A few friends of mine have troublesome qustions.

[Zotar]

The following came up in a discussion on finalfantasynet. I find myself deeply troubled when wondering what to say to such questions. Mabee you guys can help me.

Well since discussing humanity, within a sociological context, is bascially subjective and all we each have to go on is our own personal experience, than I think perhaps this is indeed the case. People can talk of other cultures and individuals, but if they have never truly walked in these shoes than they are really only expressing opinion which, as you have pointed out previously Terminal, can never truly be proven as fact. And since it is impossible to live the life of every human on earth, than such I think would be the case. Generalization is more apt. But even this, I think, would be heavily influenced by personal experience.

Sociologists do this all the time but I think, most of the time, they are really just stating the obvious. Besides as we all know, there are exceptions to everything and so I think this field of social science is somewhat overrated. But I have not studied this subject much so what do I know? <_<

Question: If every government in the world declared peace, and all borders were eliminated... would the world truly become a happier place? Or would humans just find something else to [staff edit] about and kill each other over?

Yes this makes sense, and as we should be aware of this, there is a difference in speaking with experience, and with opinions likes/dislikes. I think people know this, I know this too, but only when it is mentioned and underlined. People are weird ha ha.
But it does lead me to wonder, if negative views on things we know nothing of first hand truly reflect our own selves, or at least, that which directly revolves around us, (Which also logically makes sense, as humans often amplify meaning through emotional presentation, a lot more so than almost any statement.) then what does it mean to advocate or speak positively of something we know nothing of?

Anyways, answer.
Yes, I am totally convinced that man would still, despite globally claimed peace and the disappearance of ethnic restrictions, find something to feud over.
I believe this to be our nature.
For example...most wars from the past and present are for religious reason; or are they? Religion is often used as a pretext for something else entirely. Jesus didn't do anything, it was all us, so if we go to such extravagances to wage war, I am sure that such things would not diminish much even without the restrictions exemplified in the question.

People would find something, this is almost a given.

Yes, well religion puts a whole different spin on things of course, I thought of this after I had already posted it and I should of phrased the question a bit differently. What if I asked the same question but asked you to imagine a context in which, as John Lennon sang, there was no religion? Does this change your answer at all?

Not really. :/ I am not a fan of religion as everyone here knows, and while it may be that religion is responsible for so many atrocities, past and present, before and after Jesus Christ...just so you know that I am not targeting Christianity only...despite that in the past, people were more apt to believe things than today due to lack of knowledge or scientific breakthrough...I do not think that people really believed as much as we think they did.

We do not know all that much today, do we? We have made discoveries, and live, at least in some parts of the world, in more peaceful times than back then...but "back then" also had great breakthroughs and discoveries.

I think that what people truly did believe was that failure to submit meant death, torture or imprisonment. Or all three. It still does in some countries today.

So, that people have always been able to question the existence of deities or the morality attributed to organized religions show that even then religion was a facade for gain, as it is much the same in today's holy wars. I love John Lennon's idea, but I just do not think that it would happen. As primitive religious concepts have slowly transitioned to more direct social causes and that racism has evolved from straight up genocide to methods a lot more subtle but just as deadly, we would definitely find something to fight over, some cause to cover it up with and use as justification.
I think people are meant for conflict and destruction, despite our will to live, understand and create, as we have been since day one when we ate neanderthals-without cokkin' em. >_>

(Even today there was a show on CBC talking about a bishop who denies the Holocaust, and that the current Pope needs distance himself away from said bishop...it all seems so ridiculous to me, which is what convinces me that religion is not needed for us to follow our nature. Religion is just an excuse, and I find it frightening that we use something as important to mankind as religion in order to further true motives.
I could be wrong however...since religion basically IS a primary factor of humanity. Who really knows what it would be like without it? Still, somehow I do not think it would be much different.

I do not like this belief though, I wish that somebody could convince me otherwise.

Question-
Is serial killing conditioned, or is it an innate mental disorder?

Stupid question I mentioned at the beginning of said post-
Okay, you will think I am weird but...we see it every day.

