Why God did not stop Hitler and Hirohito from destroying millions of people in WW2 ?

[FJK]

Just now, JED said:

I don't think God can intervene. Assuming there is a God, which I now no longer believe, there seems to be no absolute proof that he ever has.

And none that he hasn't.

Your life, your choice, you're the one that has to live it.

[JED]

1 minute ago, FJK said:

And none that he hasn't.

Your life, your choice, you're the one that has to live it.

I think the burden of proof needs to rely on us proving that God is real and not saying that there's no proof he doesn't.  Otherwise we could say there is no absolute proof that rainbow coloured unicorns exist for example.

 

[Still Alive]

14 hours ago, JED said:

I don't think God can intervene. Assuming there is a God, which I now no longer believe, there seems to be no absolute proof that he ever has.

Interestingly, I believe God chooses us, rather than we choose God. And when we share the Gospel, we don't know who is going to believe and who isn't. 

But in my case there are plenty of reasons not to believe, the latest of which is our son was killed in a car wreck about 20 months ago, leaving our two grandchildren who were 12 and 16 alone with their crazy mom. I mean seriously. he also had started a business about 8 years ago that left her with about $7 million, which she burns up on drugs. It's a very sad situation.

Yet He's also done two miraculous healings in our lives and two other miraculous answers to prayer. My joy in the Lord is no longer based on what happens in this life. It's like we're playing Call of Duty and are just characters in the game controlled by the real person that is projected into our bodies from outside. That "real person" is you. Your body is a shell it occupies for a few decades. Your consciousness is a literal miracle from God that you experience all the time. You've just gotten so used to it that you don't even think about it - much. 

This life is kinda like a boot camp, with your "real" life to follow. In other words, everything really DOES happen for a reason.

Don't wash out.

I highly recommend C. S. Lewis' book, "The problem of pain". It was inspired by the tremendous grief he suffered when his wife died of cancer. And actually, the history of his marriage is also fascinating. The book deals very much with the question, "why does God allow so much suffering?"

Edited October 4, 2023 by Michael37
Reported Content Removed

[Still Alive]

2 minutes ago, JED said:

I think the burden of proof needs to rely on us proving that God is real and not saying that there's no proof he doesn't.  Otherwise we could say there is no absolute proof that rainbow coloured unicorns exist for example.

 

I think that Christianity is based on faith, but not blind faith. Sometimes the difference is subtle, and sometimes it's stark. I'll tell you one thing: my personal belief is that if someone thinks that there is no creator, they're not really paying attention. 

I'll also add that I personally separate "Christianity" from "man made religion". And I believe that ALL Christian denominations are man made religions, but many have "leaven" of Christianity mixed in. 

[FJK]

1 minute ago, JED said:

I think the burden of proof needs to rely on us proving that God is real and not saying that there's no proof he doesn't.  Otherwise we could say there is no absolute proof that rainbow coloured unicorns exist for example.

 

As I said, it's your life and you're the one that lives it.

I've be where you are and found it to be a really miserable and lonely place to be, that's why I fought my way out of it and came to where I am now instead, a journey into faith that seems to have no end to the ever expanding wonders it brings to me.

 

[JED]

3 minutes ago, FJK said:

As I said, it's your life and you're the one that lives it.

I've be where you are and found it to be a really miserable and lonely place to be, that's why I fought my way out of it and came to where I am now instead, a journey into faith that seems to have no end to the ever expanding wonders it brings to me.

 

It's interesting as I've been a non believer, then a believer and now probably an apostate.  At the moment, I am very happy and don't miss the christian life.

I have respect for faiths but worry that people blindly follow a religion and make choices based upon that and see the world through that lense....that is dangerous when in reality they must all be false religions (or 99.9% must be).

[Still Alive]

8 minutes ago, JED said:

I think the burden of proof needs to rely on us proving that God is real and not saying that there's no proof he doesn't.  Otherwise we could say there is no absolute proof that rainbow coloured unicorns exist for example.

I think you are right about the burden of proof. After all, if someone says something exists, but offers zero proof, why would you believe them. Then again, for many people, "miracles" only count if you personally experience them. That is why, for many people, the hundreds of people who witnessed the resurrected Jesus are an irrelevance because they didn't personally see him. 

The events of my life scream out that there is a creator - and that he Loves us. 

And here's the key. The message of Christianity is simple. There are two commandments: Love God and love your fellow man. And love is a decision and an action. Oh, and a third thing: Jesus brings eternal life to those that follow him. Those that don't can still enjoy the gift of this life in whatever way they see fit. They can make it fruitful or they can squander it on drugs, women, etc. And the more they squander it (and we all do to one degree or another), the more misery they will experience. Some will live in horrible misery (think the drug addicts in the tent cities). Others will live in squalor, in places like Haiti, yet know the joy of the Lord. 

