212826

Very true and i do not argue that fact about faith. Yes it is my right. However faith is not an excuse, but it is the confident belief or trust in the truth or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing. Faith is in general the persuasion of the mind that a certain statement is true. So let one believe in what they want and others can debate their point, but the rock will not be shaken-that i believe is strong faith. Yes that is also true, but in what way should a person really celebrate Christmas, since it is named after Christ Jesus? His God is only in those who accept Him as Lord and Savior. And His God is Moses, etc God too, God never changes, it is the peoples perspectives that change making other think the God changes, but in reality, the truth is that God does not change. My God is my Father the one I surrendered my life too, and I will not regret that commitment, ever.

Builder

212826, devil worshippers have faith. Gamblers have faith. Most people have faith of some kind. They just don't believe mythological tales told by shamen of rather coarse and crude semitic tribes of the times of the Ancient Egyptians and Philistines (both of which were truly cultured though Christians believe they were heathens). But you do. And that is your right. Faith is an excuse used by people who are devoted to beliefs in things for which there is no evidence. As the article said, Christmas is worth celebrating because of the teachings of the person after whom it was named. That person NEVER asked anyone to have faith in something for which no evidence existed. He wanted people to believe in what he could prove and demonstrate existed. His God was within each of us. His God was not the God of Moses and the Israelites who fought among themselves so much they stayed in the desert for 40 years and ate insects (manna) because they couldn't agree on anything. Theirs is the God you have faith in.

212826

Hi, well my belief is that we are all an offspring of God, because He created mankind in his own image. This does not mean we look like Him, although that is a controversial topic, however it does mean that we all share the same attributes-and have a choice to do either good or bad, be righteous in the eyes of the Lord or to been seen wicked and evil. What your comment is suggesting is: "There is zero evidence that Jesus of Nazareth was "THE son of God" that can be well debated about. The point is my God is my Father, He is the I AM, the same God of Moses, Abraham, and Isaac, as well as Isaiah, and many more. A question like yours, I believe should not be accepted, or tested, but instead one has to believe it and accept it as truth, no one can ever prove it and this is where terminology comes in:: the answer is, FAITH.

Builder

212826, thank you for your comment. Unfortunately, it's not cohesive, so it doesn't make sense to me. It's pure opinion based on belief, entirely devoid of evidence. There is zero evidence that Jesus of Nazareth was "THE son of God" for example. Is your God not capable of more than one offspring? If you were created by God, why are you not also a son/daughter of God?

212826

I disagree but agree with most of the comments below. Since the west adapted to the new holiday, Christmas, there has been a major shift in the definition of the term. Also saying that Christmas is not about receiving but giving, that to is wrong, yet good. Christmas ought to be seen as a mere simple yet glorious celebration of Jesus Christ, who is THE son of God!

DefensiveRealism

Christmas have already become culture, the western culture... Most of us, I believe, doesn't know The essence of Christmas. The Essence is Jesus. But Western Culture transform and shift it to the others, for example, present, festival, and party.

gsokolova

Jesus was 'sun' of god. Crucifix looks like Egyptian myth of Sun rising in Orion, gateway opening that day for souls to take off.

layman2u

Look, this is getting out of hand. I understand what you are saying. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. The Soul and Spirit are of the Father will go back to him, but if it isn't clean it will be rejected or cast out. Sin has to be gone. Because we are of God, He knows everything of each of us. Jesus washed those sins with his blood. He paid that price, without him you can not be Saved. I'm not an orphan, Jesus said so, That Part of God Jesus wanted us to find in each of us is the Holy Spirit. Our Guide. I've always been thirsty For the Word of God. Reading some Gnostic, is part of that drive. John 3:16, John 14:6 and the others are all part of a path we eather accept or decline. Good day Sr.

Builder

Jesus believe that God was within each of us. It was up to us to find God within ourselves if we were to join with God. Jesus was the conduit for this information, though not the first. He was the strongest advocate of this. Jesus said that people could be saved by paying attention to his message. Jesus did not say that he was the only son of God, in the Bible, because he believed that each of us had the potential to be children of God. The Church of Rome expunged most references to the beliefs of Jesus, but not all, as Jessica showed.

layman2u

So, Your saying that Jesus wants us to beleive we could not be saved through Him?

Builder

"saved through Jesus Christ" is the part that Jesus would have disagreed with. He wanted people to find God within themselves, as evidenced by Jessica's quotations. Jesus believed in God within, whereas Paul believed in a God without, that had to be accessed through an intermediary.

layman2u

I disagree with part of what you are saying. Sometime after his Epiffiny with Jesus; Acts 9:4. Paul visited Jerusalem staying with Peter and James, Jesus’ brother. Paul was approached by Barnabas a friend from Jerusalem to help the church of Antioch. Paul and Barnabas began traveling together preaching the Gospel of Christ. Yes, Paul’s preaching aroused the tempers of the Jewish leaders and he was quickly opposed by both the Jewish and Christian communities . Only because Paul insisted that the only requirement to be a Christian was to be saved through Jesus Christ , and not saved by keeping the law of man.

Builder

Paul was the de facto founder of today's Christian religion. In that sense, he is a true Christian. Paul was not, however, a follower of Jesus of Nazareth. What Jessica wrote about what Jesus said is evidence that Jesus believed something quite different from what Paul taught. Paul taught that God is "out there" somewhere, whereas Jesus taught that God is within each of us. Following your line of argument, then, Jesus was not a true Christian. Jesus was what today we call a Gnostic, as were all the followers of Jesus in the Holy Land (before the Church of Rome slaughtered every last one of them). These are facts in evidence outside the Bible, outside the teaching of the Christian churches of today.

layman2u

Bill, I wasn't trying to offend you. I just believe Paul was a true Christian and practiced what he preached. As for the birthday comparison with Christmas, People celebrate them because they want to not because they have to. Although people in my family celebrate my birthday only shows that they love me or care about me. Failing to die in the privious year is irrelevant. I'm glad you agree with Jessica, never said you didn't. I was only saying that she wasn't harming her own argument.

Builder

layman2u, my definition of a true Christian is one who follows the role model of Jesus (which is not that preached by Paul. but the one Jessica quoted). I don't know why anyone celebrates anyone's birthday. Failing to die in the previous year is not sufficient reason to celebrate for me. There is nothing magical, mystical or inherently special about the annual recurrence of the date on which a person was born. That includes December 25, which was clearly not the date Jesus was born anyway (the Bible gives clues that is was closer to September 25). I did not say that Jessica's argument was not sound. I said (read below) that she may have harmed her argument by juxtaposing doubt and solid claims, as read by others. I agree with what jessica wrote.