Eternal decision .the meaning of life . is there one?

Heaven, Hell...and spelling errors.

Of "coarse" you might have let the Bible have the floor. It says, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Did He miss something? Yes, there is no mention of "hell" in any of the creation accounts in the Bible. "Heaven and earth" are paired together time after time, but never a "heaven and hell" or a "earth and hell." I spent a LOT of time in the KJV, trying to figure out if "hell" was a thing or not...but I found that "hell" is an insertion, and pagan in origin, both the word and the concept. "Hell" is a 404.

"Hell" was added to keep the pews and offering plates full.

a reply to: paradiselost333

I would laugh. Where is your proof of heaven and hell?

originally posted by: BlankUsername
a reply to: paradiselost333

I would laugh. Where is your proof of heaven and hell?

Not being given "proof" of any of these things will NOT be a valid excuse on judgement day for not repenting or caring about the condition of ones' soul, and actions taken, or not taken to improve, or right that spiritual condition.

There won't be ANY laughing on judgement day.

Laugh now, cry later. < A universal axiom of wicked planet Earth generally speaking.. (Or mankind's epitaph)

a reply to: NoCorruptionAllowed

Yeah, ok. Thanks for the warning

a reply to: paradiselost333

Heaven and Hell is as REAL as Folsom prison.

I just now looked at many photos of Folsom Prison, many with Johnny Cash.

I would like to see a photo of heaven or hell.

you are an eternal being with the spark of the creator inside .

Nope. Mortal here!

I don't know what that spark is, but it isn't me.

Edit to correct:

I've actually seen many photos of heaven.




Edit to add:

All great deeds and all great thoughts have a ridiculous beginning. Great works are often born on a street-corner or in a restaurant' s revolving door. So it is with absurdity. The absurd world more than others derives its nobility from that abject birth. In certain situations, replying "nothing" when asked what one is thinking about may be pretense in a man. Those who are loved are well aware of this. But if that reply is sincere, if it symbolizes that odd state of soul in which the void becomes eloquent, in which the chain of daily gestures is broken, in which the heart vainly seeks the link that will connect it again, then it is as it were the first sign of absurdity.

Camus: The Myth of Sisyphus

a reply to: paradiselost333

Ahhh the meaning of life.

It is the most daft question any human being ever asked but that is depending on how and why you frame it and in what context.

Does a grain of sand think it is worth anything, yet it is part of a mountain yet to be formed or that once stood like a pillar of heaven it's head crowned in the clouds, over time the grain of sand may decide that there is little difference between itself and a droplet of water, it rises and falls like waves on a sea, sometimes it is one with a larger body just as water is with the ocean and other times like a lonely rain drop it is alone.

Life has it's meaning, some questions may be too complex or simple for us to grasp and understand.

Are we the universe looking at itself or outside observers witnessing it's existence or both, are we meant to make it good, to make the darkness into light or are we meant to just allow it to die, to let the flower of creation vanish into nothingness and darkness.

Are we meant to fight against death, to fight to live and is so even if like a fish in a too fast river we are doomed to fail at least we did our best.

For me the meaning of life is to do no harm, to try to be a good person, to try not to judge others for I am not perfect yet at these things I sometimes find myself failing as we all do.

Asking the question of the meaning of life, why am I here, was my life even worth it is also a door into depression, close it and instead ask not why or what am I here for but what can I do to make tomorrow better.

Some people have found there own answer, they often help others such as elderly in there community's or the poor and that gives them a sense of purpose and meaning, others to simply be a parent, a son or daughter, a brother or sister the purpose is not your true sole one and it may change over time but it is still the meaning of your life for right now if not for eternity.

Perhaps life does not need a meaning, if you believe in the good book however it is spelled out in genesis, to husband the earth, to tend it, to live in it and witness it, the meaning of life is to live, so live good, life well as you can and live positive.

Carbon is not the beast, that is a long story and carbon is an essential for life on this world, we are soul however and soul is eternal or rather the thing that lives in the soul as the soul lives in the body, call it spirit perhaps is eternal.

