Can We Admit The Truth About Religion?

  Can We Know The Truth About Religion?

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There are so many different religions in the world. How can we be sure any one of them is right? Couldn't the one we favor be right for us? Don't they all have good and bad persons? Don't people more or less choose what they like about a religion? We can never examine them all. It just seems narrow-minded, intolerant, even arrogant to say only one religion is right and all the others wrong? So if a person is sincere and tries to do what he or she thinks is right, isn't that enough? But if Christians have a reasonable factual basis for their beliefs, I will give it my sincere, open-minded examination.
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                    Aren't World Religions Based Upon Limited Human Reasoning. 
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World religions are claims to what seems ultimate about life and the world.

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Hinduism—Knowledge of Escape from this Miserable Illusory World.

Buddhism—Buddha’s Plan to Escape Pain in nirvana.

Confucianism—Confucius’ Ethical Wisdom, Ancestor Worship, & Spiritism.

Zoroastrianism—Zoroaster’s Hope the Good God Will Defeat the Evil God.

Islam—Muhammad’s Claim Allah’s Angel Taught Him the Qur'an.

Communism—Marx’s Claim Economic Equality Will Achieve Utopia.

Secularism—No God Means Man Must Save Himself.
Bible Christianity--Jesus is the God-man Come into the World to Save Us.

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I agree there is truth in what are called the world’s religions. Hinduism is right that we are ignorant about god. But I don’t see that nature’s cycles and human defects are proofs of reincarnation and absorption into universal energy. Such things have better explanations. Buddha rightfully said pain is a universal problem and desires or attachments can cause it. But the desire to follow his eightfold path is contradictory and can be undesirably painful. Confucius, the Chinese politician, gave wisdom about human relationships and ethical values showing that even apart from a personal ethical God we have a conscience and practical (not ultimate) sense of moral responsibility. Muhammad said an angel spoke to him. Anybody could have said that which Joseph Smith Jr. did centuries later. Marx claimed economic equality would achieve utopia but that's only one factor and it reduces all but government elites to poverty. Secularism denies God making limited human opinions and the state the authority and whoever gains control dictates policies his way and kills nonconformists.
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I AM saying human reason is limited to speculation, mysticism and mistake. One person’s knowledge is but a speck represented upon the huge circle of universal knowledge. With fragmentary knowledge, poor reasoning, and often just plain guessing, we’re always subject to make mistakes. And even supposing someone’s philosophy or program seems logical and workable, we have to test it to be sure. Claims by alleged prophets or mystics to talking with God or an angel may in fact be true--but crazy men claim as much and supposed prophets can say conflicting things. Apart from visible tangible objective evidence, we have no way to know what people claim about God is anything more than their imagination, faulty thinking, or outright deception--period.

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 I AM saying non-Christian religions are contradictory which means not all can be true. My point in all the above is that these world religions are man’s philosophies, man’s attempts to solve what they regard as our crucial human problems. They are limited human reason and philosophy. They conflict in claims about God, man, ethics, man’s problem, the solution, and life after death. They furnish no objective visible basis of any higher authority than limited human contradictory thinking, which so often leads to chaos, anarchy and tyranny. Is there a higher authority than limited, conflicting human speculative opinion and reason? Yes, Christian faith bassed upon visible historical eyewitness testimony of men who gave their lives for what they knew was God acting in our world (John 1:1-3; Luke 1:1-4; Acts 2:22-23; 1 Cor. 15:1-8; 2 Peter 1:16).

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Christian faith has a reasonable empirical basis for belief in a personal, ethical God. As C.S. Lewis pointed out, if nature’s forces and chance is the whole show, we can never know our reasoning is correct. Unbelief that denies absolute truth inconsistently assumes its denial is true and lives on the basis that truth exists. Contrary to Kant, our senses do accurately convey reality not just appearances, or science and reason would be confused if not impossible. Moreover, experimental science assumes truths established only by the Christian worldview of a rational Creator who created an intelligible world with persons in his image to understand it. While a rock is mere matter, a living mind is required to know that. Christianity saves us from being hypocrites claiming the truth that truth doesn't exist. If the universe be an accident of chance, nothing can be known as certain.

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True science and reason work on the premises that from nothing nothing comes, and that effects must have an equal or greater cause. Thus, this dependent material universe must be the effect of an independent or necessary self-existing source or Creator we rightfully call God. This Creator of the space-time material universe would necessarily be outside space-time, and be an infinite, immaterial (or Spiritual), eternal, unchangeable Mind. The expanding universe, energy depletion,  general relativity, decay of radioactive elements, and the impossible backtracking all confirm a point of beginning which show that this dependent universe is not eternal as atheists like to think.

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In addition, the observable data that only life begets life, its DNA programming, irreducible complexity and integrated relationships, genetic limits, climatic cyclical shifts, innumerable missing links and varied reconstructions in no way suggest evolution. A Common Designer rather than a common ancestor far better explains this observable data. Moreover, if science is verified by experiment, the fruit fly experiment demonstrated that fruit flies don’t mutate into anything but defective fruit flies. So don't evolutionists show a most unscientific naturalistic bias?

