Thought for the day

[Mindlight]

Thought for the day. Since atheists will burn in hell and Christians live forever with God this life is Christians only hope of retrieving something of value from these peoples thoughts and their lives. When this life is finished all of what they are that is not remembered by a Christian will be lost forever.

So hug an atheist today and listen for something worthy of eternity in them. Even if you cannot save them maybe you can snatch a pearl or 2 of wisdom from the lake of fire.

I believe it is wrong for Christians to say, "Atheists will burn in hell." Paul indicates that God's law is written on every human heart, and there is that verse about unbelievers being judged by their own hearts. Because our own hearts may be less magnanimous and forgiving, this could be a harsher judgment. Scripture also tells us faith is a gift, and that God will test us. Could it be no faith/belief is a test in which many will pass? I am not sure how well I would if I was tested by a removal of faith--but I can testify that the atheists in my family are no more fodder for hell than believers are.

If anyone needs an extra assurance of God's love--not to mention the love of God's people--it is the atheist. The last thing they need during their test of no faith is for some to judge them as only fit for hell.

Ok a new thought for a new day and maybe one with more hope for those who struggle with unbelief , doubt and scepticism.

Just as there are different kinds of atheist maybe also we can differentiate between honest atheists and those who wilfully oppose God.

There is a difference between a person who lives in a darkness they did not choose and is genuinely trying his best to find his way in it and someone who deliberately mocks God. Each man is judged by the portion of truth that they have been given and their response to the grace that is freely offered them.

While this whole OP is a deliberate attempt to mock God, from a man who does this all the time, it is not my place to say he will go to hell. The most that can be said is that this is the tragic conclusion of such wilful rebellion.

Isaiah 66 v 22-24

And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.

 

[CrusaderFrank]

very poignant on this day above all others

"A silent, invisible, intangible, undetectable ‘god’ is literally indistinguishable from a non-existent ‘god’. It is a source of deep shame and a great embarrassment to our species, that we must still even discuss such primitive, infantile delusions."

..and you're a Jew?

 

[guno]

Born Jewish , now a humanist Jew

SHJ Society for Humanistic Judaism

Jewish atheism - Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

 

[guno]

 

[guno]

 

[Mindlight]

 

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[Meriweather]

Ok a new thought for a new day and maybe one with more hope for those who struggle with unbelief , doubt and scepticism.

Just as there are different kinds of atheist maybe also we can differentiate between honest atheists and those who wilfully oppose God.

There is a difference between a person who lives in a darkness they did not choose and is genuinely trying his best to find his way in it and someone who deliberately mocks God. Each man is judged by the portion of truth that they have been given and their response to the grace that is freely offered them.

While this whole OP is a deliberate attempt to mock God, from a man who does this all the time, it is not my place to say he will go to hell. The most that can be said is that this is the tragic conclusion of such wilful rebellion.

Isaiah 66 v 22-24

And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.

I do agree each of us--whether atheist or Christian--are unique. Evil can hide in Christianity as readily as atheism. I have not been here long, so I have no history with the OP. However, it seems more logical to me that those who do not believe in God don't mock Him as much as they mock and torment those they perceive to be mocking and tormenting them.

Atheist frustration that believers seem to ignore the harsh reality in some scripture is certainly understandable. We also have to recognize that all Christians are sometimes lumped into the same minority category of literal fundamentalism. It could very well be many of the things atheists reject are many of the same things the majority of Christians reject because it falls into literal fundamentalism, not the spirituality and kingdom Christ taught. Atheists may not be as far from believers as they perceive they are. (And vice-versa.)

 

[Mindlight]

Ok a new thought for a new day and maybe one with more hope for those who struggle with unbelief , doubt and scepticism.

Just as there are different kinds of atheist maybe also we can differentiate between honest atheists and those who wilfully oppose God.

There is a difference between a person who lives in a darkness they did not choose and is genuinely trying his best to find his way in it and someone who deliberately mocks God. Each man is judged by the portion of truth that they have been given and their response to the grace that is freely offered them.

While this whole OP is a deliberate attempt to mock God, from a man who does this all the time, it is not my place to say he will go to hell. The most that can be said is that this is the tragic conclusion of such wilful rebellion.

Isaiah 66 v 22-24

And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.

