Question for Christians

• Shanghai wrote on 2011-12-10 10:04

  Quote from Navy;686812:

  :scare:
  
  also @Shanghai
  wouldn't we be more advanced if it weren't for the christian dark ages :what:
  (not an attack, just curious)

  
  
  Yeah, sort of. But the Renaissance wouldn't have happened if the Dark Ages never happened. Also, we wouldn't have developed hindsight to such an era(Crusades and whatnot - toning down of religion).
  
  @Endless's previous post: Even though the 7 deadly sins were not exactly defined at the time, the people at the time before the flood occurred were still committing sins that were exactly like those, possibly some that were even worse that we don't know of. Don't want to get too religious here, but technically God is taking his worshipers up to Heaven in a unconventional way if you put it at that. Also, God does care.
• EndlessDreams wrote on 2011-12-10 17:45

  Quote from Shanghai;687042:

  Yeah, sort of. But the Renaissance wouldn't have happened if the Dark Ages never happened. Also, we wouldn't have developed hindsight to such an era(Crusades and whatnot - toning down of religion).

  
  
  Crusades was not the toning down of religion. It is a failed religion war against the Muslims to retake the Holy City. Even a bunch of children went to war thinking their god told them. Renaissance is considered the end of the Dark Ages, and is supposedly started in Italy where certain priest/religious people (only they knew how to read/write back then, and had the time to) took interest in the classics again.
  
  

  Quote from Shanghai;687042:

  
  @Endless's previous post: Even though the 7 deadly sins were not exactly defined at the time, the people at the time before the flood occurred were still committing sins that were exactly like those, possibly some that were even worse that we don't know of.

  
  
  So you are telling me that having having sexual desire, eating too much, desiring too much money, laziness, anger, envy, pride, and boasting are all good reasons for the death penalty? Nowadays, most governments are hesitant to give death penalty even on murder cases.
  
  Yea, they could be committing something far worse like working on the Sabbath or just not believing in that god. Those definitely deserves a death penalty. I wonder how those people outside the Middle East area survive the supposed biblical times.
  
  

  Quote from Shanghai;687042:

  
  Don't want to get too religious here, but technically God is taking his worshipers up to Heaven in a unconventional way if you put it at that. Also, God does care.

  
  
  Don't want to get too religious here, but technically God is punishing his worshipers if you put it at that. Also, God doesn't really care. God is like EU Nexon is to their player base except worse.
  
  God still have a trillion galaxies with a trillion stars each, and who knows how much planets are there around each stars. There are probably other countless lifeforms out there that God is "managing". There maybe even multiple universes that only God can see.
• Akemii wrote on 2011-12-10 17:51

  Quote from Navy;685701:

  please no Christian hate here
  

  
  
  Yes please. No Christian hate.
• Juno wrote on 2011-12-11 04:08

  Quote from EndlessDreams;686795:

  Nope, it is just a very slow death where the sun melts away all the water from the Earth.

  
  
  Not sure where you're pulling that from, but I don't see any basis for it.
  
  

  Quote from Kollin;686868:

  I somewhat remember hearing that God said he would instead rain down fire from the heavens instead of a flood the next time. Dunno, never payed too much attention to religion.

  
  
  

  Quote from Genesis 9:

  11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

  
  
  Nothing about raining fire, though to be fair, that did happen...but only to two cities.
  
  

  Quote from Morrigan;686884:

  I do believe god is all forgiving, but I also think that he believes in worldly balance. Any time the world's population started to get out of control, a plague or a bunch of natural disasters happened, and getting rid of some filth in the process. Sure, there will be innocent lives lost, but that's the natural order of things. The choices made might not be fair for everyone, but one way or another it has to happen.

  
  
  Where are you getting that from? I don't see it anywhere.
• Phunkie wrote on 2011-12-14 10:12
  I saw Immortals the other day and it made me think about God and religion.
  
  The main God was Zeus, of course, and he told the other Gods not to interfere with the humans or with their affairs. Apollo, I think, however, saved them from dying by causing a huge tidal wave and then once more by killing the main character's enemies. Athena helped the second time, as well.
  
