some questions about christian behavior?

Question

christianity says competition is bad , but then how do you know about your shortcomings and how to improve them , if not by losing?
the whole sexuality issue, i see they focus a lot on "feeling lust"
but again how do you know if you truly desire someone if you dont feel lust first and of course this is a very important factor when deciding whether you like someone or not among other important things as well!Also if you date non-christians is like a big red flag
Do you actually think that "gods way" is a square?
"that your religion is the only way" what makes you believe so?
"Wiccans and other magick practicioners are from the devil"
Certainly not true , i practice wicca at times and the last thing in my mind is to hurt someone else....but you guys still insist "magick is wrong" but did you also notice that slavery is wrong but in your bible it fully approves and even recommends it!!!What's up with the old and new testament issue.Many of you say that all cruelty comes from the old one , and the new one is the right one! Since when? And why if the old one is so wrong , is still being taught to the masses?

Answer 1

You just stated every reason why I stopped going to church. I couldn't find a minister that could answer these questions to my satisfaction. It was also my best friend's father at the time who encouraged me to take my own route, because he felt that was the way that I would feel spiritual happiness and he was right. These are my conclusions for myself.
You can only learn thru failure, no matter what someone else may say.
Lust physically, mentally, emotionally, materially is part of life, and it is a weakness of everyone. I have learned they didn't just mean sexual lust, they meant lust in every sense of life and it is one of the 7 Deadly Sins, which will kill a person spiritually.
That comes from people of different faiths and nationalities don't mix, but in today's world it dosen't work. I was raised baptist, chose free form christianity and wicca, and have a wonderful relationship with a roman catholic.
You are taught from an early age that only one specific group is right, but in reality no one is completely right other than God, and only he knows his purpose for all this crap. Really, I feel we are all right in one way or another, but people refuse to look past differances.
Someone who does bad things is a bad person. Someone who does good is good. Not all wiccans practice magic, which for me is a form of prayer sometimes, but it is more involved other than saying, "Uh, hey God. I could really use your help right now." Instead you are trying to help yourself by focusing your energy on one thought and one goal, which helps him. Oh, and people fear what they refuse to understand.
Slavery, ugh. I am from the south and because I was white it was assumed my family at some point owned slaves. Hello people we were poor irish, indians, and germans. Suck it up, and get over it!
The Bible is a historical book, with some good and bad points. It shows where we come from and tells us where we will go. Also if you read closely, Jesus is really a smartass! LOL.

Answer 2

First off, can you tell me where it states that competition is bad and in what context? I don't know what competition has to do with knowing about your shortcomings or improving them. You don't have to compete in anything in order to know what your shortcomings are or how to improve them! There are times when we must lose in order to see what was in front of eyes all the time, but it has nothing to do with competition.

You've put many quotation marks in your list of questions and I don't think they are at all accurate. As to the whole sexuality issue, no one is focusing on "feeling lust" except in an adulterous or unacceptable way. Granted, the Bible is not exactly a sex manual nor should it be but isn't it obvious that there was certainly a lot of sex going on throughout the books? No one says it's not OK to feel lust for the person you are married to or may one day marry. Christians are taught that having sex outside of marriage is wrong. You are free to believe that or not!

Dating someone who is not a Christian can sometimes be a problem for couples and most especially those with children. There could very well be a compatibility issue for some couples and if not, what will you teach and how will you raise your children? Even dating someone who is a Christian but of another denomination can cause problems down the road. I've seen it happen both ways and then again, I've seen many inter-faith marriages be as steady and strong as a rock.

I don't know what you mean when you ask if "God's way" is a square! If you believe "that your religion is the only way" so what? No one asked you to believe that too! Christians are guided by their faith and those that are true Christians believe that their religion is the only way and it is the only way for them!

"Wiccans and other magick practicioners are from the devil" Again the quotes...and when I put that quote into a search engine it yields nothing! Where do you get this stuff from? Wiccans participate in a very old and pagan belief system. Christians do not worship the pagan Gods and Goddesses. If this is what you believe, then believe it! I can understand that and make no judgments about it.

I truly do not believe that you are out to hurt people and I do not insist "magick is wrong." It's wrong for me because I do not believe it. I also happen to believe that slavery is wrong no matter when it took place...but did you stop to realize the reasons Moses led his people from Egypt and into the promised land? He led them from BONDAGE...which is slavery!

