Truth & Critical Thinkimg

[Raven]

On 10/28/2017 at 5:41 PM, TruthSeeker199 said:

Why do you christians blindly follow this religion? I was born into a very conservative religious family etc. I didn't see the other side until I began reading and attending medical school. People simply adopt the current religion that is dominate in their society and assimilate into the religious social circle within their local community for reasons like mental coping mechanism, socialization, and using the church as a platform to promote their own agenda e.g. business connections etc. If you christians were born in another country that had Buddhism as the dominate religion you would all be practicing monks right now meditating. Think critically about the world and form your own perspectives in life. Do not be afraid to accept that we truely do not know why or how all of this got here. The human experience is tough but beautiful when you embrace it and actively seek logical answers to life's most perplexing questions. 

Regardless of religions or sciences there is a truth which is so profoundly real and doubtless that surpasses all reasoning. It is this Truth, when revealed to a person, that no amount of logic can shift it. To change from this Truth is like asking somebody to return to a world of fear and deception and not know any difference. But that can never happen because we do know the difference. It is only the non-believers that suffers from no differences. They don't know any different and therefore cannot understand us. But since we do know the difference we have chosen the better side.

[kwikphilly]

Blessings TruthSeeker

     Personally I don't follow any religion,I follow Jesus Christ and I would follow him "blindly" anywhere because I walk by Faith & not by sight,He has shown me the Way many times through complete darkness ,when I was unable to see     It was in complete darkness when He Embraced me and Saved my life,I will follow Him to the ends of the earth     

     Funny,it was after years & years of doing my best to refute the Word of God,my journey began in pre-Med.....all through Medical School I studied & researched many theologies,religions and even the occult.....I have done my due diligence to find contradictions in Gods Word,always resulting in more & more evidence and proof that every Written Word is the irrefutable,infallible Truth .....there was simply no denying it,Christianity was unlike any other religion in the world,it is a Relationship with God in Christ Jesus

    My personal Relationship with the Lord greatly interfered with my chosen profession,I had choices to make and I made them.....no regrets here,its been quite a journey     I do hope you are earnestly seeking the Truth because if you are you will find it,that requires an open ,willing & teachable heart.....you must cast aside predisposed thinking and remain unbiased,not easy to do   Since you are in medical school you have the opportunity to study Latin,that is a great resource and may I suggest Koine Greek......Research the historical Jesus for starters,its a good beginning.......         With love-in Christ,Kwik 

[John Robinson]

Haven't we seen this guy before, under a different name? Or maybe it's the same guy, I don't know. What I do know is all these smug screeds start looking the same, and I say this as a former atheist.

[SisterActs2]

Hello TruthSeeker 199

Glad to meet you, glad you came to Worthy.

I can only tell you of my experience.  I lived my life selfishly until I became dissatisfied with the "norm" (25) and realised that there had to be something more to life than what I was experiencing.  The only church I had known was when my dad sometimes took the family to the local church, mostly Christmas and Easter.  Somehow, deep within myself, I knew there was a God somewhere "out there".

I began my real search, over two years, for the truth.  I looked in many places - read books, looked into Eastern Mysticism, smoked marijuana etc.  Nothing made sense to me, I would not settle for anything less than what I believed was the truth, and I was determined to find it.  I began to have encounters in my life with people who pointed me, although I did not know it at the time, to God.  I began to sense that I was "being drawn" inexplicably like a pin towards a magnet.  I did debate with myself the idea of fighting this, but decided that I would go with it.  After all, I was seeking the truth (excuse me).

One day I met a woman to whom I described my experience thus far.  She said, "You have tried everything else, why not come to church with me and see what you think?"  I went and found a group of people praising God.  All of a sudden, I had what I can only call "a revelation".  The words came to me like some sort of bolt out of the blue: "JESUS CHRIST IS THE TRUTH".  I went home that day and read the sinner's prayer over and over until I thought God had heard it! (27)

That day was in the middle of February 1978.  Since then I embraced following my Lord no matter what.  He has bought me, taught me, and brought me into a real and true relationship with Himself and now abides IN ME and WILL NEVER LEAVE NOR FORSAKE ME, even until the end of the age.

You must come as a little child, if you are to receive Him.  "He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.  But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His Name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." John 1:11-13.

