Saying or believing we are worthless to Him is an insult to Him as well as us. However, without Him we are worthless :-D

I don't quite follow this. The way I see it, either we have innate worth or we don't.

sin does cut off our ability to come into His presence or to receive from him and relate to Him.

Burned Biscuits

When I was a little boy, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every
now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had
made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so
long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely
burned biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see
if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his biscuit,
smile at my mom and ask me how my day was at school. I don't
remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear

butter and jelly on that biscuit and eat every bite!


When I got up from the table that evening, I remember
hearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And
I'll never forget what he said: "Baby, I love burned biscuits."


Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I
asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned.. He wrapped
me in his arms and said, "Your Momma put in a hard day at work
today and she's real tired. And besides - a little burnt biscuit never hurt
anyone!"

You know, life is full of imperfect things....and imperfect people
I'm not the best housekeeper or cook. What I've learned over
the years is that learning to accept each other's faults - and choosing
to celebrate each other's differences - is one of the most important keys to creating a
healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

And that's my prayer for you today. That you will
learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life
and lay them at the feet of God. Because in the end, He's
the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where
a burnt biscuit isn't a deal-breaker!

^ I'm referring to religions who state that I'll go to hell if I don't do what they say.

Each man's hell is a personal definition. My hell could be your heaven and vice versa...:)

Fact of the matter is, I don't believe in hell. I think we're all souls learning the ways of the world. Hell is a place designed by humans to control others. My God wants only whats best for me and as a parent figure, would never allow me to be dammed to a place so evil. The whole concept freaks me out.

The Bible is NOT a religion. God is NOT a religion. They just happen to be what a lot of different religions base their religion on. The Bible itself is very clear on God,satan, heaven & hell.

There are a lot of assumptions built into that statement, and much interpretation involved in taking the Bible "literally." The best explanation I can come up with for the Revelation of St. John is ergot contamination in the Eucharist. Either that, or it's allegorical. But if you claim it's allegorical, you open the door to other allegorical interpretations and your entire literal interpretation claim goes out the window.

Your claim that the Bible is above religion rests and dozens of coaelscing miracles that supercede opportunities for mistakes and malfeasance in recollection, recording, transcription, translation, interpretation in the face of competing and uncompromising doctrinal views, and so on. The odds of something incorrect getting in are simply too huge to ignore.

That doesn't mean the Bible is worthless. It is obviously the best artifact the Christian politicos were able to settle upon at the time and there is a lot of value in it. But if you let somebody bamboozle you about the nature of the Bible, that is not faith. That is abdicating responsibility for your religion and allowing someone else to come between you and your relationship with God.

Ascribing divine infallibility to a human artifact is not only religion, it is making a graven image to worship. Is it not? Something to think about when you think about those 10 Commandments. Please don't take offense. You'd say the same thing yourself about any other similar artifact--such as the Sutras of Patanjali--which enumerated many of the same principles several thousand years earlier--including the idea that God comes in person to save the world from ignorance and sin and will establish a kingdom of righteousness and peace. In fact, I challenge any of you true Bible scholars to find any significant contradiction between the Sutras and the principles that Jesus put forward.

Although the Book of Revelation obviously is written in code language throughout, there are still some plain truths in it as well. There is no mistaking it when it comes to things that pertain to eternal consequences, unless you simply have a hard heart and are incapable of hearing the truth, the voice of Jesus.

God would not expect people with low iq's to be disqualified just because they couldn't understand the truth found in the Bible

John 10
1Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
4And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
5And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
6This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them.
7Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
8All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
12But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
13The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
14I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
15As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
17Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
19There was a division therefore again among the Jews for these sayings.
20And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him?
21Others said, These are not the words of him that hath a devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind?
22And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.
23And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch.
24Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly.
25Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.
26But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
27My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
28And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
29My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.
30I and my Father are one.
31Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.
32Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?
33The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
34Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
35If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
36Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
37If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.
38But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
39Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand,
40And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode.
41And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true.
42And many believed on him there.