So what's up with the Old and New Testament? You take so many things out of context it's almost unreal. Who said the Old Testament is wrong and the New Testament is right? The Bible is a compendium of different books written by many authors. The Old Testament describes an entirely different world leading up to the birth of Jesus Christ. It was a world that changed and a text that changed with His coming. Bearing witness to those times the authors of the books in the New Testament told stories of what Christ brought to them, taught them and what would ultimately fall to us, centuries later. There is nothing wrong with "teaching" either or one above the other.

Whatever it is you do believe in, believe it with your whole heart, soul and mind. No one can fault you if you do that...even if they believe differently than you.

Answer 3

Who says competition is bad? Christianity teaches against covetousness and the negative feelings that it generates, but the Pauline Epistles often compare Christianity as a race or even a fight--two terms that definitely qualify as "competition" in any sense of the word.
Lust is seen as a desire. In this case, it is a desire that consumes the person so much so that it becomes something they are preoccupied with to the point where God is forgotten. I agree with you in that a certain amount of "lust" is necessary for romantic pursuits. But it is something that is not to be taken to blasphemous excesses.
On dating non-christians, it is said that likely the non-believer will influence the believer, but again, Paul has wise words against this not ALWAYS being the case, as the believing partner (or in proper context of his words, 'spouse') can in fact sanctify the unbelieving one; although in the world we live in, that is very rarely the case.
I believe that any religion worth following will insist that it's the right way. I would feel a little uncomfortable if the path I chose had any doubt, or even implied that I should hedge my bets and go another route--that goes for any religion, whether I were Christian, Buddhist, or yes, even Wiccan.
How would you feel if the person you were with said something like: "you know baby, maybe you should be with that person over there..." We like to associate ourselves with confident people, so why should that be a bad thing when we put it in terms of religion.

Slavery: It was normal practice in those days; conquer a nation, make slaves of its prisoners. Slavery then was NOT the same thing as slavery in American history, and in fact, the American form of slavery is known for being one of the more brutal types in history.

Old and New Testament: Before Christ came, there was the whole animal sacrifice thing; animals paid for the sins of man.
Christ changed that in the New Testament when HE became the sacrifice so no more animals would have to suffer; he became the sacrifice to end all sacrifices, so now salvation isn't about the blood of animals, it's about faith in the blood of Jesus Christ cleansing our sins.

The New is the way to go, but the Old also has merit in that there are certain blessings God made with people throughout the bible that are also valid to this day and age, certain promises that were made, and certain things that can be learned about how God wishes to relate to people.

I still don't get the feeling that I've answered ALL of your questions, but I do hope that you appreciate the effort I've put into it (not that I'm asking for 'Best Answer' or anything. I'd much rather educate than proseletyze).
That's Christianity on a very basic nutshell.

Answer 4

It appears that you have given this subject a lot of thought and that's okay. Short of advising you to talk to a minister, I'll try and help you. First, where does it say in the bible that competition is bad? If you heard it from someone, ask him to show you where it says that.

Second...lust. When two people meet each other, many times they experience the "warm fuzzies" which can easily be mistaken for lust. Lots and lots of people misunderstand this feeling which is probably why boredom sets in all too soon after that first hop into bed. They've never given each other the chance to get to know one another through basic friendship. So after you've had sex a few times...the hohums kick in.

Dating a non-Christian??? You mean like a Muslim or Jew, or an atheist? Many mixed marriages are happy ones, but they take lots of patience and work. You and your beloved may be blissfully happy, but there are all kinds of outside influences, such as family, that you'll have to deal with. Unfortunately, they are the ones that could doom your relationship. The good news, though is that if you are just dating to have fun, there's no reason not to date whomever you want. It will be a great learning experience for both of you.

God's way is a "square?" Sorry, I don't quite understand this one. Maybe someone else can enlighten us both.

That (your) religion is the only way...to what? Salvation or getting into heaven?? And whose religion? A Catholic or Protestant? I truly believe that if you believe in God and do your best to obey the ten commandments, there is a place in heaven for you.

Wiccans are very, very different from magicians or sorcerors. Wiccans strongly believe in the powers of Mother Earth and also believe that using spells and potions can actually alter behavior. I'm not an expert on this, but I truly believe that even though they are not Christians, many of them are still good people, and God will take this into account. But comparing Wicca to slavery is like comparing apples and oranges. What you need to understand is that the ancient laws practiced by the Jews in the old Testament changed when Jesus was born. The writers of the Gospels (the New Testament) give account of the teachings of Jesus while He was on earth and these are the words we try to live by. The Old Testament still gives us lots of lessons, even though we no longer observe the "eye for an eye" verse (well, most of us, anyway!) and have learned to "turn the other cheek," as Jesus preached. Jesus never said it would be easy; in fact, He said many would suffer and many would die believing in Him.

