Hmm, okay, I've been reading this, I've been following the points, and now I have come to a point where I feel I should comment.
Before I go on, let me give you my credentials: nobody, lower income of the poverty type, high school diploma with some college, abused physically, emotionally, and mentally throughout childhood and life, generally ignored, unwanted, and despised for being me, issues with tickling fetish, outcast, Christian.
There, that stated, I'm sure everyone reading will not confuse me with a theologian, a pious man, a self-righteous man, or a well-educated one. As for hypocrisy? I'll state that a hypocrite is by definition not someone who fails to uphold his/her belief system due to human flaws, but someone who expects from others a level of status they themselves do not uphold in belief and/or cannot/will not meet the same expectations. Look it up, don't take my word for it. That said, as a Christian, tickling in and of itself is not wrong. Biblically, sin is well defined by the Law and the Prophets of the Old Testament, but try to remember that when Jesus came, though he did not do away with the Law, he fulfilled it. Meaning this, as He said, by fulfilling the greatest commandment, "You should love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your, soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor(your fellow men/women) as yourself," you fulfill all the Law, period. In lay terms, sin is when you, by doing or not doing something, hurt someone else, yourself, and God. Therefore, as a Christian, tickling falls into the "being wrong" category if it is harmful to someone. You who follow Christ, seek Him on the matter, and read the Bible for more insight. Can't find anything? Look, God is Love, not punishment, and He is more patient than you realize, He will not smack you upside the head or hold you accountable for actions done without knowledge (a.k.a. sin in ignorance), He'll show you the answer in time. Myself, I realize that I've crossed a line in my work I shouldn't have. By creating materials that posses a sexual nature, I have been promoting lust in myself. Jesus saya if one looks at another woman (other than his significant) with lust in his heart (or mind), he commits adultery with her in his mind. I'm no hypocrite, just human, and flawed in practice. Therefore, I will not be submitting materials of a sexual nature here, and any I may in the future will be devoid of that. Mind you, that's MY conviction! Let the Lord lead YOU as He sees fit, this is something that I must deal with, so don't take it upon yourself that you've gotta do it to unless you're lead to. Search your own hearts, seek God's wisdom, and know no one has ever screwed up beyond His ability to forgive and restore.
Oh yeah, one more thing....
I've been reading up on the discussion between 46and2 and Amnesiac_m(pc). Most interesting. Amnesiac, I am truly sorry if my faith causes you to hate me simply because of it. Sounds like many "Christians" have truly soiled your opinion of anyone sharing the faith. Take heart though, we're not all out to judge you or others or hold you accountable for anything. Here's a bit of news you've probably already guessed: NONE of us is better than you or anyone, or more perfect, or more favored, etc.! In fact, many Christians believe that it's our job to judge others, taking that "you will judge the world" verse waaaay out of context (read the whole thing, it's referring to the end of the age, ya know, and it's not talking about us judging others, it's talking about standing as witnesses of God's redemptive power working, judging fallen angels [i.e. Satan, demons]). We're here to love one another and to love God, commanded to preach the Gospel (translates: good news!). Oh yeah, that preach the Gospel thing? Where does it say go and convert people? ONLY God and the Holy Spirit can do that! We share our faith with others, tell them what God did for us, let them know He loves them. THAT is the Great Comission, THAT is preaching the Good News! "Making disciples of the nations?" Well, if someone you know or have talked to accepts Jesus as his/her Savior, that means don't leave them hanging out there alone, teach them the things of God, help them to know Him better! "Disciple" = "discipline," like an athlete's regimine, for instance. So I implore my fellow Christians not to "Bible beat" someone thinking they'll convert because of how masterfully you can beat them with that book, remember the greatest of these [gifts] is love, use it. That's all Jesus did. But by no means stop telling others about the Lord and what he's done for you, because that is an expression of love in and of itself (compare it to the woman who talks about the love of her life to all her friends because of her feelings for him, or the person who tells all of his/her friends about the great job opening/sale/whatever because that person cares enough about his/her friends to want to see them as happy as that person is because of the said thing).
I'll stop with the helpful hints for Christians for now. Please remember that we are sad representations of our God, Amnesiac. Like you, we're just trying to get it right in this world, too. We just try to do it by being the best possible examples of love, joy, peace, righteousness, patience, kindness, etc. we can. That's not always easy for someone who's used to being mean-spirited, or selfish, or judgemental, and so on. No man can save himself because he is imperfect, that's why God did it Himself, by dying for our sins as Jesus Christ and then rising from the grave to defeat spiritual Death and Hell for us as well. I'll not try to "convert" you, you are entitled to your beliefs too (God Himself will not even encroach on your free will and choice, THAT'S scriptural!). But, as a caring soul, and some one who shares at least a few things in common with you, maybe more'n we know, I'll paint the following picture:
God created man and woman, if you believe in God you accept this fact, if you don't, then none of the comments in here should EVER bother you or raise your attention. But, saying hypothetically you do, I'll go on. The reason He created them was not to serve Him. That's what angels were for. He created them to be His companions. Perhaps it seems silly, but God has emotions and feelings, too, and He is capable of lonliness. God wanted someone to love, and wanted to be loved in return. Therefore mankind was made in his image. Now you CANNOT, I repeat, CANNOT be forced to love anything. That can only be given freely by the choice of the person. Angels do not have this ability because of this. So mankind was made like God in this facet: mankind could choose due to free will, and therefore had the unique power to love, the power that beforehand only God Himself possessed. Mankind could now choose to love God on their own, and...oh, wait, that's right, how can mankind choose to love God, or anyone for that matter, if there isn't another option? That's why the rebellious Lucifer was not simply destroyed, he posed the opposition, an obvious choice opposite from all that God is. Okay, now mankind can choose to love, er, wait, that's right, ther's no standard to measure the choice, to give mankind their opportunity to. No opportunity, no choice, no free will, NO LOVE.
