Questions:

[blazingthru]

Café Christianity​

June 20, 2016

National Study of Youth and Religion (NSYR) and has discovered that “social media users were more likely to believe that they can pick-and-choose their beliefs. The NSYR asked if people agreed with this statement: ‘Some people think that it is okay to pick and choose religious beliefs without having to accept the teachings of their religious faith as a whole.’ Those who had used social media earlier in life were more likely to agree than those who had not."

Kate Blanchard from the University of Southern California describes this phenomenon as “cafeteria Christianity … usually referring to those Christians who went to church on Sundays but then did whatever they wanted the rest of the week.”She believes that this is nothing new and has been around long before social media. As reasoning humans, some people accept their religious traditions more readily while others “question, ignore, revise, rebel against, or even convert to different traditions.”

Blanchard suggests that the push against a smorgasbord approach to Christianity springs from the time of Constantine who “decided he needed to build a more uniform religion for his empire.” It supposedly led to the outlaw of all “wrong” forms of Christian belief and practice, and to persecution. Her conclusion is that religious purity “has always only ever been a dream for control freaks. It’s high time we gave that dream up.”

Is it possible to hold to a particular set of Christian beliefs and also have “the spirit of neighborly love”? The apostle Paul condemned false teachings (Galatians 1:6–9) but also wrote, “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men” (Romans 12:18).

Does the Bible recommend a cafeteria Christianity? How do the following passages figure in? “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). “There is no other God besides me” (Isaiah 45:21).

Some view the teachings of the Bible as different flavors of ice cream that you pick from to suit your taste. Is that accurate, or are they really life and death matters that lead you into greater light or greater darkness?

Any thoughts?

 

[momi]

I've never understood how people can "cherry pick" scriptures and leave out the ones they find offensive.

We must teach and believe the whole counsel of God without fear. Acts 20

 

[kanozas]

In the time of Jesus, the Prophets prior... I think it's man's little idiosyncrasy.

 

[blazingthru]

Honestly, I think its just easier to let go of the scriptures that require us to change. For most it easier to just follow what you been doing all along and not question the reasons, unfortunately that means lost to many professed Christians.

I know for myself, I questioned everything. I needed to see the proof of it. I needed confirmation and where there was none, I didn't want to do it. Many feel that you get a do over but you don't, if we do I would love to see where that is. I searched from the age of 15 till I was 40 and never found it.

 

[blazingthru]

Devaluing Human Life​

Psalm 139:13, 14). The taking of human life, even one not developed fully in the womb, is a tragic, sinful symptom of a world beset by fear and selfishness.

According to one study, more than a million abortions were performed in 2011. Unsurprisingly, in an era of “open” sexuality, nearly half of all pregnancies in 2011 were unplanned, and about four in ten of these were terminated via abortion—meaning that in many cases, terminating a life in the womb was seen as a way of ending an inconvenience to another human life. This is a tragic, pagan view of humanity and a direct result of the innate sinfulness and selfishness of humankind.

So when the law of the land challenges Christian values, what are Christians to do?

First, we can know that we live in a deeply fallen world where people and governments will make foolish choices that stray far from Bible principles. While we will feel disappointed, even dismayed, when human life is considered so expendable, we don’t need to be shocked that such things happen in our world.

More important, knowing that Christ is the way to salvation (John 14:6), we can take action in the spirit and methods of Jesus, who came to show every man, woman, and child that God loves him personally, that she has intrinsic value to her Creator. God really can help us through any crisis or inconvenience if we put our trust in Him.

The most significant step Christians can take is not just to react, but to proactively model Jesus’ sacrificial compassion and kindness. Against such behavior, there is no law (Galatians 5:22, 23). Think of the fundamental changes the prophet Daniel—just one man—brought to a nation built on laws in direct opposition to God’s principles through his powerful, faithful life!

Now imagine what could happen to abortion—with or without state laws—when the principles of God’s law of love are embedded into more human hearts.