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May 25, 2023 at 4:27 pm #145082
Hey y’all! @kyronthearcanin @mackenzie @hybridlore @euodia-vision @esther-c @keilah-h @oof-i-think-that’s-everyone π
Yet another topic I’m starting but I think it’s an important one. Christian Apologetics. There are a few different versions of this, but the one I’m talking about isΒ defending our faith as an accord of law. So basically it’s defending, or trying to prove, or faith. By accord of law, I mean arguing our case like you would in a court. We should know how to tell others about our faith in a way that’s convincing.
Our faith is not blind. We have proof for our religion, and none of the other religions do. The reason for that is none of the others are true! We have written records (aka the Bible lol), we have archeological data, and we have evidence that our earth couldn’t have come from nothing without God.
So this is a place to either ask questions or give answers about God and defending Him. I’ll give an example of what I mean to clarify.
Kalam Cosmological Argument for God
By telling someone this, it proves that our universe must have an outside Cause, or Creator.
1. Everything that began to exist has a cause (If something had a beginning, something made it begin. Soda cans and hotdogs don’t appear in thin air unless something causes them to.)
2. Our universe began to exist (By examining light from distant galaxies, we know that the universe is constantly expanding in size. If it is expanding, it must have had a point where it started expanding.)
3. Our universe has a cause. (Logically following the first two statements, orΒ premises, we know that the universe had a cause. Whatever that cause is has to be immaterial, all-powerful, and all-knowing. The only explanation for this is God.)
If you have any questions or interest in this, please just write about it!
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 4:32 pm #145085Ooh cool!!
I think @thearcaneaxiom likes this stuff a lot π
"Be careful, for writing books is endless, and much study wears you out." Eccl. 12:12
May 25, 2023 at 4:34 pm #145087Cool! I can’t say I’ve met them before, but that’s all right.
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 4:44 pm #145095Ooo awesome!! Iβll definitely be sticking around! π
Write what should not be forgotten. β Isabel Allende
May 25, 2023 at 5:07 pm #145107@orangearmadillo Oooh! I’ve been reading up on this a bit too. I’ll be around here for sure!
Where'd I get ya this time? The liver? The kidney? I'm runnin' outta places to put holes in ya.
May 25, 2023 at 5:12 pm #145111I’m glad you’re interested in it too! Me and my dad love this stuff, but I don’t really get many opportunities to share it. I might include some of it in a sermon I’m doing soon. I included it in my first one, but hey, you can never get too much of it. π
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 5:16 pm #145112@orangearmadillo Cool!
Where'd I get ya this time? The liver? The kidney? I'm runnin' outta places to put holes in ya.
May 25, 2023 at 6:03 pm #145144Heyyyy has anyone heard of J. Warner Wallace or Lee Stroble? If not, they’re really great authors who write about apologetics. What’s interesting is that they both used to be atheists, and by trying to prove the Bible to be false, they were overwhelmed by the evidence supporting God and converted to Christianity. I highly recommend their books.
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 6:20 pm #145148This is such an important discussion! You invited questions, so I hope you don’t mind that I have one for you. π
The argument I most frequently come across in regards to Christianity is moral. Doubting the morality of God and following Him, rather than doubting His existence. Someone very close to me acknowledges that God exists as our creator, this person just wants nothing to do with Him.
Is the morality of God something that you’ve ever discussed and defended? If so, what was your argument?
(Thanks for starting this topic!π)
May 25, 2023 at 6:36 pm #145150Hey, hope you don’t mind if I jump on board. I love topics like this; you’re right, defending our faith is important. Yes, I have read Lee Strobel, at least his kid books and a couple of his teen ones. They’re amazing and helped me with doubts about my faith.
This girl is armed with books, coffee, and writing accoutrements!
May 25, 2023 at 8:00 pm #145168Yes please do jump on board.
That’s awesome that you love these topics too!
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 8:08 pm #145171Yes I have been asked about this before a few times.
Usually how it goes is somebody says, “How can God exist if evil does too? If he loves us and he’s all-powerful, how come he doesn’t get rid of all the bad stuff?”
At first their argument seems logical, but you can refute it instantly by asking, “What do you mean by evil?”
As Christians, we know that evil is sin, and it is anything that contrasts God’s commands or character. But to the atheist, they have no standard for good or evil. Without some supreme authority, we have no standard forΒ anything.
So personally, I like to answer questions with questions to try to keep them intrigued in the conversation. So, first I ask what they mean by evil. Then, if they say, “Okay, if God is real, whyΒ does He let evil exist?”, I reply, “We are the ones who cause evil because God gave us free will. He wants us to end up in heaven, and sometimes hard times are what it takes to get someone there. Our world isn’t perfect, and God knows it. That’s why He’s set out to take us to heaven where it is.”
That’s my opinion. Hope it helped! π
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 8:15 pm #145175If they aren’t convinced or their mind isn’t changed, though it may seem hard, try to get across to them a picture of what will happen when they die without faith. A good way to do this is ask them, “Would you give me your eye for three hundred dollars?” This gets them thinking about how much they value just their senses. Then, ask them, “How much more would I have to pay you to give me your life?” The answer is that they are not up for sale. They value their life too much. Then say, “If you value your life that much, why would you not take it to heaven when all you have to do is believe in Jesus?”
Another approach is to simply ask them why they don’t want anything to do with God. If it’s because they’ve been hurt, explain that Jesus felt pain too, in fact, he died for them. If they think God is cruel for sending people to hell, explain that we’re already on our way there, Jesus is here to save us.
Hope that helped too? If you have ANY other questions, let me know π
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 8:56 pm #145178@anyone heheh
By the way, if anybody has defended their faith to a friend or colleague before, please let me know how it went! I would love to learn from it π
The measure of a man is how much bacon he eats.
May 25, 2023 at 9:24 pm #145184I really appreciate the time you put into answering. Thank you!π Very thoughtfully said.
My friend grew up in a Christian home, and from what I can gather … how do I put it? One parent wasn’t living out their Christian faith. There’s a lot of hurt, anger, trauma, and bitterness there, and I don’t know what to say.
I’ve been shocked by the behavior of some of my fellow Christians, but I can see the evidence of God’s grace so clearly in the lives of others. What would you tell someone who thinks Christians are a load of hypocrites? (Based on their own parent?π)
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