Do we really “trust in God”?

garyt1957 said:
If there were a Satan, why wouldn't God just destroy him?
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Hi Gary :). That's a really great question. God IS more powerful than Satan so you would think He would destroy Satan...I would think that too but here's the thing, I've read the Bible and here's what it says about that...

If God eliminated all Evil then we would only have Good in the world. Sounds great I know....no sin, no sinners, no suffering. But God wanted to create his children to have choices to obey him and choices between good and evil...otherwise he would be creating robots. He didn't want robots. He wanted a loving family. Much like earthly fathers want their children to obey and love one another.

Life is all about Love; Loving ourselves, loving others, and loving God our father. That's what God wants. Many have chosen to reject him but he still loves them. But he can't fully be there for them until they want him.
 

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Ruby Rose said:
The earliest Christians were all Jewish, and there are many Jews today who believe in Christ. Only later when the Apostles began evangelizing Rome did the gentiles begin to convert. There was even a debate between Paul and Peter about whether or not converted gentiles should obey the Jewish Law.

Christ spoke out against the Pharisees because they represented the heart of spiritual corruption in his time and place. But even they were not all bad, as we saw with Nicodemus. The Roman empire was also a bad thing, but Christ knew the real problem was what the Pharisees represented. He had nothing against Jews per se--he was one, and all his Apostles were, too.
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An excellent post. I very much doubt that the people who flocked to Jesus and listened to his teachings considered him to be the son of Jehovah in the literal sense. His parentage was after all quite questionable. He might have claimed to be of the House of David (I really don't know whether he did or didn't). In the bible he refers to himself as the Son of Man.

What does that mean? Is he saying that he is a human being or did that phrase have special meaning to the Jews of first century? The best people to answer that question would be scholars of ancient writings. I am not one of these. My speculations are just that, speculation.

Some of his followers may have referred to him as a son of God in the same way that I might say that a baptised child who attends church with their parents is a child of the Church. It is but a small change to replace the indefinite article with the definite. A son of God over time might morph into the Son of God. Certainly the gospel writers were happy to refer to him as the Son of God as they recorded his life years after his crucifixion.

I don't waste much time wrestling with conundrums like these. When I dip into the scriptures I am looking for guidance and encouragement as I try to put Jesus' teachings into practice. The understanding I glean from the words is not static. It grows in proportion to my lived experiences and my openness to, for want of a better expression, the leading of the Spirit.
 
Just to throw Richard Dworkins name into the discussion, (not that he needs publicity), I fail to understand his great need to as he sees it, "save the world from any belief in God"?
We all like to put forward our views on whatever topic, and once heard, its nice if a few agree with you, or even a majority, but mostly I've never seen the need to try to push your thoughts down others throats as he seems to wish to do, (maybe with the exception of.my fathers/parents rights views, but even there I've come to accept similarly excluded parents take a differing view to my own :( ).
 

Pepper said:
Proselytizing is a unique sport that has caused the torture and deaths of millions of fellow human beings throughout Western history. Yet it lives. Onward Christian soldiers.
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Au contraire, without the spread of Christianity, which only rarely was spread by the sword, the culture of human rights which atheists enjoy would never have flourished.
 
Pepper said:
Proselytizing is a unique sport that has caused the torture and deaths of millions of fellow human beings throughout Western history. Yet it lives. Onward Christian soldiers.
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Unfortunately, many confuse the word "Proselytize" (which means attempt to convert) with "Freedom of Expression" (which is simply freely verbalizing what you believe without being silenced). There is no lack of sharing views from Agnostics, Atheists, and Christians alike...we are all simply expressing ourselves in this Senior Forum. Of course, in the world, you will find some pushy rude people....I don't see it here.

I hope everyone here understands that I'm just sharing my views just like unbelievers are sharing theirs.
I like to call it a discussion. I don't see that anyone is being pushy. It's best to love one another....all races and religions.
 
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Lara said:
Unfortunately, many confuse the word "Proselytize" (which means attempt to convert) with "Freedom of Expression" (which is simply freely verbalizing what you believe without being quieted). There is no lack of that from Agnostics, Atheists...no different than the Christians in the Senior Forum.

I hope everyone here understands that I'm just sharing my views just like unbelievers are sharing theirs.
I like to call it a discussion. I don't see that anyone is being pushy.
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'Tis a friendly discussion, I agree. Thank you for sharing.
 
Pepper said:
Proselytizing is a unique sport that has caused the torture and deaths of millions of fellow human beings throughout Western history. Yet it lives. Onward Christian soldiers.
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I like you a lot pepper so keeping my mouth shut. Self application of duct tape does work. This thread has really gone off course, but it happens. I have gone off course on threads frequently. I find when I do not feel well my usual patience leaves the building.

My fibromyalgia is killing me. I can barely force myself to do anything and it’s very hard to keep my walking up. Plus my elbows, and knees, always hurt really bad when I have a flare. Hope it ends soon since puppy comes on Friday. I think we are going to settle on Bella Rose as her AKC name. Now, just to decide on her call name.