  That second time Zeus appeared and Athena was like, "Forgive me, my Father," but Apollo was like, "I had to save them! It needed to be done!", and Zeus killed Apollo for betraying his orders.
  
  So yeah, I guess the Christian God is viewed to be sorta like that. Follow his orders or be banished to Hell, but he will still love you nonetheless, which is a little hypocritical.
  
  And he's All-Knowing too, so he supposedly knows what we're gonna do before we do it. So he knew Lucifer would betray him anyway.
  
  My question now is: what is the point of knowing everything and yet letting it happen anyway and then condemning people to Hell for it??
  
  Free will isn't so much free will there, eh?
• Random wrote on 2011-12-14 10:29
  Couple problems with your argument:
  Punishment doesn't mean no more love.
  Knowing what we're going to do and interfering with what we're doing is different from knowing what we're going to do and punishing us for some of what we do.
• Episkey wrote on 2011-12-19 01:42
  Well, I came across this thread by chance. So, I'll try my best to formulate a response to your question.
  I'll highlight important stuff in bold, but I'm going to write a lot because I'm reading some statements about Lucifer that contradict Biblical teachings. It may be due to ignorance or just people's opinion on God and stuff. Either way, I'm not pointing fingers - but I want to get the facts straight.
  Good, let's begin. If God is all forgiving, then why didn't he forgive Lucifer?
  
  Let's take a look at who is this Lucifer fellow. Lucifer was an angel of God. It is suggested that Lucifer was pretty high-ranking in terms of angelic hierarchy. In any case, He was a high-ranking angel. God (The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit) has existed since the "beginning" of time and is eternal. God created angels for the purpose of serving him and doing divine duties. Angels are spiritual beings and therefore cannot die. Lucifer was one such creation. However, Lucifer was not content with his position. He didn't want to worship God, HE wanted to be worshiped! In essence, he wanted to be in God's position. To carry out his plan he convinced one-third of the angels to rebel against God. This rebellion was the first instance of sin. More on sin later.
  
  There was a huge war in heaven! Michael and his angels fought against Lucifer and his angels, but they lost their place in heaven and were cast out. (Revelation 12:7-9, Important verses!) God then created a place to house these angels, that place is Hell. Hell was not originally created to torment humanity, it was created to house those angels who rebelled against God. At this point the angels have chosen their sides. The angels who aligned with God still reside in heaven, whereas angels who sided with Lucifer can never return. Why, you ask? Because spiritual beings (angels) cannot change who they serve. Angels are not constantly created, nor can they serve both God and Lucifer. Imagine if any spiritual being (God, for example) could suddenly change their mind about ... well, anything. What would be the standards for entering heaven, then? It would be terrible.
  So, when Lucifer and the rebelled angels were cast out of heaven ... What happened next? Well, the story doesn't end there.
  
  Lucifer and his fellow fallen angels now sought vengeance. Knowing that they could not inherit heaven again, they sought out to fight ... God? Yes ... and No. Not really God. But, his beloved creation. Us.
  Backtracking a bit, even though Lucifer and his angels were cast out of heaven - they still possess spiritual/supernatural power. To distinguish them from the angels that serve God, the angels that serve Lucifer are called demons. Lucifer would then also be called the Devil. Lucifer is the same entity as the Devil. Now then, something very important to note. Lucifer is NOT on-par with God. This is a common error and a terrible lie!
  The Devil (I'll use this name, until later) does not have the same attributes of God. This isn't some head-to-head battle where they are both equal. Oh no no no. Thankfully, The Devil is on the loosing side. But, he knows that as well. The Devil in a sense is fighting a loosing battle. Why does he fight then?
  
