Jesus ate, walked, and spoke with sinners ..... because sinners are the only people on the face of this planet. One thing He never did was excuse sin, or accept someone violating God's Commandments. He accepted that we would do so, because of our sinful nature, but He never said it was OK to continue to sin, willfully and blatantly, in violation of His will.
Jesus forgives the sins of those who believe in Him. It is not possible to believe in Him, believe that He is the Son of God, and that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and is our Lord, and then disregard what He taught, and willfully disobey Him. A Christian will sin, because we live in a sinful world, but that does not mean that we should willfully sin, and blatantly violate God's Law, and then expect to be saved. Either Jesus is our Lord, and so we obey Him, or He is not, and we do not. Jesus is my Lord, and so I study His Word, and do my best to obey Him, and follow what He expects from us. His expectations are in the Bible,
I would also offer a warning. Jesus specifically warned us against leading others into sin. Matthew 16:23 says: But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."
Matthew 18:8 specifically warns against leading children into sin, saying: but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.
I would consider these carefully, if you truly want to follow Christ.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
Okay, but science continually finds links that show people get born a different gender than their anatomy, and that you're born attracted who you're attracted to.
I'm quite sure the Jesus and God I worship wouldn't create an individual damned to hell due to gender or sexual orientation.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
Okay, but science continually finds links that show people get born a different gender than their anatomy, and that you're born attracted who you're attracted to.
I'm quite sure the Jesus and God I worship wouldn't create an individual damned to hell due to gender or sexual orientation.
Okay here's the thing. (some back story) My daughter is friends with a transgender boy from high school. As a dad I read my kids texts (don't look at me funny if you don't you should be).
Should be no secret that I'm theologically opposed to this activity, and until this particular 'reading' I was sure that it was a chosen lifestyle.
While reading through an exchange between my daughter and this boy I come across part of the conversation where he talks about how he would sit in his room, arms wrapped around himself, rocking back & forth digging his nails into his arms.
Right then my thinking changed.
So for the next three weeks or so I'm wrestling with God about this, going so far as to say, 'well if they're born like this then it shouldn't be a sin', and believe me when I tell you I wrestled hard with this.
Then it hit me, God doesn't ask you how you were born, what you're tempted by or who you're attracted to.
God said this is how it is and that's the end of it. Well, that's really petty and egotistic of him isn't it? Tell ya what, when you can claim the entire iPhoto library of the Hubble telescope as your handiwork then you can decide how big God's ego is and write your own rules.
Something else to include in your thinking is this-TEMPATION ISN'T SIN. Only when you act on whatever you're tempted by have you sinned.
The other thing I wrestled with was, 'what do I tell this person then if he was genuinely born this way'?
Jesus loves you. No matter what that's the end of the matter.
Does that mean they would spend their lives alone? From a Biblical perspective losing fellowship with God for eternity would be worse than losing a relationship here on earth.
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM my two cents...
So God creates people damned to hell based on their sexual orientation and gender stuff?
I don't like twisting into a "hate yourself, but do it out of a sense of salvation for enternity" business. The praying away the gay programs cause more suicides than any other type of program.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
So sin causes DNA to make people autistic, trans-gendered, and homosexual?
You're the one who said you were a christian, so either you believe that the garden of Eden was perfect and paradisiacal (I hope I used that word correctly) and man was going to be immortal and have perfect fellowship with God before the fall or you don't.
But yeah, I believe that sin brought sickness and death just like the Bible said it did.
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM my two cents...
Not sure I understand how people get all excited about stuff like this. Don't they have far more matters to care about???? The economy, poverty, making a decent living, and better things to do with their time.
While the government has our attention focused on bathrooms they are busy screwing up something far more important. I don't know what it is but I know this is how they operate.
It's the age old magician's trick of misdirection. Just look at us, all thinking about bathrooms and what it means to be struggling with sexual identity, (something of which none of us who are not in that struggle can remotely understand from any perspective).
Somewhere there are some government officials laughing their asses off while they pull a rabbit out of the hat for their own amusement. We'll not see that rabbit until it screws us over and we'll wonder where in the hell THAT came from.
