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There is a Christian children's song which contains these lyrics:
"Jesus loves me, this I know,
For the Bible tells me so."
I challenge anyone to put force a philosophy of life that they consider to be more humanly mature than this simple statement.
1.) Jesus loves me spoken in the present tense assumes that Jesus is present. Two thousand years of history since the gospels record His walk on earth has not diminished His presence. He loves me, now, still, at every stage of my life - "Jesus loves me."[b]
2.) No other human being has walked the planet with the splendor, righteousness, glory, majesty, love as [b]Jesus Christ. The second runner up is not close, whoever you submit. No one, but no one has had the power of personality of Jesus of Nazareth.
3.) His love for me floods my life with meaning. This love cannot fade through trial, turmoil, adversity or misfortune. It sustains and maintains. It upholds and strengthens. It supports with eternal encouragement and lifts up under even the most tragic circumstances. It promises eternal life. It promises eternal forgiveness. It operates to transform me into being like Him. It causes me to gravitate towards God. Nothing can separate me from His love. And the realization that His love is upon even my enemies furnishes me with moral victory over jealousy, hatred, revenge, envy, anxiety. The eternal love of Jesus Christ is a rock upon which my moral house is built and forbids its destruction. It will even conquer death and the grave itself.
4.) Jesus loves me, this I know The love of Jesus is not just a theory to me. I KNOW experimentally, in my deepest spiritual being, by His presence as the Holy Spirit, that He loves men. I KNOW He loves me because He has done IN me that which I could never do in myself alone. I KNOW He loves me with a deeper knowing then I know my own name and identity. Experiencing His presence puts me in touch with realms of reality deeper in me than I knew existed.
5.) this I know for the Bible tells me so. This Bible is a unique book. There is no other book quite like the Bible. There are books "like" the Bible. But they are not like the Bible in being in a class all of their own. Sure ANY book could inform me that Jesus loves me. But the Bible is not any book. And all that I know about WHO and WHAT Jesus was was communicated first in the Bible. All other writings practically, which inform me anything about this Jesus Person, were based on what they received before from the Bible.
The Bible has been whittled, chisled, chopped at, burnt, hidden away from the masses, crushed, confiscated, opposed, laughed at, critiqued texturally for errors, and it still survives. Voltaire promised to go through the Bible so destructively that it would cease to be used. Voltaire is long dead and the Bible is still with us as world wide best circulated, most translated, best seller of all time.
That the Bible tells me also that Jesus loves me is quite powerful more so than another book telling me so. And the prophetic nature of the Bible strongly confirms that its origins are supernatural though it does show hallmarks of human style and culture.
The Bible tells me that Jesus loves me - NOW. The Holy Spirit confirms in my innermost being that Jesus loves me NOW. And it also tells me that He loves YOU, reader, the same which heightens your own value and dignity in my eyes even if you oppose Christ and God in unbelief. For the same redemptive blood He shed for me in love, He also shed for you.
Now I ask, what human philosophy or ethics would you propose to me to be more mature ? And why should I "graduate" at all from the simple truth expressed in this children's poem?
"Jesus loves me this I know,
For the Bible tells me so."
Originally posted by sonhouseThe problem is not religion. Religion is pliable and can adapt to societal change. The problem is transitioning from a society that knows nothing higher than its base animalistic urges to one that embraces reason.
We desperately need to escape religions so the human race can finally grow up and take care of business on its own petards.
This obsession with gods is out of hand. Every decision a theist makes is tainted with the obsession of some god or other.
That is not the way to maturity. That is the way that keeps us infantile, forever in the middle of religi ...[text shortened]... way round.
Prove me wrong. Try it without quoting scripture, vedas, talmud, Qurans and such.
Originally posted by SwissGambitThe problem with most religions is religion is the enemy of reason. You don't reason your way out of a religious debate, you instead just throw dogma around till someone gives way.
