10 Spiritual Questions and Their Answers
Question 1: Why is there evil in the world?
If God exists, why is there evil in the world? You know, this is a difficult stumbling block and question for many people. The simplest way to look at this question is to examine God’s nature and his desire for mankind. Look at the logic. God loves us and wants us to love him back. And how could we love him back unless we have the freedom to not love?
God could have made us like robots who do nothing more than say, “I love you. I love you. I love you.” But we’d be forced to do that and that wouldn’t be real love. Love is a choice. And if you have a choice you have to be able to choose not to love and that in itself is the nature of evil. Evil is choosing not to love. So when God gave us the freedom to choose, he gave us not only our greatest blessing, but he also gave us our greatest curse because we can choose to do right or choose to do wrong.
The reason there’s evil in the world is not because of God, but because God gave us the freedom to choose. Now the potential for love outweighs the existence of evil, because you see, evil is only going to exist for a short time, but love is going to go on forever. And all of the suffering and all of the death that we see in the world today are the result because man has chosen to make wrong choices.
God could have taken our freedom, but He didn’t. I hope you’ll use your freedom to choose God.
Question 2: Is Jesus really God?
Well when you think about it you only have three options as to who Jesus Christ was. You see, Jesus claimed to be God. He said things like, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.” He claimed to be God many, many times. Now, that means either:
- He is who he says He was
- He was the biggest liar in history or
- He was crazy, He was a lunatic on the order of the man who calls himself a fried egg.
You see, you can’t just say Jesus was a good man. I’ve had many friends who said, “Oh, I believe Jesus was a good man.” Well He couldn’t have been a good man and said those things He said. For instance, if I said to you, “I’m Rick Warren and I’m a good teacher and a good husband.” You might say, “Okay, I buy that.” But if I said to you, “I’m Rick Warren and I’m God and I’m the only way to heaven.” Well, you would have to make a decision. You couldn’t say I was a good person because a good person wouldn’t say that. You’d either say, “He is who he says he was, or he’s a liar or he’s crazy.”
Now Jesus didn’t just expect us to believe Him and take Him at His word. He said, “I’m going to prove the claim that I am God.” He said, “I’m going to let people kill me on a cross, then let them bury me. I’ll be dead for three days and then I’ll come back to life.” And, of course, that was the event that changed history. The resurrection of Jesus Christ. Every person since then refers to Jesus Christ, whether they believe in Him or not, every time you right a date, A.D. or B.C., what’s the reference point? Jesus Christ. Because it was the event that split history when Jesus proved that He was who He said He was, He is God.
Question 3: Do all religions lead to God?
Well now think about the logic of this. Can I go into a phone booth and dial any phone number and get home? No, there’s only one number that’ll get me home. I could be sincere, but I could be sincerely wrong. The truth is, all roads don’t lead to Rome and all roads and all religions don’t lead to God.
You see, it all depends on which direction you take. Jesus said this, “I am the way and the truth and the light. No one comes to the Father except through me.” I’m betting my life on the fact that He was right because I figured Jesus knows more about it than I did.
The Bible tells us that on the road to heaven, there are only two directions, toward Christ or away from Him. You can accept it or you can reject it, that’s your choice. You can make Jesus the Lord of your life, that means the manager, the ceo, the person in charge of your life, or you can call Him a liar, but that’s what the Bible declares.
You know a lot of people sincerely believe that even though they’ve broken God’s rules that they can earn God’s forgiveness by doing good works, by observing the Five Pillars of Islam or the Buddhist Eightfold Path or the Hindu Doctrine of Karma, for example. But I don’t get it. How will doing some good works that we should have done all our lives, make up for all the countless times we failed? You see, heaven is a perfect place and that means only perfect people get to go there. If not-perfect people were allowed in, it wouldn’t be perfect anymore. Well I don’t know about you, but I stopped being perfect a long time ago. So God came up with plan b. He came to earth in human form, Jesus Christ, and He lived a perfect life and now He offers to let us go to heaven on His ticket. And I pray that you will trust Jesus Christ and stop trying to bat a thousand because you ended up not doing that a long time ago and accept God’s free ticket through Jesus Christ.
Question 4: What’s going to happen to those people in the world who’ve never heard about Jesus Christ?
You may have heard this question put this way: “What about the person living in the jungle somewhere who’s never heard the good news about Jesus Christ? Are you christians saying that a person won’t go to heaven based solely on where he lives?” No, we’re not saying that. The Bible tells us that God doesn’t work that way. We understand that God is perfect in His love and perfect in His holiness and He’s perfectly just and fair. Therefore, it’s against God’s nature to be unfair. It’s against God’s nature to hide the ball on salvation or to condemn somebody who’s ignorant of his truth. In fact the scripture, the bible declares that God is loving and patient and not willing that anybody should perish. But He wants everybody to come to repentance, to come to know Him.
So if God is a perfectly loving and righteous God, then He will figure out ways to help people understand Him. He somehow reveals the simple truth of the gospel to people throughout the world. You know, I’ve talked to people who were missionaries in Africa who’ve told me that Jesus has revealed Himself through nature. When you look at nature you learn that God is organized, that God is creative, that God likes variety. But it’s when we look at Jesus Christ we realize that God is loving.
And as Christians we are called to tell the good news to other people. It’s God’s decision to decide what happens to people who haven’t heard about Him. But it is our decision to take that news to as many people as possible. And the bible says we will be held more responsible because we have heard and we have known that God is love, that God wants a relationship to us and that God will forgive us if we give our lives to Jesus Christ.
So, what do we do about those who haven’t heard? We tell them. First we accept God’s good news and then we tell them and we leave the result in the hands of a fair, loving and just God.
Question 5: What about all the wars that are caused in the name of Christianity?
Well first, let me say that a lot of things have been done in the name of Christianity that Jesus Christ would totally disavow. And just because someone claims to be a Christian doesn’t necessarily make him a follower of Christ, nor does it make him a representative of Jesus. It’s very, very important to distinguish between the bible kind of Christianity and the actions that have been taken throughout history by people who claim to be Christians but really didn’t know.
You see there’s a difference between religion and a relationship with God. Jesus is not interested in the religion of Christianity. He’s interested in you having a relationship to Him. Jesus never said, “I’ve come that you might have religion.” He said, “I came that you might have life and have it more abundantly.”
Now a lot of people have claimed to be followers of Christ but they’ve lived their lives contrary to His teaching. And we shouldn’t label that group Christian. But let me say this, have you ever seen a counterfeit dollar? Well, maybe you haven’t, but maybe you’ve heard of them. Why are there counterfeit dollars in the world? Well, I’ll tell you why. Because there are real dollars in the world. If there were no real dollars, there would be no counterfeits. And if you find counterfeit Christianity in the world, it must mean that somewhere there must be the real thing. The point is we don’t identify Jesus by claiming that all the things that were done in His name were done by Him. In fact, Jesus proffended His own disciples from defending themselves against the enemies when He said on a personal basis, He said, “I want you to turn the other cheek.”
So a lot of wars have been done in the name of Christianity that Jesus probably would have disavowed. The real issue is do you know Jesus Christ? You see, it doesn’t matter so much what has been done by hypocrites or phonies or false followers of Christ. What matters is do you know the real, true, genuine item? Have you ever turned your life over to Jesus Christ? If you haven’t, I would encourage you to investigate Him today.
Question 6: Is there any real right or wrong?
You know, you might have heard somebody say, “I don’t believe there’s such a thing as right or wrong.” Or maybe you’ve heard a professor say, “There are no absolutes.” Whenever I hear that I want to say, “Are you absolutely sure?” You have to ask yourself, “Is this statement even logical? Is there any right or wrong?” Because when people say, “There is no right or wrong, or it’s wrong for you to impose your morals on me,” think about it, by them telling you that, they are imposing their morals on you.
