The only way to know God exists is by him proving it to you

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

You used the "r" word.
I still don't really understand what it means when Christians say they have a "relationship" with god. God lays out his expectations in a written book that applies equally to everyone until the end of the time. He has the exact same rules and expectations for everybody who ever will be. He holds heaven and hell over the heads of people as if they must decide their beliefs under duress. When you go to church, you mostly passively sit and listen to a sermon written by someone else, maybe recite the same prayers again, and maybe sing hymns that were picked out by other people and were written by other people who probably died before you were born.

Relationship: The way in which two or more concepts, objects, or people are connected, or the state of being connected.

Its a connection we have with God. I'm assuming you have a connection with your gods? A connection involves communication which is in this case through the mind. I talk to God and receive peace and answers to my questions and concerns. God also talks to me and I listen. The connection however is not as simple as it would be with a physical being but it is a personal relationship/connection either way. And it is really the greatest feeling to talk to the one and only living God. I can only pray that you get such an experience if you haven't already. Perhaps some of the time you think you are talking to your pagan God the true God is speaking to you. I wish I could convince you of my God not so you evade some punishment or gain some reward but so you could know the one true God. There is nothing like the real thing. I assume your gods have limitations because they are made by men? I haven't spent much time reading pagan myths which I probably should do. However for what I know they all seem to be limited in some way which our God as you know isn't.

I can only assume you have gotten down on your knees and tried to reach out to God. If so did you experience anything? Or have you not been compelled to do so? It seems its not as simple as having a good open heart and you receive the true God. But God is out there. He is working and he may already be with you, you just have a different name for him than Yahweh. All I know is if you call on his name he will respond in some way.

 

[awitch]

Relationship: The way in which two or more concepts, objects, or people are connected, or the state of being connected.

I know what a relationship is. It just seems like god tells people what to do and what to be and they have to do it or else. "Get right with god" as they say.

Perhaps some of the time you think you are talking to your pagan God the true God is speaking to you.

If that were the case, then he would be cool with me as a Pagan, which seems to fly in the face of what the Bible says about that.

I wish I could convince you of my God not so you evade some punishment or gain some reward but so you could know the one true God. There is nothing like the real thing.

Maybe I already do.

I assume your gods have limitations because they are made by men? I haven't spent much time reading pagan myths which I probably should do. However for what I know they all seem to be limited in some way which our God as you know isn't.

An omnipotent, omniscient, omni-everything god is nonsensical to me. Such a god would be malevolent every time follow the implications.

 

[Wordkeeper]

I know what a relationship is. It just seems like god tells people what to do and what to be and they have to do it or else. "Get right with god" as they say.



If that were the case, then he would be cool with me as a Pagan, which seems to fly in the face of what the Bible says about that.



Maybe I already do.



An omnipotent, omniscient, omni-everything god is nonsensical to me. Such a god would be malevolent every time follow the implications.

This is the argument against evil, the paradox of why an omnipotent and good God would allow evil.

The short answer is that he uses it to prod us into groping around for him.

 

[Steve Petersen]

This is the argument against evil, the paradox of why an omnipotent and good God would allow evil.

The short answer is that he uses it to prod us into groping around for him.

Who would want a God who allowed such things to happen?

 

[awitch]

This is the argument against evil, the paradox of why an omnipotent and good God would allow evil.

The short answer is that he uses it to prod us into groping around for him.

Then that's not a benevolent, loving god. That's a monster

 

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

I know what a relationship is. It just seems like god tells people what to do and what to be and they have to do it or else. "Get right with god" as they say.

Let me ask you this do you like your gods? Do you believe in those gods because you like them or you believed in them and put up with whatever it was that you didn't like about them? Heres the thing about the christian God. He has created this universe with certain rules and laws and he can't do anything about the fact that when you break a certain law you face the consequence of that law. It's not a do as I say or else thing but just a fundamental aspect of the universe, of sin. If the only way your sins can be forgiven is by believing in the one he sent to pay the price for your sins, then I don't see anything evil about that. Because as I'm sure you agree none of us deserve life let alone eternal life, we are all sinners and all deserve eternal death. Yet God provided a way out from our fate, if we can just believe in his son he sent to die for our sins. Who paid the sin penalty for us.

