I want to break each part and look at them a little if that is alright.
That we are all wretched, rebellious sinners.
We must believe that we are all sinners and that we are in need of God’s mercy. In the same breath we must always remember our value to God though because we are worth a lot if He is willing to die for us rather then allow us to remain in our sin.
We must give our lives to God - surrender to His will.
Truth. But in this surrendering of our will to God’s we become truly free and find our meaning in life. It is not a burdensome surrender but a great joy.
What is the point in giving us free-will if we must live the way He wants?
I am sure that there is a thread about free will and God out there on this site under the Philosophy section. The first thing is that to live the way that God wants us to live (a morally right life and fullness of life in union with God) is the way that man becomes fully alive. We, as humans, have a difficult time wrapping our brains around this because we are hurt by so many people and we cannot trust them. We take these pains into our relationship with God even though He only ever looks out for our good. There is no conflict between free will and God’s will for us because if we did not have the clouded judgement of sin we would choose what God wanted for us too so that we may become fully alive and free. With that being said free will is necessary for love and I think that is the point of having free will. We are created in His Image and His Likeness, and thus reflect the Trinity in a very special way.
I do not want to make this section super long because I want to get to your other points, but please let me know if this helps at all.
We cannot do anything good in and of ourselves.
All good is a gift from God.
We did not elect to be sinful, we are born with that mark.
True. We are all born with original sin and cannot choose to not have that mark. But we have been given Baptism which cleanses us from Original Sin.
Thoughts are just as sinful as deeds.
Both are bad if sinful, but they are not equally bad. What I mean by this is that thoughts can be sinful, but it seems to always be worse in deeds. For example, the difference between a man imagining to shoot someone who made him mad and actually shooting that guy for making him mad. Both would be sinful, but on degree the actual allowing anger to consume you enough to take someone’s life would be worse.
I know that Matthew 5:27-28 says that whoever looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery in his heart. It would seem that Jesus is saying that sinful thoughts are as bad as sinful actions, but I would argue that he is helping us to see where sin begins (inside ourselves) and that is how we harden our hearts to God.
I do not think evil thoughts are good, I would not go as far as considering them sin though.
I agree. It always has to do with the will. Do we pay attention to these temptations? Do we let them fester? They only become sinful when we don’t flee to God for assistance.
The truth will always be difficult to accept.
We do not believe this. The truth only becomes difficult to accept when we put up walls. When we think that we know more than others or do not seek the truth. We were created to understand the truth. It is only difficult because most of the time we don’t want to hear the truth. As we come to know God on a more personal relationship the truth becomes a very easy thing to accept because it is God.
I still have difficultly to with the parable of the vineyard and the prodigal son.
Which aspects do you have difficulty with? Is it understanding the parables or seeing how it influences your life?
I could not finish the book of Job. All suffering is to keep us humble and for our well-being.
All suffering is for our well-being and to always remind us that we need God, but all suffering is also Redemptive because we can participate in the sufferings of Christ. Suffering purges us of disordered desires if we allow it to. That is why all the saints speak about either suffering on this earth or in purgatory. That is why we must learn to look at Christ on the cross and realize that we are able to become like Him in our suffering too.
Many of those saints put my life to shame. Our rewards comes in the next life. I would rather just live my life as righteous person than always worrying about sin 24/7.
Yes, the saints may put your life to shame but what gifts has God given you? How will and can you become a saint for Him in the here and now? The only difference between the saints and you is that they kept trying their best to respond to the grace that God had given them. We are all called to be saints. It is not just for the few but it is for all. And those saints that “put your life to shame” are the same ones interceding and cheering you on as you strive for holiness. The closer you grow to God the more and more sins and things not of God will be shed. As you said, our reward is not in this life, but in the world to come, so always focus on that.
