by jimwalton » Sun Jan 03, 2016 4:55 pm
I honestly agree with you about some people searching, others following without thinking too much, and others following without pretty much thinking at all. And others, we have to admit, have been taught and tainted so strongly we'd call them brainwashed.
The Bible teaches a principal of reasonable accountability. According to Romans 5.13, people are not held accountable for what they had no possibility of knowing or knowing about. In Deuteronomy 1.39, the children who were too young to make a realistic decision are not judged, but are shown mercy; their level of accountability was directly related to their moral awareness. Isa. 7.15-16 teaches the same thing: God deals differently with people based on their knowledge. So we're getting a sense of the fairness of God, and that he takes many things into consideration as he makes his perfect decisions: opportunities, intellect, motives, behavior, and environment. Any judge worth his salt gives weight to these things.
We also know that in Jn. 14.6 Jesus says, "No one comes to the Father except through me." I don't downplay that at all. C.S. Lewis wisely said: "We do know that no person can be saved except through Christ; we do not know that only those who know Him can be saved by Him."
People will be judged on the basis of what they know and what they did with it. Many people think that the existence of the world is evidence of theism, and their knowledge of having a conscience speaks to an objective morality. Some people think that their thoughts and personality, as different from their physical bodies, is an indication of a "soul". Some people feel that they see evidences of spiritual realities around them.
Nowadays, of course, the Internet and technology have changed life radically. Just about everyone has heard something about Jesus, and the Internet allows them an opportunity to investigate.
There are also degrees of punishment in hell; it's not "One Fire Fits All." People can be punished worse or less based on their lives and what they deserve. There are also many theories from thinking Christians that possibly hell is not eternal for everyone there, but there may be future opportunities for some to be reconciled to God after appropriate punishment and as they continue to make spiritual choices.
My bottom line is this: Those who turn away from God will be separated from the life of God. Though we can't be sure about the form or duration of that separation, this we can be sure of: it will be a horrible experience, and God will be fair about the form and duration of it. If you reject God, you take your chances.
I think, to address your struggle though, and there at least 5 reasons why a thoughtful person would investigate Christianity:
1. It's testable. Far different than Hinduism, Buddhism, and even Islam, Christianity relies on objective events: historical, miracles, and historical people. It can all be investigated.
2. Salvation is taught as a free gift. Christianity is the only religion where you don't have to earn your own way. That makes it worth a look, because it's not based on one's own personal efforts or achieved goodness. Phew.
3. Christianity's picture of life matches what we see: Suffering is real, people are both noble and cruel, cause and effect is real, there is order and purpose in the universe and life, evil exists, history matters, reason exists, and people have meaning.
4. Christianity, lived obediently, is transformative. Our bodies can be instruments of worship, our minds can be redeemed. Life can be changed.
5. Christianity has Jesus at the center. Buddhists claim Jesus was an enlightened teacher; Hindus teaches Jesus is an avatar of Vishnu; Muslims teach Jesus was a great prophet, even greater than Mohammad. Everybody wants to associate with Jesus. It's worth finding out why.
I honestly agree with you about some people searching, others following without thinking too much, and others following without pretty much thinking at all. And others, we have to admit, have been taught and tainted so strongly we'd call them brainwashed.
The Bible teaches a principal of reasonable accountability. According to Romans 5.13, people are not held accountable for what they had no possibility of knowing or knowing about. In Deuteronomy 1.39, the children who were too young to make a realistic decision are not judged, but are shown mercy; their level of accountability was directly related to their moral awareness. Isa. 7.15-16 teaches the same thing: God deals differently with people based on their knowledge. So we're getting a sense of the fairness of God, and that he takes many things into consideration as he makes his perfect decisions: opportunities, intellect, motives, behavior, and environment. Any judge worth his salt gives weight to these things.
We also know that in Jn. 14.6 Jesus says, "No one comes to the Father except through me." I don't downplay that at all. C.S. Lewis wisely said: "We do know that no person can be saved except through Christ; we do not know that only those who know Him can be saved by Him."
People will be judged on the basis of what they know and what they did with it. Many people think that the existence of the world is evidence of theism, and their knowledge of having a conscience speaks to an objective morality. Some people think that their thoughts and personality, as different from their physical bodies, is an indication of a "soul". Some people feel that they see evidences of spiritual realities around them.
Nowadays, of course, the Internet and technology have changed life radically. Just about everyone has heard something about Jesus, and the Internet allows them an opportunity to investigate.
There are also degrees of punishment in hell; it's not "One Fire Fits All." People can be punished worse or less based on their lives and what they deserve. There are also many theories from thinking Christians that possibly hell is not eternal for everyone there, but there may be future opportunities for some to be reconciled to God after appropriate punishment and as they continue to make spiritual choices.
My bottom line is this: Those who turn away from God will be separated from the life of God. Though we can't be sure about the form or duration of that separation, this we can be sure of: it will be a horrible experience, and God will be fair about the form and duration of it. If you reject God, you take your chances.
I think, to address your struggle though, and there at least 5 reasons why a thoughtful person would investigate Christianity:
1. It's testable. Far different than Hinduism, Buddhism, and even Islam, Christianity relies on objective events: historical, miracles, and historical people. It can all be investigated.
2. Salvation is taught as a free gift. Christianity is the only religion where you don't have to earn your own way. That makes it worth a look, because it's not based on one's own personal efforts or achieved goodness. Phew.
3. Christianity's picture of life matches what we see: Suffering is real, people are both noble and cruel, cause and effect is real, there is order and purpose in the universe and life, evil exists, history matters, reason exists, and people have meaning.
4. Christianity, lived obediently, is transformative. Our bodies can be instruments of worship, our minds can be redeemed. Life can be changed.
5. Christianity has Jesus at the center. Buddhists claim Jesus was an enlightened teacher; Hindus teaches Jesus is an avatar of Vishnu; Muslims teach Jesus was a great prophet, even greater than Mohammad. Everybody wants to associate with Jesus. It's worth finding out why.