NEEDED: everyones theories, beliefs, facts on the bible...post here

reply to post by AnabelleA


blessed and rich? Yes I've heard that a lot. I remember a few years ago (I think it was) Gloria Copeland asked for extra offerings because glob (oops I mean gode)(no wait maybe dog, I always get my tongue twisted when I try to say that word) told her in a dread that she needed a private jet.

Laughable

I'm House of Yahweh and we could all use a little less of everything...mayber Dick Cheney will come and shoot your tv if you ask him nicely.

blessed? yes there are blessings from keeping the Law, and curses (sickness, disease, theft, fornication, adultery, orphans, homeless, poor, famines, water shortages) due to the breaking of Yahweh's Law. Deut. 11:26-28

www.yahweh.com

reply to post by Furnace_Man


I was raised Baptist mostly with a little Methodist and Presbyterian mixed in. I didn't choose this and was never presented with any other choices. And when I said or acted contrary to my parents beliefs I was forced to read scripture that was confusing (without anyone to answer questions correctly).

I made a lot of mistakes in my early adult life and wound up in prison for attempted armed robbery. My parents were fairly strong in their beliefs but very inconsistant to my very skilled powers of observation. I can remeber gowing to a stage play at a local church (Church of the Nazarine - Assembly of Yahweh - maybe). In the play the Name Yahweh was said several times. Afterwards I asked my parents who just kinda blew me off. I found it in an old Young's Analytical Concordance though and asked my parents again. Yet again they were unconcerned at my discovery and probably said it was an antiquated Name for Yahweh.

I think I was about 7 years old.

Again, I can remember asking several times about Easter. Why we celebrated something that wasn't in the Bible. I don't remember their answers but we kept celebrating and hunting for eggs.

I had many other questions but when I asked them I met with nothing Biblical. www.yahweh.com

In November of 2001 a guy invited me to a meeting (a Holy Convocation) of the House of Yahweh congregation at Jim E. Hamilton Correctional Center. That was the prison where I spent 3 years. I attended my first meeting with them of November 17, 2001 where they showed me many things concerning the Name Yahweh. Over the next few weeks I learned about all the pagan holidays and realized how little my parents had known. And how they had answered all my questions outof ignorance.
www.yahweh.com

Now I've found the House of Yahweh. Here there is truth and most importantly CONSISTANCY. The only PROPHESIED work on earth in these last days.

news.bbc.co.uk...

May Yahweh Bless Your Understanding

reply to post by Conspiriology


I think you may have taken some of my comments as being a direct insult to miss Ashley D. They were not.

To get to your remarks of accusing her as being naive,,I would have to say YOU are misrepresenting MY words. I never said she was naive. I personally believe to personify God is a naive way of describing "him."

Little disingenuous of you isn't it? I mean to lump all of us together as if there are no "objective" "rational" thinking Christians.

disingenuous....no

I should have chosen different words though. I do not assume all Christians are irrational thinkers. Maybe ride by the seat of their "heart" is a better way to put it. I find Ashley D very rational and one of if not the most informed/educated-in-what-she-believes Christians I have ever come across, and for that I applaud her. At least she dives fully into what she believes..which is a lot more than what a lot of people can say. I can not see it hurting her in anyway..unless of course the belief is taken to far.. therefore there is no insult, no harm and no foul.

"We are created in his "likeness"

quoting the bible is not gunna do any good here...check this out: "ring of power" and you will see why I do not believe the Bible to be fully accurate in its history..not to mention the many other fallable accounts
(again, like I stated before. I don't fully agree with everything the movie says..especially concerning jesus, but I have not heard of anyone proving otherwise)

I guess I have to state it again on this same thread...how can you say we are made in his image when you have never seen him/it/she/them? Does faith dictate what God looks like because it says "we are made in his image" in a book that NO ONE knows who wrote or even when it was written?? Seems a little strange that God once was seen by humans over 5,000 years ago, but not a vision, artistic rendering or for that matter idea of what God looks like now. I won't use the word naive this time since that seems to get to you a bit, but maybe it is a little conceeded? That is to assume you have some idea of what the supposed "creator" of the universe looks like.

