Adam and Original Sin

Orthodox Christianity for the most part teaches the doctrine of original sin based solely on the teachings of Paul (Romans 5:12-21). After much prayer and meditation and studying, I am not sure that I still believe in this doctrine. For starters, the concept of sin was never once mentioned to Adam after he ate off of the tree. The tree itself was neither good nor evil. The Bible calls the tree "The tree of KNOWLEDGE of good and evil." The only thing that the Bible says occured after Adam and Eve ate of the tree was "the eyes of both of them were open and they knew they were naked." Notice, the only thing that happened to them was that they ceased to be ingnorant and instead became knowledgable that there was good and evil in the world. Once they KNEW, they became responsible for choosing one or the other. Also notice that God cursed the ground and he cursed the serpent, but he never once cursed Adam or Eve. How could He, when he had already blessed them. He told the woman that He would multiply her sorrow and conception and that in pain she would bear children and that her desire would be to her husband and he would rule over her. (More about Eve and this prediction later) But this was only a prediction of things to come, not a curse. To Adam, God said that he would have to toil and sweat to get anything from the earth, but God never cursed to Adam HIMSELF. God merely cursed the earth and because of the curse on the earth, it would no longer easily yield food and sustanence to man. Notice, God could not even take back the dominion that he had blessed Adam with over the earth. He could only curse the earth so that it would not yield to man's dominion.

And what of the warning from God that the day Adam ate of the tree he would surely die? Well, as a Bible scholar, I am a big fan of concordances and original meanings of words. The original Hebrew word for death is "Muwth" (pronounced "mooth"). The word means "to kill, to die or to be worthy of death." So could it be that rather than meaning that Adam would literally drop dead the moment he ate of the tree, God could have meant that Adam would be worthy of death or that eating of the tree was essentially a death sentence for him. The fact is, God never actually sentenced Adam to death. He only put Adam out of the garden to restrict him from eating from the Tree of Life. God Himself said in Genesis 3:22 that if Adam ate from the The Tree of Life, he would live forever. So, Adam was going to die anyway. It was up to him to choose eternal life, but he chose instead to know good and evil. So maybe, Christ is a tree of life to us who believe in Him, basically giving us back the choice that we lost when Adam was cast out of the garden of Eden.

During this event refered to in religious circles as "the fall of man" the word sin is not mentioned. In fact, the first time sin is mentioned in the Bible is in Genesis chapter 4 where God warns Cain that sin lies at the door. Later, in the same chapter, God curses a person (Cain) for the first time by pointedly stating "you are cursed..." Genesis 4:11. Therefore since, Adam was never said to have sinned and according to the Bible was obviously not cursed, the doctrine of the original sin must be erroneous. Even if there was in fact an original sin of man and a resulting curse upon man, then that sin and that curse would have had to come through Cain, not Adam.

ALONE WITH GOD

There is nothing in the world more rewarding than being alone with God. I think that most Christians undervalue the benefits and worth of meditation. I have learned to sit and not just pray, but to actually have conversations with God. I talk to Him and I listen to Him. I grow closer to him through this private time we spend communicating. I believe that Jesus knew the value of being alone with God. After all, the Bible says he spent 40 days in the wilderness fasting and praying. It also says that he sometimes got away from the crowds and got alone to pray. I wonder how many people recognize the complete joy and peace that can be found in just being alone and talking with God? Part of living the Jesusist way of life is finding quiet time to be alone with our Creator; to practice speaking with him and practice hearing his voice. There is no greater act we can perform than to have communion with the Almighty. Our intimacy with Him grows through our communication with him. In order to recognize His voice and His guidance we have to get used to hearing His voice. "My sheep know My voice." In order to truly be His sheep and have Him as our Shepherd we have to learn to recognize His voice. I know you have probably spoken to God, but ask yourself, when was the last time you actually heard Him?

