Endless Pet Doctrines

[aspen]

Well, here is another thread devoted to my endless pet doctrines. Love your neighbor as yourself.....learning to love everyone. Yeah, i know its really strange stuff.....

 

[aspen]

“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them."

Ephesians 4:2 “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."

1 Peter 4:8: “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins."

 

[Mayflower]

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
John 13:34‭-‬35



Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. "This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. This I command you, that you love one another.
John 15:9‭-‬17

 

[Philip James]

1John 4:7

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.

 

[Helen]

Well, here is another thread devoted to my endless pet doctrines. Love your neighbor as yourself.....learning to love everyone. Yeah, i know its really strange stuff.....

Good, glad to see that you have started a new thread.

But for discussions sake...I will pick up on a line in your OP
"..learning to love everyone..."

To me that is like those who continue to believe that - " "we" must keep the 10 commandments..."
Which God showed clearly for 4000 years in the OT is impossible for man to do. Man had to have the blood of bulls and goats...

Same with .." A NEW command I give unto you...love God with everything you have, and love your neighbour as yourself. "
Another impossible command.

Hand up all those who have now got this locked down by " learning to love"?
It doesn't matter if we have been saved one day or 45 years ...we still have not and cannot ,"do" this ourselves.
The only way of "learning" ..is the habit of reckoning ourselves dead indeed unto sin and alive unto Christ .
He alone is the lover ...He loves through us to the nasty neighbour.
The more we yield to him, the more victory we find.

One of our friend @amadeus 's favourite quotes is.. "I must decrease and He must increase"
That is the only answer that I can see to the love issue.

The 'love' that we all sung about in the 60's and 70's was just that...a song. We walked around with our arms around each other singing about love..
...fun and happy years...but without lasting fruit.

 

[H. Richard]

Good, glad to see that you have started a new thread.

But for discussions sake...I will pick up on a line in your OP
"..learning to love everyone..."

To me that is like those who continue to believe that - " "we" must keep the 10 commandments..."
Which God showed clearly for 4000 years in the OT is impossible for man to do. Man had to have the blood of bulls and goats...

Same with .." A NEW command I give unto you...love God with everything you have, and love your neighbour as yourself. "
Another impossible command.

Hand up all those who have now got this locked down by " learning to love"?
It doesn't matter if we have been saved one day or 45 years ...we still have not and cannot ,"do" this ourselves.
The only way of "learning" ..is the habit of reckoning ourselves dead indeed unto sin and alive unto Christ .
He alone is the lover ...He loves through us to the nasty neighbour.
The more we yield to him, the more victory we find.

One of our friend @amadeus 's favourite quotes is.. "I must decrease and He must increase"
That is the only answer that I can see to the love issue.

The 'love' that we all sung about in the 60's and 70's was just that...a song. We walked around with our arms around each other singing about love..
...fun and happy years...but without lasting fruit.

***

The only one that proved His love is Jesus.

 

[Triumph1300]

I saw "Pet Doctrines" and I thought:

"Ha, finally a thread about animals."

Fully expecting some people claiming their pets go to heaven.

What a disappointment, it's not about pets at all.

 

[Dcopymope]

Well, here is another thread devoted to my endless pet doctrines. Love your neighbor as yourself.....learning to love everyone. Yeah, i know its really strange stuff.....

There is nothing strange about showing the level of respect to others as you do yourself. It only becomes strange when this respect is misconstrued as "unconditional", as if I am obligated to show the same level of respect or "love" as I would show for God, I.e with all your heart, mind and soul. It turns Christ's commandments into a more touchy feely doctrine, of which I don't particularly care for.

 

[amadeus]

I saw "Pet Doctrines" and I thought:

"Ha, finally a thread about animals."

Fully expecting some people claiming their pets go to heaven.

What a disappointment, it's not about pets at all.

Well it is about "pets", but as you say, not about what men call lower animals.

I had a pastor once many years ago who called a particular verse in scripture [I am purposely not citing the verse here] his "sugar stick". To him it was I guess what might be called a "pet doctrine" as it was treated as such by him a number of other people. Does [should] make you think, doesn't it?

 

[Helen]

I saw "Pet Doctrines" and I thought:

"Ha, finally a thread about animals."

Fully expecting some people claiming their pets go to heaven.

What a disappointment, it's not about pets at all.

You are not alone...I also thought that was what it was about...but my clue was Aspen's name on the thread...I've never seen him speak about pets, so I took a look-see.

 

[bbyrd009]

There is nothing strange about showing the level of respect to others as you do yourself. It only becomes strange when this respect is misconstrued as "unconditional", as if I am obligated to show the same level of respect or "love" as I would show for God, I.e with all your heart, mind and soul. It turns Christ's commandments into a more touchy feely doctrine, of which I don't particularly care for.