It's majoring in minors however when you have to split hairs over things the bible assumes you would have the common sense to know

well... yes it is splitting hairs. but if this little hair is wrong. then the backbone of your religion is wrong(please correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Ashley said that she believes the Bible to its entire 100%). And if the backbone of your religion is wrong then that kind of shatters that whole belief system doesn't it? Ask a detective on a murder case if there is evidence that doesn't support the tiniest of details to someones allaby how quick that allaby gets rendered false.

And i hardly see as knowing what god looks like, what god thinks, or what his emotions are as being common sense.

Then again that is where "Faith" comes in.

so is it faith? or is it common sense? you seem to be contradicting yourself here.

You see we ALL have faith in things and usually it's predicated on history or a series of consistent events that one can have faith, they will happen again. Like Old Faithful of Yellowstone fame.

Yes!..history...the bible is not a history lesson...sorry..
and yes I understand that there is some factual history, but A LOT of it is unverifiable and in my opinion a little bias.

I have faith in a lot of things.....the door opens when you push it..flip the switch and vhwalla!..electricity! there is no relation with how human consciousness came to be and yellowstone... bad analogy sorry. yellowstone can be seen, tested, timed and verified by multiple sources as well as the other things that I mentioned. YOUR god cannot.

reply to post by Conspiriology

[quote
She knows if God says it
jeese, how can anyone say that "god said it?"...again falling back on..the bible has to be 100% correct and written by completely honest men. if even 1% is not. then you will find skeptics like me questioning and questioning and questioning and questioning..need i go on?

..and to be fair..there are not many things that can be proven 100% correct. So I would have to say for the heavy claims the bible makes, there needs to be a lot more corroboration and evidence to support it.

she can have faith in what he says and will find it is more reliable to have faith in what God says then to accept the unsupported opinion of someone suggesting she is Naive.

not being sarcastic here, but when she speaks or you speak to god and get a reply back. I will be the first to listen with BOTH ears.

And, again. If i did not make myself clear before.

She as a person, again, is not naive. I did not mean in any way she as a person is naive. In my opinion, basing your entire belief system around a book that can not be verified or really even corroborated is a little naive.
Again, I know there is evidence of historical claims the bible makes, but not enough to give credence to basing my entire life/ ideologies around it.

Your assertion she is naive suggests YOU are not and that YOU know something about God that she is to naive to know.

again..I am agnostic....never even implied that I know anything about god..the only thing i have ever said is I now what god isn't to some degree.

if you wanted to jump in here with our discussion (which you are more than welcome to) i think you should have read a little farther back...that may have helped lessen the repetetiveness.

That is just one of my pet peeves about this post in that you misrepresent her by manufacturing conflicting contextual arguments then "as if she actually said these things you exploit her logical fallacies as if she owned them.

what is it like to have a pet peeve about a post on a website? kind of like having an itch under the skin or somethin? -
in no way did i try to expoloit any "logical fallacies" (which as far as i can tell she doesn't have any)...she didn't seem to take it that way. why have you? (and if you did Ashley I apologize, but as you can tell the answers that satisfy you as a christian do not satisfy me..hence this discussion...and I have to say I am glad I have had it, because it has been very informative...so to you. i say thanks) and i think she is plenty intelligent enough to chime in on her own behalf...but i suppose that is noble of you to come to the aid of your.... friend??

Yes I agree,, it would be wiser to ask to get to know him.

As you do? i don't think i would enjoy that so much. i do not fear god.

Then they call us afraid or without proof lol.

I have not called any one afraid.. it sounds to me you are doing the same thing you have accused me of...no?

i HAVE said perhaps it is fear that causes the personification of god..or simply the unknown that encourages and eases it...kind of the way ancient egyptions personified the sun, moon and stars.