The Sermon On The Mount

If there is a foundation for following the Jesusist Way, it would have to be the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount is probably Jesus' most important and most well known speech. This speech is used by Jesus to teach the listener what it takes to be his follower. He took well known tradtional laws and redefined them to show the people that even more was expected of them. Rather than to do a revamp of everything Jesus covered in the sermon on the mount, I would rather talk about the spirit of Jesus' words. He soke of His followers being the salt and the light of the world. We add flavor, we illuminate, we purify and we help others to see. He talked about fulfilling the law. Jesus' ministry was to complete, and make perfect the law. Jesus spoke of Murder and adultery that begins in the heart. Perhaps this is because all sin originates in the heart. By not controlling our thoughts and not keeping our desires under wraps, we invite sin into our lives. "I think therefore I am." If this statement is true, then that means if we dwell on sinful thoughts then we ARE in sin. Jesus goes on to speak about many other topics including not taking oaths and going the extra mile for others, and loving our enemies. All in all, the sermon on the mount can be taken as a guide for living the life. It explains to us how to have a right relationship with God and with our fellow man. It shows us the true way to be a follower of Jesus. If studied and followed the sermon in the mount has the potential to change lives.

The non-religious Jesus

When most people say they are Christians, they really mean they are Paulians. Jesus Christ did not start the Christian religion , Paul did (more about Paul, later). Jesus' teachings were never about starting a new religion, his teachings were about having a true and intimate relationship with God, being completely baptized in the Holy Spirit, letting the Holy Spirit be your guide in all matters and learning how to truly love God and our fellow man not in words but actions. These three sentences are a quick summation of what Jesus taught and stood for. There were no divisions taught, no one was appointed head, no one was esteemed as more or higher than anyone else. Everyone was admonished not to seek to be a leader but instead be each other's servant. There was no judgment, no room for treating anyone as less based on race, class or gender. In Jesus' teachings, LOVE IS THE LAW. When Jesus spoke of building his church, he was not speaking of a building or a place of worship. Instead when he spoke of church he was speaking of His "called out ones." So Jesus' church is the people themselves who believe on him, not a building or a religion and the proper place of worship is as he told the woman at the well, "in spirit and in truth."

THE BIBLE

1. I believe that the Bible contains some of the Words of God but cannot be accurately called THE Word of God.

2. I believe that the Bible is a collection of writings in which each author described and recorded his or her encounter with God.

3. I do not believe that the Bible is infalliable becuase it was written by falliable human beings.

4. I believe that all scripture when rightly interpreted and used can be beneficial for edification, but I do not accept all the words of the Bible as God's Divine Word nor do I accept every teaching found in the Bible as God inspired. After all, Jesus himself quoted Isaiah as being correct in saying "In vain they do worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men." I believe that there are many places in the Bible where commandments of men are being taught as God's divine doctrine.

5. As a Jesusist I see the life and teachings of Jesus as my guide book and my point of reference. The teachings of Jesus are the cornerstone of the Bible and ALL OTHER TEACHINGS contained in the Bible can only be validated by weighing them against what Jesus taught. In every situation, what Jesus taught takes precedence over what the anyone else in the Bible teaches. If there is ever a contradiction, then what Jesus says stands as the final authority.

I AM A JESUSIST

I am a Jesusist. I was raised in a Christian household and until about five years ago, I knew exactly what I believed........what I was taught. So do most Christians. Historically Christians have accepted the teachings of the church as factual and God breathed without seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit to find out if the church's truth is actually God's truth. Why should they? After all even questioning the church's teachings are considered heretical. It is so much easier to blindly follow whatever is being taught. I, like so many other sheep, willing followed whatever was said to me whether it bore any resemblance to Christ's teachings or not.
Sometime in late 1999 I had a crisis of faith. I spent a few years re-evaluating all my spiritual beliefs. I questioned everything I believed and why I believed it. After stripping away decades of religious indoctrination, I soon realized that I can no longer call myself a Christian with a clear conscience. My faith, my personal creeds and my relationship with God are no longer in line with the teachings of the Christian religion (and yes it IS a religion). After much prayer, studying and soul searching, I have become what I can only call a Jesusist. To put it plain and simple, I am a person who studies and practices the teachings of Jesus. I even go further to state that I am a Messianic Jesusist. I not only study and practice Jesus' teachings, but I also believe on Him as the Messiah, the Christ, God's only begotten son. I created this blog to spread the message of Jesusism as a way of life.