The fact is we all inheritantly know right from wrong and we just have this weird tendency to disregard it. To disregard morality when it conflicts with our desires for pleasure or personal gain. Now, sure, you might justify having an affair, but certainly you wouldn’t condone your spouse having one. Or you might justify taking something without permission, but if you were the one being robbed you wouldn’t think it was okay. You see the fact is, there isn’t a person alive today who’d come home from work and discover that their entire house had been robbed and say, “Oh, how wonderful that this burglar is able to enjoy all my things without my permission. And who am I to impose my view of right or wrong on this poor burglar?” You see how ridiculous that is? Of course.
Even those who claim there is no right or wrong have their own moral conscious, they’ve just set their own standards. Here’s a good way to determine right from wrong. Turn the situation around on yourself. Jesus said it best. He said, “Treat people the same way you want people to treat you.” You see we all know that murder and rape and lying and stealing and torture and injustice are absolutely wrong. Why? Because we wouldn’t want any of these things to happen to us. The person who would say, “there is no right or wrong,” would not agree that it was okay for them to be raped. No, when you turn it on yourself, you realize that even inside ourselves God has placed a moral conscious and that conscious tells us when we do right and when we do wrong. And when we violate our conscious, we need forgiveness. That’s why the bible said, “God sent Jesus to earth so that we might be forgiven of all of our wrong.”
Question 7: Why do I exist?
That’s the most fundamental question of life. What on earth am I here for?
Well, you need to understand God to answer that question. You see, the bible says, “God is love.” It doesn’t say He has love, it says He is love. It’s part of His nature, His character, it is the essence of His being. God is love. Now, love isn’t very valuable unless you bestow it on something and the bible says, “God made you to love you.” You were created as an object of God’s love. If you want to know why you’re taking breath right now, why your heart is beating, it’s because God made you to love you. It’s the sole reason. You were made to be loved by God and to bring Him pleasure.
Now God wants you to learn to love Him back and that’s the first purpose of your life, to get to know and love Him back. One day Jesus was walking down the street and a man came up and said, “What’s the most important command in the bible?” And Jesus said, “I’m going to summarize the entire bible in one sentence. Love God with all your heart and soul and mind and strength.” That’s called the great commandment. And God wants you to get to know and love Him back. So that means when you get up in the morning, you should sit on the side of your bed and say, “God, if I don’t get anything else done today, I want to know you a little bit better and I want to love you a little bit more.” Because if at the end of the day you know God more and you love Him more, you have just fulfilled one of the purposes of your life.
If, on the other hand, you’ve accomplished all kinds of things and achieved many, many successes in life, but at the end of the day you don’t know God better or love Him more, you have missed the primary purpose of your life. Because God didn’t put you on this earth just to mark things off your to-do list. He put you here to know Him and love Him. That’s why you exist.
Question 8: What is my purpose in life?
Well the truth is, God created you for five purposes. You see, you were made by God and you were made for God. And until you understand that, life isn’t going to make sense. When you come to this question, what is my purpose, you only have three alternatives.
- First is what I call the mystical approach, and that is look within. You find this in a lot of talk shows, a lot of new age books a lot of seminars. They say, “look within to discover your purpose.” The only problem is that doesn’t work. We’ve all looked within and I didn’t like what I saw. It’s quite confusing. In fact, if you could know the purpose of your life by looking within, we’d all know it by now. It doesn’t work.
- The second way you can try to discover your purpose is called the intellectual or philosophical approach. And that’s where you go to a seminary class or university class and you sit there with a pipe and your latte and your coffee and you ask questions like, “Why am I here? Where did I come from? Where am I going?” I once read a book by professor John Morehead, the Head of the Department of Philosophy at Northeastern University in Illinois. And he wrote to 250 well-known intellectuals and asked them, “What is the meaning and purpose of life?” These were novelists, scientists, well-known intellectuals, and I read the book, it’s now out of print, it was quite depressing because most of the people said, “I have no idea what the purpose of life is.” Some of them admitted they just made up a purpose. And some of the admitted they guessed. And some of them said, “If you know the purpose, please tell me.”
- You see, there’s a better answer to speculation and that’s revelation. If I were to hold up an invention that you have never seen before, you wouldn’t know its purpose. The only way you’d know its purpose was either talk to the inventor, the creator who made it or read the owner’s manual. The owner’s manual of life is the bible and your Creator is God. And it is only as you get to know God you will discover his five purposes for your life. I hope you’ll begin that journey today.
Question 9: Does my life really matter?
Well, it’s a good question. You know, today we teach our kids that we’re all just one big cosmic accident. We came from the goo through the zoo to you over billions of years. Well, if that is true, in a nutshell it teaches that your life really doesn’t matter, you’re just the freak accident of random chance, you’re complex slime and you were an accident. And if you get accidentally killed, well, of course, that doesn’t matter. And that creates a lot of our sociological problems and a lot of our self-esteem issues.
But the truth is you are not an accident. You were created by a loving God who loves you and designed you with intricate detail in your life and when you understand that God made you to love you and that God made you to be a part of His family and that God made you to last forever, then you’re never going to have a problem with low self-esteem again.
It was Bertram Russell the atheist who once said, “Unless you assume the existence of God, then the purpose and meaning of life is irrelevant.” The truth is, if there is no God your life doesn’t matter. But because there is a God, God had a specific purpose in mind when He created you and you do matter. You matter because God created you. You matter because he sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross. If you want to know how much you matter, think of Jesus Christ with his arms outstretched saying, “I love you this much.”
Now, if you had to chose between a loved one and a material thing, even if that thing was priceless, you’d chose your loved one in a heartbeat. And when you’re on your deathbed, you’re not going to surround yourself with material possessions, you’re not going to say, “Bring me my trophies. Bring me my credentials. Bring me my certificates so I can look one more time at my grade point average.” No, you’re going to surround yourself with loved ones and everybody’s going to be crying because they’re going to miss you. You see, that’s how much you matter.
Personal relationships to God and to other people are the most important thing in life. And God wants you to know Him and He wants you to have a relationship with Him because you’re worth so much in God’s eyes that he sent His Son to die for you. I hope you’ll get to know Him very soon.
Question 10: Is there a real hell and why would a loving God send anyone there?
Well, first I believe in hell because Jesus talked about it. In fact, Jesus talked more about hell then He did heaven. He said it is a real place and it is a place of eternal torment. And I believe Jesus knows more about it than either you or I.
But second, I believe in hell because logic and fairness demand it. Think of all the atrocities and evil that have been done throughout history by evildoers in this world. For God to allow those crimes to go unpunished would mean that God is not worthy of our worship and love.
Now why would a loving God send anyone to hell? Well in a nutshell, God doesn’t. God doesn’t send anybody to hell. We choose to go there when we reject the love of God. If I were to say to my right is a door heading to heaven, and to my left is a door heading to hell, if you walk out the door heading to hell, you don’t have anybody to blame but yourself.
In fact, the bible tells us that God does almost everything – well everything possible to keep us out of hell. He cared so much to keep us out of hell that he sent Jesus Christ to come to earth, to die on the cross, to pay for our sins so that we don’t have to pay for them. He wants to set us free. He wants to give us forgiveness. God made us in his image and He gave us the ultimate power to say yes or no.
Now if we chose to reject God here on earth, then we, at the same time, are choosing to spend eternity separated from Him. You see, there are only two people in the world – two kinds of people. Those who say, “Thy will be done here to God on earth” and those to whom God says, “Your will be done,” when we say, “I want to do it my way.” And if we say, “God I don’t want you in my life while I’m here on earth,” then God says, “I don’t want you in my heaven for eternity.”