You know why I believe AsleyD knows GOD?

Because she wanted to

she asked

maybe so. I can't say she does or doesn't. There are plenty of everyday people walking around thinking they know things that they in actaulity do not. I try not to be one of them..therefore I am agnostic. She could very well be right. Though MY intuition and reason tells me otherwise. You may not agree. no problemo. I am not trying to un-convert or change anyones mind.

reply to post by Conspiriology


Let me ask you a question.

Do you think you would be Christian if you grew up in the middle east as as an arab, read the koran and had all your family who were devout muslims around? Or do you thnk you would be Muslim? If you answer Christian I would have to say you are fooling yourself.

I think an easy way of putting it is if 1 billion people think their religion is the true and the only righteous one, and a different 1 billion people think their religion is the true and the only righteous one, and a different 1 billion people think their religion is true and the only righteous one..then I think there is an easy assumption to make. They are all WRONG....

So if you would like to be religious, then I encourage you to study all religions equally and without bias. Then and only then come to your conclusion if you must. Good luck with your endeavors.

Originally posted by abelievingskeptic
Let me ask you a question.

Do you think you would be Christian if you grew up in the middle east as as an arab...

So if you would like to be religious, then I encourage you to study all religions equally and without bias. Then and only then come to your conclusion if you must. Good luck with your endeavors.

In the mean time, I take it, you think we should all just believe blindly in the societal values of the period in which we happened to be born.

Seriously, the same objection applies to *everyone*, religious or not. (It is, after all, a very tired old jibe).

All the best,

Roger Pearse

I was raised in a very strict Catholic family, however the rules were inconsistant. I was allowed to ask questions, but not allowed to question beyond the given answer. I could state my opinion as long as that opinion fit within my parent's expectations. And, questioning the church was strictly forbidden. I don't remember ever hearing my parents say, "I don't have the answer for that, let's see what we can find out." I did have questions, many many questions, and as an adult I fled from that faith and never looked back. However, I was not free. I converted to Lutheran at the age of 28 (big leap huh? lmao) I found a church with a worthwhile ministry. That church was community minded, and really cared about the homeless. I was asked by my Pastor to be the secretary of the church and for the next five years submerged myself in it's outreach programs. This was during a time in my life when I was questioning my worth on the planet. The work I did there had value, giving me a since of belonging. But......It was a false since of security, a way to hide from the nagging questions pleaguing my thoughts. Questions that to this day still have not been answered to my satisfaction. I left that church after nine years of dedicated practice and have tried many Christian churches since, only to come to the same conclusion. The philosophy of Christianity does not make since. The Bible says that God put Adam and Eve into the garden of Eden and told them that they could have anything there except the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. Why? Why would God, if he/she is perfect, do that? Why would a perfect God want to keep us ignorant? That leads me to another very troubling question. If God is perfect then why would he/she need to be worshipped. Why would having our punny little validations be of significance to a perfect being? Which then leads me to the thought of Jesus. If Jesus was the son of God, and died to save us from our sins. If all we have to do is believe in this to have a place in heaven, then what about Adam and Eve? They didn't even know Jesus. What about all the ppl that lived before Jesus walked the earth. They didn't know him either. Will they go to hell because they didn't know anything about him, and therefore couldn't possibly believe, which brings me to the biggest question of all. How can a God that is supposed to be perfect, loving, honorable, and our holy father, put billions of ppl on the planet and then give only a select few a book, tell them to read it and believe, and they will get the grand prize of eternal life, while the rest of the ppl are left on their own to burn in an eternity of fire? I'm sorry, I wanted to believe, but no one to this day has been able to give me an answer to these questions that makes since. Therefore I have begun reading about other religions, and I'm finding that others make a lot more since. Religions that I was taught to fear are actually more informative, more intelligent, kinder in their doctorine, and more gentle in their governing of their followers. My quest continues but input would be greatly appreciated.

My Bible fact is that it is a nice, thick book that you can easily hollow out and make room for a gun or a flask of booze. The people at the airport will look in it though, so it's not a perfect hiding place.