Love in Jesus' Name.

Edited October 31, 2017 by SisterActs2
typo

[Tristen]

"Why do you christians blindly follow this religion? I was born into a very conservative religious family etc. I didn't see the other side until I began reading and attending medical school."

Hi TruthSeeker,

My experience was the almost the opposite. I was brought up in a secular environment. I converted to Christianity as a young adult because, having studied various beliefs (including secular beliefs) I came to the conclusion that Christianity was far and away the most consistent with the reality I observe and experience. This impression has been reaffirmed to me many times over during my over two decades of living within the Christian paradigm. I don't consider myself to have "blindly" followed anything.

 

"People simply adopt the current religion that is dominate in their society and assimilate into the religious social circle within their local community for reasons like mental coping mechanism, socialization, and using the church as a platform to promote their own agenda e.g. business connections etc. If you christians were born in another country that had Buddhism as the dominate religion you would all be practicing monks right now meditating."

I think this statement indicates an antagonistic bias against Christianity. I am a Christian simply because I am convinced it represents the truth. You assume to know the motives behind my beliefs, but don't appear to have considered the possibility that someone could come to a thoughtful, rational conclusion that Christianity represents the truth.

 

"Think critically about the world and form your own perspectives in life. Do not be afraid to accept that we truely do not know why or how all of this got here. The human experience is tough but beautiful when you embrace it and actively seek logical answers to life's most perplexing questions."

Your bias again betrays itself in you assuming that, 1) I have failed to apply critical reasoning where appropriate, 2) I am motivated by fear of the unknown, and 3) that I have failed to "seek logical answers to life's most perplexing questions". You haven't rationally justified any of these assumptions.

[vlad]

On 10/28/2017 at 9:41 AM, TruthSeeker199 said:

Why do you christians blindly follow this religion? I was born into a very conservative religious family etc. I didn't see the other side until I began reading and attending medical school. People simply adopt the current religion that is dominate in their society and assimilate into the religious social circle within their local community for reasons like mental coping mechanism, socialization, and using the church as a platform to promote their own agenda e.g. business connections etc. If you christians were born in another country that had Buddhism as the dominate religion you would all be practicing monks right now meditating. Think critically about the world and form your own perspectives in life. Do not be afraid to accept that we truely do not know why or how all of this got here. The human experience is tough but beautiful when you embrace it and actively seek logical answers to life's most perplexing questions. 

Sorry, I disagree with you. You say "If you christians were born in another country that had..." That is only your own idea. I was born in a country of atheists  and in the family of atheists. According to your mental coping theory I was to become another atheist. There are very many Christians like me. That goes to show you that it is not that simple. Think critically. We are not illogical in our scientific work. The fact is there is a universal limitation which is evident in every field of science. Seeking logical answers to everything does not mean finding them everywhere. Romantic scientists in the 60's used to think that they would travel not only to other planets but to other galaxies. Now they know that cosmic radiation destroys everything living and no material can be protective. In a comparatively short period of time any protection becomes the main source of radiation. I just gave this example to show you that we are limited. Our knowledge also has its limitation. Universal limitation has no rigid boundaries. But the further you go the smaller steps you make. You are not likely to become a Christian but at least try to be less romantic when you are doing science.   

[HAZARD]

Looks like truthseeker has disappeared. Last seen October 28, its now December 29. Or he may be a slow reader   

[RustyAngeL]

On Saturday, October 28, 2017 at 2:21 AM, ayin jade said:

Welcome to worthy.

So much to reply to.

First, a little about me. Im older, got saved when I was 30. I have 3 degrees, including a doctorate in the medical field. In addition, I am quite familiar with many cultures, many religions. Im not saying this to impress anyone with my "smarts" but to show that I have a wide background beyond any religious views in the society I grew up in, as well as the ability to think critically.

You wrote:

Why do you christians blindly follow this religion?

It is a false assumption to claim that Christians blindly follow this religion. I was into native type religions. I attended many native ceremonies that today few outsiders get to attend. I looked for God in many religions, many philosophies. I only found him when I was 30.

Im not alone. Many folks I know are not blindly following the Lord. Their beliefs are solidly based on faith in the only truth that matters - Jesus is Lord and He died for our sins, so that we may be forgiven and be with our God forever.