You don’t have to go to hell. In fact, Jesus Christ has made it possible for you to go to heaven. Open your heart to Him and say, “Jesus Christ, I need you, I want you, I trust you and I ask you to forgive me.” And He’ll come in and save you.
You can begin your journey today! Learn more about how you can discover purpose in your life.
If you have a question that wasn’t asked in this list,
Um, sorry Jamie, but nope.
Every single bit of “historical evidence” you presented is made up. None of the historians you named actually talked about Yeshua (“Jesus” is a Greek name). No contemporary historians of the time ever mentioned him at all. So not only is there no “significant historical documentation” of his existence, there’s NO evidence of his existence outside of the Gospels, and the earliest copy of a Gospel that we have is attributed to Mark, and it’s from 68 to 73 C.E. That’s 40 years after the supposed date of his death.
You can also tell you made up your evidence from the “Christus” thing; Christ is a Latinization of the Greek word Christos, which is a translation of the Hebrew word Messiah. Christ isn’t a name, it’s a title, and Messiah means Anointed One so John the Baptist was a Christ as well since he was anointed with the holy oil just like Yeshua was; but I digress).
The story of Hercules wasn’t passed down orally, it was written down. This is Greece we’re talking about, not cavemen. The Greeks figured out that the earth was round way back in 500 B.C.E. The reading comprehension level required for Plato’s Republic is an order of magnitude higher than the level required for the bible.
You DO realize that if there were ACTUAL historical evidence for the existence of Jesus, everyone in the world would be Christians, don’t you?
But you don’t have evidence. You have a story book. That’s all Hercules has, too.
That’s a really important issue to highlight Rationalist. There are many different figures of religion and mythology that claim status as a son of a god and being able to differentiate between those and Jesus certainly would be an important thing to address. I guess one of the things that separate Jesus from characters in legends is our ability to establish the historical evidence that a man named Jesus actually has existed. There is significant historical documentation of a man named Jesus who lived in the Roman province of Palestine who had a profound impact on the people of His time. Tacitus, a Roman historian of the 1st century, identifies that a man names “Christus” in Judea had been crucified by Pontius Pilate and whose death had spawned a following called Christians who spread even as far as Rome by the time of Nero. Pliny wrote to Empower Trajan around 111 c.e. about the rise of a sect of Jews called Christians who worship Jesus Christ as a god. Josephus, a Jewish historian of the first century, whose writing on the Jewish-Roman war of 66-74 c.e. is the most important record of the conflict, identifies Jesus and other significant figures in Jesus’ life. Even the Jewish Talmud affirms the existence of a ‘heretic’ names Jesus.
So the evidence of Jesus goes beyond just legend. The Gospel writings that describe his life were written by those who had been with Jesus and within the life-time of many who could dispute the accuracy of the stories because they were there. If the disciples were making up the stories of Jesus there would have ample opportunity for others to discredit their accounts of Jesus life. So you do not have stories like Hercules which were passed down over generations and then finally compiled by writers like Homer. No, the Bible gives us first person accounts written down within 20-50 years of the actual events.
There is also a difference between the claim of Hercules and Jesus: the story of Hercules identifies him as a son of the god Zeus through his mortal mother Alcmene. Jesus’ claim is that He is the Son of God, the eternal God come to Earth as a human in order to reveal God to humanity and to sacrifice Himself in order to pay the penalty for humanity’s rebellion against Him. Hercules was half human and half divine, fitting into neither realm. Jesus was fully human and fully divine perfectly representing both natures in His life on Earth.
Now you can reject Jesus claim for Himself as either a liar (i.e. He knew that he really wasn’t but wanted to make other people think that He was) or lunatic (i.e. He thought that He was, told people He was, but He was deluded by mental illness) or you can accept Him as Lord. But you cannot claim that He was just a man who lived a good life and had wise teachings because the claims He made about Himself do not let you take that middle road.
@Jamie sorry my bad I’d have to agree with you on that and the any thing wasn’t really supposed to say anything that was just the only animal that I know of that commits suicide without hesitation and in no way rejects what you where saying felt like saying that even if you already knew just wanted to make sure
You didn’t REALLY answer one of these questions with the “Lord, Liar, Lunatic” bit, did you? Really? Even if he didn’t not exist, there could still be another possibility, one that fits in with the cute alliteration scheme of the “argument”: Legend. See, Christianity isn’t the only religion that exists (regardless of what Christians seem wont to believe), and if that particular “argument” holds true for YOUR particular set of myths and traditions and prejudices, they hold true for everyone else’s, as well. Hercules supposedly claimed to be the son of a god and a mortal, so the “Lord, Liar, Lunatic” argument could be applied to him just as easily. If you followed the same logic, you’d reach the same conclusion; that Hercules was Lord. Same goes for Mithra and Krishna and Horus and all the other “sons of god” “born of a virgin” “who usually had twelve disciples” “who were all born within days of the winter solstice” “whose birth was attended by wise men” “who died and were resurrected after three days” (yeah alright, Hercules and Horus and Mithra and Jesus and Krishna are the main ones, and the ONLY ones that fit the bill that PERFECTLY, but there are plenty of other resurrection myths at loose in the world). But I don’t think any of them are lords or legends or liars or lunatics. I think they’re metaphors. That’s not a belief, either, because I have EVIDENCE. In the Greek/Egyptian/Mideastern/Eastern regions (which all happen to be at approximately the same distance from the equator), December 21st is the winter solstice (the shortest day, or the DEATH, of the year) and 3 days later the sun rises at the spot on the horizon where point the three stars that make up Orion’s Belt (referred to since antiquity as the “Three Kings”). So no, Rick, there are NOT only three possibilities concerning the identity Jesus. And you completely botched the LLL “argument,” I don’t know why you even brought it up because it’s irrelevant to your final point, which is moot because the accepted nomenclature is C.E. (common era) and B.C.E. (before common era). Bored now, done.
Hi Person. No I wasn’t saying that humans are not reluctant to die. You had said that the belief in an after-life was the result of a desire not to die. My point was that all animals (with the exception of ants that blow themselves up) do not choose death lightly. Neither do humans desire to die but there is a universal cultural belief in some kind of existence after-death. Animals simply exist and survive. There is no advancement or striving to progress. They just exist on instinct and continue on as their ancestors have before them. But humanity has always sought to improve and stretch the boundaries of what is to improve because of this indescribable awareness that life should be better. That craving for destiny is universal and exclusive to the human race (or at least far more pronounced in the human race).
All of that ties into this desire for an after-life. It cannot be explained by any evolutionary process and totally fits with a Christian worldview that God has placed within us that desire so we will search and find Him.
