Re: How to Become a Christian, Version 1.01

From: Steve Harris sbharris_at_ROMAN9.netcom.com (sbharris_at_ix.netcom.com)
Date: 08/23/04 

Date: 23 Aug 2004 16:10:03 -0700

nospam5@heartmdphd.com (Dr. Andrew B. Chung, MD/PhD) wrote in message news:<9fcab6f7.0408230306.7916897@posting.google.com>...
> Christian Person <christian@truthrus.org> wrote in message news:<tllii09o9ccmkd3c8ti0a5bi4ns3ji6qnm@4ax.com>...
> > ---------------------------------
> > | How to Become a Christian |
> > | Version 1.01, August, 2004 |
> > ---------------------------------
> >
> > Introduction
> > ------------
> > Some people think a personal relationship with God is something only
> > theologians can comprehend. Actually, God's plan of salvation is
> > simple enough for everyone to understand. Here are the ABCs of
> > salvation.
> >
> > Admit
> > -----
> > Admit to God that you are a sinner. All persons need salvation. Each
> > of us has a problem that the Bible calls sin. Sin is a refusal to
> > acknowledge God's authority over our lives. Everyone who does not
> > live a life of perfect obedience to the Lord in guilty of sin.

COMMENT:
Ahem. Excuse me? The "Lord" is silent. He doesn't send me email. He
doesn't appear in my bathroom. He doesn't knock on my door, unless
he's dressed like a JW or Mormon missionary. So it's rather a problem
knowing what he wants. Or even that he exists.

>"For
> > all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
> > Since none of us are perfect, all of us are sinners (Romans 3:10-18).

COMMENT:
Sorry, but you're quoting from some old writings whose relevence is
not in evidence. Why are you not quoting from the Hindu scriptures, or
the Qu'ran?

> > The result of sin is spiritual death (Romans 6:23).

COMMENT:
Says who? And how do we know they speak the truth?

>>Spiritual death
> > means eternal separation from God.

COMMENT:
Says who? And since god is silent, separation from him is sort of
what we have now, is it not?

>By God's perfect standard we are
> > guilty of sin and therefore subject to the punishment for sin, which
> > is separation from God.

COMMENT:
By god's perfect standard? Any parent who had the standard that his
or her children were required to obey absolutely perfectly on every
matter at all times and all places, or be cut off forever, would be a
complete ass. Why do I have to explain this to you? Has your
religion perverted your sense of fairness, decency, and basic humanity
to the point that you can no longer recognize a viciously impossible
set of rules? How sad for you. Is this what "Christianity" does to the
human mind? Yeech.

Here's fair question: if YOU were god, would you have set similar
impossible standards? If so, I pity you. You'd certainly suck at your
eternal job. You'd certainly suck even as a human being and human
parent, let alone as a deity.

> Admitting that you are a sinner and separated
> > from God is the first step of repentance, which is turning from sin
> > and self and turning toward God.

COMMENT:
If being a sinner is simply being imperfect, there's nothing to admit,
since we obviously are imperfect. So what's the point?

 
> > Believe
> > -------
> > Believe in Jesus Christ as God's Son and receive Jesus' gift of
> > forgiveness from sin. God loves each of us. God offers us salvation.
> > Although we have done nothing to deserve His love and salvation, God
> > wants to save us.

COMMENT:
Well, then, why doesn't he just do it and be done with it? This stuff
about his having to send his son to Earth is certainly overly
complicated, overly painful, and frankly makes no sense whatsoever.

>> In the death of Jesus on the cross, God provided
> > salvation for all who would repent of their sins and believe in Jesus.
> > "For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so
> > that everyone who believe in Him will not perish but will have eternal
> > life" (John 3:16).

COMMENT:
This is the part that makes no sense at all. Why should it matter what
people believe? Why did god have to send his "son" (in what sense is
Jesus a "sun") to save imperfect people from being cut off?

  
> > Confess
> > -------
> > Confess to others your faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. After you
> > have received Him into your life, share your decision with another
> > person. Tell your pastor or a Christian friend about your decision.

COMMENT:
Why? All this sounds like forming a social club, preparatory to
fleecing people with collections and tithes. I suppose Christianity
and the strange salvation you discuss above wouldn't be very
interesting if everybody didn't gather to yak about it? And trade
money for various promises, and as protections against various
threats?

> > Following Christ's example, ask for baptism by immersion in your local
> > church as a public expression of your faith.

COMMENT:
Again, facts not in evidence. We have the problem of why we should
believe the Christian scripture and not somebody elses. Even if we
believe the Christian scripture, we don't see anything in the baptism
of Jesus that specifies "immersion" or a "local church". If anything,
the opposite is implied.

> "If you confess with
> > your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised
> > Him from the dead, you will be saved. With the heart one believes,
> > resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses,
> > resulting in salvation" (Romans 10:9-10).

COMMENT:
Sorry, makes no sense at all.

> > Comments concerning this public service announcement will be taken
> > under advisement via comments@truthrus.org.

COMMENT:

Sorry, it's a tale of a god far more vicious than your average child
abuser, with a Rube Goldberg plan for fixing things up which is one
part sadism, one part needless showmanship, and two parts ritual
magic. To which is added a bunch of human institutions whose only
purpose seems to be public displays of emotion, for purposes of
induction of mass psychosis, and the collection of money. And the
gaining of social power by people articulate enough to run such shows.

I'm gunna pass. I won't even say "Thanks for the thought" since the
thoughts you've given us are utterly disgusting (and so are the shows)
and contribute nothing to humanity. (Unless you count Jimmy Swaggart
and Gene Scott as contributions). If anything, I wish these weird
ideas had never been thought of at all. Whoever first did, must have
been a sick puppy indeed. Saul of Tarsus needed some Haldol in the
worst way.

And you the poster: Wake up! Grow up! This is complete idiocy and
crap! Try thinking for yourself, even for just a few seconds, and
you'll begin to see how nutso all this is.

SBH

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