If 'God' exists?

Question

why is it he not apparent to everybody, everywhere, all the time. Why are we expected to believe, despite any evidence, what other people decide is the nature of 'God'. Do they have some ulterior motive.

A magnificent response, mostly from people who appear unable to understand the question. Some of you appear to think I believe in 'God', some of you think I am trying to find him.
My point was, if an omnipotent being wanted to be worshipped as the only true God and wanted everybody to live according to his wishes, it should have been a simple matter to make himself apparent to everybody, from the dawn of time until now. There would be no doubt, no need for interpretation, no religious wars etc.
At least a couple of you made me laugh, but not one reasoned, coherent response.

They're getting better

Answer 1

personally i think its pretty apparent ... and i dont expect anything from you ...

Answer 2

'God works in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform'!
Cant remember where I first read that, but it covers a multitude of sins, doesn't it?
I wonder what prompted you to ask this question? You couldn't possibly have been looking for a logical answer, could you?
If I was God and had created the earth and all mankind , I would frequently pop back here to check it all out, I would demand that all did my bidding, if not I would have to admit that I had made a huge co*k up, and scrap the lot, then start over again! Simple isn't it?
How long has this 'God' been around, 3 thousand years? Whats that in the life span of earth, nothing!!
Lots of other 'Gods' have existed much longer than that.
As far as knowledge goes I dont really know a lot, I am obviously atheist which means only that I dont believe in God, I cant prove it of course,but I just know there is no God.
All the religious folk out there that talk about "Just look around you at the birds and bees and flowers" etc etc, to me they are nuts!!! They cant prove there is a God, but they just know there is!
So where do we go from here?
I dont object to anyone believing in God, thats harmless enough, I do object to all the different religions, they are not harmless.
Good luck with your other answers, hope you can form some sort of opinion out of them, just remember "God works in a mysterious way"etc, that should cover your question???

Answer 3

Religions are man-made. They are all in brainwashed minds.
If you think about it, it is quite simple how most or any religions came about. You only need to be of normal intelligence to work it out.
Taking the Aztec peoples and their religion as an example:
Consider, thousands of years ago no-one knew much about anything; but they knew that life depended on the sun rising each morning and disappearing every night so, to make sure the sun rose every morning they had to be certain that it would. Sunsets are mainly blood-red, so it stands to reason that to cause the sun to rise again in the morning, and as it seemed to have lost a lot of blood in sinking over the horizon, some so-called `intelligent` witch doctor hit on the idea that if they drew blood, and sacrificed something which was very precious to them, it would prove to the sun god that they loved their `sun` god and were serious in what they were doing.
So, they took a virgin girl or boy of about eight years old, took them to the top of the mountain where their beloved sun fell off the earth, laid them on the sacred altar, clubbed them unconcious, laid open their chests with a sharp knife, ripped the still-beating heart from their body and moved it about the altar dripping the precious red blood and, behold! the sun came up again next morning. So that action was performed every month, probably just before th full moon rose and the sun was setting. And so they worshipped the sun.
Some worshipped hills, others mountains, or rivers, others the moon and others objects like Ayers Rock (in Australia) and many many others and so began various religions.
The short anwer is: If they did not know for sure what or how something had happened, it was so simple and easy to credit it to a higher being or a god. If something nasty happened, a devil was blamed. And each time the story was related to children by their parents and priests, the telling became more unbelievable but they knew nothing else so had to believe and worship it. Then of course we have the religious fanatics like Jesus who claimed he was the son of a god and acted like it and had his followers believing for they knew no better. He was a great deceiver anyway and the lesser intelligent believed what he was saying - like David Icke who thought the English Royal Family were all lizards or reptiles. He also has a following, and people believe him as much as some people believe in Jesus and/or a god.
And so was born religion.

Answer 4

Maybe he does exist - but how dare any human being put words into Gods mouth if he does!!!

Obviously some people like to believe they are talking 'on behalf of God'. But the words they speak are certainly not Gods.

Some say that God 'speaks to them'. Is it the same voice that is heard in the heads of lunatics?

God in a religious sense is a pure invention. In the religious framework it promotes hysteria and intolerance. And don't we see it every day!

I believe that God is the expression we use explain the unexplainable - but that's just me.

The answer to your question is YES some people do have an ulterior motive - it is called power and influence and is worth a lot of money and ego to them amongst other things.

Each person has to work out his or her own answer to the biggest mystery in life.

Answer 5

Did the ancient Chinese have gods, the Egyptians, the native Americans, native Australians, Greeks, Romans, Incas, Stonehenge Brits and are they all the SAME but under a different guise? Why then do they vie with one another in peoples minds if they are all valid? By adopting ANY particular god one perforce denies the others but of course if you wear blinkers you don't manage to see them. Is Homer not as valid as the bible, so why are you so selective in denying Homer's gods to substitute your own? The story about the emperor's new clothes was never so true as when applied to religion.

