Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!bcm!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: daly@strawber.princeton.edu (John Daly) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Standing back to observe Message-ID: Date: 21 Jun 91 08:45:16 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (CFD) Lines: 51 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article , janet@cs.arizona.edu (Janet Kerr) writes: |> Now, for some reason, I seem to be sort of "standing back and observing |> it all"...and wondering. I wonder who has a corner on the "truth" and |> how can they be so sure, except by their own understanding. I read |> the articles in this and the other "religious" groups and am puzzled |> by some of the entries....so seem so blastphemous, others so sincere, |> but all (that I have read) so sure of themselves. |> |> I feel a genuine need to sit back awhile, get away from it all (zealous |> well-meaning Christians) and try to get things in perspective. I don't |> want to argue with anyone issuing volumes of Biblical quotes, I've heard |> most of it. I just wonder if, on a human level, flesh and bone, if |> there are other sincere Christians who experience the same thing, who |> just want to do what is right but are weary of theological haggling. During the Gulf War, I heard a LOT of people's opinions. Curiously, most of them seemed quite sure that they knew better than Bush how to resolve the crisis. Even more curious, most of them disagreed. I felt a bit left out, because I did not know the right answer. I think these sentiments apply equally well to the doctrine arguments you mention. I might as well add that I frequently don't have any idea who is right in theological arguments either. This does not concern me all that greatly though, because I believe God is sufficiently in control of his creation that these arguments do not threaten him. Actually, I imagine he finds most of them pretty amusing. I have noticed, with myself as much as anyone, that there is a tendency to fall back on doctrine as a sort of last restort. I believe this to be contrary to the lessons of Christian humility. We normally think of humility as how we react to things going right, but I think Christian humility has more to do with how we react to things going hopelessly wrong. At those times we should not be relying on our doctine or our own devices, but on God. The question is a simple one. Do I trust God enough to hand difficulties and uncertainties over to Him, even when every instinct makes me try to save myself? If this doesn't seem like a poignant question, consider how difficult it would be to convince a drowning man that he would be more easily saved if he would just stop thrashing about. That is when faith is truly tested. Remember that the one thing that all Christians have in common is the thing that makes them distinct from members of every other religion. Chrisitianity is the only world religion which requires a Saviour for redemption. Everyone else can save themselves through their own acts. Christians are all saved through Christ. They must ASK to be redeemed. This is an important distinction, because it means a Christian MUST be "humiliated" to be saved. Not only is this AN important distinction, I believe that this is the ONLY important distinction, which all saved Christians share. No doctrine here, just the definition of Christian. God Bless.