"we heard You coming and knew we were naked, so we hid"
"here, have a skin then."

 

[bbyrd009]

Well it is about "pets", but as you say, not about what men call lower animals.

I had a pastor once many years ago who called a particular verse in scripture [I am purposely not citing the verse here] his "sugar stick". To him it was I guess what might be called a "pet doctrine" as it was treated as such by him a number of other people. Does [should] make you think, doesn't it?

bet he would not have appreciated me showing him that contrasting v much, huh

 

[amadeus]

bet he would not have appreciated me showing him that contrasting v much, huh

This was the same pastor who rebuked me over the pulpit when I was only beginning to read the Bible for the first time in my life in 1976. I had gone to him privately in his office prior to a service to ask a serious question. I wanted him to explain to me the scriptural basis for his authority as a pastor. He did not answer me at all but walked out. A few minutes later when I was sitting quietly by my wife and children in the pew he came to the pulpit. He looked at me and all of the people in attendance and said in not a nice way that I had questioned his authority. My wife from that moment began to build her case for leaving that church forever. She always has been quicker than me to understand people and hear from God on what we needed to do. Eventually of course we left but she had to wait until I was ready. We had a lot of other difficult lessons to learn in that place first.

 

[aspen]

This was the same pastor who rebuked me over the pulpit when I was only beginning to read the Bible for the first time in my life in 1976. I had gone to him privately in his office prior to a service to ask a serious question. I wanted him to explain to me the scriptural basis for his authority as a pastor. He did not answer me at all but walked out. A few minutes later when I was sitting quietly by my wife and children in the pew he came to the pulpit. He looked at me and all of the people in attendance and said in not a nice way that I had questioned his authority. My wife from that moment began to build her case for leaving that church forever. She always has been quicker than me to understand people and hear from God on what we needed to do. Eventually of course we left but she had to wait until I was ready. We had a lot of other difficult lessons to learn in that place first.

Ministry and parenthood makes you crazy in a short period of time

 

[aspen]

If you guys want to talk about pets go for it

 

[amadeus]

Ministry and parenthood makes you crazy in a short period of time

The ministry certainly in places and times. As to being a parent, I was always a big kid. I would sit on the floor and play with my little ones and in later years my grandchildren. My wife liked me as a babysitter although most of the time it ended up being her job.

 

[Triumph1300]

If you guys want to talk about pets go for it

Pitbulls go to hell.
No doubt about it.

 

[aspen]

So, i am still going to talk about my pet topic, which is loving others. It is interesting to watch others and myself confront and live with the reality of love.

1. I do not not want to love others - it is hard. I watch others struggle with this too. It is interesting the lengths we will go to in order to avoid it. All the doctrines, theology, dogma, ridiculously long sermons on genealogies and histories of dead people, liturgy, blah, blah.

We even imitate Luther and run away from all the bs by renoucing church completely - as if it is keeping us from a true relationship with Christ.......all it actually does is isolate us from the Body of Christ and limits our spiritual growth by limiting the people most in need of love a fellowship.

2. Approaching love like a dieter navigating healthy food is another avoidance tactic. Substituting a later helping of ice cream because you skipped a high calorie lunch.....substituting an obsession with the Bible and calling it love....

3. Here’s a new one.....honestly, i have never seen such boldness. Renouncing love as a weakness and proclaiming hatred for whomever you feel like hating - while calling yourself a Christian! Redefining the word ‘believe’ to simply mean ‘knowing of’ and possibly admiring, applying it to Christ and calling it good. Of course this requires us to ignore Jesus when he reminds us that even the demons know who God is and shudder.....

True spiritual growth requires the disciple to love others even when it is hard because we need the practice. Loving others is what we were created to do, but it has been warped into narcissistic self love, which is toxic. We are justified by Christ’s love sacrifice on the Cross and we are called to pick up our cross and follow Him by loving others through sacrifice and aervice. All this practice, submiting to the Holy Spirit and putting love into practice is the Good News.

I believe we were created in God’s image - God is Love - we are called to be love, once again. Practicing love is a spiritual discipline, necessay for us to come home like the prodical sons and daughters we are. Thankfully, when we are completely transformed, love will no longer feel like a burden - we will be naturals

Comments?

 

[Truth]

“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them."

Ephesians 4:2 “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."

1 Peter 4:8: “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins."

I know that your OP and second post is about Love, and who can disagree!

Have you at any point in your life truly Hated anyone, I have- and it is a very disabling trait! Liking people is easy, Loving people is a little harder, But far more rewarding, and you do not have to like to Love. I think we have to try to see them as our Savior see's them, what they could be in His Family. If you look hard enough you can see the possibility's in any person!

 

[Dcopymope]

"we heard You coming and knew we were naked, so we hid"
"here, have a skin then."

Ok, don't exactly know what your point is here.