Is it more important for God to change how people act or what people believe?

Question

Does God want you to make a positive change in the world? Does this mean, actually trying to change the world and make a difference for the better on earth,
or change the landscape of "heaven" in order to have more included and not punished for their beliefs?
Is it more about beliefs, or actions,
and will those actions be punished and rewarded accordingly?

Answer 1

it is more important for the human to be human, to change themselves, look within, and not to rely on other sources.

Answer 2

Good chicken and egg question.

One of my favorite Bible verses has always been: James 2:18 But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." We've modernized this one for today: "Talk is cheap." What you really believe is out of reach to others and always will be. What you say you believe is just talk. What you do demonstrates what you are willing to exert yourself for, what you really believe.

I give money and time to charities and people in need, not because of a god changing my behavior or because I believe in a god, which I don't. But I do have a set of beliefs motivating my action about how we can all benefit most, how cooperation means more for eveyone, how if we treat people the way we want to be treated we model a behavior that replicates and benefits us all in the end.

But I'm with the Sadducees on this one. There's only one life, and while good and ill happen to everyone, ethical and rational living makes for a better life than the opposite for us all, to the extent that we can encourage that behavior through laws, taboos, extolling it as virtuous,etc.

It's more important that you're ethical and work to make the world a better place than what you believe about gods, because none of these beliefs solve real problems while volunteerism and charity do.

Answer 3

We have been Charged with Go Yea into all of the World and Preach the Gospel.
We have been Charged with Taking Care of the Earth too.
GOD is trying to Keep All that HE Can Alive Till Many get Saved.
And HE Loves the Earth Too!

Our Duties are many, starting with the Small (our Lives, Family, City, Country etc.) and ending with the Large (The Rest of the World).

Do what you Can GOD will help you.
Not Even Jesus (remember, HE was a Man) could do EveryThing.
Hope this Helps.
Ditto...............

Answer 4

God is trying to reconnect with you but cannot until you are made righteous in His sight. We have all sinned.

The postive change is your acceptance of Jesus as your Lord and Savior and the realization that you need Him because you have been rebellious against Him. God is gathering citizens for the Heavenly Kingdom right now.

God also has a moral requirement that goes along with the fellowship He desires with us.

First we have to realize that we have sinned against God, that is gone our own way and left Him out. We also need to realize that we are a Spirit housed in a body of flesh and that flesh will die one day. That is the physical death. Remember God said the wages of sin (rebellion against Him) is death. Then there is the spiritual death that Jesus took care of on the Cross. You have to accept this gift of salvation and believe with all your heart, that Jesus is who He said He was.

The Law was given to show you how to live a moral life. How would you know if no one told you. However, only Jesus kept the whole law of God from the moment of birth, never breaking the least commandment. Through our trust and faith in Jesus we can live the victorious life also. But only through Him and not of ourselves.

In order to act you have to hear and believe, and yes, you will be punished for not listening to the information given to you beforehand, and rewarded if you remain faithful till the end.

Answer 5

God will not change you unless you ask Him to.
Once you ask Him to help you change, and grow closer to Him, you will want to do His will - which usually involves you first. changing self will then make a difference without you even trying, as those around you will be affected by the change in you. Then it's up to them to ask you about the change, and so goes the thread.

What I find, is the closer I get to know who God is, the more my life changes. I have to clean up my spirit and the vacuum is filled further with His. It's a domino effect, because you realize it's so good and easy and effortless after awhile, that it just becomes a more natural thing than you could possibly imagine. It's then that God begins to do His work through you - and it's not you at all anymore. And by the way - it's nothing like losing your identity or brainwashing. My identity is intact - just ask my husband and children HAHAHAHA

Answer 6

Actions procede from beliefs. If a person believes the gospel and what the Bible says then they will be looking to do the good works that God has prepared in advance for them to do.

Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved-- 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

If someone doesn't believe in God then they will act as their own final arbiters of what constitutes right and wrong. They may help the poor one day and pluck an innocent unborn child from it's mother's womb and toss it into a medical waste disposal bin the next day.

Answer 7

When you leave the flesh, the only thing
you can take with you are your "works".
You can't make someone believe a thing.
You can plant a seed, but whether it grows or not is directly in the hands of God.
We have no control over that; what we do
have control over, is our actions.
In the eternity, the white linen you will wear, is made up of your works; no works, no
linen - you may have even made it to the eternity, but you're gonna be shamefully naked, if ya have no works.

Answer 8

God tells us how to behave, from our relationship to animals all the way to our relationship with him. While all of this is essential to staying obedient to God, none of it is possible without the knowledge of HOW to be obedient to God, so your beliefs are more important. As far as changing the world or making a difference, this is not a focus for Christians because our merely being obedient makes a difference in itself. God says he will eventually rid the earth of wickedness, so it isn't our place to do that. Our part is to take in the knowledge that God wants us to have. God will take care of the rest.

Answer 9

If you belive in Jesus your actions will change. It says in Matthew 8:21

"Not all people who sound religious are really godly. They may refer to me as 'Lord,' but they still won't enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The decisive issue is wheter they obey my Father in Heaven."

Its not one or the other its BOTH. You must truely in your heart believe that Jesus is the son of god, that he died for our sins and was raised on the 3rd by the power of god. And also live according to the 10commandements. Remember, If you dont go to heaven, your going to hell.

Answer 10

God never changes what people are in, not until they change what lies deep within themselves. When changing what's inside, if u truly changed what's inside, it will surely affect ur actions, or else, u'll b lying 2 urself!
You were never created without a purpose. Each an everyone of us has a purpose in life. He has a certain time to achieve it, that's one one should never learn to pospone. If you can do something ,positive ofcourse, do it now, before it's too late.

Answer 11

It's not an "either/ or" thing.
Both faith and works are called for.
James 2:14-20
14 What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?
17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.
18 But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works."
19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.
20 But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?

You cannot "change the landscape of Heaven." It's not ours to change.

When Jesus told about the Judgment in Matthew 25:31-46, He said that those who took care of "the least of these my brothers" were the ones admitted into Heaven. The ones who did not, were not admitted. The basis of judgment was their works.

But it was their faith that produced the works! Works without the Faith is dead, too.

Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.