Pretty woman who stand out more than others, and therefore believe that the world belongs to them, men carrying an air of self importance, creepy looking people who never smile, businessman who run the economy, deep spiritual people, religious folk who quote The Bible, tyrants and overlords with ominous patriotic speeches, artists who see and feel the essence of everything...all sorts of people, many of them carrying a bit too much than what they truly are, some honest, some liars, some nice some mean...and although, of course, it is natural...when you really think about it and see all these people walking around, does not all the allure, the pretensions, ambitions and so forth seem totally ridiculous and almost pointless, when you think that every single one of those people are walking around with smelly, wrinkly...?

>_>

It is funny what happens when people are blessed (or cursed with) intelligence.
Obviously, my friends are having issues... I really wanna bring them to God... but hehehe... HOW? What I'd really like to do is get this issue wrapped up once and for all... but HOW? And what are your perspectives on the matter?

 

[UnderHisWings1979]

To answer your question directly, there is nothing you can say to close the issue, because there is nothing that hasn't already been said, and yet the issue continues. As long as people have hardened hearts, no words will ever convince them of the truth of God's Word. All you can really do is pray for them, and be their friend. People don't need to hear you spout off scripture and preach to them. They need to see Christ lived out in you. More than anything, they need the power of the Holy Spirit to open their eyes. Until that happens, they will not believe because they cannot believe.

On a brighter note, I would say that your friend Terminal is accutely aware of the brokenness and fallen nature of our world. The Word has the answer to why this has happened. Point him there if you want to give him a little push.

 

[Mrs Butterworth]

I am surrounded by people like this and, I have to admit, I am this way from time to time. It will be very difficult for me to explain to you why they think and believe the things they do, but I'll give it a try:

I suggest you study up on MBTI (Meyers Briggs Type Indicator) theory. You may have heard of this before, its that 4 letter code thing that has 16 different personality types. within these 16 types are 4 temperaments: SJ,SP,NF, and NT. I started a thread about it here on this forum, the topic is different then the one we are discussing here, and from my discussion here you can assume that I have made up my mind about MBTI. The people with whom you are talking with are most likely of the NT and perhaps even the NF temperament. iNtuitive types (that's what the N in NF and NTstands for) comprise about 24&#37; of the population.

iNtuitives think differently then most people. They don't accept that the way things appear to be are actually the way things are (this can get them in troubble if they dare expose their thoughts and feelings at church). They look for underlying meaning and universal principals in everyting. They seek to understand something not just aquire a bunch of head knowledge.

They see events as a point in time, everything has causality in it's history and creates a pattern that one can use to predict the future of a situation. When I say predicting the future I don't mean anything spiritural, I am refurring to the ability to see patterns and trends and from this make very good guesses as to how these patterns and trends will play themselves out in the future. It takes a deep understanding of the situation and of universal principles to see these patterns, but this concept, perhaps, should be discussed at a later time.

iNtuitives don't easily accept authority, they question just about everything, even their own beliefs, and they genrally don't like arbitrary laws and/or company policy unless those laws or policies work to fufill a purpose that is appropriate at the time. They are (most of the time) fierecly indepednant and choose to think for themselves. These are the types of people who, if they don't learn to keep their mouth shut, will end up dead, or in a concentration camp if they find themselves a citizen in a Comunist country. Religious people naturally find themselves in church leadership and then impose their will on other people. I can not explain to you in words how this makes iNtuitives feel, but oOppression is one discriptive word I could use.


I could go on about the way iNtuitives (genrally) think but then I would never make my point, so here is the important information needed to understand why many iNtuitives seem to be anti religion.

1. First of all, many of them arn't anti religion they just appear to be anti religion because they naturally question everything, even their own beliefs. If you listen closely to what these people are saying they really want to believe, they just haven't found a good reason to. Religion, (what humans have made up, and not what God intended) is usually diametrically opposed to them and the way they think. Religion, as it has been in the past, and still is to some extent today, repels them. That leaves them in some sort of strange limbo; God attracts them and religion, with it's rules and regulations and the other things I have and will mention, repels them. Occasionally there are people, like myself, who are able to break this limbo and are able to come into a personal relationship with God whilst still holding off the mind numbing restraints of religion, but these people are rare. Most religious people don't care about iNtuitives and the difficulties they face when it comes to believeing in God. After all iNtuitives are an easily ignorable 24% of the population. It's easy to disregaurd a minority group of people who you don't understand.

