Instead of God having to apologize for some of the fools He’s created.
Let us pray for atheists to come to know our Lord.
Why??! 😯
Because as a Christian I want them to go to heaven.
The same question still applies, Why? What do you gain/How do you benefit?? The Bible says that God hardens the heart of some people, who refuse to accept Him. Would praying to change that, not be contrary to His divine plan?
So, let me get this straight: do you think that God hardens the hearts of people because they refuse to accept Him or that people refuse to accept Him because God hardens their hearts? Following that question, do you think there are some great sinners who eventually repent?
I don’t believe in (your) God, and I don’t believe that this ever happened, before, during or after. I was just interested to see the size and shape of the wiggle-room religious escape hatch you would provide. 🙄
Then, what God do you believe in?
Ah, there’s that desperate, “You must believe in at least one God, so that we can prove it’s the wrong one.”
The All-Just and All-Forgiving God cannot exist. The All-Just God would dole out punishments consistent with the severity of the crime – something the God of the Bible can’t seem to do – inflicting infinite punishment for the finite crime of merely not believing in Him. The All-Forgiving God is not “just” because He has special treats and privileges, only for members of his somewhat exclusive group of sycophants. It’s sort of like Oprah Winfrey giving free cars just to people who visit her live show – only, I actually have proof of people driving her cars, but I have no proof of anyone receiving everlasting life from God.
Atheists, and also many Christians, are in the habit of pulling one verse out of scripture and judging it on its own, very often out of context, and without any understanding of the whole. That never leads to the truth.
An example of this is Pharoah in Exodus. In Exodus 7:3 where God says: “3 But I myself shall make Pharaoh stubborn and shall perform many a sign and wonder in Egypt.”
But we see that Pharaoh’s heart is already hardened way before that. In Exodus 1: 22 we read: “22 Pharaoh then gave all his people this command: ‘Throw every new-born (Israelite) boy into the river, but let all the girls live.’”
A man’s heart is hardened by the sins he commits. The consequence of sins is to harden man’s heart. This is the sense in which God hardens man’s heart, by allowing the consequences of man’s actions to follow their course.
Great little excuse. I’m sure you believe it, despite providing a Bible quote that proves it wrong.
With all due respect, I seem to have given you a fairly detailed response and you have brushed it off as an excuse.
A detailed response does not constitute a valid answer. Exodus 7:3 plainly states that God claims the responsibility, and clearly says that He shall make Pharaoh stubborn. God does not use the excuse of free will, to allow Pharaoh to perform despicable acts which eventually coarsen and debase his soul. This is not the same as “Hardening his heart,” which means to become or remain stubborn and/or obstinate, not accepting another’s opinion or desired course of action. Anyone who would present that as an argument obviously knows neither Theology, nor proper English usage.
Show me a later context verse where God says, “You know that thing that I specifically said over there??! I didn’t really mean it.” BTW: You still haven’t given an answer to why you want Atheists to ‘know Jesus.’ I haven’t had my daily chuckle, so you might try to convince me that it’s strictly through religious altruism, and not to assuage the insecurity caused by people who won’t join your club.
You’re the last person I’d turn to understand scripture.
If I’m feeling sick, I go to the doctor. If my tooth aches, I go to the dentist. If I want to know something about the cosmos, I go to a cosmologist not to the Flat Earth Society. If I want to know something about God, I go to a theist, not an “A”theist. If I want to understand the Christian scriptures, I go to those who have the authority to interpret the Christian scriptures, not some deluded anti-Christian.
You just keep repeating that as long as it makes you feel good.
B.T.W.
I just realized that the graphic which I inserted at the top, might be construed by some, to be Atheist(s) refusing to accept proof of God. It should only be regarded as someone refusing to accept the claim of the existence of God, without sufficiently convincing evidence.
Archon's Den 