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It’s the old controversy: which came first, the chicken (creation) or the egg (evolution)? It’s now resolved that hen eggs won’t hatch by themselves and shells won’t form without a chemical found in chickens. Our conscience tells us not to ignore the truth, but we suppress its voice when we want our own thing. When so much is at stake my friend, don't reject what's obviously true.  

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Christian faith has an empirical historical basis that Jesus Christ is the God-man. Historians accept three independent agreed sources as establishing past events. With the four Gospels, Acts and Bible epistles, we have six independent historical sources of Christ’s life, his claims to be God, numerous fulfillment of a divine Messiah and hundreds of miracles of all kinds. Secular know Bible persons, places, events are true history but show an unjustified unwillingness to God acting in our world.
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Yes, some variances of testimony exist, but that only proves authenticity and not collusion. These documents were published within the lifetimes of persons who knew Jesus—hostile critics would have disputed and destroyed the Christian claim at its outset had that been possible. Always astonished at Jesus’ miracles and at first doubtful of his resurrection, his apostles later underwent torture and death to vouch for its truth. Jewish and pagan sources of that time testify often in derision to details of his life.
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If we can put aside our bias that no personal, ethical Creator God can act in our world, then we can admit the facts clearly show Jesus is the God-man and the Lord and Savior of every honest believing sinner. Is the truth that Christians are really narrow-minded, or rather that unbelievers are closed-minded? Which way does the evidence point?

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On the worldview level, Christ’s resurrection assures us life exists after death, Jesus is God and all he taught is true. In Jesus, we have a sure basis for human dignity, rights, ethics, justice, love, ultimate purpose, experimental science and the choice of Heaven or Hell. No other religion provides grounds for these basic human needs. Deniers claims make us either soulless dirt or recyclic energy awaiting absorption.  Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.”  Please trust Him for life eternal!
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My friend, what’s your decision about Jesus, the God-man? He alone forgives our sin and saves us from eternal darkness and torment. Trust him to receive His abiding presence and His gift of eternal life. Eternity in Heaven or Hell--it's your choice. Lord, help this person to choose You and life forever with You. Then fervently share his God-given faith with friends on the www.

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Is Secularism the Best Way to Go?

In this essay, we will look at secularism, give a Christian evaluation of secularism, and consider the question of whether Christianity is a better way to go. Christianity has mostly dominated the Western world for the last two millenniums but is giving way to secularism this last century. It seems people are giving up or forgetting Jesus, claimed to be the God-man, who came into our world to save us. Everyone must decide for himself or herself.

What Is Secularism?

Secularism is the belief that people are perishing animals, a higher form of animal perhaps but some dispute even that preferring owls to human babies. Secularism denies life after death, God, angels, miracles, divine revelations, and human souls. Evolution is a fact--it explains everything and is the key to progress. Religion is based upon ignorance, superstition, myth and retards progress.

Science and education is our way to gain knowledge. The scientific method of repeated testing under controlled measurable conditions gives us probable results. There is no absolute truth and no absolute ethic—just what seems to work best at the time. So we must place the best minds in government control--only those who believe our way--to maintain citizen peace and lawful order. Of course they refer only to minds that believe as they believe and may kill each other to obtain a higher government position.

Our lives and our planet are always in jeopardy. Dangers lurk everywhere. We are both predator and prey. If we’re saved, we must save ourselves. Perhaps one day we will go to other planets.

Man is basically good--despite all the wars, murders, rapes, deceptions, and human abuses, there are always more people that don’t or wouldn’t do these things. And with good reason, we can work to achieve a better world even if we have to eliminate some of its less desirable and defective elements to attain greater quality--especially those ignorant superstitious religious people.

A Christian Evaluation of Secularism

Scientists admit the universe came into being. But it couldn’t have created itself and it couldn’t have just popped into being—nothing can’t create something or give what it doesn’t have. So there must be an uncaused cause to explain the effects of our limited, dependent, self-destructive universe. This uncaused cause would have to be eternal, infinite, unchangeable, immaterial and personal that we could rightly call God. Further, the dogmatic assumption that God and miracles can’t exist because I haven’t seen them is unwarranted—we would have to have all knowledge of space and time to deny them. And with a Creator God, all the things secularists deny become possible. There is no law God must perform his miracles for our experiment and observation.

Secularists claims that by chance and time life come from non life, persons from the impersonal, minds from the mindless, order from the orderless, reason from the non rational, morality from the non moral, information without a sender, and truth from accident. None of this is in accord with science or reason. But all agrees perfectly with an eternal, infinite, personal and ethical God.  

The scientific method of experiment and observation can’t inform us about crucial areas of knowledge such as history, law, ethics, art, emotions, or even that the scientific method itself is valid. No experiment can show evolution is true. And no one was present to observe or experiment when the universe came into being. So we must not arbitrarily impose principles of continuation science upon origin science that’s not subject to testing.  

The facts of science support human creation, not evolution. The simple cell Darwin believed in turned out to be an immense complex city of interrelated designed machines that require an infinite intelligence. Life forms appear suddenly without transitional links. DNA has specified genetic information and mutations are destructive. The genetic code allows small changes within life forms (microievolution). But one life form changing into another (macro-evolution) is unknown. Some few claimed as such are later discovered to be public deceptions. To an unbiased mind, such scientific facts suggest creation and a Creator, not evolution.