Many religious people are repulsed by iNtuitives, because they dare shake the foundations of beliefs that these religious people have spent their lives upholding. No one likes a boat rocker.

2. Churches, with their gender roles and other social expectations, are not a friendly place for iNtuitives, and idealogically it's hell. If you really want to anger an iNtuitive disregaurd his/her intellect and call him stupid. Religion and religious people naturally do this. An iNtuitive comes up with some great idea for change, and the religious establishment does not see,nor can they understand the need for such change. The establishment sees natural, honest questioning as a form of sacrelidge and iNtuitives need to think this way to make sure that they really believe what it is they believe (in other words they need to consider other possibilities, those possibilities being perhaps, sacrelidge).

3. Most churches pander to emotions. This is very difficult for NT types to handle. Basically it tries to force them to feel and express emotions that they are not comfortable expressing. The main reason why this is so, is that the feeling function in them is very immature (not very developed) and they are not very good at handling it. This is more true with younger NT's then older ones because the older a person gets the more he or she rounds out their personality. Perhaps this is fodder for another discussion but, most churches incorrectly interpret the command "to love" in the bible (Matt 22:37-39), as an emotion instead of a behavior (the specifics of that behavior "to love" is spelled out or defined in 1 corinthians 13) theirfore they encourage people to be emotional, and if you arn't naturally emotional well then you are somehow inferior (and perhaps stupid).


Now I will end this rant short, because If you don't understand by now I don't know if I can explain it any further right now. Plus I am straying from my point again.

Here's some pointers for a strategy that could lead them to Christ.

1. DONT DO ANYTHING RELIGIOUS TO REPEL THEM FROM GOD. Though you sound like a caring and open minded person, this may be harder then you think. As Christians we can get so caught up in our own little world that it can become difficult to relate to others on the outside.

2. When this happens, love them, and by love I mean do the behaviors written about in I corinthians chapter 13. Don't get too mushy and emotional with the NT types they will get very uncomfortable. It's better to love them by respecting their indivduality and intellect. If you love them in this manner you will actually be giving them reasons to believe in God. Remember these are people who naturally look under the surface of things. You can't fool them. If you behave with honesty, integrity, and love they will see God in you, and that, not you will bring them to a saving knowledge of Christ.

3. Be accepting of their somewhat sacrelidgous thoughts. Most of the time they are just considering all the possibilities and it's not as bad as it sounds. Also they may be right from time to time. Don't get into defensive arguments with them about God. I hate to be so blunt, but many of these people are smarter then you (and me as well) and they will win (they may be wrong, but they will win). Nothing good can come from a nasty defensive argument with them.


I hope this helps. I will look in from time to time to try explain what you may not have understood the first time. This is after all a difficult thing to explain and misunderstandings are unfortunatly inevitable.

 

[Cris413]

I would say...if one truly wishes to understand humanity...

...then they should read the Bible...it's the greatest Book ever written that fully defines the human condition.

Look at Genesis...Paradise wasn't enough apparently...every need provided...and yet...more was desired...

How many people were on the planet...and Cain killed his brother Abel

To me...that's what Scripture is all about...showing us who we are and how we live and the problems with it all in the OT...and just how God sees it...and the answer...in the NT...showing us our desperate need for our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus.

