[BelieverInGod]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Well maybe if you explain what made you lose faith we could help you a bit better. As I said, right now I'm wrestling with my own doubts as to whether predestination is a fact and if so whether or not I'm in the book of life.

[Jeb Stuart Thurmond]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

-I don't consider his nonexistence due to the fact that bad things happen, I'm forced to question his love with my unanswered questions.

God IS love. Since God's lovingkindness sends the vast majority of people to hell, it's obvious that that's a loving thing to do.

-I can't just snap my fingers and say that have faith.Faith to me seems like a gift that some people have and some don't,

I feel the same way about scientific reasoning. And yet public schools still try to cram the scientific method down our children's throats!

-If I replace my "why" with a "how" it turns the question into "How could God favor only 1/3 of the human population" which still shows a lot of similarity to my original question

And that's the problem with that question. Moving back to WHY, "Why do you need to know God's mind?" Do you believe Einstien when he says nothing can move faster than light? Do you need to know how he could condemn science-fiction writers, who love faster-than-light travel so much?

[Meek and Humble]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

"No, you gain faith through prayer and reading the Bible."
I've read the Bible several time chronologically, cover to cover, and random books of by choice, it does not fix my urge to question all that is brought to me, and when I was a strong believer in the lord I did have questions, I prayed for faith, it was what I strived for everyday was to be more faithful in the lord. But as I gained knowledge of what before seemed to me as satanic such as science and philosophy I began to consider another stand on life, but even now I still beg to have the faith of a Christian.

If you read the Bible and still do not believe, it is because God has intentionally hardened your heart from accepting the truth, because He hates you.

John 12:40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.

2 Thessalonians 2:11-12 God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned.

Proverbs 16:4 The Lord hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Romans 9:18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.

Rom.9:11-22 For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth. .... For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? ... Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction.

Jude 4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation.

1 Kings 22:23 Now, therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee.

2 Chronicles 18:22 Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets.

Jeremiah 4:10 Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people.

Jeremiah 20:7 O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived.

Ezekiel 14:9 And if a prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet.

[Craids]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Thank you all for the feedback, I'm going to have dinner and relax for the rest of the day. I wish that those of you who I have conversed with would pray for me in my journey for faith and I might log back on tomorrow and discuss with you some more.
again , Thank you
-Gus

[Meek and Humble]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Thank you all for the feedback, I'm going to have dinner and relax for the rest of the day. I wish that those of you who I have conversed with would pray for me in my journey for faith and I might log back on tomorrow and discuss with you some more.
again , Thank you
-Gus

I don't think I'll be doing that.

Do you ever pray for the salvation of those who you feel are condemned?

Of course not! For, if we follow (as we ought) the example of our Saviour and the clear commandment of God, we would not dare to do so.



To clarify, consider what the Saviour said in John 17. After stating at length how God pre-selected a few out of the world to give to Jesus, it comes to verse 9 which states unequivocally "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou has given me; for they are thine."


To the extent that we are ever instructed to pray for any other than those who make a profession to this faith, it is in recognition that they may be God's elect who have not yet received the call to grace. Hence, we are instructed to "pray for them who despitefully use you, and persecute you.


(Matthew 5:44). We know that, as with Saul of Tarsus, we could find among the enemy one who has grace.



More telling on the subject, however, is the events immediately prior to the destruction by God of the nation of Israel told of in Jeremiah. Throughout the detailed accounts of the abominations of that nation, God repeatedly tells his prophet "pray not thou for this people" (Jeremiah 7:16; 11:14; 14:11). Then, as if to put the instruction into the hyperbolic range, God pronounces the futility of such prayer by saying "Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people." (Jeremiah 15:1). You simply cannot read the accounts given throughout the scriptures without recognizing that those who are clearly condemned of God are beyond any hope of intervention by prayer.



To bring the point into focus, consider the pronouncements of God that He has thrice given non-believers "up to uncleanness" (Romans 1:24), "up unto vile affections" (Romans 1:26), and "over to a reprobate mind" (Romans 1:28). What arrogance would we display to pretend we could pray them back into the good grace of Him who has given them up?

[Nathan B. Forrest]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

If I write a book that says something and claim it is true simply because the book says so is considered circular reasoning.

Absolutely!! If you wrote a book titled "I'm a non-believing queer" we'd all believe it!!!

[Craids]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Absolutely!! If you wrote a book titled "I'm a non-believing queer" we'd all believe it!!!

Woah, when did sexual orientation come into play?

[Cranky Old Man]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Woah, when did sexual orientation come into play?

Why you should stop being gay: Romans 1:26-27 "For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet."

[GOD=life]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Well Gee Golly Gumdrops, you phrased your post ever so simpletonianly for us mere Christians to understand and it's STILL too diffimacult!

