[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
CoreyK wrote:
Additionally, for me personally the evidence in support for Christianity is overwhelming.
I’d like hear more about this.
you just gotta have faith, lol[/quote]
That’s the only answer I’ve ever gotten to that question, and frankly, it blows my mind.
[quote]Papa Nick wrote:
When death knocks on our doors I wonder how many that posted here will remeber what they wrote here and think…“I sure hope I was right”.[/quote]
Great logic. We should probably all wear tin foil hats in case the alien conspirators are right, too, “just in case”.
I believe that all men are unworthy of heaven. How can something sinful(astray from God’s will) stay in the presence of God, something so absolute? If heaven is a perfectly good place, how can something corrupt enter in? It can’t. It wouldn’t be perfectly good anymore. For all men have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God(Romans 3:23).
In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.(Hebrews 9:22) But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.(Romans 5:8) This is what I believe.
I actually got to go visit that island and meet the “cult”/group. Their village is really bizarre…basically jungle shacks with a smattering of western culture thrown about. Old GI lighters, state flags, pictures of baseball players from the 70’s, etc.
The part that impressed me the most was that they cleared HUGE airplane runways in the middle of the jungle. No pavement of course, but they removed the dense vegetation and flattened the land in areas big enough to land a jumbo jet on. The reason? They honestly believe that John Frum is going to land a cargo plane on their island, full of riches.
I do!
What I don’t believe in is the way Americans have “tailored” their beliefs to fit their lifestyle (I myself am guilty) as opposed to molding their lifestyle around their beliefs. Its seems we choose to believe (in whatever religion) when its most convenient for us.
For those who don’t believe in God I have this to say: Those who follow Christianity to the best of their ability tend to lead happier lives and are much more beneficial to others around them. Even if you don’t believe in God the principles of Christianity are such that your lifestyle will benefit all those around you, instead of just yourself. Individuals who adopt this lifestyle (without belief in God) will soon run out of motivation unless they find a source of inspiration, which happens to be God. What I’m trying to say is, if you live such a lifestyle to benefit others more than yourself, you will eventually be led to God, whether by choice or absolute need.
I have heard arguments as to whether or not the Bible is true or not. If you ask me the lessons taught in the Bible are what is important, and to argue its truth is missing the point.
A question I have pondered is this…
To the people who have posted here that identify themselves as Christians, to what degree would you say your place of birth has influenced your beliefs?
I guess I would describe myself as agnostic (I don’t know the truth and find it hard to believe anybody else really does), but have had debates with friends who have strong Christian religious beliefs and suggested to them that had they been raised in a predominantly Muslim part of the world for example, that they would probably hold very strong Muslim religious beliefs.
In short, is the big difference between someone who becomes a fundamentalist Christian and someone who becomes a fundamentalist Muslim their place of birth/the beliefs of the family in which they were raised?
wiffy:
excellent point about Christianity being tailored to suit our lifestyles here in the U.S.
Yusef:
Allah and Yahweh are not the same, allah is a monotheistic god who according to Islamic teaching is not begotten neither can begat anyone. Yahweh/Jehovah is a trinitarian God composed of three co-equal, co-eternal persons of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
jehovahsfitness:
interesting point however people dont suffer eternal punishment for unbelief, they suffer because their sins are offenses against the highest possible authority in the universe who in His justice has deemed sin worthy of eternal punishment.
CoreyK:
look up anything written by Ravi Zacharias, or Tim Keller’s recent book “The Reason for God”
Goodfellow:
you seem to have a very post modern view of God… is he really God if he’s subject to whatever we make Him out to be? Sounds like that makes us god, creating our own reality…
[quote]jasmincar wrote:
erik56 wrote:
I do believe.
I can’t believe evolution based on the second law of thermodynamics; entropy increases over time. If you do not believe that, then you are saying that the greatest living physicist, Stephen Hawking, is incorect in agreeing with this. To question this man seems completely ignorant.
I am pissed off.
you fail. Get some real science understanding and stop vomitting the pseudo-scientific intellectually dishonest argument preachers told you. I am sure you don’t even know the math behind thermodynamics. If I posed a simple thermodynamic physic problem you couldn’t even answer it.
I bet you never read Darwin’s the origin of species.
The most basic definition of life is an localised entity that doesnt obey to the second law of thermodynamic temporarily (after you die and the disorder keeps on growing). For example we absorb food and we make our system grow with it. We increase the order
I know it is more convenient to think that god created the man with holy water (or whatever) It fits so well with watching football on sunday and eating apple pies. No questionning required. God made the world and that is all. No rationnal argumenting is possible with you, creationnism is not a rationnal theory anyway.