 

[Zotar]

I am surrounded by people like this and, I have to admit, I am this way from time to time. It will be very difficult for me to explain to you why they think and believe the things they do, but I'll give it a try:

I suggest you study up on MBTI (Meyers Briggs Type Indicator) theory. You may have heard of this before, its that 4 letter code thing that has 16 different personality types. within these 16 types are 4 temperaments: SJ,SP,NF, and NT. I started a thread about it here on this forum, the topic is different then the one we are discussing here, and from my discussion here you can assume that I have made up my mind about MBTI. The people with whom you are talking with are most likely of the NT and perhaps even the NF temperament. iNtuitive types (that's what the N in NF and NTstands for) comprise about 24&#37; of the population.

iNtuitives think differently then most people. They don't accept that the way things appear to be are actually the way things are (this can get them in troubble if they dare expose their thoughts and feelings at church). They look for underlying meaning and universal principals in everyting. They seek to understand something not just aquire a bunch of head knowledge.

They see events as a point in time, everything has causality in it's history and creates a pattern that one can use to predict the future of a situation. When I say predicting the future I don't mean anything spiritural, I am refurring to the ability to see patterns and trends and from this make very good guesses as to how these patterns and trends will play themselves out in the future. It takes a deep understanding of the situation and of universal principles to see these patterns, but this concept, perhaps, should be discussed at a later time.

iNtuitives don't easily accept authority, they question just about everything, even their own beliefs, and they genrally don't like arbitrary laws and/or company policy unless those laws or policies work to fufill a purpose that is appropriate at the time. They are (most of the time) fierecly indepednant and choose to think for themselves. These are the types of people who, if they don't learn to keep their mouth shut, will end up dead, or in a concentration camp if they find themselves a citizen in a Comunist country. Religious people naturally find themselves in church leadership and then impose their will on other people. I can not explain to you in words how this makes iNtuitives feel, but oOppression is one discriptive word I could use.


I could go on about the way iNtuitives (genrally) think but then I would never make my point, so here is the important information needed to understand why many iNtuitives seem to be anti religion.

1. First of all, many of them arn't anti religion they just appear to be anti religion because they naturally question everything, even their own beliefs. If you listen closely to what these people are saying they really want to believe, they just haven't found a good reason to. Religion, (what humans have made up, and not what God intended) is usually diametrically opposed to them and the way they think. Religion, as it has been in the past, and still is to some extent today, repels them. That leaves them in some sort of strange limbo; God attracts them and religion, with it's rules and regulations and the other things I have and will mention, repels them. Occasionally there are people, like myself, who are able to break this limbo and are able to come into a personal relationship with God whilst still holding off the mind numbing restraints of religion, but these people are rare. Most religious people don't care about iNtuitives and the difficulties they face when it comes to believeing in God. After all iNtuitives are an easily ignorable 24% of the population. It's easy to disregaurd a minority group of people who you don't understand.

Many religious people are repulsed by iNtuitives, because they dare shake the foundations of beliefs that these religious people have spent their lives upholding. No one likes a boat rocker.

2. Churches, with their gender roles and other social expectations, are not a friendly place for iNtuitives, and idealogically it's hell. If you really want to anger an iNtuitive disregaurd his/her intellect and call him stupid. Religion and religious people naturally do this. An iNtuitive comes up with some great idea for change, and the religious establishment does not see,nor can they understand the need for such change. The establishment sees natural, honest questioning as a form of sacrelidge and iNtuitives need to think this way to make sure that they really believe what it is they believe (in other words they need to consider other possibilities, those possibilities being perhaps, sacrelidge).

3. Most churches pander to emotions. This is very difficult for NT types to handle. Basically it tries to force them to feel and express emotions that they are not comfortable expressing. The main reason why this is so, is that the feeling function in them is very immature (not very developed) and they are not very good at handling it. This is more true with younger NT's then older ones because the older a person gets the more he or she rounds out their personality. Perhaps this is fodder for another discussion but, most churches incorrectly interpret the command "to love" in the bible (Matt 22:37-39), as an emotion instead of a behavior (the specifics of that behavior "to love" is spelled out or defined in 1 corinthians 13) theirfore they encourage people to be emotional, and if you arn't naturally emotional well then you are somehow inferior (and perhaps stupid).


Now I will end this rant short, because If you don't understand by now I don't know if I can explain it any further right now. Plus I am straying from my point again.

