“As iron sharpens iron so one man sharpens another.”

When I sharpen my knife, I get out the sharpener, oil it carefully, open my knife, find exactly the right angle, and begin to sharpen it by grinding it gently but firmly in a specific way. There are no sparks that fly, no sudden quck movements, no obnoxious noise. You see, it’s about planning, precision, carefulness, and a knowledge about both the knife and the sharpener.

When you take two pieces of iron and start banging them into each other they don’t get sharpened! Invariably they get chipped, dented, and broken. Sharpening is all about finding the right angle of approach, and doing it carefully. Arguing with other people is not going to sharpen their iron! It will hurt the people you argue with, and in one way or another it will damage you.

Even if this were not the case, I would rather fight with an army that used slightly dull swords but fought together as a unit for a common cause than in an army where everyone had deadly sharp swords that they kept swinging at each other attempting to sharpen them.

We all are searching for truth, (many of us have dedicated our lives to this goal) and we are finding it! However, all of us are flawed, and none of us understand and possess all of the complete and perfect truth. Granted, some are closer than others, but we are all far from perfection!

Let’s face it, everyone reading this weblog has a different and carefully constructed belief system. Many of us have irreconcilable doctrinal differences. We could argue until Jesus came back and none of our minds would be changed. I personally know and count among my closest friends a Catholic, and non-demonational evangelical protestant, a reformed Presbyterian, a Russian Orthodox monk, and yes even a Mormon. I do not doubt the salvation of a single one of these people. Are there differences? Yes! Are some of them absolutely wrong about some of the things they believe? Yes! Are all religions morally equivalent? No! But I will be the first to admit that I am flawed and I’m sure that I believe some things that are not true… is that grounds to be sent to Hell? We will see, the Lord Judges the heart.

Romans 10:9 states clearly: “If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” I believe this verse with all of my heart. If you believe in free will or predestination… if you are convinced that Joseph Smith was a good guy, if you think that God answers prayers directed to Saints, you will be held accountable to God on the final day of judgment. He knows the whole truth, and he knows everything that is in a person’s heart. But I believe that if you Believe in and Love Jesus with all you heart, admitting and repenting of your sins, that that is what really counts!

Please! Can we lay aside our differences, and embrace each other as brothers and sisters! As Ecclesiastes states “there is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven.” There is a time to debate, but there is also a time to look past our differences and see what we agree on! I believe that time is now. Also, I would submit that there is a proper place for everything. The fan website of a rock band is perhaps not the best place for endless and heated theological debate and argument. If any of you are interested in meeting with the band and discussing questions, concerns, or just having a spirited debate we would be more than happy to comply, but this is not the place.

The biggest reason that I am tired of this is because I see no good in it. I don’t think that any one has sharper “iron” as a result, but I do know that there is dissension and disunity as a result of all of these arguments. Jesus said “you will know a tree by its fruit” and the fruit of these discussions has been rather rotten.

If you read the Bible it is very clear that unity is one of the top priorities of Jesus. In John 17 Jesus is praying to the Father just before his death. He prays for all of the people who will come to believe in him later on. What is the first thing he says? “I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father Just as you are in me and I am in you.” John 17:20. I understand that true unity is more than not arguing, but it’s a step in the right direction. As someone already said, “a house divided against itself cannot stand.” And as the body of Christ we need to stand, and stand strong!

We need to admit that saying things such as “Jeb, Jeb are you dead in the head” to an atheist asking questions, or “up your butt and around the corner” to a Christian trying to defend their faith are not the inspired words of God. I think that everyone involved in this debate has been judgmental of others, come across in harsh and sometimes cruel ways, and been guilty of not being “quick to listen” or “slow to speak.” I am asking everyone to end the endless debating! Please for the sake of unity, time, and common decency let’s stop!