Category: XX – Everything Else

Misc things that sprout in my mind

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About the Bible — Part 4 .. Misguided Beliefs?

RJ Walters

This, the fourth post on the Bible centers around where I see some others may have gone astray in regards to their beliefs surrounding  the Bible. Some have replaced the Holy Spirit with the book called the Bible… They put so much power in the Bible and so little in the Holy Spirit. Compared to the others in Trinity studies there is very little in-depth theological study about the Holy Spirit. The main exception to that might be  the Society of Friends otherwise known as Quakers. They treat the Holy Spirit as a very equal member of God’s team. Jesus … Continue reading About the Bible — Part 4 .. Misguided Beliefs?

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About the Bible –Part 3.. Other Views

RJ Walters

This time I am going to go over a short list of things that are somewhat widely accepted by some twenty-first century Christian denominations but of which I basically disagree. Most of these topic titles are  from texts of discussions I have had with Christians on various topics. I put them in a special category here because they were so deeply felt by others. All the words in the Bible are the words of Jesus (ie. every word punctuation mark, and space comes from God). This title came from a person fairly high in the LCMS Lutheran denomination. He used this statement … Continue reading About the Bible –Part 3.. Other Views

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About the Bible— Part 2 .. What I believe (con’t)

RJ Walters

This is a continuation of the last post to finish up some of my fundamental beliefs about the Bible. I have not come to these beliefs on a whim. They are the result of many years of thoughtful prayer and study. I am also not trying to prove anyone wrong. Everyone should come to God in their own ways. So let’s get on with the final four areas of my beliefs on the Bible. Some words of the Bible have much more significance to our lives than others— The words of God himself through Jesus’ lips are the most important. Every other … Continue reading About the Bible— Part 2 .. What I believe (con’t)

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My Hero.. James Madison

RJ Walters

I want to continue on with my report of our vacation through West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia last month. This post will be about another of the five presidential homes we visited on that trip. I admit that one of my heroes in life is the fourth president of the U.S. James Madison. There are a number of reasons for that admiration not the least of which are the similarity between Madison and me. Compared to many of the other Founders Madison was a little guy. He was 5′ 7″ and small stature while most of the other famous people during … Continue reading My Hero.. James Madison

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Being Deaf Is Lonely…

RJ Walters

One of my regular rituals is to go to McDonald once every month or two and get a steak & egg bagel for breakfast. I did that this morning.  I found a picture of one and included it here but it really didn’t resemble the one I got at the counter. Mine had the steak hanging out the right side of the begal while the egg and cheese were clinging to the left edge. :) It has been a few months since the last time I did this. I always sit at a table where I can watch all the people ordering … Continue reading Being Deaf Is Lonely…

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Taking Ownership of Others Actions….

RJ Walters

We Christians seem to like to take ownership of others actions.  If a missionary is killed in South American we say that proves that we are suffering and dying for Jesus Christ. Somehow or another that death gets attached to our individual selves as if we were the ones who died. We just can’t live vicariously through other. We are each responsible for our own actions. The only exception to that is Christ being a redeeming sacrifice for all of us before God that is memorialized today.  As I have mentioned in the past I don’t really understand that idea but Jesus … Continue reading Taking Ownership of Others Actions….

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Helping “The Least of These”…

RJ Walters

I spend a lot of time on this blog trying to convince you that Jesus intended us to help each other out. Especially those less fortunate than us. I have mentioned that I volunteer to do the cooking a couple of days a week at a soup kitchen. That is one way that I attempt to do what Jesus says. But I don’t think I have ever tried to give you any advice on other ways you can help with the homeless and financially challenged. I will attempt to fill that void, at least a little bit, via this post. … Continue reading Helping “The Least of These”…

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Sundays???

RJ Walters

Sundays continue to be a strange time for me. Up until last November I could always be found in a church pew on Sunday morning. At that time I was told by my church of eight years that my views of God no longer aligned with what their denomination expected of members. Instead of going through an inquisition I choose to separate my self from them. But I must admit that the very restricted and almost solo message of that congregation became somewhat numbing. You can only say “Christ did it all so nothing is expected of us” so many … Continue reading Sundays???

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The Words We Choose….

RJ Walters

It is strange how we choose different words from the Bible to latch on to.  Yvonne and I just returned from a two-week vacation through West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia.  We visited some historical sites there and some mentioned the Appalachian Baptist who made the foundation of their faith handling poisonous snakes.  They centered their religious experiences on the Bible verse that goes “and they shall take up snakes and they will not be harmed” (or something like that).  The stories told of some who were bitten dozens of times and lived to tell about it. But there were also … Continue reading The Words We Choose….

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Should this be harder? – Thoughts from a Convinced Quaker

RJ Walters

At the bottom of this post is a link to a heartfelt post by a convinced Quaker. A convinced Quaker is one who has come from outside the sect. In this person’s case it evidently was from Catholicism. This post struck me deeply as I saw myself in much of Laura’s writing. For those not going to the original post here are a couple of quotes that I want to comment on: “Hard” was life before I learned about Quakerism. “Hard” was wondering how to handle a violent situation in a compassionate manner and thinking I was the only person in the … Continue reading Should this be harder? – Thoughts from a Convinced Quaker

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Being Estranged From Others….