Here's some pointers for a strategy that could lead them to Christ.

1. DONT DO ANYTHING RELIGIOUS TO REPEL THEM FROM GOD. Though you sound like a caring and open minded person, this may be harder then you think. As Christians we can get so caught up in our own little world that it can become difficult to relate to others on the outside.

2. When this happens, love them, and by love I mean do the behaviors written about in I corinthians chapter 13. Don't get too mushy and emotional with the NT types they will get very uncomfortable. It's better to love them by respecting their indivduality and intellect. If you love them in this manner you will actually be giving them reasons to believe in God. Remember these are people who naturally look under the surface of things. You can't fool them. If you behave with honesty, integrity, and love they will see God in you, and that, not you will bring them to a saving knowledge of Christ.

3. Be accepting of their somewhat sacrelidgous thoughts. Most of the time they are just considering all the possibilities and it's not as bad as it sounds. Also they may be right from time to time. Don't get into defensive arguments with them about God. I hate to be so blunt, but many of these people are smarter then you (and me as well) and they will win (they may be wrong, but they will win). Nothing good can come from a nasty defensive argument with them.


I hope this helps. I will look in from time to time to try explain what you may not have understood the first time. This is after all a difficult thing to explain and misunderstandings are unfortunatly inevitable.

You really put Terminal Est. on the spot with that one. And your right.... very right. I can't really bring anything good out of any arguement with her (That's right... HER.). And she tells me that she DOES pray, God DOES appeal to her, but shes just not into religions which have been tweaked and messed up... I kinda agree with her... But her logic is rather cold at times.

Heh... if you ask me, Id say that one of the things that will end up getting abolished during the Apocolipse is any and all religions that have suffered from human errors... but thats me.

 

[Mrs Butterworth]

The evidence of differing personalities is evident to (almost) everyone. The bible is full of differing personalities. The correctness of MBTI theory can be debated.

The question now goes to what to do about differing personalities, and the problems that the mixing of differing personalities can cause as well as the positive advantages it can have. My previous post exemplified some of the problems, so let me talk about how God intended things to be. 1 Corinthians chapter 12 talks about one body many parts. Using the modes of MBTI you can roughly interpret (not a literal translation) the 4 temperments, and the 16 personality types to be like different body parts. If one part dominates and/or disowns the other, it results in poor functioning and even death. Consider this; in MBTI theory the percieveing function is the N/S function. That is we percieve (take in information) either through iNtuition or through Sensing. Look up iNtuition in the dictionary if you need a definition, and Sensing is defined as taking in information using the 5 senses (smell, taste, hearing, vision and touch). The N/S function is where most people have difficulty understanding each other because those of differing functions don't see or percieve things the same way. Yet this is the function where you take in information. The N's see things that the S's don't and vice versa. To ignore or disown the other is akin to chopping off a body part. To honor and recognise the importance of the other is the beginning of understanding and health. To serve the other is a healthy well functioning body. Thus churches need to have a healthy balance of all the types, but since they don't they are not healthy.

Now in the past and still somewhat today, no one really noticed this lack of health because religion is not only legal in our country it is still fairly well accepted. If this were to change the pathetic condition of our church body would not be able to cope. In the same way that an unhealthy plant can survive in ideal conditions but would be the first to die in a drought.


So this leads to the question of what should be done to create a healthy balanced church. Well I already mentioned before that 1 Cor 12 is a model of how things should be, and an analogy that explains the value of those different from you. But before many people can get to that stage they have to rid themselves of pride, self importance, and arrogance. How can one see the value of other people if they lack humility?

Now that you know what you must do to see value in those different from you and have been reminded of the model of a healthy, functioning, church body how do you bring these people into the fold? The answer is and always was to love and in so doing let the glory of God be revealed in you.

So if you are to love then how do you do it? This is more a decision making process I could go into a long sphiel about the T and F function and how they operate and blah blah blah or I could go straight to 1 Corinthians and point out a few things word for word. Let's do the latter.