God gives us all challenges and temptations to face. We fail when we try to face them on our own. It is only through Christ that we can be strengthened and defeat the sins we face. We are wholly incapable of doing so on our own.
The solution is not to give in to sin, it is to trust in Christ to see us through the temptations we face. In fact, that is the only solution. The Bible tells us to set our minds on things above, not on things of this earth. Too often we chase after the world, and that is what causes people to fall. We chase after the worldly things, and not the heavenly.
Telling people that it is perfectly OK to sin is chasing the worldly. Worse, it is not only telling people it is OK to sin, it is telling them that it is preferable to sin. Sin can be an idol in our lives. Creating a God, in our own minds, who does what we want, rather than us obeying what He says, is idolatry as well.
I will also reiterate, it is not hate to try and help people see their sin. That is not hate, it is love. If a person does not see his sin, he will never accept the need for a Savior, and he will be lost. If we never see that we sin, then why do we need Christ? For a friend? Jesus came to save the world, but for us to be saved, we need to become aware of our sin, and accept that Christ is the perfect Savior, who saves us from the consequences of our sins. When we see our sins, we are to turn from those sins. Sometimes we slip. However, when we decide that our sin is more important that the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross, we are saying that our sin matters more to us than He does. I pray that none of us would fall into that trap .... but it is a trap the world is setting with more and more bait every day. We can choose to fall into those traps, or we can trust in, and follow Christ, and trust that He will keep us from falling.
I know what I have chosen. I hope that everyone would make the same choice, but God does not force any of us to choose Him.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
I don't know the right answer to this debate, but I think what is getting lost in all of this is how do middle school girls feel about sharing a bathroom w/a boy who feels like a girl?
Do they have a say in this, or is it just about one student and/or the political beliefs of our evolving society?
I don't know the right answer to this debate, but I think what is getting lost in all of this is how do middle school girls feel about sharing a bathroom w/a boy who feels like a girl?
Do they have a say in this, or is it just about one student and/or the political beliefs of our evolving society?
There is a case going on right now where the boy is being favored over his female classmates. Link
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM my two cents...
I don't know the right answer to this debate, but I think what is getting lost in all of this is how do middle school girls feel about sharing a bathroom w/a boy who feels like a girl?
Do they have a say in this, or is it just about one student and/or the political beliefs of our evolving society?
There is a case going on right now where the boy is being favored over his female classmates. Link
I don't know the right answer to this debate, but I think what is getting lost in all of this is how do middle school girls feel about sharing a bathroom w/a boy who feels like a girl?
Do they have a say in this, or is it just about one student and/or the political beliefs of our evolving society?
There is a case going on right now where the boy is being favored over his female classmates. Link
I was thinking about how shy my daughter was in middle school and how she used to have a hard time just going to the bathroom at school. I can't imagine how she would have reacted to having a person w/male body parts changing in the same locker room as her.
This quote from the article should not be ignored:
Quote:
"I believe that inside Lila is a female. I believe that she wants to have the female body and wants to be like the rest of females, but I know right now that's not physically possible," the 17-year-old said. "The only thing that bothers me is that Lila was in the girls' locker room. Some girls already have insecurity problems getting dressed in front of other girls as it is, much less having to get dressed in front of a boy."
I also find it a bit disturbing that the transgendered student was offered a neutral bathroom but did not want to use that one and insisted on using the girl's bathroom.
I really have never understood how one person is given more rights than the entire group.........
I don't know the right answer to this debate, but I think what is getting lost in all of this is how do middle school girls feel about sharing a bathroom w/a boy who feels like a girl?
Do they have a say in this, or is it just about one student and/or the political beliefs of our evolving society?
There is a case going on right now where the boy is being favored over his female classmates. Link
I was thinking about how shy my daughter was in middle school and how she used to have a hard time just going to the bathroom at school. I can't imagine how she would have reacted to having a person w/male body parts changing in the same locker room as her.
