Help!!!

[batteddy]

In Mark 9:40, Jesus says: “For he who is not against us is for us.”

In Luke 11:23, He says: “He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.”

So what is he saying about neutral people? Are they for Christ? Or against Christ?

 

[CARose]

He spoke of God spitting out the Lukewarm. So I wouldn’t want to be neutral. Doesn’t seem like a good thing to be spit out.

IMHO,
CARose

PS, we lived in Lake Forest when I was an infant, there and Elmhurst. I was baptised at St. Ireneaus.

 

[batteddy]

Perhaps the two statements compliment each other to mean that there ARE NO NEUTRAL…

You are either for Christ, or against Him…whether you know it consciously or not.

You are either in a State of Grace, or you are not. You are either going to heaven, or you are going to hell. You are either Good or Evil.

You cannot be in between. If you claim to not be for Him, you BY DEFAULT, must mean you are against him.

And if you claim to not be against him, then BY DEFAULT, you must be for him.

There is no in between either way, is what I think it might mean. The statements are not contradictory, but rather complimentary: There is no neutral person. You are either for or against him, and if you are not one thing…you are by default the other.

 

[Lux_et_veritas]

He also said that the path was “narrow”.

I think I would rather stay on a narrow path, and His good side, as much as I can.

:bowdown:

I think lukewarm could signal - “pick and choose what I want to believe at the moment to satisfy my own desires” …an attitude he taught us not to have.

 

[Grace_and_Glory]

Mark 9:40 comes from a passage that does not describe a neutral person. The person in question was driving out demons in Jesus’ name (apparently successfully). He was obviously following Jesus, even if he had not specifically been instructed by the Apostles. Jesus was saying that whoever follows him is not in competition with the followers he already has, but is for them.Luke 11:23 comes from a passage that describes Jesus’ response to those who insisted he drove out demons by the power of the devil. He is saying that those who are not with him (those who do not accept His message and believe His works) are against him.

Two different situations, so different responses. Viewed in context, they don’t really contradict each other.

 

[puzzleannie]

I think if this were expressed in modern day terms it would read “the cafeteria is closed.”

 

[On_my_way]

There is no inbetween. If you are lukewarm that means that you have a mixture of cold feelings and hot feelings for him. He does not want a mixture of cold and hot he only wants what is hot. If the faith and belief that you have for Jesus is on fire than you will have no problem with him taking you in. I use that with my kids. They seem to like that one.