Website owner: James Miller
Many religious people, especially religious fanatics, tend to
be very closed-minded. They believe they have the truth and
are not receptive to other ideas or beliefs. Whether we are
talking about Moslems, Hindus, various Christian sects, etc.
they have their set beliefs, assumptions and ideas and are not
inclined to listen to people of other religions or beliefs.
They are completely convinced that they have the truth, they
are completely happy with their beliefs, and are not prone
toward doubt and examination of their beliefs. They believe
what they have been told, what they have been taught. They
have been indoctrinated into a particular set of beliefs.
Their minds have been programmed. Religions program minds.
(It is not just religions. Other belief systems, such as
atheism, program minds, as well.) We all work under
assumptions. We need assumptions in order to think. A
particular set of assumptions represents a programming of the
mind. And when you are working from a set of assumptions and
one of your assumptions is in error it can lead to invalid
conclusions, to error in thought.
I don't believe that evangelical, born-again Christians (the
group of people I come from) are generally receptive to the
things I have to say. They are not receptive to questions and
challenges. Their minds are closed. They are not out in
search of truth. They feel they have it. They are hard-shelled
nuts that you can't crack. Why is this? It is because they
feel they already have the truth and that there is nothing
more to be had. They feel they are saved. It is something
that happened to them at some point in their lives. They
"accepted the Lord" at some point in their lives and so now, in
their minds, they are saved. It is as simple as that. There
is no more truth to be had than that. They have the truth.
All of it. Everything is all neatly wrapped up, tied and
sealed. They are saved and are going to heaven. This idea has
been instilled into them, they have accepted that idea, and
that is what they believe. It is their belief, their religion.
They have been indoctrinated. Through the endless repetition
of the "just believe in Jesus" and the "salvation by grace
through faith, not by works" genre of New Testament scripture
their particular doctrine has been so heavily implanted in
their minds that they are unable to mentally grasp the very
crucial fact that true Christianity is all about obedience and
practice. And that is their big error. It is one of wrong
emphasis. The importance of obedience and practice is not
emphasized in their services. It gets grossly neglected,
ignored. They don't talk about it. (They talk about tithing,
soul-winning and helping out in the church --- things that make
the church grow --- but personal virtues like honesty,
humility, chastity, forgiveness, peacefulness, etc. aren't
talked about --- and these personal virtues are what the
teachings of the Bible are all about.) In actual fact, true
Christianity is a faith in which obedience and practice is
fundamental, central. True Christianity is about love of God
and obedience and practice coming out of that love of God (but
not obedience and practice coming from trying to work your way
into heaven). More specifically, it is about following the
teachings of Jesus, following the teachings of the Bible. It
about fear of God and obedience to him in the way of godly,
upright living. It is about obeying God in the way a child
obeys his father. It is about love of God, honesty, integrity,
humility, forgiveness of wrongs done to you, chastity,
goodness, peacefulness, justness, treating your neighbor right,
etc. The things Jesus taught. Christianity is all about
obedience, about practice. About implementing God's teachings
and principles in your life. About conforming in our habits
and personal conduct to his principles. And mostly his
teachings are about how we are supposed to conduct ourselves
with other people. Yes, we are saved by grace through faith.
But the faith is one that includes obedience, that is evidenced
by obedience. A "faith" that isn't accompanied by obedience is
foolishness. It is intellectual self-deception, sham. One
does not go to heaven by any sham ways. And yes, we are saved
by the blood of Christ. Those who follow and are obedient are
indeed saved by the blood of Christ. But the heart of
Christianity is practice. It is about practice out of a love
and fear of God. It is about eschewing evil and pursuing
virtue. In the Old Testament God instructed the Israelites to
follow his commandments. Jesus taught us to "keep the
commandments" (Matt 19:16-22). In other words, "obey God,
practice his teachings". Keeping the commandments involves
effort, struggle, commitment, self-discipline, self-control,
self-sacrifice. It not an easy, effortless way, a way of self-
indulgence and following the ways, outlooks and values of your
culture. Indeed it generally requires questioning and going
against the ways, outlooks and values of your culture. It is
not some social group exercise, a church thing, something you
do with others --- it is something you do all alone, all by
yourself, in the quiet of your own heart and mind. It is a
deeply personal thing. It is all about personal commitment.