This quote from the article should not be ignored:
Quote:
"I believe that inside Lila is a female. I believe that she wants to have the female body and wants to be like the rest of females, but I know right now that's not physically possible," the 17-year-old said. "The only thing that bothers me is that Lila was in the girls' locker room. Some girls already have insecurity problems getting dressed in front of other girls as it is, much less having to get dressed in front of a boy."
I also find it a bit disturbing that the transgendered student was offered a neutral bathroom but did not want to use that one and insisted on using the girl's bathroom.
I really have never understood how one person is given more rights than the entire group.........
As another poster said, this is about challenging societal norms more than anything else.
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM my two cents...
This is an excerpt from an article about a similar situation in Illinois.
Quote:
"To impose such a rule on still-developing teenage girls — already struggling with puberty's changes on their bodies and social pressures to look a certain way — undermines their dignity and tells them that their rights don't matter," Floyd said.
One student who opted to use the privacy stall said she was called "transphobic" and "homophobic," according to the lawsuit, which stated that she now wears her gym clothes under her school clothes to avoid changing in the locker room.
Again, I think the extremists on both sides are out of line, but it is a FACT that many girls are insecure and shy. I think their rights are being neglected by those who are claiming to be defending the rights of the transgendered students.
I don't know the right answer to this debate, but I think what is getting lost in all of this is how do middle school girls feel about sharing a bathroom w/a boy who feels like a girl?
Do they have a say in this, or is it just about one student and/or the political beliefs of our evolving society?
There is a case going on right now where the boy is being favored over his female classmates. Link
I was thinking about how shy my daughter was in middle school and how she used to have a hard time just going to the bathroom at school. I can't imagine how she would have reacted to having a person w/male body parts changing in the same locker room as her.
This quote from the article should not be ignored:
Quote:
"I believe that inside Lila is a female. I believe that she wants to have the female body and wants to be like the rest of females, but I know right now that's not physically possible," the 17-year-old said. "The only thing that bothers me is that Lila was in the girls' locker room. Some girls already have insecurity problems getting dressed in front of other girls as it is, much less having to get dressed in front of a boy."
I also find it a bit disturbing that the transgendered student was offered a neutral bathroom but did not want to use that one and insisted on using the girl's bathroom.
I really have never understood how one person is given more rights than the entire group.........
The squeaky minority. Why are you surprised? That's how things work in this country. That's why I admire the Jesus Loves Me people.
This topic has been on my mind all day. I hope Rocket---and some others---will understand what I am getting at.
Rocket is a teacher. He is also a champion of minorities. That is not a criticism at all. In fact, I admire that about him. I have also passionately defended minorities over the years. I think there are many more people who have similar views than there were in the past. That's a good thing.
However, this is a cautionary tale. I am very serious when I point out that it bothers me that middle school girls [especially] and high school girls are not being considered while some champion the rights of the transgendered.
All of my lady dawg friends and any of you who have a daughter who is 11 years or older know that there is no doubt that many of these young ladies suffer from intense peer pressure, self-esteem issues, lack of self-confidence, and worry about how they will be judged for their physical appearance.
I really, really don't think it is fair to overlook these issues to champion one or two people in a school. And I do not see what is wrong w/having their own private bathroom. Hell, I wish I had my own private bathroom when I was teaching. I know I am a guy, but sharing bathrooms w/others is not something I relish. Privacy is important. And it is even more important to pre-teens and teenage girls who are overly modest and lack self confidence.
Who is protecting their rights? And Rocket.........this is where I have a problem w/you as a teacher. I am not saying that in a mean way. I am saying it in the hopes that perhaps you start being a bit more sensitive to the rights, needs, and wants of ALL your students, not just a select few.
I think the shy and quiet kids get overlooked a lot in schools. That upsets me. They do what they are told. They don't cause problems. They might not be the brightest, but they work very hard. They are respectful. The want some attention but are afraid to ask for it. And what do most teachers do? They ignore them.
Instead, the teacher-pleasers who want to answer every question gets the teacher's attention. The misbehaving students get the teacher's attention. Meanwhile, the quiet kids are being ignored. That is so unjust!!!! Who stands up for their rights? Why no outrage for those students?
