This was someone who I met locally. I have found that Christian men in general have no higher morals than non-Christians but that they generally feel more justified in their behavior even though it is contary to what the Bible teaches and they profess to believe. Why don't they practice what they preach? Also a woman that I met who claimed to be my friend and was only interesting in putting me down and making me feel bad about myself. Every time she would call, she would insult me! I turned the other cheek and ignored her behavior. I realized that it actually stemed from jealousy. She seemed to get off on feeling morally superior to others while actually being quite hateful. I thought God was supposed to be about LOVE not judging, condeming, and treating others with contempt. These experiences have actually caused me to be more doubtful and wary of so-called Christians. I really do believe in God and the Bible but I can see how people like these are turning others off to God by showing a bad example to others. People are watching if you LIVE what you profess to BELIEVE!!
Any guy that treats a woman bad is not a MAN.....much less a true christian man.
It is a problem in the world we live in.To say that christian men treat woman worse than non-christian men is unfair and frankly untrue. Every couple struggles and feelings get hurt but I don't think it is really possible to live a true Christ-Like life and constantly treat your wife/gf without respect(physically or mentally)....they don't go hand in hand. It seems to me the original poster needs to find some different men to associate with. Just cause someone says they are a christian doesnt mean they are.....actions speak louder than words.
You're right: I shouldn't make vast generalizations like that. I should have stated that all the Christian men in MY EXPERIENCE have acted badly. Does that clarify the issue? I guess I was disapointed because I had higer expectations from them. They seem like hyprocites to me because they don't follow their beliefs.
Each and every one of us (as humans, not necessarily christians...just humans) have those that will point at us and say good things while others say bad things. Each and every one of as humans will be "caught" behaving well but none of us are always at our best. Not me. Not you. None of us.
My point? God is perfect - humans are not. Christians practice christianity (being followers of Christ) until the day we leave this planet. WE ALL depend on God's grace, HIS patience and HIS MERCY as we grow in HIM.
Please don't misunderstand my point here: We are not to use Gods grace as a cloak for missing the mark (sin is sin). There is never an excuse for a man or a woman to intentionally treat someone badly christian or not. HOWEVER, we must be willing to accept that not all of us (male or female) are in the same place spiritually.
IF GOD forgives, we must also forgive
IF GOD is completing a work in someone, we must let GOD work and trust HIS ability not only to protect us but HIS ability to bring that person to the knowledge of HIS truths.
It is not easy particularly when we may feel that WE are on the short end of the stick but how WE react to a person's misbehavior towards us speaks directly to OUR need for spiritual growth in Christ.
WHY? You might agree with me that there are too many of us who are the walking wounded - who have not been healed of our personal wounds and yet seek relationships with the unspoken expectation that that person who has also experienced wounds (accounting for his/her bad behaviors) to somehow make us whole....to somehow "treat" us properly/correctly/righteously when they themselves are walking around with open, festering or scabbed over wounds!
JESUS is the only one that heals our wounds and makes us whole and when HE does that - not religion, not my standards or yours...WHEN GOD makes us whole then we understand that our identity is lost in HIS truly and with the indwelling of the HOLY SPIRIT we begin to recognize and understand that we now have the benefit of GOD's wisdom and protection in relationships, who we spend time with and how much they have the ability to "hurt" us or treat us badly.
God wants to make us - you, me each of us WHOLE in HIM before we start tying ourselves to others getting hurt, used, abused etc...Most of us get it backwards. We look at someone, decide we are attracted somehow and have not taken the time to say "GOD make ME whole so that I will have your wisdom in relationship FIRST. This coupled with the fact that we know little to nothing about that person's WALK with Christ.
1. Be healed yourself - let GOD make YOU whole first so that you can operate in the wisdom and with the protection of the Holy Spirit.
2. Understand that all of us are humans with human frailties - none of us behave well all of the time...Our perfection is in Christ and HE grows each of us in HIS time.
3. Let your attraction to someone - male or female be for the right reasons: Not because of physical atttributes, or because they "fill a lonesome spot", or seem like a "nice person" or anything they "say". Let your attraction be that persons WALK with Christ which granted requires a time investment a little longer than most like in today's age of drive thru convenience. It is more than OK to be picky about who you are willing to share your time with and remember the scripture says very clearly if you NEED something from God wisdom/mate/ ASK ; he gives liberally and upbraideth not.
What know ye not that your body is the temple of God?
Respect it and demand that others do the same not necessarily verbally but by YOUR DEMONSTRATION to others that your walk with Christ is real and that you value yourself, your time, your body and your journey with Christ.
I do not know why people were disagreeing with Samson in the beginning of this thread. I think he answered the question very well (though I do not think it is a very complexed question).
From Samson
"I beg to differ.
What is sin? It is missing the mark or goal. We understand the mark or goal as the fulfillment of the will of God. Out side of the will of God, and the perfect law of liberty, is sin. While, it's true, Christians aren't perfect. We still commit sins. But we don't live in sin. In other words, we won't have a sinful lifestyle. If a man continual mistreats a woman, that is a sinful lifestyle, because that man is walking in the Spirit, but after the flesh. He is not a Christian."
