Christian Beliefs, what are they?

Amatullah · 01-21-2005, 06:24 AM

Salam (Peace)

Being born into a Muslim family, I don't know much about religions other than Islam. I want to be better informed about all faiths so I can decide for myself and consciously accept the Truth. I want to know more about Christianity but I would like to hear about Christian beliefs from Christians themselves. I would really appreciate it if Christian members would post their most important beliefs briefly so that I can get an idea of what Christianity is about.

Thanks in advance.

Amatullah

Bandit · 01-21-2005, 07:59 AM

If I tell you what my basic beliefs are in brief, will you share what your basic beliefs are too?

I am curious to see if there are 10,000 different ideas about Islam the way there are about this modern day Christianity. I am guessing every religion is like that?

My first basic beliefs are
1.the Word of God and that it is Gods written word for men today so that we can know God and have eternal life.
2. the indwelling of the spirit of God in me.
3. The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.
4. Love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and love one another unconditionally.

What are your first basic beliefs for Islam.?

Amatullah · 01-21-2005, 09:07 AM

Salam (Peace)

Quote:

I am curious to see if there are 10,000 different ideas about Islam the way there are about this modern day Christianity. I am guessing every religion is like that?

Yes I think every religion is like that. I was born into a Shia family but I don't call myself a Shia nor a Sunni, I'm just a Muslim (one that submits completely to God).

I have no right to speak on behalf of all Muslims because all people are different and have the right to excercise their own opinions. These are my beliefs:

1) There is only One God and Muhammed was the Seal of all Prophets and Messengers.

2) The Qur'an is the last and final Word of God and has remained undistorted from the time of its revelation to the present day.

3) Islam wants for us to love and accept each other irrespective of race, culture or religion which is why I respect all faiths. (You may not be my brother in faith but you are still my brother in humanity!) I know some Muslims claim that only Muslims are headed for Paradise and all other people are hell bound and I don't agree because I don't think it is for us to judge.

4) Religion is a way of life and I try to live by treating people in the way I would want to be treated because Islam is not just about the duties you have towards God but also the duties you have towards others. I also believe that we will be held accountable for what we did in our lives on this earth.

That's all I can think of for now, but I might add to it later.

Your beliefs are interesting.

Who is your god? What do you believe is the Word of God?

Thanks for your input.

Amatullah

Postmaster · 01-21-2005, 12:14 PM

Christians believe that a man called Jesus who was a Palestinian Jew came to this earth with the purpose of dieing for the people of this world. During his time on earth it is well documented that he healed people, bought people back to life (Saint Lazerus, whos tomb is in my home city Larnaca) and prophesied about others and himself. The wow factor about Jesus was his resurrection which no body in history has gone down for, if I'm not mistaken. Jews believe that Jesus was a fake and are still waiting for there Messia to come. Funny thing is ancient hebrew scripts prophesied Jesus but failed to accpet him.

Even Islam accpets Jesus as a prophet but Mohammed said himself was the chosen Prophet by God, the only difference is Chrisitans see Jesus as more then a prophet, they see him as Gods presence on earth.

bananabrain · 01-21-2005, 12:36 PM

Quote:

a man called Jesus who was a Palestinian Jew

to be precise - it was called "judaea" then - it was a semi-autonomous province of the roman empire. only after a revolt against the romans, during which the Temple in jerusalem was destroyed and widespread destruction wreaked, the romans decided to "de-judaise" judaea, so they exiled many of the people, changed the name of jerusalem to "aelia capitolina" and changed the name of the province to "palestina", after the name of our *biblical* enemies the "philistines" - who are *unrelated* to the present-day palestinian arabs. so, to call jesus a "palestinian jew" is somewhat misleading - but then again, that is purposeful, isn't it?

b'shalom

bananabrain

Postmaster · 01-21-2005, 12:41 PM

Jesus was a philistine Jew. I'm pretty much sure he was I could be wrong? That’s what many Christians believe but I don't care what race he is, just trying to add a bit of history to what I say, with no intensions of anything else (before we start to get analytical).

And the Philistines were not Arabs, they were actaully Greeks from Crete that settled in the middle east as history has it and even present days Palestians know this.

bananabrain · 01-21-2005, 02:22 PM

exactly - the philistines weren't arabs at all. but to describe jesus as a "philistine jew" is also completely wrong.

b'shalom

bananabrain

Amatullah · 01-21-2005, 03:29 PM

Salam (Peace)

Quote:

the only difference is Chrisitans see Jesus as more then a prophet, they see him as Gods presence on earth.

This is interesting but I am not sure I understand. Could you elaborate on it a little more? What exactly do you mean by he was God's presence on earth? Do you mean he was God himself? Or the representative of God? Or...? Sorry if I sound ignorant but I would really like to know.

Thanks again!