In secularism, truth, morality and justice become what the ruling power says it is and the people must obey. No higher authority is allowed. Modern socialist dictators such as Hitler, Mao, Stalin and others grab government control and have a blood bath of millions who oppose them. They must deny God, freedom of speech and freedom of religion to secure their power. History demonstrates that power corrupts. Secular socialists believe that to save humanity they must eliminate all who disagree with and challenge their power. Whole populations are reduced to poverty by and for government control. Black market and any means to survive becomes necessary.

Only in Western governments where people have a say and can select their governing leaders  in fair elections is human life, dignity, and freedom respected. Even then, citizens must know their leaders true beliefs, must limit their powers and terms in office, and must insure leaders follow their constitution. But what is the needed basis to provide it? Christianity is the basis of free and just government.

Is Biblical Christianity a Better Way?

Biblical Christianity is based upon the New Testament being a true account of the life, times and teachings of Jesus Christ. One historical source can established some history. Three agreed sources leave little doubt. The New Testament has the four Gospels, Acts, and Paul’s epistles—six detailed sources that archaeologists have in many cases confirmed as authentic. They were written within three decades of Jesus’ death while hostile witnesses lived to dispute and destroy any untruths. Thousands 0f manuscripts (8,500) closer to the time further substantiate statements about Jesus. Even secular writings mention details of his life. So his life and teachings are far better attested than other ancient persons generally accepted. As we saw above, it’s unwarranted and biased to claim no God exists who can act supernaturally in our world. Christ—the God-man--liberates the captive, gives us dignity and a destiny no other person or ideology can.

Jesus claimed and demonstrated in history that he was God in ways honest thinking people can recognize. He accepted worship, forgave sins, caste out demons, commanded angels, healed various diseases instantly, walked on water, fulfilled century earlier detailed prophecies of Israel’s Messiah God, and he raised the dead. Who could do such things but God?

Secularists rightfully claim we need proof if people are anything more that perishing animals. Speculative arguments of the philosophers can’t prove life after death. But Jesus who died and arose again and seen by 500 people in a visible material body (1 Cor. 15: 1-8). That’s certain proof! Jesus demonstrated publicly and finally he is in fact the God-man as he claimed. And being God, all his teachings are absolute truth. Jesus too provided for humanities most crucial needs--dignity, freedom, justice, love, truth, a rational world.

What basis is there for human dignity, equality, and rights? In secularism, the state dictator decides who has right to live and die, be slave or free, own property or not, worship or not. Dictators have their own agenda and ruthlessly mercilessly force it upon their people and everyone they can conquer. But Christ affirmed God created man in His rational, moral, immortal image and all men are descendant from Adam and Eve. Unlike secularism, this requires all persons be treated justly with the same dignity and respect and precludes any caste system.

As our Creator, Owner, and Judge God alone is our Source of truth, morality and justice. God showed Himself in Jesus Christ, the God-man in our space-time world. No limited, fickle, contradictory human opinions can stand up to teaching of the all-knowing, all wise, all-just Lord. One day we’ll bow before King Jesus who died to save us. But then He will judge our every thought, word and deed. He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him.

The Bible says fools despise instruction. Jesus taught principles for our good both as individuals and as a nation. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you promote concern, respect and just treatment of everyone. God’s law, Jesus said is summed up in love for God first and then love for neighbor as yourself. When we apply this, dictatorial force and fear wane while love, truth, and civility emerge.

 The framers of the American constitution were almost all Christians taught in Christian schools of their time who understood the sinfulness of man. So they knew to put limits upon government leaders and separated their powers in order to establish a nation of the people, by the people, and for the people. Thus, the freedom and dignity Christ provides humanity become achievable in government and precludes the destruction of people and property.  

In summary, the facts of both of science and reason support not oppose Bible Christianity and meet our most basic human needs. Secularism has no basis for life after death, for human dignity and rights, for absolute truth and morality, or for hope of a sane and safe society. Throughout history, it has denied all these things and led to destruction of lands and a merciless blood bath of millions of men, women, and children by a tyrant’s arbitrary decrees.    

The Christ of the Bible loves us and provides our most precious human values secular socialism denies. Jesus respects our free will, gives us the choice to be a free and righteous nation, and offers us the choice of Heaven instead of Hell. Yes, God is love, but God’s love includes truth and justice. Without Christ, everything is deception, darkness and destruction. It’s our choice. Won't you say in  all honesty, Lord, I'm a sinner. But I choose You as my Savior and Guide today and forever!

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Link on to these important articles and share them with your circle and others. God bless.
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Is Anything Unique about Christian Faith?

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 Aren't all religions essentially the same? They teach the golden rule or some form of ethical living and promise a better life after death. Persons who say this show an appalling ignorance of world religions, or they are just trying to please and pacify persons who want to argue religion. 