I do agree each of us--whether atheist or Christian--are unique. Evil can hide in Christianity as readily as atheism. I have not been here long, so I have no history with the OP. However, it seems more logical to me that those who do not believe in God don't mock Him as much as they mock and torment those they perceive to be mocking and tormenting them.

Atheist frustration that believers seem to ignore the harsh reality in some scripture is certainly understandable. We also have to recognize that all Christians are sometimes lumped into the same minority category of literal fundamentalism. It could very well be many of the things atheists reject are many of the same things the majority of Christians reject because it falls into literal fundamentalism, not the spirituality and kingdom Christ taught. Atheists may not be as far from believers as they perceive they are. (And vice-versa.)

If you mock the believer for his faith in God then you mock the God. The accusation made being "how could you be so stupid to believe in such a God".
Show me that I do not represent my God and I will repent of my misrepresentation but never of the true connection.

The only commonality I can think of between myself and atheists is a common rejection of false religions and superstitions. Indeed i am far more sceptical than they are about these as well as the humanist philosophies they hold which are born of deception and merely human traditions.

Humanism without a consideration of the divine is a reduction of what we are, a falsification of the human condition and an act of rebellion against God who has most perfectly demonstrated what it means to be human in Jesus Christ.

 

[Meriweather]

Ok a new thought for a new day and maybe one with more hope for those who struggle with unbelief , doubt and scepticism.

Just as there are different kinds of atheist maybe also we can differentiate between honest atheists and those who wilfully oppose God.

There is a difference between a person who lives in a darkness they did not choose and is genuinely trying his best to find his way in it and someone who deliberately mocks God. Each man is judged by the portion of truth that they have been given and their response to the grace that is freely offered them.

While this whole OP is a deliberate attempt to mock God, from a man who does this all the time, it is not my place to say he will go to hell. The most that can be said is that this is the tragic conclusion of such wilful rebellion.

Isaiah 66 v 22-24

And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.

I do agree each of us--whether atheist or Christian--are unique. Evil can hide in Christianity as readily as atheism. I have not been here long, so I have no history with the OP. However, it seems more logical to me that those who do not believe in God don't mock Him as much as they mock and torment those they perceive to be mocking and tormenting them.

Atheist frustration that believers seem to ignore the harsh reality in some scripture is certainly understandable. We also have to recognize that all Christians are sometimes lumped into the same minority category of literal fundamentalism. It could very well be many of the things atheists reject are many of the same things the majority of Christians reject because it falls into literal fundamentalism, not the spirituality and kingdom Christ taught. Atheists may not be as far from believers as they perceive they are. (And vice-versa.)

If you mock the believer for his faith in God then you mock the God. The accusation made being "how could you be so stupid to believe in such a God".
Show me that I do not represent my God and I will repent of my misrepresentation but never of the true connection.

The only commonality I can think of between myself and atheists is a common rejection of false religions and superstitions. Indeed i am far more sceptical than they are about these as well as the humanist philosophies they hold which are born of deception and merely human traditions.

Humanism without a consideration of the divine is a reduction of what we are, a falsification of the human condition and an act of rebellion against God who has most perfectly demonstrated what it means to be human in Jesus Christ.

I am not sure that I agree that mocking the believer for his faith is mocking God. My thought is that mocking love and mocking goodness is more like a mocking of God.

 

[Dajjal]

View attachment 35422

Oh Yea! Daniel Dennett, The wise ass that wrote the book, 'consciousness explained' When all he really does is explain it all away. His theory is, 'mind is brain' But this is not an explanation of descartes position that the body and mind are two separate things. The mind is an un extended thinking thing, but the body is and extended unthinking thing.

 

[hobelim]

Ok a new thought for a new day and maybe one with more hope for those who struggle with unbelief , doubt and scepticism.

Just as there are different kinds of atheist maybe also we can differentiate between honest atheists and those who wilfully oppose God.

There is a difference between a person who lives in a darkness they did not choose and is genuinely trying his best to find his way in it and someone who deliberately mocks God. Each man is judged by the portion of truth that they have been given and their response to the grace that is freely offered them.

While this whole OP is a deliberate attempt to mock God, from a man who does this all the time, it is not my place to say he will go to hell. The most that can be said is that this is the tragic conclusion of such wilful rebellion.

Isaiah 66 v 22-24

And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind.