@cleophas “@Person and others. (mind my choices with words)” depends how bad it is “I so have pity” Boone ever wants to hear pity when being talked about -.- “for you saying you still need to see evidence” I do “before you can believe in your own creator” my parents created me so not hard but you mean god so no giving something a title and saying they’ve done good things doesn’t make me believe in something ”even after all the evidence you’ve seen or read.” what evidence has anyone provided of god I don’t remember any and didn’t read are former conversation just the post I missed ”What i think you need is not evidence,” I do so it doesn’t matter what you think on the subject ”i believe what you need is a very bad illness” that wouldn’t make me believe in an a god that loves me (not saying all loving as they would love watching me suffer from it) ”so bad that even the so much funded entities of science and innovations in this case can’t phantom” this might make me believe in a god but if this disease hurt me (even a little) I definitely wouldn’t believe in 1 that loved and could do most anything “and by then since you love your life so much” this part got me a little mad you have no idea what my life has/is like or whether I like it or hate it you know absolutely NOTHING about me besides that I don’t believe in your god “i believe you will be in the search for miracles” maybe it depends what the disease would do to me “because that’s how so many Hard Headed People like you” again made me a little mad, better to be hard headed than gullible “to Christianity became a believer having being healed.” if I turned to Christianity and was healed I’d be a believer unless it would take a year and was deformed in some way and was given something that was said to heal me but if I was starting to heal after I turned to christianity then stopped because I thought it was a coincidence then disease came back then I turned again then the disease started healing then I would believe “I should have shown you evidence” but you can’t “but i believe you don’t need it as you’ve already seen and read some of them.” well I haven’t so doesn’t matter what you think on the subject “Why not Google the reason why the holy Bible is the most read of all books,” which bible do you speak about? “We Christians will always continue to pray for people like you to come to the understanding” give me evidence and then I’ll believe “soon enough before it is too late.” not like anything will happen if I don’t “I should have giving you links of Amazing miracles of God today but i strongly believe you are not ready.” I’d have to know what these “miracles” are
@Jamie so sorry for being gone without explanation again, “Do you agree though, that as far as we can determine (which I agree does have limits because of our inability to know exactly what animals “believe” about an after-life) that humanity is unique in our world for our vision for something more, something better? Our passion for progress goes beyond what any other creature manifests” I think you might be right on this although I wouldn’t know for certain but I think your right ”and does not that reveal a universal awareness that there is more to our existence than what we have today?” I don’t think so it might be like personalities and languages it might have to do with more developed brains I don’t know though probably wrong “That is why I disagree that the common cultural component of a belief in the after-life can be explained a way as a “fear of dying”.” that’s a much better reason “All animals show a reluctance to die but only humans have this drive for something more, something better.” not all animals show a reluctance to die (there’s probably only been 1 “species” that’s happened in though a certain type of ant that blow themselves up) social animals will show no reluctance to die in certain situations such as mothers protecting their babies or a mother wolf starving themself after losing their child or dog losing it’s owner, and are you saying humans don’t show a reluctance to die? I’d say most humans show alot of reluctance to die…
I would love to hear your answers for these questions Drew. Why don’t you share that with all of us.
You are answering from logic, or your natural mind. These answers are not spiritual answers,from your spiritual mind. email me and l’ll help you access your spiritual mind, so you can become authentic, and not answering these people under a pretense. Jesus dude!
@Person and others. (mind my choices with words)
I so have pity for you saying you still need to see evidence before you can believe in your own creator even after all the evidence you’ve seen or read. What i think you need is not evidence, i believe what you need is a very bad illness so bad that even the so much funded entities of science and innovations in this case can’t phantom and by then since you love your life so much i believe you will be in the search for miracles because that’s how so many Hard Headed People like you to Christianity became a believer having being healed.
I should have shown you evidence but i believe you don’t need it as you’ve already
seen and read some of them. Why not Google the reason why the holy Bible is the most read of all books, read and search in dept and possibly you may find out how this book was inspired by the creator Himself through His prophets whom at certain points in their lives some before salvation argued against the doctrine of God and even killed to protect their earthly beliefs before they got saved. So you see you are not the first and surely would not be the last. We Christians will always continue to pray for people like you to come to the understanding soon enough before it is too late.
I should have giving you links of Amazing miracles of God today but i strongly believe you are not ready. I am just passing.
Thanks for the ‘rant warning’ :) I am sorry for the poor choice of words. Do you agree though, that as far as we can determine (which I agree does have limits because of our inability to know exactly what animals “believe” about an after-life) that humanity is unique in our world for our vision for something more, something better? Our passion for progress goes beyond what any other creature manifests and does not that reveal a universal awareness that there is more to our existence than what we have today? That is why I disagree that the common cultural component of a belief in the after-life can be explained a way as a “fear of dying”. All animals show a reluctance to die but only humans have this drive for something more, something better.
“eventual end of the cycle with a Utopia completion. That is not something that you see in the animal world (as much as we can understand their worldview). The lower forms of life simply exist and survive. There is no advancement or striving to progress. They just exist on instinct and continue on as their ancestors have before them. But humanity has always sought to improve and stretch the boundaries of what is to improve because of this indescribable awareness that life should be better. That craving for destiny is universal and exclusive to the human race (or at least far more pronounced in the human race).” before I go on my rant, what I quoted was all assumption -rant started- morally I don’t probably along with many others think that animals are a lower form of life I see certain animals as I see humans, a equal sometimes I see them higher, if you meant their less advanced then I’d say yes humans are probably the most advanced but we’d have to know how advanced certain animals are for what they do also koko the gorilla was able to be taught sign language when she was a year old that’s better than any 3 year old human I’ve heard of-rant over- “totally fits with a Christian worldview” It probably fits into other religions as well
Ahh, but the desire for an after-life goes beyond a fear of death. Universally this cultural concept of the after-life is for an idyllic existence. There is a sense of incompleteness here in this life that will be completed in the next life. Even those who have embraced the idea of re-incarnation see an eventual end of the cycle with a Utopia completion.
That is not something that you see in the animal world (as much as we can understand their worldview). The lower forms of life simply exist and survive. There is no advancement or striving to progress. They just exist on instinct and continue on as their ancestors have before them. But humanity has always sought to improve and stretch the boundaries of what is to improve because of this indescribable awareness that life should be better. That craving for destiny is universal and exclusive to the human race (or at least far more pronounced in the human race).
All of that ties into this desire for an after-life. It cannot be explained by any evolutionary process and totally fits with a Christian worldview that God has placed within us that desire so we will search and find Him.
I see what you mean I’d say that would be a desire not to die
Sorry, let me try that again: I understand that some religious beliefs came from a desire to explain something that people did not understand but that does not mean that they would automatically believe in life after death. Belief in a deity does not automatically assume life after death. Yet even cultures that do not worship a god (such as Buddhism) still include a hoped for existence beyond this life. Erwin McManus suggests that this universal craving for Destiny is part of God’s plan to lead humanity to seek and find Him.
Sleeping
That would explain their belief in gods but how does it explain their hope of life after death?
I’m sorry it took me so long to post I thought I posted something. Reason I brang up their lack of knowledge was because other ancient religions thought the gods where responsible for certain things but have been proven wrong. I’ll check out the link.
It’s nice to hear from you again Person. I’ve been going over our conversation to remind myself of what we have talked about so far and I noticed there was a problem with one of the links that I gave you. The proper link is The Inner Workings of the Cell If that doesn’t work you can follow the link to the Media Player on Focus on the Family’s site and search for “the inner workings of a cell”. The video is just under four minutes but does a great job of showing the complexity of life at the microscopic level. It is another evidence of the work of a Designer.
Pilate is one example of a person described in the Bible that some said did not exist yet subsequent archeological evidence has proven. King David is another, the Hittites were another, the Assyrian king Sargon, the Babylonian king Belshazzar, the military campaign of Egyptian Pharaoh Shishak into Israel, the siege of Lachish by Sennacherib, the existence of Jesus, etc. There are many such examples. I guess part of the reason why you don’t hear things being questioned is because they have been now proved true. But if you do a search on biblical archeology you will find many.
In regards to my point about how most cultures include a belief in an after-life, the issue is not that they have an accurate or consistent account of what the after-life is but that they all include it. It seems a bit simplistic to just say that their lack of scientific knowledge led them to believe in an after-life. The Bible says that God has placed in every human a desire eternity and the expression of that can be seen in the world-wide desire for meaning beyond the grave.
