Are you speaking of the God of the Bible, or some other one that you believe?
My God is the God of all the Abrahamic religions and my religious views align more with Thomas Jefferson’s.
Thats all I care to say on that subject.
Are you speaking of the God of the Bible, or some other one that you believe?
My point is that each and every faith, including the "Abrahamic" religions, inherently contradict each other. Each and every one. Only one can be right.My God is the God of all the Abrahamic religions and my religious views align more with Thomas Jefferson’s.
Thats all I care to say on that subject.
You project paranoia.Atheists sure spend a lot of time and effort worrying about, scorning, ridiculing others, over something that they don't believe in.
All the while, engaging in their OWN faith based religion. One that is every bit as dogmatic and intolerant as the ones they criticize. IOW, they're people. They're not inherently smarter or more sophisticated. They just THINK they are (talk about faith-based LOL)
Great story...I love hearing the stories about how people came to a believing faith in Jesus' work on the cross.Reprinted without permission:
Maybe you've heard of Erwin McManus. He's a best selling Christian author. He's also the lead pastor of Mosaic Church in Southern California. Years ago when he and his wife Kim moved to Southern California, she kept telling him how she just really wanted to be on the game show The Price is Right. And he's like, "Okay." But then she got actually secured an invitation to go on the show. And so now he wants to support her, so he goes along with her.
Now, maybe you know this, that on that game show, you sit in the audience. It doesn't mean you're a contestant just because you got an invitation. You sit in the audience, and then if your name gets drawn and called, now you get to run down like a crazy person like they do. And guess what? Kim's name got called. So she runs down to the front and leaves Erwin sitting there with a blank seat next to him. But then on the other side of that seat, a young woman. Now, all of this happened about 10 to 15 years ago. And I say that because I'm going to tell you that this person, this woman, was from Russia. And I don't want that to be distraction for you. But she was from Russia, had a really strong accent as Erwin began to develop this conversation with her.
And she asked, or he asks her all of those questions that you ask when you meet someone. Where are you from? And she tells him that she was born and raised in Russia. And then just a handful of years ago, she had ended up moving to New York City. She had the opportunity to do so, and so she did. And then, more circumstances ensued, and she ended up being on the opposite coast. She ended up moving to Southern California, and here she is. And then she begins to turn it around and ask Erwin the same questions. Where are you from, and so on. And Erwin tells her, "I'm from El Salvador, Central America. And at some point my family and I, when I was a kid, we ended up on a boat to Florida. We lived there for a while. I ended up going to college as a young man, and through a campus life program, I got to find out about this person, Jesus, and everything changed for me."
And he begins to light up as he tells her about this Jesus who loves him, and how so many things happened in his college career that were unexplainable, except that God was in them, and in pursuit of him, that not only did he become a follower of Jesus, he became a pastor. And she kind of got this look on her face, and kind of turned a little bit in her seat and said, "Yeah, you know, I don't know if I buy all this truth about Jesus stuff. And anyway, if this God is who you're describing him to be, and if you're saying he loves me, then I would think he would be in pursuit of me. I'd think he'd be going out of his way to make sure that I could hear the truth about who he is."
And Erwin responds like this. "Let's think about this for just a minute. You were born and raised in Russia, and ended up, through various circumstances, moving to New York City, and then more circumstances brought you to Southern California. I was born in El Salvador, ended up on a boat with my family to Florida, ended up in college, meeting Jesus, and he transformed my life. I became a pastor. And now we're sitting next to each other on a game show with some time to kill, and you don't think that Jesus is in pursuit of you. I think he is unavoidably showing his great love for you right now."
My point is that each and every faith, including the "Abrahamic" religions, inherently contradict each other. Each and every one. Only one can be right.
CC ... I know this is slightly off-main topic, but do you believe in the existence of Satan and other angels ??“And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’”
Acts 26:14-18 ESV
Acts 26:14-18 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who | English Standard Version 2016 (ES
And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Whobible.com
CC ... I know this is slightly off-main topic, but do you believe in the existence of Satan and other angels ??
Thanks, in advance.
CC ... I know this is slightly off-main topic, but do you believe in the existence of Satan and other angels ??
Thanks, in advance.
Are you asking a born-again evangelical Christian if they believe in the devil??
Thanks for the reply. Regards angels, do they act autonomously and at their own will and direction, or is everything they do directly instructed by God ?? In other words, do angels decide on who and how much they help or intervene on behalf of ?? Also, are they responsive to petition by prayer and must decide whether to intervene ?? Do you pray to or petition angels, in addition to God ?? Assuming angels do intervene, help and support folks, it seems reasonable and logical to question why they appear to be selective in their assistance.Yes and yes.
At one point in my belief, after giving up agnosticism and atheism, I would have questioned those descriptors, as I was learning and attempting to simply be a Bible-believing follower of Jesus. But, in today’s categorizations, those are probably appropriate for me. Born again/from above as in the way Jesus uses the term with Nicodemus. Evangelical? I worship God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and have done so in different church communities, some that would not self-describe as evangelical, some that would. But, as stated, those terms, in the general sense, are fair.
Thanks for the reply. Regards angels, do they act autonomously and at their own will and direction, or is everything they do directly instructed by God ?? In other words, do angels decide on who and how much they help or intervene on behalf of ?? Also, are they responsive to petition by prayer and must decide whether to intervene ?? Do you pray to or petition angels, in addition to God ?? Assuming angels do intervene, help and support folks, it seems reasonable and logical to question why they appear to be selective in their assistance.
Just curious ... as I never really consider Satan or angels much at all, but your scripture post prompted me to think and ask.
