If I didn't believe in you, We'd never have gotten this far. Woe to you, Bethsaida! Faith Alone Does Not Save . “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. But in those instances, the context shows it is never mere lack of belief in Jesus (as that is usually understood today) that he said would cause a person to go to hell. I just didn't believe in me. The important thing is to cultivate a life of loving, caring about, and serving our fellow human beings in whatever way we feel called to serve. I worry that what you're doing is scrupulousity, believing that your faith is never quite "good enough" and you'll always have something left to do to earn it. Then watch your drive increase, your passion grow, and the quality of your work get better and better. On this question, please see: Two more occurrences of gehenna occur in Matthew 23:15, 33, in the context of Jesus’ pronouncement of seven woes on the scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23. In fact, it specifically denies this. Maybe you’ve been a disappointment so long you don’t even remember what it was like to look up and see a light ahead, indicating a … Jesus does not contradict himself. For more on what “faith” and “belief” mean in the Bible, please see the article, “Faith Alone Is Not Faith.”. But instead of focusing on our own lives and what we need to get done, we spend most of our time thinking about them. The key to this is remembering that what you do with their opinions, attitudes, and actions concerning you will ultimately determine the health of your pursuits now and in the future. Once again, there is no mention of going to hell for not believing in Jesus. I’m pretty sure you can remember a time when someone treated you like you didn’t exist. I don’t know if this is common in any other areas, but there are some people I know that are compassionate to most but don’t try to help the homeless (unless they are children or elderly) because they believe that if those homeless people actually tried, they would be able to get a job and not be homeless. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. But let’s read this passage more carefully, and not read into it things Jesus didn’t actually say. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.” (Matthew 11:20–24, italics added). What Does it Mean When My Parents Die? It’s hard to forget someone who doesn’t believe in you. There will be anguish and distress for everyone who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. i dont think he would take you out that often tho; he would maybe be more into home cooking dates for example梁 (even tho the food might burn bUT at least its fun :D) Also if they truly believed in him they would have believed in his words and teaching and they knew the outcome would have been exactly what they got. Thanks for stopping by, and for your thoughtful comment. For more on this please see the article, “Is Jesus Christ the Only Way to Heaven?”. If You Think You’re Going to Hell, Please Read This First, Heaven, Regeneration, and the Meaning of Life on Earth. If I didn't believe in you Then here's where the travelogue ends If I didn't believe in you I couldn't have stood before all of our friends And said, "This is the life I choose-This is the thing I can't bear to lose Trip us or trap us, but we refuse to fall" That's what I thought we agreed on, Cathy In other words, to interpret John 3:16–21 as meaning that those who merely believe in Jesus are saved, whereas those who merely don’t believe in Jesus are damned, is to read only two of the verses, and not the rest of the verses where Jesus explains what he means by “not believing in him.”. What if there was a better way to respond to that kind of treatment that (in the end) tastes even sweeter than revenge, and one that frees you from the painful consequences of concentrating on the “others”? Attempting to avoid them, their faces often show up in your head. The Bible does not say that we are saved or justified by faith alone. In short, when Jesus speaks in John 3:18 of those “who have not believed in the name of the only Son of God,” he is not speaking of some intellectual lack of belief, but of lack of belief as demonstrated by an evil and wicked life that hates the light. We’re assuming we have to prove them wrong. Is Jesus Christ the Only Way to Heaven? ( Log Out /  These people can become like gnats to your mind, buzzing around and annoying the life out of you. ( Log Out /  In short he did not say it like that word for word however it is implied. A person that doesn’t believe he is a sinner cannot be saved. Don’t add words to it, as Protestant preachers and teachers do every day. Does it Always Come from Lust? (John 3:19–21, italics added), Notice that Jesus is not talking merely about people who don’t believe him, but about people who “hate the light and do not come to the light” “because their works were evil.”. