I have always wondered how someone can believe in God. Lets not look at the evidence but look at the inconsitencies?
For example, Jesus. If Jesus is the only way to heaven then after he died how were the people in say Madagscar saved? How about the people who died 10 seconds after Jesus who never heard the word? Are they in hell?
First of all, let me say that none of the things you mention are actually "inconsistencies". In fact, whether you realize it or not, nearly each one of the things you've mentioned has occured pretty much exactly as the Bible describes it.
The first question, how can people be saved who have never heard the Gospel is addressed in Paul's letter to the Romans.
The book of Romans tells us that God has taken into account the fact that not everyone will have an opportunity to hear the Gospel and has made a way for them to have an opportunity to be saved, too.
It tells us that God has given every man two witnesses: the external witness of nature, so that man can know that there is a Creator, and the internal witness of the conscience, so that man can know that he has broken the Creator's laws.
As a man who has never heard the Gospel responds to his conscience and attempts to honor it, the Bible says that God will give him further revelation of His existence and of the Gospel. So the man may still be saved, even though he has never heard the Gospel.
Why would God let children be born retarded? If mans purpose here on earth is to tend to his business then how can these people be of use?
Death, illness, and mental retardation are consequences of being born in a fallen world. The Bible, again, in the book of Romans, tells us that sin and death entered the world as a result of Adam's sin and, because of Adam's sin, the world is under a curse.
Everyone has different talents and abilities. While a retarded person may not have the same intellectual capacity as a non-retarded person, there is no doubt that they are still just as capable of loving God and doing His will as best as they can.
We have a young man in our church who is mentally retarded and he goes with our evangelism team when we go witnessing.
He cannot comprehend anything but the simplest doctrines, but he understands the words to the old hymn, "One Day", which says "Living [Christ] loved me/Dying [Christ] saved me/Buried, [Christ] carried my sins far away/Rising [Christ] justified freely and forever/One day He's returning, Oh glorious day".
Simply by being able to sing this chorus, he is a powerful witness to the glory of God.
Why does God allow his followers to be punished? How come they arent perfect?
I don't believe God allows Christians to be punished. In fact, the Bible tells us that God punished Christ on the cross so that we would not be punished. We are not perfect because we're fallen and sinful and it is our imperfection that makes Christ's sacrifice on our behalf all the more extraordinary.
After all, Romans 5:6-21 says:
Romans 5:6-21 said:
6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.
12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that
F18 all have sinned:
13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.
14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.
16 And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.
17 For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)
18 Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.
19 For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.
20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:
21 That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.
Believers are all sinners still so they only hurt the message by letting others see them sin.
I disagree. The Bible makes a disctinction between a Christian who sins, but repents for his sin, and a non-Christian who sins and revels in his sin.
I believe that when the world sees the difference, God is glorified.
Where did the other people Cain went to live with come from?
You have to remember that, at this time, people lived for many hundreds of years so by the time Cain killed Able and was forced to flee, there were many generations living. So it's entirely possible that there could have been hundreds or even thousands of people on the Earth at that point.
So he just created the Jewish people first and the others were not worth mentioning?
Actually, at that time, the nation of Israel hadn't been established yet, so there were no Jews.
Why do I need to go to church to be a good Christian?
For a couple of reasons. We're commanded to gather for the corporate preaching and teaching of the word of God, we're commanded to gather for corporate worship, we're commanded to gather in order to use our gifts to edify the church and to allow others to edify us, we're commanded to gather for accountability and discipline, and we're commanded to gather for evangelism.
You cannot fulfil those things outside of church.
So the people who cant get to church because of say a medical condition are sinning because they are watching it on tv?
No.
How come Christians (Baptists) frown on drinking? Jesus drank wine.
The problem is not with drinking, but with drunkenness.
How about dancing? Jesus danced too.
Can't help you with that one. I don't know any Baptists who are against dancing.
What about so called foul language? who says that certain words are curse words? The bible doesnt say <staff edit>. Its mans conotations on it that make it that way.
You're absolutely right. The Bible tells us to avoid "coarse language", but doesn't give a list of words that are considered "coarse" because how words are perceived is constantly changing.
The idea isn't so much that certain words are good or bad, but that we are representatives of Christ and our coarse language can make Him appear to be less than the Holy and Righteous God that He is.
