 Originally Posted by juroara
"All Bible-believing Christians who study the Word of God
this is the first problem
most christians who study the so called Word of God, haven't. Here is what they have done - they read the bible, they didn't understand the translation. because one, its usually old English - two the original isn't in english and makes many time based cultural references
and three - they are usually CHILDREN when they start 'studying' the bible
so the poor dear child gets to a sentence, a passage, a word they don't quite understand "what does this mean?" and in this case "what does it mean to speak in tongues?"
and the adult, usually the parent answers - what they were told by their parents - who were told by their parents - who were told by their parents
"it sounds like gibberish"
the child then trusts their parents, who were told by their parents, who were told by their parents, who were told by their parents - that this explanation of speaking in tongues must be true - that it sounds like gibberish.
how many christians question the INTERPRETATION of their holy text? how many christians are asking Jesus himself to give them the understanding of a passage through the holy spirit in them? how many instead rely on other people, OTHER PEOPLE to tell them what 'this' 'means'
don't trust what your pastor, what your father, or who ever told you how to interpret the bible - do the research yourself. especially with the internet, there is loads of new information that the average christian didn't have access to before
and if you do the research - there are other interpretations of speaking in tongues. to hang onto one understanding of speaking in tongues and refusing to learn the others, is willful ignorance
and one of them says, it means that the person will speak all tongues at once. they will speak a language that is not a human language - but a language that is simply understood because it is purest language. so it wouldn't matter what language you speak - you will understand the person speaking in tongues. imagine an angel speaking to you and at the same time someone in the same room who doesn't speak english. what language did the angel speak?
it would make no sense for someone to speak GIBBERISH, and then we need an interpreter to tell us what this gibberish means. when Jesus teaches you NO ONE stands between you and Christ. Wouldn't it be contradictory then to hang on the words of one person? To rely on this person to tell you what Christ has to say?
yet that is what christians constantly do. they go to ANOTHER PERSON to tell them what Christ is saying
that is the difference between a true spiritual christian, and a christian sheep - and the sheep goes...BAAAAA
I completely agree with most of what you say. Most of which is what you said in the first two paragraphs. You seem to think most of us Christians are unable to think for ourselves. I was not raised to be a Christian. I was never taught the bible, no one in my family ever prayed, and we certainly didn't go to church. So, as time grew on, I adopted Atheism.
Of course, we all know how skeptic Atheists are. My thought process was very logical. I found the whole concept of a benevolent being impossible. I started dating a girl who was Christian, and after going to church with her for a party I ended up just TRYING to pray, and suddenly all the doubt was gone. Everything was lifted off of my shoulders and I knew that I had found what I was looking for.
As I had found God that way, without much earlier knowledge of Christianity itself, I started to study the bible. Without anyone else's opinions on the meaning of the scripture clouding my mind, I was able to take in each passage. And you say no one asks for a true understanding of the bible? You are wrong. I studied, and as I did I prayed more about that than anything else. It was only after I found the first church I've ever gone to, the one I still go to now, when I discovered most Christians do ask for an understanding of His Word.
And to be honest, I'm not entirely booked on the idea of speaking in tongues, either, but there seems less fault in it than anything else I can come up with. I've also prayed on it, and from what I can tell, I was right. Who knows? Maybe the true meaning of scripture is subjective to all of us.
And also, the Gifts that the Spirit give us will not keep us from God or His Son. People may never experience either of those things, and neither is necessary to grow in Christ and join Him in the afterlife. You didn't see me saying "If you don't speak in tongues, or understand it, you're going to hell." Because that isn't true. As materialistic and as far from God as Catholics may be, if they have faith and have the sin cleansed from their heart, they will go to Heaven. The same is true with any single other Christian denomination.
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