  When the first humans (Adam and Eve) were created by God, they were given free will. They were given a choice between obeying God (not eating from the tree of knowledge) or disobeying God (eating from the forbidden tree). The Devil came to "represent evil" - I guess you could call it. The Devil convinced Eve to eat from the forbidden tree by lying to her. The Devil said that by eating the fruit, Eve would become like God. Eve then gave Adam the fruit and he ate from it as well. They were both at fault. The Devil didn't force them to eat the fruit nor did they have any reason to eat from the forbidden tree. They were many other trees in the Garden of Eden. The actual act of eating from that tree wasn't sinful, but human sin occurred because eating from that tree was forbidden by God. The events that transpired during the Garden of Eden gave the Devil a new name. That name was Satan. (I believe it means "enemy of man" or something like that)
  
  At that point, Satan did a major blow to humanity. He introduced sin to humans. Sin, by definition, is the act of disobeying God's commandments. Since God is a being of perfection and goodness, doing evil is considered sinful. Heaven, a place of pure holiness and perfection, cannot have sin within it. That is why the fallen angels were kicked out and cannot return, and that is why human beings are destined to go to hell from the moment of birth. Why Hell, you ask? Because no other spiritual plane exists. Purgatory DOES NOT EXIST, that is a lie created by the Roman Catholic Church in an attempt to rob the pious. You cannot find any mention of purgatory in the Bible, Jesus never mentions Purgatory.
  
  In the eyes of a perfect God, sin is something that cannot reside in heaven. Just as it takes one crime to become a criminal, it only takes one sin to become a sinner. How do you know you've sinned, perhaps? Look at the Ten Commandments. You have broken at least one of them before, if you say you haven't ... well you are lying or delusional. Any sin, even a lie, is grave in the eyes of a perfect God. That's why the concept of seven deadly sins is a very very very grave misnomer. Yes, the seven "deadly" sins are found in the Bible and they are sins - but they are no more deadly or worse as any other sin. Sin is sin. Satan knows this and intends to bring down as much of humanity down with him in Hell as possible. I should mention that children are an exception, until they reach an "age of maturity" children automatically go to heaven. Not Limbo nor Hell.
  
  Penultimate paragraph, I promise! God had to have a way to deal with the sins of humanity. It became such a problem that the Flood had to occur. The Flood didn't just occur to kill evil humans, if you didn't know. The other purpose of the Flood was to deal with the "sons of God". Who were these sons of God, you ask? Well, there is some debate, but they were most likely demons. The expression "Sons of God" when written in the Old Testament referred to angels. Apparently these "sons of God" were affecting the behaviorisms and structure of humans. Demons created men that grew into a race of giants called Nephilim. Noah and his family were not a part of the Nephilim; they also tried convincing people about the Ark with no success. In the end, the Flood occurred. I personally would thank God if there was a half-demon/giant race roaming the Earth seeking to threaten humanity. After the flood, these "sons of God/demons" were imprisoned by God so that the other fallen angels (demons) would not do the same. So, the events leading to and during the Flood cannot happen again; God also promised to never destroy the Earth again via water.
  
  Last paragraph. As you are well aware of, people still do evil (sinful) things. Our sinful nature (which wasn't intended by God) is what causes disease, sickness, and eventually death. A sacrificial system was then placed by God. A lamb would be offered as a sacrifice in order to temporarily cleanse sin. This system began to fail as people stopped doing sacrifices and forgetting to ask for forgiveness. In actuality, this sacrificial system was done in order to mirror the ultimate sacrifice of all. That's when Jesus Christ (The Son, a part of God.) came down to Earth. He was both God and human, but since he was God - he was incapable of sin. When he died of the cross he said "It is FINISHED". There was no more need for sacrifices, Jesus took care of every sin possible in the past, present, and future. The only way to fully be free of sin is via the sacrifice Jesus Christ did. Simply believing and accepting that gift is enough. Heaven is not something one can earn, it is a gift from God and a person just needs to be willing to receive it.
  Satan - The Devil - Lucifer, and his demons cannot be forgiven because that would require placing their faith in Jesus Christ, essentially God. They will never do that, not in a million years.
• Spanky wrote on 2011-12-19 02:02

  Quote from Episkey;697424:

  Well, I came across this thread by chance. So, I'll try my best to formulate a response to your question.
  I'll highlight important stuff in bold, but I'm going to write a lot because I'm reading some statements about Lucifer that contradict Biblical teachings. It may be due to ignorance or just people's opinion on God and stuff. Either way, I'm not pointing fingers - but I want to get the facts straight.
  Good, let's begin. If God is all forgiving, then why didn't he forgive Lucifer?
  