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. Wake up, force down breakfast, commute, 9–5 commute, force down dinner, sleep x 40 years. Also what about people who believe that God is just the universe and therefore they are also a part of God? What is the Meaning and Significance of Gilgal in the Bible? Is a distinction between believing his words and believing in his existence necessary? Will these types of people go to hell? Well I believed in you. Six of these occurrences are in the context of Jesus’ saying about gouging out your eye or cutting off your hand or foot if they cause you to sin. In that speech, once again, Jesus says nothing about the scribes and Pharisees going to hell because the didn’t believe in him, but rather because of their hypocrisy and their evil actions. Don Williams' 1980 hit "I Believe In You" is an "honest" song with "simple lyrics," according to Roger Cook, who co-wrote it with the late Sam Hogin. If You Think You're Going to Hell, Please Read This First. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. Here are several more articles that cover this in more detail: Though it is all covered in these articles, I’ll say one more thing for now: You have added words to John 14:6, which is not allowed. Yes, I’m aware that many Christians believe that path is available exclusively to those who believe in Jesus Christ. Though people who don’t believe in God, or who have a very fuzzy and amorphous concept of God, can go to heaven, it is better to have a clear and accurate belief in and picture of God. There is nothing at all here about belief. A second passage commonly interpreted as Jesus saying that those who do not believe in him will go to hell is found in John 14:1–14. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. About “the least of these sisters and brothers,” I don’t believe this is limited to people who believe in Christ, though spiritually it does refer to people who live as Christ taught, whether or not they are Christians. The absolute nerve of some people! Merely believing, or not believing, in Jesus is not sufficient to save or damn a person, as many other passages show, such as: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21). He died for our sins, which means I must believe I am a sinner. The trick, I think, is to take his comment not as an instruction about how you ought to think, but a bare description of a psychological truth: if you didn't mind what happened, then you… The Greek word hades occurs four times in the Gospels. When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?”, The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”, Then he will say to those on his left, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. If we have an unclear picture of God and God’s nature and will, we will have an unclear picture of the purpose of our life here on earth, and exactly how we should direct our efforts, both outwardly and inwardly. To spell it out clearly: Those who do not hate the light, and whose works are not evil, are not condemned, even if their theological belief does not include a belief that Jesus is God. For the purposes of this answer, we’ll accept the common interpretation of the Greek words hades and gehenna as meaning hell. But you don’t have to. It is a complete misuse of this passage to claim it means that those who do not believe in Jesus intellectually and theologically are condemned to hell. Definition of I can't believe you didn't know it was a line @Forsinard Yes, it is very funny. to believe in something is a phrasal verb, there is no reason as to why it is the preposition ‘in’, and not for example, ‘of’, but the phrasal verb acts like a single meaning… That’s because our belief in God, and our understanding of God’s nature, will, and commandments, is our primary source of guidance as to what we should and shouldn’t do, and how we should and shouldn’t live our life. Our productivity gets chopped down as we sit and ponder on how we can prove them wrong. Their words don’t just vanish away as if you were performing some magic trick. The ones that were condemned to eternal punishment, shows their disbelief in him by not being obedient to him. As a Christian, it kind of ties in with the questions we face in this life that we don't have an answer for. The kind of person that puts you down constantly and never encourages you to push for more. What about that Holy Spirit? Then you dig deeper and you realize that even the ‘good’ parts have problems: xenophobia, sexism, slavery, exhortations to kill people who offend your faith or to go to war against them. If you didn’t say yes or were forced into a sexual act without your consent, this may be rape or assault. For God shows no partiality. Real belief is always accompanied by action and a changed life. Definitions by the largest Idiom Dictionary. How can she clean her dirty mind, and is she commuting Adultery in her heart? We all tend to start out looking at things from an external and superficial perspective, based on outward appearances. The word translated “entrusting” (2:24, NASB) is the same Greek verb as “believed” (2:23). People who have a fuzzy, amorphous idea of God tend to have a fuzzy, amorphous view of good and evil, also. Will Sick or Disabled People Return to Good Health in the Spiritual World? And feeding the hungry and clothing the naked… I believe it they truly believed in him they would have done what he asked them to do and they would have been christ-like by doing the things that Christ did. What do you mean you didn't fully believe? They don’t pick you up when you fall. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, to which their own conscience also bears witness; and their conflicting thoughts will accuse or perhaps excuse them on the day when, according to my gospel, God, through Jesus Christ, will judge the secret thoughts of all. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. I wasn’t getting any stronger by doing so. “I believe in you” means I have faith in your abilities, I will support your ambitions and dreams. Jesus did not say, “No one comes to the Father unless they believe in me.” Rather, he said “No one comes to the Father except through me.” Those two are not the same statement. Doesn’t Ephesians 2:8-9 Teach Faith Alone? Is this true? Any interpretation that does not square with Jesus’ most direct teaching on the subject must be mistaken. Two of them occur in Jesus’ upbraiding of unrepentant cities. How Imagination and Fantasy Help our Spiritual Growth, "Christian Beliefs" that the Bible Doesn’t Teach, Christian Beliefs that the Bible Does Teach. As Jesus says, anyone who hears his word and believes in God (“the Father”) who sent him has eternal life. No excuses allowed. In these six uses of gehenna, or hell, Jesus says nothing about going to hell for not believing in him. Dying spiritually: People who have been spiritually dead, meaning enmeshed in selfishness, greed, destructive behavior, and so on will become spiritually alive if they believe in Jesus and live by that belief, as in point 1. I believe in you. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. Rather, Jesus says that those who in anger say harsh things against their brothers are in danger of the hell of fire. These nine dating tips for Christian women will help you handle your relationship with a non Christian (or "non Christian") man. "If I Didn't Care" is a song written by Jack Lawrence that was originally sung and recorded by the Ink Spots featuring Bill Kenny in 1939. Here is the relevant verse as it appears in Matthew 10:28: And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Here is the version found in Matthew: Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent.”Woe to you, Chorazin! You will be brought down to Hades. In truth, there’s nothing crazy about the idea of using the disbelief of others as fuel for your fire. This is why I stopped trying to get revenge, aiming to prove them wrong. The Bible says that God shows no partiality, judging Jews, Greeks (pagan polytheists), and Gentiles (non-Jews or non-Christians) according to what they have done. What does I don't believe this! This should be sufficient to demonstrate that Jesus never actually, directly said, “If you don’t believe in me you will go to hell.”. But you just can’t get those voices out of your head. Definition of I don't believe this! Can be said of positive or negative things; often said more as a statement than a question.. Would you believe, he stole an entire printer as he was leaving the office on his last day! Rather, he says that those who do not repent will go there, and implies that those who show no compassion will go there. No longer did I set in stone a promise to myself that I was going to make every single person who put me down look stupid. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. See Spanish-English translations with audio pronunciations, examples, and word-by-word explanations. Our intellectual conception of God and God’s nature—and even an intellectual rejection of the concept of God—makes little difference compared to whether we live by the qualities and characteristics of God, which are love, compassion, truth, wisdom, service to our fellow human beings who are in need, and so on. Instead, he speaks about the danger of going to hell due to sin—and not some theoretical, theological concept of sin, but specific sins such as adultery, lust, and tempting believers to sin. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. Should you date a man - or stay with a boyfriend - who doesn’t believe in God? You've had a long and illustrious career. If I didn't think you could do Anything you ever wanted to, If I wasn't certain that you'd come through somehow, The fact of the matter is, Cathy, I wouldn't be standing here now. As it turns out, there is an article here especially for you! It is an assumption and an interpretation that this means that the pathway he provides to the Father is available only to those who believe in him. That is exactly what’s taking up too much of your time. Hawking didn’t believe in heaven The scientist took a pragmatic view of what happens to the brain and body after death. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. The reason people refuse to believe in you is due to the fact that they don’t see what you see.They don’t have the kind of vision you have. ( Log Out /  We don’t have to feel guilty about that. And that's a problem, because you can't just repeat your baptism every time you think you've finally gotten it. You lips, your eyes, your cheeks, your hair Are in a class beyond compare, You're the lovliest thing that one could see! Though turning to God then isn’t necessarily a requirement in life, just turning to God’s teachings instead is what is needed, would you say that turning to God in life, such as repentance and atonement, does help you overcome evil and falsities in your life? Nothing could shake this reality from my life. A great memorable quote from the Pretty in Pink movie on Quotes.net - Blane: You said you couldn't be with someone who didn't believe in you. Maybe you think no one does. Then the King