But you are given free will if you are a Christian, to those who thirst I will give of the waters of life freely, not force them to drink.

Many will choose to sleep eventually, except the first and the last for he is after all others and before them, maybe God will wake them some day and it is not death but sleep they go to and why would they want to sleep except that perhaps there is such a thing as too much happiness, but beyond that only God knows so the meaning of your life is to achieve freedom, only there can you choose to live happy and well or to sleep for a very long time or even forever, that is a gift not given to the evil ones for they will be damned to live and suffer for ever and know no happiness, no fulfilment, no peace in there eternal prison - but with God there is mercy and perhaps that was what our own creation began as, the difference is we do not know but they shall know there crimes.

But ultimately only God knows, we live for him (I don't think we get a choice about when we die I shall elaborate a little here after the Asterix's).



****

Back in 1989 when we were all about 18 and 19 a former friend and his two cousin's invited me for a lad's weekend in the Snowdonia national park, it was meant to be sunny and there would have also been lots of female campers etc but in the event it was a washout.

I was always a religious kid but never a church goer, oh I wanted to but had this kind of autistic problem were I did not like strange places or strangers which always made it difficult for me when dealing with strange new environment's and made me stay at home when I had the choice but since this was my best friend I agreed since he was insistent.

So we all paid into the kitty (his real reason for wanting a sap along) and he hired a farm shed that had been converted into a mini lodging with bunk beds a kettle and small stove for campers, there were plenty of letters of appreciation on the walls of the shed form police and others that had stayed there.

We had originally intended to go up mount Snowdon but the weather was atrocious turning bad on our first night, all the campers in the field left and only a few abandoned water logged tent's remained to show they had been there the following morning.

So for two days we pottered around, four young lads with nothing to do with ourselves, the only female was a less than attractive barmaid and we had a run in with some drunk welsh guards in the pub who tried to take the pool table from us when we went over to have a game, thankfully one of them calmed the others because four young lads with pride were not going to back down even if they looked like they would have murdered us, we were not that small ourselves actually though just not the violent or yobbish sort unlike those men when they had a few pint's down them but even though three of us were over six foot these guy's were much bigger so?.

So next day we walked around, no young lady's to catch our eye's just wet Snowdonia national park.

On the final night they made a decision (I was easily led so did not contest it) that we WERE going to go up the mountain regardless of the weather, now we had sponge soled trainers, jeans and light jackets and no proper hiking gear.

I felt something immediately a spike of fear, a foreboding and I knew something terrible was going to happen, not to them but to me, I had a bunk against a wall with an odd and seemingly abstract painting that non of us, not me, Not Jude or John or Andrew could make out though later they claimed they could see it AFTER I pointed out what it was, I never told them what happened though.

I lay there under this smudging of dark paint against the wall and prayed, "God if it is my time I accept your will but please look after my mom and brothers and sisters, forgive those whom have wronged me and me for not being perfect", I cant remember the exact prayer but something like that it was about please look after my mum mostly.

I never heard with my ears, never heard it in my head and I have experienced those kind of voices later in life it was nothing like them, I felt and heard it speaking from all around but seeming above me, not sound but still a male voice immense in scale is the only way I can explain it, larger than the universe so I was in no doubt about who it was and it said just this to me "Do not be afraid my son this is neither the time nor the place", I froze in fear even more than the idea of something bad happening and felt suddenly aware of all my failings and that sense of awful overwhelming guilt that guy's like me get even when we have done nothing came over me but somehow I went almost straight away into a deep sleep.

Sure enough we went up the mountain the next day, we followed the Cog railway using bin bag's as makeshift cagouls and Jude said he knew a short cut so off we went some way up to the left of the cog railway following what looked like a scree covered very narrow goat trail with slate scree on both the up and -

a reply to: paradiselost333

All one needs to know is that man is a liar.
The Bible is without lies.

What does that tell you if you're not stupid?

- down side of it until after a while we came to a small cliff, it was almost vertical with only a very slight incline but did not look that big except that at it's base was the goat (Sheep) trail made of scree and below as above the fall seemed almost vertical dropping off into the mist so that you could not see more than four to six yards in any direction.