Originally posted by roger_pearse

In the mean time, I take it, you think we should all just believe blindly in the societal values of the period in which we happened to be born.

Interesting you blatantly and willingly put words in my mouth and thoughts in my mind. Is this a defense mechanism because you do not agree with question at hand?

Seriously, the same objection applies to *everyone*, religious or not. (It is, after all, a very tired old jibe).

what objection are you refering to if you don't miind me asking? I have not objected to anyone being christian, jewish, muslim, buddhist or any other religious denomination.

reply to post by abelievingskeptic


Here is the way I understand the the 'in the image of God' description. If you make a sculpture of yourself, you can correctly say it is 'in your image.' It might not have internal organs, blood, and tissue but it is in your image.

Does God have internal organs, blood, genitalia, etc? I would say no but it is only speculation. If God is a being in the spiritual realm like we believe then the physical organs we need to function would not seem necessary.

He could have made us in His image but gave us physical functioning parts necessary for this finite realm. It's like the sculpture analogy in the opposite.

There is no other way to explain it. You're essentially asking me to explain something that has not been explained to me either. We know Jesus was God in human form and we know He transfigured in front of the apostles to show them His heavenly form. He still looked "human." Jesus also said seeing Him was seeing the Father. That's about all we know.

We can speculate and we can have our opinion but not even Christians know 100% the physical composition of God. It really isn't a critical issue for salvation and that is the whole point of the Bible. God didn't seem too concerned with describing His physical attributes- only His heart and plan for us.

I used to be deeply christian and I was born again at one point which is a silly clarifier. The bible is a book used for power. It is a version of history mixed with myth. It is very open to interpretation. I very much enjoyed reading it for a period of 5-6 years. I like a few psalms and the sermon on the mount and the soulful stuff. I just recall it from memory when and if I want.

The Bible was actually what caused my break from religion. I wondered how a group of "natives" living on an island in the Pacific, living in peace with nature, could be doomed to hell just because they didn't know, read or believe in the bible.

I find some pleasure reading Buddhist and Taoist stuff sometimes. Whatever. We are alive. We will be dead. What a hoot!

Originally posted by stikkinikki
The bible is a book used for power.

Under the Old Testament law I think you are absolutely correct. The law was given in order to provide structure in Jewish society and to maintain hierarchy, government, religious rites, etc. There was no such thing as separation of church and state.

But when Jesus came He said we no longer need the priests, the rituals, or the control and that He was now the way. The direct link. No man can come in between. He 'set the captives free.' There is no control although for some unknown reason many people allow their spouses, priests, or government to get in the way.

The Bible was actually what caused my break from religion. I wondered how a group of "natives" living on an island in the Pacific, living in peace with nature, could be doomed to hell just because they didn't know, read or believe in the bible.

I don't think this is entirely correct although many Christians will disagree. There is scriptural support about those never hearing the word being saved. You can't except someone to accept someone they never heard of.

[edit on 2/24/2008 by AshleyD]

Heres an interesting quote:7,000-year Plan
Cut off from God by sin (Isa. 59:1-2), mankind has believed the lies of the god of this world for 6,000 years. The span of God’s plan with men encompasses 7,000 years. Few have understood this. Many have correctly understood at least some little of the verses describing Christ’s coming 1,000-year Reign, to begin at His Return (Rev. 20:4-6). But they know nothing of God allotting 6,000 years, or six millennial days of a “seven-day week,” to man’s rule, under Satan, prior to the seventh 1,000-year “day.” We are very near the end of the “sixth day.”

Let’s understand! The Bible states, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (II Pet. 3:8; Psa. 90:4). Of course, most are “ignorant” of almost everything that the Bible teaches.

But you can know!