will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. Who is Jesus Christ? The 3 Biggest Lies We Tell Ourselves About Happiness and Success, Living On An Island: A Short Essay On Gratitude, Getting What You Want Is Simple — Live In the Easy Mode, 30 Days With No Social Media, or News. Similarly, if the Son has provided a pathway to the Father, that doesn’t necessarily require that we intellectually believe in the Son; only that we travel the path that the Son has provided. What does the Bible Say about Masturbation? This exercise will help her to get her mind away from thinking about people on a purely physical level, which is where dirty thoughts come from, and get it thinking instead about people as whole human beings, who have not just a body with sexual parts, but a mind, a heart, relationships, beliefs, goals, and ideals. The need to respond this way just comes out of us. And that is the sole criteria Jesus gives in this story about who will go to heaven (eternal life) and who will go to hell (eternal punishment). Here are the verses where the key statement appears: Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. I urge you not to pay attention to human traditions that have nullified the Word of God, but to Jesus Christ himself. Print and download If I Didn't Believe in You sheet music from The Last Five Years. You can see the original question on StackExchange here, and the StackExchange version of my answer here.). These nine dating tips for Christian women will help you handle your relationship with a non Christian (or "non Christian") man. It is sufficient for me to drive on the road, and I’ll get to Denver. Lee Woofenden is an ordained minister, writer, editor, translator, and teacher. You're a liar. John 14:6 does not say, “No one comes to the Father except through believing in me.” It says, “No one comes to the Father except through me.” There’s a big difference. I said this in a previous thread, but those of you who didn't see it, here is my interpretation of it. Such a belief doesn’t give much direction as to how we are to live our inner and outer life. Only about whether or not we serve our fellow human beings who are in need. When Jesus himself speaks directly about who will go to eternal life and who will go to eternal punishment, here is what he says: When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. What about Matthew 5:27-30? On the more general question of lust, please see this series of four articles on masturbation and related issues: Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Therefore his other statements about heaven and hell, condemnation and justification, must be read in light of it. What about John 6:35, John 8:12, John 14:6, and John 10:9-11? What’s most important is not to act upon them. (John 3:16–18). If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” (John 14:8–14). Short answer: No, Jesus never actually said that. SKU: MN0106913 All who have sinned apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. One of my friends has a dirty mind and when she looks at people she sees dirty things but she doesn’t actually want those thoughts but she can’t get away from them. Besides, the naysayers have nothing on you. Translate I didn't believe. You have to pay closer attention to the journey ahead if you want to move forward. That person is a changed person, because he or she is now living according to God’s love (which is especially meant by “the Father”) and God’s truth (which is especially meant by “the Son”). Instead, they laugh at you with no regard to how you feel. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. You're a doctor, you're a professor, you went to school at-" David stood up. One more occurrence comes in Matthew 18:7–9, where Jesus uses a similar example to say that those who tempt others to sin are in danger of the hell of fire. Here Jesus says nothing about who will go to hell, but rather says that the gates of hell will not prevail against his church. This argument that merely the belief in the existence of Christ gets you into Heaven and not believing into Hell strikes me like a Protestant theory. However, some sexual thoughts that flit through our head are indeed unwanted and disturbing. I would take texts like that and say that you should begin at this core — the death of Jesus. Learn more. It made you so upset you didn’t even know how to respond. Some people don’t give money to homeless people, but do engage in charitable activities or give to charities because they do want to help people. Change ), (Click the cover image or title link to review or purchase on Amazon). He writes helpful words about creativity, productivity, and the enjoyably simple life. As a Transhumanist I believe that death is a problem to be solved, not some metaphysically relevant locus of transcendent meaning. Using resistance as fuel, and not as a double-edged sword to be avenged, makes all the difference in the world. If I am not believing him for salvation, I am not saved. Here is an exercise she can engage in to lessen the power of those dirty thoughts in her mind: When she sees someone, instead of just focusing on their appearance and their physical and sexual attributes, she can push her mind to think about that person as a human being. No, Jesus did not actually say, “If you don’t believe in me you will go to hell.”, (Note: This post is a slightly edited