You could try with all your heart to prove scientifically that the creation occured (even If trying to get a desired result from your investigations is dishonest)you would fail. The scientific community would still laugh of you and the flaws of your theory. But it is not important, the people who you are trying to convince is the average american who didnt do any science studies. It doesnt matter
I hate your way of writing. Intellectual pompeousness It makes me sick
Personally I don’t believe in God because humans are too fucked up. If God made humans he really screwed up[/quote]
HAHAHA you combat a claim by Stephen Hawkin, the greatest physicist, with a claim from Charles Darwin. Ignorance reigns supreme in you, jasmincar.
And yes, I have completed and passed Thermo I and II. Any problem would be fine 
PJ84;
thats an interesting question. to answer it i would say that my environment led to my introduction to Christianity for certain. However, I would say that environment has no bearing on whether or not it is an objective truth, which is what the real question is. I believe the Christian worldview to be an objective truth that surpasses cultural and geographic boundaries. I do believe that people due to our so called christian nation’s history are more apt to identify themselves as Christian, when in fact they are not born again. This is when Christianity becomes cultural, where its “my dads a christian, so yeh Im a christian” - That s not Christianity.
[quote]karlrichii wrote:
PJ84;
thats an interesting question. to answer it i would say that my environment led to my introduction to Christianity for certain. However, I would say that environment has no bearing on whether or not it is an objective truth, which is what the real question is. I believe the Christian worldview to be an objective truth that surpasses cultural and geographic boundaries. I do believe that people due to our so called christian nation’s history are more apt to identify themselves as Christian, when in fact they are not born again. This is when Christianity becomes cultural, where its “my dads a christian, so yeh Im a christian” - That s not Christianity. [/quote]
You make some excellent points. Christianity is not something inherited, but rather a choice a person makes at some point in their life. Also, just believing in God does not make a person Christian (in my opinion). Christianity is a way of life not just a belief in God and/or passed down through generations. One last bit: attending church (even regularly) doesn’t make you Christian. If a person gets nothing out of church, why even go? Just going because it’s expected proves nothing to yourself or to God.
[quote]CoreyK wrote:
jehovasfitness wrote:
CoreyK wrote:
Additionally, for me personally the evidence in support for Christianity is overwhelming.
I’d like hear more about this.
you just gotta have faith, lol
That’s the only answer I’ve ever gotten to that question, and frankly, it blows my mind.
[/quote]
Not sure if you’re serious enough about this idea to invest time in reading a couple books but if you ever get to that point in your life where it’s important enough to you, I’d recommend reading “Mere Christianity” by CS Lewis and maybe even “The Life of Christ” by Fulton Sheen. The Lewis book pretty much saved my faith when I had a lot of doubts – it doesn’t PROVE anything and that’s the genius of it. It simply puts forth a very logical argument showing that belief is not an entirely unreasonable/“out-there” proposition.
[quote]Papa Nick wrote:
When death knocks on our doors I wonder how many that posted here will remeber what they wrote here and think…“I sure hope I was right”.[/quote]
If I’m wrong I’m confident (IE I have faith) an all knowing being will forgive my undecided stance and judge me on my moral character =D
Beowolf - Good, so you wont be hoping. Cause you will know.
Off topic but is that a Pimp My R2D2?
I’ll believe in anything as soon as you can create a testable hypothesis and some method of testing said hypothesis, until then I believe in nothing.
[quote]WhiteFlash wrote:
Christianity is taken from greek/roman mythology, so no, I don’t believe in it. I don’t believe there was a guy who kicked it in bethleham and turned water in to wine and had 12 homeboys who did his bidding. To me that’s just silly. I do believe in God though.[/quote]
The point of this thread, I can only assume by the first post, is not to discuss it.
I do not believe.
[quote]vroom wrote:
I’m sitting on the fence… but when I get old I’m going to convert to catholicism and confess, just in case.[/quote]
Good choice.
Yes, I believe.
Remember, Jesus will spit you out for being lukewarm.
[quote]Papa Nick wrote:
Beowolf - Good, so you wont be hoping. Cause you will know.
Off topic but is that a Pimp My R2D2?[/quote]
Its a fucking DALEK!!!
“I believe that when I die I shall rot and nothing of my ego will survive.”
-Bertrand Russell
I am not a wishful thinker.
[quote]asusvenus wrote:
Dre the Hatchet wrote:
I know (for myself) that the message of Jesus Christ taking the penalty for our sins is true.
To each his own, however, what pisses me off about atheists is that they often -sometimes unintentionally-will feel superior and more “intelligent” than believers.
I might as well throw this one out there to piss you off:
Nice try, Bruh =)
See, the problem I have with the interpretation of these statistics is that correlations are simply made up to fit personal agenda.
I found in one of my studies for Statistics that there is a significant correlation between students sleeping with their shoes on and waking up with a headache. Now, do you not agree with me that sleeping with your shoes on causes a headache? Could there be other causes or factors?