Man (under the invisible sway of Satan) has been given six “days,” or 6,000 years, to try his own ways, governments, religions, philosophies, value systems and forms of education. Under the influence of Satan, he has practiced sin and disobedience to God’s commands for all this time. He has then tried to treat all of the ill effects this has brought on, instead of the cause, which is the breaking of God’s commandments. God is allowing humanity to learn hard, bitter lessons. The masses, who have never known the precious truth of God, must learn that their own ways do not work!

Originally posted by MOTOPSYCHO!!
Heres an interesting quote:7,000-year Plan
Cut off from God by sin (Isa. 59:1-2), mankind has believed the lies of the god of this world for 6,000 years. The span of God’s plan with men encompasses 7,000 years. Few have understood this. Many have correctly understood at least some little of the verses describing Christ’s coming 1,000-year Reign, to begin at His Return (Rev. 20:4-6). But they know nothing of God allotting 6,000 years, or six millennial days of a “seven-day week,” to man’s rule, under Satan, prior to the seventh 1,000-year “day.” We are very near the end of the “sixth day.”

Let’s understand! The Bible states, “But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (II Pet. 3:8; Psa. 90:4). Of course, most are “ignorant” of almost everything that the Bible teaches.

But you can know!

Man (under the invisible sway of Satan) has been given six “days,” or 6,000 years, to try his own ways, governments, religions, philosophies, value systems and forms of education. Under the influence of Satan, he has practiced sin and disobedience to God’s commands for all this time. He has then tried to treat all of the ill effects this has brought on, instead of the cause, which is the breaking of God’s commandments. God is allowing humanity to learn hard, bitter lessons. The masses, who have never known the precious truth of God, must learn that their own ways do not work!

Sorry, trying to figure out the whole quote thing, didnt mean to double post!

reply to post by AshleyD


sigh...thats great and all. that view probably should be a little more clear if you wish to debate your understanding and beliefs of the bible. but i think the intent of debating the whole idea was missed.

..it is more about a 100% belief in the bible as a whole and complete truth....therefore making christianity the "one and only true religion."

i read up a little bit on christian apologetics, and as i suspected it takes evidence and applies it to "verify" the Bible and its beliefs as being reasonable through evidence gathered. But i think, more than likely the evidence is sifted through and the whole picture does not come into play.

and in my opinion, like i stated before, if there is a book, or person claiming the things that the BIBLE claims there NEEDS to be MORE evidence and corroboration that what is said is true. the responsiblility lies on the person/ book to present the evidence...the book alone is not enough. and should not be taken as 100% truth

i think it is obvious. If there was a complete and truthful accounting of past divine intervention into human history there would be some sort of definitive proof, and ALL religions would unite without much of the differences we see today. but oddly enough, there is none. we are left to speculate on words, oral stories and circumstancial evidence.

and taking that into consideration. from my point of view, logically speaking, the way the Bible teaches its message does not add up anyway and seemingly pushes some sort of jewish ("gods chosen people")superiority agenda.

and the last question i have (which kinda goes back to something you said a ways back) is that god made a covenant with abraham correct? he made it with abraham because he was the last righteous man on earth..correct? and if i understand it correctly, everyone else was praising idols and all that, but abraham remained vigilent to those beliefs. so god chose abraham and his "people/descendants" (even though semite jews are not a race) as the chosen people. well how did the person who wrote this know? how did he know what people were believing in the Americas (becaiuse there is plenty of evidence there was man in the americas 6,000 b.c)? how did he know what people were worshipping in asia and africa?...these places (more than likely) were not even known by ancient man...so why was it that abraham was chosen and not some ancient pre-recorded history indian or african? these are exact questions that can not be answered by the bible or for that matter, anyone.

it takes more than a stretch of faith to base your beliefs on those words alone..