Amatullah

Postmaster · 01-21-2005, 03:41 PM

Well Muslims and Christians believe in the same God by this I mean all the Ideas you have of one God a positive force of the universe, is exactly the same as the Christians view there God. He is in fact the same ideology. But Jesus Christ to the Christians was God in the form of a human, he was more then a prophet, he was more then a person speaking the words of God, he was Gods presence on earth. That’s the views of the Christians and the people that wrote the bible, of what Jesus himself was saying.

Faithfulservant · 01-21-2005, 03:52 PM

Hello Amatullah and welcome to CR

I believe that God is three parts. God the Father, God the Son Jesus, and God the Spirit. Im going to post my beliefs.

When we think about earthly fathers. We think about the love of a Father for his children and the rules our fathers give us to protect us. We also think about the discipline that our fathers give us when we disobey. We also think of fathers as the one that brought us into this world. That sums up God the Father. We can never achieve the Father without the Son.

When we think about the son Jesus we think about how God the Father loved us so much that He came to this earth to suffer for us the trials and tribulations of death and his glorious resurrection. We think of the hope that he brought to us. That we could now be worthy of eternity with God. God the Father is perfect we are not. How could we ever be worthy of being in His presence being so corrupted with sin. We have hope in the forgiveness of our sins. The promise that He gave us that if we ask forgiveness our sin is TRULY forgiven it is forgotten. We think of Jesus as our teacher.. He teaches us what God wants from us.. how to act.. how to think.. how to pray.. how to love each other as God loves us. We think of Jesus as our friend.. How wonderful it will be to walk with Jesus and talk to him and ask him questions. That sums up Jesus Christ our Savior.

When we think about the Holy Spirit. We think about the acting force of God. The power of God. It is God the Fathers presence on this earth. Jesus had to go prepare a place for us so He sent the Holy Spirit as our comforter as our helper. The Holy Spirit is our communication link with God. His Spirit comminicates with our spirit. He guides us in the path of God. He is our interpreter for God. He is our conscience our guide our voice of God.

The bible is the written word of God. We believe that the Holy Spirit interprets the word of God for us. We can never understand it without the Holy Spirit. The word of God is perfect.. infalliable.. incorruptible.. Each author of the book was convicted and inspired by the Holy Spirit.

I think the most important part of my beliefs is that I am convicted of my faith. My faith has been shaken a few times in my 32 years but each time that happens I learn something that helps me grow stronger in my faith. I dont believe in the words of men I place my trust and my faith in God. I believe that he is alive in me and he talks to me. I pray I worship him I meditate on his word and the more I do these things the clearer his voice is to me. I believe in his perfection and in my complete imperfection. I believe that he loves ALL of us equally and tells me to love EVERYONE as equally. I believe that everyone has choices and each mans path is his own. I am not here to judge or condemn anyone of their chosen path. My job is to worry about my own salvation and let God worry about my brother and sisters salvation.

Faithful Servant

Sacredstar · 01-21-2005, 04:16 PM

In response to your question it depends on the Christian and how attached they are to scripture and the dogma that Rome promoted to further their own cause.

As a Christian Spiritualist these are my views:

1. The indwelling of the spirit of God in me.
2. I am here to purify my soul, achieve salvation and serve others
3. To achieve self mastery making the two energies within one and in so doing being able to merge my soul more fully with the spirit of GOD.
4. There is no such thing as original sin, we are born and are perfect in GOD's eyes.
5. The universal truths: Unconditional love, forgiveness, love your enemy as yourself, zero judgement, transparency, compassion. Faith in self and others, Hope and faith that we will create the Kingdom of God on earth by becoming real 'Human Beings' and living the universal truths. We all have spiritual gifts that we have been given to profit from. Prosperity of spirit and charity.

6. Love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and soul and have no other before GOD. Love others with all your heart but your soul belongs to GOD.

Love beyond measure

Sacredstar

Postmaster · 01-21-2005, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bananabrain

exactly - the philistines weren't arabs at all. but to describe jesus as a "philistine jew" is also completely wrong.

Yes but you can't say Jesus wasn't Jewish he clearly was and from a highly religious Jewish family too. From which ethnic tribe do you think Jesus originate from? If your ruling out he was a Philistine, what was he? The modern Palestinians are a mixture of Arab and Indo-Europeans of all ethnic groups that were in that area from the past. But Ancient Philistines were just Indo-Europeans (Crete). This could be why Jesus is preceievd as a white Caucasion and probably what sparked off the rivalry by Mohamed.

To be honest this subject is confusing to me, I probably don't know half as much as I think. At least I'm honest.

(Philistines being a Greek word. Just like Philidelphia in the USA Phili = friends delphia = brothers)

Bandit · 01-21-2005, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amatullah

Salam (Peace)

This is interesting but I am not sure I understand. Could you elaborate on it a little more? What exactly do you mean by he was God's presence on earth? Do you mean he was God himself? Or the representative of God? Or...? Sorry if I sound ignorant but I would really like to know.

Thanks again!

