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But where do the Boy Scout rules come from? Are they not based on Christianity?
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But where do the Boy Scout rules come from? Are they not based on Christianity?if there was no afterlife there'd be no need for Jesus to die on the cross.
Absent Him dying on the cross, there is no Christianity. If I just want to be nice and obey some rules, I'd join the Boy Scouts.
Does that work?If there was no afterlife, what would be the point of living in any particular way? Mother Theresa's end would be just the same as Hitler's. Without an afterlife and the ultimate justice, punishment or reward that is a vital part of it, a deeply selfish, wicked life has the exact same conclusion as a self-sacrificing, moral life. Why, then, not live however you please, maximizing your own pleasure as much as you possibly can?
As to your first paragraph, we are approaching the subject as if there is no afterlife. So none of that applies. The question is whether we would still be a Christian if there was no afterlife. It does no good to negate the question on the basis of reality.
Is life better when we put others first? Is life better when we help the less fortunate? Is life better when we seek God for help? Is life better when we are directed by God? None of these things require a resurrection, nor an afterlife.
But where do the Boy Scout rules come from? Are they not based on Christianity?
Was the fear of hell necessary to bring you to Christ?Probably not. Fear of hell is what brought me to Christ. I only started growing in His love later. Nice thread.
Sure, but what is the source of these things? And will God reward those who live this way? (Romans 2:14-15)None of those require even a belief in God. Humanists can do good things, guided by a sense of compassion for others.
What is your answer to the topic question then?No. They are based on spirituality. A Buddhist or Hindu can be a Boy Scout.
There were God-followers before there was a Church. A God-follower is not a Christ-follower. Jesus did not come to earth to create more God-followers.
The essential difference is not even salvation, as the God-follower prior to Jesus are also saved.
The essential difference in being a Christian rather than a God-follower is to take part in the specific mission given to the Body of Christ.
What is your answer to the topic question then?
You seem to be claiming that all the world religions have the same God.I've given it earlier, and I gave it in that post.
Being a God-follower--living a life according to the precepts of God--did not require Christ.
@MMXX
In reality, none of us has any concrete proof that there is an afterlife. We take it on faith.
Therefore, we should all live as if there is no afterlife. But not in the sense that what we do doesn't matter. Rather in the sense that what we do is ALL that matters.
You seem to be claiming that all the world religions have the same God.
That's another topic.We have the same "proof" of an afterlife that we have of a God. Does that mean we live as though there were no God?
Oh, I see now. (having re-read your earlier post) You are distinguishing between "God-followers" and "Christ-followers".Nope. You know what a Christian means by capitalizing God. And I'm sure you know that the term "God-follower" is used in the New Testament and what it means there.
I apologize. I am still not clear on your answer to the topic question. You seem to be nullifying the question to avoid answering it. Is that correct?I've given it earlier, and I gave it in that post.
Being a God-follower--living a life according to the precepts of God--did not require Christ.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. -- John 3
The explicit purpose of Christ is for salvation into the afterlife. The mission explicitly given to the Body of Christ is to preach the gospel of salvation into that afterlife. The apostle Paul explicitly stated that if there is no afterlife, there is no purpose to the gospel.
If there were no afterlife, if Jesus were merely a prophet who died and was now "sleeping with the fathers," there might still be people living by the precepts of God...but there would not be Christianity.
Oh, I see now. (having re-read your earlier post) You are distinguishing between "God-followers" and "Christ-followers".
I apologize. I am still not clear on your answer to the topic question. You seem to be nullifying the question to avoid answering it. Is that correct?
Saint Steven said: ↑
What is your answer to the topic question then?
Interesting. I was just thinking about that this week. It's an OT quote. What did the Prophet mean when he said it. As you indicate, it probably has nothing to do with physical healing. However, it is common in the NT texts to misappropriate, and even misquote, an OT text to make a NT declaration.He never used even once the favorite phrase used by word of faith preachers, “by Jesus stripes You are healed!”
So, you are claiming that Christianity is predicated on an afterlife? No afterlife = no Christianity.The question is self-nullifying. It's like asking, "Would you still be a citizen of the USA if the British colonials had never rebelled?"
The apostle Paul has already answered the question.
Does that work?
Does living a self-centered life give you a better life?
Sure, but what is the source of these things? And will God reward those who live this way? (Romans 2:14-15)
As Christians, we do good things because we want to serve Jesus, whom we love and trust and who is our Lord and Saviour.
But if there is no after life then Jesus was lying when he spoke of one, and if he was not raised from the dead then he was lying when he said he would be.
The transfiguration, when Moses and Elijah appeared, was also a lie - therefore Jesus cannot be trusted. So why follow him?
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