“From your perspective, what would be the nature or characteristics of that designer? Are there things that you could know about that designer from what has been designed?” sorry I may have meant creator but I don’t know what their characteristics are if there is one but the only evidence I can think of at the moment would be that the earth is in the perfect spot for life “As far as Pilate’s stone is concerned, I referenced that as one of the ways that the Bible was backed up by scientific discovery.” It backs up nothing in the bible just that whoever wrote that piece the writer was aware of the man the stone just proves the man existed “There have been many other Biblical characters, locations and events that have been questioned by scholars and critics only to be later backed up by archeological and historical research.” I haven’t heard about any events or locations questioned but later backed up ”We are creative like God. We don’t have His power but it is our nature to build and create so our work in life is a way that we reflect the nature of God” animals are creative as well and do the same ”We have a unique capacity for love that is unlike any other creature” Nope animals usually show emotions much stronger than humans anger they attack, “yell” etc., sadness they “cry” etc., you notice their happy in various ways, these emotion sometimes have something to do with 1s they love ”the default for all cultures seems to be an awareness of something after death. It doesn’t all look the same but every culture has had an expectation that there is more to the human experience beyond our death” all those cultures were made when humans didn’t know much about the world or solar system or space also this might have been caused by multiple thing 2 that come to mind are crazy people and dreams “It is only atheistic humanistic materialism that would say that death is final and even they encourage the ongoing memory and legacy of the individual” the reason only “atheistic humanistic materialism” think no life after death is because their not part of a religion but whether their the only ones who say it or not is irrelevant ”Even the selfless acts that we see in people are motivated by a selfish desire for recognition and self-promotion” no this not true for everyone and probably most people don’t assume something and then act like it’s fact ”having lost our connection with God we pursue all sorts of selfish, destructive means of fulfilling that potential and meeting the needs in our lives.” countries with the most atheist have lower crime rates
I am not sure I understand what you are saying here Daniel. I agree with your statement that God is everywhere at all times but I am not sure what you mean by the statement “There exists nothing in the universe other than God.” Are you implying that everything–me included–is God?
Immanence and transcendence. God is not only greater in scope than his/her creation, he also exists within every atom of his/her creation. Followed to its logical conclusion…..God is everywhere at all times. There exists nothing in the universe other than God. You might ask….then who am I? That is the crux of the matter. Who am I? Why do I exist? Have I been created?
Thanks for your participation here Lucinda. I sure hope I haven’t come across as disrespectful. As I look back on my comments I can see I used some strong language but that was not intended to be disrespectful.
Your opening statement on this site was a very interesting one. You said, “Personally I don’t believe in right or wrong or good or evil. There is also nothing in between.” I am not sure exactly what you mean by that. Are you saying that each one of us is able to create our own morals and no matter what we choose it is fine? What role do laws play in your understanding? What do you base that opinion on? I would like to be able to better understand your belief.
Hi Person, I am totally fine with your questions and comments. That is exactly what this site is for. As long as the conversation remains civil and safe for people to join in on there is no reason to stop.
I am glad you agree that our universe shows evidence of a designer. From your perspective, what would be the nature or characteristics of that designer? Are there things that you could know about that designer from what has been designed?
As far as Pilate’s stone is concerned, I referenced that as one of the ways that the Bible was backed up by scientific discovery. There was a point when historians doubted the existence of a man named Pilate who was the Roman Perfect over the province of Judea. However, during the archeological investigation of Caesarea Maritima a stone was found that dedicated the theater to Tiberius at the command of Pontius Pilate the Prefect of Judea (you can see a replica of the stone on this YouTube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMboFK0x5co). There have been many other Biblical characters, locations and events that have been questioned by scholars and critics only to be later backed up by archeological and historical research. All of these just continue to verify the historical accuracy of the Bible and compel one to take more seriously the message of the Bible and of Jesus Christ. Just to clarify, the dedication stone is not mentioned in the Bible, but it does corroborate the Bible’s testimony of the Roman official who presided over the trial of Jesus in Jerusalem.
When I refer to the human condition I am speaking about the nature of humanity; the metaphysical questions we have, the struggles we face with ourselves, and in relationships. I think the Bible’s description of human nature helps understand why we are the way we are. First of all, the Bible tells us that God has made us in His image giving us a unique place in the universe and in His created order. Not even angels have that unique relationship with God. So as Image Bearers we have attributes that resemble the attributes of God. Some examples are: 1) We are creative like God. We don’t have His power but it is our nature to build and create so our work in life is a way that we reflect the nature of God; 2) We are relational like God. We have a unique capacity for love that is unlike any other creature and when we love each other and God we resemble that aspect of His nature. Another huge part of being relational is that we have a unique capacity for relationship with God; ours is a relationship that is closer to God than any creature on earth or in Heaven, angels included; 3) We have authority like God. God has delegated us to have dominion over all the Earth and to lead all the creatures and created order in worship of God. Again, because of our unique relationship with God our worship of Him is unique and instructive for other parts of the created order; 4) We have a will like God. Our will subordinate to God’s sovereign will but we do have the freedom to make our own choices. There are other ways as well that we reflect the nature of God but in order to understand the human condition you first need to be aware that when humans were created we were given a wonderful gift of being the Image Bearers and that is best lived out in relationship with God.
But to also understand why humans are the way they are the Bible tells us that the Image of God we were given has been broken. Because we have chosen to rebel against God and separate ourselves from God we no longer clearly reflect God’s image. Thus our creativity becomes a burden and ultimately destructive. When we build and create it is with great difficulty and is done to build up ourselves rather than to bring proper attention to God. We also take advantage of our authority over nature and abuse the resources we have as we build and create. Our ability to relate to others, to the world around us and even to ourselves is dysfunctional because we have separated ourselves from relationship with God. So our love is self-serving and rather than selfless as God intended. Even the selfless acts that we see in people are motivated by a selfish desire for recognition and self-promotion. Our decisions and choices have become destructive and hurtful because we are choosing our own way rather than choosing to follow God’s path.
So the human condition is a combination of vestiges of the Image of God in our lives, having a sense within ourselves that there is something unique and special about who we are, but having lost our connection with God we pursue all sorts of selfish, destructive means of fulfilling that potential and meeting the needs in our lives. That is the angst that lives within all of us. Some people get frustrated, depressed and self-deprecating because of the unfulfilled potential. Others lash out and blame the society around them. Others give up and just live for themselves and pleasure doing whatever they think will give them satisfaction but never seem to find it. That’s how the Bible describes the problem of human nature and I have to say in my own mind, it is a pretty good fit to what I see around us.
As I have pointed out in some of the other comments to you though, God’s love for us refuses to leave us to the consequences of our human condition. Jesus Christ came to provide a way of remaking that Image of God in humans. He sets us free from the consequences of our rebellion against God and gives us His perfect nature. So our life on Earth becomes an opportunity to learn anew how to reflect the Image of God and to help others to discover for themselves the freedom that comes from surrender to God’s will and purpose. Our life in Heaven holds the hope (and I mean that as something we confidently have a certainty about) that we will live out eternity bearing the Image of God perfectly.
In regards to your question about life after death, I would disagree with you: the default for all cultures seems to be an awareness of something after death. It doesn’t all look the same but every culture has had an expectation that there is more to the human experience beyond our death. Animistic religions often talk about a paradise that is gained by all those who live well here on Earth. Buddhism strives for an ending of the endless cycles of reincarnation when Nirvana is achieved. Cultures that include veneration of ancestors hope to join their deceased fathers after death. It is only atheistic humanistic materialism that would say that death is final and even they encourage the ongoing memory and legacy of the individual. The Bible says that God has placed eternity in the hearts of all mankind, giving them an awareness that there is something more beyond the grave. The problem is not in the feeling that there is something more but it is knowing what life after death might be and whether or not I qualify for that. The Bible says that “these things are written so that you may KNOW that you have eternal life.” (1John 5:13) A follower of Jesus has that confidence because their hope is not based in what they do but in what Jesus has done on our behalf and the promise that He has made: “For God the world so much, that He gave His Son so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) Those words were spoken by Jesus Himself, and so it is a promise that you can have absolute confidence in.
Does that answer your questions Person?