You can register a mixed breed dog with AKC for the purpose of obedience training @Pepper
 
@Aneeda72
If you are saying that chronic pain has an effect on how we think and how we live our lives I totally agree with you. Pain is a weight, a burden, that doesn't leave. It is a stressful way to live, lonely even. I wish I didn't know what you are talking about, but I do.

Bella Rose is a beautiful name. Her call name will be what you guys are comfortable saying. Lots of love & luck with this little girl. 🐶
 
re: Threads going off course
So let's say we're on course, but during that someone mentions One Thing that ignites memory, knowledge, opinion in another person. So person A with a throwaway, casual remark is the spark that person B focuses on. Like in a real conversation, like if we were talking face to face.
 
Sunny said:
Ruby Rose, surely you jest! Do you have any knowledge of world history?
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I began my heavy reading in world history when I lived in Germany for three years in the early 60s. I know that the Roman empire was converted to Christianity through evangelization, not through coercion. My in-law aunts were missionaries. Enough said.
 
Aneeda72 said:
I like you a lot pepper so keeping my mouth shut. Self application of duct tape does work. This thread has really gone off course, but it happens. I have gone off course on threads frequently. I find when I do not feel well my usual patience leaves the building.

My fibromyalgia is killing me. I can barely force myself to do anything and it’s very hard to keep my walking up. Plus my elbows, and knees, always hurt really bad when I have a flare. Hope it ends soon since puppy comes on Friday. I think we are going to settle on Bella Rose as her AKC name. Now, just to decide on her call name.

You can register a mixed breed dog with AKC for the purpose of obedience training @Pepper
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I have to touch base here...fibromyalgia is the name of the game with me as well (which I hate hate hate with a passion...with no rhyme nor reason), which I try to relieve with mindless chores and, of course, my wonderful office full of past material that I can lose myself in, hence the Senior Forums.
 
I do believe AND trust in God...with everything in me.
He gave me life and the free will to do with this life what I may. I can follow the good path or the bad...I choose the good. And if I straY off of it, He has always been there to help me back on. I trust in Him 100% and think He is sending some strong messages back to this world. If only more people would listen.
 
Ruby Rose said:
I began my heavy reading in world history when I lived in Germany for three years in the early 60s. I know that the Roman empire was converted to Christianity through evangelization, not through coercion. My in-law aunts were missionaries. Enough said.
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Well, I have more to say 😂. I am Catholic by choice and baptism, (in my 40’s I think) not by birth or education. But the Catholic church, IMO, used coercion for sure with many groups. many groups were forced to attend by threats of violence and force of arms. Many groups were enticed by promises of food. And many groups were tortured to death for failure to comply.

The history of the Catholic Church itself is shameful. But, it was the same with many other religious groups.
 
Kathleen’s Place said:
I do believe AND trust in God...with everything in me.
He gave me life and the free will to do with this life what I may. I can follow the good path or the bad...I choose the good. And if I straY off of it, He has always been there to help me back on. I trust in Him 100% and think He is sending some strong messages back to this world. If only more people would listen.
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A very good saying I've often repeated to myself over the years:

Keep yourself on the path of light
and there shall be few shadows,
serve Him in body, mind and soul,
and the growth and the bounty of
peace and harmony in thy
experience will be the gift of
the Father.
 
Sunny said:
Graham, do you mean Richard Dawkins, the renowned atheist? Here's a delightful talk by him; it's long, but worth watching and very entertaining.

https://www.ted.com/talks/richard_dawkins_militant_atheism/transcript?language=en
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Yes, I got confused, (again), with an American philosopher called Richard Dworkin.
I can't follow your link on this tablet, I was going to say "unfortunately", but in truth I've probably heard about as much as I can take from Richard Dawkins, and as I see it, his arrogance portraying himself as superior to all those great thinkers who went before him, who took a different view on his pet subject, or obsession. I notice when his name came up during discussions in the House of Lords, where a few archbishops of the church of England still hold places, they had a little joke about him, (he doesn't seem a barrel of laughs though does he!). :)
 
May I ask how we know we are off our path?
I’ve often heard that God tosses small pebbles at us to grab our attention if we are off our path. If we aren’t paying attention, bigger stones are thrown. Then boulders.

Oddly enough I spent most of my life journaling, mediating, going for long walks and reading every spiritual book I could find. It gave me such comfort and joy.

Now I have this intense fear that I can’t seem to let go of . Having mental disorders only makes it worse. I fully understand that what we think about we create or become but does God take this into consideration OR do we just hand all our fears over to him/her?

I’m wondering if God takes mental disorder and or dementia into consideration.
 
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Keesha said:
May I ask how we know we are off our path?
I’ve often heard that God tosses small pebbles at us to grab our attention if we are off our path. If we aren’t paying attention, bigger stones are thrown. Then boulders.

Oddly enough I spent most of my life journaling, mediating, going for long longs and reading every spiritual book I could find. It gave me such comfort and joy.

Now I have this intense fear that I can’t seem to let go of . Having mental disorders only makes it worse. I fully understand that what we think about we create or become but does God take this into consideration OR do we just hand all our fears over to him/her?

My life used to be so peaceful and content.
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he will show you and guide you back. at least he does for me anyway.
 
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