God is within us...?

I've been hearing this notion going around like wild fire nowadays... especially from those that were former church-goers.



From those who believe that God is within us, can you point to biblical scripture to justify these claims? What makes you say that God is within us? Please explain your thought process clearly for everyone that is reading your posts to understand how you came to your conclusion.

I'm not a Bible thumper but this was easy....

Luke 17:21

New International Version (©1984)
nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you."

New Living Translation (©2007)
You won't be able to say, 'Here it is!' or 'It's over there!' For the Kingdom of God is already among you."

English Standard Version (©2001)
nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
nor will they say, 'Look, here it is!' or, 'There it is!' For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst."

King James Bible (Cambridge Ed.)
Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

International Standard Version (©2008)
People won't be saying, 'Look! Here it is!' or 'There it is!' because now the kingdom of God is among you."

Aramaic Bible in Plain English (©2010)
“Neither do they say, 'Behold, here it is!' and 'Behold, from here to there!', for behold, the Kingdom of God is within some of you.”

Side note - Goes to show you how many times the Bible has been rewritten and altered

It's in the Biblical Cannon, sorry but I don't remember where, but it could be that is how I interpreted it. I believe it says something to the effect that we all have a part of God in us because it was God that created us

I look forward to other replies for clarification and sorry I couldn't contribute more.

Because it "FEELS" right, true, and correct. There is no scripture that would state this. The bible is a guide, not the complete word of "god" what ever you define "god" to be. The bible was written by man, was translated many times, so of course some concepts would be miss-translated. Go through your belief system and see if there are ANY beliefs that you don't agree with, and throw them out. Good luck with your truth seeking.

How many times can you rewrite a book and call it true....

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)
They can't say, 'Here it is!' or 'There it is!' You see, the kingdom of God is within you."

King James 2000 Bible (©2003)
Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.

American King James Version
Neither shall they say, See here! or, see there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

American Standard Version
neither shall they say, Lo, here! or, There! for lo, the kingdom of God is within you.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Neither shall they say: Behold here, or behold there. For lo, the kingdom of God is within you.

Darby Bible Translation
nor shall they say, Lo here, or, Lo there; for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.

English Revised Version
neither shall they say, Lo, here! or, There! for lo, the kingdom of God is within you.

Webster's Bible Translation
Neither will they say, Lo here! or lo there! for behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

Weymouth New Testament
Nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' --for the Kingdom of God is within you."

World English Bible
neither will they say, 'Look, here!' or, 'Look, there!' for behold, the Kingdom of God is within you."

Young's Literal Translation
nor shall they say, Lo, here; or lo, there; for lo, the reign of God is within you.'

God exists in text and he's inside you because you mentioned his name with your own question. Why does Father Christmas wear a red hat? If you love religion and look forward to world war 3 just keep talking about god and questioning him. Your imaginary father.

reply to post by kimish

I believe it says something to the effect that we all have a part of God in us because it was God that created us

yes, religious people call it soul or breath. when god created man-kind the final move was to blow the soul into the body. the soul makes you breath.

Heres a good site that explains it fairly well:God Is Not God's Name

"Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I shall say to them, `The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they may say to me, `What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"

"And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, `I AM has sent me to you.'"

For myself, mainstream religion never really made any sense to me, i don't know why. But i just couldn't do it. So after many years of just going with the flow. I came across this site, and many other sites and books, my mother got me into reading about everything, she was wicca, and she is incredibly smart, self reliant, she knows herbs like a boss, she knows religions like a boss. Haha.

I'm not going to ever tell someone what to believe when it comes to religion, that is your choice. But the bible wasn't supposed to be taken literally, in my opinion.

I believe God is not a being, but a becoming. God is not complete, and all knowing. We are part of god. Its not a coincidence that when you map the brain, it looks like how the universe looks (in our local vicinity).

The universe is ever expanding, we cannot see the end. Therefor, we can contemplate that it goes on infinitely. We are part of a universal consciousness. The universe is god. The universe is still creating as we speak.

God said let there be light, there was light.
The universe gave us life, Its ever growing, evolving, like a giant neural network.
And with advances in different sciences, quantum being a big one, we will soon understand the real nature of the universe..

But then i have this other theory i've been juggling around, being about the sun, planets and stars. Doing research into it as we speak, its an interesting topic. I just think that true religion has been led astray, separating from what really makes us who we are. For example, it is believed that during the times of the maya, there lived a global civilization, we can make this observation through the use of architecture, and how similar it was all around the world, how very accurate it was as well.

Perhaps the ancients had access to a knowledge base that we have long lost through history (or perhaps repressed, we could never know). Like how the pyramids were built (i, in no way, believe it was only manual labor, its impossible in the time it had taken to build). Same with stonehenge, the easter island heads, machu picchu. Temple mount. The list goes on and on.

Lost of mysteries to be solved i guess.

reply to post by DelayedChristmas

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 1 Cor 3:16, 6:19

reply to post by DelayedChristmas


Jesus said, "If those who lead you say, 'See, the Kingdom is
in the sky,' then the birds of the sky will precede you. If they
say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the fish will precede you.
Rather, the Kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of you." - Gospel of Thomas 1:3

I believe God is not a being, but a becoming

reply to post by AzureSky


I couldn't have ever said it better....that was perfect.

reply to post by DelayedChristmas


I won't quote the Bible, because I am not familiar with its text, but I will refer to the Urantia book where the "God within" concept is central to its teachings, its cosmology, in fact the whole creation and God's plan to the level that they are revealed within the texts of the book.