Answer 6

What is apparent to a man with20/20 vision is not to a blind man. Many people as they go through life and they change and discover God ( or finally admit to Him like I did) look back on things in their life and see that some things were God's actions. While I will not deny that there are people who are out there who use the name of God or the belief in God as a way of manipulating others this does not negate the presence of God. It just shows the sinfulness of man. There is a supposed conversation ( I wasn't there to attest to it) between the dying Carl Sagan and a friend of his who was a christian. Carl said "I can't understand how you can be so intelligent and believe in God" to which his friend said" I can't believe you can be so intelligent and not believe." Sometimes we don't see because we don't wish to see.

Answer 7

That is too deep to be answered here with any credibility.
I believe that Jesus is God - there is nothing that could convince me otherwise.
I have had people who do not believe - to the degree that I do - try to convince me that I am wrong, because it is very apparent to them that there is no God.
I believe that if you truly open your mind and free yourself of all the prejudices we've all been raised with - that you could see God virtually everywhere.
By the same token - nonbelievers will say that I see God everywhere because of my closed mind and prejudices.
Ultimately, it comes down to faith.
I have nothing to gain by trying to convince you of God's existence, but I have so tired of the arguments over the years that I feel I have more to gain by not engaging in rhetorical debate as well. I feel that at the opportune time - God will reveal Himself to all who truly seek Him.
God bless.

Aren't we being just a tad bit -ah.....arrogant?
Sounds like you have some anger issues with God or believers that are unresolved.

Answer 8

I can now prove to you and the rest of the world that certain scripture in the Bible has always been written by a highly advanced non-human scientific mind. It is this same non-human scientific mind that knew that someday mankind's scientific knowledge would advance to the point that this scripture can no longer be given a religious interpretation proving once and for all that there is an intelligent designer (God) out their watching and waiting.

Answer 9

religion is not only big business, its a way to control the masses by the elite who are usually as wicked as you can get. Imagine you are a being that can make Galaxy's and universes at will, the first rule of any experiment is direct intervention contaminates the experiment would you rather have a god that looks over us and punishes us according to his will with everyone subservient to a god there would be no learning involved in our lives experience there would be no hate no violence no war, so the point is we have to figure it out for ourselves,we have created civilised society with all its great achievements and brutality, you have to listen to your heart to decide what you believe god is, I'm sure that we cannot explain human existence with all its different levels as a cosmic accident . i hope that answers your question

Answer 10

My friend, God is a "Personal" God. He has already shown me, you and everybody else through the record in the Bible that when people actually see a Physical presents of God it only has a lasting effect on those that really want a personal relationship with him. The Israelites saw God in the desert and it only stuck with the people who really wanted him. So if you are serious and you truly want a personal encounter with the Almighty it is very possible. Simply get on your knees and sincerely ask God to make himself real to you and then begin reading the Book of John of the New Testament. In between readings pray again and if you REALLY want to experience Him prepare your heart for a definite visit.

Answer 11

If I were to tell you that there is gold in your backyard, you have to 'believe' that I am telling the truth; before you go 'searching' for it; right? If you do not believe my words, how is it possible to search for the gold?

Some people might have ulterior motives, BUT that does not mean that everyone does.

"If 'God' exists?
why is it he not apparent to everybody, everywhere, all the time. Why are we expected to believe, despite any evidence, what other people decide is the nature of 'God'. Do they have some ulterior motive.

Edit:

"My point was, if an omnipotent being wanted to be worshipped as the only true God and wanted everybody to live according to his wishes, it should have been a simple matter to make himself apparent to everybody, from the dawn of time until now. There would be no doubt, no need for interpretation, no religious wars etc.
At least a couple of you made me laugh, but not one reasoned, coherent response."

In your mind it is a simple task, 'just appear to all people in all time, that way we will know you are real and believe in you'. THAT is what you are saying. However, G-d does not and will not 'work' that way. In order for Him to be in our life, we must (1) have faith in Him (2) believe that He exists (3) trust that He will do what He says He will

In (1) the word faith is used to mean that a person is loyal to G-d, that his or her heart, mind, and soul is in the care of G-d.

(example: I have faith that when I ride an elevator it has breaks, I do not have to PHYSICALLY see the breaks; to know this is true.)

(2) believing in Him means that the person has a strong and trusting conviction in Him, that He is proven, honest, and true; as deminstrated in the scriptures. WITHOUT need of physical proof.

(example: I believe that air (oxygen) is pumping through my body right now, but do not have to PHYSICALLY see it;to know this is true.)

(3) Trust is to have reliance in the character and abilities of G-d. He (through scriptures) has been shown as trustworthy; because He did what He said and said what He did.

(example: having the close friendships I do with people, I trust that when I am not around, they do not talk harshly about me. I do not have to PHYSICALLY be with them, at all times to know that; IF they do not speak wrongly about 'others' in front of me. They will not speak in a gossiping way about me. Each of their characters has been shown as trustworthy, therefore I trust them; wholeheartedly.)

Conclusion, it is therefore, your opionion that; IF G-d wanted us to praise, worship, believe, and have faith in Him -- He would be physically seen or visible to EVERYONE --- throughout all history. This is fine for you to believe, but do not push YOUR ideals onto anyone else.

It never ceases to amaze me, that people demand others to not force their religious opinions or beliefs onto them; YET turn around and do the same thing.