The Church

[Templarios]

A building used for prayer, worship, or other public religious services

The 10 Commandments:

1. Thou shalt have no other gods before me
2. Thou shalt not make for thyself an idol
3. Thou shalt not make wrongful use of the name of thy God
4. Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy
5. Honour thy Father and Mother
6. Thou shalt not murder
7. Thou shalt not commit adultery
8. Thou shalt not steal
9. Thou shalt not bear false witness
10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house and wife

These are key beliefs for Christians and so, part of The United World Church.

[Templarios]

What it means to be a Christian

Christian life is lived in relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and in common with other Christians in the church seeking to deepen that relationship and to follow the way that Jesus taught.

For Christians God is understood and known as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

…Father… God is love, caring for creation and for every human being as God's beloved child.

…Son… God is as he has revealed himself to be in the historical person of Jesus Christ. Jesus' life, death and resurrection holds the key to knowing and loving God, and to making sense of life, before and after death.

…and Holy Spirit… God is alive, loving and active today, inspiring faith, justice and truth, sustaining the life of the world, giving spiritual gifts to the church and bearing his spiritual fruit in the world - changed lives and a transformed society.
Finding out more

If you want to wait before contacting anyone, and you'd rather find out more about Jesus online, why not visit www.rejesus.co.uk, and www.christianity.org.uk?

But because Christianity is about relationship and community, the best way to find out about faith and prayer, to raise questions and to get help, is to chat to some Christians here.

You can also learn more about God as he is in Jesus by reading the Bible - why not start with the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament?

[B9 perspective]

Those 10 commandments were Hebrew, yes? As was Jesus and were the Apostles of Jesus and the first disciples as well, yes? So, what distinguishes the Christians in this Church, is their belief or faith or recognition of Jesus as the Son of God. What I'm wondering is, according to Christian faith is Jesus' relationship to God as his Son, exclusive? Do Christians consider Jesus to be the only begotten child of God?
Or can anyone recognize themselves and others as God's children?

[Templarios]

Think I've answer those questions in other posts in response to your other questions

[B9 perspective]

I think so...basically according to Christians only Jesus is the Son of God , no one else...(if I understood right)...personally, I don't believe this was the message Jesus intended to offer, however.

[Templarios]

"I am the way, the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me" - Jesus in the Bible.

i think he makes it pretty clear...

[B9 perspective]

"I am the way, the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me" - Jesus in the Bible.

i think he makes it pretty clear...

Exactly. He doesn't say," I am the only and exclusive child of God."
Accepting the premise that God is Love, which, as you have previously mentioned is contained in the Bible as well, it might be noteworthy that LOVE does not necessarily operate with the same material means as say apples, oranges or warheads. Jesus * might* have intended that learning to understand one's personal relationship with love, wouldn't exclude his own. That love, when given or shared does not decrease. Instead Jesus' statement has been interpreted to signify specialness- a specialness only attributable to him.
No. Quite frankly, I believe that Jesus wished that people would grow, discover and reveal and share their spirit.

[Templarios]

"No-one comes to the Father except through me"

I think that pretty clear that no-one can get to God (the Father) except through Jesus (him).

[B9 perspective]

"No-one comes to the Father except through me"

I think that pretty clear that no-one can get to God (the Father) except through Jesus (him).

" God is Love"- so no one else can love? OR IF you love, then you share in the dominion of Christ.
Again, I don't believe the statement was intended to be interpreted as Love being the exclusive relationship of Jesus to God (or vice versa). Interpret it as you will, however. I do.

"That ye may be the children of your Father, which is in heaven" Matt 5/45

[Templarios]

God is love but exluvisly love.

Is to hate or wrong  - is that sharing the dominion of the devil/evil/*enter name of bad thing*/Satan etc?

That statement isnt talking about love, it is talking about eternal life through Jesus to God as he died on the cross for my and yours and everyone elses sins.

And what are you saying about that verse in Matthew?

[B9 perspective]

God is love but exclusively love? Nothing exclusive about Love-that's the point, love is inclusive, NOT exclusive.
The Matt quote certainly implies that Jesus did consider others to be Sons of God.