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 Some persons still bow before homemade idols praying for provision and protection. Ironically, the idols have to be repaired and taken in at night to prevent theft. Others worship nature, magic spirits and honor dead ancestors as Confucians and Shinto’s. Pantheist religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Christian Science, Unity and New Age call the energy of the universe god in its many changing forms. Three religions claim to worship one personal, ethical God: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Christianity claims fulfillment of Judaism and Islam through Muhammad the final prophet of both. Christianity, however, is unique in six crucial ways seen clearly in Jesus Christ.

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Jesus’ Claim to be God is Unique.

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First, only Jesus claimed to be our Creator God come from Heaven into our world in the form of a man, the God-man. What immediately sets Christianity apart from other world religions is that Jesus, unlike other founders, didn’t just give us a philosophy of life, or teaching about God and ethics. Jesus claimed to be God our Creator and gave actual visible proofs before living witnesses.

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Persons in other religions would think that impossible although they knew myths of gods visiting earth. Tyrannical Caesars declared themselves gods, forced their subjects to admit it, but everyone knew it wasn’t true. Of course, madmen sometimes claim to be God but do nothing beyond human power.

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Jesus Fulfilling Ancient Jewish Prophecies Is Unique.

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Second, Christians claim nobody but Jesus could fulfill these ancient predictions of the Jews’ Messiah. The coming Messiah was to be the God-man (Isa. 9:6-7), born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2), of a virgin (Isa. 7:14), perform miracles (Isa. 35:5-6), die for the sins of the people (Isa. 53), rise from the dead (Ps. 16:10). Who but Jesus Christ fulfilled these ancient detailed predictions? No such predictions and fulfillments appear in other world religions. It is impossible that anyone but God could reveal such prophecies.

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Jesus Living a Perfect Sinless Life Is Unique.

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Third, only Jesus lived a perfect sinless life. Some persons are claimed to be exceptional persons who made outstanding contributions to the well-being of humanity—Muhammad, Confucius, Buddha. None, however, but Jesus are claimed to be sinless. Jesus spoke of uncleanness as evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, thefts, murders, covetousness, deceit. He dared to challenge His bitter enemies to find fault in Him, when they could not, their only recourse was to plot his death. His twelve disciples with him day and night for more than three years said Jesus knew no sin. Judas, desperate to relieve his guilty conscience, cried he had betrayed innocent blood. Pilate could find no fault in Jesus. The Jews only charge against Jesus was blasphemy because he claimed to be God. He could have denied that and been set free. While we sin many times a day, Jesus never sinned qualifying him to be our Lord and Savior.

Jesus' Objective, Visible Public Eyewitness Miracles Is Unique.

Fourth, Jesus performed miracles before human eyewitnesses. He performed them everywhere he went--at the temple, by the lakeside, in between towns, and at people’s houses. He performed miracles in the open before large crowds by spontaneous request and sometimes at a distance. His miracles were of all types—immediate healings of various diseases, control of nature such as turning water to wine, walking on the sea, casting out demons, and raising the dead. While the Gospels record only 35 miracles, Jesus must have performed hundreds since he performed them everywhere he went for more than three years to individuals and large crowds. Even his sinless life before many witnesses was a moral miracle.

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No religious founder claimed miracles and pantheist religions wouldn’t allow it. Yet documents dated hundreds of years after their death may claim miracles or rather myths. Such miracles were not part of their teaching and often contradicted by their teaching. If God came among us and wanted us to recognize that fact, what better way to get our attention than doing things unknown to nature and impossible for men? 

Jesus Dying in Place of Sinners Is Unique.

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Fifth, only Jesus gave his life to pay for our sin and provide Heaven. Claiming to be God, proving it by fulfilling prophecy, living without sin, performing miracles, Jesus did things no world religion founder did or even cared to do. Jesus out of love took the sinners place upon the cross bearing our sin and shame, taking the punishment we deserve for our transgressions against a moral and perfect God—that’s a love the world could not imagine before Jesus came. Ancient people only feared their gods never supposing a God could love them, even die that they could live eternally.

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Jesus Rising from the Dead Is Unique.

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Sixth, Jesus arose from the dead. This is our ultimate assurance that his teaching and claims to be God are true. He arose while man eyewitnesses still lived, wrote about it, and underwent ridicule, torture and death to verify it. Christianity can’t be myth. And every theory devised to explain it away falls to the ground. Nothing in any world religion has such objective empirical evidences like Christianity. The Christ of the Bible is unique—unlike all other religions, it gives humanity dignity, rights, purpose, truth, ethics, and eternal life. Yes, Jesus alone is the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except trough him (John 14:6).

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Jesus Return to Judge Humanity Is Unique. .



Finally, Jesus will return to judge the good and evil deeds of humanity. He existed with the Father and the Holy Spirit from all eternity, a great mystery in itself. We would never invent a triune God above our limited human understanding and so difficult to believe. It’s revealed truth accepted by faith. God’s Son came from Heaven to become the man Jesus the Christ or Messiah. He lives a perfect life to qualify as Savior of sinners, claimed to be God in human flesh, fulfilled many ancient prophecies and performed many miracles to prove it, died upon the cross to pay for our sins, arose from the dead to assure us His teachings are true and He is our God.