So, the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil is placed. The fruit of the tree will grant the eater "head knowledge" of good and evil, read this a judging what's good and evil by your own standards, not God's. God informs them that if they eat of the tree they shall die, so don't do it. Curious that such a request is made, but remember, this must happen in order for mankind to choose to love. No other way, because you can't love something unless you have the option and choice to. As for dying? Choosing to not love God is also the same as separating oneself from God. God is love, God is life, and without God, neither can exist apart from him. Death will occur simply because if mankind chooses not to love God, to separate from him, they separate from life as well. Now the serpent makes his move, tempts mankind with the power to be "like God," independent of Him. The choice is made. Mankind....chooses independence...and separation from a Being who's sole purpose in creating them was to have friends of like mind.
God bends the rules! First off, mankind didn't die when they separated from God. They should have, because life can only exist through the Creator of it. God loves his creation enough to give it another gift: Time. Without time, nothing changes, but in it, things do, and reconcilliation is possible. Still, the very presence of God's holiness will kill a man now (that's why Satan had to depart from Heaven, sin cannot exist with God), and man's days are numbered. The first death takes place at the hands of man himself, in murderous rage, one of the first ramifications of man's choice. After this, death comes to all men in time. God bends the rules! Man is immortal, since it was in the flesh that he sinned, then death need only affect it. The spirit of man can still be saved, and reconcilled with God! But the sin on mankind covers everything, even his soul. The price of it is death. That means that even an immortal soul must suffer separation from God, a "spiritual death." How can mankind pay the price for sins they commit, and still be reconcilled with God? Answer: they can't. Only someone who has never separated from God, someone who's never sinned, can pay that cost, and have man redeemed. So, God has the souls of dead men wait until his plans are brought into fruitation perfectly (the Old Testament), then rolls up His sleeves, bends the rules once more, and becomes human. Then dies, paying the price for us. But since He is innocent of the sins, death cannot claim Him permanently, and He returns to life and Heaven, telling mankind that all is reconcilled! But, He will not undo man's right to choose to love him, He will not even now make mankind his mindless servants. He leaves the choice to be with Him, or embrace everything that isn't Him (there ain't a lot that isn't!), up to you.
That said, there is no pleasure on earth that is NOT endorsed by God, or anything on earth itself that is not endorsed by Him. He made it! Why would He do that if it wasn't endorsed by Him? God never vetoes your "good time," ever. But He is a loving Creator, likening as a parent, or father. If it's going to hurt you, or another of his children, or come between the two of you, He doesn't want you to do it for that reason. He wants a relationship with you, and doesn't want harm to come to any of His children. But you, and all of us, have free will. He will not take that from you or anyone. And, honestly, if you really read the message of Jesus and the New Testament, God's concern is not about sin. Sin has consequences here on earth, sure, but His main concern is reconcilling His creation to Himself again. That means getting people to see that He really does love them, that He paid the price for all their sins, even the ones they haven't done yet (sin is done! it's not even an issue any more), and that reconcilliation starts, as with all relationships, by accepting each other. That's what being a Christian really is supposed to be, someone accepting Jesus as the Lord, the one who saved us from spiritual death, and starting to develop a relationship with God all over again. God no longer CARES what you're doing in the long scheme of things, He's paid for it once and for all. He's not about "don't do this" and "don't do that" anymore. He just wants to have that friend in you He's wanted forever, and to give you an option other than separation from Him (everything unholy is destroyed by holiness, or expelled by it, like a magnet). Everything else, the "do's" or "don'ts's," those are ways given to people by which, if they choose to live by them, they show God's kind of love, the selfless variant, and live in peace with each other and God. But that's a matter of (drum roll) free choice again.
Enjoy life, Amnesiac, and be blessed! God loves you even if you don't love Him, hate Him, or don't acknowledge His existence. He's big enough to handle your rage at Him, and your feelings towards Him. No matter what you choose, though, He'll always be waiting, like a gentlemen courting someone properly, without encroaching on your life, patiently waiting, for the day you'll possibly give him the chance to have that relationship with you. I write this, not to defend God (geez, what a poor lawyer I'd make!), He can do that Himself, and certainly not to encroach on anyone's, especially your, beliefs. Sharing my beliefs and the Christian faith is just that, sharing. I can, and will not, force this faith down anyone's throat to "make converts." Not my place, not ANYONE'S place. I write this to show you the God of the Bible, the one who's working on me today, and has received me just as I am, as I have received Him.
You've shared your beliefs, I've now shared my faith. Take care of yourselves, Amnesiac, 46and2, and everyone reading this. Hasta!
