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In a way, yes. It's got to do with two related abilities: the ability to structure and categorize information, and the ability to think in terms of abstractions and symbols.Evolution is the organism changing to meet the challenges and realities of his environment. Perception of God is found in most Homo Sapiens. Might this be because the Spiritual is part of his environment, and in his most highly developed mind, he has "become" to perceive and interact with it? As our primate ancestor reached for a real tool, the first man reached for the real heavens.
Their existence is finite, I was asking if you'd prefer infinite existence burning than finite existence.But...but...but...You've said that those not in the Book cease to be. That, to me, indicates their existence is finite. How can a soul with a finite existence be tortured forever?
Of course you choose. You are given the opportunity, repeatedly to accept His sacrifice for you.
CS Lewis, one of the greatest Christian apologists started out as an atheist and in his attempt to prove it false, came to believe that it is true. The same can be said for Lee Strobel. There are many, many Christian apologists writing very readable books out there, when you choose not to read any of them, you are choosing total annihilation.
In a way, yes. It's got to do with two related abilities: the ability to structure and categorize information, and the ability to think in terms of abstractions and symbols.
Neither of these is *completely* unique to Man, yet no other species has reached our level of sophistication, and thus, never reached the point where they might write a symphony, design a steam engine, discuss morality, or conceive of and worship an abstract deity.
Then you've made your choice.I'm afraid I don't, any more than I have the opportunity to believe that Middle-earth is real, or that the Moon is made of green cheese. You may call this a "choice", but it strikes me as not a choice in any way suggesting deep conviction.
I am quite familiar with apologetics. I reject them as insufficiently persuasive for me to have honest belief.
eudaimonia,
Mark
He told you this, personally?
Then you've made your choice.
And you know this... how exactly?
See, there is a reason why the term "fundamentalism" has broadened in meaning, and is now being used to describe religious extremism in general, rather than just a specific self-styled Protestant denomination.
So... will there be any at the great white throne judgment who will NOT be thrown into the lake of fire? If not, why bother with going through the whole procedure of looking for them in the Book of the Lamb? Seems like a rather moot point, if you ask me. Empty ritual serving no purpose.
But then again, hell doesn't make any sense, either. It's not a deterrent, it's not a correctional facility, it's not even a protective measure to keep the virtuous save from the vile (for there are far less gruesome ways to achieve that, and besides, heaven isn't filled with the virtuous - it's filled with conveniently bailed out opportunists who were every inch as fallible as the ones who are toast).
Which brings me back to my initial sentiment: my slight horror at the thought that otherwise decent people would worship a deity they themselves pretty much describe as a monster, yet seemingly without noticing it.
What if I do read all of these books, and yet find them unconvincing, polemic, and at times downright dishonest? How do I "choose hell" if I simply find that the "Case for Christ" is a rather poor one, a lopsided, shoddily written and obviously biased affair?Of course you choose. You are given the opportunity, repeatedly to accept His sacrifice for you. You, obviously, have the ability to read and yet you don't avail yourself of all the books written by those who start out to prove Christianity wrong and become convinced that God exists and Jesus, infact did die so that we could be saved.
... in the "lake of fire". That image certainly doesn't suggest a merciful coup de grace.
Alas, it's weird enough that people manage to read Revelation LITERALLY. There's hardly a text in the whole canon that is more obviously filled with all sorts of encoded symbols and metaphors than that one.
What if I do read all of these books, and yet find them unconvincing, polemic, and at times downright dishonest? How do I "choose hell" if I simply find that the "Case for Christ" is a rather poor one, a lopsided, shoddily written and obviously biased affair?
Sorry, but no. I guess you'll continue to believe that I "choose hell", because it helps you to sleep at night - but honestly, I simply don't find Christianity any more convincing than a literalist reading of Egyptian mythology.
That is a rather naive and, I might add, pretty much disastrous assessment of the highly heterogeneous Biblical canon and its inherent complexities. To read the Bible as if it was a How-to-guide written in the early 2000s means to pretty much miss out on virtually everything contained therein.No, it is the way it is stated in the Bible. The Bible is not some vague group of writings with all these hidden meanings in it. God's Word was written so everyone who could read or listen to the Word being read could understand it.
Southern Baptists? Weren't they the ones who seceded because they argued that the Bible supports slavery and condemns abolitionism?That's how all these New Age denominations came about. They are a faith of interpretation..of intellect, not of our Lord...even Southern Baptists (which I am) to a certain degree.
One can speculate anything, but evolution doesn't require such an explanation.
Belief in some sort of divine beings may be found in most human beings (in the present day), but that doesn't imply that most people literally perceive gods or goddesses as if through a sixth sense.
eudaimonia,
Mark
That is a rather naive and, I might add, pretty much disastrous assessment of the highly heterogeneous Biblical canon and its inherent complexities. To read the Bible as if it was a How-to-guide written in the early 2000s means to pretty much miss out on virtually everything contained therein.
It wasn't written for *everyone*. These texts were written for very specific audiences who lived in a very specific historical context, referencing very specific concepts that the man at the bus stop in 2010 might not necessarily be familiar with.
It was written for every human being on the earth and it is a guide on how to live the way Christ lived and how God wants us to live. The morals in the Bible are just as true today as they were when they were written. God does not change, we as a people do.
Every problem I have ever had is discussed in the Bible and the moral or divine answer is given to what I should do or not do.
Southern Baptists? Weren't they the ones who seceded because they argued that the Bible supports slavery and condemns abolitionism?
Everybody worships something, and that something is his/her god...whether is is money or science or even one's own intellect...it is still worship.
Your future has no bearing on my sleep.What if I do read all of these books, and yet find them unconvincing, polemic, and at times downright dishonest? How do I "choose hell" if I simply find that the "Case for Christ" is a rather poor one, a lopsided, shoddily written and obviously biased affair?
Sorry, but no. I guess you'll continue to believe that I "choose hell", because it helps you to sleep at night - but honestly, I simply don't find Christianity any more convincing than a literalist reading of Egyptian mythology.
Of course you choose. You are given the opportunity, repeatedly to accept His sacrifice for you.
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