhero shows today, and could be used as a delivery mechanism for a wide range of ideas. God gives us the things he needs us to know wrapped up in stories we can understand. He even made some things that had previously only happened in stories actually take place for real, to really get his points across. C S Lewis described Christianity as a "true myth".

Hello, I believe I understand your concerns, however what you have expressed is that there are shared concepts or elements between Christianity. I too see these shared concepts, elements, stories, but I don't see how that could cause you to lose faith in God. I'm not trying to blame you for how your feeling, I'm only saying this as an outside observer. It sounds to me like you had a certain expectation of God and the Bible, that expectation did not match reality, so you chose to turn away from God. What I would ask of you is to consider that your expectation was wrong, rather than the Bible or God was the wrong one. Additionally, to more apologetically answer your concerns. Yes there are other stories, older than the Bible, which have similar themes, concepts or teachings, but does that mean what the Bible is telling you is stolen or false? Likewise, what we read of the life of Jesus, there are plenty of other stories and people throughout history with shared elements to him. None of that means the stories are made up or cannot be trusted. Take flood myths for example, nearly every culture has a flood story, the fact that there are so many doesnt mean it's not true but instead that it is true. That somewhere in our distant past a massive flood occurred, it was so impactful everyone remembered and wrote about it. Does that mean the bibles version is true or correct, who knows and who cares. That story can teach us truths about God's relationship to man, and man's continued failure to love God even as he extended his love and companionship to man. My point in saying all this is, consider not what parts of the Bible are true, instead read it like it's fiction, read it like it's one bug story trying to teach you philosophical truths about the world, man and God. When you do this the idea of if a story is true no longer matters, as the truth of what it is trying to teach you is what matters. Also I must ask, are you saying you are now an atheist or simply not a Christian anymore? Thanks, and please don't take anything I said as rude, I'm only trying to share my thoughts and what iv learned over my years of study since accepting YHWH as my Lord and my God.

@@edwardbrowncross Thank you so incredibly much for taking time to address me! I see what you’re saying, I know the show The Boys and get what you’re trying to say, but I don’t think you can honestly compare the two scenarios because the latter version of superhero stories doesn’t claim to be the one authentic truth. It’s just another take on earlier versions. The Bible, however, claims to be the inspiration of God. How can the earlier stories then be possible?? I can’t wrap my brain around this particular concept. I mean, in the flood story there are similar word for word phrases where the Bible mirrored the Eric of Gilgamesh. Did God first inspire that story? If so then the whole concept of God as portrayed in the Bible cannot possibly be correct. I just don’t understand.

@@christian11111 Thank you also for responding. I have lost faith in the idea of there being a God as portrayed in the Bible. I feel like the more that I learned, the more I came to see that the integrity of the inerrant Word of God had lost its authenticity. This is why I care if the stories are true. I had no expectations, only a desire to seek God. If it doesn’t matter which flood stories are true then it likewise shouldn’t matter what savior stories are true. I appreciate your advice to read it as fiction but learn the truth it’s trying to teach you…..I don’t know about that, maybe, however then, the traditional Christian truth’s are no more relevant than those in the Iliad or the Koran or the Vedas or the Enuma Elish. This is where I stand at this point I guess. I realize that I am somewhat the same person that I was when I identified as a Christian, only I would definitely consider myself to be even more compassionate towards other people’s feelings and respectful towards their beliefs. I’m a compassionate and loving person not because of a spirit upon me but because I choose to be that way. Sometimes I make mistakes. If I hurt someone I work to fix it because it it’s the right thing to do. Who determines what’s right? I don’t know, I think we all have a moral sense inside of us….even animals do. That’s why they can be loyal, how else….. all I know is that Moses was not the first law giver, nor were the laws unique or original. The Code of Hammurabi was written centuries before the Biblical laws. Again, this is why I think there has to more to it then is just limiting ourselves to the idea of only one concept of God. There is good and bad to be found in each person and in each belief. All we can do is take the good and leave the bad, I guess. Peace.

@@ALLrWorthy hello, thanks for the reply. Yeah I understand what your saying but I have to ask, did you previously believe that the Bible was the oldest document talking about the relationship between man and God? Personally my faith is strengthened through the credibility and reliability of the NT. Just because some other sources, which there is only one of prior to Jesus, that depicted a God coming in human form, dying and being resurrected, doesn't discredit the NT at all. Would it help you if I went through what makes the NT the most reliable ancient document in history? Thanks for your time. I just wish we could speak in person , I find your experience so interesting. It's almost exactly like what Tim Mackie described about his friend Matt in his intro of the video.

Last Sunday, in Guildford, UK

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Unity in the Church of Christ!