Reasons for questioning

[MeCajunboy]

I asked him if people who have never heard the name of Christ go to hell. And I told him that if they do, I don't think that to be fair.

Like I said, I love the guy, and respect him to the fullest, but I think he didn't have an answer and got kind of nervous. We all do, I guess I just expected him to handle it a little better. I shouldn't put him at fault because I might have done the same thing, who knows?

My sister sent me a message through facebook yesterday and it really touched my heart. I live in a town where religion and church are everything. They basically dictate your spiritual life, which really isn't a spiritual life. My sister is an amazing soul. She grew up a die-hard conservative christian and stayed that way for the first three years of college. Then she realized that she didn't believe in some of the things, such as the question I asked my preacher. She ended up moving to Boston and meeting alot of really cool people. She is very happy and always tells me how different things are. She went on to tell me how she has grown in her relationship with God. I was shocked. She then explained that she realized that God turned into a religion for her in my town. She realized that a personal relationship with Him is much more important than the doctrines and facts in the bible. She was right.

Thank you guys so much. Ya'll were a huge help and I look forward to many more beautiful conversations.

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!

Blessings SS7,

I will try to explain this so that everyone can understand. It is one thing to say, "you read the entire bible." But it is quite another to "Comprehend" the Word and works of God. And truly, until you accept God as your Lord and Saviour and accept what HE stands for , all the reading and all the words are for nothing because until God enters your heart and soul, you can't begin to know the Power that are in HIS words.

You asked a paster friend, Does anyone who doesn't know the Son of God, is going to Hell. The correct response, which I have not heard is, ONLY THE ONE TRUE GOD KNOWS THAT ANSWER. God cannot hold every man responsible for not hearing of HIS son is you're referring to those lost lands in Africa, for instance. But, I'd have to say, since God told us that "Every man will come to know HIM! I have to believe that to be true. This is based on the same question man has asked, How does one come to know sin, or the difference between RIGHT and WRONG? I'D be willing to bet that even those lost lands of Africa, where only tribes exist that have never known man, still know the difference between RIGHT and WRONG!. If this is not God instilled, where and how did these isolated peoples come to know about evil, or right from wrong, or even sin? One would be more inclined to believe that God has affected or gave knowledge to each and every man on Earth.. Why else would these distant men of an isolated populass want to teach their children about how to live? Some call it instinct! Some would consider it a revolation!

Blessings

Cajunboy

[systemstrike_7]

First of all, you have no idea what their right and wrong consist of. They could be completely different from ours. They could believe that any man can have sex with any woman of his choosing.(I'm just giving examples) Well we do not believe that this is right.

You also underestimate their ability to invent their own gods and goddess, whether they be false or not. They will already have a stong belief in something, without outside influences to persuade them otherwise. We are discussing this issue in another thread if you choose to come join us. Many questions have remained unanswered.

And about the whole reading the bible without the spirit thing. My understanding of scripture is helped when I study the background and history of the bible. I have not felt any sense of further understanding since becoming a christian. I don't know where this notion comes from, but I'm starting to think it is merely a cop out. We cannot use this excuse when debating with atheists. They will laugh, and probably leave the conversation. With good reason too. By saying this, you have caused the debate to be in a stall position. Something nobody wants to do.

[cjrose]

I was reading an earlier thread where a moderator had explained to us that they will be banning some nonbelievers because of there intent. I respect this, don't get me wrong.

I wanted to take the time to try and explain my reasons for being here. As some of ya'll know, I came to board as a believer, but recently lost my faith. I stay here because I want answers. I would like to believe in the christian God, but logic and past experience has kept me from doing so.

I am here to try and find answers, but the only way to get answers is to ask questions. I recently had a meeting with my old preacher at the baptist church I go to. He is a very sweet man and I respect him to the fullest. I gave him one of my questions in the nicest way possible, and he immedietly walked me out the door and told me to come back when I had something relevant to discuss. I was heart-broken.

When I am here, I want to ask questions and search for answers and I promise that I will accept defeat when I am defeated. In all reality, I want to be wrong.

If anyone can give me some advice at how to do this in the nicest way possible, I will be in their debt. I want to keep my relationships with everyone as clean as possible, so please tell me, what are my boundaries?

