The Message???

Rather than bore you with MY explanation, lemme refer ya to this URL:

http://www.crossroad.to/Bible_studies/Message.html

Now, while I don't agree with EVERYTHING on this site, it's good for comparing some of "The Message"'s text with that of more orthodox translations. I believe "The Message" isn't really a translation, but a human paraphrase job.

I was given a copy a few years ago, and it didn't take me long to realize why it was given away!

Contrary to some KJVOs' beliefs, I do NOT automatically accept every fresh work calling itself a Bible as valid.

 

Rats, roby, you beat me to the punch. I gotta learn to type faster.

 

Pride is a very destructive force. It blinds you to anything else but your own view of the world. Most of them get extremely offended when called "Pharisees," too, but the similarities are unmistakeable. I was truly grieved when God put a spiritual mirror in front of me and I finally realized what I had become. God used the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector to reveal to me my pride and self righteousness.

The issue of separation is another area of difficulty I have with those types. As I said in another post, they misunderstand the call to separate from people who deny the fundamentals of the faith to include even the rest of us who choose to worship in a different way or read a different version of the Bible.

I truly feel called by the Lord to reach out to those sincere Christians who are blinded by pride, but unfortunately, the reaction I see most is similar to the reaction that Jesus received from the Pharisees. They feared "touching the unclean thing" because it would make them unclean, but yet Jesus spent most of His time with the "unclean." I am truly offended that a brother or sister in Christ would consider me "unclean" and not worthy of fellowship because I do not subscribe to their view.

As you said, Phillip, a sad situation, indeed.

 

I believe you're referring to a message addressed to you in the "Questions from a KJV-Onlyist" thread, right? Well, I wouldn't lose any sleep over it. The person who sent it has yet to prove the first thing she asserts.

 

I just left her a reply to a message she directed at me over there. It's so sad that these types are unable to see the forest for the trees. God allowed me the witness the inconsistencies in the lives of my former Pastor and other members of the church in order to break free of the chains.

I know for me, I felt as if I was a spiritual adolescent that was unable to mature spiritually because of pride, bitterness, and envy. I saw the same behavior in others in that church that were trying to better each other and gain approval of the Pastor. Just like a teenager I thought myself to be grown up eating from the meat of the word, but all the while I was really still a child drinking milk. The sermons all basically dealt with the same thing like tithing, separation from the world, having standards. Never any messages about love and compassion. Those types call anyone who professes the love of God to be a liberal, but if God didn't love us, would any of us be here right now?

Shawn

 

[Material unrelated to topic; snipped]

[ April 21, 2004, 09:40 PM: Message edited by: Dr. Bob Griffin ]

 

Now Malky,

Let's not have a pity party. There's plenty of sarcasm here but not much venom. By my way of looking at things you and some of the Berean crowd here may know scripture verbatim but don't have a good handle on interpretation. Yet you still try to come across in an authoritative manner! This sets you up!

I told Sharpstick - oops I mean Sharpsword - that she sounded like a Pharisee; not because I wanted to "attack" her - because I thoguht it was true. And I said it with a smile and not a frown!

You say you want debate - but you've got rather thin skin it seems. If you choose not to post anymore that's your choice.