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If you believe that then you have no inkling at what hell is like. It IS good news if a person does not have to go there.
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It´s one thing to sell your opinions as truth, and another to sell them as good news. Especially when the evidence for the first is weak and the news aren´t actually that good, trying both at the same time is a pretty hard task.
No because on examination none of those witnesses are credible ones and they stand alone. Jesus has a supernatural footprint witnessed directly by the 500 who saw Him risen, by the hundreds of thousands who saw him perform miracles and by the billions who know him today.
Compared to "such a place doesn´t exist at all", it´s not much of an improvement, is it?If you believe that then you have no inkling at what hell is like. It IS good news if a person does not have to go there.
...even though you and I both agree that Jesus is our Risen Lord, I don't really agree that the "evidence is clear." If it were, people would be lining up in droves to get into the Kingdom. The reality is that even in the Bible itself, we are given indication that God has purposely presented prophetic images in epistemologically obscure ways. In fact, people--even the Israelite/Jewish people--haven't been necessarily privy to understanding all that God has had planned.
So, when we speak about the 'truth' of the Gospel of Christ with non-believers, we need to keep the above in mind. Too often, I see many fellow Christians who present the Gospel as an obvious option when it really isn't.
Furthermore, and in direct relation to the OP, we see Jesus indicating that relationships with loved ones, even those who are dying or who have died, can stand in the way of one's decision to accept Christ. In fact, I have a mother-in-law who is not a Christian, and because her relationship with her own dearly departed mother was so strong, she really can't find it in herself to just 'skip on over' to the Christian faith because she knows that to do so would be to have to accept the strong likelihood that her mother won't also be present with her in eternity. So, she basically rejects the proposition that Jesus is the "only way," and she does this for what seems to be the very reasons implied by Jesus.
With all of this in mind, it would probably be wise for us to be circumspect in how we present the Gospel of Christ since not only are portions of it obscure, but it is very psychologically challenging to many people all by itself, and this is without our additional aims to make it even more socially pressurized.
Peace,
2PhiloVoid
Personally the evidence seems overwhelming to the point that it would seem dishonest to deny it.
As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard. Acts 4:20
However I do agree that Jesus Himself tended to hide the truth from those who were not being saved. His use of parables for instance.
My own mother-in law was an atheist who committed suicide. I do not know if God found some way to save her in her last seconds but it looks unlikely given what I do know. The consequences of such gospel rejection seem extreme to me. She had a life time of opportunities to find the truth and missed them all. It seems she thought that she could end her troubles by ending her life but more likely they are really now just beginning. This is not a game with words and it is even more important than even decisions about life and death.
The gospel can be presented gently and respectfully but so also it is a clear choice. Jesus did not urge his disciples to tiptoe around godless egos idolising toxic connections.
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. a man's enemies will be the members of his own household. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:34-39
The good news is, you are free to claim this evidence is overwhelming. It seems though, that you are miffed so many disagree with you.
So your question is "How do I come to terms with my emotions seeing that not everyone believes as I do?", rather than "How do I convince someone that there is an invisible cliff?" (as the OP question appeared to be)?If a man can see someone else is driving his car quickly towards a cliff. If he calls out and says turn back and the other ignores him there are a range of experienced emotions.
No because on examination none of those witnesses are credible ones and they stand alone. Jesus has a supernatural footprint witnessed directly by the 500 who saw Him risen, by the hundreds of thousands who saw him perform miracles and by the billions who know him today.
500 credible witnesses, of which you can name zero.
So your question is "How do I come to terms with my emotions seeing that not everyone believes as I do?", rather than "How do I convince someone that there is an invisible cliff?" (as the OP question appeared to be)?
The bible names the 11 remaining apostles and James the brother of Jesus as being among those 500 direct witnesses. Each of these men then lived out a devoted response to their experience of the risen Christ that included martyrdom in 12 out of the 13 just named. Add in subsequent transforming experiences of the risen Christ including that of St. Paul and there are enough credible witnesses to win any court case on the facts.
And that´s the way you try to convince non-believers that you are in hold of the truth, and this truth is good news, on top?I and the whole church agree that the cliff is there and we have warned you ,but feel free to fall over it if you do not believe me.
....the last Christian I heard who claimed that the evidence was 'so clear' ended up divorcing his wife and stepping down from the ministry. I'm not sure that the evidence is so clear that it just automatically buoys us into the perpetual state of faith that many Christians seem to imply that it can.Personally the evidence seems overwhelming to the point that it would seem dishonest to deny it.
As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard. Acts 4:20
I'm sorry to hear that your mother-in-law died without any sign of a positive response to Christ. I know that can be frustrating, as can be many other things in the Christian life.However I do agree that Jesus Himself tended to hide the truth from those who were not being saved. His use of parables for instance.
My own mother-in law was an atheist who committed suicide. I do not know if God found some way to save her in her last seconds but it looks unlikely given what I do know. The consequences of such gospel rejection seem extreme to me. She had a life time of opportunities to find the truth and missed them all. It seems she thought that she could end her troubles by ending her life but more likely they are really now just beginning. This is not a game with words and it is even more important than even decisions about life and death.
Well...I wouldn't say it is a 'clear' choice. To say so is to say that 1) God hasn't hidden anything from us, and 2) that Satan really is just a wimp whom we don't have to take into consideration in how He affects us in our lives. Both of these propositions are false.The gospel can be presented gently and respectfully but so also it is a clear choice. Jesus did not urge his disciples to tiptoe around godless egos idolising toxic connections.
Sure, Jesus didn't come to bring false 'political' peace like that of the Pax Romana. He instead came to be the Prince of Peace according to God's Will, a peace requiring that each one of us gets on the same page about His identity as Lord and Christ BEFORE we can have real social and spiritual peace with God and other people."Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. a man's enemies will be the members of his own household. Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:34-39
If a man can see someone else is driving his car quickly towards a cliff. If he calls out and says turn back and the other ignores him there are a range of experienced emotions. Miffed is not one of them though.
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