why jesus said, if any body want to come after me you should dyning yourself and take the cross and follow me.

Question

the word of god said we should not minus and subtract and we should follow according to his word written in the bible.
but today many christian are claiming that they are born again
while they are not because they are not following the real word of
god.

Answer 1

an you know this because???? please be careful in how you judge another Christian. don't forget, we are also not to judge one another as a sign of our Christianity. there is nothing wrong with being born again -- while i don't use that particular phrase - i am. i lost my way for a while and finally woke back up and God was still smiling upon me - juts needed to open my eyes to see Him.

and don't forget what the bible also says:
Scripture itself points out an authoritative church & tradition. St Paul points out in his second letter to the Thess – stand firm & hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or letter. Here are some scriptures to check out 2 Thess 2:15, 1 Cor 11:2, 2 Thess 3:6, 2 Tim 1:13-14 & 2:2. When the first Christians had disagreements they didn’t open their bibles – they didn’t exist – they held councils and held binding decrees – these councils were those who knew more then the others and they came to an agreement/understanding and thus made a binding decree (acts 15:1-29).

Answer 2

I have read the replies posted thus for and find they are all pretty good. I think that dying to self is simply putting Christ first in all aspects of our lives. One warned of being judgmental of others and I would agree. We should not judge anyone Christians or Non-Christians. But, many Christians today have put themselve in a position to be judged. Is judging and having an opinion the same?

I heard Jesse Duplantis a minister/evangelist from New Orleans, La. say the following:
1. God told me that he wants me to have the most expensive and luxurious private jet available to mankind.
2. I once bought a new car and did not purchase the one I wanted because I was afraid of what people might say. On the way home God told me Jesse take this car back right now and get the one I wanted you to have. I do not want one of my ministers riding around in anything but the best. I did exactly what God told me to do and got the most expensive car the dealer had.
3. I have no problems with my wife spenting over 50,000 dollars for the drapes in our home. Why not? She could have spent 100,000 dollars and it would be no ones business because God gave us those drapes.

I must admit I have an opinion on the lavish lifestyles some of these television evangelist live and I have an opinion if it is of God or not. They place themselves in a lifestyle that leaves them open to judgement or opinions.

I have also heard Duplantis justify the lifestyle he and his family live by saying Jesus was a very wealthy man. He owned a construction company. He employed men. He traveled around. He attended lavish parties. He wore clothes expensive enough that the Roman Soldiers gambled for them. With a little imagination you could deduct this.

I have a judgement or opinion about such statements. I am an ordained minister and I cannot support such statements as being factual. I could assume that there is a remote possiblity they may be true. But, regardless if they were true or not I personally believe Jesus would have passed up the trappings of this world and used the money for the poor. I do not know many present day evangelist except for Billy Graham that would do likewise.

It is difficult to hear Joyce Meyers telling about her trip from hell and how discussed she was with Hertz Rental Car for not having the particular car she requested, air condition pre-set and the car cooled and running before her arrival and the radio station set as requested. Then to make matter worst the hotel did not have the standard fruit basket she always request. Oh yes, her justifying the need for her private jet in that she just could not be bothered with the crowds at the airport any longer and the additional security made flying commercial unacceptable for her and her staff. I have a judgement or opinion if God is really worried about Joyce Meyers minor inconveniences.

I do not think God desires us to live in poverty, but I also believe God does not want us to live extravagant lifestyles while millions in the world go hungry every day. Christianity is a life style not a verbal confession. I have an opinion or judgement on what that life style should be.

Now I do not agree with you that the words found in the Bible are the "words of God". I believe they are inspired by God, but I do not think they are the dictated word of God. I doubt very seriously that if even you follow every single word in the Bible. The words in the Bible were influenced by mans culture and personal beliefs.

If you believe they are the exact words of God and we are to follow them to a "T" men should stop cutting their beard/hair. Women should not be preaching/teaching men etc., etc., But, that is another story.

Answer 3

Good point.

I guess also this fear of commitment can at least partially be blamed on the sheer volume of 'fake churches'. I'm sure we've all heard of the kinds of churches that people join because it gives them cheap space to advertise their company, or network with other business people. Church leaders then demand that the members given them 10% of everything they earn, and drive around in expensive cars while the majority of their members drive stuff from the 80s or earlier. People pretend to be Christians so that they can launch music albums that sell like hotcakes because its such a niche market. Sure, that's a case out of South Park, but tell me that doesn't happen at Hillsong.

There are even Christian doctors who run medical practices next door to churches and make prayer a part of their medical routines. Curing a person with medicine can happen irregardless of prayer, but in such a weakened state the patient will believe anything if it's gonna mean they live.

When church leaders don't deny themselves, it gives no incentive for the members to do the same. Which is how the charismatic movement took off. Leaders claimed to be blessed by all these riches, not because they came from the church members but because they were 'blessed' by god for being such great christians. Meanwhile, cancer patients are believing this sordid excuse, and are throwing away their medication and treatment in the faith that god can heal them through this preacher... and the preacher doesn't say a thing because:

a) god likes faith
b) less money on meds means more money for the church
c) telling them they'll die if they don't get treatment is bad for their reputation

Watching people die for their faith in vain is possibly one of the greatest tragedies I've ever witnessed at church. After the sixth person who believed they were cured of cancer died I stopped going. It was revolting how everyone's attitude as like "Oh well, at least they're in heaven, lets celebrate their getting into heaven".

I think most churches I've witnessed don't follow the real words of god because a life of poverty just isn't that ecnomically viable. If given the choice between buying your own home with free money or living on the street, a lot of people reading this would say "the home, duh". It's human nature to constantly want to better our condition.

And when church leaders do this, in direct abomination to the very philosophy they claim to uphold, you gotta wonder why god isn't striking them dead. You gotta wonder if there is a god at all.

It's why I no longer call myself a christian, and why I've vowed never to get seriously involved in a religion again. Life is just too precious to be used in that way. I'd rather use my 10% helping out legitimate causes like homeless people or funding medical research than filling the pockets of some fat cat preacher.

And if when I die I find out that hell is real, at least I'll know that I didn't waste my good deeds on fake causes. It won't matter to me at all because I'll know that despite forsaking Christianity I've led a better life than the people who run christianity.

Because being a Christian these days doesn't mean being like Christ, it means being part of the church, which is no different from being in a cult.