Are We Living on a Flat Earth?

[lesliedellow]

i disagree - God is much bigger than that

i have no problem with you using the bible only as a source of knowing God

but the scientists in this link used it as more: Bible-Believing Scientists of the Past | The Institute for Creation Research

and i myself use it as more than just knowing God - i use it for daily living and practical wisdom

The problem with "creation scientists" is that they spend much time trying to rubbish the theory of evolution, but are notable failures at coming up with an alternative theory which is able to convince even those many scientists who are Christians but not YECs - let alone the scientific community as a whole.

 

[Truthfrees]

I think the 101 scientific facts and foreknowledge are quite a reach at "Biblical knowledge." If the Bible had all this amazing knowledge, why wasn't it given to us in a useful form, instead of a cryptic form that people have to do mental gymnastics in order to believe. Couldn't the Bible have given us a recipe to make soap and tell people to wash their hands in running water? Why not tell people how to properly handle seafood and pork, instead of telling people not to eat them? Why not talk about the earth as a sphere instead of the circle of the earth or the four corners of the Earth? The Bible is not a scientific book, it was written by primitive men who didn't understand science.

to those who pray (talk to God and listen for Him to answer) and study God's words things become clear

if you want to eat scavengers and carnivores you can do so - i've been there done that - but no more

the bible is too amazing to be written by primitive man

 

[Truthfrees]

The problem with "creation scientists" is that they spend much time trying to rubbish the theory of evolution, but are notable failures at coming up with an alternative theory which is able to convince even those many scientists who are Christians but not YECs - let alone the scientific community as a whole.

the nature of being human - we all have a different perspective - therefore a different interpretation of scripture

this is why Romans 14 says don't judge anyone else and how they worship God - God alone is their judge - AND - God Himself will author and complete their faith - we are His workmanship in Christ Jesus

 

[lesliedellow]

if the bible is too amazing to be written by primitive man

I don't remember saying that the Bible wasn't inspired, and I am sure a (Baptist) scientist, like Francis Collins, wouldn't say that either. But in trying to understand it, knowledge which comes to us from other sources cannot simply be ignored.

Nobody has an exemption from reading Genesis 1, and asking themselves the question, "What is it that God is here trying to say to me?"

 

[Ajflyguy7]

to those who pray (talk to God and listen for Him to answer) and study God's words things become clear

if you want to eat scavengers and carnivores you can do so - i've been there done that - but no more

the bible is too amazing to be written by primitive man

What is wrong with eating shrimp, crab, lobster, mussels, oysters, etc? They are healthy and delicious.

What is so amazing about the Bible? It contains many false things, contradictions, and we don't have any original manuscripts. Yeah, primitive man wrote it. That's why they gives rules for owning slaves and that's why women are treated like animals. It's an ignorant book written by ignorant men.

 

[Truthfrees]

I don't remember saying that the Bible wasn't inspired, and I am sure a (Baptist) scientist, like Francis Collins, wouldn't say that either. But in trying to understand it, knowledge which comes to us from other sources cannot simply be ignored.

Nobody has an exemption from reading Genesis 1, and asking themselves the question, "What is it that God is here trying to say to me?"

the other guy said that - not you - i'm carrying on a discussion with 2 people in this thread at the same time

i agree with all of what you said in this post

 

[Truthfrees]

What is wrong with eating shrimp, crab, lobster, mussels, oysters, etc? They are healthy and delicious.

What is so amazing about the Bible? It contains many false things, contradictions, and we don't have any original manuscripts. Yeah, primitive man wrote it. That's why they gives rules for owning slaves and that's why women are treated like animals. It's an ignorant book written by ignorant men.

too much to explain here and this will take the thread off topic

i will answer in a pm

all great questions - deserving of great answers

 

[lesliedellow]

What is so amazing about the Bible? It contains many false things, contradictions, and we don't have any original manuscripts.

Compared with any other ancient manuscript we have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to manuscript evidence for the Bible. There are something like 2,500 Greek manuscripts for the New Testament, and you can add another nought to that if you include manuscripts written in other languages. Almost always what was originally written can be determined, and, in the few cases where it can't, no Christian doctrine is affected.

Yeah, primitive man wrote it.

I wonder if it ever occurs to you to wonder how people will be describing us 2,000 years from now? There is an arrogance abroad which says we are the acme of human development, and nothing worth reading was written prior to the middle of the seventeenth century.

 

[GeorgeJ]

Are We Living on a Flat Earth?

Came awful close to walkin' off the edge yesterday. Thankfully, my wife grabbed me at the last second. That would of been a long fall.......

 

[SPF]

The Bible is not a scientific book, it was written by primitive men who didn't understand science.

I don't know of any Biblical scholar that would disagree with what you're saying. The problem is that you're saying this as if it somehow therefore means that the Bible isn't inspired. Obviously this is a non sequitur.

1) The Bible isn't a science text book.
2) The Bible was written by "primitive" men in the sense that we have more knowledge than they did, but also I suspect that we will be considered equally "primitive" if not more when compared to humans in another 500 years given the expansion of technology let alone 4,000 years ago.

 

[Ajflyguy7]

So, I should believe the Bible is inspired because it says so? I don't find the Bible's claims to be very convincing. It was written randomly by men over a large period of time. We don't have any original documents. A council of men decided what information would go into the Bible. Copies back then were less than perfect. There are many different translations of the Bible. Christians can't even agree on what the Bible says, it is completely open to interpretation. I think an all-powerful god could have figured out a better way to pass information about his requirements for mankind.