You wrote:

If you christians were born in another country that had Buddhism as the dominate religion you would all be practicing monks right now meditating.

That too is not true. My husband for instance is a native american, born and raised on the reservation. He was raised in a non Christian household with traditional navajo beliefs. Which are highly pagan. He attended the traditional medicine man healing ceremonies etc as a kid. Along the way he heard the gospel message from billy graham. He got saved. Meanwhile his entire family remained traditional. He prayed for them, witnessed to them, and had others praying for them. Eventually over the course of many years, they all got saved.

You wrote:

Think critically about the world and form your own perspectives in life.

Please do not assume we do not think critically about our world or that we do not form our own persepectives in life. I assure you that we are quite independent thinkers. I still analyze my relationship with the Lord on a daily basis. Most Christians do. We look around our world and examine our place in it. We have not shut off our brain just because we are Christians.

You wrote:

Do not be afraid to accept that we truely do not know why or how all of this got here. The human experience is tough but beautiful when you embrace it and actively seek logical answers to life's most perplexing questions. 

I have actively embraced life, had many adventures in my life, accomplished many things. I seek and have sought in the past logical answers to lifes situations, some of which I hope you never have to face as they were extremely difficult to cope with. My beliefs in my Lord do not shut me off from seeking truthful answers. I have gained from my faith. My faith has been reinforced.

 

Now its my turn to pose a question for you. You mentioned being raised in a Christian household. Did you just turn your back on the beliefs of your family or did you actively investigate their beliefs to see if they are true? If you did not actively investigate their beliefs, why not? Any seeker of truth, any scientist (as you are in the medical field), will investigate truth no matter where it leads.

Well done jade.

I might add to us Christians this is more then a religion.  The is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. It's personal.  This walk with God is what lets us think clearly and gives us hope in these times when so many people have no hope.

I find it typical that those of you.... who do not follow our faith are so ready to point fingers and question us.

Personally for me I cannot see myself living any other way.  My faith is what got me through no only the loss of my parents but the death of my husband.  There were times after Steve died that where pretty dark, and I admit that I often asked why.  My breakthrough came when I stopped asking why and starting praising God for what I did have.  I do that everyday. I thank God for keeping His Hand on me one more night, for keeping me healthy at 65, for my dogs, friends but most of all for God Love towrd me and for sending His only Son to take my place on the Cross.  For my salvation, and my place with Him in Heaven.

Please understand you were created to be eternal and will spend eternity somewhere.  If you accept His Love and His Gift of salvation and walk with Him you will be with Him forever in Heaven.  However if you choose to toss it aside and do it your way, refuse His Gift of salvation your eternity will be spent in hell and yes there is such a place but God does not want to see you there and that is why He gave His Son for us.

I don't know what your choice will be but now you know the truth.. I hope you make the right choice.

 

Blessings, RustyAngel

[vlad]

On 10/28/2017 at 9:41 AM, TruthSeeker199 said:

Why do you christians blindly follow this religion? I was born into a very conservative religious family etc. I didn't see the other side until I began reading and attending medical school. People simply adopt the current religion that is dominate in their society and assimilate into the religious social circle within their local community for reasons like mental coping mechanism, socialization, and using the church as a platform to promote their own agenda e.g. business connections etc. If you christians were born in another country that had Buddhism as the dominate religion you would all be practicing monks right now meditating. Think critically about the world and form your own perspectives in life. Do not be afraid to accept that we truely do not know why or how all of this got here. The human experience is tough but beautiful when you embrace it and actively seek logical answers to life's most perplexing questions. 

Dear  TruthSeeker199, I just remembered about the apostles many of whom were direct witnesses of what Jesus Christ said and did (and they were 12 + 70) as you know. Now statistically what could have been their motivation except to tell the truth?  They did not want to be rich. They were not trying to stay alive at all cost, they did not seek popularity or fame or authority as they were equal and nobody of them claimed superiority. Their only motivation was to tell the truth about what they witnessed. So why do not some people believe them? They usually believe only 2 witnesses. But some people do not believe so many witnesses who did not have any possible earthly motivation to tell lies.

[Sower]

Mat_11:25  At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.

Mar_10:15  Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.