If you don't believe the Bible.

[postroad]

Christians will often insist that certain texts can't be understood to actually mean what is plainly stated. Given enough believers I imagine that most of the Bible would be in dispute. The question is, why should the sceptic believe the Bible if Christianity does not.[/i]

[ttruscott]

Is the "spirit's" role to divide and confuse the people then?

Yes, in part. The confused people act the way they think is right, ignoring GOD and the ones to be separated from them learn about their natures from these actions.

[ttruscott]

[Replying to post 23 by JehovahsWitness]
Do you believe that evil is working in complete obedience to the will of God?

Of course not - evil is in contradiction to HIS will -- but it is allowed within free will to be able to reap the rewards of a free will.

[ttruscott]

[Replying to post 28 by JehovahsWitness]

But the question should really be whether or not you believe your god is capable of having immoral or evil standards? Or do you define your god as being good and righteous by default therefore no matter what he commands people to do, it must be a morally good action?

Sums it up for me... It is the starting premise for my apologetics of how evil can exist with such a GOD.

[Blastcat]

[Replying to post 28 by JehovahsWitness]



[center]
Obedience to God's Will[/center]

Do you believe that evil is working in complete obedience to the will of God?

If so, no I don't believe that. I believe that God is good and never commands people to do anything that is anything less than his own righteous standards. The bible contains appeals from God to choose to do what is good not what is bad.

____________

Question:

• 
  
  What happens to people who don't follow God's commandments?
  
  

____________

[Blastcat]

[Replying to post 81 by ttruscott]



[center]
The words of spirits ≠The words of God[/center]

Is the "spirit's" role to divide and confuse the people then?

Yes, in part. The confused people act the way they think is right, ignoring GOD and the ones to be separated from them learn about their natures from these actions.

____________

Question:

• 
  
  Then we should find out a way to discern what is a spirit and what is... ah.. er... God, I suppose. ( lets pretend for a second that God isn't a spirit ) What mechanism do you propose for that?
  
  

____________

[ttruscott]

[Replying to post 33 by JehovahsWitness]

You appear to be dodging my point. Moral, immoral, good, evil, right, and wrong are all words that are devoid of meaning in your belief system because you apply a different standard to your god than you do to any and every other moral actor. You can't simply make immoral or evil actions moral and good by defining them as such when your god does them. That is hypocritical.

You miss the point. It isn't so much that we you apply a different standard to our GOD but that we don't judge HIM by HIS actions just because we hate these same actions when done by a sinner. You do not condemn a man for killing the man who is killing his family, but in your desire to see GOD slandered you pretend there can be no difference between one death and another due to intent.

Many accept that psychopathic criminals may be morally put to death or sent to life in prison for their crimes though you do not give that right to GOD, putting men above GOD. Or is your standard really that there can be no punishment for vicious violent crime?

[ttruscott]

You apply a double standard to your god vs humans when it comes to morality. That makes you a hypocrite because YOU are the one applying the double standard.

Christians do not APPLY a "double standard" - there are in fact two standards because HE is divine and we are sinners. The standard for adult behaviour is not the same standard for children's behaviour. Applying different standards to adults and children does not meet the criteria for using a double standard which applies to judging equals by different rules based upon unjust favouritism. GOD and sinful mankind are not equals.

[postroad]

[Replying to post 80 by ttruscott]
How do you know you aren't a reprobate infiltering the true church?

[postroad]

[Replying to post 87 by ttruscott]. Did something go wrong in regards to these texts?

Ezekiel 36:26-28New International Version (NIV)

26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. 28 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.
Jeremiah 32:38-40New International Version (NIV)

38 They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them. 40 I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me.

[TheBeardedDude]

[Replying to post 87 by ttruscott]

Correct, there we go. Morality is a hypocritical concept in christianity. It took way too many pages for that to finally be acknowledged.