Please rephrase your post using only monosyllabic words and only those found among the lowest common denominator of pedestrian vernacular?

Also, Mr. Arrogant Atheist, please use double negatives such as "I don't know nothing" and "ain't" instead of "isn't".

If you really want to express yourself eloquently in the Christian tongue, include farm references and analogies. After all, "you ain't quack like doggone chicken 'ol eggs YEEHAW!!" is SO much easier for us simple folk to understand, wouldn't you agree?

Signed,

An Intellectually Offended Christian

P.S. It's your choice to go to Hell or not. All we can do as True Christians™ is to encourage YOU to make the RIGHT choice. Don't blame God for your choices.

[Marguerite]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

First of all, this is NOT a debate forum.

Then, it is not a forum at all.

[Craids]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Well Gee Golly Gumdrops, you phrased your post ever so simpletonianly for us mere Christians to understand and it's STILL too diffimacult!

Please rephrase your post using only monosyllabic words and only those found among the lowest common denominator of pedestrian vernacular?

Also, Mr. Arrogant Atheist, please use double negatives such as "I don't know nothing" and "ain't" instead of "isn't".

If you really want to express yourself eloquently in the Christian tongue, include farm references and analogies. After all, "you ain't quack like doggone chicken 'ol eggs YEEHAW!!" is SO much easier for us simple folk to understand, wouldn't you agree?

Signed,

An Intellectually Offended Christian

P.S. It's your choice to go to Hell or not. All we can do as True Christians™ is to encourage YOU to make the RIGHT choice. Don't blame God for your choices.

Never have I once blamed the God I believed in for the choices I made, I've said many times in this topic that I was the one who drifted away and learned new things.
Also, I'm sharing my perspective and comparing it with a Christian perspective to help myself become a Christian.A couple of you have helped me and wrote some responses that were interesting and I took consideration for them. I'm not here to bash or bombard Christians with big words(I'm not even using "big words") I'm just here in hopes to get myself straight.
Also, I see several of you have called me Atheists, I have not once said or hinted that I was Atheist.I do not claim to know how creation came about, so I do not have a set belief on God, Gods, or big bang theories.I only hope to become a Christian but my lack of faith stands in my way, I come here to help regain my faith through advice and knowledgeable opinions.

[BelieverInGod]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Never have I once blamed the God I believed in for the choices I made, I've said many times in this topic that I was the one who drifted away and learned new things.
Also, I'm sharing my perspective and comparing it with a Christian perspective to help myself become a Christian.A couple of you have helped me and wrote some responses that were interesting and I took consideration for them. I'm not here to bash or bombard Christians with big words(I'm not even using "big words") I'm just here in hopes to get myself straight.
Also, I see several of you have called me Atheists, I have not once said or hinted that I was Atheist.I do not claim to know how creation came about, so I do not have a set belief on God, Gods, or big bang theories.I only hope to become a Christian but my lack of faith stands in my way, I come here to help regain my faith through advice and knowledgeable opinions.

I think God=Life took offence to you "very simple to understand" in your topic line. You have to understand that we are under constant attack by trolls so some people here can be rather defencive.

You can use big words here. We're all quite well spoken and most of us have a high reading comprehension.

As for it not being a debate forum, we're here to discuss and Worship God, not debate his existence. Not every forum is for debating subjects. Discussion is not the same as debate.

[Cranky Old Man]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Also, I'm sharing my perspective and comparing it with a Christian perspective to help myself become a Christian.

Why are you making this so complicated? Your perspective is completely irrelevant, as are you. All that matters is in the KJV1611 Holy Bible so please drop everything and start reading that now!

I'm just here in hopes to get myself straight.

Then please stop whining and start acting!

I only hope to become a Christian but my lack of faith stands in my way, I come here to help regain my faith through advice and knowledgeable opinions.

Just read that KJV1611 Holy Bible! Your faith will grow automatically while you are reading it!

2 Timothy 3:16 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness"

[GOD=life]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

..., I have not once said or hinted that I was Atheist.

I do not claim to know how creation came about, so I do not have a set belief on God, Gods, ... but my lack of faith stands in my way, ...

Seems like a pretty big hint. Do you mean that you're agnostic? An agnostic is really little more than an atheist who isn't sure about his beliefs.

Keep in mind, though, that you don't need us to become Christian. All you need is the KJV 1611 Bible and read it entirely. That's all you need for a complete and accurate understanding of what Christianity is all about.

Please feel free to ignore the "but.. but.. God is LOVE, no matter WHAT the Bible says!" surrender monkeys.

[The Hand]

Re: Why I can't be a Christian(Very Simple to understand)

Look at us as a crop, where the strong seed grows best and the chaff must be separated from the wheat come harvest time.