Jude was like a monkey he could always climb just about anything so was up like a shot, I was next and was half way up when it happened, I was not only improperly dressed but had forgotten the first rule of free climbing, always keep three points of contact at all times, so I had only one foot and a poor hand hold as I reached for what looked with the rain pouring into my eyes and blearing my eyesight to be a hand hold, it was not but rather a clump of moss and as I put my weight onto it I fell backwards and away from the rock face, down fast, my feet high heel first in the narrow scree covered ledge and both John and Andrew whom were still standing there somehow caught my wrists at the same time saving me as I was falling backwards over the edge, the pulled me upright, being foolhardy and despite the shock I felt the storm was passed and climbed again this time properly and they followed, we then walked up the un pathed side of Snowdon to the small cog railway station and visitors centre at it' top, the summit was pointless we had a great view of mist in all directions, we walked in and got some coffee while the shocked staff swore under there breath in welsh at the idiot kid's from England with no sense.

Then we walked back down the cog railway, no short cut's this time and back along the lanes to the farm were the shed was for our last night and as we walked in the image I could not make out and had been sleeping by jumped out clear as day to me, it was a shepherd with his hood up walking with his crook in the driving rain, a lamb under one arm it' face peeking out from inside his cloak and another at his feet also peeking out, I was so shocked I pointed it out to them but they said they had already seen it.

That overwhelming gentle but scary voice with immense power and size yet silent yet louder than all the world, that image of a shepherd, I will leave it to you to decide.

He said to me that was not the time nor the place, so there is a time and a place and given how miserable I am sometimes and NOT meaning to be ungrateful to him I wish it would come soon as I really miss my mum.

We all are different, we all have our cross and we all fail in this world, maybe that is the meaning, we fall so he can stand us back up, we fail so he can make our failures into victories and in the end it will be alright, life's meaning will be known then.

a reply to: SecretKnowledge

Your stupidity is made evident without your convictions.

a reply to: BlankUsername

Yeah, ok. Thanks for the warning

Why do people find comfort in pretending they know anything
of what they are talking about? The only truthful thing you can
ever say is you do not know. And the most truthful thing I can
say about that is. You don't deserve to know.

a reply to: LABTECH767

I really like that alot

Well, I've never been to Wales, but ...

I've been to Oklahoma, not born there though.
I did see a picture of the house I was born in,
thanks to Google Maps,
...
well, the roof any way.
Still there!

a reply to: Randyvine2

I read a quote somewhere once,
"They that praise the Lord thy God shalt dispel decrepitude; they shalt banish thievery and evil."

Totally dig the Holy One and you will be spared the internet trolls; you will drive away frailty and debauchery. right?

Dont forget that the lord God has not given us the spirit of vice, but of credit card points and knowledge.

a reply to: SecretKnowledge

"What if i told you the bible is not god's words but mans. But you know that already, right?"

So we can dismiss and discredit every book written then.

I'm actually OK with that.

I always knew colleges were teaching bull feces.

a reply to: Lazarus Short

Hell is in the earth.

It wasn't mentioned in the creation because there was no sin so there was no need of hell.

Once Eve, and Adam, screwed it up, hell became a place for the wicked.

That's all speculation on my part. What I find interesting is the volcano and it's connection with sacrifices and offerings to appease "gods".

According to the Bible, the dead sleep and have not yet been judged. Yet people have had dreams/visions that showed people in heaven and people in hell.

As a Christian, I can say I have seen and heard contradictions and hypocrisies and it troubles me that anything, whether God or Trump or a book or movie or a restaurant or meal can be so easily tainted and misrepresented to an extent people are turned off and will not see for themselves. Instead they believe what certain men say while not believing others. Believe one scientist but not another. Believe one review but not another.

But the contradictions and hypocrisies I refer to are not from the Bible. A person who doesn't understand the Bible would think so, however. Like Obama trying to use Leviticus in a speech....Leviticus is the Old Testament/Covenant, we live under the New Testament/Covenant. A Christian would know that, but like Obama let slip, he's Muslim so I understand his ignorance.

a reply to: beyondknowledge

"Don't get me wrong, it has some good stories in it but it is in no way an instruction manual for life and written by God."

