Smitty91

It is not God who sends one to hell; it is the sinner who sends themselves their. Remember, one of the names for God is Judge. God's judgment is very much like that of an actual judge. If I were to go out here and deliberately do something that was illegal and I got sent to jail, I would have no right to get pissed at the judge for sentencing me to jail. The same is true of sinners. Romans 1:20 says that we are "without excuse." It is sin that keeps us away from God since He cannot tolerate sin. How much more direct could God be than sacrificing His own Son so that we may live? I know of no other greater expression of love and mercy than sacrificing one's Son so that mankind could have a renewed relationship with you. God communicates to us through a variety of ways. For some, it's experience. For others, it's through His Word. For others, it's through one's heart. More often than not, however, God communicates to us through His Word. Books are timeless, living far beyond their original authors once they have passed on. This is true of Steinbeck, Poe, Shakespeare, and will be true for many other authors such as Rowling after they have passed away.

Your concerns are ones that trouble some Christians as well. If God does indeed love us, why would He send His children who don't believe in Him or His Word to hell? It's not really whether or not you believe in God. Rather, it's your sins that do you in. Remember that one of the names for God is Judge. Another name for God is Father. It is our sin (wrongdoing) that God will judge on the Day of Judgment. When children do wrong, their parent must correct them. So is the same for God. (see Hebrews 12:6). What's sickening about some people is that they think that God gets some kind of sick pleasure from His children going to hell, but Scripture is in complete contrast to this theory. Ezekiel 33:11 and several other passages within the Bible tell us that God takes no pleasure in the wicked, but rather would like the sinful man to come to repentance. It is true that we have free will and, contrary to popular belief, the Bible doesn't teach blind faith. It rather teaches us to arm ourselves with knowledge and learn more about the world around us. But doesn't giving us free will show how much God loves us? If He didn't love us, He would be like a strict schoolteacher, wanting us to follow all of His rules to the letter. Regarding the Bible, you are correct; it should be treated as a set of guidelines to follow instead of a set of rules that need to be followed exactly as specified. When Christ gave His life for us, He abolished the law so that the Mosiac law was no longer in effect. Leaving His disciples, He gave them only two commandments, that we are to love God and love our fellow man, the two commandments that are clearly being illustrated by The Ten Commandments found in Exodus. Also, God does not condone hypocrisy. Jesus openly opposed the Pharisees back in His day for being hypocrites, illustrating such in a parable in Luke 18:9-14. Christian hypocrites of today (those who hate gays, any other religious folk that aren't their own, etc) will have their place in the lake of fire. For more, go here: http://www.gotquestions.org/eternal-hell-fair.html I'm not sure, but I think you're asking whether or not the above thinking makes you defiled. Well, no. Jesus wasn't talking about evil thinking in those terms. Jesus meant thoughts such as lust, envy, coveting, and so and so forth. Thinking that something will be bad or enjoying a good novel won't make you defiled. But as I said, I'm not entirely sure if whether you're asking "Can I be defied now?" or "Can I be defiled now." I'm pretty sure it's the former, but I just wanted to clear that up in case you were confused about it.

Strange how this contradicts Jesus' words: "But these things that come from the mouth come from the heart. These are the things that defile a man. Evil thoughts, murders, sex outside of marriage, thievery, lying, and blasphemy all come from the heart. These are the things that defile a man." Also, your thoughts on why someone is Christian doesn't go along with Scripture. James 4:7 clearly states, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." This Scripture strongly suggests that Satan has no claim over us and that we have authority over him through Jesus Christ. There is no reason whatsoever to fear hell, the devil, or his angels. Also, nowhere in Scripture is it supported that we should only do good because we desire heaven. We should do good because we love others and want to help them. By doing so we are following the Golden Rule. Good works cannot get you into heaven, though God will judge all according to his/her works. I simply wanted to clear up any confusion regarding whether or not one should fear hell or do good deeds just to get some reward in heaven. The latter is completely selfish! Anyway, this is just what I believe. I believe that there are layers of truth to every religion. Mine just works for me.

I always thought the Holy Spirit was to help us interpret the Bible, but, yes, you are correct. This is why we have so many denominations within the Christian community. This is the really great thing about God: He doesn't force you to believe in His Son, but rather allows you to make your own choice, and we should allow others to do the same, act as Christ would. Preach the good message, but allow people to make up their own minds as to whether they want to follow it or not. It is true that inspiration can come from anywhere (this is especially true of writers like me), as there are many wise Chinese proverbs and such out there that one can find. Yes, we should love and treat each other with kindness, as Christ Himself instructed us. Only when we put our differences aside and embrace one another as brother and sister can we finally find peace within not only ourselves, but also within our own community as well. Therefore, I will allow your remarks to be the final words on the matter. Good day.

Yes, that would be nice. I would like to get to know other people and what they believe. It is a good idea to get out there and mingle with other people outside of your social field. Well, yes, there are a number of religions out there and mine just works for me, that's all. You are correct in saying that no one religion can be true, as any religion can be proven true given enough evidence. Oddly enough, that's all we can do: weigh the evidence and decide for ourselves what we want to believe.

You are correct. But personally, I believe that my faith is the correct one seeing as there is a lot of evidence for it (archaeology, manuscripts, prophecy, etc). This can be saved for debate as the last thing I want to do is start a flame war. I am merely stating my opinion. Regardless, the characters do exhibit many qualities of Christian living, at least to me: Rarity: generosity (Proverbs 21:13, Matthew 10:42, 1 John 3:17-18) Applejack: honesty (Psalm 34:12-16, Proverbs 12:22, 19:1) Rainbow Dash: loyalty (Ecclesiastes 10:4, Matthew 26:33, Romans 13:1, Pinkie Pie: laughter (Proverbs 17:22, Ecclesiastes 3:4, Luke 6:21) Fluttershy: loving-kindness (1 John 3:1, 4:8, John 3:16-21) Twilight Sparkle: magic/friendship (Proverbs 18:24, Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, John 15:13)

I'm not surprised that "Christian" and "Atheist" are the top two picks, though i am surprised that "Atheist" is the top pick. Odd considering the fact that many of the characters represent virtues within the average Christian.

I don't like rap/hip-hop or metal. I don't care for the obscene language and imagery found in most rap songs and I don't much care for the screaming that is found in most metal music.