It says:"love is patient" Patient people are willing to listen, really listen to others. When you listen you learn things you would not otherwise have known. They are willing to let others do the things they need to do (within reason) in order to live a healthy life and do not automatically impose thier will on others. They remember the weaker brothers and behave appropriatly for the situation. By the way each personality has it's strengths and weaknesses and we need to be long suffering with one another and humble enough to know that we have our own set of weaknesses.

Love is kind. Give attention, appreciation and encouragment to others. Kind people also serve others.

Love does not envy. Other personalities are not better or worse then you there exists no hierarchy. Serve one another with your strengths and apreciate the strenghts of others. Fighting over who is the best is very counterproductive.

Love does not boast it is not proud. In other words it's about humility.

It is not rude. Imposing your will on others is a very rude thing to do. It violates other people and is genrally not polite behavior.

It keeps no record of wrongs. When people who are different from you rub you the wrong way don't count it against them, instead be proactive and use the bad situation for the good. The Devil likes it when differing people go to war. God intends that we live together in symbiosis. You could choose to disown those around you who you don't like and don't understand or you can learn to apreciate them and let their gifts shine.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. When differing people rub us the wrong way we could gossip about them (for example) or we could learn from them.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes always perseveres. I could go on about this but I fear I have made this post too long already and I have to go to work but I hope my examples have made things a bit clearer.

I hope it is obvious how the above sort of behavior reveals Christ in us. If not, then I guess I will save this for a later time. As I said before, I have to go to work.

 

[Mrs Butterworth]

Zoter, looks like we posted at the same time or you posted before I was done with my post. Sorry I didn't have time to answer you. I had to go to work.

Don't be unnerved by her cold logic. Some people just think that way. I can be that way from time to time and I was much more colder when I was younger. I'm about 40 now and am just beginning to appreciate the fact that a softer more feelings friendly approach to things ought to be considered along with my cold logic. Though it can be illogical to me, it is valuable to others and it really does have merit (feelings, that is).

On a side note, one that you may not be aware of, it appears that you have encountered someone with a very rare personality. In MBTI theory the T (thinking) and The F (Feeling) functions have a gender bias. About 70&#37; of men have the Thinking function where as only about 30% of women have this same function, about 70% of women have the Feeling function and only about 30% of men have this function. So if she is an NT type, (which are rare) a female NT type is even more rare.

When it comes to religion this is significant because it amplifies any feelings of disafection and isolation that she may have. Religion, with it's gender roles and expectations, are particularly oppressive to female NT types. Religion treats gender roles as the right and appropriate way to be, whilst to many NT types these things are rediculously illogical and inconvient. Religion does a lot to enforce gender roles as well, this is stiflingly oppressive, rude, and inconsiderate to many NT types. Remember that these are the fiercly independant people who particularly do not like it when others force their will onto them.

Many people can not see the difference between God and religion. Through treating people with love, as I have defined it, this distinction becomes clear again. I hope things go well with you.

 

[Zotar]

I see... well... thanks for the advice...

You seem to be of the same rare mold as Terminal...

I'd like to see you and Terminal in the same chat room. ^^

On that note: Do you play finalfantasy games by chance?
ffnet.org/forum

 

[Mrs Butterworth]

Actually I don't play many video games. When I was growing up the only video game available was Pog, then came Atari but my parents were too nerdy to appreciate video games so I never got into them.

You are correct I probably am a similar personality type to Terminal. It would be interesting to chat with her.

 

[Sketcher]

Pray for them, according to John 6:44 - they cannot come to God unless God draws them. So pray for God to draw them. Also, keep yourself clean and be consistent iin your obedience to God. That's all I can really tell ya.

 

[Mrs Butterworth]

You are right, twisted., praying for them is very important. God probably is drawing them they just keep tripping over religion. So many intellectuals are drawn in by God yet at the same time are repelled by religion this keeps them in a weird limbo. Always seeking, wondering, questioning but never really finding the answer.

 

[MaidforHim]

The following came up in a discussion on finalfantasynet. I find myself deeply troubled when wondering what to say to such questions. Mabee you guys can help me.


