Comments on: He That Hath Not

By: Tim Boucher

Tim Boucher — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 20:04:49 +0000

I think that in terms of eternity, weâ€™ve all been taken care of

I think you are absolutely right. “Consider the lillies in the field”
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%206&version=31;

25″Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[b]?

28″And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

By: SubstanceM

SubstanceM — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 16:43:35 +0000

Is it possible that all of creation has been redeemed, but a physical, earthly salvation is still a desireable? Paul said to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. I think that in terms of eternity, weâ€™ve all been taken care ofâ€¦.. but the teachings of Jesus can lead me to salvation here on earth, that is, a healthy and full life that brings positive impact.

Nice take.

By: ursa smaller

ursa smaller — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 13:49:15 +0000

There’s a book I’ve been dabbling in called “Adventures in Missing the Point” by Brian Mclaren and Tony Campolo. One chapter on the topic of salvation particularly interested me. It talked about how in the bible salvation wasn’t usually a question of eternity or the afterlife, but rather a physical salvation from enemies or death. An example would be David seeking salvation from Saul. This brings me to the difference between Salvation and Redemption. Is it possible that all of creation has been redeemed, but a physical, earthly salvation is still a desireable? Paul said to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. I think that in terms of eternity, we’ve all been taken care of….. but the teachings of Jesus can lead me to salvation here on earth, that is, a healthy and full life that brings positive impact.

By: Jennifer Emick

Jennifer Emick — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 03:42:14 +0000

I have that book, it’s the Gnostic Paul, but I believe it’s out of print. fantastic book if you can get it, tho.

By: Jennifer Emick

Jennifer Emick — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 03:41:09 +0000

There’s a line in one of the pauline books (forget which) that declares that the gospel has been ‘preached to every creature…’

By: Tim Boucher

Tim Boucher — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 00:15:37 +0000

Isn’t that in an Elaine Pagels book? I forget which one as I haven’t read it. But it’s supposed to decode some of the language Paul uses to describe different groups of people along the lines of not race or class, but using those things as cover for other things… I will have to look around for what I am talking about online

By: p

Thu, 30 Nov 2006 23:16:41 +0000

I have rarely - if ever - seen this aspect of the canonical Gospels discussed openly by mainstream Christian sources. Mainly because, I am sure, the whole thing smacks of gnosticism: that there are certain secret interpretations of the Bible and of Jesusâ€™ teachings which may have been preserved separately (or lost entirely) from the Bible as it now stands.

Not well-known: Paul’s letters were considered heretical for years and years by the church at Antioch (later became the Catholic Church), because they were all collected by the heresiarch Marcion and were associated with Marcionism:

Orthodoxy and Heresy in Earliest Christianity
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~humm/Resources/Bauer/