The chapters that discuss the concept are 107-111.

urantiabook.org...

Here is the first paragraph of chapter 107 to give you an idea (you can read the whole text by visiting the link):

Although the Universal Father is personally resident on Paradise, at the very center of the universes, he is also actually present on the worlds of space in the minds of his countless children of time, for he indwells them as the Mystery Monitors. The eternal Father is at one and the same time farthest removed from, and most intimately associated with, his planetary mortal sons.

Originally posted by Mijamija

I believe God is not a being, but a becoming

reply to post by AzureSky

 

I couldn't have ever said it better....that was perfect.

Thanks, haha, thats what reading some interested things does to you ,
It made a lot of sense to me to when i read something related to it. Made me go 'hmm..', intuition is usually your best ally.

statement of observation: nearly everyone that posted believes in the New Age Spirituality Movement, or self-spirituality;

History of the New Age movement:

New Age teachings became popular during the 1970's as a reaction against what some perceived as the failure of Christianity and the failure of Secular Humanism to provide spiritual and ethical guidance for the future. Its roots are traceable to many sources: Astrology, Channeling, Hinduism, Gnostic traditions, Spiritualism, Taoism, Theosophy, Wicca and other Neo-pagan traditions, etc. The movement started in England in the 1960's where many of these elements were well established. Small groups, such as the Findhorn Community in Inverness and the Wrekin Trust formed. The movement quickly became international. Early New Age mileposts in North America were a "New Age Seminar" run by the Association for Research and Enlightenment, and the establishment of the East-West Journal in 1971. Actress Shirley MacLaine is perhaps their most famous current figure.

During the 1980's and 90's, the movement came under criticism from a variety of groups. Channeling was ridiculed; seminar and group leaders were criticized for the fortunes that they made from New Agers. Their uncritical belief in the "scientific" properties of crystals was exposed as groundless. But the movement has become established and become a stable, major force in North American religion during the past generation. As the millennium comes to a close, the New Age is expected to expand, promoted by the social backlash against logic and science.

this statement will bruise egos: i think this is a dangerous path that the New Age Faith has perpetuated... it has embarked onto the religious scene under the guise of love. why is it dangerous? it takes away the credit that is deserved of Christ. i do not believe true love can from those who do not accept Christ fully into their hearts as their Lord and savior. i believe that true love can come only from Christ.

I'm pretty sure anyone of you knows at least ONE person in their life they have met that you can label them as a true christian. and you know they are a true believer and follower, they have a different, unique presence, they are not like every body else in the world. that is not a coincidence, for Christ really lives in their hearts and their light shines for those who are in the darkness.

The New Age spirituality concept reminds of the book "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel.

Due to the history of religion.
I see modern religion as the worshiping of satan, rather than of god.
And if you look at it logically, thats exactly what it looks like.


Im not some 'new age' whatever it is either,
I am who i am. You are who you are. I will not try to convince you otherwise, everyone shall learn on their own, what they are meant to learn.

Originally posted by AzureSky
Due to the history of religion.
I see modern religion as the worshiping of satan, rather than of god.
And if you look at it logically, thats exactly what it looks like.

that is my perspective as well. when i see these modern religions popping up, and people worshiping false idols, it feels as if God is opening my eyes to the truth. hard to explain.

Originally posted by DelayedChristmas

Originally posted by AzureSky
Due to the history of religion.
I see modern religion as the worshiping of satan, rather than of god.
And if you look at it logically, thats exactly what it looks like.

that is my perspective as well. when i see these modern religions popping up, and people worshiping false idols, it feels as if God is opening my eyes to the truth. hard to explain.

Yes, I see it too. Im watching all these religions talking, saying they are all right. When the only thing religion has done for our species is hold us back. Bloodshed. Torture. Death. In the name of god? I think not my friends. Lost in the hypnotizing book of control. I believe the true religion is still out there, not for the general populace to see right yet. Lost in the ages of propaganda and suppression.

False gods. Tricking the greater portion of the population. Keeping us divisible and easily malleable.
Religion is used to instill fear and hatred. To keep us in the stone age of our spirituality.

Don't think its just religion either. Its everything. (Not all religion, modern)

reply to post by AzureSky


i think the true religion is faithfulness to God. I believe that no one can get to God but through His son Jesus Christ, our Lord. my pastor told me something that just resounded in my head: start with God from scratch. a lot of turmoil has happened within the jewish community that set a precedent for the Christian community of today

Romans 2:17-24
17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

Originally posted by DelayedChristmas
reply to post by AzureSky

 

i think the true religion is faithfulness to God. I believe that no one can get to God but through His son Jesus Christ, our Lord. my pastor told me something that just resounded in my head: start with God from scratch. a lot of turmoil has happened within the jewish community that set a precedent for the Christian community of today

Romans 2:17-24
17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast in God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

edit on 19-1-2012 by DelayedChristmas because: (no reason given)

edit on 19-1-2012 by DelayedChristmas because: (no reason given)

But can any of us really be sure?
The bible wasn't written and published all at the same time
And the earliest accounts were of storytelling, much like the native aboriginals did. And they had no writing at the time.

We must consider the vocabulary and language and translations of the texts, which could very well be off, as translating to english is difficult.

Then one must consider what happened between when the books of the bible were written, Why are some left out of todays bibles?

Sorry, i just like to question everything, lots of questions to be asked.