Recruiting Forum Off-Topic Thread II

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#9,301
#9,301
What do I lose through my faith in God and Jesus? Nothing. I really lose nothing. If I die and am wrong then I have lost nothing either. If I die and there is nothing else then I am just dead. However, if I am right, and there is an afterlife then I have gained everything. I'll continue my faith in God and Jesus. It's like gambling with the house's money. If I lose it then, oh well. If I win, though.... eternity in the presence of God sounds like an eternity that I want to be a part of.
 
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#9,302
#9,302
Glitch said:
What do I lose through my faith in God and Jesus? Nothing. I really lose nothing. If I die and am wrong then I have lost nothing either. If I die and there is nothing else then I am just dead. However, if I am right, and there is an afterlife then I have gained everything. I'll continue my faith in God and Jesus. It's like gambling with the house's money. If I lose it then, oh well. If I win, though.... eternity in the presence of God sounds like an eternity that I want to be a part of.
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That has always been the best argument for belief and makes total sense...I have wrestled with that very thought. I guess the biggest thing that bugs me is the countless others past present and future who have never truly been given the opportunity to freely make that choice. I cannot believe in a benevolent power that would let that happen.
 
#9,303
#9,303
bignewt said:
A Buddhist monk, a child in Africa, a Muslim teenage girl in Afghanistan, an untouchable 21 year old in India...
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Those questions have troubled people for generations. Nobody can answer those for you because we cannot understand the complexity of God's plan for this earth. I don't know how He handles those situations where a person has little or no opportunity to hear the Gospel but I trust that He has a way to redeem those people that are worthy of redemption.

2 Peter 3:9
"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

God does not operate on an earthly timeline. He has eternity. His plan is impossible for human comprehension but He wants all of His children to be redeemed to Him. All of them.
 
#9,304
#9,304
Glitch said:
What do I lose through my faith in God and Jesus? Nothing. I really lose nothing. If I die and am wrong then I have lost nothing either. If I die and there is nothing else then I am just dead. However, if I am right, and there is an afterlife then I have gained everything. I'll continue my faith in God and Jesus. It's like gambling with the house's money. If I lose it then, oh well. If I win, though.... eternity in the presence of God sounds like an eternity that I want to be a part of.
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You're also making that bet against a number of other religions as well though (or at least the ones with a heaven/hell)

The options aren't really "belief in God vs nonbelief." It's more like "nonbelief vs belief in Christianity (and perhaps even vs various certain subsets of it) vs Buddhism vs Hinduism vs Islam vs Shinto vs Taoism, etc."
 
#9,305
#9,305
bignewt said:
That has always been the best argument for belief and makes total sense...I have wrestled with that very thought. I guess the biggest thing that bugs me is the countless others past present and future who have never truly been given the opportunity to freely make that choice. I cannot believe in a benevolent power that would let that happen.
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You are trying to apply human thought processes and timelines to an eternal being. That is where we often mess up. Maybe God allows for do overs? I don't know. Maybe those people in remote jungle areas that never hear about God get a chance to come back to hear the word. Maybe God has given each of us countless chances to find the truth and we have messed them all up? Like I said, we cannot fathom eternity with our limited mental capacity. Our lives are based on a limited timeline. Many Christians may not follow me on this train of thought but I like to believe that God would not condemn a person that never had the opportunity to know Jesus or even God. I may be completely wrong but I feel God's love in my life and it doesn't feel like a love that would condemn a soul that never had a decent chance to know the truth.

It doesn't change my belief that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the light. It doesn't change my belief that Jesus is the way to heaven because He has redeemed my sins. I still believe all of those things and live each day with the knowledge that I will be able to bask in His eternal glory when I die. However, it gives me hope that people that don't believe, are on the fence, or believe in God but not Jesus will maybe still have that opportunity. Again, if I am wrong then so be it. It doesn't change my sense of urgency to live my life faithfully and not have to endure another lifetime on earth instead of eternity in paradise.
 
