Does Anyone Else Believe In Jesus Christ ?

[Vod]

Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.


Through him all things were made! All things! All!

Without him nothing was made that has been made. ( This is Jesus that is being talked about  by John )


Jesus therefore knew all about the tiny things that people are looking at through little pieces of glass nowadays.
Why?
Because it was all made through him. Through him.

In him was life.....!!!! There is life in Jesus

and that life is the light of all mankind.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (in other versions it says that the 'darkness does not comprehend it ')

I'm sorry for your loss of reality. 

[1714973632]

1714973632

[1714973632]

1714973632

[1714973632]

1714973632

[1714973632]

1714973632

[1714973632]

1714973632

[1714973632]

1714973632

[dank]

You don't really get what Jesus was.  Jesus was someone who loved everyone unconditionally, he knew teaching love in a hateful world would have him killed, and he did it anyway.  Jesus is a man who found god within himself (through altering consciousness) and taught others to believe in him for eternal salvation, which is what he offers, because he is you.  Jesus was an alien by all means - a multidimensional being who chose to teach god/love on earth well before departing for this hell, just as you will evolve to be.

So don't tell people I am jesus, nut job.  I don't love unconditionally, and I'm not a teacher. 

Well you have a choice to make.  Love unconditionally or try again another life on some other earth.  Because this one is turning into heaven with or without you.

Nope - christianity is the biggest cult out there right now.  

This is by far more delusional than anything that's come out of my mouth.

Please research the government and this thing called war.

[just_me]

The Gospel of John Chapter 1

John 1

New International Version (NIV)
The Word Became Flesh

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

Anyone else like the book of John? (its been one of my favorites ever since I read it)

[Vod]

Anyone else like the book of John? (its been one of my favorites ever since I read it)

I like the book "Go Boy" by Roger Caron.  It's actually based on reality. 

What other books do normal people like?

[cooldgamer]

Anyone else like the book of John? (its been one of my favorites ever since I read it)

I like the book "Go Boy" by Roger Caron.  It's actually based on reality. 

What other books do normal people like?

The God Delusion was a good one, think some of the people in this thread need to read it..

[just_me]

John the Baptist Denies Being the Messiah

19 Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders[c] in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”

21 They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”

He said, “I am not.”

“Are you the Prophet?”

He answered, “No.”

22 Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”[d]

24 Now the Pharisees who had been sent 25 questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

26 “I baptize with[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. 27 He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.”

28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

[Vod]

Uh oh - he started posting in bold to drown out the non-believers.   

[just_me]

Still the book of John - Chapter 1

John Testifies About Jesus

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.”

32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”[f]

[cooldgamer]

Uh oh - he started posting in bold to drown out the non-believers.   

When you have no more valid points to make, bolding is always the way to go.  Either that or caps-lock us to death

[Vod]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_Is_Not_Great

This is the book I am reading right now.   

[cooldgamer]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_Is_Not_Great

This is the book I am reading right now.   

Looks like a good one, think I might read that one next 

[just_me]

Book of John, chapter 1 'still'

John’s Disciples Follow Jesus

35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”

37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”

They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter[g]).

[Vod]

Chapter Two from "God is not Great"

Chapter Two: Religion Kills
In this chapter, Hitchens addresses a hypothetical question he was asked on a panel with radio host Dennis Prager: if he were alone in an unfamiliar city at night, and a group of strangers began to approach him, would he feel safer, or less safe, knowing that these men had just come from a prayer meeting? Hitchens answers,
“   Just to stay within the letter 'B', I have actually had that experience in Belfast, Beirut, Bombay, Belgrade, Bethlehem and Baghdad. In each case ... I would feel immediately threatened if I thought that the group of men approaching me in the dusk were coming from a religious observance.[4]   ”
He gives detailed descriptions of the tense social and political situations within these cities, which he personally experienced and attributes to religion. He has thus "not found it a prudent rule to seek help as the prayer meeting breaks up."[5]
Next he discusses the 1989 fatwa issued on author and friend Salman Rushdie by the Ayatollah Khomeini because of the contents of his book The Satanic Verses.[5] He goes on to criticise several public figures for laying the blame for the incident on Rushdie himself. He also writes about the events following the September 11, 2001 attacks, describing how religion, particularly major religious figures, allowed matters to "deteriorate in the interval between the removal of the Taliban and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein."[6]

[xkeyscore89]

Yes, I do. My faith is something I struggle with daily, however.