I know why.............they don't complain and neither do their parents!
I had a student named Macy when I first moved to S. Carolina. She was scared to death of me at first. Her real dad had physically [not sexually] abused her and she was leery of all men. I am very demonstrative as a teacher and man....that wasn't a good combination. She was very quiet. Very reserved. Mousy looking. But, I could see she wanted to learn. I worked hard to build her confidence. I would tease her, praise her work, take time to sit down and just look her in the eye while she explained what she was struggling with academically. She grew.....so much. She burst out of her shell in all ways academic. Her mother was thrilled and went to administration to talk about how I had saved her daughter. LOL..........of course, that was not true. Macy was an extremely hard worker. She was a good reader, but thought she stunk at math. Once she understood that math was her friend, she soared. Macy just needed someone to believe in her.
Later in the year, another student who was always in trouble had an encounter w/Macy in the hallway. Macy had been peer tutoring him from about the mid-point of the year. That helped build her confidence and it certainly helped Dominique w/his math. One day, he asked her to help him cheat on a test. She denied the request. He caught up to her in the hallway and pushed her, pushed her, pushed her all the way down the hallway and finally punched her in the face.
The administrators, social worker, guidance counselor, and the "A Team" decided that Dominique should not be punished directly, but instead, put him on a Leadership Team to help him w/his self-confidence. Their reasoning was his home life was so bad and that he really didn't have a fair chance to succeed in school.
Meanwhile, Macy's rights were ignored. She slipped back into her shell......remember that her own father had abused her physically. I was furious, but I was ignored by the people making the decisions.
I don't know if anyone will see the correlation here or not? I am all about equal rights. However, I don't think the rights of others should be ignored to champion the rights of one or two.
Just remember, shy, quiet, modest girls who struggle w/their evolving sexuality and body should have rights, too.
I have seen this exact thing in the schools for 32 years. You are correct: (This is for you king) the weak and vulnerable are always overshadowed by the discipline issues in the schools.
The child who was given the opportunity to have his own restroom and chose not to needed to be told TOO BAD! You will not, under any circumstances, use the restroom of young and vulnerable ladies in the facility. Never. If you choose not to abide by this, there are many other opportunities available to you. Have at it!
If I had a daughter and my daughter was uncomfortable with this, my daughter would have been out of the facility, immediately! This is where the minority that Vers speaks of rules and the majority is inconvenienced because of the whims of the squeaky minority.
Society has created this. No surprise with any of this prevailing attitude.
I am saying it in the hopes that perhaps you start being a bit more sensitive to the rights, needs, and wants of ALL your students, not just a select few.
I get that. I come from a similar position when I was a kid. I'm quite the introvert, teaching pushed me more towards the middle of introvert-extrovert, but I was picked on as a kid. Mainly due to my size. I've been heavier for a good portion of my life, but it's gotten under control as I aged. I'm a few clicks under 200lbs at 5'10''. I've got a ways to go, but I've been at heavier sizes in my life. Much ridicule I got at young ages. Please no "it's all your parents fault that you were big" in this thread, please. Barely any of you know my life story.
Quote:
I think the shy and quiet kids get overlooked a lot in schools. That upsets me. They do what they are told. They don't cause problems. They might not be the brightest, but they work very hard. They are respectful.
The quiet kids can all over academically. I think that's due to their self-confidence...or lack thereof that you mention. We only know their true talents when they embrace their outgoing nature.
Quote:
Who stands up for their rights? Why no outrage for those students?
I'm not sure you're equating the quiet kids to a group of people who hatefully sang "Yes, Jesus Loves Me"?
A lot more of your post dips into great education psychology topics, but that's a different thread for a different time.
I just don't get the counter-arguments of this specific topic. It always boils down to religious dogma debate, or slippery slope or scare tactic logical fallacies.
I'm truly looking for good reasons to change my position, but I can't find any. I'll continue to listen. I'm not saying I'm right, but I've clearly outlined the reasons for my position. Just don't use religious dogma to make laws in our country; we're not a theocracy.