I did not read all of the replies to this topic for the specific purpose to keep my thought process uninterrupted with other replies just because I need to focus sometimes harder than usual not because other's replies are of any less importance. That being said, I am glad to have read this post as it has given me a bit more of an understanding of you since I have replied to several of your others without having this knowledge before hand. I'm very happy that you are staying and asking questions. I hope that you will learn to accept your faith and that you can't lose it. If you truly have believed in the Lord as your Savior and are saved, you have hit a bump in the road, life has thrown you a curve, you're off balance is all. Faith is not an emotion like happiness or sadness but faith is a gift and is fact. Not feeling but fact. Just because you don't "feel" it doesn't mean you have lost it.

If you have truly been saved and now are rejecting God which I don't get that impression since you are here with a desire to know the truth that God exists and the Lord Jesus is alive TODAY! He stands at the door and knocks. If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. But we must repent if we are to be cleansed. Repentence comes from the heart out of a deep love and fear of the Lord to do what is right in His eyes.

A life change begins with repentence, by saying, "Lord, I am sorry that I have not put You and Your Kingdom first." 1John 1:9 If we repent we are headed toward the goal of wholness, not being healed physically, but being in the perfect will of God. We are designed so the spirit, soul, and body affect each other. What happens in your body affects your mind. What happens in your mind affects your spirit. What happens in your spirit affects your mind body and soul. They interact and affect one another.

Often times our spirit fights the flesh and the soul. This is when it is understandable that one feels they have lost their faith or have sinned so badly there is no way God can or will forgive them but that is not true. God paid for all our sins, past, present and future through His death on the cross and the only unpardonable sin is blasphemey against the Holy Spirit. Which is knowing for absolute certainty you are saved through Jesus, that His Spirit is alive within you and one day you deny the Spirit. Circumstances have caused doubt, doubt has led to misconception then to complacency and then myth or fairy tale and it all becomes so inconceviable it can't be true. That is the Lie! It is true and always will be. But to deny Him that has given you everything, to deny His existence, to have faith in His promise and then to claim there is no such God is blasphemy.

I truly do not believe you are there. I truly do not believe there is any sin that would cause Him to walk away as He doesn't walk away. He will never forsake us but it is in our own mind when we begin to doubt that causes us to separate and charter into dangerous waters.

Christians are not perfect. Christians stray, come home, stray and come home again as each time they are pulled Home, it is with much more strength as in our weakness and adversity is when we grow and learn.

Don't give up because He has not given up on you. Now is the time to study His Word, surround yourself with fellowship, have an open mind to take that narrow path. And do not be afraid to seek our prayers in prayer requests.

Peace and may God Bless you in this journey leading you back home

[Guest Timbo]

I was reading an earlier thread where a moderator had explained to us that they will be banning some nonbelievers because of there intent. I respect this, don't get me wrong.

I wanted to take the time to try and explain my reasons for being here. As some of ya'll know, I came to board as a believer, but recently lost my faith. I stay here because I want answers. I would like to believe in the christian God, but logic and past experience has kept me from doing so.

I am here to try and find answers, but the only way to get answers is to ask questions. I recently had a meeting with my old preacher at the baptist church I go to. He is a very sweet man and I respect him to the fullest. I gave him one of my questions in the nicest way possible, and he immedietly walked me out the door and told me to come back when I had something relevant to discuss. I was heart-broken.

When I am here, I want to ask questions and search for answers and I promise that I will accept defeat when I am defeated. In all reality, I want to be wrong.

If anyone can give me some advice at how to do this in the nicest way possible, I will be in their debt. I want to keep my relationships with everyone as clean as possible, so please tell me, what are my boundaries?

Hi systemstrike 7,

It is no wonder that you ' lost your faith ', when your "preacher at the baptist church I go to" was unwilling to answer a Bible question. These are supposed to be the ones that Malachi spoke of, saying: " For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they (anyone wanting to know God's law) should seek the law at his mouth; for he is the messenger of Jehovah of hosts."(American Standard Version) It is not surprising that many religious leaders are very reluctant to answer Bible questions put to them. In the illustration of Lazarus and the rich man, at Luke 16:19-31, Jesus showed that the Pharisees and other religious leaders fed the common people, those illustrated by Lazarus, spiritual crumbs. The religious leaders, those pictured by the "rich man", who "used to deck himself with purple and linen, enjoying himself from day to day with magnificence", did not provide the spiritual needs of the common people. Rather, the Pharisees and scribes even called these ones by a Hebrew expression, am ha