Were you forced to go to church as a child?  If so, your struggle is probably your intelligence fighting against your brainwashing.  Good luck in your struggle!

Religion, church, and a bible class 5 days a week for 11 years was something I grew up with, yes. My belief system has changed drastically since then.  Today, my belief system closely resembles that of a Deist.  I don't feel that belief in a higher power and belief in the theory of evolution are mutually exclusive ideas. I don't think the Bible was meant to be taken literally.  I'm 24 now, but from K-10th grade I was in what I can only describe as a neo-conservative Christian school. I received an excellent education there but could not tolerate their interpretation of the Bible. They took the Bible literally to the extent of believing the world was literally created in seven, 24-hour days.  They taught that the earth was 5,000 years old among many other ridiculous "facts".  Fundamental to this dogma was the teaching that there was an imminent apocalypse predicted by the book of Revelation where non-believers would be slaughtered and sent to hell for all eternity. For much of my young life, I was inundated with all manner of scare tactics involving hell and was told to believe there was only one way to heaven.  I was taught to believe other religions were an abomination. I prayed out of fear of going to hell.  At 13 or 14 years old, I'd had enough and began to wake up, using basic scientific theory and logic to question and systematically reject these teachings.  After experiencing life at a public high school and a large university, I came to reject the idea of God or a higher power altogether for quite a while.  I came to believe that morals and values were irrelevant. I was even more depressed than usual and felt that my life had no purpose or meaning.

Today, I have experienced no great awakening or life changing experience. Instead, I've noticed that an atheist perspective erodes my mental and spiritual health rapidly and provides no tangible benefit to me. I embrace the theory of evolution and other scientific theory knowing that my belief system is no longer directly contradicted by it. I try to embrace spiritual principles rather than religion. I pray to express gratitude or seek clarity now. I've accepted that I will never find irrefutable evidence to support my faith and I no longer feel as if I need it.

My faith is still fragile, but after fully rejecting a belief system rooted in politics, literal Biblical translation and borderline fanaticism, I'm content with my current Deist perspective and see opportunity for future growth. I'm starting to see evidence that the beliefs I've adopted are conducive my mental, emotional and social well-being.

Vod, you were absolutely right. My intelligence struggled against and eventually overcame my brainwashing.  I strive to be more open-minded now, and to me that includes the distinct possibility that there exists a power greater than myself.

[just_me]

The Book of John, the end of chapter 1

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.”

44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.

“Come and see,” said Philip.

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”

48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”

49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.”

50 Jesus said, “You believe[h] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you[j] will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’[k] the Son of Man.”

[Vod]

Chapter four of "God is not Great"

Chapter Four: A Note On Health, To Which Religion May Be Hazardou
In this chapter, Hitchens explains how some religions can be hostile to treating diseases. He writes that many Muslims saw the polio vaccine as a conspiracy, and thus allowed polio to spread.[10] He goes on to discuss the Catholic Church's response to the spread of HIV in Africa, telling people that condoms are ineffective, which, he argues, contributes to the death toll.[11] He notes with examples that some in both the Catholic and the Muslim communities believe irrationally that HIV and HPV are punishment for sexual sin—particularly homosexuality.[12] He describes religious leaders as "faith healers", and opines that they are hostile to medicine because it undermines their position of power.[13]
He then criticises the Jewish ritual of circumcision that would have him "take a baby boy's penis in my hand, cut around the prepuce, and complete the action by taking his penis in my mouth, sucking off the foreskin, and spitting out the amputated flap along with a mouthful of blood and saliva", and denounces the traditional African practice of female genital mutilation. He concludes the chapter writing of the religious "wish for obliteration" — for a death in the form of the day of the Apocalypse.

