Why I can't accept Christianity

[Kim7229]

Yes, I believe the historical account in the bible. Just like we believe in the thousands of historical accounts in other books, why not believe in this historical account.

So you think it's more likely that a man really died and rose from the dead than that the Bible is mythology. Please explain the process you used to arrive at that conclusion.

 

[mark kennedy]

Catholic church....Apostolic Tradition

Not necessarily.

 

[redleghunter]

So you think it's more likely that a man really died and rose from the dead than that the Bible is mythology. Please explain the process you used to arrive at that conclusion.

There were hundreds of eyewitnesses to the Risen Christ. (1 Corinthians 15)

 

[~Zao~]

It hadn't in the first century, how do you think Christians learned how to preserve their sacred texts. Barnabus and John Mark were both Levites.

What does that have to do with the printing press?

 

[~Zao~]

Catholic church....Apostolic Tradition

T & t

 

[~Zao~]

You give a number of problems. But before looking at them, there’s a more important question: Do you have a reason to follow Jesus? If you do, we can talk about the problems, and probably deal with them. But Christianity doesn’t continue because of those kinds of arguments. It exists because people feel they’ve experienced God’s presence, or they find Christianity makes sense of life, or worship and the Christian community is important to them. Is that the case for you?

If so, and you’re just worried about the kinds of issues in the OP, there are two general approaches. The one most common here is to convince you that they’re aren’t any contradictions, it makes perfect sense for God to punish people who reject him forever, etc. Read the other posts. Maybe you’ll find them convincing. I don’t, but most Christians do.

The other approach is to see the Bible as a human witness, something written by people who experienced God’s actions, but were still fallible humans, and who sometimes misunderstood what God wanted. (No, I don’t think God wanted Israel to commit genocide, nor do I think they actually did.) As to the Mafia boss: most Christians, I believe even those participating in CF, think God makes allowances for what people know. The people who end up in trouble are those who consciously reject the Good (as best they know it). There’s simply no way to make a person like that fit into the Kingdom. We can’t talk about it in this particular forum, but if you look in Controversial Christian Theology you’ll find plenty of us who doubt your points 3 and 4, and don’t think Scripture even teaches them.

There was a time not too long ago that humanism was the norm but now the tide seems to have changed and a closer walk with Jesus has become more sufficient. I see no need to stop the flow.

 

[~Zao~]

There were hundreds of eyewitnesses to the Risen Christ. (1 Corinthians 15)

Till they reached their breaking point then the bows were changed to arrows that shot straight George. What????? Nvmnd. Just calling a spade a spade.

 

[~Zao~]

What does that have to do with the printing press?

Technically Moses was the first person with a tablet downloading from the cloud.

 

[Sandra L Butler]

I saw the logical holes and began asking Christians how they reconciled the problem of evil and the problem of free will and not a single one said anything along the lines of, "well God doesn't really know these things" or "God isn't really capable of preventing those things". Could there be a disconnect between what the Bible is meant to convey and what typical Christians are saying?

What they don't understand, Kim, is that man was made in the spiritual image of God. God's word has the power to bring things into existence. And everything that God made was good. Man's word, which he has chosen through free will, also has the power to bring things into existence. And what man's word has made, is evil. This is why Jeremiah said, "man's word shall be his burden," and NOT TO SAY, "the burden of the Lord" The evil is man's doing, NOT God's. There is a total disconnect between what the Bible is meant to convey and what typical Christians are saying. And that is because they have chosen the words of Paul over the words of Jesus, and the Prophets, whose very words serve to correct their error. I'm not able to upload a short article I wrote on the subject. If you are interested, email me at gilead@atlanticbb.net and I will send you the link. You are engaged in the very important spiritual works. Keep it up!

 

[Sandra L Butler]

God created evil for his glory.

To "create" is not the same as to "form" or "make." To create is to have the idea of something... "In the beginning God created heaven and earth." Nothing has been formed yet, as we see in verse 2. God created the concept of evil to give man free will. But it was man that made or formed it. Read Isaiah 45:7.

 

[Dave L]

To "create" is not the same as to "form" or "make." To create is to have the idea of something... "In the beginning God created heaven and earth." Nothing has been formed yet, as we see in verse 2. God created the concept of evil to give man free will. But it was man that made or formed it. Read Isaiah 45:7.

to create =
I ברא: MHb. = JArm.tb Sam. CPArm. Syr., Mnd. (MdD 69b) > ברי to create; Arb. baraʾa to create (God), OSArb. brʾ to build, Soq. to give birth, OSArb. mbrʾ building; → III: in the OT I ברא is a specifically theological term, the subject of which is invariably God; Böhl Fschr. Kittel 61ff, Humbert ThZ 3:401ff; vdPloeg Muséon 59:143ff; Koehler Theol. 68ff.

Koehler, L., Baumgartner, W., Richardson, M. E. J., & Stamm, J. J. (1994–2000). The Hebrew and Aramaic lexicon of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 153). Leiden: E.J. Brill.

 

[mark kennedy]

What does that have to do with the printing press?

What?

 

[~Zao~]

What?

I'm not interested in debating who is a Christian.

 

[Sandra L Butler]

I FORM light, and CREATE darkness: I MAKE peace, and CREATE evil: I the Lord do all these things." Isaiah 45:7.

 

[mark kennedy]

I'm not interested in debating who is a Christian.

Printing presses and who is a Christian had mot crossed my mind. I have no idea what your talking about.

 

[~Zao~]

Printing presses and who is a Christian had mot crossed my mind. I have no idea what your talking about.

That figures

 

[mark kennedy]

That figures

Could you be any more random.

 

[mark kennedy]

to create =
I ברא: MHb. = JArm.tb Sam. CPArm. Syr., Mnd. (MdD 69b) > ברי to create; Arb. baraʾa to create (God), OSArb. brʾ to build, Soq. to give birth, OSArb. mbrʾ building; → III: in the OT I ברא is a specifically theological term, the subject of which is invariably God; Böhl Fschr. Kittel 61ff, Humbert ThZ 3:401ff; vdPloeg Muséon 59:143ff; Koehler Theol. 68ff.

Koehler, L., Baumgartner, W., Richardson, M. E. J., & Stamm, J. J. (1994–2000). The Hebrew and Aramaic lexicon of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 153). Leiden: E.J. Brill.

Your quote is nearly indecipherable, the word translated 'created' in Gen. 1 is bara', used only of God in the qal form it's an ex nihileo creation. In other word something did not exist, then it came into existance by God's power. It's used once for the creation of the universe, once for the creation of life in general and three time for Adam and Eve being created.

 

[Maria Billingsley]

If God exists and doesn't prevent the type of evil we're talking about, then he either doesn't know about the evil, doesn't care to prevent it or isn't capable of preventing it. Which of those do you think it is?

He knows about evil, He may or may not prevent an evil and He is very capable of preventing evil. Hard pill to swallow but that is why He is God.
Blessings

 

[~Zao~]

Could you be any more random.

I lost my sense of humour about the time the Louisiana pipeline blew a big hole in mother earth and black blood was spilt everywhere.