[edit on 9/16/07 by abelievingskeptic]

Originally posted by abelievingskeptic
reply to post by AshleyD

 

and the last question i have (which kinda goes back to something you said a ways back) is that god made a covenant with abraham correct? he made it with abraham because he was the last righteous man on earth..correct? and if i understand it correctly, everyone else was praising idols and all that, but abraham remained vigilent to those beliefs. so god chose abraham and his "people/descendants" (even though semite jews are not a race) as the chosen people. well how did the person who wrote this know? how did he know what people were believing in the Americas (becaiuse there is plenty of evidence there was man in the americas 6,000 b.c)? how did he know what people were worshipping in asia and africa?...these places (more than likely) were not even known by ancient man...so why was it that abraham was chosen and not some ancient pre-recorded history indian or african? these are exact questions that can not be answered by the bible or for that matter, anyone.

it takes more than a stretch of faith to base your beliefs on those words alone..

[edit on 9/16/07 by abelievingskeptic]

Thank you.........my thoughts exactly. There is so much of the Bible that just doesn't make since. The old Testament we know is a collection of stories about the Jewish ppl. The new testment is about Jesus and his teachings, and supposidly about God's word to mankind, but it was written not by Jesus, or even Jesus's followers. It was written generations later by men who were not there, who were repeating the story as they heard it. We all know that information gets distorted when repeated through the grape vine, and on top of that the Bible has been translated so many times that it's bound to have lost something in the translations. It's a known fact that some of the words used in the original writings can not be translated into English, and the best they can do is try and get close to the meaning of those words. So It's a mystery to me how God can expect us to have faith in a book that doesn't speak to everyone. I find it a very big bitter pill to swallow, that any God who is supposed to be perfect, loving, a caring father, etc... would place us all here then choose only a select few to give eternal life to. Which brings me to the whole idea of God vs Satan. If what I've read in the Bible and in other sources is true then for all intents and purposes God and Satan are like children fighting over a new toy. At least that's the way it appears to me. I find it hard to believe that a perfect God would get caught up in such a juvanile game. I'm no expert on this subject, but logic tells me that if there is a God he's not going to communicate with us through a book that is incomplete, biased, and so easily used by humans to control other humans.

Originally posted by abelievingskeptic

 

There is so much of the Bible that just doesn't make since.

I can explain to you why you find it difficult to make since, understand, or find meaning in the bible, it is because you use logic as your primary method for dividing the scriptures, or as your method for the interpretation of scripture.

Logic and reason are a senses effort at interpretation, an attempt to rationalize spiritual things.

The bible clearly says that the natural mind, the mind that lives by its senses alone, the man of the flesh as he is often called, can not understand the things of the spirit because they require spiritual discernment.

Spiritual truths can not be analyzed they can only be ascertained.

The operations of word of knowledge, word of wisdom, and discerning of spirts, are required for all interpretations of spiritual incantations or incarnations, whether they be by hand, mouth or mind, because if it is truly of spiritual origins, then spiritual means must be employed to realize any applicable interpretations.

The bible is not the only book written by the hand of man but authored but the sprit, these sorts of holy texts are numerous.

They are all produced by the receiving of revelation from a spiritual source, then those involved, like the Apostle Paul with the book of Romans in the new testament, or Mohamed with the Koran, they use their language their understanding to produce the works, but the Spirit or a spirit is the source or author from which they receive the ideas and guidance.

I think perhaps you aren't actually trying to make since or find understanding with the bible that is not your real motive in talking about it.

If you are genuinely attempting to understand, then I would say your mistake is one of direction and method, you seek knowledge that you can use, you are not being honest with yourself, your motives for wanting to understand the bible are selfish.

One must seek God in truth, not in an effort to gain useful knowledge for personal reasons.

First you must believe that God exists, that He will reward your efforts to know Him with wisdom and understanding not the other way around.

This is not logical because it has nothing to do with the mind, it is an issue of the heart.

Let me give you a logical argument for what I am saying.

If I give you my phone number and say, "call me if you need something," when you need something what would you do, open your window and shout my name?

God defines very clearly and in detail the way in which any individual, who has lived, will live, or is living, contacts Him for knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.

To attempt to use the fleshly method of logic and reason, as your technique for interpretation of spiritual things like the word of God, when you have been told a spiritual means is required, is the same as opening the window and shouting my name after I have given you my phone number and told you if you want to contact me then call me on the phone.



