Good behaviours vs beliefs

@divegeester said
I said “believing” not “being”.

Sorry, I forgot you are all about opinions.

@kellyjay said
Sorry, I forgot you are all about opinions.

So are you, KellyJay. This riff of yours is akin to the rhetorical foetal position.

@divegeester said
Which is most important doing good things for your neighbours or believing certain things about your God?

If you are talking in terms of morality, then, of course, behaviour is more important than thoughts.

The way I see it [as someone who does not believe in "cosmic justice"], morality governs action and interaction. I am not impressed by the notion of "thoughtcrimes".

Beliefs are interesting or revealing up to a point, but unless they translate into certain patterns of behaviour [including propagating those beliefs], then they are undetectable and so ~ in terms of human interaction ~ neither here nor there.

@kellyjay said
Sorry, I forgot you are all about opinions.

It’s not an opinion it’s a fact; my use of the word “beliefs” is there in the title and in the OP for all to read.

You seem to want to play the child all of a sudden.

@divegeester said
It’s not an opinion it’s a fact; my use of the word “beliefs” is there in the title and in the OP for all to read.

You seem to want to play the child all of a sudden.

Loving someone is acting on beliefs, loving God, and each other is acting on beliefs,
it becomes who we are as it is who God is. You separate this turning into just an
opinion, as you do all things, it all boils down to us, what we think. More times than
not what you think is more important than even scripture, God, or other people.

@kellyjay said
Loving someone is acting on beliefs, loving God, and each other is acting on beliefs

Are you saying that a belief is only valid if it is acted upon?

@divegeester said
Are you saying that a belief is only valid if it is acted upon?

If it is not enough to act on is it really believed? Our faith is tested no matter how much we have, if we believed stealing is wrong and we believed in God, would we steal? If we act against what we know to be true what does that make us? Partial obedience is disobedience, the truth about us is always revealed in what we say and do.

@kellyjay said
If it is not enough to act on is it really believed? Our faith is tested no matter how much we have, if we believed stealing is wrong and we believed in God, would we steal? If we act against what we know to be true what does that make us? Partial obedience is disobedience, the truth about us is always revealed in what we say and do.

So…

Are you saying that a belief is only valid if it is acted upon?

@divegeester said
So…

Are you saying that a belief is only valid if it is acted upon?

Belief is shown real when it is acted on, saying one thing and doing another reveals what is real too.

@kellyjay said
Belief is shown real when it is acted on, saying one thing and doing another reveals what is real too.

Then if I may say… you hold some very (in my opinion) extreme beliefs about eternal suffering, so how do you “act” on those?

@divegeester said
Then if I may say… you hold some very (in my opinion) extreme beliefs about eternal suffering, so how do you “act” on those?

I don’t sugarcoat the truth to make it palatable, nor deny it because it might sound inconvenient. You know exactly what and why I believe what I do, it isn’t a closely kept secret.

@kellyjay said
I don’t sugarcoat the truth to make it palatable, nor deny it because it might sound inconvenient. You know exactly what and why I believe what I do, it isn’t a closely kept secret.

No what I asked you was how you acted on those beliefs based on your assertion earlier that a “Belief is shown real when it is acted on”.

How do you “act on” your belief that non Christian will be burnt alive for eternity?

@divegeester said
No what I asked you was how you acted on those beliefs based on your assertion earlier that a “Belief is shown real when it is acted on”.

How do you “act on” your belief that non Christian will be burnt alive for eternity?

I do what Jesus did, what the Apostles did, what the disciples did, live life, share the
gospel, and don't sugar coat truth by attempting to make the truth seem like all
flowers and butterflies to be accepted. I read what the Bible says plainly without
changing it to suit me.

@kellyjay said
I do what Jesus did, what the Apostles did, what the disciples did, live life, share the
gospel, and don't sugar coat truth by attempting to make the truth seem like all
flowers and butterflies to be accepted. I read what the Bible says plainly without
changing it to suit me.

When you talk to your neighbours about Jesus and how he will be overseeing them being burnt in hell for eternity if they don’t repent and love him… what kind of responses do you get?

@fmf said
If you are talking in terms of morality, then, of course, behaviour is more important than thoughts.

The way I see it [as someone who does not believe in "cosmic justice"], morality governs action and interaction. I am not impressed by the notion of "thoughtcrimes".

Beliefs are interesting or revealing up to a point, but unless they translate into certain patterns of beha ...[text shortened]... eliefs], then they are undetectable and so ~ in terms of human interaction ~ neither here nor there.

I am not impressed by the notion of "thoughtcrimes".

[Matthew 5:27-28 NKJV] 27 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 "But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
It's clear by the teachings of Jesus that most, if not all sin, starts with our thoughts or heart first, before we actually act upon these thoughts.
Not acting on our evil thoughts is a start; however, not having evil thoughts is clearly the goal Jesus has given us through Him.
This is what Jesus meant when He said 'we must clean the inside of the cup first, and then, the outside of the cup will be clean also (paraphrased).'
One of our greatest problems is we're always trying to clean the outside of our cup (our outward appearance or actions), when it is our thoughts (inside of our cup) that needs the cleaning, through Christ and His Love for us.