Prove to me your Religion is Right

“ok. ill be open-minded. all you christians, this is your opportunity to prove that jesus is lord and king and the only way to god, and if i dont admit that, then im going to hell. none of this "if you just open your heart, and have faith" crap. i want a convincing argument.

you may begin”

“God is great, God is good, let us thank him for our food, yea God!”

“Prove to me you love your mother.”

“this ought to be good...”

“so ya cant do it, huh, deads-rge?”

“So you can't prove to me you love your mother?

It must not be true.

I'm going to call her and tell her.
last edited: 12/01/05 3:37:20 PM”

“you got nothing!

(but since you asked, im not sure i do!)”

“which name do you him to be called? After all he goes by many names depending on your religious beliefs.”

“Prove that the Pink Inivisible Unicorn doesn't exist!”

“sure he does. he shares an apartment in cleveland with the fly-ng sp-ghetti m-nster”

“Crash - You get my point though (unless this is all a troll *cough*). If you want to understand Christianity, and have an open mind, then you should be willing to discuss my point with me instead of dismissing it.”

“this is seriously not a troll. i am seriously not dismissing it. i am willing to discuss it with you and anyone else who cares to join in. im all ears”

“sarge, CB knows how you discuss things.”

“Ok, then let's not say things like "you got nothing!" and "im not sure i do!", when you know I'm making a point.”

“Remember the movie Flatliners? Let's have a volunteer flatline and tell us if he meets Jebus H Cripes. That oughta settle it.

So, who's up for it?”

“Crash, what you are looking for is cold hard facts that Jesus is who people say he is. In other words, you’re screwed…”

“i asked for a convincing argument (not necessarily hard proof). you gave me a flimsy analogy

please start over”

“Crash - if you're looking for "cold hard facts that Jesus is who people say he is" as Nigal says, then you're going to have to approach this the way you would any historical figure. What are your qualifications for accepting a historical figure as fact?”

“so i guess it would make you uncomfortable if i bring my bible and preach a sermon next weekend?...i guess i'll have to leave it at home :(”

“Crash - You obviously are trolling. I was not making a flimsy analogy, but a realistic comparison. Some things in life have to be accepted on faith, or discarded. There is no other way. I'd suggest to you that accepting Jesus as Lord is not something you would necessarily do if you lived with Him on a daily basis. This is something you have to accept in your heart, just like you have to accept in your heart the love of another person.

Criticizing my logic without contemplating it is trolling.”

“plus if you're serious about knowing what christianity is all about i think a thread on a backpacking site full of whackos is hardly the place ;)”

“He's not serious thriftyhiker. Look at his responses so far.”

“My Sunday School teacher bribed us all in 8th grade. HE said that if we read the New Testiment, he would give us $30.

I read it because I was bored, but I didn't take his money.”

“i thought you were dead...go away...christians don't fake their death”

“christians don't fake their death

Jesus did - oh wait, wasn't he a jew?”

“lol@thrifty”

“My Sunday School teacher bribed us all in 8th grade. HE said that if we read the New Testiment, he would give us $30.

i had a sunday school teacher give me money to get a hair cut...i used it to buy an ACDC tape”

“lol@thrifty”

“no it wasn't a joke...really go away...crash opened a door a little, whether it's genuine or not it's "christians" like you that make that door shut again”

“I had a different teacher that bribed us with snickers bars if we memorized the books of the bible.

I did that too, still know them today. Gave the snickers bar to my mom. I cannot dig peanuts mixed with chocolate.”

“in all seriousness, what youre saying is that it comes down to a matter of the heart. your heart tells you something, and mine tells me something different. we're all different and so have different hearts. i acknowledge that you may be right. do you acknowledge that you may be wrong?”

“I had a different teacher that bribed us with snickers bars if we memorized the books of the bible.

Wounded Knee: The Diabetic Preacher”

“AMEN!

Free your mind and your ass will follow!

Open you minds...and your pocketbooks”

“CB, from reading some of your other posts it sounds like your "heart" my be bitter towards christianity due to some run ins you've had with people claiming to be christians...i've had the same situation...i grew up Nazarene...i was subjected to all kinds of judgment and rules...that's not what christianity is really all about...in the words of the great Coolio, hate in your heart will consume you too
last edited: 12/01/05 4:09:58 PM”

“in all seriousness, what youre saying is that it comes down to a matter of the heart. your heart tells you something, and mine tells me something different. we're all different and so have different hearts. i acknowledge that you may be right. do you acknowledge that you may be wrong?