The problem is not religion. Religion is pliable and can adapt to societal change. The problem is transitioning from a society that knows nothing higher than its base animalistic urges to one that embraces reason.
My Karma ran over your dogma.
Originally posted by sonhouseI disagree. I think reason does quite well in 'real life', as well as here on RHP.
The problem with most religions is religion is the enemy of reason. You don't reason your way out of a religious debate, you instead just throw dogma around till someone gives way.
My Karma ran over your dogma.
I also know some eminently reasonable theists, both here and in 'real life'.
Originally posted by FabianFnas"Lucifer is also a 'fictitious character' made up of a reason." -FF
Who/what is Svenska Bojke?
When I started to think for myself, I realized that Santa Claus was just a 'fictitious character' the adult had fooled me with so I would be nice all the year.
Lucifer is also a 'fictitious character' made up of a reason.
... and you make this claim based on what authority?
Originally posted by FabianFnasYou need to take everything in both OT and NT in context, not every
Okay, I got your point. When I usually say "christians", I normally mean "some christians" or "those christians who" and so on. It's like christians, sorry, some christians, say that atheists this and atheist that, when they mean some atheist etc. Samo, samo.
Okay, so you say all the OT is true, every tiny verse, and all is written as truths, and we sh ...[text shortened]... I can understand it, then I've learned something new, and there is one paradox less in my list.
thing that was done in either God was happy with, even though some
could have been done in His name.
Also what makes you think the NT is less bloody than the OT, and why
do you believe God is different from OT to NT. As long as I read both
the OT and NT and I've been reading them for around 30 years now it
does not at all seem like God changes. What changes is our relationship
with Him.
Kelly
Originally posted by KellyJayWhat really changes is the nature of the stories all made up by men. There is no god in the bible. Assigning human characteristics to a god is a losing game.
You need to take everything in both OT and NT in context, not every
thing that was done in either God was happy with, even though some
could have been done in His name.
Also what makes you think the NT is less bloody than the OT, and why
do you believe God is different from OT to NT. As long as I read both
the OT and NT and I've been reading them for ...[text shortened]... ow it
does not at all seem like God changes. What changes is our relationship
with Him.
Kelly
No god would be caught dead using human attributes. I think that is a safe statement.
Like "I am a jealous god', I have said that one before but all I got was a debate over the original text which apparently said just worship me or some such.
Right. Like a god, who can make entire universes with a snap of its hypothetical finger, would be SO worried that humans might worship a tree or leopard instead of it.
Only SLIGHTLY preposterous.
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sonhouse,
What really changes is the nature of the stories all made up by men. There is no god in the bible. Assigning human characteristics to a god is a losing game.
You are getting more and more incoherent as the months go by.
You assert that there is no god in the bible.
Then you assert assigning human characteristics to a god is a losing game.
I guess you mean an activity done "in the bible" ?
But according to you there is no god in the bible to whom to do that to.
Are you an illogical adult or a logical child ?
No god would be caught dead using human attributes. I think that is a safe statement.
Don't look now, Mr. self contradiction, but it seems very much that YOU are assigning human attributes to gods.
Sure, you say "no god would be caught dead using human attributes" which is itself an indication of a human attribute of embarrassment or wanting to avoid a loss of dignity.
That's a human characteristic which you are assigning to gods, saying they would not be caught dead behaving that way.
Open mouth now and change feet.
Like "I am a jealous god', I have said that one before but all I got was a debate over the original text which apparently said just worship me or some such.
Free yourself from your self contradicting statement above.
Otherwise you win by launching an overwhelming number of bogus statements to debunk.
Originally posted by FabianFnasSo we leave mankind to it's own destruction. What of the gangs of Africa, they don't follow any religion that i'm aware of. Blood, money, power, there is your new god.
There are so many wars described in the old testament, so many genocides, so much violence, so it is one of the pillars of the christian religion. "We are better than you, we have God on our side, we have the right, no, the obligation to destroy you!"
So, yes, religion is responsible for too many wars, even in our times.