This same Jesus will one day return as our Judge to eternally reward or punish our deeds. All this is clear Bible teaching. He alone is humanities hope and salvation. Is He yours?  Say, Lord Jesus Christ, I trust you now to save me a sinner and be with me and be my Guide throughout life. Thank you, Lord.

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Is It The Real God Skeptics Deny?

                                     Is It The Real God Skeptics Deny? 

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You may know someone you think is one of the finest persons you know who says there’s no God. Or, you may work with someone who is grumpy, complaining, and just hard to get along with and find out he or she is a Christian. What one believes and how one behaves is much more of a complex issue than persons generally realize.

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Persons may claim to be, or are assumed to be something they really aren’t. Not everyone who says he or she is an atheist may know or correctly understand what the Bible actually says about God and may deny God because of misunderstandings or false teachings.

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Not all who claim, or assume, or go to a Christian church are actual Christians either. People may go to church to make friends, sing in the choir, play on the church ball team and may have little understanding about God, Christian teachings and ethics, or even care.

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In either case, many factors influence how we humans behave no matter what we believe. Our health, temptations, pressures, confusions, fears, doubts and frustrations all influence our everyday behaviors and beliefs. And, it may actually be a hurtful notion of God that atheists reject not knowing the loving God of the Bible who sent His Son to save us.

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The opposite of right is wrong. Despite our differences, all persons share a common humanity. If it’s right to treat one person with respect, then it’s right for all. Likewise, disrespect would be wrong treatment of any persons. The only exception would be punishment for criminal behaviors.

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Further, truth is what corresponds to reality, is knowable and is the same for all persons, in all places, at all times. If we say men wear pants, that statement is indeed true if men do wear pants. The opposite of true is false and we can’t even deny truth without assuming our denial is true. It’s fashionably today to claim absolute truth is narrow, bigoted or closed-minded, but that 2 + 2 = 4 is reality no matter what some people say. Are teachers, doctors, lawyers, everyone telling us a bunch of lies? We can’t talk, trust traffic signs, prices on items, or human judgments unless we assume truth is knowable, or chaos results. Normally we assume things true unless given reason to think them false.

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I agree with those atheists who affirm the value of man and human culture and who condemn lies, racism, hatred, bigotry, child abuse, rape and murder. I also agree with them that there is a problem of evil and that science and education are important. My problem with atheism is that it is a dogmatic worldview without foundation or justification.

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It actually destroys the basis for the very things atheists claim to uphold. It destroys human dignity, ethics and moral incentive making us no more than perishing soulless dirt to be manipulated by the power structure. Further, exhaustive knowledge is required to say there’s no personal ethical spiritual God such as Christians believe. Moreover, it makes no sense to hate a nonexistent God when a false notion of God may be what is hated.

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Now let’s consider the arguments against the Creator. They are largely derived from the esteemed philosophers David Hume and Immanuel Kant. The objections are in bold red print with my answers in the following paragraph.

A Finite Universe Needs Only a Finite Cause

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The law of causality states that every finite (limited) effect has a cause--something can’t come from nothing, nonexistence can’t produce existence. But limited changing things cease to exist. So an unlimited unchanging cause is required to ground the limited changing universe. The universe’s Creator must be infinite. Thus all space, time, and matter require an infinite self-existent uncaused cause. We may rightfully call that self-existent infinite cause God.

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An Imperfect Universe Suggests an Imperfect Cause

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Without a perfect standard of measurement, we couldn’t recognize imperfection. Claiming something imperfect implies we have a perfect standard. Existing imperfections don’t mean they were not originally perfect just as worn medieval art reflects their original perfection. Good beginnings can become corrupt. This is what the Bible teaches in the Fall of man that after we have a corrupt sinful nature. 

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Chance Origins Can Explain Everything

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Improbable things do happen. But before the universe existed, there was no chance anything could happen. Things don’t just pop into being from nothing. No scientist would explain the four faces of American presidents on Mt. Rushmore as chance. The complex code in the DNA cell and the fine tuned universe require an intelligent source. If chance is the source of everything, we can’t even know that our thinking is correct. The skeptic who rejects my answer still believes his objection is not due to irrational chance. Origins require an intelligent creative will to bring things into being.  

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A Finite Series of Causes Can Explain the Universe

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In abstract math, you can always add another 0 after # 1. But in the real world, finite beings cannot sustain themselves. An eternity of past moments before today is impossible which shows the universe had a beginning. Each changing thing in a series means it ceases to exist. So each changing thing must be immediate grounded in an independent or uncaused cause--namely God.

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Arguments for God Lead to Contradictions about Time, Causality, and Dependency

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Nonexistence has no power to create anything. If no matter, space or time existed before creation, then these things couldn’t have created themselves. So something outside of them and greater than them must have existed to bring them into being. Thus this dependent universe was caused by an independent uncaused power source we may rightfully call God.

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A Creator Could Cease to Exist

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Because present changing existent things can cease to exist, they need a self-existing unchanging source to uphold them. The fact that everything in the universe is limited and dependent at all times, it requires an unlimited independent self-existent cause (God). So God is always a necessary being, a Sustainer as well as a Creator who cannot cease to exist.

