No Scrapping On My Watch

[TrueTomHarley]

I don't do the following often, for it is a little mean. I wouldn't do it just on account of a differing point of view. I reserve it for someone obnoxious and condescending from the fundamentalist religious world, someone trying to denigrate the work Witnesses do, someone saying dismissively: "No thanks. I'm Christian." As though they own the word.

 

I reply that only a Christian would do the work I am doing, adding "frankly, I'm a little surprised you're not doing it yourself." Always it vanquishes the smug smile.

 

However, one does not stop there, upon seeing that the blow has landed. Immediately you move on to soften it somehow, perhaps by returning to whatever you were discussing in the first place.

 

I am not thrilled speaking with these ones. If they try to start a fight - and it is always over the Trinity - I deflect. Hopefully I share my verse and leave it at that.

 

When I offered a verse to one of these fellows, he immediately wanted to know my religion. Anyone else I would tell immediately, but to him I acted as though - well, it's rather a personal question, don't you think? I mean, this is the Bible. What is more Christian than to talk about it?

 

Too many of these folks have their scholarship defined by their beliefs, and not the other way around. Too many have had a religious awakening of some sort. How do you tell them that their experience is not theirs? I don't try. If they find what they learned by revelation confirmed in Scripture, they are happy, but they are not unduly put out when they find it is not.

 

Reliably, being saved by faith and not by works will come up. 'Of course,' I reply. 'Everyone knows that. But the works don't hurt, to they? They certainly give us some street cred.'

 

What about "there has been a child born to us...his name will be called wonderful counselor, mighty God, prince of peace," he challenges. What about it? I reply. Does he think I should have a problem with it? Why should I?

 

He will have to get a little more specific than that if he wants to get into a shoving match. No scrapping on my watch.

[Melinda Mills]

2 hours ago, TrueTomHarley said:

What about "there has been a child born to us...his name will be called wonderful counselor, mighty God, prince of peace," he challenges. What about it? I reply. Does he think I should have a problem with it? Why should I?

He wants to discuss the Trinity again. But he is the one who is raising it.

Met someone yesterday who quoted the Ten Commandments,"You Must Not covet"  but then said "God coveted Mary" because He  told her she would become pregnant with His Son.  Never heard the likes of it before.  I told him God is a Spirit and he had no fleshly interest in her.  He just wanted to transfer his Son's life from a heavenly one to an earthly one. I also mentioned that Mary was not yet married and  that when the angel related to Mary what was going to happen to her,  she agreed by  saying, "Look! Jehovah's slave girl!" May it take place with me according to your declaration".  Jehovah would have known Mary's life course, her spirituality and that she would deem this very great privilege to bear his Son. Jehovah would have known the spirituality of Joseph, her  future husband as well, as Joseph would have to an active part in raising God's son as a human.  Of course I quoted Deut 32:4, and  Daniel 4:35 which  says " . .. and he is doing according to his own will among the army of the heavens and the inhabitants of the earth. And there exists no one that can check his hand or that can say to him, ‘What have you been doing?’"

It was shocking but we were still able to break down some prejudice and the brother who told me he wastes our time, came and joined us and exchange some pleasantries about school days and shook hands.  It was the first time for me speaking to him, but this brother had spoken to him several times.  I told him not to be afraid of people like that, and gave him incidences where even people who opposed Jehovah like spirit mediums became Jehovah's servants in Africa and other places.