Methodists Maintain Homosexual Acts Are 'Incompatible With Christian Teaching'

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

There is no passage about your question, Sin is just that sin. I could only come up with the analogy of rewards in heaven which are mentioned a lot in scripture.

 

I know what your question was asking.

 

I'd beg to differ. 1 John establishes that some sins are graver than others.

 

1 John 5:16-17

If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that is not a deadly sin, he has only to pray, and God will give life to this brother -- provided that it is not a deadly sin. There is sin that leads to death and I am not saying you must pray about that. Every kind of wickedness is sin, but not all sin leads to death.

[True blue (and gold)]

I'd beg to differ. 1 John establishes that some sins are graver than others.

 

1 John 5:16-17

If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that is not a deadly sin, he has only to pray, and God will give life to this brother -- provided that it is not a deadly sin. There is sin that leads to death and I am not saying you must pray about that. Every kind of wickedness is sin, but not all sin leads to death.

 

So...will there be a different hell for the unrepentant candy bar thief than the the unrepentant serial killer?

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

So...will there be a different hell for the unrepentant candy bar thief than the the unrepentant serial killer?

 

Well...as a Catholic, I believe in Purgatory. Frankly, I don't see that as a discussion to have in this thread. But also, I don't know how God will judge me when I die. Will it be a tally system? Will God count stealing an unrepentant candy bar thief the same as he will count a fisherman who unrepentantly lied about how many fish he caught? I don't know. But I believe that God is a just God, and that he has different ways to cast judgment about different sins. At its center though, I do believe that there are most definitely sins that are worse than others.

[True blue (and gold)]

Well...as a Catholic, I believe in Purgatory. Frankly, I don't see that as a discussion to have in this thread. But also, I don't know how God will judge me when I die. Will it be a tally system? Will God count stealing an unrepentant candy bar thief the same as he will count a fisherman who unrepentantly lied about how many fish he caught? I don't know. But I believe that God is a just God, and that he has different ways to cast judgment about different sins. At its center though, I do believe that there are most definitely sins that are worse than others.

 

I promise that I do have a purpose in connecting my question to this thread. I'm just waiting for answers to this question. Thanks for providing one to the best of your ability.

[Randy Parker]

I promise that I do have a purpose in connecting my question to this thread. I'm just waiting for answers to this question. Thanks for providing one to the best of your ability.

 

Revelation 20 speaks of the dead being judged. John says the dead were standing before the throne & books (plural) were opened. Then he says another book (singular) was opened. He then states that this singular book is the book of life, but then later says that the dead were judged "according to what they had done as recorded in the books" (Revelation 20:12).

 

I take that to mean that the books record our deeds & we will be judged according to what is written in them. In other words, they will determine the severity of our punishment or the degree of our reward. Our eternal destination is determined by whether or not our name is written in the book.

 

I don't personally see it as a different hell, but rather the degree of punishment.

 

As I said before, it makes for interesting study, but we'll never know for sure this side of eternity.

[Alabama Larry]

I'd beg to differ. 1 John establishes that some sins are graver than others.

 

1 John 5:16-17

If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that is not a deadly sin, he has only to pray, and God will give life to this brother -- provided that it is not a deadly sin. There is sin that leads to death and I am not saying you must pray about that. Every kind of wickedness is sin, but not all sin leads to death.

 

Oh I agree 100%, killing someone or eating a extra plate of food are sins, which one is worse? She was talking about Hell..

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

Oh I agree 100%, killing someone or eating a extra plate of food are sins, which one is worse? She was talking about Hell..

 

Oh, well in that case, I believe the whole "levels of Hell" idea was a production of The Supreme Poet...Mr. Dante Alighieri.

[Alabama Larry]

Oh, well in that case, I believe the whole "levels of Hell" idea was a production of The Supreme Poet...Mr. Dante Alighieri.

 

Mr. Alighieri, has no clue, go to Luke 16:19 and read what this guy Jesus says about Hell. In fact Jesus spoke about Hell more than any other person in the Bible.

[acemona]

Mr. Alighieri, has no clue, go to Luke 16:19 and read what this guy Jesus says about Hell. In fact Jesus spoke about Hell more than any other person in the Bible.

 

I am not sure that Jesus EVER speaks about a literal hell. He does talk about Gehenna which was a garbage dump outside of town.

[acemona]

For the literalists on here, what do you do with Paul when he says that "All Things are Permissible, but not all things are beneficial."

[acemona]

And it came to pass on the second sabbath after the first, that he went through the corn fields; and his disciples plucked the ears of corn, and did eat, rubbing them in their hands.