Ya didn’t mean it as an insult it’s just what I would consider where you land based on your posts
Having been raised in and practiced in the Catholic tradition, my biblical exposure was pretty much limited to readings that are part of the liturgy of the mass, typically the epistle and gospel readings. So, as I am sure you already know, my scriptural experiences were nowhere near what Protestants and Jews typically study.Didn’t you say you read the Bible?
My understanding of angels, beyond what culture has attempted to insert, is based on the Bible. The Bible seems to indicate that angel ambassadors for God are doing God’s will and rejoice in glorifying God. I have seen no reason to pray to an Angel, nor do I think Angels desire that. The most common words from Angels appear to be “fear not.” Now, cherubim and seraphim seem to serve God in other ways and would never be confused with people or creatures of the physical world.
Regarding evolution, this is the most logical reason for the origin of religion. As we began to live together in large numbers, the hierarchy of the tribe was not strong enough to rule over large numbers of people. There was simply too much competition for the top spots.5. To instill order
Settling in villages requires some type of order. The larger the community, the greater the need for a set of codes or laws to not only guide behavior, but to provide punishment for those who refuse to obey. Religion helped provide that. The very first laws were discovered in Elba (modern-day Syria) and date from 2400 BCE.[8] More well-known is Hammurabi’s (1792-50 BCE) code, carved on a stone tablet (and now in the Louvre in Paris), whose purpose is stated clearly from the beginning—“Anu and Bel called by name me, Hammurabi, the exalted prince, who feared God, to bring about the rule of righteousness in the land, to destroy the wicked and the evil-doers; so that the strong should not harm the weak; so that I should rule over the black-headed people like Shamash, and enlighten the land, to further the well-being of mankind …”[9] The Ten Commandments, which is found in two versions in the books of Exodus and Deuteronomy and formed the basis of Jewish law, came much later around 1000 BCE. In Judaism, it was the Levites who served as priests in the temple. As priests, they served to enforce the rules and norms of the state. Temples were indeed the first statehouses. All of these examples, of course, predate any notion of separation of church and state.
Regarding evolution, this is the most logical reason for the origin of religion. As we began to live together in large numbers, the hierarchy of the tribe was not strong enough to rule over large numbers of people. There was simply too much competition for the top spots.
With an invisible deity “in charge,” the hierarchy was much more manageable because many “priests” could share the power below it and there was no way for any of them to ever ascend to the highest spot, thereby lessening the need for brutal competition to advance along the religious ladder.
Multiple "truths", or in some cases multiple "interpretations of the truth".My point is that each and every faith, including the "Abrahamic" religions, inherently contradict each other. Each and every one. Only one can be right.
So when you originally said that you don't proclaim your God is the truth or only one, that implies, to me at least, that you think there can be multiple ways or "truths," which inherently is impossible. I could just be misreading though...
Do you think anyone would take him seriously if he had a really thick southern accent?
All four gospels indicate Jesus was crucified at the Place of the Skull, otherwise known as Golgotha. The location was called “The Place of the Skull” due to the shape of the hill that reminded people of a human skull. This would have occurred outside the city walls of Jerusalem. How much more specificity would you require?This is a little off-topic, but I've always found it questionable that there does not appear to be universally-accepted, without any doubt, agreement as to where these exact locations are:
1) Where Jesus was crucified ??
2) Where Jesus was buried ??
3) Where Jesus ascended into heaven ??
I know these events are claimed to have happened 2,000 years ago, which is a very long time, but how come these exact spots are not universally known and without controversy ??
Similarly:
1) Where is the exact spot that Muhammad ascended into heaven on a winged horse ??
2) I never understood why Joseph Smith was the only person who actually saw the golden plates in the early 1800's ??
I could not find much information on this matter, but did find this piece that discusses reasons behind the difficulty in such certainty. Being a religious site, it understandably concludes that knowledge of the exact spots is not necessary to support one's faith.
Are the sites authentic? « See The Holy Land
www.seetheholyland.net
I agree there are never going to be exact locations that are universally accepted, but that is the point and I'm amazed they do not exist. For example, if you go to visit his burial site, it is my understanding there are various separate sites where he was assumed to have been buried and they depend on whether you are Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant or Jewish. I've just always been amazed by this. Yes, as you and the article above state, believers' faith is not invalidated by this.All four gospels indicate Jesus was crucified at the Place of the Skull, otherwise known as Golgotha. The location was called “The Place of the Skull” due to the shape of the hill that reminded people of a human skull. This would have occurred outside the city walls of Jerusalem. How much more specificity would you require?
The place where the body of Jesus was buried was in a garden and in a new sepulchre or tomb which never had a dead person placed in it (John 19:41). It was located outside the then current walls of the city of Jerusalem (verse 20), possibly close to the Damascus Gate. The tomb, owned by a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea, was hewn out of a rock and had a large, round stone door that could seal the entrance (Isaiah 53:4 - 6, 10 - 11, Matthew 27:57 - 60, Luke 23:50 - 53). The interior of the tomb that contained Jesus was big enough for a person or two to sit or stand in (Mark 16:5, John 20:5 - 6, 11 - 12), although it required a person to stoop down in order to enter it. Do you want the Bible to list the specific spot of the tomb? Should this burial be documented/recorded in some sort of Jewish or Roman record of burials?
Both Luke and Acts give historical narrative of Jesus ascending to Heaven from the Mount of Olives. This was done in front of Jesus' disciples. Where else is this to be recorded, if only His disciples were there to see His ascension?
There is never going to be universal acceptance on exact locations of events that happened 2,000 years ago, but that does not take away from the validity of the events.