The Passion of the Christ

There are over 300 prophecies written in the Old Testament concerning Jesus, written hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ fulfilled them all. The odds of that occuring are astronomical. That is one way of viewing the bible as fact. There is no other historical document that exists with as much (in quantity) documentation as the bible.

 

Lotustt: That is one of my favorite pictures. I believe that Jesus, as the perfect man, had a perfect sense of humor along with everything else. It is a shame that we only think of him as a somber person. I think he must have had some rip roaring good times with the disciples around the camp fire. He had to be able to tell the best joke, had the perfect laugh and great stories. One of my real treasures is an artist rendering of a "Laughing Jesus".

 

I just wrote an article on this very topic. I love the picture.

 

...now i see the reasons
behind beating jesus
and putting metal sticks in his feet;
his crucifixion was sweet
to those who opposed the mission he preached;
it's easier to get a camel through the eye of a needle
than to read the bible to people
who are too concerned with real issues to buy into feeble
lies from a guy inside of a steeple,
'cause it's worthless...

An excerpt from Idol Fallacy, author unknown

i'll try and find the whole piece later or tomorrow...

 

Lots of Christians seem to overlook other events in history where the sandals were on the other foot so to speak, like the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition where good Catholics introduced Jews, Muslims, Moors to torture and death in devices such as the rack, the iron maiden and more to get them to renounce their own faiths. Let's have Speilberg of SKG (Speilberg, Katzenberg, Geffen) do a 2 hour movie of other Jewish "only sons" suffering at the hands of King Ferdinand, with spikes slowly being pushed thru their bodies in slo-mo. Most faiths are guilty of persecuting non or other-believers. The only major faith that didn't torture are maybe Budhists, not counting 19th & 20th century religions like 7th day Adventists, Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons. Arlington National Cemetary has plenty of only sons (and daughters) that ALSO paid the ultimate price. Their sacrifice is far more meaningful to me than some Christian trying to lay a 2000-year old guilt trip on me!

 

** Our church group <www.ourhomefellowship.com> is going to see it in the morning. I suggest if you want to see the film to travel to a city where it is showing and see it. Not all churches are buying all the tickets ... there will be a spot for you somewhere. Kids really need to see it IF they understand who Jesus is and what He did and why He did it. Otherwise they will be confused like a lot of adults are today.
If you have a background in the word of God you will understand what is going on better and 'why' God chose this method of redemption for mankind. He is all powerful and could have done it a different way, but chose the crucifiction method for His Son Jesus.
People can downgrade this film and anything else they like, but they, like you and me, are the ones Jesus died for. He died so (we) <everyone on earth> can be free. Freedom has a BIG price tag.
One last point of interest. There is a huge difference between RELIGION and RELATIONSHIP. Religion is man's way of worshipping Christ and Relationship is God's way. Religion carries too many " do's and don'ts and can'ts ", Jesus said " I have come not to destroy the law but to fulfill it." His way is Relationship. It's not things you cannot do .. but so many cool things we get to do by knowing Him as our savior. I can't wait to see this film.
Mel Gibson carried out a desire of his heart to produce a film that will be seen all over the world, even if a country bans it. If there is a will ... there is a way. I believe the film will leave something good in the hearts of the folks who see it for the rest of their life. What is that ? That someone laid down his life for his friends ... to give them a choice.

 

Dr. Strangelove,

I still worship Jupiter! ;-) hey this is Ferrari List right??? Anything from Italy is OK by me. We should flood the superbowl throw JJ to the lions and put the two teams on imperial barges and let them fight it out like men!!! Hey dont make fun of my roman miniskirt!!

 

If Christians were forced to put pictures of a black Jesus in their churches the religion would end tomorrow. I think I'll pay more attention when Mel does part two starring Wil Smith or better yet, some talented middle eastern actor.

 

"Hell no [Centurion], you know it's Polo!"

--Dan

 

He definitly is going to make a lot of money off of this.

 

Family Man:
When I say youth I mean little kids who may or may not be old enough to truly know who Christ is. We really do not have any in between them and the college crowd.

I am sure I met you somewhere. Your church's name and concept are very familiar to me.

Darth:
That is just for Friday, right? I heard it was $26 million in Wednesday's receipts alone.