Hope the best for you to Lucinda :)
Yes, you are correct that we should share our beliefs if we are expected to grow. I allready did that when I first posted here. That is how we grow together in harmony. Nobody is going to agree with everyones religious beliefs. Be it Buddhist, Wiccan, Hindu, New Age or Christian. I myself am a New Age Spiritualist. I have come across many Christians who do not respect my beliefs as a New Age Spiritualist but that is ok. I do understand that they feel very strongly about their beliefs and they are very concerned that I am a horrible sinner. As much as I don’t believe in the word “sin” or believe in “satan” or “hell” I do understand where they are coming from and am willing to walk away.
I do respect what you are doing Person and I shouldn’t make judgements on you. Maybe this is a growing process for you to learn more about a belief system that you need more info about.
It was a wonderful growing opportunity for myself and thankyou for sharing your beliefs with me. I wish you all well and blessings to you all here! :)
Lucinda
@luci999 “you obviously had not read my post carefully.”correct I probably mixed together yours and angels, I’ll reply to your other post now, “why do you want questions answered concerning evidence of the christian god if you are not christian and you don’t believe in the christian god to begin with” I don’t remember asking any questions concerning evidence of the christian god but if I have say what I asked, ”I simply asked you why you are debating the existance of God.” I don’t remember anyone doing that, “The thing I am wondering is do you even read posts that others are posting and are only reading parts of it.” I read the entire post then reply I read your’s and angel’s which is why I probably messed up when replying to your’s, ”It’s not about proving who’s right and who’s wrong, it’s about learning and growing together” I agree with you but if you expect to grow you should share your believes with each other with a world full of misunderstanding how do you expect to move forward
@angels if I had read correctly you suffer from a mental disorder? Are you receiving help for your condition? My aunt suffers from Bipolar disorder but is under psychiatric care. I don’t really think you should concern yourself with debates. They can be heated and with this disorder you suffer from it could cause you great emotional upset. I have been trying to think of a way to tell you this without upsetting you. Hun, it doesn’t really matter whether scientists lie or not. In my personal opinion there really isn’t any evidence that they have lied. But as I have stated I wouldn’t concern yourself with these debates. As I have stated to Person debates are pointless. They are really not to our benefit.
@Person you obviously had not read my post carefully. I simply asked you why you are debating the existance of God. I didn’t state or ask anything about debating evolution vs creation. The thing I am wondering is do you even read posts that others are posting and are only reading parts of it. Religion is something I think that is pointless to debate about. If you don’t agree with someone has stated than just tell them that you appreciated them sharing their faith with you. It’s not about proving who’s right and who’s wrong, it’s about learning and growing together. If you would like to debate something or take a stand on something I think you should use your energy on something that benefits and helps others. Something that means something to you.
Jaimie, it is exactly what I had suspected. I appreciate your input on your beliefs and thankyou for sharing your faith with me. Don’t agree with it all but I do appreciate you sharing with me. We can all learn from each other and grow together.
Let’s try to make the world a much more peaceful and loving place for us to grow and live in. We allready live in a chaotic world that is so fast paced and changing. We should be able to accept each others differences.
@Jamie also I’m not listening to 26 minutes of a person talk, how much more things like the Pilate stone have been found?, if you ever want me to stop posting tell me and I will
@Jamie there’s evidence towards a designer not specifically the Christian god, What does the Pilate stone have to do with the bible is it mentioned or was the guy just mentioned?, what does the bible say about the human condition and what do you mean by human condition?, I don’t think it would take a leap of faith to believe there’s nothing after death I’d say that’s the default but I’m not sure would a person who never heard of the idea of life after death believe it or not when questioned about it I don’t know how that would work it could be life is after death as the default because when you sleep I guess do you see what I’m saying how I think it’s confusing?
There is an abundance of evidence for the existence of God and His activity in the world. On one level you look at the inherent design in the function of nature and you are hard pressed to explain how it happened/happens by chaotic accident. Have a look at this depiction of the inner-workings of a cell. http://www.focusonthefamily.com/popups/media_player.aspx?MediaId={DE439712-44F5-4AD5-957A-6BD883345A1D} This is not make-believe but it is the result of the development of scientific study and technological developments. How could such precision, mind-boggling transfer of information and miniscule size have happened by chance?
That design is not only seen on a micro level but also on a macro level when we consider the universe. There are more than 30 different parameters of the laws of nature that require very precise calibration. If they were altered just slightly it would be impossible to have a life-producing planet like Earth. The statistical odds that each of these parameters are exactly where they need to be by accident are astronomical. The best explanation is an Intelligent Designer who fine-tuned all of these to create life on Earth.
Add to that the preponderance of archaeological finds that consistently support the historical accuracy of the Bible. One such find is the Pilate Stone. Prior to its discovery there was no record of Pontius Pilate the Prefect of Judea who presided over the trial of Jesus. Some scholars said no such man existed but the inscribed stone at the theater in Caesarea Maritima validated that part of the Bible’s description of Jesus’ life.
Along with that, as I have pointed out before, is the precise fulfillment of biblical prophecy that is often hundreds of years prior to the actual event.
One of the compelling evidences for me is the accurate description given in the Bible of the human condition and the unique solution given. I know I have touched on this in previous posts but let me just say again, all other religions, worldviews and belief systems encourage their adherents to make themselves morally better through their own efforts. Christianity is the only one in which God makes salvation possible because humans are incapable on their own. We need God’s intervention, not our own flawed efforts.
On their own perhaps these and all the other evidences of God is not completely compelling. But taken together the God of the Bible becomes the most realistic explanation. Yes, it will take a step of faith but so does every other worldview, even believing that there is neither design nor designer and that there is nothing after we die.
And after choosing to put your trust in Jesus and living life with your attention fully focused on Him you will grow to know Him as friend and Lord and there will be no need for any other proof than that. Are you willing to open yourself up to Him?
Hi Luci999, I appreciate your participation in the discussion here. You are right, the purpose of this site is to give people a chance to talk about their beliefs and to have a discussion about Christianity. Our hope is that as people discover the truth of Jesus Christ they will accept that truth and become His followers. But that doesn’t mean people can’t disagree with what is being written here. I think debate is a valuable process for discovering truth. If we never shared what we thought was truth how would truth be spread to others? Isn’t that a big part of learning and education?
You have made a number of statements here that I don’t agree with but there are some that are just plain wrong. First of all you say that everyone has their own concept of what God is, each equally fine. That would be true if there were no God and that belief in Him was only a psychological crutch. But if there really is a God to say that everybody’s concept of Him is equally fine would be like saying that everybody has their own concept of the Sun and even though they are all different each one is equally valid. There are things that are true about the Sun and things that are false. Some of those true things, if they are ignored can end up being very destructive. If the God of the Bible is real and His warnings of the destructiveness of ignoring His plan an purpose for our life are true than to tell people that they can think whatever they want about God would be a very deceptive and destructive piece of advice.
Another statement that you have made is that Jesus was a mystic who had no intention of people turning His beliefs into a religion. Some of the last words that Jesus spoke were, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19) It would seem that He was expecting His followers to spread His message everywhere. He also said, “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the Earth.” (Acts 1:8)
Also to claim that Jesus was just a mystic is to ignore specific things He said about Himself. Statements like “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to God except through me.” (John 14:6) He also said that He is the Son of God, “The high priest said to him, ‘I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.’ ‘Yes, it is as you say,’ Jesus replied.” (Matthew 26:63-64) Now Jesus actually was telling the truth and is who He said He was or He was a liar or insane. There is no way that you can take His words and say that He was a wise man who deserves to be listened to but not worshipped. Please don’t let yourself be fooled or deceive other people: reject Him if you don’t believe His claims about Himself or take seriously all that He said if you are going to accept any of it. His words do not let you have an in-between.