 

[lesliedellow]

A council of men decided what information would go into the Bible.

No they didn't. The only thing the Council of Carthage did was to rubber stamp something which had been a fait accompli almost since the end of the second century.

Oh, and in case you entertain the usual atheist myth, the Council of Nicea had nothing whatsoever to do with the canon of scripture.

 

[SPF]

So, I should believe the Bible is inspired because it says so? I don't find the Bible's claims to be very convincing. It was written randomly by men over a large period of time. We don't have any original documents. A council of men decided what information would go into the Bible. Copies back then were less than perfect. There are many different translations of the Bible. Christians can't even agree on what the Bible says, it is completely open to interpretation. I think an all-powerful god could have figured out a better way to pass information about his requirements for mankind.

Personally, I find that given that it was written over a period of thousands of years, by multiple authors, and yet displays an incredible sense of internal consistency to be a compelling reason for its authenticity. Think about that, written by approximately 40 men over 1500 years - and yet displays amazing internal consistency? That's pretty incredible.

You are correct that we don't have original documents, but the number of copies we have, and the consistency between them is so vast that we have very strong confidence on their reliability. No other work of antiquity comes even close to the sheer volume and consistency between manuscripts as Scripture.

The different translations today are based off the manuscripts. The variation in translations is going to be based upon whether the translation is attempting word for word or thought for thought, and then the dialect they are utilizing. If you're concerned about the translations, go straight to the manuscripts =]

Of course Christians don't agree on everything in the Bible. God gave us minds, gave us the ability to think and reason. But you'll find that the majority of all disagreements lie in the realm of "secondary" issues, not over the core, fundamental beliefs. Not over the foundation.

Could God have done things differently? Sure, but you're not God, and I'm not God, so we don't have all the information. You telling God that He should have done things differently is like my 6 year old who has never played chess telling the chess master where he should make his next move.

 

[Ajflyguy7]

So, did god give us the Bible or did a council of men put it together?

 

[lesliedellow]

So, did god give us the Bible or did a council of men put it together?

At the risk of repeating myself, by AD180 Iraeneus had a list of books which were regarded as canonical, and that list coincides almost exactly with the current New Testament. There had been no council; just numerous debates within a space of about one hundred years.

And yes, the whole process would have taken place under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

 

[Ygrene Imref]

What is wrong with eating shrimp, crab, lobster, mussels, oysters, etc? They are healthy and delicious.

What is so amazing about the Bible? It contains many false things, contradictions, and we don't have any original manuscripts. Yeah, primitive man wrote it. That's why they gives rules for owning slaves and that's why women are treated like animals. It's an ignorant book written by ignorant men.

You are what you eat.

Shrimp, crab, lobster, mussels, oysters, bore and swine, dogs, cats, ravens, bugs (not including grasshoppers/locust) all eat disgusting things we don't consider to be food - like feces, other humans*, and pure dirt. These animals deposit the digested gunk into their flesh, and then you eat that. It tastes good (e.g. salts and savories, or sweetness,) because some of those are toxins in the form of salts (a product of acid/base, not just NaCl.) But, the taste is irrelevant to the health.

The animals that do eat nasty things, but are kosher, have the digestive system to properly filter what they eat before it is deposited to their "meat."


And, that is just for very clean, non-farmed, free from pollution animals. Today, Wagyu beef would be less healthy/clean than a pig in Christ's time.

 

[Ajflyguy7]

You are what you eat.

Shrimp, crab, lobster, mussels, oysters, bore and swine, dogs, cats, ravens, bugs (not including grasshoppers/locust) all eat disgusting things we don't consider to be food - like feces, other humans*, and pure dirt. These animals deposit the digested gunk into their flesh, and then you eat that. It tastes good (e.g. salts and savories, or sweetness,) because some of those are toxins in the form of salts (a product of acid/base, not just NaCl.) But, the taste is irrelevant to the health.

The animals that do eat nasty things, but are kosher, have the digestive system to properly filter what they eat before it is deposited to their "meat."


And, that is just for very clean, non-farmed, free from pollution animals. Today, Wagyu beef would be less healthy/clean than a pig in Christ's time.

Seafood is a good source of protein, vitamins, minerals, is rich in omega 3 fatty acids, and is nutrient rich. Omega 3's promote heart health, are good for your joints, help maintain eye-health, are good for your skin, boost brainpower, and improve immune function. Why did God tell us not to eat something that is so healthy for us?

 

[SPF]

Seafood is a good source of protein, vitamins, minerals, is rich in omega 3 fatty acids, and is nutrient rich. Omega 3's promote heart health, are good for your joints, help maintain eye-health, are good for your skin, boost brainpower, and improve immune function. Why did God tell us not to eat something that is so healthy for us?

He didn't, in fact I think you'll find that a number of disciples were actually fisherman.

 

[Amazing Horse]

Can flat earth people explain something to me , if there is country very far west and plane take you from there to country very far east on flat earth , does it fly from west to east whole day or does it fly to that barrier of flat earth to west and teleport to east like snake in old phone games ?

 

[Ajflyguy7]

He didn't, in fact I think you'll find that a number of disciples were actually fisherman.

Try reading your Bible sometime. Leviticus 11:10 "Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you." That is god telling you not to eat shellfish. Sorry, I should have clarified shellfish instead of typing a more generic term, seafood.