Why (or why not) be Christian?

[Mustardseed86]

Continuing the "Will you make it to heaven?" threads started by @VincitVeritas which have become a more wide-ranging discussion about matters of faith, Christian belief.

Hope to see you on here when the last thread runs out of space! And new posters welcome too.

We've recently been discussing the evidence for God, the soul and life after death, and debating what constitutes reliable evidence in this context.

Also some talk about whether it's accurate to say humans are 'sinful' and why/why not, some discussion of Paul and the validity of his writings and status as an apostle, how the Bible was formed (and why other writings didn't make the canon) the basis of morality/ethics, whether Jesus's message was intended for an excusively Jewish audience, the meaning of Christ (or Messiah), church tradition and different denominations, end times and probably more I've forgotten!

As we embark on our journey to explore and rule the galaxies, we do so with the understanding that He is our ruler and guide, and we are merely vessels through which His divine plan is carried out. By upholding the principles of righteousness, justice, and compassion in all our endeavors, we seek to honor God's sovereignty and advance His kingdom in every corner of the universe.

As we embark on our journey to explore and rule the galaxies, we do so with the understanding that He is our ruler and guide, and we are merely vessels through which His divine plan is carried out. By upholding the principles of righteousness, justice, and compassion in all our endeavors, we seek to honor God's sovereignty and advance His kingdom in every corner of the universe.

@RealRubyBee, if that is His plan. We may not be called to rule the galaxies.

but then if god operates through the beings god creates then god needs us to interact with the material world

@RealRubyBee
And I don't think we've finished the work here on earth yet...

why be content with earth when there is whole galaxies to conquer and bring the faith too besides whos to say what other technology on other worlds could then be used to improve earth

@RealRubyBee the earth is truly amazing. And we still don't know the half of it.

true especially the deep seas etc

Possibly - but I was thinking specifically about pillars
here😉

In your opinion, did God create only our solar system? Only the 9 planets circling our sun?

Or did he also create the other solar systems?

There has been a shed load of originally biblical books and verses, that over time have been removed and/or not included, because they did not suit the narrative of the time, by those in power, and the self appointed holy men (it’s always men, never ever women!). So over the last centuries the bible is essentially a pick and mix of messages and narratives. Definitely not the word of any god.

The bible is not a historical document therefore it’s not evidence for anything. Of course, if that’s your personal interpretation, that’s fine, but historically, it’s not evidence. It’s a collection of letters, verses, books - the musings of many men who never met this Jesus person, over many centuries, chopping and changing the content.

A lot of people actually truly believe that the bible is an actual historical document , that it’s actual proof of gods existence. It boggles my mind every time I hear this.

Because people are telling me I will know god if I have faith and they say they do KNOW god which is not faith. The experience is not hypocritical, but telling others they need faith when you don't have it is hypocritical, whether you believe you have faith or not.

That belief is frightening - you’re being controlled.

I wonder what sort of proof Christians would need to accept that god DOESN'T exist.

Ignore me if this has already been raised. Christ (if he existed) wasn't a Christian! He was a Jew.

According to the scriptures you rely on, he was pissed off about the way Judaism was being enacted in his place & time. He had a heretical belief that he was the son of god. But he never renounced his faith.

So the way of Christ would be ... to be a Jewish heretic. Is that how you see yourselves, Christians?

Do you mean the New Testament when you say it was written "over many centuries", referencing Jesus here? Do you really think that's true? Or are you talking about both the Old and New Testaments?

I don't understand what you mean by saying it's not a historical document tbh. Again, which parts specifically (as you say, it's lots of different books) and what criteria are you using to come to that conclusion?

Could you give some examples? I'm aware of some verses and some minor differences, but hardly a 'shed load'. Do you mean disputed books, as in the differences between Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant canon?

When you say conquer, do you mean like finding alien species and ruling over them in some way 😯? I would say we're a long way off even finding any, let alone any with a level of complexity and intelligence equivalent to humans. If there are, they would probably have their own relationship to the Creator.

Again, I think you're drawing too stark a line between knowing God and having faith in Him. Even people who have very vivid and compelling experiences of God still need to put their faith in Him, it's not just a matter of acknowledging His existence.

Depends on one's definition of 'biblical', but you can check out a list of 75 'lost books' here:

As nobody has answered, I'll try again:

In your opinion, did God create only our solar system? Only the 9 planets circling OUR sun?

Or did he also create the OTHER solar systems that exist?

Well yes, it does depend on your definition of Biblical then. Not every early text is included in the Bible. Some books are included in the Catholic Bible but not the Protestant, some are just Christian writings or mystical/gnostic books from the first few centuries and never really had that status in the church.

I don't understand what you mean by saying it's not a historical document tbh.

he Bible is not a reliable historical source because it does not meet the standard criteria of source reliability used by historians. The Bible is not, as many believers assume, eye witness testimony. Reliable sources are generally based on authors who were eye witnesses to an event (i.e. it is a primary source). Since any particular source may be fabricating their story, multiple independent sources are usually required for confidence. Establishing the lack of author biases, including religious motivations, is also necessary if a work is to be read at face value. The Bible satisfies none of these requirements.

I believe God created everything in existence. Some religions have lots of gods and demigods responsible for different areas but they usually have a creator figure too.