No one can do it for you. It is not about just "believing in
Jesus". The demons believe and tremble (James 2:19). It is
not just some thing of the mind, an intellectual thing. It is
about obedience --- fearing and serving God. Let us look now
at what God said to the Israelites. Note what he says about
"walking in all his ways".
Deut 10:12-20 And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God
require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all
His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all
your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the
commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you
today for your good? Indeed heaven and the highest
heavens belong to the LORD your God, also the earth with all
that is in it. For the LORD your God is God of gods and
Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no
partiality nor takes a bribe. He administers justice for
the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving
him food and clothing. Therefore love the stranger, for
you were strangers in the land of Egypt. You shall fear
the LORD your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall
hold fast, and take oaths in His name.
Deut. 6:1-2,6-9 Now this is the commandment, and these are
the statutes and judgments which the LORD your God has
commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land
which you are crossing over to possess, that you may fear the
LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments
which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all
the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. You
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your
soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I
command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them
diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you
sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down,
and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your
hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You
shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your
gates.
Lev 19:2-4 You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am
holy. {3} Every one of you shall revere his mother and his
father, and keep My Sabbaths: I am the LORD your God. {4} Do
not turn to idols, nor make for yourselves molded gods: I am
the LORD your God.
Lev 19:11-18,35-36,26,28,31 You shall not steal, nor deal
falsely, nor lie to one another.
You shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane
the name of your God.
You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of
him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until
morning.
You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before
the blind, but shall fear your God: I am the LORD.
You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial
to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In
righteousness you shall judge your neighbor.
You shall not go about as a talebearer among your people; nor
shall you take a stand against the life of your neighbor.
You shall not hate your brother in your heart. You shall surely
rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him.
You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the
children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as
yourself.
You shall do no injustice in judgment, in measurement of
length, weight, or volume. You shall have honest scales,
honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin.
You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor shall you
practice divination or soothsaying.
You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor
tattoo any marks on you.
Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek
after them, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.
Lev 19:33-34 And if a stranger dwells with you in your land,
you shall not mistreat him. {34} The stranger who dwells among
you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love
him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I
am the LORD your God.
Deut 15:6-7,11 If there is among you a poor man of your
brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the Lord
your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut
your hand from your poor brother, but you shall open your hand
wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need,
whatever he needs. For the poor will never cease from the land;
therefore I command you, saying, "You shall open your hand wide
to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land."
Lev 18:22-24 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It
is an abomination. Nor shall you mate with any animal, to
defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an
animal to mate with it. It is perversion. Do not defile
yourselves with any of these things; for by all these the
nations are defiled, which I am casting out before you.
Lev 20:10,13,15-16 The man who commits adultery with another
man's wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor's wife,
the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death.
If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them
have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to
death. Their blood shall be upon them. If a man mates with an
animal, he shall surely be put to death, and you shall kill the
animal. If a woman approaches any animal and mates with it, you
shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put
to death. Their blood is upon them.
TEN COMMANDMENTS
1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
2. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.
3. Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain.
4. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
5. Honour thy father and thy mother.
6. Thou shalt not kill.
7. Thou shalt not commit adultery.
8. Thou shalt not steal.
9. Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
10. Thou shalt not covet.
God's expectation of us is the same as it was of the
Israelites. He has told us what he wants. We are supposed to
"walk in all his ways", to obey. His law is a higher law than
the one the rest of the world lives by. His way is the Way of
Truth. It is the way of Wisdom and Understanding that we read
about in the book of Proverbs. It is the Way of Jesus. Jesus
told us the way. By his example he showed us the way.
