> After all, the point is not that a certain selection of appropriate texts be considered the end all and be all of existence, but rather that the Bible is supposed to be a history of what other people did while under Gods rule during their lives so that you can get an idea of how to live under Gods rule in your life.

There's lots of stuff in the Bible. Much of it falls under the category you describe, but not all.

> The Good News comes from people today choosing to be better, to do better, to not oppress, to not commit evil acts against others but to do good things to other people, to say kind words from a good heart because they believe in a better world coming tomorrow.

Different people have different interpretations. What you describe sounds nice, but I don't think it's exactly the orthodoxy for many Christians.

I see what you're saying, but that's literally the point. Jesus was hardcore, but that's because he had a mission.

Children understand how to get into heaven. Adults are the ones who have problems with it.

Be nice. Be better. Do your best. Apologize when you mess up. Grow.

If God wants more from you, God will tell you personally, in a way that can't be confused with schizophrenic mania or paranoid delusion.

Anything else is part of some hokey religion masquerading as spirituality.

> Children understand how to get into heaven. Adults are the ones who have problems with it.

You get in because you're predestined to? Sounds pretty simple to understand.

Or go to heaven because of faith alone, if you subscribe to a different strain of Christianity.

Or go to heaven because of faith and good works, if you subscribe to yet a different strain of Christianity.

Or any number of other interpretations you can find.

I don't think your homebrewn theology is necessarily better (nor worse) than the other guys' versions.

> If God wants more from you, God will tell you personally, in a way that can't be confused with schizophrenic mania or paranoid delusion.

I'm not doing anything at all, and God hasn't told me anything ever. So I guess I'm good by your interpretation?