What If we understood people's worth the way God truly sees us. Many people in the west believe that all claims made in the Bible, two thousand years ago, are unchallengeable fact. They believe all ideas in the Bible originate from God even if there is nothing that anchors these thoughts to certainty but our minds alignment to them by faith.
The Bible and Christian religion create s sectarian identity of believers but could God see beauty and value in all people everywhere outside these particular ideas in ways the Bible doesn't recognize. Despite the indifference people have toward each other, admitted or not, our differing ideologies, and tribal loyalties, make it seem like God only ultimately accepts us and not all people everywhere. Maybe however, regardless of human thoughts on the matter, God sees great dignity and worth in the minds of confused people everywhere else on earth as well. Maybe the erroneous beliefs people form differently on earth don't lead to their destruction like the Bible teaches.
What would it be like to look at someone else and understand that person has eternal value in the same way God saw them. This would be different from how our minds determine each others worth which shows far less concern. The belief many of us has based on our religion is that not all people matter beyond this world to God. But what If we could see other people differently and this fairer way of seeing others is in fact the real way God sees people. Could God have lasting value for all people, despite our underlying suspicions of others, probably inspired by the words in our dusty Bible's.
What if misguided people, regardless of what judgments we make about belief and truth, all matter to God eternally despite what the Bible teaches. If we could know this somehow certainly would people's lives and value, that we have grown to mistrust, reveal instead a new illuminated understanding and acceptance in our eyes.
Is it possible the Bible is not perfect? Perhaps numerous ideas introduced into the Bible appeared not from God but from the moralizing attempts of a cruel past generations of men.
I believe all our thoughts in this world are in some state of error to a greater and lesser degree on almost everything. I don't think any of us has life, it's unfathomable mystery, or God's nature and planning figured out.
I understand through personal struggles with emotions and thought that there is a battle with real darkness and evil we're up against here in this world but I also understand there is a light that is good also shinning brightly here. The clear thoughts I've experienced from God talk about this light which is God's fairness. This fairness is different for me then some of the religious ideas that were created in the ancient Roman world.
Is it reasonable for an ancient and cruel culture to decide what God's fairness is about for all times when those thinkers we're surrounded by uncivilized unfair ideas.
One way I see the Bible's verses as unfair is allowing slavery to go unchallenged, and instructing the slave to even be obedient to his/her master. The Bible verse reads:
"Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ. Not with eyeservice, as men pleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart."
I'm left to wonder now why God would care if slaves properly obeyed their cruel masters. Why is it reasonable for a slave to obey a master with fear and trembling (that's not right), or in singleness of heart, as unto Christ? Why would slaves be bamboozled by God into working to exhaustion without complaint and be fooled by him to look at those evil slave masters like they were looking at Christ. Those evil slave masters were beating people, starving them, killing them, and raping their women.
Another way the Bible proves unfair to me is the introduction into scripture of what being gay is supposedly like for God. (I'm not gay) The Bible verse reads:
"For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
"Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them."
These verses developed by religious leaders and their moralizing, in the ancient world, led to the demonizing of gays and lesbians for over two thousand years of human history afterwards. Once these Bible passages appeared the church began to punish gays and lesbians. They were forced to hide their sexuality for fear of being tortured and killed.
Long before this introduction of hatred, in a much fairer ancient Greece, being gay was common five-hundred years before the time of Christ.
Another way I see the Bible as unfair is the warning at the end of the Bible that threatens what God will do if any words are added to the Bible or any words are taken out of the Bible. The Bible verse reads:
"For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. "
Another unfair scripture verse speaks of a narrow road to life and a broad road that leads everyone else to destruction. This verse means if correct that most human beings are doomed. The Bible verse reads:
"Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
The belief that God intends to throw most people dead, and now alive, into hell is a ludicrous view about God and his nature in my opinion. These old ideas are clearly meant to deliberately frighten people unsure of their own future after death. These Bible verses were produced by religious men's ancient moralizing and clearly were meant to terrorize people into conformity. The political environment and inventive religious thought of the time produced these sadistic authoritarian warnings which have resulted in the unquestioning belief of fearful uncertain people ever since.
I no longer believe the scripture verses I shared above are God breathed. Why would God instruct slaves to respect their masters instead of doing what God's nature is standing righteous against evil. The vicious brutality perpetrated on Africa's people for four-hundred years after that was grotesque. White ministers in the south used these old scripture verses standing in front of their churches to justify evil abominable treatment of black people.
I have shared in my past blog writing and novels clear thoughts that God has revealed to me. I know from these clear thoughts that God's ways are fair. I believe there are many unjust ideas we choose to accept in this world as God observes our errors with patience. What I realize paying attention to Jesus and God the father speak is how they council me in finding peace. I know from this friendship that God's children living in every part of this world matter to God in the same way. I believe now that many ideas produced in the ancient world lack fairness and validity. I dare to doubt now various teachings and many of the myths and miraculous claims found in the Bible.
I have read criticism that says my writing, because I have mental illness, will misdirect minds away from the truth. What ideas do these critics not accept here now? Do they suspect mental illness is behind my views that if God spoke he would condemn slavery, or that I'm in great error for believing the mistreatment of gays and lesbians is not intended by God, or what of my objection to the threats of developing plague for daring to think freely, are these ideas so crazy? Is it crazy to care that people not be unnecessarily terrorized in life, or to see the idea of hell as an unreasonable idea that I think future generations deserve not to have to confront.
Perhaps it's these critics view that because I have a mental illness I shouldn't speak my peace or make a case for what I think is true.
I recall sharing God's thoughts on the evils of slavery in a prior post. He told me clearly elsewhere that persecuting gays and lesbian in the order of nature is not his way. God told me also it is not his will for us to lose sight of the worth of the human family wherever they live on earth.
The idea that only one sectarian family of right believers, out of all of humanity, will evade a horrendous fate of gnashing teeth and eternal torment I know now is not God's way. I know what the truth is and that truth is that God loves the entire world. This love God has for us is precisely why Jesus came into the world; he came so God could forgive and accept humanity finally and completely.
It is my belief now that people should be free to think what they want about the mystery of truth. If a person decides that God doesn't exist, or wants to live their life following another religious belief entirely, I know God is big enough to understand the appeal of those ideas and fair enough to understand why people believe the ideas they do.
The idea God is an authoritative thug who demands fanatical loyalty to uncertain subjective claims is getting old quick in this world. The path that leads to heaven in my opinion is a wide road and like I mentioned in a post before it's a super highway that will not leave anyone behind accept maybe those people who are truly the most evil. (mass murderers)
