olger Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ryan-j-bell/a-year-without-god_b_4512842.html A martyr complex--reminiscent of Magic Johnson being portrayed as some sort of hero after contracting AIDS through promiscuity. And, living without God for a year is tantamount to forgoing oxygen in a coal mine. Nothing noble about spiritual suicide. Or is it a publicity stunt preparatory to the release of a book? Either way, indicates a malcontent. I agree with Bell, that it is a "foolish experiment." G Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OzarkWoman Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 I don't really know anything about this guy but I have read, as of late, many ex-SDAs that claim to now be atheists. I don't understand it at all. I do understand when someone may change their views about church doctrine, but to give up on God completely is crazy, IMHO anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoAspen Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Gotta love the way labels are thrown around by people about others......any way....to shift over to the positive... It is not something I would do or even think about. But, it will be interesting as this person tests them self and God. God is not afraid to be tested, He even asks us to do that. I have known an other person who went through a struggle similar to this person about God, church, creationism, evolutionism, etc. This person didn't choose to do this, as in take a year off from God, it was a journey. Today, this individual is a pastor again, prayer leader and a strong proponent of and for God. He has been through the valley and climbed up the mountain. Let see what happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M. T. Cross Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Or maybe its just that his faith in his God was tied to his roots as an SDA, and what he tried to accomplish as an SDA pastor was met with dismissal from his job. If the biblical God really is the patient and caring God he is proclaimed to be, I'm pretty sure he will either make himself really evident to Mr. Bell, or will be very understanding of this experiment. Either way I think Mr. Bell will come out the other side of this a better person. Though I have to wonder, now that he has been removed from his SDA ministerial position, how this is a "Real Issue in Adventism"...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Tom Wetmore Posted January 3, 2014 Administrators Share Posted January 3, 2014 Good question. It remains an issue for some elements of Adventism that think we should shoot our wounded. And for some he is an object lesson that if one strays from the straight and narrow, well you know where that will lead. Quote "Absurdity reigns and confusion makes it look good." "Sinless perfection is such a shallow goal." "I love God only as much as the person I love the least." *Forgiveness is always good news. And that is the gospel truth. (And finally, the ideas expressed above are solely my person views and not that of any organization with which I am associated.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators debbym Posted January 3, 2014 Administrators Share Posted January 3, 2014 sounds honest to me. God makes himself known to everyone, and continues to do so. Quote deb Love awakens love. Let God be true and every man a liar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators debbym Posted January 3, 2014 Administrators Share Posted January 3, 2014 i believe it is really significant to be able to have your struggle with yourself and others, and faith, and belief, and God within the Adventist Church. God is big enough in my view. Quote deb Love awakens love. Let God be true and every man a liar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted January 3, 2014 Author Share Posted January 3, 2014 Tomm. Put me down as option #2 Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windsor Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 If eternal life was possible without God, would it still be worth having? God brings strength and hope not just in a life to come but in this current life on a planet filled with sin and woe. Without the love of my Saviour, I would find existence miserable and completely without meaning. Quote Remember Adventists Online? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted January 3, 2014 Author Share Posted January 3, 2014 Amen and Indeed. Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stan Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Can you understand why is might be doing this? AND what the results will be in the end? Quote If you receive benefit to being here please help out with expenses. https://www.paypal.me/clubadventist Administrator of a few websites like https://adventistdating.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Gerr Posted January 4, 2014 Moderators Share Posted January 4, 2014 As to the your second question, my understanding is: 1. God will be found by anyone who will seek Him with all his heart. 2. If the truth revealed in each step is obeyed. If not obeyed, no further revelation of more truth is likely to happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators debbym Posted January 4, 2014 Administrators Share Posted January 4, 2014 Quote: Or maybe its just that his faith in his God was tied to his roots as an SDA, and what he tried to accomplish as an SDA pastor was met with dismissal from his job. If the biblical God really is the patient and caring God he is proclaimed to be, I'm pretty sure he will either make himself really evident to Mr. Bell, or will be very understanding of this experiment. i believe our experience of faith and a relationship with God can become muddled by religious exercises, and the social approval or disapproval of human beings. To strip oneself of these things to find God beyond anything we and others can generate ourselves may be very valuable in my view. i completely understand the this. Especially when one has been bounced around intellectually and or emotionally.... to find God through the fog of these things can be quite a journey. Quote deb Love awakens love. Let God be true and every man a liar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoAspen Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 I think we are often afraid to really 'find' God. EGW talked about an experiential knowledge of God as well. Each person may find a different way/path to that relationship. I do not believe God forsakes the the individual on a search journey or puts up prerequisites along the way. If, as recorded in the Bible, He desires that no one be lost and will search diligently for that one lost soul, then the journey will be successful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LifeHiscost Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Quote: If, as recorded in the Bible, He desires that no one be lost and will search diligently for that one lost soul, then the journey will be successful. That would put God in a position of never losing a soul. This seems to belie that conclusion. "After saying all these things, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth. I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began. “I have revealed you to the ones you gave me from this world. They were always yours. You gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, for I have passed on to them the message you gave me. They accepted it and know that I came from you, and they believe you sent me. “My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All who are mine belong to you, and you have given them to me, so they bring me glory. Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. During my time here, I protected them by the power of the name you gave me. I guarded them so that not one was lost, except the one headed for destruction, as the Scriptures foretold. “Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy. I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do. Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth. “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me. “I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began! “O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them.”" John 17:1-26 NLT God Cares! Jesus saves! Quote Lift Jesus up!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators debbym Posted January 4, 2014 Administrators Share Posted January 4, 2014 Quote: That would put God in a position of never losing a soul. This seems to belie that conclusion. it is not God who forsakes, it is people who forsake God. God is not willing that any should perish. God does not want to lose anyone, and every stop is pulled out to bring life to each person. God knows those who will respond and those who will not, but he fully reveals his love to everyone. no one will be able to say, i am lost because God didn't love me, or make himself known to me. no one. Jesus died for everyone. not everyone accepts His love. But we are not in a position to pass judgement on people. we cannot judge anyone's relationship to God. we can decide who we will choose to influence and teach us, if we do not hear Jesus speaking through them we do not need to be lead away from Jesus. John 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, 29 for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. those around me can have lots of experiences, and struggles in their walk with God, but that is not criteria for my walk with God. i do not have to dictate anyone else's experience or measure their experience by my own. no one is saying that There are no individuals who refuse God. We just cannot pass that judgement, because we do not see into the heart and soul of another. even the heavenly angels do not revile Satan. They do know his destiny, but are heavenly minded and do not attack or revile him, in the face of this knowledge. Quote deb Love awakens love. Let God be true and every man a liar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted January 4, 2014 Author Share Posted January 4, 2014 Can you understand why is might be doing this? AND what the results will be in the end? I have a prediction. Contact me in two years and we'll see if it is correct. If not I will admit it publicly. Will you join me in that? Ger Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LifeHiscost Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Quote: #684492 - "Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die."Ezekiel 18:4 KJV That will come to pass either before we breath our last on this earth or after. God saves!m Jesus saves! Quote Lift Jesus up!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windsor Posted January 5, 2014 Share Posted January 5, 2014 Quote: That would put God in a position of never losing a soul. This seems to belie that conclusion. it is not God who forsakes, it is people who forsake God. God is not willing that any should perish. God does not want to lose anyone, and every stop is pulled out to bring life to each person. God knows those who will respond and those who will not, but he fully reveals his love to everyone. no one will be able to say, i am lost because God didn't love me, or make himself known to me. no one. Jesus died for everyone. not everyone accepts His love. But we are not in a position to pass judgement on people. we cannot judge anyone's relationship to God. we can decide who we will choose to influence and teach us, if we do not hear Jesus speaking through them we do not need to be lead away from Jesus. John 10:27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, 29 for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. those around me can have lots of experiences, and struggles in their walk with God, but that is not criteria for my walk with God. i do not have to dictate anyone else's experience or measure their experience by my own. no one is saying that There are no individuals who refuse God. We just cannot pass that judgement, because we do not see into the heart and soul of another. even the heavenly angels do not revile Satan. They do know his destiny, but are heavenly minded and do not attack or revile him, in the face of this knowledge. How is he not forsaking God? Quote Remember Adventists Online? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted January 6, 2014 Author Share Posted January 6, 2014 He pushed his beloved envelope of liberalism so far that he burst through into an unemployed spiritual vacuum. Now he feels compelled to make merchandise of the gospel of atheism. I wonder how his wife feels about all this? Prayed for this poor deceived individual, today. The Kim Kardashian of Adventism... Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoAspen Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 Quote: I wonder how his wife feels about all this? Hmmm...according to some....he is the 'head' and therefore she should follow his lead! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators lazarus Posted January 7, 2014 Moderators Share Posted January 7, 2014 Quote: Hmmm...according to some....he is the 'head' and therefore she should follow his lead! Quote Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence. Einstein Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators debbym Posted January 7, 2014 Administrators Share Posted January 7, 2014 Quote: huffington post on Ryan 2014 David Quinn wrote, "Whilst i am uncertain on anyones ability to live "as an atheist" without actually being one… i do think that someone who is actually doing something to challenge their faith and to make educated decisions should be supported and not be hung out to dry. I also hope that he can see that charity is in no way an exclusively christian value, but more so, a human trait that should be cherished and encouraged in all belief systems." Kambra Larsen commented, "Dear Mr. Bell -- You are doing one of the most important things a person of faith can do -- deeply and seriously question their faith. I am an atheist, but I respect and value that you are brave enough to do this. I hope that, no matter the outcome of your experiment, you will find peace, security, and happiness." Well said. the atheist community recognizes that Ryan Bell is not stating he is becoming an atheist. i see Him as stripping himself of the demands of religion and denominational influence in the effort to find his authentic faith. Hey we all have some kind of struggle, not everyone does it in such a public way. God is infinitely kind and patient, and loves all kinds of people, and Ryan represents a lot of people. perhaps his conclusions of faith and hope will also be public and reach many who are struggling with the same kinds of issues in the closet of prayer. Quote deb Love awakens love. Let God be true and every man a liar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olger Posted January 8, 2014 Author Share Posted January 8, 2014 Quote: I wonder how his wife feels about all this? Hmmm...according to some....he is the 'head' and therefore she should follow his lead! It appears that my premonitions are valid. “I have kids to support and utilities to pay and the rent is due,” Bell said. “At this point I’m willing to do almost anything.” Bell said he and his wife are divorcing, though not because of his atheist experiment. Sad stuff. I feel sorry for this woman. `G Quote "Please don't feed the drama queens.." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoAspen Posted January 8, 2014 Share Posted January 8, 2014 Quote: Bell said he and his wife are divorcing, though not because of his atheist experiment. So....where is your cause and effect? What doe this have to do with being atheist or not? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.