I do agree each of us--whether atheist or Christian--are unique. Evil can hide in Christianity as readily as atheism. I have not been here long, so I have no history with the OP. However, it seems more logical to me that those who do not believe in God don't mock Him as much as they mock and torment those they perceive to be mocking and tormenting them.

Atheist frustration that believers seem to ignore the harsh reality in some scripture is certainly understandable. We also have to recognize that all Christians are sometimes lumped into the same minority category of literal fundamentalism. It could very well be many of the things atheists reject are many of the same things the majority of Christians reject because it falls into literal fundamentalism, not the spirituality and kingdom Christ taught. Atheists may not be as far from believers as they perceive they are. (And vice-versa.)

If you mock the believer for his faith in God then you mock the God. The accusation made being "how could you be so stupid to believe in such a God".
Show me that I do not represent my God and I will repent of my misrepresentation but never of the true connection.

The only commonality I can think of between myself and atheists is a common rejection of false religions and superstitions. Indeed i am far more sceptical than they are about these as well as the humanist philosophies they hold which are born of deception and merely human traditions.

Humanism without a consideration of the divine is a reduction of what we are, a falsification of the human condition and an act of rebellion against God who has most perfectly demonstrated what it means to be human in Jesus Christ.

The OT prophets spent a lot of time mocking people who worshiped gods made by human hands that can neither hear speak or walk and yes by doing so they are mocking their gods.

so what. They have no life or actual existence except in the minds of the deluded. A god that does not exist cannot be offended and a God that does exist would not be offended by someone mocking a god that does not exist.

If you reject false religions and superstitions, which Christian religion isn't false or based on superstition?

The one that worships Jesus as if he was God incarnate who can be transformed by a priest into a lifeless snack food, made by human hands, that can neither hear speak or walk that believers eat for spiritual life?

The ones that believe that Jesus fed 5000 people fish sandwiches in the middle of a desert that he produced out of thin air?

The ones that believe that Jesus floated up into the sky after he was killed?

Which Christian religion does not believe that God diddled a virgin to father himself so he could become fully human without a human father?

Unless you have found some deeper meaning hidden in those stories that conforms to and can be confirmed by reality, how is possible that any of those beliefs are not false or superstitious?

I'm sure you do not misrepresent your God if you are a believer in any of these things but if by accurately representing your God you profane the name of the God that actually exists, the one that Jesus and all the prophets believed in and served, would you even care?

 

[Meriweather]

The OT prophets spent a lot of time mocking people who worshiped gods made by human hands that can neither hear speak or walk and yes by doing so they are mocking their gods.

so what. They have no life or actual existence except in the minds of the deluded.

A talisman, or totem, made by human hands--with the icon itself worshiped as a powerful God--is different from a God who is pure spirit. It may have been as frustrating for prophets at the time to get across the idea of God as spirit, as it frustrating today for Christians to get across the idea to a minority of Christians that natural selection does, over time, evolve a species from what it once was to what we see today.

If you reject false religions and superstitions, which Christian religion isn't false or based on superstition?

The one that worships Jesus as if he was God incarnate who can be transformed by a priest into a lifeless snack food that can neither hear speak or walk that believers eat for spiritual life?

The ones that believe that Jesus fed 5000 people fish sandwiches in the middle of a desert that he produced out of thin air?

The ones that believe that Jesus floated up into the sky after he was killed?

Which Christian religion does not believe that God diddled a virgin to father himself so he could become fully human without a human father?

Unless you have found some deeper meaning hidden in those stories that conforms to and can be confirmed by reality, how is possible that any of those beliefs are not false or superstitious?

Someone once said that we are spiritual beings having a human experience. Those who do not totally reject this premise have faith that a Supreme Being, who is spirit and life, can nourish His children. The Catholic Church describes its sacraments as the visible form of the invisible reality. Some of us believe that our greater reality is not the physical, but the spiritual.

I'm sure you do not misrepresent your God if you are a believer in any of these things but if by accurately representing your God you profane the name of the God that actually exists, the one that Jesus and all the prophets believed in and served, would you even care?

It is the heart that God judges, not necessarily its accuracy. For that reason I hold the belief that God accepts those who sincerely worship Him as a carving made by man, as readily as He accepts those who recognize Him as a spiritual being. We have been informed that we cannot know God's ways--His ways are so very different from our own.

