The Religious Stuff..& all things are possible except skiing through a revolving door

May 30, 2007

Gnostic Gospels

Filed under: Bible, Christianity, Gnostic, Religion — Admin Staff @ 2:35 pm

Why are there lost books of the Bible?

To begin with, there are no “lost books of the Bible.” These so-called “lost books” were known by the Jews in Old Testament times as well as by Christians of the New Testament era, but they were not considered inspired Scripture. Therefore, they were not included in the Bible.

Why were they not included? There are several reasons for exclusion of these books. Many of them lacked apostolic or prophetic authorship, they did not claim to be the Word of God, and they contained unbiblical concepts or serious historical inaccuracies.

However, the Roman Catholic Church did include certain books to the canon of scripture which they called the Apocrypha meaning “hidden.” They were written by the Jews between 300 and 100 B.C., and the Catholic Church felt they should be included because they consider them inspired. The Apocrypha was contained in the Greek scrolls probably available during Jesus’ lifetime, but were not considered a part of the Scriptures. The Apocrypha was included in the Bible until the 1500s, but Martin Luther objected, and decided not to include it in his German version of the Bible.

There are, however, books available that have collections of the “Lost Gospels” and of other “Epistles” that are not found in our Bibles today. Why?

Before the Bible became the book we know of today, there was an official collection of books recognized by the church which were called scrolls (the form of binding used for all writings including books like the Gospels and less formal writings like letters and Epistles). They were very expensive to duplicate, and they were also produced by hand so the early churches shared resources with each other. Therefore, the scrolls were freely circulated among the churches, but concerns arose among the churches that letters and books containing less than Christian ideals were being circulated. So, in 397, the Council of Carthage adopted an official canon of books that were considered to be “in” and books that were to be considered “out.” So, now, we have the official Bible of today with 66 books with an addition of the 14 books of the Apocrypha.

There is also discussion that the so-called “lost books” of the Bible refers to ancient Israelite books that are not really “lost” because we know of their existence as they are mentioned in the Bible. They are just a scriptural sidelight. There are 54 biblical passages that cite 20 different titles of “lost books,” but scholars believe these titles are just duplicates.

When we think of the Bible which is to be the inspired Word of God, we cannot believe that this book would not be complete. We know the Spirit of God worked through man who wrote the Bible, so we conclude man makes mistakes. Yes, mistakes are possible, but not mandatory. Human beings can and do produce writings with NO errors. Divine inspiration solves that problem of human involvement as God insures the results so it doesn’t make any difference who does the writing.

It is also theorized that since man produced the Scriptures, then the Bible is not the Word of God. It is made up of beliefs of the early church leaders, therefore, since they rejected certain books as unrepresentative of their beliefs and did not represent their point of view then they have the final word on what is included. Any books they rejected were never part of their Bible to begin with so the definition of “lost books” is not defined correctly. The early church had within its authority to reject as non-canonical certain books, but they are not lost; merely discarded.

Archaeology has discovered many manuscripts that are most valuable and significant, but while they are noteworthy and wonderful pieces of literature, they are not lost books of the Bible.

What is the main message of the Bible?

Filed under: Bible, Christianity, Religion — Admin Staff @ 11:48 am

Here are two viewpoints

from http://www.ibs.org/

I wanted to publish this and get some feedback if I may.

The Bible addresses many basic issues of life and death, of the present and the future, and so it is difficult to select just one theme as the main one. Students of the Bible have generally grouped the leading topics treated in the Bible under two main heads. Let’s look briefly at both of them.

The first school suggests that the main message of the Bible is the wonderful presentation of salvation. The good news of salvation in Jesus Christ is the fundamental message of the Scripture. Under this head there are many basic truths:

  • God created a majestic universe and crowned it by forming the first man and woman in sinless perfection.

  • Adam and Eve succumbed to temptation from Satan, and fell into sin and shame. The consequences of sin are obvious, but people everywhere still love to rebel against God.

  • Yet God did not abandon humanity on its course to destruction. He chose one people to demonstrate his special care and from them to provide a Savior for the whole world.

  • God sent his own son Jesus Christ to bear the awesome consequences of sin. God does not just blithely disregard sin, but he poured out all the terror of eternal condemnation on his son in those terrible hours of suffering and death on the cross.

  • In the resurrection of Jesus, God demonstrates his victory over sin and calls people everywhere to identify with this victory by faith in Jesus Christ.

  • In living in this salvation, we know that life is not meaningless, but we live surrounded by God’s love, and bound for eternity with him.