  Let's take a look at who is this Lucifer fellow. Lucifer was an angel of God. It is suggested that Lucifer was pretty high-ranking in terms of angelic hierarchy. In any case, He was a high-ranking angel. God (The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit) has existed since the "beginning" of time and is eternal. God created angels for the purpose of serving him and doing divine duties. Angels are spiritual beings and therefore cannot die. Lucifer was one such creation. However, Lucifer was not content with his position. He didn't want to worship God, HE wanted to be worshiped! In essence, he wanted to be in God's position. To carry out his plan he convinced one-third of the angels to rebel against God. This rebellion was the first instance of sin. More on sin later.
  
  There was a huge war in heaven! Michael and his angels fought against Lucifer and his angels, but they lost their place in heaven and were cast out. (Revelation 12:7-9, Important verses!) God then created a place to house these angels, that place is Hell. Hell was not originally created to torment humanity, it was created to house those angels who rebelled against God. At this point the angels have chosen their sides. The angels who aligned with God still reside in heaven, whereas angels who sided with Lucifer can never return. Why, you ask? Because spiritual beings (angels) cannot change who they serve. Angels are not constantly created, nor can they serve both God and Lucifer. Imagine if any spiritual being (God, for example) could suddenly change their mind about ... well, anything. What would be the standards for entering heaven, then? It would be terrible.
  So, when Lucifer and the rebelled angels were cast out of heaven ... What happened next? Well, the story doesn't end there.
  
  Lucifer and his fellow fallen angels now sought vengeance. Knowing that they could not inherit heaven again, they sought out to fight ... God? Yes ... and No. Not really God. But, his beloved creation. Us.
  Backtracking a bit, even though Lucifer and his angels were cast out of heaven - they still possess spiritual/supernatural power. To distinguish them from the angels that serve God, the angels that serve Lucifer are called demons. Lucifer would then also be called the Devil. Lucifer is the same entity as the Devil. Now then, something very important to note. Lucifer is NOT on-par with God. This is a common error and a terrible lie!
  The Devil (I'll use this name, until later) does not have the same attributes of God. This isn't some head-to-head battle where they are both equal. Oh no no no. Thankfully, The Devil is on the loosing side. But, he knows that as well. The Devil in a sense is fighting a loosing battle. Why does he fight then?
  
  When the first humans (Adam and Eve) were created by God, they were given free will. They were given a choice between obeying God (not eating from the tree of knowledge) or disobeying God (eating from the forbidden tree). The Devil came to "represent evil" - I guess you could call it. The Devil convinced Eve to eat from the forbidden tree by lying to her. The Devil said that by eating the fruit, Eve would become like God. Eve then gave Adam the fruit and he ate from it as well. They were both at fault. The Devil didn't force them to eat the fruit nor did they have any reason to eat from the forbidden tree. They were many other trees in the Garden of Eden. The actual act of eating from that tree wasn't sinful, but human sin occurred because eating from that tree was forbidden by God. The events that transpired during the Garden of Eden gave the Devil a new name. That name was Satan. (I believe it means "enemy of man" or something like that)
  
  At that point, Satan did a major blow to humanity. He introduced sin to humans. Sin, by definition, is the act of disobeying God's commandments. Since God is a being of perfection and goodness, doing evil is considered sinful. Heaven, a place of pure holiness and perfection, cannot have sin within it. That is why the fallen angels were kicked out and cannot return, and that is why human beings are destined to go to hell from the moment of birth. Why Hell, you ask? Because no other spiritual plane exists. Purgatory DOES NOT EXIST, that is a lie created by the Roman Catholic Church in an attempt to rob the pious. You cannot find any mention of purgatory in the Bible, Jesus never mentions Purgatory.
  
