Disclaimer: About This Blog

THIS BLOG IS: my personal journey of how I am rethinking some of my spiritual beliefs.
THIS BLOG IS NOT: intended to point fingers at people who I think are wrong.
I do not believe the final judgement will be based on how many correct answers we get on a theology exam. I believe many people throughout history have had genuine relationships with God, despite holding questionable beliefs and practices. I make no claim to having it all figured out or being your judge. If we end up disagreeing over these topics I pray we can find a way to demonstrate grace.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Slow down Jon

Slow down Jon, what's the rush... do you need to figure everything out right now? Do you need to question everything?

No.

So I may slow down on this blog for awhile. I thank God for giving me some peace on some matters recently... and it would likely be best if some of them were applied to my life before I go much further.

During recent months I've discovered that I question a number of things:
  • Do Christians 'go to' church... isn't that how we show we are Christians?
  • Do protestant evangelicals have the best doctrine/thinking - and is having the best doctrine/thinking of utmost importance?
  • Is it OK to judge others who are obviously wrong because they disagree with me on a few things?
  • Calvinism?
  • Does the good news message emphasize God punishing people in Hell for ever and ever?
  • Does the good news message emphasize God punishing Jesus instead of me, Penal Substitutionary Atonement?
  • Does the Bible give clear answers on all issues, should it be use it like a magic 8 ball?
  • Does 'Romans Road' best describe the gospel message?
Ok, so there's a few questions I've grappled with. But what positive things have I learned:
  • God loves everyone and desires a restored relationship with all of us
  • To follow Christ means to live in His love, and be His love to everyone
  • I need to love and respect everyone, including those who don't agree with me (which is actually a relief - otherwise I'd be a lone duck)
  • I see the good news message going something like this... Jesus came and died so I can live under His authority instead of being in bondage to sin. In some mysterious way Jesus took my sin to the cross. My sin is dead. His love is alive in me.
  • The Holy Spirit is trustworthy, and can be relied upon to lead and guide us.
So now I need to practice living this way. There are people and situations out there that I need to learn to respond to in Christ's love. I can't learn it all in blogger-land. More learning needs to happen in real life.

So my passion for blogger-land is fading for now... I may not have any new thoughts to share for awhile...

...But who knows... I have no idea what lies around the next curve of this journey I'm on...

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