The other week it was a(black)women who tried to fast for 40 days like Jesus claiming that the bible told her to do it so she could be forgiven and be cleansed. The doctor made her out to be a mad women and basically said the bible is not a good book as she was almost dying of starvation. The bible does not tell anyone to fast to be clean and it doesnt say you ned to fast to be forgiven.

This week it was a (black)Jehovahs witness family been made to look stupid and being portrayed as stupid because they refused to allow there son to have a blood transplant. The thing that disturbed me about this that the family didnt care about what God thought about their son having a bloodtransplant but were more concerned about whatother people in thechurch thought.

Why do these shows belittle peoples beliefs and makepeople look stupid. Did anyone also notice that it was black people both times to be made to lookirrational and stupid?

There portrayal of religion is based on lies seeking to turn peopleaway fromreligion not just christianity but all religions.

interesting

many shows do do this now

secular nation tries to belittle God at every opportunity

mike@sda wrote:

Quote:

"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry." ~Matthew 4:1-2 (NIV)

Quote:

This is what the LORD Almighty says: "The fasts of the fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months will become joyful and glad occasions and happy festivals for Judah. Therefore love truth and peace." ~Zechariah 8:19 (NIV)

If you witness a non-religious person doing one of the many of the things religionists do, you would call them crazy, ill, or deranged. But when we put a religious spin on it, it automatically becomes sane.

If people stopped whatever they were doing in the middle of the day to pray 5 times, you would call them deranged if they were not Muslims. If another cult were eating bread and drinking dark juice or wine torepresentthe physical body and blood ofsome reverred person after death, then they would be considered quasi-cannibalistic, mentally ill, amongst other things if they were not Christians. If Jesus died today by the America establishment, then Christians would be walking around with little electric-chairs around their necks...however, because it has the religious spin, it is not characterized as deranged as it truly is. Fasting, or religiously justified starvation, during Ramaddan and other occasions for Muslims, as well as fasting for Christians and Jews at certain times, is quasi-masochistic.

There are many religious things one could name that would be seen as indicative of an ill disposition if not attached to religion. What you are seeing is people no longer looking at religion as an excuse for stupidity. They are looking at the person's reasoning. Religious folks typically don't like that, because they know that most of the time they are not reasoning at all. Unfortunately, through enslavement and colonization, our people have been the worst at reasoning for themselves, and so will continue to be the bud of this type of ridicule until they wake up.

Mike,

I have been watching Holby on and off too. I think you must have missed the episode where a black guy kept swallowing pens! It seems that most black charaters on that program are portrayed as being a crazy. In The Bill, Lewis is continually late for work and sometimes hungover. It seems like the media is slipping back into portraying negative stereotypes of black people, but then they can't take all the blame for that, because we often perpetuate negative stereotypes of ourselves especially through music.

Peace to all,
Anthony.

Shemsi en Tehuti,

You wrote:

True, but Christianity says to be "Christ-like" and when Jesus was purportedly tempted by the Satan, well...you can read it for yourself...

Yeshua fasted so scripture says because he was lead by the Holy Spirit into the dessert, not to be spiritually cleansed for he did not need to be cleansed. The point you are missing is that one does not fast to be cleansed, we are not justified before God by doing things like that, his grace is sufficient. What the lady whom Mike referred to was doing was unsound, and she was in fact, though religious, not quite sane.

Peace to all,
Anthony.

ant wrote:
You obviously missed the point, and you are conveniently picking and choosing the scriptures you want to follow...nothing new...niceone.gif

Shemsi,

Look at Mike's opening post, there is noting in the bible that says you are cleansed by fasting. Mike said it right in the first place. You seem to be suggesting that because Yeshua fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, we should do so to be "Christ-like", but the reality, that most sensible people realiseis that not many - if any of us has faith Yeshua has.Do you also expect us to walk on water, take 5 loaves and 7 fish to feed 5000 people, heal and do everything else Yeshua did, or just fast?

My point is, what the lady on Holby said was not scriptural, it cannot be related to an accurate reading of scripture. You appear to havefound a scripturein Zechariah relating tofasting, but you have not realised that the scripture has nothing to do with why Yeshua fasted for 40 days and 40 nights, for it is quite clear that those who followed Judaism did not on mass fast for 40 days at a time, either in their own dwellings, or on journeys into the dessert as part of a religious rite, the fasts spoken of in Zechariah were only for ONE day.

