AboutMrs. Priscilla Lyons Expertise I have time for you. The Bible has been my guiding light for most of the 56 years of my life. My missionary parents in Brazil kindled a love for God`s Word by their example and their love for truth. The Lord has blessed my husband and me with responsible, independent children who love and serve the Lord and are our best friends. I would enjoy discussing any subject or problem from a Biblical perspective. I know the dangers of government entitlement mentality, the dangers of homosexuality, abortion, euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, gun restrictions, pacifism and environmental extremism.
Experience My husband and I are active in local Republican politics and I've served on a Right to Life PAC.
Question QUESTION: Since you seem to be a conserative and religious I would like to ask your opinions of Louis Farrakhen/ Wright etc who also claims to be religious. He preaches self reliance and self help within the black community, and has created programs to eliminate crack houses etc without goverment and promotes business. Aren't those conserative values? Do you think that these things outweigh his other more converstial qualities?Do you think that these men are true believers of god? Such as Malcolm X in the 60' who preached self reliance etc and was different from Martin luther king, in that he didn't want blacks to assimalte and he wanted blacks to focus on themslves and to try to get in touch with their lost culture. He was also a strict muslim. Do you think that a hardcore black nationalist can be a true follower of Christianity? Your opinions
ANSWER: Dear Jason,
Thanks for writing. “Religious” refers to man's beliefs "concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially belief in or worship of God or gods" (or belief in the lack thereof). By nature, humans act according to their belief in a deity(ies) or in an absence of deity(ies). Everybody is probably a mixture of conservative/liberal values, some more one way than another.
True Christianity is God’s offer to mankind, not man’s belief about God. True Christianity is accepting God's authority as Creator and Standard, which we all have broken, as well as accepting God the Son's death and resurrection as payment for having broken His standards, receiving His eternal life through the Lordship of Jesus Christ. "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23
I can't read the intent of anyone's heart to know whether he does good in order to be loved by others or whether he does good as submission to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. If someone lives to give God credit, glorifying God instead of himSELF, then I would tend to think he is a true Christian.
God made each of us unique. It is only through a personal relationship with God that we can completely fulfill all the potential with which He created us, but there are no true Christian clones.
Our Creator's standard is perfection--too high for any human to attain on his own. God created us to live through His goodness, not our own. Only Jesus Christ, the Son of God in human form, lived a perfect life. It is only through His perfect sacrifice that God's perfect standard can be met, so that we can live forever as He created us to live.
Because God is also perfect love, we have a choice--God does not force us to accept Him. A Muslim who will not accept God’s provision of eternal life through Jesus Christ as Lord, has rejected the only Way to have perfection to live forever.
Everyone is equally invited to God. "For God so loved the WORLD that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life."
I pray that you have this life.
Sincerely,
Priscilla
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: But what makes one religion valid over another? Just curious
Answer No religion is going to be "valid" in the sense that it can accomplish eternal value. Romans 1:19-25 "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God has showed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead (3 in 1); so that they are without excuse; because that, when they knew God, they glorified Him not..."
The only valid choice (that has eternal value) is to trust our Creator's provision for eternal life through Jesus Christ as our Lord.
Curiosity can be very helpful.
Priscilla
