Pastor Peters,
Before I go any further, I would like to realign what I said, especially what you quoted from my previous posting. Confronted with a form of facism? Yes... but from everyone in this church? Absolutely not! And for my apparent generalization I truly apologize as I was not intent on offending anyone who does not come under the guise of facist ideology.
Now, I agree with you entirely that it is a christian duty, the most important duty of any Christ-loving human being to save the poor souls that are journeying blindly towards the agony of hell. I agree and understand it profoundly. It is God's will that we should pull the unsaved out of darkness, it is the very basic nature of our mission.
But salvation comes through opening oneself to Christ the Lord. And only through him, in his name, can anyone find the path that leads right back to his kingdom.
Christ never spoke of punishment as a means to be saved. He never spoke of imposing salvation but that it was rather a choice to be made between either God's embrace, or satan's eternal anguish.
Did Christ not say to turn the other cheek? Did he not accept the prostitute within his fold? Did he not prefer preaching to the unsaved for they were the ones primarily in need of enlightenment and the Lord's loving grace?
I find no Godly virtue in people saying that rape is a divine punishment for women's perversions. In a rape, the vengeful wrath of the Lord comes down on the guilty perpetrator. His inability to withstand the pressures of temptation is to be punished... severely. Everytime one is confronted to lucifer's tactics, it is that person's duty to stand his ground and rebuke what he inherently knows to be evil temptations. Even the unsaved know the basic nature of right and wrong, of good and evil. There is no reason, other than weakness, for anyone to not uphold righteousness and to not steer clear of temptation. So I find myself wondering why it is that the blame is thrown on a woman, even the innocent (as it was mentionned) who was simply and harmlessly on her way home, but not a shred of accusations made agaisnt the evil beast that lurks in the shadows waiting, intent on destroying a life all under the grip of satan's plan. To me, that man becomes the agent of evil and his CONSEQUENTIAL action should be dealt with. And then, only then, in an effort to rehabilitate him in the eyes of the Lord, should there be (and yes, there should be for it is required by God) an attempt to save his soul.
When I read insulting comments about french-speaking canadians (as I am one), or that Canada is a communist country, or that some of the members here actually seem to take pleasure in discussing how necessary it is to beat on the mother of their children... and so on and so forth, well I get the impression that there are subversive elements in the church of God that are willing to distort the true will of the Lord Christ, as it may be comprehended by the reading and understanding the entire scope of the Bible (and not just isolated passages taken out of context). I feel that some use God's salvation as a license to do anything they want without fear of retribution all under the guise of biblical duty.
My comment about facism was therefore directed specifically towards the violent and ill-natured discourse of some members.
I have always and always will go about my life using the teachings of Christ as my only guiding tools for he declared a new alliance. And it is under this new alliance that God sets his law upon man.
If we are not to believe the TRUE and HONEST loving nature of God towards his children, if we are to believe in a violent and bloodthirsty deity who thrives on a sadistic desire to punish everything that moves, then do tell me what's the point of being saved? To go to heaven? To avoid going to hell?
How egocentric that would be.
To walk towards the kingdom of God is to walk away from the pain of hell.
As a matter of fact, Jesus took our sins and made them his own personal burden to carry on the cross. He willingly endured pain so that we could finally live without suffering every single moment of our lives, allowing the human soul to contemplate the grace of our Lord in heaven, Jesus-Christ.
This is where I stand.
Next time, I'll lay down the biblical quotes to support my words.
PS: Sorry if i made my answer lenghty, I tend to do that. I suddenly get inspired and I could just preach on endlessly. Will try to cut it short n' sweet next time.