Personal responsibility

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Feb 3, 2010
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#1
What is personal responsibility? It seems to me, with all the talk on this board about demonic attacks and temptations; some people believe that the Devil is responsible for our bad behavior. I also think that nonbelievers have this stereotype about us.

I once heard a nonbeliever comment on a popular Christian bumpersticker "I am not perfect, but God is not finished with me yet" as "I am not responsible, but I am right". Now when I first heard his commentary I simply dismissed it because I knew he was jaded, but now I am beginning to wonder....

Is refusing to take personal responsibility the crux of our problem? It seems to be the biggest fault of Adam and Eve - they blamed the Devil for their sin - in fact, they never repented. I am wondering if God's punishment was so severe because of this shifting of blame.
 
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glenwood74

Guest
#2
I think that Satan is a tempter and a deceiving liar, but we are held responsible for what we ultimately believe and what we do. Obedience or the lack there of is always the choice we make. We can pass the buck all we like, but God always holds us accountable for our decisions. Read 1 Samuel 15 when the Lord rejects Saul for his disobedience. I'm sure that Satan was there to make the loot of the Amalekites look tempting and desirable, but Saul chose his greed for plunder over God's commands, and he lost God's favor; not because Satan tricked him, but because he made a decision to disobey God. In verse 23 Samuels says that rebellion is as bad as the sin of witchcraft, so it makes you wonder; the decisions we make and the prayers we pray, are they made from self-serving lust, or are they in tune with the Lords will? We need to wake up from our worldly comas and ask ourselves these questions every single day, because the choices we make have eternal consequences.

Matthew 7: 21...Not all people who sound religious are really Godly. They may refer to Me(Jesus) as Lord, but they still won't enter the Kingdom of heaven. The decisive issue is whether they OBEY my Father in heaven.

Once again, Aspen, an excellent post.
 
Feb 3, 2010
1,238
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#3
I think that Satan is a tempter and a deceiving liar, but we are held responsible for what we ultimately believe and what we do. Obedience or the lack there of is always the choice we make. We can pass the buck all we like, but God always holds us accountable for our decisions. Read 1 Samuel 15 when the Lord rejects Saul for his disobedience. I'm sure that Satan was there to make the loot of the Amalekites look tempting and desirable, but Saul chose his greed for plunder over God's commands, and he lost God's favor; not because Satan tricked him, but because he made a decision to disobey God. In verse 23 Samuels says that rebellion is as bad as the sin of witchcraft, so it makes you wonder; the decisions we make and the prayers we pray, are they made from self-serving lust, or are they in tune with the Lords will? We need to wake up from our worldly comas and ask ourselves these questions every single day, because the choices we make have eternal consequences.

Matthew 7: 21...Not all people who sound religious are really Godly. They may refer to Me(Jesus) as Lord, but they still won't enter the Kingdom of heaven. The decisive issue is whether they OBEY my Father in heaven.

Once again, Aspen, an excellent post.
You are very encouraging glenwood - your name is also my favorite place to eat breakfast in Eugene OR!

I appreciate your posts
 
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glenwood74

Guest
#4
Glenwood Springs is where I was born in Colorado.
 
Dec 19, 2009
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#5
What is personal responsibility? It seems to me, with all the talk on this board about demonic attacks and temptations; some people believe that the Devil is responsible for our bad behavior. I also think that nonbelievers have this stereotype about us.

I once heard a nonbeliever comment on a popular Christian bumpersticker "I am not perfect, but God is not finished with me yet" as "I am not responsible, but I am right". Now when I first heard his commentary I simply dismissed it because I knew he was jaded, but now I am beginning to wonder....

Is refusing to take personal responsibility the crux of our problem? It seems to be the biggest fault of Adam and Eve - they blamed the Devil for their sin - in fact, they never repented. I am wondering if God's punishment was so severe because of this shifting of blame.
It’s true that we are responsible for our actions.

This is also true:

Now the serpent was more subtle than any other wild creature that the LORD God had made. Gen 3:1 RSV
 
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charisenexcelcis

Guest
#6
In I John it says that there are three things that tie us to this world: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Notice that only one of the three is external and even that is an appeal to the internal. I think this is a good principle to realize that over 2/3 or our problems are on the inside. If we deal with our spiritual state, the external will take care of itself.
 
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carpetmanswife

Guest
#7
great point...could be , we as humans playing the blame game is classic
i remember when i started drinking so bad i blamed my husband for things he had done ,when we finally started getting our lives back on track and went back to church i recall the preacher talkin about this*blame game*and i thought 'You have NO idea how he treated me You cant possibly say my drinking was MY responsibility "!! ...... Truth was yes i lived with a real jerk and yes my mother had just died and truth was life totally sucked and I yes I wanted an escape and thats the one I chose...it was a hard pill to swallow but it WAS MY OWN choices that made me do the things i did . we dont like admitting our faults and failures and its just easier to point fingers ,it takes the pressure off of ourselves.
 
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Mal316

Guest
#8
Personal responsibility IS a hard pill to swallow. So much easier to say "the devil made me do it" or, "God made me do it." I recall a Law and Order episode where a priest was on trial for murder and his defense was that God told him to kill. Personally, I think saying "God made me do it" is much more frightening than saying 'the devil made me do it.'
 
Feb 3, 2010
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#9
Personal responsibility IS a hard pill to swallow. So much easier to say "the devil made me do it" or, "God made me do it." I recall a Law and Order episode where a priest was on trial for murder and his defense was that God told him to kill. Personally, I think saying "God made me do it" is much more frightening than saying 'the devil made me do it.'
Great point!
 
Feb 3, 2010
1,238
3
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#10
great point...could be , we as humans playing the blame game is classic
i remember when i started drinking so bad i blamed my husband for things he had done ,when we finally started getting our lives back on track and went back to church i recall the preacher talkin about this*blame game*and i thought 'You have NO idea how he treated me You cant possibly say my drinking was MY responsibility "!! ...... Truth was yes i lived with a real jerk and yes my mother had just died and truth was life totally sucked and I yes I wanted an escape and thats the one I chose...it was a hard pill to swallow but it WAS MY OWN choices that made me do the things i did . we dont like admitting our faults and failures and its just easier to point fingers ,it takes the pressure off of ourselves.
Thanks for this post - I have faced similar issues - it sure isn't easy to admit things to yourself.
 
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lightbliss

Guest
#11
We all are faced with decisions, God showing us the right thing to do and the Devil tempting us. They are different paths but its up to us to chose which to follow. The Devil may tempt me to kill someone but if I chose to kill, I'm responsible for my actions. The Devil just presents the opportunity (temptations) nothing more, but we are the ones who decide to take it.
 
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carpetmanswife

Guest
#12
Thanks for this post - I have faced similar issues - it sure isn't easy to admit things to yourself.
thanks,i was weary of posting my "junk"