version of an answer I originally wrote and posted on Christianity StackExchange. Dying physically: People who believe in Jesus and. This can be a positive way to get yourself headed in the right direction. A third mention of hades comes in Luke 16:23, in the context of the story of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19–31. I bit convoluted, but I hope I brought my point across. Rather, he says that he is the only way to the Father. In fact, it specifically denies this. If I didn't believe in you We'd never have gotten this far If I didn't believe in you And all of the ten thousand women you are If I didn't think you could do Anything you ever wanted to If I wasn't certain that you'd come through somehow THe fact of the matter is, Cathy I wouldn't be standing here now If I didn't believe in you If I didn't believe in you, I couldn't have stood before all of our friends And said, "This is the life I choose-- This is the thing I can't bear to lose. No one comes to the Father except through me. Instead, the implication of the story is that the rich man was in Hades because “was clothed in purple and fine linen and feasted sumptuously every day,” and had no compassion on Lazarus, who “was laid at his gate covered with sores, [and] who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table.”. They didn’t believe in following a bunch of laws, and they certainly didn’t believe in angels, miracles, or in the resurrection of the dead, so their philosophy was like having a license to sin. You need to have the determination to keep going regardless of what the “others” are thinking and saying about you. But the process of overcoming this hurdle changes everything. When Gentiles, who do not possess the law, do instinctively what the law requires, these, though not having the law, are a law to themselves. Don’t just take my word for it, though. Now let’s look at two of the most common passages traditionally interpreted to mean that Jesus says that those who do not believe in him will go to hell. Why is it Important to Believe the Right Thing?”. But what if we were going about it all wrong? Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. If I didn't believe in you I couldn't have stood before all of our friends And said, "This is the life I choose-This is the thing I can't bear to lose Trip us or trap us, but we refuse to fall" That's what I thought we agreed on, Cathy If I hadn't believed in you I wouldn't have loved you at all. Which is having compassion for fellow humans. When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? Now why don't you put your dress on and we'll go, okay? When Jesus said he is the only way to the father for example implies if you don’t believe in Him you can’t get to the Father leaving you to be without God. Did Jesus ever actually say, “If you don’t believe in me you will go to hell”? Brennan said, "Thank you for coming here. Not one word about any requirement of believing in him. in the Idioms Dictionary. But if we aren’t careful, we’ll confuse revenge with motivation — two completely different worlds. Life is what matters. What Jesus said in the Gospels specifically about hell. We can stay in the middle of the road if we understand that we’re saved only by grace and that’s a free gift from God and it cannot be earned. There aren’t any really easy answers. yea that smile. I urge you to read the Bible more carefully, and pay attention to exactly what it says. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. Does Doctrine Matter? We could rightly translate it, “Many believed in Jesus, but Jesus didn’t believe in them.” Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. For more on what the Bible does and does not mean by “faith” and “belief,” please see the article: Not saying no doesn’t mean you agreed. He did say some things that seem to imply it, and that are often interpreted that way. Here, Jesus does not say that these cities would be brought down to Hades because they didn't believe in him. (This is not my perspective, but friends that I know). To state it plainly, those who interpret various statements of Jesus as meaning, “If you don’t believe in me you will go to hell” are ignoring Jesus’ most direct teachings about who goes to heaven and who goes to hell, and relying instead on human interpretations of other passages that do not actually such a thing in any clear and direct way, if they say it at all. He enjoys taking spiritual insights from the Bible and the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg and putting them into plain English as guides for everyday life. Few to no people are able to entirely control their sexual thoughts and desires. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” (John 14:6–7, italics added), Once again, at first glance this looks like a cut-and-dried case. There is no mention here of not believing in Jesus. Without hesitating, you knew what you wanted to do. Here “dying” can be taken in two ways: Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has passed from death to life. And some people just do their best to serve people in their job or career. How much you value His words is the measure of your love for Him (loosely speaking). For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”, Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? That's all." Dr. Simon Raleigh was on the stand.