I think that answers the question in full. The lady who wrote this thread is obviously confusing who these Christian men are. By a Christians mans very nature he should be separate and morally astound over a non Christian man.
No matter what they say Samson I give you an A+ :laugh:
what is a sinful lifestyle? one who sins could be concidered to be a sinful lifestyle. couldnt that also be where ya happen to continue to do the same sin over and over again ? let me ask ya summin , after you were saved,did you happen to have say a sin or maybe even a few sins you had trouble getting past at some time in your walk? you may of did em once daily or even multiple times daily or maybe once a week or so.. but didnt ya have one or a few that took you awhile to get past? till GOD helped you finally get past them?
did you think you were not a christian then? or even now if you still sin any?
it seems we all tend to put our christian pride before us sometimes and think we are better than other christians out there.. because we dont see our sin or sins as bad as someone elses sin or sins. look if you didnt have the righteousness of JESUS CHRIST as your personal SAVIOR then you nor i nor anyone else would be righteous enuff to enter into heaven... if not for HIS grace and mercy we couldnt get there. not one... so we need to keep that in mind as we look at other christians.. whereever theyre at in their walk compared to ours..
What if someone is constantly battling a sin. Do you think that is living in it? I mean we all have sins that we struggle with - but in order to struggle you have to be fighting. So than I would say it is due to our fallen nature that we are unable to get rid of it completely though we arn't really living in it because we are fighting it???
However, if you keep doing X sinful action daily/ and it does not even weigh on your conscious / nor are you struggling(trying to stop it) than wouldn't you be living in that sin?
I havn't really thought about this very much. Though it seems like once someone accepts Jesus's grace they will obviously not be perfect but they will strive for perfection and not be "living in sin".
Notice the "repent and be baptized" we see in scripture. To repent means to do a 180. If we are repenting we are struggling and trying to strive to get rid of the sin in our lives?
Just a thought, if you disagree - it won't be the only thing you disagree with concerning me. It is always nice to keep dialog open though.
Amen ole Cattle! Boy you are preachin' up a blue streak when you talk about grace and mercy! I think as christians we tend to look more at the homes others are building instead of considering our own foundation.
I want to add some of my experience in dating Christian men. I am a minister and also a single woman. Dating is not easy Christian or not. Im pretty grounded, and down to earth. There really is nothing about my life that is not open to others because I testify for God.
Ive dated two Christian men over the last 7 months. The first one was great! We had so much in common and seemed like things were going great. Then suddenly he disappeared after telling me he wanted to be alone. Where did he go?? And Why?? No one really knows and those who would know are not telling. So I had to get over that heartache.
Then I started dating a man from this site. The same happened. It seemed like things were great and that it was a divinely appointed connection. It still might have been! All things work together for good...etc.
Yet, over the 4th of July weekend he became paranoid and verbally abusive to me. We had been seeing each other for two months and up until then things were great! He seemed so loving and seemed to be deepening in love with me. Then..BAM..he was a total nightmare! Talk about night and day in his personality! He tried to make it seem to be my fault somehow. Wow..phew! I am so thankful the Lord was watching over me. I would have not wanted this man in my ministry or my life with my family if that is how he treats others. Yes, we are all Christians and fall short of Gods glory, but the Lord loves his children and desires that NONE are treated abusively. !!! It is murder of the soul, and although Christ covers us with His glorious blood forever, we do reap that which we sow in life. We cant go around sinning and hurting others and expect that God will just automatically forgive and it will be the end of it all. Dont be foolish, God will not be mocked! We WILL reap what we sow in life. King David was a man after Gods own heart and yet when he sinned he had to deal with the consequenses.
That is how it works. The Lord is gracious and a mightly Savior and will pour out His mercy and grace when we ask for it and repent...but continual sinfulness will be dealt with because God disciplines those He loves..
I keep the faith that there is someone for everyone and it is never Gods desire for any of us to be alone. The Lord is faithful and will bring the right one for each of us at the right time if our hearts believe and deisre Gods best!
Yep, my heart has been broken a few times, but ...God remains the same. He is the ONE and ONLY who will never forsake us!
ya know any man could change their mind at any time ,same as a woman.. and even though it stings some.. they told ya and thats not wrong unless they was never serious bout it to start with and was just playin you along.. then that was wrong . also if they didnt tell you anything and just dropped off the face of the earth then that was wrong.. the man who turned on a different personality to ya.. that was wrong. and if enuff good women will get away from a man like that and not stay around and put up with his junk.. maybe just maybe he will change.. but as long as he can find a woman thatll put up with it for awhile, he will never change.. and ifn hes got a little age on him then that means sometime or another hes found a woman or women to put up with that .. the best thing could ever happen for that man would be no woman out there would deem herself so unworty of bein treated better that theyd stick with him.
i dont condone abuse of any kind.. and a woman is so much more deserving and worthy of bein treated better.. and dont just take my word for it, read the bible as it tells how a woman , a wife is to be treated.. and if they aint a wife they still have a standard to be treated as love thy neighbor as thyself..