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 An Imperfect World Does Not Need a Perfect Cause

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Yes, in our experience, we know imperfect people produce other imperfect people and polytheists claim many gods explain this. But as mentioned above, the imperfect implies we have an idea of the perfect. A cause can be greater than its effect but cannot be less than its effect. It’s like a river that cannot rise higher than its source. There cannot be two Absolutes as only the greater is Absolute. Finite changing beings depend upon an independent self-sustaining being—an infinite God.

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Real Causes Cannot Be Inferred From Observed Effects

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Is the thing-to-me different from the thing-in-itself? If that were true, how could we even conduct science, or know our thinking is correct? Yes, we can make mistakes in everything we do, but our five senses do give us real information. Do we think it mere appearance when we step into an elevator? No, Mr. Kant appearances are the real world. So knowledge of God and miracles are possible. Critical realism is reasonable--sticks placed in water look bent and coiled robes in the dark may look like snakes but we know they aren't--they're only illusions. Our minds don’t change reality; it changes us.

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God Is Only an Illusion

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Sigmund Freud is famous for claiming God is only a childhood illusion believers never outgrew. They imagine a Cosmic Comforter, a heavenly Father to comfort and protect them. It’s true some imagine a God to suit their specifications. But some want reality and truth, not just good feelings. Certainly, the prophets and apostles who endured ridicule, persecution, torture and death can’t be said to want just good feelings. And it may be that what we really need really exists. Just as we really need water and it really exists. Wish and need are not necessarily the same things. Perhaps we need God because he created us in his image and for relationship. The true illusion might be that persons living in rebellion against God deny his existence because they fear his judgment and Hell.

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Arguments for God Are Not Persuasive

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Vested interests or other preferences can hinder believing.The arguments may not be understood. Persons may fear acceptance may bring rejection, persecution or loss. Arguments don’t automatically convert unbelievers. This doesn’t mean the arguments are wrong or faulty. Stirring sermons don’t always convert unbelievers either. A loving God doesn’t force us to believe. Freedom gives us dignity; force makes us machines. Our loving obedience honors God. Persons convinced against their will are of the same opinion still. Vested interests can cause one to reject truth even when proved.

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If God Knows Everything, Then Man Is Not Free

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Christians believe as Scripture teaches that God knows everything including the future (Isa. 46:10). Hundreds of Bible prophecies and promises couldn’t be fulfilled if he didn’t. No contradiction exists in God knowing how we will use our freedom. God may persuade men to act in certain ways but doesn’t force their actions. God is love and forced love is a contradiction. As the universe’s Creator outside of time, God sees past, present and future as one eternal now (Exodus 3:14). From an all-knowing God’s point of view everything is predestined, set, fixed, determined and what God knows can't be wrong. But from our perspective, it's free will and God takes our free choices into account.

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As I said above, one must know everything to know God doesn’t exist. Alternative explanations  don’t disprove God's existence. Many atheist and skeptics who have trusted Jesus Christ in the forgiveness of sin witness to seeing things in an entirely different light and experiencing a new love and peace they never imagined could exist. The Bible calls the person who says in his heart there is no God a fool, not due to lack of evidence, but due to wanting his own way. Objections show only our selfishness, ignorance, and arrogance. We likely don't know events in next room or around the corner, so how can we know God doesn't exist?

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Painful Experiences Can Cause Us to Deny God

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Life can be painfully difficult. Unfulfilled hopes and needs can devastate us. We can make so many mistakes. Friends we respect and love can betray us. Disasters unforeseen can bewilder and depress us. We have no control over much that we experience. Our earthly father may be nothing like the loving Heavenly Father who sent His Son to save us. Where is that good and loving God we've heard exists with outstretched arms ready to receive us and give us Heaven?

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The Bible teaches God made a good world that met all our needs but gave us the choice of obeying Him or following our own ways. Don't we all want to follow our own ways no matter about other people or the circumstances? Well, that was what went wrong with the world. We're not programmed machines and God knew what our choices would be. So Jesus was slain from the foundation of the world as part of God's plan (Ephesians 13:8).  We don't have to understand it all. But if we will trust Him, He has promised to work things out for His glory and for our good (Rom. 8:28). Now the ball is in our court.

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We can know God's forgiveness, peace, and love today in admitting our sin and trusting the Savior of us sinners as our life's Guide. Won't you pray, Lord I'm a sinner. I  right now trust Jesus dying for me on the cross bearing my sins to forgive me and make me a child of God. Lord, use me for your glory from now on as I trust You to guide me and use me to tell others. Thank you, my Lord.  U are welcome to use my articles as an Internet evangelist for the Lord. God bless U in your wonderful new life serving the King of the universe.

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Many fine books are written discussing these issues. I recommend Dr. Norman Geisler’s Systematic Theology and his Baker’s Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics.

Are World Religions Purely Human Inventions?

Thomas laughed at religious people thinking them fools. He felt superior knowing that God, angels, human souls, and life after death exist only in ignorant superstitious minds, not in the real world. Even supposing they exist in a spiritual realm; it would be beyond our physical senses not subject to scientific experimentation that is the only way to prove anything. So these ignorant religious “kooks” should make their peace with it.   