@Jamie I don’t believe because I havn’t seen any evidence and if you have any feel free to sheer, I thought you said bible said things before science or something like that I might be wrong, I’ll look at the site later
@angel I don’t know how the earth came to be I don’t think evolution says how I’m pretty sure it basically just says animal’s have changed over time, whats the evidence to support creation?, I’ll ask again what are some lies scientist have said-if you ignore this question I’ll ignore everything you say @luci999 I didn’t ask for any evidence of god or speak on evelution angel wants to debate evolution vs creation and I am asking questions because people say some things about Christianity that I disagree with and think are unlogical and wanted to know if Christians believe them or there belief says it
You are right Person, you need to believe that God exists before you can accept that He has offered life to you through His Son Jesus. So why don’t you believe that there is a God who created all things and who loves you enough to send His Son to die in your place?
I don’t know what lengths God went to in order to give Gandhi every opportunity to accept the gift of life from Jesus but I do know that God says that it is His desire than no one should suffer eternal separation from Him (2Peter 3:9) and that He reveals His truth to everyone so that nobody has an excuse (Romans 1:20). I also know that all of humanity is given this one life and then they face the judgment for the choices they made here in that life (Hebrews 9:27). So Gandhi’s eternal destiny was determined by his choice in this life.
In regards to your question about Catholicism, it is Christian. It is true that there are those who call themselves Christian but are trusting in things other than the sacrifice of Jesus to make them right with God. Many in the Catholic church are trusting in the mediation of Mary to facilitate a connection with Jesus. There is no support for that position in the Bible. There are also many in Catholic churches and other churches who think that their attendance/membership in a church means that they are a follower of Jesus. Or they may be trying to live a good life in order for Jesus to accept them. Or they may give money to a church in order to buy their salvation. All of these are false attempts and fall short of God’s glorious standard of perfection. The only way that someone can come to God is by trusting in the gift that Jesus offers.
Unfortunately there is much in the traditions of the Catholic church that confuse people and facilitate their attempts at trusting other things rather than Jesus alone. That was why the Protestant Reformation happened. There was a widespread belief that the Catholic church had gotten away from the truth of the Gospel of Jesus and drew people away from faith in Jesus rather than towards faith in Jesus. Today, some of those Protestant churches have also developed traditions that deceive people to think that they can gain acceptance from God by things other than trusting in Jesus alone. That is why it is so important for everyone to understand the message of the Good News of Jesus as it is presented in the Bible and ask that God lead them into His truth and protect them from the lies that can lead a person astray.
I am not exactly certain what you are looking for in your final question Person. You see the Bible is not a science textbook and is not written to give scientific proofs. However there are statements made in the Bible that are substantiated by scientific discovery. I found a site that has looked at a number of scientific fields and shown how the Bible has made statements that modern science has corroborated. http://www.clarifyingchristianity.com/science.shtml#001
Personally I don’t believe in right or wrong or good or evil. There is also nothing in between. Everyone has a different concept on what right or wrong is.
I also don’t believe in organized religion. Religion is a control factor to steal ones hard earned money instead of putting food in their childrens mouths. How many people have been scammed by the likes of Benny Hinn, Peter Poppoff and other televangelists.
I also believe that love and hate are equally healthy. Hate brings forth many rewards to our benefits. I also don’t believe in turning the other cheek. If someone hits me I will defend myself. Christianity teaches us to be bullied and weak and not think for ourselves. I am my own person and can think for myself and make decisions on my own.
I don’t really understand what the whole debate is about. If you believe something stand for it. Don’t debate about it. Debates are absolutely pointless and get you nowhere. It leads to heated arguements and hostility.
I also believe that hell is here on earth and created in our own minds. Terrible atrocities have happened in the name of religion and science. In my own opinion evolution has become a religion to those who adhere to it.
Everyone has their own concept of what god is. Each is equally fine and everyone has a right to their own beliefs and practices as long as it is not pushed or forced on and other. There are many thought provoking ideas taken from the bible that I think we can all use in our lives but I certainly wouldn’t use it as a “rod of truth”. It’s just not logical. Like the fact that I must love everyone. I will not love a child molestor or a murderer or those who hurt others for their own use.
I believe in Jesus but I believe he was a mystic and a very misunderstood person. I certainly do not think he intended for individuals to turn his beliefs into a religion. I do believe he was executed not for sin or wrong doing of others but because people found his ideas very controversial. He sounded more like a fun-loving hippy of his day.
@Person, why do you want questions answered concerning evidence of the christian god if you are not christian and you don’t believe in the christian god to begin with or have no intention of believing their beliefs or practices. Like I said, debates a useless. If you believe something, stand for it! It makes no logical sense to me. Believing in god or gods is a hard thing to prove. As they are someting we cannot see.
The only reason for this page is for proselytising purposes. Converting those who are not christian to their religous practices. If my assumption is not correct please correct me on this issue.
Also, what Jaimie thinks is no concern of mine either! Catch my drift! Do you comprehend! Got the point! If you need spiritual answers so badly, go speak to someone who is an expert in Christian theology.
I’m not debating evolution. I asked you a simple question and you don’t seem to know much about evolution either since you don’t seem to answer my questions! No, I am not an expert on evolution nor do I want to believe a lie that I was monkey. I asked you if you want the proof of God explain CREATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Geez, this will lead me to drink!
@angel I never said it’s ok I said it doesn’t matter I don’t approve of it, it’s irrelevant how they prove something as long as they prove something just because you don’t like the way their doing it doesn’t make it relevant if we were saying whether their morals are bad then it would be relevant and whether you accept it or not scientists have gave much evidence towards many things Jamie would you agree?, please state some lies scientist have said, I highly doubt you know much to anything about evolution, I don’t have to prove anything i didnt assert anything and your assuming god did it thats called god of the gaps, why do you want to debate evolution so badly?
@Jamie I see what your saying but I should also say you can’t accept something you don’t believe or think exist, unless Jesus or god goes to you when you die then ghandi got sent to hell, what’s the difference between Christianity and catholicism?, would you mind quoting the bible of things it said before science proved it?
I find it very interesting that it is ok that scientists lie to people. I hate when people lie because liars cannot be trusted. I also cannot justify the harm scientists do to others and animals which brings me to the point that I am glad that I am a Christian. I also don’t think it’s irrelivant that scientists harm hurt or maim human beings and animals. It is a matter that needs to be brought forth to the SPCA and animal cruelty charges should be laid against them. In my opinion scientists have proven nothing to me. Evolution itself is just a THEORY! THEORY is NOT proof. If you are not debating evolution than you just have. You believe what scientist justify.
But to your question about the proof of existance of God? Explain how the planet earth became into being without the evolution garbage. Something IS NOT created from nothing.
Ok, I see what you are saying. The answer is “Yes”. No one is a follower of Jesus because they live a good life. The reason is, no one is able to live perfectly. We all have an in-born tendency to want to do things our own way rather than following what God has created us for. God says, “And the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as the person who has broken all of God’s laws.” (James 2:10) To rebel against God even once still makes you a rebel. And the reality is, even the best person has gone their own way far more than just once.
You see God is perfect and His perfection does not allow for any imperfection. One of Jesus followers wrote, “God is light and there is no darkness in him at all. So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness.” (1John 1:5) Our inherited tendency to do things our own way rather than God’s way means that we cannot exist in God’s presence. It is impossible. The Bible tells us that we all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glorious standard of perfection (Romans 3:23) It also informs us that the result of that sin is spiritual death–separation from God (Romans 6:23). So that is our destiny–our persistence in choosing our own way rather than following God’s way is a sin against an infinite God. The consequence of that sin is an infinite penalty–separation from God forever. But because Jesus as both human–so He could represent us–and God–so He could offer an infinite sacrifice–allowed Himself to die in our place He paid an infinite price on our behalf. He was perfect and did not deserve death, but He took on our imperfection and in exchange gave to us His perfection. So humans now have the opportunity to enter into the presence of God and all His brilliant light because through Jesus we are now perfect (2Corinthians 5:21).
