Is God Truly All Powerful?

[godrulz]

Hey godrulz, do you know Larry Walker?

He is my next door neighbour. He and I just chased a polar bear down the street. :Shaggy:

Our national animal is the beaver. What's with that? You guys have an eagle.

 

[Ninjashadow]

Hey, beavers are an industrious people.

 

[godrulz]

Hey, beavers are an industrious people.

They have buck teeth instead of beaks. :baby:

 

[Ninjashadow]

Dam.

 

[Caledvwlch]

If those are the things that you think made you a member of "our team" you are sadly mistaken.

Since the topic at hand has sort of disintigrated allow me to ask you a question unrelated to the topic of the thread. What do you think Christianity is? I know there are about a million variation of Christian but all the real Christians share a core doctrine in common. Can you articulate what you think that core doctrine is?

You don't have to answer if you don't want to, I don't want you to feel like I'm interogating you, that's not the point at all. I just thought it would be intersting given your claim to have been a Christian at one time, that's all.

Resting in Him,
Clete

*clears throat*
"I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin Mary, and was made man, and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried. And the third day he rose again, according to the scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father. And He shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead; whose Kingdom shall have no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and giver of life, who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, who spake by the prophets. And I believe one catholic and apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come."

That was from memory... sound about right?

 

[Aimiel]

Unless mixed with faith, they're just words, even though true, begging one point: Catholic or Protestant, Christians are God's Temple, not an institution or a building.

 

[Caledvwlch]

Unless mixed with faith, they're just words, even though true, begging one point: Catholic or Protestant, Christians are God's Temple, not an institution or a building.

I had faith too. It just went away. Faith is not nearly the all-consuming fire you people think it is. It's a clever deception. A blindfold.

 

[Aimiel]

That wasn't faith, that was adherence. When you have faith, it stands. Faith believes God, when all of your senses tell you otherwise. God is The All-consuming Fire. He can only be found by those who seek for Him with all of their heart. Any less is merely playing religion.

 

[Caledvwlch]

That wasn't faith, that was adherence. When you have faith, it stands. Faith believes God, when all of your senses tell you otherwise. God is The All-consuming Fire. He can only be found by those who seek for Him with all of their heart. Any less is merely playing religion.

I fhtat's what you want to believe, my friend, have at it. But you didn't live my life so I would say that makes you highly unqualified to make such a statement. You weren't there, there's no way you can know if I had faith or not.

 

[Aimiel]

Faith isn't deception, it's knowledge of Truth, and belief that The One Who authored that Truth will not fail, especially when the darkest of circumstances point in the other direction, and even after following those circumstances to yet another dead end.

 

[godrulz]

I had faith too. It just went away. Faith is not nearly the all-consuming fire you people think it is. It's a clever deception. A blindfold.

Faith must be based on facts or it is presumption, the existentialist 'blind faith' that is feeble.

Faith is only as good as the veracity and object that we trust in.

 

[Lighthouse]

Cal-
Answer this for me, if you will...

The Biblical definition of Christian is one who is in Christ, correct? If so, according to the Bible, were you ever a Christian?

 

[godrulz]

Cal-
Answer this for me, if you will...

The Biblical definition of Christian is one who is in Christ, correct? If so, according to the Bible, were you ever a Christian?

The Riddler...nana na na nana Batman!

 

[God_Is_Truth]

I had faith too. It just went away. Faith is not nearly the all-consuming fire you people think it is. It's a clever deception. A blindfold.

i like how sozo defined it awhile back. he said faith was "complete, unequivocal, and absolute surrender to God".

 

[Lighthouse]

I like that too, GIT. I also like what the Bible says, because it denies that faith is a belief without grounds. It is the evidence of things unseen, and the substance of things hoped for. It can't be those things, if there are no grounds for it.

 

[Caledvwlch]

I like that too, GIT. I also like what the Bible says, because it denies that faith is a belief without grounds. It is the evidence of things unseen, and the substance of things hoped for. It can't be those things, if there are no grounds for it.

The "evidence of things unseen"? If that isn't an oxymoron... "The evidence of that for which there is no evidence" in other words.

 

[Caledvwlch]

Cal-
Answer this for me, if you will...

The Biblical definition of Christian is one who is in Christ, correct? If so, according to the Bible, were you ever a Christian?

Yes. Absolutely.

 

[Clete]

*clears throat*
"I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of his Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin Mary, and was made man, and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; he suffered and was buried. And the third day he rose again, according to the scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of the Father. And He shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead; whose Kingdom shall have no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and giver of life, who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, who spake by the prophets. And I believe one catholic and apostolic church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come."

That was from memory... sound about right?

Good greif man, I didn't ask for a recital. And no, frankly, I don't think it sounded about right at all. Many of the right words are there but nothing of the substance, the heart of it. This might as well have been a recital of the third paragraph of the 7th chapter from 'War and Peace'. Memorization or intellectual agreement is not what makes a Christian.

Let me ask again in a different way and maybe we can make better progress.

Do you now or have you ever believed....

• that God created the universe and everything in it?
  
• that this same creator became a man like one of us yet without sin?
  
• that Jesus is that man?
  
• that you are an evil sinner and deserve to be punished by God for your sin?
  
• that Jesus suffered and died in order to take the punishment you deserve upon Himself?
  
• that God raised Jesus from the dead?

Any person who answers "no" to any one of these questions, as asked, IS NOT A CHRISTIAN and is not saved and never was, period.

On the other hand, if you ever did believe these things and truly accepted what Jesus did at Calvary as payment for your own sin, then not only were you saved and given eternal life but you are saved and have eternal life.

Which group are you in?

Resting in Him,
Clete

 

[Caledvwlch]

Do you now or have you ever believed....

• that God created the universe and everything in it?
  
• that this same creator became a man like one of us yet without sin?
  
• that Jesus is that man?
  
• that you are an evil sinner and deserve to be punished by God for your sin?
  
• that Jesus suffered and died in order to take the punishment you deserve upon Himself?
  
• that God raised Jesus from the dead?

I used to believe all of these things. I just don't buy it anymore. How did we get on this topic, by the way? I thought we were talking about meaningless abstracts concerning eternity and time... I love that stuff.

 

[Clete]

I used to believe all of these things.

Then regardless of what state of rebellion you are in now, God's grace is sufficient for you.

I just don't buy it anymore.

2 Timothy 2:13
If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

How did we get on this topic, by the way? I thought we were talking about meaningless abstracts concerning eternity and time... I love that stuff.

Well I just brought it up because the others had gotten away from the subject and you had brought up having once been a Christian so I thought it would be a good opportunity to find out whether you were ever saved or not. Looks like you were and therefore are and so I'm glad I brought it up. We can continue this or we can talk about the nonexistence of time, whichever you prefer.

Resting in Him,
Clete