I'd say Proverbs alone is a manual for living life.

a reply to: SecretKnowledge

How can I forget what isn't worth knowing. I just find it odd when some
one thinks they know there is no God or the Bible is myth. Even some
Atheist scholars understand how ridiculous that is coming out of any
ones mouth.

So I call people on it because I can't help but agree. I hope that helps.

originally posted by: Sookiechacha
a reply to: paradiselost333

The meaning of life. Is there one?
The meaning of eternal existence. Is there one?
Heaven and Hell, is there a meaning to their alleged existence?

If so, what is the meaning of all this?

Are you saying your life is meaningless?

I pity you.

originally posted by: Randyvine2
a reply to: SecretKnowledge

How can I forget what isn't worth knowing. I just find it odd when some
one thinks they know there is no God or the Bible is myth. Even some
Atheist scholars understand how ridiculous that is coming out of any
ones mouth.

So I call people on it because I can't help but agree. I hope that helps.

Its not me that needs help..

I just find it odd when some one thinks they know there is no God or the Bible is myth

I say exactly the same about someone that believes in God and the bible is God's words.
But i will never lower myself to start name calling a person who has faith

The omnipotence of smugness is trivial in its bureaucracy.

a reply to: SecretKnowledge

I say exactly the same about someone that believes in God and the bible is God's words.

And you are completely incorrect to believe both statements
carry the same wait. Or parallel each other they don't. For
instance if you see a bigfoot then you know bigfoot exists
without evidence you know and can give testimony. So if
I come along with some big proclamation, all knowing BS
statement. About how there's just no way a Bigfoot exists
and everybody who says they seen one, is a liar or delusional.
You see where I'm going here?

Obviously my " There's no such thing as bigfoot",.

Is just a big bag of hot ass wind to you.

Because you know different. You seen one and most likely
experienced the fear of seeing it. So how does that make me
look to you? Like some one who doesn't know sh!t about what he's
talking about. I'm gonna look stupid to you. It's just that simple.

So what you say is baseless compared to what I know. And that
doesn't mean I'm saying I've seen God. It does say I don't have
to. Because of what I have seen.

originally posted by: EdisonintheFM
a reply to: Lazarus Short

Hell is in the earth.

It wasn't mentioned in the creation because there was no sin so there was no need of hell.

Once Eve, and Adam, screwed it up, hell became a place for the wicked.

That's all speculation on my part. What I find interesting is the volcano and it's connection with sacrifices and offerings to appease "gods".

According to the Bible, the dead sleep and have not yet been judged. Yet people have had dreams/visions that showed people in heaven and people in hell.

As a Christian, I can say I have seen and heard contradictions and hypocrisies and it troubles me that anything, whether God or Trump or a book or movie or a restaurant or meal can be so easily tainted and misrepresented to an extent people are turned off and will not see for themselves. Instead they believe what certain men say while not believing others. Believe one scientist but not another. Believe one review but not another.

But the contradictions and hypocrisies I refer to are not from the Bible. A person who doesn't understand the Bible would think so, however. Like Obama trying to use Leviticus in a speech....Leviticus is the Old Testament/Covenant, we live under the New Testament/Covenant. A Christian would know that, but like Obama let slip, he's Muslim so I understand his ignorance.

A quick rundown on "hell" - we find it translated from four Greek and Hebrew words, "sheol," "hades," "gehenna" and "tartarus," none of which refer to a place of eternal conscious torment. Two of them come from Greek mythology! Those pagan words carried a fair amount of theo-illogical baggage with them...

As I'm sure you know, we find "hell" in the KJV. In the 1611 KJV, we find both "hell" and "hel." Further back, in the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, we find "hell," "hel" and "helle." They are all related words, but we hit pay dirt in pagan Norse mythology, where we find the goddess/ogress Hel. She was believed to rule over an afterlife realm called "Helheim" or "House of Hel." The pagans believed you went there when you died if you did not rate Valhalla.

That is my conclusion on the origin of "Hell" after many hours of research.