So that’s why good people like Ghandi, Mother Theresa, and you are not going to be able to enter the presence of God on your own good life. The only way you can enter into the light of God is if you have accepted the perfection of Jesus. I don’t know if Ghandi or Mother Theresa are in the presence of God right now because I don’t know if they had accepted Jesus’ offer of His perfection. You, however, have said that you don’t believe God exists so I am pretty certain that you have not accepted the perfection of Jesus for yourself. If you die without receiving that gift He is offering to you, you will be separated from God for all eternity.
So how does a person escape that destiny of destruction? “Yet to all who received him [Jesus], to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God– children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.” (John 1:12-13) Jesus said, “The Son of Man [Jesus] must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:14-18) So you do need to believe that Jesus is God and that He came to Earth as a human in order to take our imperfection on Himself and offer to us His perfection. If you believe that then it is easy to believe that He could walk on the water because He is the One who made the water and He is able to exercise His sovereignty over all He has created. But don’t focus on that. Instead focus on believing who He is and what He has done for you. All the rest of it then falls in place.
Does that make sense to you?
@Jamie “ya I think it does so if what your saying is true then ghandi, me and other good people that didn’t/don’t believe in the Christian god?” I meant to put ya I think it does so if what your saying is true then ghandi, me and other good people that didn’t/don’t believe in the Christian god would/will go to hell? I understand why you’d be confused by that the first time I said it wording was wrong and didn’t have whole question
@angel no I’m not looking for a debate on evolution vs creation I would of started it already back when I asked if bible says/implies earth was created 6,000 years ago, I’m debating some questions that you answer and I didn’t agree with and about lack of evidence all of you keep saying am I going to turn to god or something like that so instead of just saying no I said no because lack of evidence, I don’t think it matters if scientist lie because most of the things they say can be proven and it’s irrelevant whether they experiment on animals or not it’s bad yes but irrelevant @Jamie I agree if god exist he’s very powerful and know alot more than anyone will ever know, making a rock too heavy is a paradox my statement was not, “ya I think it does so if what your saying is true then ghandi, me and other good people that didn’t/don’t believe in the Christian god?”this was about hell from what you said “you have to believe in the Christian in order to reject him” this is separate, I never said god you have to believe in him so he exist I’m saying you can’t reject something you don’t think exist I’m sure you don’t believe in Allah I don’t know whether or not he says you have to accept his love or not but let’s say he does your not rejecting Allah’s love you don’t even think he’s real do you see what I mean?, I’m very ignorant on the bible so would you mind showing me quotes of some of the things the bible said first, would I be able to become a Christian even I didn’t believe in god or jesus walking on water?
Sorry Person, I did misread your statement. However, I don’t agree that you have proven that all-knowing and all-powerful is a paradox either. Your proof–”it’s a fact if you created the universe and knew everything that was going to happen then that would happen you wouldn’t be able to change anything because you would know every event that would happen and if any of the events were to change that would mean they don’t know everything”–is similar to the question “Could God make a rock so big that He couldn’t lift it?” The claim then is that God is not all-powerful because if He can’t make such a large rock than He has limits but if He can’t lift it then He has limits. It is foolish question that totally misses the awesomeness of God. If God has created the entire universe in the way described in the Bible you have to admit that is very powerful. The fact that God has known from the very beginning all that would transpire on Earth and has proved it time and again by describing future events long before they ever happened proves that His knowledge is incomparable. I guess to quell the foolish questions it would be better to define omniscience (all-knowing) and omnipotence (all-powerful) as knowing more than anyone or anything and being more powerful than anyone or anything. I don’t know if that captures the fullness of God’s power and knowledge but hopefully it allows us to get past the foolishness and realize that God is far greater than anyone and deserves our respect and worship.
I am a little bit confused by your statement “ya I think it does so if what your saying is true then ghandi, me and other good people that didn’t/don’t believe in the Christian god? you have to believe in the Christian in order to reject him” You do not have to believe in God for Him to exist. He exists whether you believe that He does or not. The fact that you refuse to believe in Him despite all the evidence that He has given you is your rejection of Him.
You say that you will not believe in God until you have seen evidence that He exists. I would suggest that He has given you ample evidence that He does exist, that He is interested in you and that He loves you. The evidence is there but you choose to look for other explanations for that evidence or deny that evidence is there. If you were being truly honest with yourself you would have to admit that you don’t accept the evidence because of the implications that would have for your life. If you acknowledged that God was real you would no longer be able to live life on your own terms. You would have to acknowledge that as your Creator God has the authority to determine the purpose of your life, the morals of your life and that is something you are not willing to surrender.
Unfortunately, your refusal to acknowledge God’s authority as your Creator and your attempts to determine the purpose and destiny of your life is destroying you. It is like a boat, built to float in the water, deciding that it does not want to do what it was created for but instead it wants to be a land vehicle. But the more that the boat scrapes along the ground the thinner the hull gets until it is finally destroyed. God has made you to be in relationship with Him. The longer you fight against that and try to live your life as if He isn’t there, the more pain and suffering you will experience until eventually you will be utterly destroyed. Hell is that ultimate destruction–forever experiencing the reality of your choice to live without God.
I don’t say these things to you because I want to make you feel bad. I say these things because if you don’t hear them you may continue full-speed ahead toward that destruction and not stop to consider if there is a better way. There is a better way my friend. It is the way for which you were created. It involves trusting the one who created you and embracing His purpose for your life. It involves acknowledging that you have turned your back on Him. It involves asking for His help to set you on His path.
Jesus has already put all of the pieces together to make your life into something new and beautiful. He is offering that to you right now. You don’t have to measure up to receive it but watch out! As soon as you accept it He is going to transform you and you will start making completely different choices. I promise you it is life as it should be. It is not an easy life. It is not a pain-free life. But you will know, “This is what I was made for!”
Are you ready to take that step of faith and trust in God alone rather than trusting in yourself?
In the name of science thousands of animals are subjected to untold cruelty. Experiments being done on them and held in small cages. In the name of science human beings are lab rats and test subjects on drugs and therapys that could cause much danger to them. In the name of science, Dr. Gunther von Hagens discovered plastination and today we have bodies held on display for peoples amusment.
Not all human beings have much faith in science. Scientists lie to people and have led many to turn to alternative methods because of the mistrust they have in science.
Person, I hate to burst you bubble but religion and belief in an unseeing God or in the pagan world “gods” has been here much longer than atheism. I know all too well about the brain chemistry. I myself am a sufferer from a mental illness.
I guess the question I have for you is…are you trying to start a debate because of your lack of evidence about God? If that’s the case my mental wellbeing is not capabale of undertaking that. If you have no intentions of receiving answers you are given by the people that have posted here I would have to second guess you are looking for a debate on evolution vs creation and the existance of God!
God bless you Jaimie for undertaking this task. You are very patient indeed!
That last post was directed at angel. @Jamie you misread what I said I didn’t say I proved all powerful and loving I said I proved powerful and knowing, sorry I was thinking of unconditional love, ya I think it does so if what your saying is true then ghandi, me and other good people that didn’t/don’t believe in the Christian god? you have to believe in the Christian in order to reject him, you have answered my questions well but until I have seen evidence will not believe in god
That last post was directed at angel. @Jamie you misread what I said I didn’t say I proved all powerful and loving I said I proved powerful and knowing, sorry I was thinking of unconditional love, ya I think it does so if what your saying is true then ghandi, me and other good people that didn’t/don’t believe in the Christian god? you have to believe in the Christian in order to reject him, you have answered my questions well but until I have seen evidence will not believe in god