Christianity and Free Will by Taqresu650, literature
Literature
Christianity and Free Will
First and foremost, this entry is dedicated to my Lord and Savior.
One of the concerns I've seen about my faith is in the issue of conversion. There is a misunderstanding I would like to clear up here. In one point of view Christians are "perfect" people on high pedestals forcing others to be like them. It rides upon an assumption that Christians have the "Self/Other" binary. While there may be truth in this about some Christians, this is not what the Bible teaches us.
I will start with the account of Genesis and the story of Adam and Eve. It's very well known, but let's take a closer look. God created the Heaven and the Earth, and saw that
Before I begin, I will tell you in advance that this is dedicated to my faith in Christianity and in God. I understand there are many who don't share my beliefs, and that's fine. I will not force anyone to convert to my religion. It's only real faith if one chooses to believe of their own accord. There are two reasons I'm writing this. First, I wish to honor God, and second, I want to clear up some misunderstandings circulating around Christianity. Most of what I say here is from what I've learned in Church, I am not a pastor or have any authoritative position in my church. I also believe that the Bible really has only One author, God. Where
Strangers in a Strange Land by Taqresu650, literature
Literature
Strangers in a Strange Land
"Then Haman said to King Xerxes 'There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will give ten thousand talents of silver to the king’s administrators for the royal treasury.'"
-Esther 3:8&9 New International Version (NIV)
In church, my Pastor taught us about the Book of Esther. When it came to this verse, he noted how we, as Ch