I know I'm not wrong.

Look at it this way.

Assuming you love your mother (hypothetically), if I didn't feel in my heart that you loved your mother, but you did, the fact remains is that you still love your mother.

I know for a fact that Jesus is my Lord.

Now, I admit that not everybody thinks he is Lord. I'm not denying that.

Are you questioning His existence or his Holiness?

If it's his Holiness you are questioning, there is absolutely NOTHING I can say or do that will change your mind about that. That is something you have to decide for yourself.

If it's his historical existense as a person that you are questioning, let me know because that's a different issue.”

“anyway, im not looking for cold hard evidence (that would be impossible), nor even proof that god exists (ill even assume he does for the sake of this discussion). just convince me that salvation thru jesus is the only way. dont deflect my question by asking me to prove i love my mother, because all that proves is you cant prove it.

thrifty: no i wont be uncomfortable, but i might fall asleep ;-D”

“in the words of the great Coolio
thriftyhiker
4:09:02 PM
12/01/05

what religion is he/she/it affilated with?”

“Coolio's a rapper...it was a joke ;)”

“I agree with what thriftyhiker wrote about about coolio, and what Christianity is all about.

I think to really discuss this with you, we'd have to "deprogram" you to the wrong things you were taught and learned to hate in whatever church you grew up in.

Remember this ... I was the same as you until about 5 years ago. I was not a Christian for the same reasons you and others are presenting (hypocricy, etc..) - But I later realized (after a heart change) that I was letting those excuses get in the way of proper thinking.

NOBODY was preaching to me when I was saved, by the way. I was not "brainwashed" by anybody. I came to the realization myself after much research/contemplation/and change of heart.”

“don't listen to rap since i have no clue as to what they are saying”

“... Later, things that I "knew" in my heart about Christ were later confirmed by what I read in the Bible.

No Christian can make you believe. Only the Holy Spirit and a decision by you can.”

“Assuming you love your mother (hypothetically), if I didn't feel in my heart that you loved your mother, but you did, the fact remains is that you still love your mother.

I know for a fact that Jesus is my Lord.

look at it this way:

if jesus is really not your lord, but just some really wise guy from 2000 years ago, but you "know" he is, the fact remains that he really is not your lord, but just some really wise guy from 2000 years ago that youre convinced was the son of god, was born of a virgin, and died and rose again, but really wasnt.

so really, neither of us know the Truth, but im not telling myself that i do”

““anyway, im not looking for cold hard evidence (that would be impossible),”

That’s not impossible. Jesus claimed to be the messiah. So what is required of the messiah? Who must he be? What will he accomplish? Now if ya go look in the Jewish bible (Tanack) and see how Jesus stacked up. It's also interesting and important to note that nowhere in the Jewish bible is worshipping, following or even believing in the messiah a requirement of salvation.
last edited: 12/01/05 4:22:09 PM”

“Jesus was prophesized in the Old Testament. A book that was taught/read/studied widely before His birth.

His life and death on the cross happened.

He fulfilled the requirements of the Messiah as written in the Old Testament.”

“actually, im not letting the hypocrisy of christians convince me of anything. almost the entire human race is hypocrites. even before i was cynical and "bitter", i was not convinced of the whole salvation thing.

i think what i have a problem with is the notion that i cannot have a relationship with The Creator without an intermediary. the catholics really take this too far. with them, you got christ, you got the pope, the popettes, the pontiffs, the priests, bishops, this great chain of command thats just ludicrous. im more with the jews on this one: i dont need an intermediary, and no son born of woman is god (some believe that to suggest so is blasphemy)

i talk to god in my heart. i dont need a lawyer”

“Crash - What evidence or proof would you accept that Jesus is Lord?”

“i talk to god in my heart. i dont need a lawyer

Christ is Lord. Not an intermediary.”

“His life and death on the cross happened.

He fulfilled the requirements of the Messiah as written in the Old Testament.”

two words: artistic license

the core elements of christian mythology are fantastical, irrational, and simply not believable. you expect me to believe such incredibly outlandish claims, you better offer me outlandishly convincing proof”

“"i think what i have a problem with is the notion that i cannot have a relationship with The Creator without an intermediary."

Exactly! I mean, all of us who believe in G-d say He's all powerful and all knowing, so why would we claim He's unreachable without some intermediary? You don't even need a religion. It's you and the Creator.”

“So now we're back to you not believing the "historical" man of Jesus?

You are either:

1. Denying the Old Testament was written before Jesus, or
2. Denying He was judged, crucified, and died on the cross.”