#9,306
#9,306
Darth_Shiveman said:
You're also making that bet against a number of other religions as well though (or at least the ones with a heaven/hell)

The options aren't really "belief in God vs nonbelief." It's more like "nonbelief vs belief in Christianity (and perhaps even vs various certain subsets of it) vs Buddhism vs Hinduism vs Islam vs Shinto vs Taoism, etc."
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How many of those mentioned believe in reincarnation? Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism for sure, out of those you listed. If I am wrong but have lived a good life, then based on those faiths, I will simply come back somewhere else as someone else. However, if I am right about Jesus, then I am bound for paradise. If Islam is right or a religion that does not believe in reincarnation then I guess I am in trouble, but God/Jesus has blessed me beyond measure and I have seen Him work miracles in my life. I will put all my chips with God/Jesus and live my life without fear of being wrong.
 
#9,307
#9,307
Most of our founding fathers, including the guys that you would write down first if asked to name the founding fathers, were deists who retained Christian practice as was common among educated folk at the time.

Christian deism, for those of you keeping score, is typically defined as believing in the moral teachings of Jesus without believing that he was divine.

The United States Constitution is a secular document with no references to Jesus or Christianity.
 
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#9,308
#9,308
bignewt said:
That has always been the best argument for belief and makes total sense...I have wrestled with that very thought. I guess the biggest thing that bugs me is the countless others past present and future who have never truly been given the opportunity to freely make that choice. I cannot believe in a benevolent power that would let that happen.
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Read the Pantheon series by James Lovegrove. I think that would best answer your "why doesn't God intervene" question
 
#9,309
#9,309
Glitch said:
How many of those mentioned believe in reincarnation? Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism for sure, out of those you listed. If I am wrong but have lived a good life, then based on those faiths, I will simply come back somewhere else as someone else. However, if I am right about Jesus, then I am bound for paradise. If Islam is right or a religion that does not believe in reincarnation then I guess I am in trouble, but God/Jesus has blessed me beyond measure and I have seen Him work miracles in my life. I will put all my chips with God/Jesus and live my life without fear of being wrong.
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You going up against that 40 virgins thing Islam got rockin'...good luck.
 
#9,310
#9,310
bignewt said:
You going up against that 40 virgins thing Islam got rockin'...good luck.
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I have a wife and three daughters. My life is filled with drama from sun up to sun down. Why in the world would I ever want 40 virgins? No thanks. They would be better off promising no women and a 80" TV to watch sports on in a room that no women can access.
 
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#9,311
#9,311
Glitch said:
What do I lose through my faith in God and Jesus? Nothing. I really lose nothing. If I die and am wrong then I have lost nothing either. If I die and there is nothing else then I am just dead. However, if I am right, and there is an afterlife then I have gained everything. I'll continue my faith in God and Jesus. It's like gambling with the house's money. If I lose it then, oh well. If I win, though.... eternity in the presence of God sounds like an eternity that I want to be a part of.
Click to expand...

But not just that, I love being a Christian NOW! I love being in a relationship with my LORD, which allows me to be free from worry, doubt, stress, etc., etc! And following after Jesus, keeps me accountable in my other relationships. I don't drink, smoke, do drugs, chase women, etc., etc. This, I believe, makes me a better person here on earth!
No offense to anyone who participates in these activities! lol
 
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#9,312
#9,312
WhiteOakVol said:
But not just that, I love being a Christian NOW! I love being in a relationship with my LORD, which allows me to be free from worry, doubt, stress, etc., etc! And following after Jesus, keeps me accountable in my other relationships. I don't drink, smoke, do drugs, chase women, etc., etc. This, I believe, makes me a better person here on earth!
No offense to anyone who participates in these activities! lol
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This is true. I love the person that I am through my relationship with Jesus. I think I am a better person because I think about my actions more before I do them. Sure, I mess up and don't treat people right all the time but I try to apologize and make it right when I mess up.
 
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#9,313
#9,313
Glitch said:
How many of those mentioned believe in reincarnation? Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism for sure, out of those you listed. If I am wrong but have lived a good life, then based on those faiths, I will simply come back somewhere else as someone else. However, if I am right about Jesus, then I am bound for paradise. If Islam is right or a religion that does not believe in reincarnation then I guess I am in trouble, but God/Jesus has blessed me beyond measure and I have seen Him work miracles in my life. I will put all my chips with God/Jesus and live my life without fear of being wrong.
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You can look it up, but yesterday, in the year 632, Mohammed died. He is still dead today!
But Jesus Christ died, and then rose again three days later, and will live forevermore!
 