This may not be ideal for people who don't believe but what if its the only way for the sin penalty to be removed in our life? The only way for our sins to be blotted out? God doesn't do what we want he does what we need. It may not always seem fair but as any good parent he does what is best for us. And that is fair and good. Now is it fair that not all will have eternal life? The only people who don't get eternal life are people who have enough knowledge about the gospel of Jesus Christ and reject him. Everyone else is judged based off of their works. That being said only God determines this and it will be a fair judgment that we will all agree is fair.

God is far from evil and I personally believe if he were evil he wouldn't be capable of being the one true God. All the characteristics he has are those that make him the true God if he didn't have even one of them then he wouldn't be God. He would just be a god with a lower g and we already have enough of those running around.

This is all a free choice and God is going to be completely fair about it. Anyone who genuinely seeks Christ but does not find him will surely have a better chance of passing judgment than someone who didn't care to find him even with all the knowledge of him available.

 

[awitch]

Let me ask you this do you like your gods? Do you believe in those gods because you like them or you believed in them and put up with whatever it was that you didn't like about them?

Of course I like them and of course there are things I wish they would do.

Heres the thing about the christian God. He has created this universe with certain rules and laws and he can't do anything about the fact that when you break a certain law you face the consequence of that law. It's not a do as I say or else thing but just a fundamental aspect of the universe, of sin.

Yes it is! He made up the laws, he decided what was sin, he created hell. It's all on him because it's his design.

As opposed to my belief system where I accept the Big Bang and the gods are a product of that.

This may not be ideal for people who don't believe but what if its the only way for the sin penalty to be removed in our life?

There are endless possibilities if you want to play the "what if" game but it will ultimately be a waste of time.

It may not always seem fair but as any good parent he does what is best for us. And that is fair and good.

Planetary genocide is not what is best for us and good parents don't punish their kids for all eternity.

This is all a free choice and God is going to be completely fair about it.

It's not free choice when he's dangling hell over your head if you're not interested. Just like "You're money or your life" is not a viable defense for a mugger, "Your belief or your soul" is not a viable defense for god.

 

[Wordkeeper]

Who would want a God who allowed such things to happen?

Someone who wanted to live a life with purpose.

 

[awitch]

Someone who wanted to live a life with purpose.

I'm pretty sure the vast majority of non-Christians live their lives with purpose. I know I do.

 

[frettr00]

I've always had some degree of faith and believed in God from an early age. God confirmed it to me from my efforts in prayer and also through my struggles. At that point it became a matter of knowing he existed and having faith in his plan for my life.

 

[Wordkeeper]

I'm pretty sure the vast majority of non-Christians live their lives with purpose. I know I do.

State your purpose.

 

[awitch]

State your purpose.

My purpose is to provide for my family, to help businesses fulfill their goals by providing IT services, to enjoy life, to stand for the environment and civil rights, to watch as many cartoons as possible, and to leave the world a little better for the next generation.

 

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

My purpose is to provide for my family, to help businesses fulfill their goals by providing IT services, to enjoy life, to stand for the environment and civil rights, to watch as many cartoons as possible, and to leave the world a little better for the next generation.

What is your long term eternal purpose?

 

[Wordkeeper]

My purpose is to provide for my family, to help businesses fulfill their goals by providing IT services, to enjoy life, to stand for the environment and civil rights, to watch as many cartoons as possible, and to leave the world a little better for the next generation.

Why should it matter?

 

[cloudyday2]

to watch as many cartoons as possible

This is all the purpose anybody needs

 

[awitch]

What is your long term eternal purpose?

I don't expect to exist for eternity.
An eternal purpose is nonsensical, anwyay. Do you ever get to fulfill that purpose? If not, its just an exercise in futility. If you do, then do you just sit around for the rest of time after that?

 

[awitch]

Why should it matter?

Do civil rights not matter to you?
Does your environment not matter to you?
Does your family not matter to you?
Do you not matter to your employer?

 

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

I don't expect to exist for eternity.
If you do, then do you just sit around for the rest of time after that?

Think of all the good things in this life then magnify that by infinity and you have a lot more to do than just sitting around lol.

 

[awitch]

Think of all the good things in this life then magnify that by infinity and you have a lot more to do than just sitting around lol.

That just sounds like wishful thinking.
I'm not unhappy with what I have now and after watching so many cartoons, I only have a 22 minute attention span anyway.

 

[ImAllLikeOkWaitWat]

That just sounds like wishful thinking.
I'm not unhappy with what I have now and after watching so many cartoons, I only have a 22 minute attention span anyway.

What if i told you there are cartoons in the next life? Would ya believe then?