Amatullah

Most Christians do believe God turned into a man through the womb of a woman. I am one of the few that does not believe Jesus was God.
I see him as a man son of man who God made out of the womb of his mother, with the spirit of a man. Then at the beginning of his ministry he was filled with Gods spirit, thus becoming Son of God. A manifestation of the invisible God.
Jesus gave up his life when the people crucified him, we see the Love of God manifested in a man, laying down his life and there is no greater love than this.

Quote:

Your beliefs are interesting.

Who is your god? What do you believe is the Word of God?

Thanks for your input.

My God is the one who made the planets and the universe and elements and made us (man) in his own image.

Amatullah, is your God the same God that I see? I would like to know how you see God also. Thankyou.

Word of God- The 66 books of the bible from Geneses to Revelation.
Some people only find history, religion and principles in this book.
For me this WORD is a live. It feeds my spirit and refreshes my thirsty soul. It is LIVING water for the soul.
The Old Testament (39 books) is more or less law for the Jew and for them to see where God had brought them from. Since Jesus and the New Testament (27 books) it is a LIVING WORD.
Another manifestation of God in a modern world.

Amatullah, Does your Qur'an or WORD of God also make you hunger and thirst for it when you read it?
I never read the book so I don't know and that is why I ask.

Amatullah · 01-21-2005, 08:04 PM

Salam (Peace)

Quote:

My God is the one who made the planets and the universe and elements and made us (man) in his own image.

Amatullah, is your God the same God that I see? I would like to know how you see God also. Thankyou.

My God is He Who is independent of all existences while all existences are dependent on His existence. If your God is the God of Adam, Abaraham and all the other Messengers then yes we believe in the same God.

Though I am not quite sure what you mean by saying He made us in His own image...?

The 66 books you believe in, do you believe they have all been revealed by God? Or do you believe that the authors were men that had the Holy Spirit within them? Has the Bible been modified and revised from time to time?

Quote:

Amatullah, Does your Qur'an or WORD of God also make you hunger and thirst for it when you read it?

The Qur'an was revealed to Muhammed in pure Arabic. Though I do not understand Arabic I know how to read it so I read a little and then refer to the English translation for the meaning. Some verses are decisive, others are allegorical and we use the former to interpret the latter. That's what I believe anyway. I like reading the Quran because it makes me feel peaceful and safe.

Thanks

Amatullah

Bandit · 01-22-2005, 01:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amatullah

Salam (Peace)

My God is He Who is independent of all existences while all existences are dependent on His existence. If your God is the God of Adam, Abaraham and all the other Messengers then yes we believe in the same God.

Though I am not quite sure what you mean by saying He made us in His own image...?

The 66 books you believe in, do you believe they have all been revealed by God? Or do you believe that the authors were men that had the Holy Spirit within them? Has the Bible been modified and revised from time to time?

The Qur'an was revealed to Muhammed in pure Arabic. Though I do not understand Arabic I know how to read it so I read a little and then refer to the English translation for the meaning. Some verses are decisive, others are allegorical and we use the former to interpret the latter. That's what I believe anyway. I like reading the Quran because it makes me feel peaceful and safe.

Thanks

Amatullah

Yes then we see the same God. God with no beginning or end. The same God of Adam, Abraham and Moses.

By image I mean this- We humans have physical ears to hear, eyes to see, nose to smell and mouth to speak and taste. Hands for strength and reaching and Feelings to feel with.
God also has these things. But his eyes, ears, nose and mouth are done in His spirit. God is a spirit and His eyes can see everything. His hands are much stronger than I can ever know and at the same time his hands are safety for me. By this I mean the strength and power of His spirit.
I, as a human learn how to worship God and love Him in spirit, with my very own spirit that he gave to me.
So I am only an image of God because He made me this way. I am just a man but made in His likeness.

I believe all 66 books were inspired by God and written by the apostles and prophets. The spirit of God operated a tiny bit different with men in the Old testament books, but still the books were inspired by God.

The New Testament books were definately inspired by God and written by men who did have the spirit of God within them.

The bible I use is one of the first bibles we ever recieved in English. It has not been changed for 500 years and I do trust in it. I have to translate it sometimes back to Hebrew and Greek and it is even better when I can translate it back.

Some people do keep revising the Bible but I am content with the early translation.
I believe God reveals these 66 books to men who truly seek Him and in faith. A little bit at a time.

I cannot read pure Arabic. So I would never be able to read the Quran. Except the English version.

Quote:

I like reading the Quran because it makes me feel peaceful and safe.

That sounds like the spirit of God to me trying to talk to us because I believe God wants us to know Him. Peaceful, warm and safe.

I have one more question for you Amatullah. I think I have saw some writing about Jesus here at this forum in the Quran. I am not sure if there is or if there is not because I have never even seen a Quran - but I think I saw some writing here in this forum. But I may be wrong.
Is there such a thing about Jesus written by Muhammed in the Quran? I would LOVE to see those parts first.

Quote:

Some verses are decisive, others are allegorical and we use the former to interpret the latter.

Can you do one verse for us and show me what you mean???

That would be really neat to me.