  In the eyes of a perfect God, sin is something that cannot reside in heaven. Just as it takes one crime to become a criminal, it only takes one sin to become a sinner. How do you know you've sinned, perhaps? Look at the Ten Commandments. You have broken at least one of them before, if you say you haven't ... well you are lying or delusional. Any sin, even a lie, is grave in the eyes of a perfect God. That's why the concept of seven deadly sins is a very very very grave misnomer. Yes, the seven "deadly" sins are found in the Bible and they are sins - but they are no more deadly or worse as any other sin. Sin is sin. Satan knows this and intends to bring down as much of humanity down with him in Hell as possible. I should mention that children are an exception, until they reach an "age of maturity" children automatically go to heaven. Not Limbo nor Hell.
  
  Penultimate paragraph, I promise! God had to have a way to deal with the sins of humanity. It became such a problem that the Flood had to occur. The Flood didn't just occur to kill evil humans, if you didn't know. The other purpose of the Flood was to deal with the "sons of God". Who were these sons of God, you ask? Well, there is some debate, but they were most likely demons. The expression "Sons of God" when written in the Old Testament referred to angels. Apparently these "sons of God" were affecting the behaviorisms and structure of humans. Demons created men that grew into a race of giants called Nephilim. Noah and his family were not a part of the Nephilim; they also tried convincing people about the Ark with no success. In the end, the Flood occurred. I personally would thank God if there was a half-demon/giant race roaming the Earth seeking to threaten humanity. After the flood, these "sons of God/demons" were imprisoned by God so that the other fallen angels (demons) would not do the same. So, the events leading to and during the Flood cannot happen again; God also promised to never destroy the Earth again via water.
  
  Last paragraph. As you are well aware of, people still do evil (sinful) things. Our sinful nature (which wasn't intended by God) is what causes disease, sickness, and eventually death. A sacrificial system was then placed by God. A lamb would be offered as a sacrifice in order to temporarily cleanse sin. This system began to fail as people stopped doing sacrifices and forgetting to ask for forgiveness. In actuality, this sacrificial system was done in order to mirror the ultimate sacrifice of all. That's when Jesus Christ (The Son, a part of God.) came down to Earth. He was both God and human, but since he was God - he was incapable of sin. When he died of the cross he said "It is FINISHED". There was no more need for sacrifices, Jesus took care of every sin possible in the past, present, and future. The only way to fully be free of sin is via the sacrifice Jesus Christ did. Simply believing and accepting that gift is enough. Heaven is not something one can earn, it is a gift from God and a person just needs to be willing to receive it.
  Satan - The Devil - Lucifer, and his demons cannot be forgiven because that would require placing their faith in Jesus Christ, essentially God. They will never do that, not in a million years.

  
  
  That.
  Actually made sense.
  Wow, that pretty much cleared up any questions I had/have.
  If only my preachers had made it that clear when I was a child, maybe I wouldn't have lost my faith.
  
  Thank you very much, I read all of it.
  
  edit: Wait, I have one last question.
  
  What if you're in hell, and you want to be forgiven
  like can god not hear you anymore?
• Episkey wrote on 2011-12-19 02:14

  Quote from Spanky;697438:

  That.
  Actually made sense.
  Wow, that pretty much cleared up any questions I had/have.
  If only my preachers had made it that clear when I was a child, maybe I wouldn't have lost my faith.
  
  Thank you very much, I read all of it.
  
  edit: Wait, I have one last question.
  
  What if you're in hell, and you want to be forgiven
  like can god not hear you anymore?

  
  
  Well. I'm glad that I could help. There are times when we are in crisis, but I can say from personal experience - it's faith that keeps me going :D
  It's the Christmas season soon, perhaps you could go to a nearby church that has a Christmas Special going on. They tend to be really well done and who knows, something great might happen.
  