I think time after time people have expressed views on why they dont want males(or people with Penis') in the bathroom with their daughters, and very few of them have had anything to do with religious dogma.
You may be in the drivers seat but God is holding the map. #GMSTRONG
Shalom Baruch HaShem Yeshua Ha-Mashiach. "Blessed is the Name Jesus The Messiah"
But imo that's a bigger debate.
From heterosexual male perspective at first thought would be ... Meh, nothing more than a plumbing problem/question.
Really we could care less, after all it's just daily business ... IE; it's not a social meet.
Having said that I can see how it could be misconstrued as coming off a little (okay alot) insensitive and a question perhaps more appropriate for a woman (children question not with standing).
Maybe we should just give them their own? Seems inevitable anyway.
JM, 000000000002 cents.
Btw, ... Good to read post about the good book from DTers.
I really can't imagine a scenario where anyone will see each other's anatomy in a woman's restroom while using the restroom.
I get the concern about perverts using this as a way to protect themselves, but I just find it as another scare tactic to devalue trans-rights.
And correct me if I am wrong, but I know you are a young guy, and I am assuming no kids.
Have a teenage daughter and get back to those of us who do, because until you do you will never understand a fathers protective instinct when his little girl is concerned.
You may be in the drivers seat but God is holding the map. #GMSTRONG
I really can't imagine a scenario where anyone will see each other's anatomy in a woman's restroom while using the restroom.
I get the concern about perverts using this as a way to protect themselves, but I just find it as another scare tactic to devalue trans-rights.
Well, you are certainly within your rights to see it as you like. But you are certainly within your rights to be wrong about that.
The problem with those of you on the left is that you'll risk someone's innocence just to be 'sensitive' to these people, those of us on the right (and yes, right side of this issue) are trying to do all we can to protect them.
That's how I see it.
WE DON'T NEED A QB BEFORE WE GET A LINE THAT CAN PROTECT HIM my two cents...
[quote]God gives us all challenges and temptations to face. /quote]
The book of James tells us that God doesn't tempt us but that we are tempted by our own lusts.
Other than that, keep up the good work brother.
You're right. I should have said that God allows us to be challenged and tempted.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
I will also reiterate, it is not hate to try and help people see their sin. That is not hate, it is love.
Sometimes we hide a bad motive under a good one.
Why do we focus on the splinter in our brother's eye when we have a log in our own?
The Bible also warns us against leading others into sin, and Jesus also said that we are not to judge on appearance, but with righteous judgement.
We are not to judge appearances, but behavior. There is a big difference. Contrary to popular belief, Jesus was far from being "non-judgmental" while He on this earth in human form. He called the Pharisees and Sadducees a "brood of vipers" and "serpents". He actually called Peter, on of his Apostles, "Satan" when he spoke in opposition to God's plan for Jesus.
We all judge, both as individuals and as a society. We have laws, which are judgement of a type.
God never wanted us to just blindly allow others to fall into sin and death. I don't know how anyone could read the Bible and think such a thing.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
He actually called Peter, on of his Apostles, "Satan" when he spoke in opposition to God's plan for Jesus.
Well, "satan" does mean "opposer" in Hebrew. If you try to find the character "Satan" in the old testament, you'll find a hard time finding it, and a harder time finding out if he has personal sovereignty or if he's just a tool of God. Really fascinating stuff.
God gives us all challenges and temptations to face. /quote]
The book of James tells us that God doesn't tempt us but that we are tempted by our own lusts.
Other than that, keep up the good work brother.
You're right. I should have said that God allows us to be challenged and tempted.
Some will always question Gods plan, because they think that they are ment to see, or comprehend it. They forget that it's not for us to question his plans. He will test our faith, yet he still wants us to walk in grace.
John 20:28-29
Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!" Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you believed; blessed are thoughs who have not seen and yet beleive(d)"
RocketOptimst ... God does not Dam the innocent, ... Rest those thoughts for your own sake.
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