1 John 4: 1 - 3 NKJV
For as much as I make satire out of my christian beliefs being seen by others as being herecy, I have actually been refered to as a heretic while in a discussion of scripture. Imagine that. So, am indeed a heretic? Some would think so. I think that I have just had the Lords truth revealed to me. Then, we need to have that discussion on what is truth. Is truth found in scripture? Is that same scripture, as a institutional friend of ours claims, to be used as a blueprint for how we are to live our lives? A handbook for our life here on earth? If you follow this belief, what happens whenever your life path doesn't follow the instructions outlined in scripture? Does the God you follow somehow become angry and punish you for your wanderings? Keep in mind that one of the areas where you and I may agree is that we serve one God. However, we may not agree on just who God is. See, I see myself as having a personal relationship with my heavenly Father. I see Christ Jesus as living in me {Galations 2:20}. It is for this belief that I was accused of being a heretic. Dosen't the apostle Paul tell us in Galations that this is the truth of Christ? It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me! I'm dead now, perished to the old sin nature that once plagued me. Other christians may see Pauls words and claim that they were only meant for him, his Lords dear disciple. You may say that I'm taking his words out of context. So, who's the real heretic here? My question, as I've asked my friend, why is your scripture different from mine? Why is your Lord different from the one I follow? Because I'll tell you, if you criticize me for my views of God then we definately don't serve the same God. So, now we end up having two Gods with two different views of His behavior. Who's right? Who's the heretic? Well, maybe neither of us. The larger question is, who are we to place ourselves in our Lords judgement seat and accuse others? Ask yourself that. Does God ask that you intimidate and berate those around you with scripture? Does He ask you to guilt and shame others to make your point? I'm always amazed at just how many scriptures christians will use to make their point on how right they are, as if the more scriptures they reveal will justify their point. Yeah, good luck with that.
3For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
2 Timothy 4: 3 - 4 NKJV
Do I relish being a heretic? Not really, my joy comes from my relationship with Christ Jesus. The relationship you would tell me isn't possible until He returns. My excitement is in knowing that I am no longer that man I used to be. You would throw out a scripture that all have sinned {Romans 3:23}. I rejoice in the fact that I am now dead to sin {Romans 6: 6-11}. You will tell me that I need to seek Gods forgiveness. The way I see it, everything you do in the name of God is based on your belief that you and He are somehow seperated. The Lord is in heaven and we are here on earth waiting His return. I say that He never left us. You feel guilt and shame because of your continued belief in our sin nature. I say that Christ Jesus bled and died once for the sins of all {2 Corinthians 5:21}. Did he miss some sins as he died on that cross? Are these the sins you continually ask our Lords forgiveness for? We have come to a place where we have different views of the same God. This might not be a issue of who's right, but one of our own understanding. Could it be that the truth of Christ has been revealed to me but not to you? Don't get me wrong, that in no way means that you cannot receive it. All it means is that the veil of your own heart is yet to be lifted {2 Corinthians 3:14}. I know of what I speak because I used to be among you. I followed the teachings of the church like a robot, keeping the commandments as best I could. All the while praying that I would behave well enough to someday "be like" Jesus. The trouble with this theology is that it never brings you close to a more personal relationship with Christ Jesus. You're constantly stuck on that hamster wheel of performance hoping that God will judge you favorably. When the veil is finally lifted you realize that you no longer need to struggle to be like Christ, but rejoice in His presence in you. That, in a nutshell, is the freedom of Christ Jesus. Once you embrace the truth of Christ in you, then you will have entered the halls of the heretics.
14But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ.
2 Corinthians 3: 14 NKJV
~Scott~
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