  As for your question, when a person dies their soul leaves their body. From death, then they stand before God and become judged. It's not that God can't hear people in Hell, but there's nothing that can be done at that point. Your soul is the spiritual aspect of you that matures and changes on your life on Earth ... when you die, it becomes fixated of sorts. Your beliefs are still your beliefs when you die.
  There's also a great gap between Heaven and Hell, if you wish to read on some more insight look at the story of the poor and rich man in Luke 16:19-31. Actually, go read it now. It's the perfect answer to your question. Feel free to ask me anything else, I'll try my best :)
• Spanky wrote on 2011-12-19 02:17

  Quote from Episkey;697445:

  Well. I'm glad that I could help. There are times when we are in crisis, but I can say from personal experience - it's faith that keeps me going :D
  It's the Christmas season soon, perhaps you could go to a nearby church that has a Christmas Special going on. They tend to be really well done and who knows, something great might happen.
  
  As for your question, when a person dies their soul leaves their body. From death, then they stand before God and become judged. It's not that God can't hear people in Hell, but there's nothing that can be done at that point. Your soul is the spiritual aspect of you that matures and changes on your life on Earth ... when you die, it becomes fixated of sorts. Your beliefs are still your beliefs when you die.
  There's also a great gap between Heaven and Hell, if you wish to read on some more insight look at the story of the poor and rich man in Luke 16:19-31. Actually, go read it now. It's the perfect answer to your question. Feel free to ask me anything else, I'll try my best :)

  
  
  Time to bring out that dusty old bible, thank you I'll be sure to let you know if I have anymore questions
  
  
  edit: just read it
  and here's a version I found online for anyone to read it if they wish to
  
  

  “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
  
  22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
  
  25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’
  
  27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
  
  29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
  
  30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
  
  31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

  
  
  I liked verse 31
  
  another question I have is
  why must we read the bible over and over again
  as a reminder?
• Episkey wrote on 2011-12-19 02:55

  Quote from Spanky;697448:

  Time to bring out that dusty old bible, thank you I'll be sure to let you know if I have anymore questions
  
  I liked verse 31
  
  another question I have is
  why must we read the bible over and over again
  as a reminder?

  
  
  I liked verse 31 too. It's a reminder about how skeptical humans can be, its also a keen insight into the "supernatural".
  
  Why do Christians read the Bible over and over again?
  
  Well, alot of "Christians" don't read their Bibles. I'm guilty of it at times as well, but I've only recently become a Christian. As such, Christians who don't read the Bible may say something incorrect about Christianity or may not be able to refute something someone else says about Christianity. Either way, ignorance isn't a really good thing D:
  
  The Bible is also ... well God's revelation of his nature and plans to humanity. When you read passages in the Old Testament (written hundreds of years before Christ) you can see verses from prophets. A prophet is someone who speaks for God, normally concerning the future. If a prophet is truly from God, then they are 100% accurate, if not ... well they aren't from God! Anyways, the Old Testament talks about the future and the New Testament fulfills it. Jesus Christ (being God) knew about the Old Testament because he inspired the prophets to write the Old Testament. Because of that, he was able to fulfill prophecy and convince many Jews that he was the Messiah (savior of humanity).
  
  The Bible is a source of inspiration and knowledge. Practical knowledge as well as otherworldly knowledge. I wouldn't be able to have written that long 8 paragraph post without the Bible. It's important to read, so you can get to know God better.
  
  One of my most favorites, The Bible is also a weapon! How do you ask? Well, I won't tell you :p
  Well, at least not directly ... Read Ephesians 6:10-18
  
  In the end, It may seem like a chore, but it's so you know more about what you truly believe in. It makes the sacrifice Jesus made much more understanding.
• Spanky wrote on 2011-12-19 03:06
  The Armor of God?
  I don't remember reading that one so it was nice to read something "new"
  
  How long have you been a Christian?
• Episkey wrote on 2011-12-19 03:26

  Quote from Spanky;697505:

  The Armor of God?
  I don't remember reading that one so it was nice to read something "new"
  
  How long have you been a Christian?

