Ray,
I am in college now, and for a good portion of the time I was in high school, I was constantly "arguing" with other students that claimed to be "christian" on the very same ideas/concepts you present in your website. For studying on your own, I think you have it together and must be blessed by God to be able to understand His word so well. I was wondering if you have ever head of the christian sect called Christadelphians? Although I believe you're very much on the ball, I think they might be able to help you and even further your studies of the truth. I have been a christadelphian my whole life and many of the falsehoods you try to discredit are the same ones that distinghish and differentiate the christadelphians from other christian groups. I just thought that was really interesting since there are not many people out there that I've met who believe the same as I do. Thanks for the site.
Christine
Dear Christine:
I have received hundreds of emails from a dozen religious faiths who all have claimed that I teach "EXACTLY as they do." I do not wish to demean your faith, however, I will show you just two points that I found on the very first page of a Christadelphian web site under the captions "Statment of our beliefts:
Man
"Man is a dying creature...all men become sinners before God. The punishment for sin is death, the end of all existence."
COMMENT: No, Christine, death is NOT "the end of all existence." It is merely a period of "sleep" between death and resurrection to judgment in which all will be saved. Jesus IS the "Saviour of the world," you know? (I John 4:14). A Saviourof the world is One Who S-A-V-E-S THE WORLD!!
Jesus Christ, His Sacrifice
"God, in His love, has provided Jesus to save man from perishing. Jesus, begotten of a virgin descended from Adam, had the exact same willfully rebellious and mortal nature as all other humans. He experienced the same fleshly desires to go his own way as those he came to save, yet he never sinned against God."
COMMENT: Since "ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God," then if Jesus came to save man from perishing, why are most STILL PERISHING? Jesus came to "die for our sins," not to "save man from perishing. "Broad is the way that leads to DESTRUCTION" [destruction, perishing, and lost, are all from the one Greek word, "apollumi." If MOST are going the "braod way to APPOLUMI," then Jesus did not come save man FROM IT. Most WILL perish, but they will also be resurrected, judged, and saved (read my "Lake of Fire" series for the details).
Next it states that "Jesus...had the EXACT same willfully REBELLIOUS and mortal nature as all other humans. He experienced the SAME FLESHLY DESIRES to go HIS OWN WAY as those He came to save, yet he never sinned against God."
What crock and what a contradiction: LISTEN: being "willfully REBELLIOUS" as is stated in the Christadelphain Statement of beliefs, IS SIN. Willful REBELLION against God IS SID. Having the SAME FLESH DESIRES as all men IS SIN, Christine. If these things describe Jesus, then for sure, it is not possible to say, "yet He never sinned against God." Lusting as sinful men lust, and being "willfully REBELLIOUS," as sinful men are rebellion, IS SIN AGAINST GOD!!
Jesus was "TEMPTED in all points as we, yet WITHOUT SIN" (Heb. 5:16). "Temptation" is not sin! Lust and rebellion IS SIN. When Jesus was "tempted," He was "tested," for that is what temptation means. It is not a sin to be "tested," only if one FAILS THE TEST does it become sin.
These are major, major, issues. Maybe Christadelphians don't teach that humanity will be tortured in literal fire for all eternity, but there are other religions just as the Jehovah's Witnesses, Worldwide Chruch of God, etc., etc., who do not believe that either, but then teach a plethora of "DAMNABLE HERESY"
(II Pet. 2;1) as do the Christadelphians. Maybe take a closer look at what you church teaches and see if you can find such teaching in the Scriptures.
I realize that all religions quote scriptures for their beliefs, as do the Christadelphians. The problem is that the Scriptures don actually SAY what their doctrines teach. Yes, they quote or reference Rom. 6:23, that "the wages of sin is DEATH," but then expand that into the heresy that death is "the end of all EXISTENCE," which is false, unscriptural, and heresy.
Only God can open your mind and show you the Truth.
God be with you,
Ray