It is funny what happens when people are blessed (or cursed with) intelligence.
Obviously, my friends are having issues... I really wanna bring them to God... but hehehe... HOW? What I'd really like to do is get this issue wrapped up once and for all... but HOW? And what are your perspectives on the matter?

Wow, OK, just my initial impression, these guys are like .. picking nits. Looking at the smallest portions of a much bigger problem as if each one of the smaller issues is the cause. I'm also a bit confused about how they relate personal experience to understanding. Maybe I didn't understand what they meant, but I think we humans are cabable of much more than just gageing our opinions on only that which we've experienced. God has designed us with a better set of skills than that. If my infant neice is gravly ill I don't have to have my own child be equally ill to understand what it's like, or how her parents feel, it's called empathy.

em&#183;pa&#183;thy (&#283;m'p&#601;-th&#275 n.

1. Identification with and understanding of another's situation, feelings, and motives. See Synonyms at pity.
​

Maybe I did not fully understand their comments.

The cause of our worlds problems is sin. Take away all the borders and racial differences and you still have the sin inherent in us. Without Jesus we all default to our fleshly nature so of course, peace declared, borders gone, the unsaved would remain in the flesh and continue to seek what pleases that flesh. Peace does not eradicate the desire for power, greed, lust, you name it, those desires are the most common attributes of the flesh and they transcend borders, races and religious differences. Sin, the desires of the flesh, is the one thing we all share. (at least until Christ returns and deals with satan)

A world without religion? I think religion is where man gets hung up. Religion is man made and very different from Christianity. Look at every false religion and you'll see a list of things to accomplish in the hopes of one day reaching a false god or even a state of god-hood. Religion is man's attempt to find God, mans attempt at understanding God, man's attempt at earning his own salvation.

Of course as Christians we know that these things are not possible and this is precisely what separates Christianity from all other beliefs (religion). Christianity is where God reaches down and touches us, where He and He alone invites us to believe in Him and develop a personal relationship with Him, where God says to us through His word that He loves us and we did nothing nor can we do anything to earn that love, He loves us because he chose to, it is where God through Christ alone offers us our salvation, each of these things are gifts from God and not things we can achieve on our own.

So anyone seeking to understand "religion" as if it is one thing all lumped together is not likely to find these truths or understand how "religion" in general is so very different from "Christianity". Religion and Christianity aka "a personal relationship with our heavenly father through Jesus Christ" are two very different things.
Edited to add: Shining the light on these differences is where the Holy Spirit comes in and our opportunity to be witnesses for Jesus Christ.

I don't know if this answered any of your/their questions, I hope it may be helpful in some way.

God bless

 

[Zotar]

Pray for them, according to John 6:44 - they cannot come to God unless God draws them. So pray for God to draw them. Also, keep yourself clean and be consistent iin your obedience to God. That's all I can really tell ya.

Thanks... I will. *writes their names down on a long list of people i pray for.*

 

[iamjcs]

Question: If every government in the world declared peace, and all borders were eliminated... would the world truly become a happier place? Or would humans just find something else to &#37;$#@! about and kill each other over?

Yes, it would be overall a happier place, but some humans would still find things for which to argue over, complain about, start a fight, or even
kill others &/or be killed.

It'd be some of both unless ALL humans on earth became hunble servants of God.

 

[fleethefire]

I wouldn't try to appeal to the intellect, but focus on why they need God.
It won't be easy, however, you need to show that regardless of the level of intellect, or religious beliefs, we all need God.

You can also conform all of the answers, and divert the discussion to a reliance on God.

Would the world be happier if all nations declared peace? The answer is no, since we live in a fallen world. Since we are not in control, we can't ever achieve ultimate peace on Earth.

Answering all of the questions won't do any good either, since they are designed to avoid discussing God.

If you want to reach your friends you will have to debate them. However, proceed with caution and with kindness and love. You can also use the approach, well that is a good question. I have always thought that... insert
reference to God's plan of salvation here.

You can also pose a question that is vague, but points to our need for God.
There is a scene in Fireproof that does this very well.