[Templarios]

God is love but exclusively love? Nothing exclusive about Love-that's the point, love is inclusive, NOT exclusive.
The Matt quote certainly implies that Jesus did consider others to be Sons of God.

God is love yes, and there is very exclusive about love. I love my gf - that is very exclusive. You HAVE to be her or i don't love u. If that is not exclusive - i don't know what is.

Implies? Your post implies that u didn't have enough love as a child but is that true? Implies is a very dangerous word.

God and father are the same - just a translation choice depending on the Greek and Hebrew that was orginally used. I've done some translating of orginal Hebrew and Greek and it is not easy. There are like 20,000 words compared to 5,000. U try choosing the words with does totally depend on ur views and context:

"That ye may be the children of your God, which is in heaven" Matt 5/45

[B9 perspective]

You don't love your sister because she's not your GF? OR you don't love her AS your GF but you love her.....
Loving your GF might not exclude loving your sister.Does Loving Jesus mean that you can't love your GF? I'm not a would be Vicar but I try to be carefull, to not castrate Him/her/it God by assigning any sort of material exclusivity-limitations to love. Not that I could anyway, I wouldn't desire to.
 


Gosh, I love my boyfriend, but I also love my parents, my brothers, daughter, my cat, plants, life, friends...I love whatever and whoever, whenever and however I damn well please and it's inclusive...I include them in my love and through my love. What about that original Aramaic- Hebrew translation; 'Love thy neighbor as thyself?'

Jesus, according to the bible, says; That ye maybe the children of your god.....what do YOU think it means?
I understand that 'implies' is a dangerous word...infact, how people choose to interpret the Bible HAS been a dangerous phenomenon for LOTS of folks. One USA woman I spoke to who was trying to justify the invasion of Iraq asked what would I do if they flew airplanes into towers..When I told her the pilots had all been Saudis she responded, " well they're all Muslims." As if, not being Christian, or choosing to share a different was a faith should substantiate killing, for anyone! Let alone Christians...Personally I was pleased as punch when Tibetan Lamas panned Pope John Paul's visit to Tibet some years ago after he'd said only members of the RCC believed in God. The collective silence of the lamas was much more inspiring to me, spiritually, than the Pope's message.

God and Love is the same, as are God and the Father. God, Truth, Love, Father doesn't make a hoot of difference to me which synononym you choose to use. BUT IF God is Truth- than it is the same truth for everyone and everything independent of the interpretations ascribed to it, otherwise it ain't the truth.
Perhaps in that way;  Truth-God-Love-the Father-the Creator is exclusive. It is independent of the interpretations assigned to it! Yours, mine or anyone elses.

That God has only one child- is also a Biblical interpretation- one that makes little sense to me and that I don't agree with. " Except ye ...little children" Mt 18:3
                        "Elder brother (Jesus) RM 8:29
                        " Be merciful even as YOUR Father Lk 6:36
                        " God created man" Gn 1:26-27"
                         " You are his beloved son" Mt 3:17, 17:5
                          " Your brother....in my name"
                           " I have loved you as I loved myself" LV 19:18; MT 22:39
                           " Sons of the living God" JN 6:69
                             " His beloved Sons" Mt 3:17, 17:5
                            " Know your brother as yourself" Lv 19:18
                           " ascend unto your Father" Jn 20:17
                             " release your brothers" Mt 16.19b, Jn 20:23
So, LOTS of refs to sons plural and likewise, brothers. This makes sense if God is considered Creator. Doesn't make sense when Jesus is considered God's only child. That's ok...as long as I can LOVE and others can tooo, of which I have faith.

[Templarios]

Are you a Jehovah witness cause you sound exactly like them right now with the whole son of God thing?

[B9 perspective]

Lol..If you read my other posts I already said that I'm agnostic....
Last time the Jehovah witnesses came to my door, I asked them to wait a minute...I went into the livingroom, stripped naked, put on Jimi Hendrix top volume and returned to greet them. They didn't bother trying to 'save' me after that.
You gave me bible quotes, I gave you others...happens that some of the quotes refer to gospels that clearly ennumerate Sons+brothers, as well as inclusive rather than exclusive love...course, you don't have to agree with my point of view, or agree with the bible quotes that support it-I'm not asking you too...jumping to absurd irrelevent conclusions regarding it is also your prerogative.