  
  
  Really? It's an important passage, the metaphor Paul uses to a Roman soldier is very powerful.
  The key is that the Bible - or I should rather say, a Christian who knows their Bible is well armed against ... well, you could imagine with all this Lucifer talk. Satan isn't one to leave Christians alone. He's a liar and a murderer, also very crafty since he has been around every since the beginning of mankind.
  
  As for me, I went to a Christian Private School in New York ever since Pre-Kindergarden. I was there until 6th grade. The problem was that they didn't present the Bible as concise as they should of I suppose. I heard the name Jesus and God alot, but I never really knew the significance behind it all.
  
  Come 7th grade year, I moved down to Florida and went to a Public School. It was a big shock to me needless to say. During high school, I began to question and doubt Christianity after reading ... "The Davinci Code" in my sophomore year of high school. Gosh, looking back - I must have been pretty weak on a Biblical basis for that to shake/destroy my "faith." I put faith in quotes because to this day, I think I never had it to begin with.
  
  Alot happened throughout high school, after all it's a very life impacting and stressful time. But around my senior year I was exposed to a few Christians and became ... aquantinces with them. It prompted me to research more about Christianity and I was eventually led to this site http://www.gotquestions.org/.
  
  I'll warn you right now, everything stated in that website may not be true. They do a really good job at answering almost every question imaginable about Christianity, God, and other religions. It's important to do your own research and formulate your own opinion, preferably with the Bible itself.
  
  In any case, I asked Jesus Christ to forgive me of my sins about one year ago. It may seem like a long time, but I don't feel as such. It may be due to the fact I've only been recently (last month) been going to a nearby church with my family. Christianity suffers alot from apostasy, there are many who claim to be "Christian" but in reality are not. That's another topic I suppose ... But, it took me a while to find a good church near my area. I like it alot :D
  
  I can personally tell you that being a Christian has changed my life for the better. I won't guarantee no hardships, but having assurance in where you are going after you die is a real comforting fact. Wouldn't you agree?
  
  EDIT:
  I noticed that I write really long posts, sorry. I just get swept away, I guess. But I felt like explaining all of that, I'm also curious as to around when you believe that you "lost" your faith. If you mind writing about it, that is.
• Spanky wrote on 2011-12-19 04:30

  Quote from Episkey;697545:

  Really? It's an important passage, the metaphor Paul uses to a Roman soldier is very powerful.
  The key is that the Bible - or I should rather say, a Christian who knows their Bible is well armed against ... well, you
  could imagine with all this Lucifer talk. Satan isn't one to leave Christians alone. He's a liar and a murderer, also very crafty since he has been around every since the beginning of mankind.
  
  As for me, I went to a Christian Private School in New York ever since Pre-Kindergarden. I was there until 6th grade. The problem was that they didn't present the Bible as concise as they should of I suppose. I heard the name Jesus and God alot, but I never really knew the significance behind it all.
  
  Come 7th grade year, I moved down to Florida and went to a Public School. It was a big shock to me needless to say. During high school, I began to question and doubt Christianity after reading ... "The Davinci Code" in my sophomore year of high school. Gosh, looking back - I must have been pretty weak on a Biblical basis for that to shake/destroy my "faith." I put faith in quotes because to this day, I think I never had it to begin with.
  
  Alot happened throughout high school, after all it's a very life impacting and stressful time. But around my senior year I was exposed to a few Christians and became ... aquantinces with them. It prompted me to research more about Christianity and I was eventually led to this site http://www.gotquestions.org/.
  
  I'll warn you right now, everything may not be true. They do a really good job at answering almost every question imaginable about Christianity, God, and other religions. It's important to do your own research and formulate your own opinion, preferably with the Bible itself.
  