 

** Will Smith would probably be honored to play the role of Jesus and would do an exceptional job as well. Nevertheless in the bible <Genesis 1:26-27> to be exact, God said, " Let's make man in our image, in our 'likeness' and let them rule over all the earth." Verse 27 says, So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him ... male and female, He created them.
Now if you have a color issue for Jesus Christ, for all we know, He could have been black. Being that He is a Jew and was born in the middle East, His skin tone was more than likely dark brown.

Personally when I see an African-American man / woman driving a Ferrari I think that is cool. Most of those people grew up in a BIG mess and have worked their way up the ladder to success and have a car that most people dream about all their life.

 

** I have not been active in the FCA or FOC etc since late 1999 around the time of the FCA National Meet in Georgia. If we met it would have been then or beforehand. OHF has only been happening since Feb 0f 2003.

Little kids and/or youth or whatever you refer to them as ... some know Jesus as their Lord and Savior at a very early age ... Some adults that confess to be 'saved' aren't really sure who Jesus is either. They talk the talk, but their actions don't walk the walk. Hopefully Mel's film will help all people to understand the significance of the cross better.

 

Nice try Family man. Just about the entire Christian religion has a color issue with Jesus which is why one sees so many hippy looking Jesus characters with flowing long locks whether they be brown or blond haired. "For all we know..." Are you kidding me? Didnt you just punch out a few paragraphs on what you knew regarding the other details of his crucifiction?

You think you're quite the progressive individual because you think it's cool when some AA is driving a Ferrari. Do you think the same when it's some African? What about a West Indian? Please. It's this kind of silly nonsense that makes you a near worthless follower of a convenient religion.


Personally,when I put myself in your frame of mind and take the time to notice, I'm far more impressed by some poor white guy driving a Ferrari. Most of those people grow up in a big mess with a false sense of security due to skin color. Yep...it felt just as dumb writing that as reading it.

 

** The point behind this film is not making BIG money. Hollywood would not touch the thing and Mel spent his own money ... yes, he will make it back and then some, but the film has a meaning. What Jesus did for you ... me and everyone is not shut behind some door in a church somewhere and off limits ... it is right in front of our eyes. The death of Christ opened the door to give us all a chance for salvation. A choice we can make for ourselves. Have you made that choice for yourself ?

 

** Your opinion is your opinion, but you missed the point. Whoever, which means ANYBODY, who drives a Ferrari has a special gift. I have owned 3 and I plan to have another one someday. Just like the sticker on my Harley ... " If I Had To Explain ... You Wouldn't Understand."

 

Great outfit! Ferrari red?

 

a

 

But Mel Gibson isn't black!?!?!

LOL Dan! I had the exact same reaction. "Well, that was decent Jesus was a little white though..."

Honestly, it's just about as I pictured reading the book. It's a voilent story.

I'm personally of the opinion that The Bigle is just that, a story. Not nessicarily 100% factually accurate, but rather a set of circumstances that may or may not all have occured exactly as told, set up to deliver a message, a point, and in some cases, to empower it's followers (think; Sabbath as a day of rest. Governments have a general polict of non-interfearance with religion.)

And in the end it is that message, basically "Love one another", not wether there were 3 rocks on the ground or 4, that is really important.

 

I'm going to wait for the sequel before seeing this one...

 

Once again, for the record, I'm am an evangelical Christian with an advanced degree in Theology from a recognized seminary. But, my question to those who make statements about the authenticity or accuracy of the Bible; have you done the research? Or, are you making statements without having done primary investigation? This is just for my referrence. I do not intend, nor do I want, to start a debate on biblical accuracy or authenticity. Also, for the record, I have done the research and have a bookshelf of materials both pro and con. The facts weigh heavy in the support of historical accuracy. What is a much more important question is; is Jesus who he said he was? All other questions are unimportant until this one is answered. Where you come down on this last question will determine how you look at the Bible. Read it in several translations, do extra-biblical research and then form an opinion. It is my understanding that most critics of the Bible have never actuall read all the books nor are they able to support thier assertions. General statements are like a swing and a miss. Please be specific and a discussion can be much more comprehensive and fruitful. Have a wonderful Sunday folks.

 

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