Question for Believers in God & Non-Believers?

Question

My hope is that my question will NOT offend anyone..if it does please accept my apology...it is not my purpose.

Questions for believers in God/Jesus: What is your (1) reason you believe in God/Jesus. I know you may have many reasons..but what's the single one that moves you to believe the God of the bible?

Question for Non-Believers in God/Jesus: What is the single reason you reject the idea of God/Jesus. What is your "rock" that you absolutely know that God/Jesus is a man-made concept etc.

Note: This is a question only for believers of God/Jesus or
Non-Believers of God/Jesus. I'm really not looking for answers like "I don't know either way"


Thanks for your answers!

Answer 1

Hello, and thank you for asking a question in such a respectful way :)

I'm a pagan. I am a former christian (20 years in the church).
There are many reasons for me that are intertwined together.
One is that I went searching for evidence of Jesus' existence and could not find any real proof of that.
The other is the similarity in the pagan god-man/death/rebirth myths and Jesus' story.
The disparateness in the "Old" and "New" testaments and the history behind them.
The history of the Church itself.
The effect of Christianity on people as a whole.

All of these reasons are my "rock" that I absolutely know that Jesus is a man-made concept.

I believe in "God", just not the Christian God.

Many blessings to you on your spiritual path.
Kallan

Answer 2

That's an EXCELLENT question and a difficult one to answer.

There are an abundance of facts which point to the existence of Jesus, the man; but it's much more difficult to prove that He was actually "the Christ," "the Messiah," or "the Son of God."

I was introduced to church at a very early age (around 4, I think) and was very active... choir, etc.
When I turned 14, I fell out of fellowship and was "lost" for about 13 years. I wasn't a BAD person mind you, but I wasn't living my life for God and receiving His full blessings.

The turning point in my life came when everything in my life kinda "went to hell." I broke up with my live-in girlfriend of 4 years, my work was suffering, and I fell into depression. I had nowhere else to turn; so after 13 years, I turned back to the only One Who had never failed me... God.

I fasted and prayed and cried and prayed, then there was just a "knowing..." an inexplicable assurance in my heart that I was ok and that I was going to Heaven when I left here. There was nothing tangible, just a peace and a comfort that I'd never felt before.

But it wouldn't be THAT easy. The following Sunday, on my way to church, I was having an impossible time breathing. It felt like someone had their hand in my chest and was squeezing my heart. I had promised God that I would go for the first time in years, so I faced agonizing pain to make sure I didn't let Him down.
I made it through the service (in excrutiating pain); but afterwards, I had to be taken to the hospital by my Aunt. The doctor informed me my right lung had completely collapsed and that I had to have surgery IMMEDIATELY!
I had never had any type of illness before, so it was very humbling that God had removed all of my crutches to ensure that I was relying only on Him.

Things aren't always perfect with me now, but I do the best that I can... still, I wouldn't change a thing! I pray for God's wisdom and strength to guide me in all things and help me to fulfill His perfect will and plan for my life; and I'm so excited about what He's done and is doing!

So no, I can't point you to a substantial piece of evidence to persuade you of His existence. All I can say is, I know that without Him, I'd be dead right now.

I CAN tell you that if you earnestly seek the Truth, IT will find YOU!


GOD Bless!

Answer 3

I am an atheist of all Deity's.

Where Jesus is concerned, however, I must first look at him in the context of the Prophecies -- which he failed, miserably (the Third Temple still does not stand, mankind is still capable of sin, and there are still Jews not living in Israel).

So even were I to accept YHVH, I would have to reject Jesus as being of Satan.

That gets Jesus out of the way -- but you asked about God as well, so I have to answer that too.

Simply put -- free will is only an illusion. Since thought and consciousness are simply a processes and condition of the brain, it is bound entirely by scientific laws. We make choices, and we can make some that to others would be pretty darned confusing or illogical, but we can never escape that our brains are nothing more than self-aware computers.

Free will is a natural consequence of a deity -- lacking free will, the concept of deity is meaningless and void.

We can wrap this up in a nice, neat logical statement.

IF [a deity exists] THEN [free will exists] (Premise)
NOT [free will exists] (given)
THEREFORE NOT [a deity exists] (by Modus Tollens).

Answer 4

well i'm agnostic as their is not enough evidence to prove of disprove of a higher being and at the same time there are so many higher beings in existence that one can never be absolutely sure of who the proper higher being is and at the same time some of the things that i've read in the bible just don't seem very realistic at all which can lead one to believe that everything is made up by man and women who are looking for an answer to the meaning of life

Answer 5

When I am at peace and all alone there is a feeling that comes over me. I cannot say that I have this feeling in my heart or in my head. It is just a feeling that comes over me. It is the knowledge that everything I do and experience, whether good or bad, is part of a larger plan, and that I am an instrument in that plan. Maybe it is something I will do or not do. Maby it is even reaching out to you. I do not know and I don't need to know. What I do know is that I have endured much and that I still have peace. I have not just survived. I have thrived. That can only come from God.

Answer 6

I'm a non-believer. Aside from the fact there is no convincing evidence in favor of God, one of the biggest reasons why I don't believe is all the petty rules in the Bible. The "homosexuality is an abomination" rule is one of the best examples of this. In my opinion, that rule is a clear giveaway that the Bible was written by men, not "inspired by God". The people who wrote the Bible didn't like gays, just like many people today don't like gays, so they wrote that in there to try and discourage homosexuality. There is no possible way that a supreme, all-powerful, all-knowing deity in charge of the entire universe would ever make a rule that's so petty and ridiculous.

Answer 7

I am a christian/believer. One of the most important reasons why I still serve Jesus is: My religion is not a religion - it is a relationship. Many non christians do not realize that but that is what it is. Your faith in God depends on your relationship with him, your contact with him. How you get judged in the end depends on your relationship with him. It will be either " Depart, I know you not" or " Yes your name is here in the book of life.". The fact that my relationship with God differs from the next person is what makes my faith stronger and stronger. When you are a christian you do not have to worry about what others think and say about you. its just all about you and God.

Answer 8

Yes I believe in the one true God. Jehovah is his real name and I choose to follow under him and his Son. The Bible tells us that we are all made in his image and that God is LOVE. I feel so much love in my heart that I know it is from HIM. It has made me a better person doing Bible Studies which I have not long been doing now. My whole family is going to benefit from this.
I hope you get what you are searching for here. :-)

Answer 9

This Bible is a colection of contradictions that are easily moulded by interpretation, translation and parables. Take the story of Adam and Eve. Didnt God say that they would truly die if they ate the apple but they go on to a long life. Bible scholars would argue that God MEANT that there eternal life would die. Well why didn't he say that? Is this a puzzle and only the ones who can solve it will go to heaven? If so is that just ? To me its one big scheme give us 10 percent or you will go to hell and burn forever. I you go to hell do you get your money back?

Answer 10

i simply expanded my definitions of words like "perfection" and "supreme" and decided that IF there is an invisible supreme super being that supreme super being would be incomprehensibly far above human primate emotions like jealousy, wrath, revenge and rage and that the supreme super being would then, of course, be far above the desiring of blood sacrifices as appeasement. therefore Jesus as a blood sacrifice is simply too primitive and brutal a concept for my supreme being conceptualization to find appealing. such a messy attempt at appeasement would be repugnant to this divinity ... if it garnered any attention at all.