  In any case, I asked Jesus Christ to forgive me of my sins about one year ago. It may seem like a long time, but I don't feel as such. It may be due to the fact I've only been recently (last month) been going to a nearby church with my family. Christianity suffers alot from apostasy, there are many who claim to be "Christian" but in reality are not. That's another topic I suppose ... But, it took me a while to find a good church near my area. I like it alot :D
  
  I can personally tell you that being a Christian has changed my life for the better. I won't guarantee no hardships, but having assurance in where you are going after you die is a real comforting fact. Wouldn't you agree?
  
  EDIT:
  I noticed that I write really long posts, sorry. I just get swept away, I guess. But I felt like explaining all of that, I'm also curious as to around when you believe that you "lost" your faith. If you mind writing about it, that is.

  
  
  I don't mind reading it, I like how you put effort into explaining it than just a vague paragraph
  
  I lost my faith when I was around 12 or 13
  since I was around the age of 6 my parents forced to me go to church every sunday and wednesday
  worse part they never even went
  they'd push my sister and I on a church bust and waved goodbye, if we refused to go we'd get all of our privileges taken away
  
  so it was like going to school for me
  you don't want to go, but you have to
  
  and even though I was a child I had to sit with the adults and had no earthly idea what anyone was saying and no one would explain it to me
  so I would be bored and confused, and then I started hanging around atheist friends and middle school, so I started questioning "God"
  thinking of everything wrong in this world, and why nothing I have been told about my religion made any sense to me.
  But I never became an atheist like my friends
  I became agnostic, my logic was simple
  "We can't prove there is a god, and we can't prove there isn't so I won't pick a side"
  
  I told my parents I wasn't a little kid they could easily manipulate into going to church anymore, so I stopped going.
  
  As I've gotten older, I've thought about going back to church, because I feel like I need something to believe in, something that will make me a happier person.
  But whenever I try to go, I end up changing my mind.
  
  Some recent events have happened within the last few months that have discouraged me from going even more.
  which I rather discuss via PM
  
  
  edit:
  I should really take more time to proof read my posts
  otherwise I end up putting things like
  "worse" instead of "worst"
  and bust instead of "bus"
  
  I don't know why but this thread makes me nervous
• Episkey wrote on 2011-12-19 04:46

  Quote from Spanky;697658:

  I don't mind reading it, I like how you put effort into explaining it than just a vague paragraph

  
  
  Why thank you, I'm glad you can appreciate it.
  I just know that some people get all annoyed all go "TL;DR". Of course, I can't really argue with that though.
  
  

  Quote from Spanky;697658:

  
  I lost my faith when I was around 12 or 13
  since I was around the age of 6 my parents forced to me go to church every sunday and wednesday
  worse part they never even went
  they'd push my sister and I on a church bust and waved goodbye, if we refused to go we'd get all of our privileges taken away

  
  
  Sorry to hear that. Being forced to be a part of something you don't understand would be difficult to any person. I can empathize a bit since my parents forced me to go church as well, but at least they went too - so it wasn't as bad as your situation.
  
  

  Quote from Spanky;697658:

  
  But I never became an atheist like my friends
  I became agnostic, my logic was simple
  "We can't prove there is a god, and we can't prove there isn't so I won't pick a side"

  
  
  Ah well, Agnosticism at the very least acknowledges the possible existence of God. I have agnostic friends myself, so I understand it can be difficult to jump into something you don't fully understand - but hey, that's why it's called faith.
  
  

  Quote from Spanky;697658:

  
  As I've gotten older, I've thought about going back to church, because I feel like I need something to believe in, something that will make me a happier person.
  But whenever I try to go, I end up changing my mind.

  
  
  Well, I would encourage you to do that of course! I've taken a look at your PM - which I'll respond to, but I feel that there would be no better time than near Christmas to go visit a church :D
  
  

  Quote from Spanky;697658:

  
  I don't know why but this thread makes me nervous

  
  
  Haha, Interesting! Could it be your conscience? Most people dismiss their conscience as mere feelings or social norms - but it's much more profound than that! There is a part of God called the Holy Spirit, which works as Jesus's replacement on Earth. It may be behind your feelings of nervousness.
  I hope that you become inspired to at least attend a service in the near future. I challenge you to do so :D