Sorry xkeyscore89, you posted at a poor time.  We're currently in a quote-off!  

[xkeyscore89]

Chapter four of "God is not Great"

Chapter Four: A Note On Health, To Which Religion May Be Hazardou
In this chapter, Hitchens explains how some religions can be hostile to treating diseases. He writes that many Muslims saw the polio vaccine as a conspiracy, and thus allowed polio to spread.[10] He goes on to discuss the Catholic Church's response to the spread of HIV in Africa, telling people that condoms are ineffective, which, he argues, contributes to the death toll.[11] He notes with examples that some in both the Catholic and the Muslim communities believe irrationally that HIV and HPV are punishment for sexual sin—particularly homosexuality.[12] He describes religious leaders as "faith healers", and opines that they are hostile to medicine because it undermines their position of power.[13]
He then criticises the Jewish ritual of circumcision that would have him "take a baby boy's penis in my hand, cut around the prepuce, and complete the action by taking his penis in my mouth, sucking off the foreskin, and spitting out the amputated flap along with a mouthful of blood and saliva", and denounces the traditional African practice of female genital mutilation. He concludes the chapter writing of the religious "wish for obliteration" — for a death in the form of the day of the Apocalypse.

Sorry xkeyscore89, you posted at a poor time.  We're currently in a quote-off!  

I'm sorry to interrupt, let's continue at your earliest convenience.

[cooldgamer]

Yes, I do. My faith is something I struggle with daily, however.

Were you forced to go to church as a child?  If so, your struggle is probably your intelligence fighting against your brainwashing.  Good luck in your struggle!

Religion, church, and a bible class 5 days a week for 11 years was something I grew up with, yes. My belief system has changed drastically since then.  Today, my belief system closely resembles that of a Deist.  I don't feel that belief in a higher power and belief in the theory of evolution are mutually exclusive ideas. I don't think the Bible was meant to be taken literally.  I'm 24 now, but from K-10th grade I was in what I can only describe as a neo-conservative Christian school. I received an excellent education there but could not tolerate their interpretation of the Bible. They took the Bible literally to the extent of believing the world was literally created in seven, 24-hour days.  They taught that the earth was 5,000 years old among many other ridiculous "facts".  Fundamental to this dogma was the teaching that there was an imminent apocalypse predicted by the book of Revelation where non-believers would be slaughtered and sent to hell for all eternity. For much of my young life, I was inundated with all manner of scare tactics involving hell and was told to believe there was only one way to heaven.  I was taught to believe other religions were an abomination. I prayed out of fear of going to hell.  At 13 or 14 years old, I'd had enough and began to wake up, using basic scientific theory and logic to question and systematically reject these teachings.  After experiencing life at a public high school and a large university, I came to reject the idea of God or a higher power altogether for quite a while.  I came to believe that morals and values were irrelevant. I was even more depressed than usual and felt that my life had no purpose or meaning.

This right here is the harm in religion.  We teach children beliefs that have no evidence whatsoever while they are very impressionable, and it makes it harder for them to figure out the truth of the world (If they ever do).  Heck, if everybody was religious, we'd probably just pray to god to cure someone's cancer instead of using all the advanced medical treatments that science has come up with.  This is one of the many reasons America has fallen behind, the fact that we're one of the most religious countries is hindering us big-time.  Not to say there's not a lot of other reasons, but it's up there..

[just_me]

I reported you to the moderator again vod, asking them to prevent you from posting in this thread. I think you are sick in the head.

[Vod]

I reported you to the moderator again vod, asking them to prevent you from posting in this thread. I think you are sick in the head.

I was surrounded by angels, all in white, with wings.

They did not move at all, but went everywhere with me.

Every which way I turned, the angels were there like stones, immovable.


Vast power seemed to come from them.

So much power that i was terrified.

The feeling is quite mutual you nut job, except I know you are sick in the head.