Quote:
Originally posted by livi
OK, thanks Z-man.
Makes it very difficult to participate in a debate coming from my non religious perspective.
Are all sins looked upon as equally serious and hence judgment/punishment? Is two men kissing comparable to stealing and killing?
Is everything claimed/interpreted in your Bible a good thing, the truth and something we all should live by? Is that, then, equally true for the Koran? If not, why?
Who gets to decide what is right or wrong? What book? What person/persons?
Again, not trying to be an agnostic ass. Really simply curious.
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Livi - no worries - indeed the questions you ask are very much the same questions that I ask - even as a Christian!
On all sin being equal: think of it this way -- if a person cannot swim, does it matter much if he's in 8 feet of water, or 20 feet? Regardless of how deep the water is, he will likely drown. So the end result of sin - any sin, will result in separation from God.
Now to take that concept further - there is a difference between paying for sin/wrong doing and the consequences of sin. The Gospel message states that Christ paid for our sins. So if I accept Christ as the person who pays for my sin, I don't have to worry about being separated from God. But if I sin again my fellow man, though my sin is forgiven in God's eyes, I may have to make restitution on this earth (prison, fines...etc). So while the consequences of certain sins may vary (stealing vs. killing someone have different consequences associated with them), but both will separate the sinner from God.
As far as the Bible being the truth vs. the Koran, or other belief systems -- I believe the Bible is God's word. But that doesn't mean I question it or my Christian faith -- as a matter of fact, I believe it is better to question what I believe than to blindly accept it - that will only bring me closer to the truth. So far, in all my questioning and searching, I have not found anything that can disprove my faith.
-Z