Comments on: The Moral and Philosophical Fruits of Naturalist Religion http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/ A Ministry of Shepherds' Fellowship Sun, 01 Mar 2009 19:54:00 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Simon http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-150 Simon Sun, 17 Sep 2006 08:32:27 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-150 And yet Christianity provides no more meaning to human existence than atheism. And yet Christianity provides no more meaning to human existence than atheism.

]]> By: Scott http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-145 Scott Sat, 16 Sep 2006 16:30:23 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-145 Nihilism is the natural outworking of man functioning in the place of God. The Christian God can be caring because he is just. If we only talk about the consequences for sin, we are left hopeless. However, God, in his mercy and in order to satisfy his just nature, sent his Son to earth to take the punishment for our sins that we deserve. God sent Jesus to take care of our sin problem precisely because he cares for us. Anyone who cries out for mercy from our God finds that he gives it freely. Nihilism is the natural outworking of man functioning in the place of God. The Christian God can be caring because he is just. If we only talk about the consequences for sin, we are left hopeless. However, God, in his mercy and in order to satisfy his just nature, sent his Son to earth to take the punishment for our sins that we deserve. God sent Jesus to take care of our sin problem precisely because he cares for us. Anyone who cries out for mercy from our God finds that he gives it freely.

]]> By: Simon http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-139 Simon Sat, 16 Sep 2006 10:01:40 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-139 Sounds like a really caring god. And you guys accuse atheism of leading to nihilism... Sounds like a really caring god. And you guys accuse atheism of leading to nihilism…

]]> By: Scott http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-132 Scott Fri, 15 Sep 2006 16:47:33 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-132 Simon, I'm not proud of it. The penetrating truth of the Bible is that we all deserve to be executed because we all have exchanged our worship of God for the worship of something else. The stories of execution in the Bible should not drive us to ask "Why them?" but "Why not me?" God's character as revealed in the Bible should drive us to cry out to him for mercy. Simon,

I’m not proud of it. The penetrating truth of the Bible is that we all deserve to be executed because we all have exchanged our worship of God for the worship of something else. The stories of execution in the Bible should not drive us to ask “Why them?” but “Why not me?” God’s character as revealed in the Bible should drive us to cry out to him for mercy.

]]> By: Simon http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-128 Simon Fri, 15 Sep 2006 08:00:04 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-128 So your god wants lots of different kinds of people executed. Is that something to be proud of? So your god wants lots of different kinds of people executed. Is that something to be proud of?

]]> By: Scott http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-125 Scott Fri, 15 Sep 2006 04:31:46 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-125 Why are you picking on gay people? The Bible doesn't single them out. It labels homosexual practice as a sin worthy of death in the same way that every other sin in the Bible is worthy of death. Rejecting God's self-revelation in Jesus Christ is a sin that will bring death on all kinds of people regardless of gender, race or age. Why are you picking on gay people? The Bible doesn’t single them out. It labels homosexual practice as a sin worthy of death in the same way that every other sin in the Bible is worthy of death. Rejecting God’s self-revelation in Jesus Christ is a sin that will bring death on all kinds of people regardless of gender, race or age.

]]> By: Simon http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-117 Simon Thu, 14 Sep 2006 07:45:24 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-117 You haven't explained why your god wants gay people executed. You haven’t explained why your god wants gay people executed.

]]> By: Rob Auld http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-96 Rob Auld Tue, 12 Sep 2006 18:48:24 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-96 Simon, Me too. God's story certainly looks confusing. I think the message that I get from it is that God pursue's His people. I look at Genesis and read Adam walked in the cool of the day with God. What does that mean? I'm pretty sure it wasn't a literal Adam, but to me it means that before we rejected God it was different. I see a pursuer who wants me to know Him. Once I put all the stories into that context it begins to make more sense. Rob Simon,

Me too. God’s story certainly looks confusing. I think the message that I get from it is that God pursue’s His people. I look at Genesis and read Adam walked in the cool of the day with God. What does that mean? I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a literal Adam, but to me it means that before we rejected God it was different.

I see a pursuer who wants me to know Him. Once I put all the stories into that context it begins to make more sense.

Rob

]]> By: Simon http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-74 Simon Sun, 10 Sep 2006 17:08:15 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-74 Rob, the Bible appears to be such a mixed bag it's hard to take a cohesive message from it. On the one had you have Jesus encouraging use to turn the other cheek, then you've got God suggesting a bit of gay-execution wouldn't go amiss. I struggle to comprehend 'God's story', even if I turn a blind eye to it's illogical nature. Rob, the Bible appears to be such a mixed bag it’s hard to take a cohesive message from it. On the one had you have Jesus encouraging use to turn the other cheek, then you’ve got God suggesting a bit of gay-execution wouldn’t go amiss.

I struggle to comprehend ‘God’s story’, even if I turn a blind eye to it’s illogical nature.

]]> By: Rob Auld http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/comment-page-1/#comment-66 Rob Auld Sat, 09 Sep 2006 10:10:17 +0000 http://www.sfpulpit.com/2006/09/08/the-moral-and-philosophical-fruits-of-naturalist-religion/#comment-66 Simon, The Bible is not a text-book or a how to manual. How do you know what's literal and what's not? Great question. We can't shut off our brains when we approach the text. What would Moses have known of evolution 4000 years ago when he was writing Genesis? No, however the Bible is inspired by God. This is a story that God wanted in His book. The Bible is a collection of stories all surrounding one story. What's literal and what's not isn't really the point. What's history and what's not isn't the point (although the Bible has done a decent job of standing the scholarly test of time). The point of it all is what are the stories telling us? Now that we know this is God's story how are we going to live? Approach the text this way and I'm not picking and choosing what I want to believe. I'm taking the Bible very seriously and listening to what it's saying to me. Rob Simon,

The Bible is not a text-book or a how to manual. How do you know what’s literal and what’s not? Great question. We can’t shut off our brains when we approach the text. What would Moses have known of evolution 4000 years ago when he was writing Genesis? No, however the Bible is inspired by God. This is a story that God wanted in His book.

The Bible is a collection of stories all surrounding one story. What’s literal and what’s not isn’t really the point. What’s history and what’s not isn’t the point (although the Bible has done a decent job of standing the scholarly test of time). The point of it all is what are the stories telling us? Now that we know this is God’s story how are we going to live? Approach the text this way and I’m not picking and choosing what I want to believe. I’m taking the Bible very seriously and listening to what it’s saying to me.

Rob

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