Lots of questions, and I'm glad this has sparked some discussion.
What is a liberal christian?
Let me start with this one. A liberal Christian is a Christian who doesn't believe the Bible should be interpreted literally. Some of us also have politically liberal views, but that's not always the case. In the spectrum of "liberal Christian" it can be as liberal as Bishop Spong, who says the resurrection is symbolic rather than literal (that's further to the left than I am), or more evangelical, like Jim Wallis (google him if you're not familiar).
I could go on, but I hope that answers your question.
I disagree. Jesus was VERY liberal for his time, and his message continues to be one of the most radical the world has seen.
. . the kingdom of God is NOT a democracy,
I never said it was. "Liberal" doesn't necessarily mean democratic. Yes, most liberals in the US are democrats, and many democrats are relatively liberal (though the party is actually more conservative in some ways than others). The US is a democratic republic, but that is not the Kindom of God, nor was it ever intended to be. So I don't know why you would think that I believe that the Kindom of God was a democracy, just because I'm a liberal Christian.
If you are a republican, I would point out to you that the Kindom of God is also not a republic.
I do say perhaps you need to examine why you feel 'wordly' with your views. . we are to be seperate from the world, aliens, a tourist to this world. .
What makes you think my views are worldly? On the contrary, sometimes me being a liberal Christian puts me at odds with the world. See above re. radical message of Jesus Christ. If I love liberally, as liberally as Jesus did, I am counter-cultural. Our society's love for money, pro-capitalism, spend and hoard, keeping up with the Jones's, he who dies with the most toys wins ... this is a the opposite of what a liberal Christian believes. Jesus spent more time with the poor, the down-trodden, the sinners, not the powerful and rich. That is very much at odds with the worldly view.
God made the world in 6 days and rested on the 7th. . so do you believe in creation or evolution. .
Liberal Christians believe that the book of Genesis was intended to be taken figuratively, not literally. Many of us (such as myself) believe that God did indeed write the Bible, by inspiring men and women. We know that Jesus spoke in parables and allegories. If Jesus is God (which, again, I do believe, as do most liberal Christians), then it stands to reason that God does the same. We liberal Christians believe that Genesis is one such story (or, in reality, a collection of many stories), written by God to show a point. The point of the creation story is not that God created the universe in 6 days, but that God created us and loves us.
If you read the Bible as (we believe) God wrote it, you realize that Genesis 1 is actually a song, with the "and it was evening, and it was morning, the __ day" being the refrain, and each day of creation being a verse. To me, it has always been very obvious that it was never intended to be taken literally, and that in fact, to take it literally is to misinterpret Scripture, just as you would be misinterpreting Scripture to try to name who the woman who found the lost coin was; that just diverts you from Jesus' message.
In fact, I believe that God created this planet, and everything in it. That includes the bountiful evidence -- irrefutable evidence, by the way -- of evolution. If evolution is not true, that means that God planted this evidence in error. I refuse to believe in, let alone worship, a God who makes mistakes. Therefore, I accept evolution as the means by which God created and continues to create his creation.
either God is the truth or he is a liar. . which do you think it is?
Well, the way I see it, anyone who denies evolution is calling God a liar. So I believe God is telling the Truth.
We are not to be lukewarm
And I am not! In fact I am on fire for the Lord, and for my understanding of Scripture, which I believe to be True. I want people to hear this message, because it is a message the world so desperately needs to hear. In fact, I believe that my understanding, this "liberal" Christianity, is what Jesus preached, and those who reject my understanding of Scripture are preaching a false Gospel, one of law and works-righteousness. So I am very adamant that the GRACE message be preached.
Again, why do you assume that I am "lukewarm"? I could just as easily ask you why you call God a liar, or why you preach a false Gospel. Such name-calling is neither helpful nor loving.
Being a traditional conservative I wouldn't say that you are not saved. Clearly you profess Christ.
Thank you. As do you.
And I stand by the Bible for everything I believe.
I would say I stand by GOD for everything I believe. Yes, the Bible is the Word of God. I just see, sometimes, some Christians seem to worship the Bible rather than the God who wrote it. I'm not saying you do that: from what I have seen in these boards, you recognize the difference. But there are a lot of Christians who seem to idolize Scripture rather than the Author.
So why do you accept evolution and support Obama? I know why I don't, but since this is your post I might as well give you the first throw.
See above for evolution.
As for my support of Obama, I would have to say that, too, is based on what I have read in Scripture. (And, FWIW, I have read Scripture in its original Hebrew and Greek. Not that that makes me better than anyone else who hasn't; I'm simply saying that I don't just accept someone else's word for what something means, I read it for myself and pray about it.)
For just one example, let's look at the economic policies of each of the two major parties in the US.
The republicans believe that we should give tax breaks to the rich, because they are the powerful ones who create jobs (Top-Down Economics). The democrats would rather give tax breaks to the poor and needy, because then those people will spend their money in the economy, thus stimulating it (Bottom-Up Economics). Now, not all democrats really care about the poor, I admit. They see it as a means for a solid economy. But honestly, between supporting the rich and powerful vs. support the poor and needy, which do you believe Jesus would prefer?
Intellectually, I favor bottom-up economics because has worked throughout history, and top-down economics has failed every time. But Spiritually, I accept it because it's just the right thing to do. Even if it was not ultimately the best for everyone, I would still want to support the poor and needy. The fact that it also benefits everyone else is, I believe, Divine ... That's how God made it: we succeed when we help others rather than ourselves.
BTW, I DO think people should be given a hand-up rather than a hand-out. Today's democratic party is in favor of programs that do that: give people the means to help themselves. Today's republican party is against that. They want to cut programs that allow people to gain job skills, education, etc. The result is that those people end up needing hand-outs, because they have not been given a hand-up.
Now, as for foreign policy, I very much disagree with Obama, and am very disappointed that he has not gotten out of Iraq and Afghanistan sooner, and that he started military actions in Libya. I believe that this is NOT what Jesus teaches. Jesus preached peace, not war, so the war-mongering that is prevalent in both parties goes against a Christian's beliefs. I support Obama despite these decisions, and point out that the other major party is no better -- and probably worse -- in this respect.
But his domestic party, while not precisely "WWJD," is certainly closer to what Jesus preached than the alternative.
Does that answer your question?