But for everyone, there is an end to this life. For those that accepted Jesus' free gift, they go on to abundant and eternal life, according to Jesus. Those that don't, their end is final, like the end of all the other animals. The person is resurrected at the great white throne judgement, and then ended permanently. For eternity. The bible calls it a punishment, but it's not a punishment where one is "taught a lesson" since there is no point in teaching them. Rather, they are "punished", like the machine in this sentence: "your machine can take a fair amount of punishment before falling to pieces"

So, as Spock sez, "Live long and prosper." But in the end, it's not about what happens to you, it's about your attitude toward this short life that our creator gave you. Are you going to squander it in the pursuit of pleasure, or use it to enhance your relationship with your Creator and your fellow man?

For me, it is ALL about those relationships. Everything else is something that either enhances or detracts from those relationships.

[Still Alive]

19 minutes ago, JED said:

It's interesting as I've been a non believer, then a believer and now probably an apostate.  At the moment, I am very happy and don't miss the christian life.

I have respect for faiths but worry that people blindly follow a religion and make choices based upon that and see the world through that lense....that is dangerous when in reality they must all be false religions (or 99.9% must be).

I think there is a lot of truth to that post. And I think what you call the "Christian life" is probably your experience with man made Christian tradition, not actual Christianity. I say that because I've experienced a LOT of it. My wife and I currently go to a "Christian" church. That is the actual denomination name. But we've moved around a lot and have gone to Baptist, Assembly of God, Foursquare, Vineyard, and several others. I also played in a southern gospel band that visited a lot of the small backwoods churches here in Kentucky when I first moved here. Let me tell you, you here a lot of really crazy and unbiblical stuff in a lot of those churches. Also, a lot of "non-believers are gonna burn to a crisp forever" messages. And a lot of them were so judgmental against anyone not actually in the building listening, it was, well, comical, if it were not so serious.

The misery I saw in many of those congregations was also surprising. It caught me off guard. 

The important thing to remember, though, is that there is ONE difference between true Christianity and all the man made religions, even the "Christian" ones. That difference is Grace. No man made religion includes it. They are ALL about your effort to "be good" being imperative. 

In Christianity, we are called heirs. It's important to really think deeply about what that means. Call us spoiled little rich kids or whatever. The point is that we enjoy His blessings and the Joy of being in His family not because we make sure our room is cleaned up or take out the garbage when he tells us to. Rather, he has adopted us into his family as HIS children and loves us more than any earthly father can. And I've met some VERY loving earthly fathers. So enjoy the Bughatti your father got you for your 16th birthday, and you will please him if you drive responsibly and don't wreck it on a back road in a drunken stupor. But even then, you are still His adopted son that He loves. Look at David. A man after His own heart. Yet a murderer and adulterer. 

In fact, every single person* in the bible that God used had some serious flaws. 

 

*This doesn't include Jesus, since He is literally God in the flesh. The only "man" we can worship.

Edited October 3, 2023 by Still Alive

[Still Alive]

27 minutes ago, JED said:

It's interesting as I've been a non believer, then a believer and now probably an apostate.  At the moment, I am very happy and don't miss the christian life.

I have respect for faiths but worry that people blindly follow a religion and make choices based upon that and see the world through that lense....that is dangerous when in reality they must all be false religions (or 99.9% must be).

Here is a great thought exercise I like to throw at people in the church:

One boy is born in a gang infested neighborhood near Chicago. His dad was just a sperm donor and his mom was a crack head so he was raised by his grandmother who wasn't too clean herself. He joined a gang (the only real family a lot of these boys get), committed some petty crimes and became basically a "feral human being", dying before he reached the age of 25.

Another boy was born to a mother and father in an affluent neighborhood. Dad had a solid job, the family went to church every Sunday, and further, his father taught him strong morals and the role of a man in the world. He also taught him about the love of Christ, and the boy saw it in his daily life in how his father interacted with other human beings.

Now, the second boy became a strong Christian, a leader, and lived a very happy and productive life, with multiple children, a loving wife, and lots and lots of grandchildren.

In the end, was the second boy more "deserving" of God's free gift? switch the two boys circumstances. How would boy number two have faired with the same situation as boy number one, and vice versa? 

i.e. God chooses us. We don't choose him. He did not, in my opinion, say, "I'm gonna have all the bad people be born in the "hood", where they shoot up, shoot each other, and treat all the girls in the neighborhood as their persona harem. And I'm gonna have all the good people be born to Ward and June Cleaver. 

Most Christians have a hard time dealing with this. I do to some degree, but I'm almost 70, and I've seen God work incredible miracles in the most destitute lives. In fact, in a real way, that's one of the miracles that strengthened my belief.

[Rick-Parker]

Everyone, at some time or another, has heard the Good News and has had the opportunity to accept Christ.

"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9)