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#9,314
#9,314
Darth_Shiveman said:
Again, you inferred that. I called Bass's belief that only he and those agree with him have access to truth a dangerous and closed minded belief. But I never called or implied anyone here was stupid. I'm sorry if you took that from my words. But it seems like reading differing opinions just angers you in general.



1. No, I'm not forced to follow it. But when my tax dollars go towards maintaining a piece of government tax dollars that condemns me for having different beliefs, there's a problem there. You won't admit this, but you'd feel the same way if your local courthouse put up the buddhist/islamic/hindu equivalent of the ten commandments and used your tax dollars to pay for it.

2. Our constitution says the government won't favor one religion over another. I know our founding fathers were mostly all christian (though there were some who had borderline hippy-ish views of christianity and a few oddball deists and non-religious folk among them...the assertion some try to make nowadays that they were all deists is pseudo-history not based in fact). IMO that makes the fact that they had the sense to throw in the establishment clause that much more admirable and ingenious.


Your type? LOL

Dude, I don't really care about the ten commandments being in front of a courthouse that much (especially if it's something old that has been there for decades and is part of a town's history and culture) personally because it doesn't affect me. It's as much of a non-issue to me as Wal-Mart putting up "Happy Holidays" signs or Starbucks not making red cups for Christmas.

But I do think acknowledge that, legally speaking, the people who are against it have the stronger argument.


FTR, I do think the cake thing was BS as well. We don't need a law for that and should just let society self-censure businesses who are intolerant the good old fashioned way: by not giving them business if their practices bother you.
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I think it's blatantly obvious you are a Christian hater. You've already said you looked forward to when there were less Christians. I'll pray for you.
 
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#9,315
#9,315
You young guys, that are doing it right, I have mad respect for. Keep spreading the gospel. Keep defending your right to outwardly display your faith. You make me proud. I guess Darth will have to wait another couple of generations for all the Christians will die off.
 
#9,316
#9,316
InVOLuntary said:
I think it's blatantly obvious you are a Christian hater. You've already said you looked forward to when there were less Christians. I'll pray for you.
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I think it's obvious that you lack the appropriate demeanor and conviction in your own beliefs to be involved in a reasonable discussion about something you don't believe. You are part of the problem. I'll pray for you.
 
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#9,317
#9,317
delfonic said:
I think it's obvious that you lack the appropriate demeanor and conviction in your own beliefs to be involved in a reasonable discussion about something you don't believe. You are part of the problem. I'll pray for you.
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I don't think that is it at all. We each have different gifts and ways to advance the Kingdom. Maybe InVol is not gifted in this manner but maybe he is meant to spread God's love and word in other ways. Nick and his family are missionaries and live in a part of the world where Christianity is not the major religion but they are there doing the work. I don't think that I and my family are meant for or cut out for that type of the Lord's work. We each have our gifts and shouldn't be upset if we have one gift and are lacking in another. We should find how we are most useful to God and do that with all of our heart.
 
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#9,318
#9,318
delfonic said:
I think it's obvious that you lack the appropriate demeanor and conviction in your own beliefs to be involved in a reasonable discussion about something you don't believe. You are part of the problem. I'll pray for you.
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Why because I take offense to someone that says he can't wait till all the Christians die off? He's not made one argument about his lack of belief but has repeatedly defended the policies that take away the rights if Christians. Your part of the problem because you side with his right to remove any all reference to Christianity in both public and private businesses. No one here has attacked his right to not believe so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect the same in return.
 
#9,320
#9,320
What do the animal rights groups do in this situation? That mean ole python is killing goats but then the mean man blows the python's brains out? Do their heads explode or do they just go into the fetal position and start rocking back and forth?

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7mkDaEhcIQ[/youtube]
 
#9,323
#9,323
Glitch said:
What do the animal rights groups do in this situation? That mean ole python is killing goats but then the mean man blows the python's brains out? Do their heads explode or do they just go into the fetal position and start rocking back and forth?

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7mkDaEhcIQ[/youtube]
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That's some good eating and also every python in the Everglades needs to be exterminated
 
#9,325
#9,325
Glitch said:
What do the animal rights groups do in this situation? That mean ole python is killing goats but then the mean man blows the python's brains out? Do their heads explode or do they just go into the fetal position and start rocking back and forth?

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7mkDaEhcIQ[/youtube]
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I don't know about them.

I do know he should have some pretty cool boots now.
 
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