Those who teach and proclaim the love God has for us, will never be put to shame. However, I haven't a doubt that those who teach and proclaim God condemns non-Christians to hell will feel shame and regret. If we truly understood the love God is and has, there would be about a millionth of a millimeter of space in our minds and hearts to consider hell.

 

[Mindlight]

The OT prophets spent a lot of time mocking people who worshiped gods made by human hands that can neither hear speak or walk and yes by doing so they are mocking their gods.

so what. They have no life or actual existence except in the minds of the deluded. A god that does not exist cannot be offended and a God that does exist would not be offended by someone mocking a god that does not exist.

So far so good.

If you reject false religions and superstitions, which Christian religion isn't false or based on superstition?

The one that worships Jesus as if he was God incarnate who can be transformed by a priest into a lifeless snack food, made by human hands, that can neither hear speak or walk that believers eat for spiritual life?

The ones that believe that Jesus fed 5000 people fish sandwiches in the middle of a desert that he produced out of thin air?

The ones that believe that Jesus floated up into the sky after he was killed?

Which Christian religion does not believe that God diddled a virgin to father himself so he could become fully human without a human father?

Unless you have found some deeper meaning hidden in those stories that conforms to and can be confirmed by reality, how is possible that any of those beliefs are not false or superstitious?

I'm sure you do not misrepresent your God if you are a believer in any of these things but if by accurately representing your God you profane the name of the God that actually exists, the one that Jesus and all the prophets believed in and served, would you even care?

Christianity is not a false religion and the Incarnation, Ascension, Creation miracles and Virgin birth all happened AS DESCRIBED IN SCRIPTURE. There is mockery and unbelief in the way you write - who do you say that Jesus is? Do you deny that God came in the flesh in human history?

 

[Mindlight]

Meriweather the Good News is that people do not have to perish. You understate the sternness of God towards those that will not repent. Do you believe like Jesus that unbelievers will go to hell or not. Why do you think he needed to say this?

Math 11 v 23
Luke 12 v 5
James 3 v 6

 

[CrusaderFrank]

very poignant on this day above all others

"A silent, invisible, intangible, undetectable ‘god’ is literally indistinguishable from a non-existent ‘god’. It is a source of deep shame and a great embarrassment to our species, that we must still even discuss such primitive, infantile delusions."

^ Fake Jew sez wha?

 

[guno]

very poignant on this day above all others

"A silent, invisible, intangible, undetectable ‘god’ is literally indistinguishable from a non-existent ‘god’. It is a source of deep shame and a great embarrassment to our species, that we must still even discuss such primitive, infantile delusions."

^ Fake Jew sez wha?

Go grovel to your statues and swing your rosary goyim guomba

 

[Meriweather]

Meriweather the Good News is that people do not have to perish. You understate the sternness of God towards those that will not repent. Do you believe like Jesus that unbelievers will go to hell or not. Why do you think he needed to say this?

Math 11 v 23
Luke 12 v 5
James 3 v 6

Christ spoke most about God's love and forgiveness, of salvation not punishment. I tend to think Christians may focus too much on punishment, especially punishment of unbelievers. This is why believers should remember Luke 12:47-48--

That servant who knew his master's will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master's will but acted in a way of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.

This passage in Luke explains why Sodom will be treated lightly, while more was required of Capernaum. In Luke, Jesus is addressing believers, telling them that much will be required of them. James warns of the vileness of the tongue. While you may be seeing the vileness that comes of the tongues of some unbelievers, I see the more vile tongue as the believer who threatens unbelievers with fire and damnation.

Christ did not ask us to proclaim threats. He asked us to proclaim salvation to all the earth, and that there is forgiveness when we repent of our sins. The proper response for those who snark at Christianity is to assure them of God's love, that it is so great that God's "beating" of Christians will surpass the light "beating" given to non-believers. Speak of God's love, His forgiveness, the salvation He offers--and above all, reassure and do not discourage those who have not the gift of faith. (I am not speaking of the wicked, the haters, the evil doers when I say this--but about good people who simply do not have faith and cannot believe.)

We will not have bodies, so it seems "beating" is meant in a more figurative sense. Therefore it seems more likely that God's disappointment in me--and my feelings of being the cause of this disappointment--will weigh more heavily on me, the believer, than it will on any non-believer. I am willing to undergo this weight, this "beating" for the privilege of being given the gift of faith.