do you believe in jesus? (505)

we all have free will, we were not made like robots, you paddle your own canoe. if we did not have free will what would we be like? ''God works in mysterious ways'' Just as Christ suffered so we resemble him in the worlds sufferings, you will not out fox Him.

God allows suffering to happen to bring a greater good out of the sitution!!

one bad apple on the tree,does not mean the whole tree is bad

i see the bigger picture from birth to death to entinaty, from the history to the furture, suffering and pain is part of life God permits it to bring a ''greater good'' from it. i am gratfull for my augish in life in the past it has made think and act better. just as Christ suffered and people suffer they resemble him.

I only asked you what makes a great tragedy a great tragedy. I was wondering by what authority you label suffering and tragedy. It appears you feel it is a consensus of the population. If this is your line of reasoning, then all we have to do is convince the consensus that the events in Japan are not a tragedy and it will be so. But what if you disagree with the consensus? From where do we get the consensus? How do you personally decide what is good and what is bad? And what if that does not line up with the general consensus?




If God is not necessary, how do you define your moral code? What if it does not line up with those around you? And if your moral code as legitimate as the thief, murderer, or p*dophile?




If there was proof, it would not be called faith. Do you always need proof to believe in something? How old were you when you first experienced love? Did someone have to prove it to you before you accepted it? And how do you prove love? Is by actions of love? By words of love? By chemical levels in the brain? Can those ways we try to measure love be counterfeited? Is there really any proof for love? If not, does that prove it does not exist?

And I hear a lot of people calling these calamities, these “acts of God”, so cruel. But I wonder what is more cruel, to believe there is a God to welcome people into a beautiful place He has prepared just for them, a place completely safe for children, where the lion can lay down besides the lamb… OR to believe these children died horrific deaths and that is it. That our existence is nothing beyond the horror and suffering of this world? That we are an accident, and when we are gone, the universe will never even notice.

This statement confirms you were taught a wrong lesson in your childhood, or you completely missed the right lesson. The ideas of blackmail and manipulation have no place in what God has done for us. The subject everyone fails to consider is that of “sin.” People want to believe they will not be held accountable for the things they have done wrong in their lives, and this makes them hate the whole concept of God. He has declared that the soul that sins shall die. But being as we all have sinned, and He is a loving God, He made a way for us to be saved. He sent His son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for our sins. And this way we no longer have to die in our sins, but we can live in God’s righteousness. And because He has paid such a great price for our salvation, it makes the penalty for sin all the more justified. Those going to hell not only deserve it for the sins they committed, but they also deserve it for refusing such a great salvation as God provided. And standing before the Judgment of God, He will show how each one either accepted or refused to accept what He has done for them. No blackmail. No ransom, He paid the ransom with his son’s life! No manipulation. You either choose to live with Him, or live without Him.

Many contend this to be cruel, but I wonder which is crueler, every last one of us will be held accountable by God, or only a few of us will be held accountable by man. And if you can get away with it, you can commit any crime you wish. If there is no justice with God, how can there be justice anywhere?

Are you suggesting God just come in and wipe out all suffering? What if you are the cause of some suffering, do you want Him to wipe you out as well? Or are you just talking about big event suffering like earthquakes or hurricanes? Do you know what would happen to the planet if there were no earthquakes or hurricanes? The death count would be much much higher. Or are you suggesting He take complete control of everyone? This way He can make sure you never make a decision to cause suffering, like those at BP whose mistakes caused the suffering of man and nature alike. I guess He could have stopped short of creating man, since it was because of man’s sin we have all this trouble. The only problem with that is that He loved me. He loved me, that is why He created me.

I know you might still be confused after all of this, but I would dare say there’s a 99% probability that you are confused because you choose to be. You just refuse to accept what I say. And that is your right. One that God will protect to the end. I hope that someone else reading this might end up with a different view.

Thank you SCatlyn.

Jesus's mother must have belived in him and his stepfather must have realy belived in him too!!!its a shame god was not the fartherly type or he would have stuck by Jesus's mother!