RE: What are the Characteristics of a NT Christian?
April 7, 2017 at 1:44 pm
(This post was last modified: April 7, 2017 at 1:47 pm by Catholic_Lady.)
(April 7, 2017 at 1:36 pm)Jesster Wrote:(April 7, 2017 at 1:30 pm)Catholic_Lady Wrote: I believe I have already addressed this. When you ignore the fundamental teachings of Christ Himself, particularly the one teaching He said was most important, you have crossed the line. There is a massive difference between having different interpretations about some Old Testament stuff and how it was written, and going completely against Jesus' fundamental commandment to love.
This still seems a bit too much like a "no true Scotsman" stance to me. You may not see them as Christians, but they sure do. They back up their stance as much as you do as well. Just claiming that they aren't really Christians doesn't make much of a difference to the rest of the world.
I'm not trying to paint all, or even most, Christians with that brush. I'm just saying that there are full ranges of people in every group. Thankfully this is a minority portion. I know too many good Christians to use this minority as default example.
I don't see my stance on this (as I copied and pasted below) as "No True Scotsman." I see it as a completely reasonable distinction.
(April 7, 2017 at 12:09 pm)Catholic_Lady Wrote: I'd say believing that Jesus is who He says He is, and striving to live by the teachings of Christ as depicted in the bible [should be a good benchmark].
I think that's as basic and fundamental as you can get. If someone says they are a Christian but then they say they don't believe that Jesus was the Son of God, I'd say that person's beliefs are not in line with Christian beliefs. If someone says they are Christian but they live a life of greed and hatred, I'd say that person is not living the Christian lifestyle.
...And again. I am not saying "so and so isn't a true Christian." Technically, if you were baptized Christian, you are a Christian. I'm referring to whether or not a person's beliefs are in line with Christian beliefs, and whether they are living a Christian life.
If you don't believe Jesus was the son of God, your beliefs are not in line with Christianity. If you blatantly do the exact opposite of what Jesus Himself teaches us, then you are not living a Christian life.
(April 7, 2017 at 1:36 pm)Jesster Wrote: I'm not trying to paint all, or even most, Christians with that brush. I'm just saying that there are full ranges of people in every group. Thankfully this is a minority portion. I know too many good Christians to use this minority as default example.
But I do appreciate this.
"Of course, everyone will claim they respect someone who tries to speak the truth, but in reality, this is a rare quality. Most respect those who speak truths they agree with, and their respect for the speaking only extends as far as their realm of personal agreement. It is less common, almost to the point of becoming a saintly virtue, that someone truly respects and loves the truth seeker, even when their conclusions differ wildly."
-walsh
-walsh
