When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
This is my blogchalk:
United States, Missouri, St Louis, English, Dutch, Paul, Male, 31-35, Science Fiction, Java Programming.
Part 1
I've always had an objection to the phrase "saving souls". You've probably heard it used as a measure of "success" by some preachers. They count the number of people who make a profession of faith in their meetings and broadcast the "score".
Did Jesus come to "save souls"?
I contend not..
I believe He came to save lives. It's a fine distinction to make but I believe that it has massive consequences to the ministry of the church!
I believe that human beings were created originally to live in an eternal relationship with God. Hell was never designed for us. However, as the account in Genesis shows, mankind fell from grace. Our sinful nature separates us from God, and determines our eternal destiny. Without Christ we go to Hell.
Secondly, I believe that the bible teaches that we were created to spend eternity somewhere. Matematically inclined people deal with the concept of infinity reasonably well. It's simply the largest possible number. That is, it is still a member of the set of all numbers, just the largest one available.
My contention is that "life" is lived for a finite time here on Earth and thereafter the rest of eternity spent someplace else. There is no disconnect between "time" and "eternity", since "eternity" is simply "time" going off into the infinite stretches of the future. We spend a single lifetime here on Earth and our response to the person of Jesus Christ will determine where we spend that infinite amount of time once we die: only believing in the saving work of Jesus will we be able to spend eternity in a relationship with God.
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