Christian: God is Love (2015)
Chapter 2: Why Christianity it’s no better than any other religion
I am an atheist I have no use for Christianity
The phrase “I am an atheist I have no use for Christianity’ is used today by those who feel the bible isn’t true and therefore God doesn’t exist. There is no God than there can be no Christianity. There is no Christianity than Jesus didn’t die for humanity. Ok, so if Jesus didn’t die for us than we don’t have to be morally responsible to a God who doesn’t exist. What this phrase really means is “God doesn’t exist so a person doesn’t have to be responsible for making right and wrong choices based on an absolute standard-God. So he can do whatever he wants because there is no standard but his own. The only authority he answers to is himself.
The only problem is that people who are atheists really don’t know what is truly right and wrong. They have no absolute standard to base their moral choices. Everything becomes relative and what was defined as “right” this time is defined as “wrong” next time. There is no consistency in what is good and evil. God has inherently put inside every one of us the capacity to know true right from true wrong. Romans says it this way:
(Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) Romans 2:14-15
God has set a “conscience” in every human being. That uneasy feeling one gets when they know what they are doing is wrong is their conscience warning them. They compute that extra hour on their time sheet they didn’t work. The person takes credit for the discovery that the other guy really made. People can ignore their conscience so much that after a while they become insensitive to it. So the reality is that every human being is created with conscience to inherently know right from wrong. There are two standards to prove the existence of God.1) A higher intelligence (than ourselves) created man with the ability to know right from wrong.2) The bible has countless examples of a God who does exist.
So God exists than Christianity is alive and well and plausible. People need the God of Christianity to guide them in what is truly right and wrong. So Christianity is useful because it shows God created every person with a moral indicator known as conscience. The Christian bible explains that God does exist and He is the ultimate standard of right and wrong.
Don’t talk to me about Christianity
Christians who have had a lot of experience in Christianity have heard this statement (Don’t talk to me about Christianity) when talking to Non-Christians. Why is Christianity such a volatile topic among people? Christians start talking about an eternal destination to Non-Christians it evokes deeply held beliefs. Humans by nature are spiritual and they have an innate fear of death and who’s in control of their lives. Christianity is thrown into the conversation and now we are talking of turning one’s life over to Jesus Christ. The subject is brought up that Jesus died for everyone’s sin and He can give the Non-Believer a much better life. He will save that person from eternal hell. Some people respond in anger to these truths because they are being asked to deal with where they will go when they die. People know when they die that’s it life as we know it is over. People fear death because they really don’t know where they will go after they die. Asking people to give their life to Jesus, is asking them to give up control of their lives and destiny. But Non-Christians need to keep in mind that Jesus will take them to heaven if they desire to have a personal relationship with Him. God has given every person a free will. They can reject/accept His gift of Christianity. They accept His gift He will gently lead their lives in the direction He knows is best for them. One thing is clear God will never force anyone to let Him lead their life. He has committed to respect the decision of every human concerning Christianity.
People cry Jesus not Mohammed or Buddha in death situations
Jessie Duplantis, a well-known Christian minster, told a true story of how he was in a plane that was about to crash. He was sitting next to a Muslim and they had engaged in conversation about their beliefs. The man was committed to Mohammed and his teachings. The pilot’s voice interrupted their conversation over the loud speaker telling everyone to fasten their seatbelts. They were also instructed to prepare for a crash landing. The plane began to rock violently and descended at a rapid rate of speed. The Muslim man sitting next to him began screaming “Jesus! Jesus!” He screamed Jesus not Mohammed why? It’s believed that Jessie Duplantis had also heard Buddhists screaming “Jesus!” instead of Buddha in another plane crash. (Jessie survived 2 plane crashes.) Again why did these people call on Jesus instead of Buddha? Could it be that the reality of Jesus was more real to them deep within than the reality of Buddha or Mohammed? Jesus said, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you--they are full of the Spirit and life. John” 6:63.Imagine these groups of people studied the words of Jesus and they found true life and spirit in his teachings. To the point when they found themselves in death circumstances they believed Jesus could help them not Buddha or Mohammed.
Christianity is just useless
It has been said that Christianity is full of false claims and the Christian bible is full of errors and it was not written by God through His servants. This being said if these two claims were true then Christianity would be useless. This also means over thousands of years millions have been duped by Jesus and the claims He made about Christianity. Jesus is the founder of Christianity in fact Jesus is Christianity. The claims He made about Himself are recorded in the Christian bible. It is written “From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.” Matthew 16:21. Jesus made these two central claims to Christianity. He would be killed and He would be raised on the third day. So if Jesus didn’t die and if Jesus didn’t rise from the grave on the third day Christianity would be pointless. Jesus did die and He was raised on the third day. The bible witnesses to these to claims being accomplished.
Paul, a Christian had this to say about Jesus in 1 Corinthians 15:14-19, “If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” Therefore Jesus did die and He was raised on the third day; so Christianity is vital and true and is a very realistic option for people who want to embrace eternal life. Jesus is the source of eternal life in Christianity.
I don’t need Christianity. I don’t believe in heaven or hell
First one has to believe there is a hereafter and that heaven and hell are real places. People won’t these acknowledge these two facts than to talk about the need for Christianity is pointless. The Christian bible is the ultimate source for the existence of heaven and hell. The proof for heaven and hell must be settled in the person’s mind before they will see the need for Christianity. Once the person is convinced of the existence of heaven and hell. They realize they can choose whether they want to spend eternity in either place. Then they can talk about the necessity of Christianity with an open mind. The Bible has this to say about hell:” If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out.” Mark 9:43, “Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Matthew 25:41 to find more bible verses on hell click on http://www.biblestudytools.com/matthew/25-41.html.
Some bible verses about heaven: My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” John 14:2-4 click on http://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/heaven-bible-verses/ for further bible verses on heaven. Proving the existence of heaven and hell is the basic roadblock to overcome when speaking with people about the need for Christianity.