But he felt it unfair, anti-intellectual to discount religious beliefs without knowing their basis and teachings. So he set out to learn and to prove all religion wrong. He devised three criteria to test religious claims: logical consistency, objective fact and livability.

Thomas knew that in today’s multicultural world persons ridicule Christians as bias, intolerant, judgmental, uncooperative, absolutist, and other despicable labels to say any religious belief is more true or right than another—except their own. But that’s dishonest and playing intellectual let’s pretend games. Any honest inspection of world religions shows they differ in their teachings about God, man, morals, salvation, and life after death. So it’s a fact that if one religion is true, then all who oppose it must logically be false. It’s just like saying a black cat can and cannot exist at the same time and in the same way. World religions can’t all be true. Criteria exist to show which religion if any is true.

Millions in China acknowledge Confucius’s wisdom. As a government official, he taught people to treat each other with respect and that the government should rule by power of virtue and moral example. That’s seems good philosophy but Confucian religion consists in honoring ancestors and worship of numerous spirits through magical ceremonies. It’s just superstition. Shintoism of Japan is another unproved superstition being worship of nature, many gods, ancestors and obedience to the emperor. Both are merely speculative human philosophy.

Hinduism began about 3,000 years ago. It is mystical thought that says the universe is god that is a single unity, that extends itself into the multiplicity of forms, but all are illusion (maya). Like the cycles of nature things come alive, reproduce, and die repeatedly. Persons may live thousands of lives until finally absorbed into Brahma, the World Soul, or spiritual energy of the universe.

Thomas saw that Hinduism and all pantheist religions such as Buddhism, Taoism, New Age, Christian Science, and Unity are only some persons’ interpretation of nature. Far from being a single unity, they speak of a multiplicity of conflicting forms such as ignorance and enlightenment, absorption and no absorption, truth and falsehood, good and bad karma. And nobody can live as though the world is illusion—people must eat, sleep, wear clothes, avoid oncoming vehicles, pay debts, and obey laws. Such religions deny what they know through their senses and must live by, yet affirm god is merely impersonal energy.  

Thomas acknowledged that secular humanisms—Nazism, communism, socialism, fascism--too are religious. They uphold man’s supremacy as the standard to judge all else. Soulless man is the chance product of evolution’s process whose end is to return to dirt. So to improve human chances of survival it makes good sense to eliminate the weaker beings to product higher quality. The stronger always eats the weaker--nature is red in tooth and claw. Hitler—following Darwin--understood this clearly and set about to achieve the super race. Ethics, truth, quality of life, even who lives or dies is what the ruling party says. It’s scary but its human history.

Microevolution is certainly true—we know verities of dogs and trees exist. But genetic limits preclude macroevolution. No consistent path of fossil finds demonstrate one plant or animal can change into another that would be the real proof of evolution. Scientists know spontaneous generation of life doesn’t happen. Nobody was around when the universe and life came into being. No experiment can demonstrate what happened. Entropy produces chaos, not organization. And chance supposedly mindless molecules magically arranging themselves over billions of years into man—computer data show its infinity impossible. Isn’t evolutionary humanism blind faith when everything we know scientifically says otherwise?

The basis of Islam is Muhammad’s claim God’s angel spoke to him alone making him the final prophet. The Mormon, Joseph Smith Jr., later said the same thing. Who are we to believe--if either? Can’t anybody claim the same thing?

Judaism claims one almighty Creator God revealed in human history through miracles, theophanies and fulfilled prophecies. That would be visible, recognizable, factual evidence of God, not like the unseen gods living on Mount Olympus or the gods residing only in mystics’ heads. But their predicted Messiah or deliver didn’t show and the Jews scattered among the nations in unbelief. 

Christianity claims the Jew Jesus actually is the predicted Messiah who fulfilled the ancient prophecies and performed miracles proving he’s God. Whether this is true or not would seem to depend upon whether Bible history meets historical standards. But not only the Gospels and Epistles tell about Jesus,’ but many secular and often hostile writers of that time mention details of his life such as Tacitus, Suetonius, Pliny the Younger, Celsus, Julian the Apostate and many others. In fact, more mention is made of Jesus than of Tiberius Caesar or Aristotle.

Archaeology has uncovered many artifacts supporting biblical statements of persons, places and events once thought fictions. When the Bible is correct in physical matters, we should consider it could be true about spiritual matters such as God, miracles, fulfilled prophecies and Jesus’ claims. Unless we have all knowledge, it’s pure prejudice to dismiss a God who can act in our world. Jesus changed world history even dating time. Millions still endure torturous deaths to vouch for his atoning death and resurrection, our only empirical proof of life after death as well as other vital issues as human dignity, freedom, ethical responsibility, ultimate purpose and Heaven.

So while non-Christian religions give us only human wisdom and speculative philosophy. Biblical Christianity alone gives us a historical factual basis for a real God who walked among us, died for us, and rose again. And he alone can offer us life eternal and forgiveness of sin. I caste my lot with Him. How about you?

