Quote:
Originally Posted by mizpeh
It sure sounded like what you were saying.
Unfortunately, you missed it. What "sounded like" was not what I was saying at all. So I'll just go ahead and tell you 
So who on AFF resembles a drill sargent to you? No desire to go one-by-one on AFF posters, at least at this point Speaking from life experience as well, not just AFF.
I haven't read every post but I'd say a lot of what I have read sounds more similar to what Paul wrote in the verses I quoted than it does to the caricature of the hardnosed drill sargent that you speak of. |
No, it's not what Paul described. Paul was a disciple of Jesus, and when pressed by churches he didn't tell them to "suck it up," at least that wasn't his primary message. He encouraged. He exhorted.
1 Corinthians 16:13 actually was not fully quoted by you:
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. 14Do everything in love.
Another way: Keep your eyes open, hold tight to your convictions, give it all you've got, be resolute, and love without stopping.
The language in 2 Timothy was with 3 methods: Jesus, military and farmers.
When the going gets rough, take it on the chin with the rest of us, the way Jesus did. A soldier on duty doesn't get caught up in making deals at the marketplace. He concentrates on carrying out orders. An athlete who refuses to play by the rules will never get anywhere. It's the diligent farmer who gets the produce. Think it over. God will make it all plain.
And let's put a little context here: Paul is encouraging them to stick with their faith, even in the fear of persecution. He isn't yelling at a brother to "suck it up and deal with it" because the brother needs to vent or wants to talk to you. Big difference... just to show that, a few verses later, he says this:
If we die with him, we'll live with him;
If we stick it out with him, we'll rule with him;
If we turn our backs on him, he'll turn his back on us;
If we give up on him, he does not give up—
for there's no way he can be false to himself.
Military was a timely example of something they all understood, but it did not imply that the culture of God's kingdom is like an army of trained killers. Don't mistake the analogy as a tool, for the message that has substance.
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