An evangelical will say, "Thank God, I am saved! I am just
a sinner saved by grace! I accepted the Lord, I believed, and
now I am saved! Thank God!" Well, we are indeed all sinners
in the sense that we have all sinned. And all Christians are
saved by grace. However, salvation comes from repenting of
sin, turning away from it, turning to God, and walking in his
way. If one is of the idea that the single act of walking down
a church aisle and professing his faith in Christ is sufficient in
and of itself to save him he is in danger of great and terrible
self-deception, self-delusion (no matter how sincere he was at
the time). True Christianity is about walking in God's way,
living by the example and teachings of Jesus. One must
thoroughly appreciate this.
Man has a tremendous capacity for self-deception. It seems to
me Christians are always trying to get to heaven in all kinds
of ways, all ways except the way of obedience. They try to go
there by faithfully attending some church, following church
teachings (instead of God's teachings); through actively
working in churches, through following church rituals and
rites, through formulas. They become mesmerized, brainwashed
by some handsome, fast talking preacher, believe everything he
says. He talks them into believing they will go to heaven by
some recipe or other, something complicated and perhaps a bit
outlandish that doesn't make much sense. The idea of going to
heaven by something so simple as loving God, obedience to him,
following his teachings is just too simple and obvious. So
simple and obvious that they reject it, overlook it. They are
looking for a way to heaven that is more complicated, obscure,
exotic. Like maybe some magic words or magic rituals.
Besides, following his teachings is just very hard, you know.
The idea just doesn't appeal to them. It involves effort,
self-discipline, changing yourself, changing your habits,
changing the way you live, changing the way you treat people.
That sounds hard. It is just not a thing that gives a lot of
pleasure. They prefer things that entertain. They like having
fun. They get all caught up in religious services, do a lot of
spirited singing, maybe dancing, praising God. They pick up a
lot of religious slogans and cant, stand up and give their
testimony on all the things God has done for them this last
week. That is on Sunday. The rest of the week they live
like the rest of the world, take the easy way, violate all
God's laws. I look at the different Christian denominations
and they all seem to me to be perverted in one way or another.
Either they are liberal and deny the main truths of the Bible
or they are conservative, but have gotten twisted off into a
wrong path in one way or another. The Devil is everywhere,
busy doing his thing.
I believe that a Christian should be in search of truth. He
should have an objective mind that seeks the truth. I believe
that thinking and reflection are very important to the
Christian life. He needs to question, examine and reflect.
Apr 2009
Jesus Christ and His Teachings
Way of enlightenment, wisdom, and understanding
America, a corrupt, depraved, shameless country
On integrity and the lack of it
The test of a person's Christianity is what he is
Ninety five percent of the problems that most people have come from personal foolishness
Liberalism, socialism and the modern welfare state
The desire to harm, a motivation for conduct
On Self-sufficient Country Living, Homesteading
Topically Arranged Proverbs, Precepts, Quotations. Common Sayings. Poor Richard's Almanac.
Theory on the Formation of Character
People are like radio tuners --- they pick out and listen to one wavelength and ignore the rest
Cause of Character Traits --- According to Aristotle
We are what we eat --- living under the discipline of a diet
Avoiding problems and trouble in life
Role of habit in formation of character
Personal attributes of the true Christian
What determines a person's character?
Love of God and love of virtue are closely united
Intellectual disparities among people and the power in good habits
Tools of Satan. Tactics and Tricks used by the Devil.
The Natural Way -- The Unnatural Way
Wisdom, Reason and Virtue are closely related
Knowledge is one thing, wisdom is another
My views on Christianity in America
The most important thing in life is understanding
We are all examples --- for good or for bad
Television --- spiritual poison
The Prime Mover that decides "What We Are"
Where do our outlooks, attitudes and values come from?
Sin is serious business. The punishment for it is real. Hell is real.
Self-imposed discipline and regimentation
Achieving happiness in life --- a matter of the right strategies
Self-control, self-restraint, self-discipline basic to so much in life