A Little Girl’s Question

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A little girl named Susie asked her mother the question: “Mommy where did we come from?” Her mother replied, “Honey, we came from Adam and Eve our first parents who God created in his image.” She then asked her Daddy where we came from. He said, “Susie, many scientists say we came from monkeys?” That confused her, as opposites couldn’t be right. She told her mother what her Daddy said. Her mother replied, “Oh honey, the monkeys are just on your Daddy’s side of the family.”

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We enjoy a good laugh at such jokes but the answers are conflicting worldviews. They are opposed ways of seeing life and the world with super serious consequences for our lives. Let’s see where each view leads and then consider its basis.

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WE CAME FROM MONKEYS.

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If we came from monkeys or originally from a one celled animal that evolved into what we are today, then the truth is that we are only a higher evolved animal that perishes alone with all the others. We’re no special significance and must fight to survive in a world of prey and predators. Our only law is eat, or to be eaten and death ends all.

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Exit life after death. Exit human dignity. Exit human rights. Exit ethics, or right and wrong behavior. Exit any life purpose but survival and satisfaction in the uncertain time we have—nothing else makes practical sense. A power grab seems the intelligent step to security, satisfaction, and individual self-worth. The ends justify the means, whatever it takes, spare no mercy. Destroy anything that gets in your way. We must make use of our time and take advantage of our power. Evolutionary humanism has no basis for humane standards and values.
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WE WERE CREATED BY GOD.

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If we were created rational, moral, immortal persons in the image of an eternal infinite Creator God, a much different picture emerges. Enter immortality. Enter human dignity. Enter human rights and freedom. Enter absolute ethics. Enter human equality, justice, and love. Enter ultimate purpose in service to God and man--our every thought, word and deed counts not only now but eternally. And justice and goodness will prevail God is the all-knowing, all-powerful, all wise Lord of his creation. 
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THE BASIS FOR WE CAME FROM MONKEYS.

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We came from monkeys is the view called naturalism that has been slowly taking over our world since the Renaissance. It says there is no God, angels, divine revelations, miracles, or human souls. We are completely on our own and must save ourselves. Nature is eternal and everything, the whole show. Maybe other life supporting planets exist we can go to if this one is destroyed. The universe always existed and life came into being by chance and time and there is no meaning to life except what we can make of it. Molecules somehow arranged themselves into men and that’s just the way things are. All this is scientific fact and not religious superstition or myth.
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THE BASIS FOR WE WERE CREATED BY GOD.

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We were created in God’s image is the classic view of Judeo-Christian belief largely dominating the Western world for the last two millenniums. Though based on the Bible it is not opposed to science. In fact, modern empirical science was established by believers in God and many of them Christians—Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Newton, Boyle, Pascal to name only a few. In truth, does any human being know enough to say no God exists who can act in our world? That requires a mind completely closed to evidence, scientific, historical, or otherwise.

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If empirical science is based upon experiment and observation, then Biblical Christianity has as much claim to belief as natural science. No one was present when the world, or life or man came into being to observe or experiment. Further, the known scientific data suggest creation rather than evolution for those open-minded enough to consider the evidence.

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A fundamental operational principle of science and rationality is that something can’t come from nothing—the universe is a finite dependent effect. That being true, the universe’s cause is an eternal, infinite, unchangeable, immaterial Creator. That being true, life came from an eternal Life Giver. That being true, the infinite and interrelated complexity of living things came from an infinitely intelligent Mind. True science doesn’t disprove these things but rather confirms them. Further, the only real evidence molecules can arrange themselves into men would be fossils showing each step in the process. But life forms (fossils) are always found complete and unchanged. And alleged missing links are acknowledged fakes and deceptions. For example, Nebraska Man changed America’s thinking from Biblical Creation to naturalistic evolution. But it was nothing more than an extinct pigs tooth. Artists drawing in science books of cave men have deceived the public for decades. Let’s get real? 

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Far more empirical or scientific is the fulfilled prophecies, miracles and claims of Jesus. Jewish prophets predicted their Messiah’s deity, miracles, virgin birth in Bethlehem, death, and resurrection. These predictions are dated centuries before Jesus was born and he’s the only one who could fulfill them. The odds against their fulfillment are astronomical. Further, Jesus performed a public miracle everywhere he went for over three years probably numbering in the hundreds—that’s empirical observation. Hostile observers sought every means to discredit him but could not. And Jesus explained his miracles as a work of God. At first Jesus’ disciples didn't believe his claims to be God with us in human form. But seeing him again as the risen Lord, they gave their life's blood in testimony. The passing of time cannot discredit real events--and the risen Lord Jesus is very real. See my article: Did  Jesus Arise from the Tomb?

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Now good science has to date events, has to observe repeated instances, and has to give the most rational explanation for the data. Given these criteria, isn’t the evidence for Jesus being God as he claimed to be immensely more probably than the few fossil fakes offered to prove evolution? Moreover, thousands of links are missing everywhere except in the naturalist’s mind. Evolution is fake, Jesus is Lord.
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Believe Jesus is the true and only way. John 14:6. Your decision is most crucial for time and eternity. Say, Lord Jesus I'm trusting You to transform me into a child of God right now and forever. I trust You as my Lord, Savior, and Guide from now on. Your will, not mind. Thank U loving, forgiving Lord  and Savior.  So be it.

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