The second school of thought views the main message of the Bible from a much different perspective. These readers agree that salvation is certainly very important, but it is only part of a much greater message. That bigger message goes far beyond the man-centered focus of salvation to embrace the purpose of all time and space. We may call this message the revelation of God’s plan and purpose for the universe. Under this head there are also many basic truths:

  • God in his dynamic and creative essence resolved to create the universe and delight in it.

  • However, God is not the sole transcendent being. There is a rebellious and fallen being named Satan who opposes God and his plan. He deceives and undermines God’s purpose everywhere.

  • This conflict marks all history and results in two kingdoms. Satan foments disorder and all that is bizarre and sinister. Quarreling and dissension among God’s people is often his most horrid device.

  • In sending his son Jesus Christ, God established the decisive hour in this conflict. In his servanthood, Jesus was the opposite of all the pomp, pride, greed and egoism that Satan promotes.

  • In Christ’s death, Satan declared victory over God, but the resurrection turned that seeming victory into actual defeat.

  • Satan still prowls the world, but he realizes he cannot win. God’s people are now heralds of his present and coming kingdom. Gradually the contours of the final conflict emerge across the world.

  • Eventually evil so captivates and enslaves humanity that the climactic end time of history arrives. Finally, Christ returns to earth as the victor and God’s kingdom is established for all eternity. The purpose of God’s creation and universal plan is achieved.

Both these majestic messages are found in the Bible. They are simply two perspectives on one majestic theme: God’s Plan For His People And His Cosmic Kingdom.

It’s Faith Not Biology

Filed under: Christian Mental Health, Christianity, Information, Kids, Life, Religion — Admin Staff @ 7:57 am


ScienceWilliam Jeynes, a California State University professor led a study finding that stable families, coupled with strong religious faith, enable minority youth to achieve at the same levels as white students. For years, researchers have claimed biological factors are responsible for the achievement gap. Minority students at religious schools perform better academically than do their counterparts at public schools because of better race relations and more emphasis on family and faith; yet many public schools look down on people of faith and discourage _expressions of faith.

Women Sleep Deprived

Filed under: Christianity, Information, Religion — Admin Staff @ 7:54 am

WomanA National Sleep Foundation study finds the majority of American women are continually sleep deprived, either because of young children, biological changes (pregnancy and menopause), stress or pets. The impact on families, personal and professional lives, and society is enormous. The lack of sleep causes them to be late to work, experience high stress, feel depressed or anxious, forego exercise, be too tired for sex, drive while drowsy and have little time for personal or family relationships. Most acute among working moms, the primary cause is their efforts to “do it all” (fulfill all their work, childcare, family and spousal responsibilities). Biological changes complicate matters further. They average only 6 hours in bed per night.

Marriage - The New Luxury

Filed under: Christianity, Information, Religion — Admin Staff @ 7:52 am


MarriageU.S. married couples with children now occupy fewer than 1 in 4 households, half of what it was in 1960 and the lowest ever recorded by the Census Bureau. As marriage with children becomes an exception rather than the norm, social scientists say it is also becoming the self-selected province of the college-educated and the affluent. The working class and poor increasingly steer away from marriage, while living together and bearing children out of wedlock. The culture is shifting, and marriage has almost become a luxury item. As cohabitation and out-of-wedlock births rise among the broader population, social scientists predict marriage with children will continu e its retreat into relatively high-income exclusivity.

Who Are You Following?

Filed under: Christianity, Information, Religion — Admin Staff @ 7:51 am
Abortion

ChurchNear the village of Gevas in eastern Turkey, while shepherds ate their breakfast, one of their sheep jumped off a 45-foot cliff to its death. Then, as the stunned shepherds looked on, the rest of the flock followed. In all, 1,500 sheep mindlessly stumbled off the cliff. The only good news was that the last 1,000 were cushioned in their fall by the growing woolly pile of those who jumped first. According to The Washington Post, 450 sheep died.

The Bible often refers to human beings as sheep (Ps. 100:3; Isa. 53:6; Matt. 9:36). Easily distracted and susceptible to group influence, we would rather follow the crowd than the wisdom of the Shepherd. I’m glad the Bible also describes sheep in a positive way.

Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd . . . . My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:14,27).

So the big question for us is: Whom are we following? One another? Self-centered shepherds? Or the voice and direction of the Good Shepherd? Our challenge is to avoid the mistake of the sheep who blindly followed one another over a cliff. Each of us must daily to ask ourselves: Am I listening for the voice of the Good Shepherd? Am I following Him?

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