As I also take my leave of a blog that was once quite excellent, I must also mention you, Wade. I join all of the others who have complimented you on what seems to be a very different and excellent attitude. May God bless you as you study, and we pray that your search will result in the greatest joy and fulfillment in your life.

As I said before, Prof. Harrison, I will be praying that you indeed come to know and experience the saving grace of God. I wish you the best, and promise that I’ll pray for you regularly. You have so much potential, and while I leave here with a sense of sadness that it’s being so wasted by your chosen lifestyle, I also realize that no one is outside of the reach of a loving God.

Buick,

If I were criticizing people for commenting on the topic at hand, I certainly wouldn’t be commenting myself. I was wondering why most churches and/or conservative organizations as a whole tend to focus on homosexuality as opposed to other sins, not the commenters on this particular thread.

Marsandonel, thank you so much! You put into words exactly what I have been thinking reading this thread.

Scripture can be quoted and opinions postured but when the rubber meets the road Christians are to be known by the love they demonstrate.

Remove the plank before attempting to pull slivers. The attitudes of “knowing the answer to questions never faced” is judging. Judging is placing oneself above someone else so one can take authority over them. Parsing words of scripture to justify judging does not assist the person being judged.

There is very little posted here that woos hurting searching people to turn to God. God is represented as an authoritian eager to punish rather than the One who desire relationship with us.

Doug demonstrated courage to live with integrity by posting his essay. Integrity won this round.

Wade,

Again, I am happy you are taking a closer look and I am genuinely very excited to see a new attitude and approach from you. Keep it up.

Lisa,

I hope I was not too harsh in my last response to you. My main point is, my words are to be taken at face value and in context. Never try to read anything into them that is not there. That is unfair, and I would not do the same to you and do not believe I have. Welcome back to the Christian walk. It is an interesting one, and one that requires growth. I pray that God will reveal His word and purpose for your life in a very real and understandable way. Maybe oneday God will use you to be instrumental in the conversion of many Buddhist. Keep searching for truth. You will find it in the Word of God. (Bible) Everything there is absolute truth.

Doug,

I am praying for you. You are a gifted wordsmith. It is always a shame to see talent that is being so diminished by the destructiveness of a blatantly sinful life. I pray that you have a life changing experience with God who is capable of not only saving you, but delivering you from your sins. The temptations you face will never fully go away, and they aren’t meant to go away. But we are not called to live or be defined by our temptations now are we? I wish you the best. Again, I am praying for you.

SGmusician

The only reason I used the word fat to describe gluttony is because that is what Wade was referring to when he used the word fat. Don’t be so sensitive. If you are in good health, your weight is a product of your genetics (and that can be proven), and you don’t make a habit of being addicted to food (eating a large Papa Johns pizza regularly in one sitting), then the quote of mine you referenced was not referring to you was it? Don’t get upset and use words out of context. That is why I specifically outline that what I was referring to was the ADDICTION that is gluttony. You should not use scripture out of context, and you should also not use quotes out of context. That just lowers the validity of your argument. Go back and reread the quote again, and you’ll see that I was careful to delineate the difference.

To answer your question though. You stated:

ANY of the things that have been listed are NOT THE BUSINESS OF US ON THIS PLANET…THEY ARE THE BUSINESS OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND GOD.

Should we not leave it there??

The answer is no. Why, because it is not just between the individual and God. You see, not only are we called to be accountable to each other, we are also called to uphold the image we are supposed to be reflecting. When someone is claiming to be a reflection of that image, and the image they are claiming to be a reflection of is not being reflected, it is up to us as brothers and sisters in Christ to call them on it (hold them accountable). Not only that, when they are claiming to reflect that same image that we are supposed to be reflecting and they are not doing so, it reflects badly on us. It tarnishes or distorts the image. It is up to us as Christians to not only reflect the image properly, but to set the record straight so that a proper representation is available.

Now, to be clear, I have family members that fall into the same category as you. Their genetic makeup makes them in danger of gaining 5 pounds if they eat a peppermint or smell a chocolate chip cookie, LOL! Are they gluttons, no. The point is, you do your best to take care of the temple. Put God first in your life.

I would dare say that nearly everything we have discussed would not be an issue if everyone knew how to follow two simple principles.

“Love the Lord thy God with all your Heart”

“Love thy neighbor as thyself”

Those two principles can solve so many of these issues if people would learn what it truly means to apply them.

Okay, so here ya go: I am five feet and two inches tall. I weigh an ASTONISHING 210 lbs. I walk every day, my blood glucose and blood pressure are within normal ranges, so are my HDL and LDL cholesterol levels. My MD says I am so strapping healthy that he could throw up. For 15 years, (I am 44) I was told over and over that I am obese, that I am unhealthy, that I am in church terms a glutton.

Except I’m not. I eat three fairly healthy meals a day, very few snacks, no alcohol and I do not smoke. I do not sleep around. I am a very feminine female, who happens to like men quite a lot, yet I have been tagged as all SORTS of things!!!

I am a unfortunate product of a genetically stocky family. Despite my PRODIGIOUS size, I can still carry off an hourglass silhouette, because that’s how I’m built.

Not everyone who is fat is a glutton, any more than everyone who is blond(e) is dumb. Some of us have genetic issues.

PLEASE y’all. If God looks at the heart–why are we so hung on the outside???

ANY of the things that have been listed are NOT THE BUSINESS OF US ON THIS PLANET…THEY ARE THE BUSINESS OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND GOD.

Should we not leave it there??

You are so, so correct. I believe that there is much more to sin than any of us realize. Proverbs states that even the thought of foolishness is sin.

Wade HAS changed. More sober and sensible-less silly and sarcastic. But your point as to what he has written is well-taken, and he needs to think very seriously about it..

God gives His people a simple 2-word command. BE HOLY (1 Peter 1:15-16). It is repeated in both testaments. It is not an option, or a considered way of life. It is a command, to prove new life. Those who are either unwilling or unable to so do, yet say they are Christians, are proving that there is no fruit, because there is no root. God has righteously high standards, and we forget all about those. All we seem to care about anymore is fitting Him into our standards, and that’s good enough. And by the way, don’t you DARE judge me!

The national anthem of hell is “I Did It My Way”. We seem to have arrived at Judges 21:25 all over again.

Wade (anyone else) you said God was alot like a father who “laughs” at times when his children are disobedient. How does this verse and many others like it, fit into that way of thinking? I’m not being sarcastic here. I truly would love for the Bible to be “looser” on some things i just can’t find it.

Wade, I have to say, your most recent post shows a better attitude than some of your others. We still disagree on several things, but unlike some in the past, you are not “in your face” or taunting / sarcastic etc.

I would love to see God work in your life. This is sincere and is not said as “holier than thou” or anything. I want Him to work more in my life too. I am certainly not all that I should be and am a work in progress. I know I fall short. I could just see God use you greatly and miraculously. How cool would that be.