² And certain of the Pharisees said unto them, Why do ye that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath days?

 

³ And Jesus answering them said, Have ye not read so much as this, what David did, when himself was an hungred, and they which were with him;

 

⁴ How he went into the house of God, and did take and eat the shewbread, and gave also to them that were with him; which it is not lawful to eat but for the priests alone?

 

⁵ And he said unto them, That the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.

 

⁶ And it came to pass also on another sabbath, that he entered into the synagogue and taught: and there was a man whose right hand was withered.

 

⁷ And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him.

 

⁸ But he knew their thoughts, and said to the man which had the withered hand, Rise up, and stand forth in the midst. And he arose and stood forth.

 

⁹ Then said Jesus unto them, I will ask you one thing; Is it lawful on the sabbath days to do good, or to do evil? to save life, or to destroy it?

 

¹⁰ And looking round about upon them all, he said unto the man, Stretch forth thy hand. And he did so: and his hand was restored whole as the other.

 

¹¹ And they were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus.

 

¹² And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

 

¹³ And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles;

 

¹⁴ Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,

 

¹⁵ Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes,

 

¹⁶ And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.

 

¹⁷ And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judaea and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;

 

¹⁸ And they that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed.

 

¹⁹ And the whole multitude sought to touch him: for there went virtue out of him, and healed them all.

 

²⁰ And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.

 

²¹ Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.

 

²² Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.

 

²³ Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.

 

²⁴ But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation.

 

²⁵ Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep.

 

²⁶ Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets.

 

²⁷ But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,

 

²⁸ Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.

 

²⁹ And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloak forbid not to take thy coat also.

 

³⁰ Give to every man that asketh of thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again.

 

³¹ And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.

 

³² For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.

 

³³ And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same.

 

³⁴ And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again.

 

³⁵ But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

 

³⁶ Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

 

³⁷ Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

 

³⁸ Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

 

³⁹ And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?

 

⁴⁰ The disciple is not above his master: but every one that is perfect shall be as his master.

 

⁴¹ And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

 

⁴² Either how canst thou say to thy brother, Brother, let me pull out the mote that is in thine eye, when thou thyself beholdest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother's eye.

 

⁴³ For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

 

⁴⁴ For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.

 

⁴⁵ A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

 

⁴⁶ And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

 

⁴⁷ Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:

 

⁴⁸ He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.

 

⁴⁹ But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.JOHN 7:24: "Judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judgment."

 

********************************************************************************************************************************************

 

LUKE 12:57: "Yea, and why not even of yourselves judge ye not what is right?"

 

PROVERBS 31:9: "Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy."

 

LEVITICUS 19:15-17: "Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbor. Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbor: I am the Lord. Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him."

 

EZEKIEL 22:2 & 23:36: "Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? Yea, thou shalt show her all her abominations... The Lord said moreover unto me, Son of man, wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah? Yea, declare unto them their abominations."

 

MATTHEW 3:2,7: John the Baptist preaching, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?"

 

MATTHEW 23: Jesus publicly rebuked the hypocrites, "Woe unto you... hypocrites!...ye blind guides...fools...full of extortion and excess...whited sepulchres...full of hypocrisy and iniquity...Woe unto you...Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?"

 

 

JOHN 3:18-19: "He that believeth on Him (JESUS) is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already,because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."

 

JOHN 12:48: JESUS CHRIST said, "He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day."

 

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world but that through him the whole world might be saved.

[acemona]

Isn't being separated from God for eternity the punishment for being a non-repentent sinner? If so, how can their be degrees of punishment?

 

There are those who would say that you can be further and closer to God. Just as I am sometimes very close in my walk with God now, some sometimes I am very far away.

 

Been far away for a while.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

Mr. Alighieri, has no clue, go to Luke 16:19 and read what this guy Jesus says about Hell. In fact Jesus spoke about Hell more than any other person in the Bible.

 

I didn't say I necessary had any belief in what Dante had to say about Hell...only that he was the one who put forth the idea about "levels".

[Alabama Larry]

I am not sure that Jesus EVER speaks about a literal hell. He does talk about Gehenna which was a garbage dump outside of town.

 

Luke 16:19, c'mon its not hard.

 

Matthew 5:29:30/18:9 5:22/25:46/23:33/25:41

 

2nd Peter 2:4

 

Garbage dump might be a great place to be instead of Hell.

[Alabama Larry]

I didn't say I necessary had any belief in what Dante had to say about Hell...only that he was the one who put forth the idea about "levels".

I saw this and you just posted about Dante, and I just quoted Jesus. I'll Google him and see if I can find his writings.