Evidence:

8:19. The Lord waited till now to answer the question raised by the Bethel delegates (7:2-3) about the commemorative fasts. He said the fasts would become joyful and glad occasions and happy festivals. Two additional fasts are included which were not previously mentioned (cf. 7:3, 5)—one on the 10th day of the 10th month to remember the commencement of the siege of Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:1-2; Jer. 39:1), and one on the 9th day of the 4th month to recall the capture of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar (the 9th day of the 4th month was the day the city wall was breached, 2 Kings 25:3-4; Jer. 39:2). These fasts were all self-imposed and had been observed for 70 years (Zech. 7:5) with sorrowful hearts and misdirected motives (cf. 7:5-7). These fasts are still observed by some Jews today. But at the Lord’s Second Advent these fasts will be turned into feasts, symbolizing millennial joy. Therefore again the people in Zechariah’s day were encouraged by their future hope to love what God loves (cf. 8:16-17), in this case, truth and peace.

FROM: Walvoord, J. F., Zuck, R. B., & Dallas Theological Seminary. (1983-c1985). The Bible knowledge commentary : An exposition of the scriptures (1:1561). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

If by your judgement I pick and choose what scriptures to follow, let it be so. However, I hope I will not be found guilty of distorting the Word of God to mean something that it clearly doesn't.

Peace to all,
Anthony.

[align=center]*** cracks knuckles ***[/align]


ant wrote:

Quote:

When they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. ~Acts 14:23

Quote:

While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." ~Acts 13:2

Quote:

Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. ~Matthew 6:16

Quote:

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. ~John 14:12

Shemsi,

Do you understand what this thread is about? Did you actually watch the episode of Hoilby City that is in question, or are you just using this thread to vent your contempt for Christians? Please notice that I never said anything about the disciples of Yeshua, did they all walk on water? No, out of the 12 only 1 did. Did they all fast for 40 days, NO! - Yeshua is the only person in scripture who fasted for that length of time.As I stated not many if any of us has the same level of faith as Yeshua - THAT is what enables him to fast for so long.

In the episode of Holby City the lady was fasting in order to be forgiven and cleansed. The central theme of Christianity is that we are forgiven and cleansed by faith in Yeshua, not by external acts of obedience, one can't "work" to gain merit before God, but one receives his forgiveness and cleansing FREELY - this is symbolic of God's love. Note:

[3] At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. [4] But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared, [5] he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, [6] whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, [7] so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:3-7 )

THEREFORE, the reason why the lady in Holby City was fasting was invalid, she could not fast to be cleansed and forgiven, it is totally UNSCRIPTURAL, this makes your initial response on this thread invalid also, her fasting was not a sign of her religion or emulation of Yehsua, but rather was a sign of her delusion. If you don't understand this by now I really can not help you.

Also the lady was close to death if I remember correctly, seriously anorexic, and I think internal bleeding, and the point is not wholly about religion or Christianity, but why black people in Holby City are often portrayed as having some kind of mental instability.

You listed several examples of fasting and prayer, did they occur for 40 days till people were on the point of death? NO! Were people fasting in order to be cleansed and forgiven NO!

Christianity is not some kind of magicians show where Chrisitans pull off remarkable miracles so that people believe there is a God. Scripture states the purpose of miracles is for the furtherance of the kingdom of God, not for our own ego or showmanship but rather:

[4] God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will. (Hebrews 2:4 )

AND:

[7] Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. [8] To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, [9] to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, [10] to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. [11] All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines. (1 Corinthians 12:7-11 )

You wrote:

It is clear from Matthew, that the reward is "in full" for fasting.

You have not read and understood the scripture correctly. Yeshua is saying that people who fast to be seen by men have already received their reward from men, the applause of men who look at people who are fasting or doing some other work to try and prove they are a Christian-and are awed by such a display. In actual fact the people performing these acts will have no reward from God for their "showmanship". This is backed up by the verses which directly follow what you quoted:

[17] But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, [18] so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matt 6:17/18 )

Yeshua is telling us not to seek the praise of men for religious shows of piety, but to seek rewards from God himself for sincerity, devotionand faithfulness.

You wrote:

So to answer your question, I'm waiting for you guys to do everything Jesus did and more. Otherwise, your god are false.

John 14:12 does not say we will do EVERYTHING he has been doing, and as I have shown it is clear from scripture, thatnot even the apostles managed that. However, we can do some of the things Yeshua did, maybe not the miracles but perhaps instead showing charity, forgiveness, good judgement, standing up in the face of persecution and unbelief from those around us;and in fact from my experience there are few Christians with miraculous gifts. All have some gifts, none have all. As I said it requires FAITH and belief which not all believers have to the extent that Yeshua has.

If I were to look a things from your perspective, a logical conclusion, rather than a prejuidiced one, would be to say that our faith could be week, or that some are not true/sincere believers, not everyone has every gift...- "your God is false" is definetly not the only conclusion you could make. In any case, I don't personally value your opinion of whether you believe our God to be true or false, from judging by your reading ability it seems like I could be dealing with a 10 year old who is just out to stoke up some flamebait.

So are you interested in dealing with why black people are constantly portrayed as lunatics in Holby City or not? If not my advice to you would be to take more time to read and understand the context of a subject you are debating before you make an argument.

Peace to all,
Anthony.