Can an a Christian God exist?

Using the ole I know more or better than you is not effective debating nor factual hence my response.

 

I wonder why He did it that way for sure.

The only answer I have is He thought we wouldn't get it otherwise. Not a great answer.

 

The Christian god sounds a lot like Trump.

 

IMO, they are too scared to scrutinize and too vested in their false god. I was the same for years. What opened my eyes was that I started questioning some doctrines and was exposed to OT absurdities. I chose reason and rational thought over blind faith.

 

Again, I can provide scriptures all day that dispute the god you believe in. Your bible is not inerrant and your faith has no verifiable evidence. There is no special power of knowledge to understand the bible, it is just as it is written, Jewish folklore. The NT is just a non Jewish spin off. You can either bring verifiable evidence or just pretend you know something you don't.

 

Your thinking the NT is a spin off of the OT reveals your ignorance. Most Jews reject the NT. The synoptic Gospels tell the life of Jesus including His immaculate birth and the miracles. John is the book of the divinity of Jesus. Paul gives us the legal basis and more. I'll admit Revelation is difficult. There are other authors each generally speaking of one or a few aspects of life with Christ. This is hardly the theology of the OT although I don't divorce it from the theology.

Once more READ the NT at least five times and then study something like Systematic Theology. Not suggesting you believe it in part or at all. Read some C S Lewis once an avowed atheist who sought to disprove the theology once and for all. At least you would be knowledgeable.

And having knowledge of Christian Theology does not make one a Christian. You have no idea what I believe in.

 

I know that you aren't Amish.

 

He knew we wouldn't get it, being omniscient and all. He knew what was going to happen to man before he created man. Being omniscient and all.
The omniscient of the character god of the bible, is the undoing of the character and the stories.

 

God works in mysterious ways.
It is beyond all human understanding.
Those were the answers I got to most every question that no one could answer. I bought it for a while, but being human, with human logic, I never really bought it. And now I don't buy any of it.

 

Amish are Christians.

 

That is plausible.

 

It was a huge factor in my change of positions on god, after nearly 50 yrs.

 

For me this question is easy because I understand the Biblical context and I've explained it before. I'll try and do it again in spite of those that scoff and mock because that is their only purpose.
First I would ask, if we were all perfect beings in your eyes, what would our relationship in this world be like? Would we have to work hard for anything? Would our relationships have elements of excitement? Would it be happiness all the time for everyone? Would our brain just be producing endorphin's continuously? I don't know....in this world it might get pretty boring. Heaven may be like that but it is my belief there are dimensions to that we cannot now comprehend.
God allowed imperfection to come into our world so we could have choices. So we could contemplate. If we had all the answers, we would be God. Another question....what is relationship without choice? I believe God created us for "relationship" with one another but even more importantly, with Him.
How could the Creator of all things be insecure in anyway? The liberty He gave us allows us to mock Him, spit on Him, and as in the case of Jesus.....kill Him in a most horrible way. Many on this forum do those same things everyday. It is their breath for life.

God does not punish those that do. In comparison to eternity with Him, it may sure seem like punishment, but it is giving them what they desire. I don't like to talk about hell. It doesn't concern me in any way. I realize many experience hell here on earth. God does not desire that in any way shape or form. For me it is easy to be grateful for all I have, see and experience. I do not dwell on those trials God has allowed to make me stronger

 

So you're a Christian. Yesuha is so disappointed that you keep denying him like Peter did.

 

I agree with you.

 

You make too many assumptions and mind read as well. The latter is a cognitive distortion.

 

I didn't say the Jews spinned it off. And, you do not know the authors of the NT who did the spinning decades and centuries after the fact.

 

Wrong again. Mark 60-70. Matthew and Luke 80-90. That's according to the majority of scholars. Your venom is borne of ignorance.

And you said it was a non Jewish spin off

 

Which again is decades. You do not know who these people are. There are no viable contemporaries or verifiable evidence that support the extraordinary claims of the NT. As far as you, or anyone else or historical record can tell, the NT is just another book of fiction mixed with nonfiction no different than Spider-Man.

To be more specific, non orthodox.

 

Talking with you is a waste of time. You're moving the chains. You said decdes and centuries. Now it's decades. Mark was written 25-35 years after Jesus died.

Have a nice day.

 

So what? Books about Elvis are still coming out 40 years after he died, right Elv?
"Uh-huh"

 

But these are not actually Mark, Matthew, or Luke. Using names of historically venerated people was a large part of the literary tradition, furthermore each of the gospels has a distinct audience and a distinct interpretation:

Matthew: Jesus as the new Moses - regal, visited by Wise men at birth - given gifts symbolizing royalty, gives a new set of laws (Sermon on the Mount), "blessed are the poor in spirit. The

Mark: Jesus as a suffering servant, written right after the fall of Jerusalem - calls for followers to endure through their suffering - much like Jesus did for them - suffering becomes a sign of devotion.

Luke: Jesus as the social brigand/revolutionary - of the poor and downtrodden, bringing justice - visited by shepherds at birth (the common/everyday followers - "blessed are the poor" unlike Matthew's construct (although there is much overlap - between the Synoptic gospels suggests a circulating text of Jesus statements - what scholars call the original Q source).

John: The esoteric Jesus - Jesus of light - body is diminished - reflects the gnostic influence of the academic Greeks - Jesus is portrayed as a pure spiritual essence - Jesus as the way - the truth and the light - use of Theos occurs here in the Greek a couple of times.

The letters of Paul (and pseudo_Paul or Deutero_Paul) each have their own purpose and audience. There are other gospels of course (e.g. Thomas, Mary), that are not included in the canonization process because they contain passages/ideas rejected by early Church leaders in the 2nd century - it's not until the 3rd century that you get a standard agreement as to what should be constituted as authentic. The inclusion of the book of Revelation was a notorious controversial issue for early leaders. But this just highlights the socio-historical and disputed nature of how the NT became "accepted." Just as the Council of Nicea in the 4th century decides the issue of how to understand the essence of Jesus's ontology - as part of the Trinity. Again this speaks to the issue of people trying to figure out who Jesus was and what his significance was. It was cultural and sociological at its very core.

 

You continue to argue irrelevant symantics and have nothing to dispute the fact that no one knows the authors of these books that were written long after the proclaimed events.
Where are the contemporary accounts of miracles and the events of the claimed resurrection?

 

1- We've all heard the old "The gospels were not written by Matthew Mark Luke and John" consp-theory many times before (yawn)..
2- There are no less than 27 contemporary accounts of Jesus's life and the early church (the New Testament) how many more do you want?..

 

Again, where are the contemporary accounts of the "miracles" and other "extraordinary" events? Whether Jesus existed or not is irrelevant.
We have numerous highly worshipped characters that have no verifiable evidence of any divinity.