Originally Posted by
Daytonabill0001
Cub, out of my love for you, I'm only going to say this once and I pray that you won't become offended (it's real easy, which i have learned recently)...
I haven't stated anything other than 'here they come again...', now here is what I have to say...
"It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, 'Let me wash your face for you,' when your own face is distorted by contempt? It's this I-know-better-than-you mentality again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your own part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor. "You don't get wormy apples off a healthy tree, nor good apples off a diseased tree. The health of the apple tells the health of the tree. You must begin with your own life-giving lives. It's who you are, not what you say and do, that counts. Your true being brims over into true words and deeds.
(Luk 6:41-45 MSG)
Now after saying all of that, let all of us examine and judge our own selves, so that we might be found walking in the Lord's ways and be found in Him...
Don't you think that it is better to come together and serve Him, after all;
Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with God's welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help. Or, say, one person thinks that some days should be set aside as holy and another thinks that each day is pretty much like any other. There are good reasons either way. So, each person is free to follow the convictions of conscience. What's important in all this is that if you keep a holy day, keep it for God's sake; if you eat meat, eat it to the glory of God and thank God for prime rib; if you're a vegetarian, eat vegetables to the glory of God and thank God for broccoli. None of us are permitted to insist on our own way in these matters. It's God we are answerable to--all the way from life to death and everything in between--not each other. That's why Jesus lived and died and then lived again: so that he could be our Master across the entire range of life and death, and free us from the petty tyrannies of each other. So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother? And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister? I'd say it leaves you looking pretty silly--or worse. Eventually, we're all going to end up kneeling side by side in the place of judgment, facing God. Your critical and condescending ways aren't going to improve your position there one bit.
(Rom 14:4-10 MSG)
So I would respectfully ask you to reconsider the intent of this thread and let us serve the Lord Jesus according to our own convictions. Again, if the Lord Jesus sees fit to chasten us, we need to examine and judge our own hearts and intents for purity of spirit and love, ask for forgiveness and get up and start running the course set before us...
Blessings be upon you...
