Robert Schneider posted: "If only these issues were so simple! I do not
believe they are, and questions about who is a Christian and who is saved
ought to be more
nuanced, in my view, than the kind of either/or positions that so many
people put forth."
I, for one, found Robert's post to be worth keeping.
There are two kinds of Christians in this world, those who draw the
circle of those they would consider "saved" (whatever that might mean to
them) very small, and those who, like me, draw it very large.
Persons of the first class are liable to the error of misclassification
of persons God accepts as being outside the pale. Persons of the second
class are liable to the (possible) error of misclassification of persons
God does not accept as being "OK."
I am, of course, in the second class of persons, because I consider the
second type of error as being considerably less damaging to others than
the first.
In the words of Micah (6:8): "What does the Lord require of you, but to
love mercy, do justice and walk humbly with your God."
The "justice" in the second part is, of course, not "criminal justice,"
or even "procedural justice," but the justice that works incessantly to
see that people all get an equal shake at both the necessities of life
and even to some of its perks.
John Burgeson (Burgy)
http://www.burgy.50megs.com
(science/theology, quantum mechanics, baseball, ethics,
humor, cars, philosophy and much more)
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Mar 07 2002 - 13:23:36 EST