[edit on 25-2-2008 by newday]

reply to post by newday


first. not that it is really a big deal but I did not type this quote..not sure how you got it to say that it came from me??

There is so much of the Bible that just doesn't make since.

Logic and reason are a senses effort at interpretation, an attempt to rationalize spiritual things.

ok. i completely follow you. I have been giving much more effort in becoming more spiritual and connected with that side through the way i live and the thought processes that i carry out day to day.

the difference here is you are automatically applying spirituality to the WHOLE bible.

look. there may very well be a spiritual element to the bible. i am not arguing that. one may be able to achieve some level of spirituality through the bible (mostly the teachings of "jesus" and the new testament). though I am confident not nearly as much as if you were to study other texts and methods of ancient origin.

what i AM arguing against is the 100% accuracy that a lot of christians take it as. if the bible was completely 100% written with a spiritual hand there would be no need for some of the claims it makes i.e. jews are the "chosen" people. there is NOTHING spiritual about this claim what-so-ever. there would be no need to try and explain the origin of man (genesis) or the history of the semites or a ton of other frivilous hyperbole that encompasses much of the old testament and some of the new.

i do not need to hear about the end times (revelations) to become spiritual and closer to god...un-im-por-tant. these are spiritual-less words in my opinion and only spread fear. it doesnt take a third eye to see that either.

and if the bible, the holy book, the divine scripture, the WORD OF GOD spreads fear... then guess what? i want absolutely NOTHING to do with that religion or that god!

if you live in this world. then you know a little something about fear. and if you have not figured it out. let me spell it out for you.

FEAR=CONTROL

CONTROL=POWER

these are the roots and basics for evil..or in christian terms "sin" and the work of the "devil."

if you would like to let logic fly out the window and believe what is thrown in front of you with out questioning..all the power to you. there are many people who live very happy lives who do this day in and day out. these people do not think about these things. they do not care about lies that are shoved in front of their face. and there is not really anything wrong with that oulook either.

man, i couldn't tell you how much i wish i believed the bible was 100% correct. it would make things soooo much easier. i would love to be 10 again and have all the questions answered for me. i am way to busy to be thinking abouty these ort of things or for the matter writing this stupid post right now..i should be fricken working. as my job is practically a 24/7 thing.

but i choose to want to learn more about everything. i choose to not let logic fly out the window. and i choose to bear the burden of my thoughts and actions. i could easily go back to drinking and partying and not givin a crap about anything. that is much the american way anyways.

but i refuse to. there has to be a side that says. wait a second. hold on. things do not add up. we need to re-analyze the situation and break down what we think we know. now, i sure do not have all the answers. but i know there is an infinite amount of knowledge to learn and we havn't even scratched the surface as to what is out there.

i will not ever pretend to have all the answers because a book says it does and is written by the hand of god.

in my opinion it is plainly obvious that if any book ever makes the claim it is written by the hand of god through righteous men it is simply NOT written by the hand of god.

reply to post by AshleyD


The Image of God normally refers to our eternal spiritual component, our capacity for “The Word”, and our ability to understand complex matters of a moral and spiritual nature. Animals, as an example, do not show any of these abilities.

God's image upon man, consists, In his nature, not that of his body, for God has not a body, but that of his soul. The soul is a spirit, an intelligent, immortal spirit, an active spirit, herein resembling God, the Father of spirits, and the soul of the world. In his place and authority. Let us make man in our image, and let him have dominion. As he has the government of the inferior creatures, he is as it were God's representative on earth. Yet his government of himself by the freedom of his will, has in it more of God's image, than his government of the creatures. And chiefly in his purity and rectitude. God's image upon man consists in knowledge, righteousness, and true holiness,

That God made him in his own likeness, righteous and holy, and therefore undoubtedly happy; man's nature resembled the divine nature more than that of any of the creatures of this lower world.

Hope that helps.