origin of God

[Becky]

"We made God up so that our short lives would have more meaning.  It gives us a reason to exist and a reason to not fear death.  We made God up to help us cope with life and death.  God is in me and you, in all of us already and always has been.  It is a way for us humans to cope."

comments on this quote?  thanks

[Bill]

Sounds pretty humanistic/new age if you ask me.  ???

The only part of it that's right or makes sense is that God, through the person of the Holy Spirit, does live inside each of us when we become born again believers.  But I know that's not what the author of that quote meant.

[Ovedya]

"We made God up so that our short lives would have more meaning.

[Dad Ernie]

Greetings Becky,

I know these questions you are asking are so you can argue intelligently against them with another person in your life, but I would encourage you to seek FIRST the answers directly from the Word of God and THEN if you have difficulty, by all means check with others to help you out.

But the MOST IMPORTANT thing you can do is get well acquainted with the Bible YOURSELF first before attempting to correct someone else. Jesus said: "First take the log out of your own eye, then you will be able to SEE to take the splinter out of your brother's eye" or words to that effect.

Blessings,

Dad Ernie

[Catsmeow]

When I was a new Christian,  I often sought to enlist the help of more mature Christians to help me when faced with the piercing questions my family and friends would ask...questions like the one given above.

Growth takes time and not everyone can articulate as well. It's good that we support each other in this way.

If the person who asked this question is a teen and faced with persecution from friends at school, I think Worthy Boards is a great place to ask questions and get feedback. There's many grounded and mature Christians on this board who can be very helpful.

[Becky]

Hello everyone,

Some of you may have seen my other posts.

[Becky]

I know these questions you are asking are so you can argue intelligently against them with another person in your life, but I would encourage you to seek FIRST the answers directly from the Word of God and THEN if you have difficulty, by all means check with others to help you out.

But the MOST IMPORTANT thing you can do is get well acquainted with the Bible YOURSELF first before attempting to correct someone else.

Dad Ernie, I am not wanting to argue but want to intelligently and confidently discuss these issues.

[Adstar]

Becky from an earlier post I realize you are quoting from an atheist so as to get help from us for ideas to communicate with the atheist to counter his positions. May I give you a suggestion?

The response would be better if you explain in your first post that you are quoting someone else and that you are seeking help to overcome the thinking in the quote.

I also have discussions with atheists and I come here with their quotes seeking help from my Brothers and Sisters you may have seen one or two of my Questioning posts? Actually one should always use quote marks when quoting the thoughts of others.

All Praise The Ancient Of Days

[Catsmeow]

In the original quote, Becky used quotation marks around the question and then asked specifically for feedback or comments on the aforementioned quote.

That's why I assumed she was dealing with

[Ovedya]

God-man, I really don't understand your first question/point.

The assumption that humans have created God because there is an innate need to invent a god is wrong.  Nietzsche once wrote that if there were no God people would have to invent him.  One of the differences between humans and animals is that animals do not have the innate desire to worship God.  If a monkey had the intellect of a human he would not "invent" God, because even a such a monkey does not have the innate desire to worship God.  You see?

In the 2nd, are you saying that without a concept of a "god" it would not be possible for humans to make it up?

A popular notion with humanists and atheists is that man invented God out of a need to explain certain mysteries of the universe. Coupled with this argument is the idea that society as a whole accepts the general notion that there is a God controlling the universe.  The only reason that we believe in God is because we are conditioned to believe in God by society.  So my question was focussed on this aspect.  If human beings existed in a vaccum deviod of the sociological constructs that encourages him to accept the notion of God at face value, would he have invented God anyway?

The truth of the fact is that God created us to believe in Him.  He put a human spirit within man that functions as sort of a faith beacon, if you will.  Man believes in God because God created man to believe in Him.  It is not that man needed a way to explain all the mysteries of the universe and so invented the idea of "God."  This argument is totally opposite of the what the Bible testifies.

Let's say that saw a great work of art that just astounded you. I mean this work of art is a painting that just outdoes all the great works of art in the whole world.  It is like the Mona Lisa, the Sistine Chapel, and all the great works of the masters combined.  What would be one of the first things that you would say about that painting? And what would be one of the first things you would say about he person who painted it?  God's creation is just like that painting.  The creation itself is a reflection of its creator.  So when we view creation we see the One who created it.  It is not that we just invent an idea to explain that which we do not understand.  But that God's glory and His truth, righteousness, holiness, etc., are all displayed in His creation.

and the 3rd question, I'm not sure about the statement that people have a coping mechanism who don't believe in God/unclear as to your thoughts there.

I was basically addressing the argument that people have invested God as a manes of coping with things like the fear of death. You could make the argument that people believe in God as a means of coping with the loss of a loved one.  Like, for example, if a loved one were to die, instead of believing that death is the absolute end of that person, it is easier to believe that that person has gone on to be with God.  But God is not a coping mechanism to deal with death.  This idea is very shallow. What about a person who does not believe in God (as if this were actually possible)?  What is his coping mechanism, if not the idea of God?  The fact that there are some people who do not use God as a coping mechanism disproves your friend's argument.  Hope this helps.  Grace to you.