June 16, 2016 - "A Discussion About Faith"

Chaplain’s Corner

June 16, 2016

A Discussion About Faith

Good Morning Patriots!

I had an interesting exchange with someone online who was mocking me and my belief that Christianity is the true religion, and that Islam is a dangerous cult. I decided to just copy/paste the last section of our discussion here, since you may have come across similar people who say similar things, and I thought you might find the response interesting:

"Gabe Hoagland: Have you ever read the Old Testament, Stephen? There's a lot of equally hateful, terrible, sickening nastiness

Stephen King: The Old Testament is a History and a record of Prophecy. It is there for reference, but Christianity is based on Jesus and the New Testament. I stand by my earlier statements. Do an honest side-by-side comparison of Jesus and Muhammad and what do you see?

Gabe Hoagland: Deuteronomy and Leviticus are both a list of laws detailing sins against god, many of them sexist, xenophobic, or just morally wrong. Where does that fit in to "history and record of prophecy?"

And, I don't know what the Koran says about Muhammad. I don't and will not presume to know everything about a religion I have no experience with.

I will say that the Bible contradicts itself hundreds of times; who's to say the Koran doesn't do the same?

Stephen King: You are assuming you understand the Bible, which you do not. You are welcome to your opinion, and by no means do you have to take my word for anything, but as an old man who has studied the Bible all of my life, as well as other religions and cultures, I have already done my due diligence and am comfortable and confident in my assessments. It is up to each of you to make your own decisions. But if you do not study history, you are doomed to make the same mistakes that have already been made time and again. Islam is based on the founder of that cult, and it would serve you well to study a history of the man. The same can be said for the founder of Christianity. It's up to you to decide where to go from there.

Gabe Hoagland: You may be an old man who has studied the bible all your life, but that doesn't mean you know anything. You don't know anything about me, yet you presume I don't know anything about the bible? Your pompous ass can take a hike. You didn't even answer my question, you just jumped straight to the holier-than-thou criticisms.

The books of Deuteronomy, Leviticus and Numbers are laws given from God to Moses. Though it may be "history," because it happened in the past, it's safer to say that those are "rules and regulations."

Stephen King: I didn't respond to the specifics of your post because you showed your true colors when you said that God's Laws to the Israelites were "sexist, xenophobic, or just morally wrong." You can call me pompous and holier-than-thou all you want. That is your right. I just fear for the implications of any mortal being who tries to judge God under any circumstances. Your words belie your true feelings about God, and also your complete misunderstanding of Him and His Righteousness. You are not alone in your attitude of hate against the perfect, moral, chaste God and Creator of the universe. There are many others like you in the world. And the Bible speaks of people like you when it says that narrow and cramped is the road leading off into life, but broad and spacious is the road leading off into destruction, and many are the ones on it. Anyone who would have the gall to think that they know and understand the human condition better than the One Who created humans from the dust of the ground is in a very dangerous place. To call into question the very morality of the Author of purity and morality is to walk on dangerous ground. Satan himself, being the father of the lie, tried to convince mankind that they could make their own decisions in life, and be "like God" and not have to follow simple rules and boundaries. Mankind has been struggling with that ever since. The relationship that God had with the Israelites was unique, to say the least, and it set them apart from the rest of the world at that time. The laws, rules, and regulations that were given to them were a complicated system of approach to a perfect God, through the works of the flesh, which was impossible, and it was designed to do two things. First, it was supposed to be a symbol of things to come, with Jesus playing the role of High Priest, Who goes into the presence of God and pleads for forgiveness of our sins and sinful nature. He also was to play the part of the Lamb that was sacrificed as a symbol of blood payment. Secondly, the complexity and impossibility of man to completely and perfectly keep every rule and law of the Old Testament was a way to show mankind that there was and is a better way to approach God than through our own human and flawed efforts. Jesus came not only to pay the price, but also to show us a new and better way to worship and approach God. He showed by example that true Christian love is the answer. When He was asked what it takes to fulfill God's requirements for salvation, he said that if we could 1) Love God with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength, and 2) love our fellow man as ourselves, then we would have fulfilled "the Law and the Prophets" referring to all of the Old Testament. The point being that we do not need a list of laws and rules and regulations if we have a close and loving relationship with God. If we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, and approach God through the merits of that sacrifice, and claim victory over sin and death by means of our salvation in the blood of the Lamb, then we can have that intimate, one-on-one relationship with God that the Israelites were never able to have, because they insisted on trying to earn their salvation by following a set of rules and approaching God in flawed flesh. If you truly love God with all of yourself, intimately, to the core, and love your neighbor as yourself, then you don't need rules and laws. You will not murder or steal or take another man's wife. The way you live your life will be based on a relationship with God, and knowing God, you will not need a set of rules to know what he wants you to do in any given situation. That was the whole point from the beginning. To show man the impossible frustration of trying to do it in our own power in the flesh, when it was impossible for flawed, sinful mankind to be perfect. We needed a Savior, a perfect human to pay the price for what Adam lost for us in the Garden of Eden. Trying to put God in a box or judge Him and trying to be "morally superior" to God Himself is a sad attempt at being your own god, and sadly, that will only put you on the wide and spacious road leading off into destruction. Without God, you are lost. Without accepting His free gift of salvation through Jesus, you are sending yourself off into eternal destruction. It's not His fault. It is all on you and the fatal decisions you make today in this flesh. Be your own god if that brings you satisfaction and peace in your own heart. But be prepared to pay the price in the end. However, the good news is that He still loves you, and doesn't want to lose any of His children to their own madness, and His invitation stands. While you still have time, while you still draw breath in this sinful flesh, you can still become brokenhearted before Him and repent and turn away from your own headlong decent into oblivion. You can accept His provision for eternal life through the merits of the ransom sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and come to a real, working relationship with Him, and accept Him as your Lord and Savior, and allow Him to sit on the throne of your heart. THAT relationship is what saves us, not the simple following of a set of "rules." I know this was a very long answer to your question, but it really was not long enough to completely answer the complexities involved in the moral equation. This will have to suffice for now. I fear that my words fall on deaf ears, but I make the attempt anyway. I pray that you will be cut to the heart by my words and that you will fall to your knees before the Sovereign of the universe and beg forgiveness for your attitude toward Him, and your lack of understanding of things that are far above your ability to comprehend. Trust in Him, not your own understanding. There are none so blind as those who will not see..."

I might add here that his response was simply: "lol"

Feel free to let me know your thoughts...

God Bless you, every one, and:
God Bless America!
Stephen King
Chaplain@3upi.com