On the issue of magic...it's been my experience that magic is entertainment and nothing else. Others would disagree, because a minority of people practice and believe in Black Magic. I would imagine that if you really believe that a spell or potion will work, then it probably would. But all that is is having faith in something. So my question to you is that if you can believe that, why not have faith in God for the same reason???

God gave Man a free will. You get to choose what you want to believe or not believe, but the results of those choices can bring happiness or kick you in the teeth. You are in charge of your life and your soul. What you do with them is up to you.

Answer 5

Competition is not the only thing that displays ones shortcomings.

The question of lust vs love is a question for the ages, but if you are thinking about more than a booty call then you take time before you give your body too a person.

Is Gods way square? Irrelevant quesiton. Living for God is not about pleasing other human beings but pleasing God.

My faith is the only way for me. Its not my job to tell others how to live.

Old Testament vs New Testament. Christians follow Jesus, the Gospels. Jesus came to fulfill the law not change it. Meaning he is the ultimate result of the Jewish scripture. Without a knowledge of this you cant know what he came to fulfill. How did he fullfill, giving he intent of the law. Again you must know the law to know how Jesus fufilled it. The laws were not an end into themselves...strict adherence to them was not the end. He, the Messiah who the Old Testament prepared us for was the fulfillment of the law. He raised the bar.

Answer 6

You mention christianity says competition is bad, sources, cites? Anything?

Don't confuse lust with attraction, completely two different ideals. You can be physically attracted to someone but that is not necessarily lusting.

Generalize much? Some of your overt generalizations could be likened to calling all wiccans fraudulent fortune tellers. Not all christians have the same views as I'm sure not all wiccans do, generalizing is doing nothing but displaying your ignorance. Slavery was recommended in the bible? Once again sources? That's what I thought just another witch spouting out at the mouth without any sources. Remember how the Israeli's were enslaved in Egypt? There was defiently a negative connatation on slavery in the bible, that much is clear. To each their own, heck even to ignorant pagans.

Then again that's the difference between us, we may not agree with you, but we aern't on here chastizing your beliefs unless you call us out. After all if we really wanted to chastize the wiccan faith it wouldn't be all that hard. "Worship the goddess inside yourself" Okay Wiccan whatever you have to tell yourself.

Answer 7

First of all the Bible does not say that competition is bad! The Bible also does not focus a "lot" on lust. I can tell you've never read the Song of Solomon.

You obviously have an ax to grind. The Bible does not recommend slavery. Jesus says "Ye Shall Know the Truth and the Truth will make you free."

Believing a lie brings bondage. People perish because of a lack of knowledge of the Truth. Truth brings freedom, lies bring bondage.

Answer 8

First of all

SIN is SIN

makes no difference who you are or what you think

and i want someone my thought was never LUST
it was Caring....and desire to SHARE , not have sex

and the OLD TESTAMENT WAS CORRECT
and SO IS THE NEW TESTAMENT

and not in any of them did God enslave no one
in fact HE was the one that FREED EVERYONE
in the OLD as well as the NEW

and wicca is just another man made adventure to decieve and take away one from the TRUTH, which is GODS WORD

and there is NO SUCH THING AS MAGIC
its bogus and parlor tricks
and anything else is devilish
there is but TWO spirits in this land
and its GOOD or EVIL
GOD or the devil

and YOU ARE either serving the one or the other
NO ONE can have TWO masters

without CHRIST and HIS spirit abiding in you and through you by HIS WORD
then you are serving the devil , by his words which are unbelief and i do it my way !!!

SORRY
NO INBETWEENS

Answer 9

It is condoned by some Christians mainly fanatical ones but why generalize. Every homosexual knows that some Christians feel this way and some don't. This person was very wrong for posting in that section. He could of express them under this section. God bless you for not wanting to start a battle. Shalom /

Answer 10

Where on earth do you get your information from. I want you to tell me where in the bible it recomends slavery! Im christian and I never heard another christian say that the old testament is is cruelty and the new one is right. And I never seen them make a big deal for when other brothers dated a non christian. First of all your probably not even a christian. You need to get your facts from a christian.