RJ Walters

It is, I have learned, far easier to ask forgiveness of a god we can’t see than from a person we can see. Perhaps this is why many religions are vertical in nature, focused on pleasing and placating God. That orientation has usually entailed sacrifice, the notion of giving God something—our time, our attention, our praise, our skill, our money—and, in extreme instances, our children, our virgins, an animal, our lives, or someone else’s life. But early in his public ministry, Jesus articulated a different understanding of sacrifice—the surrender of pride, the surrender of ego, the surrender of the privilege … Continue reading Being Estranged From Others….

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Why Didn’t Jesus Write a Book??

RJ Walters

A fellow blogger who happens to be a Quaker asked an interesting question recently. It was “Why didn’t Jesus write a book while he was on earth and settle this thing once and for all?” I know Jesus, like most of the twelve apostles was probably illiterate but I’m sure he could have written a book if he thought it was important.  Why didn’t he choose to do that? As my friend said a book directly from Jesus would, or at least should, have settled all the many  many current day differences among us Christians. I have wondered about this … Continue reading Why Didn’t Jesus Write a Book??

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Does Jesus Conditionally Forgive Sins??

RJ Walters

There are many places in the red letters where Jesus appears to conditionally forgive sins.  If you break certain rules your sins are not forgiven. The most obvious of these are sins against the Holy Spirit. I must admit that I don’t really understand that condition as much as I would like. But that is not the only place where Jesus appears to withhold forgiveness. There are many others. Several of them have to do with corrupting children. He in no uncertain terms says that if you cause a child to sin, faith or no faith,  you will not see … Continue reading Does Jesus Conditionally Forgive Sins??

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You are WRONG!!!

RJ Walters

Many if not most Christian evangelical denominations insist that they are the only ones who 100% understand the nature of God.  They each believe everyone else is wrong to one degree or another. There sometimes seems to be more arguing with fellow Christians among themselves than there is any sharing of the Word with those outside their current brand of beliefs. In that regard it is nice to see at least one Christian organization that is not out to prove everyone else is wrong. click the following link to see an article by a Quaker author about being peacemakers.  http://www.friendsjournal.org/personal-peacemaking … Continue reading You are WRONG!!!

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A Healthcare Alternative to Obamacare….

RJ Walters

The Republicans in congress seem hell-bent on eliminating the healthcare bill passed by Congress in 2009. They say they want to start over again but don’t really say just what it is that they hate so much. Is it: giving those who can’t afford even basic healthcare a change to get it? preventing the insurance companies from declaring “pre-existing conditions” for wherever they don’t want to have to cover? requiring everyone to have at least a minimum level of healthcare insurance the same way most States currently require auto insurance? requiring that most of the money collected for insurance actually … Continue reading A Healthcare Alternative to Obamacare….

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Divorce–A Christian Perspective

RJ Walters

Divorce is one of those things that gets very different treatment in different Christian denominations. The red letters are pretty clear as to what Jesus thought of it. Matt 5:31-32 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’  But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. Matt 19:8-9 Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the … Continue reading Divorce–A Christian Perspective

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Intrepreting the Bible….

RJ Walters

As I have mentioned in the recent past I have disassociated myself with the Christian church that I was part of for over nine years. I have always tried to not mention what my religious affiliations were on this blog but now that they are severed I will say it was with a LCMS Lutheran church.  The pastor of the church was a regular viewer of this blog and gave several often opposing comments which I welcomed. I thought we had agreed to disagree on some of the secondary issues surrounding our individual faiths. That was fine with me. But then I … Continue reading Intrepreting the Bible….

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A Follower of Jesus Christ….

RJ Walters

I have often said that I am a follower of Jesus Christ. He is indeed my Lord and Savior. But, is there a difference between being a follower of Christ and being a Christian?  Up until recently I had not tried to discern any difference in those two state. But now I am coming to understand that they can be two  quite different things. Being a follower of Jesus Christ means that I study his words as found in the Gospel text and take them to heart. Those words are what drives me throughout my life. Jesus gave us many … Continue reading A Follower of Jesus Christ….

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Is the Church Christian?

RJ Walters

Here is an excerpt from a book entitled “If the Church were Christian” by Philip Gulley. Several years ago I visited a museum and saw the skeleton of a dinosaur. As I read the plaque, I learned only a handful of the bones were original, that the remainder had been fabricated based on a paleontologist’s extrapolation from the authentic bones. In many ways, this is similar to what the church has done. There are only two passages in one gospel (Matthew 16:18 and 18:17) where Jesus mentions the church, and even those references are dubious. Many scholars suspect the Matthean … Continue reading Is the Church Christian?

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Jesus Christ – Lord and Savior

RJ Walters

To me the title of this post is the perfect blend of words.  We must acknowledge that Jesus is our Lord and we must also acknowledge that he is our Savior. Those two conditions are very different so lets study them some here. Jesus Christ is my Savior — Jesus was very clear that one of the reasons he came was to die for our sins. That is something that I have trouble really understanding but I take him at his words. Accepting Jesus as our savior is a leap of faith that requires not much else. It is big … Continue reading Jesus Christ – Lord and Savior