Johnny Skeptic

On the contrary, if the God of the Bible had made many indisputable predictions that came true, almost everyone in the world would believe that he can predict the future, although many people would still reject the God of the Bible because he is immoral.

If all that you are trying to reasonably prove is that the God of the Bible can predict the future, I will concede that he can predict the future for the sake of argument, but I am still not willing to become a Christian because God is immoral.

Are you now aware that God's charcter is the most important issue, not his power?

arnoldo

Apparently not, God created the heavens and the earth and people still don't believe.

juergen

Says who?

So your rejection of other religion's claims would logically also have to be attributed to those claims being true? Or is this another generalized and unsupported statement that works in your favor, but not in other's favor?

Let's keep things in perspective. It's your claim that God did, but you can't demonstrate it. Why, if it was so clear that God created the heavens and the earth, is it not readily demonstrable? Additionally, what we have been observing in real life seems to contradict the way Christian scriptures describe it quite a bit.

itsamysteryhuh

...or reject him.


You seem to be begging the answers to many questions.

Johnny Skeptic

If President Bush was able to predict anything that he wanted to predict, how long do you think that it would take him to convince 99% of the people in the world that he is able to predict the future. The most important issue is God's character, not his power.

If God really wanted to use prophecy to help strengthen the faith of Jews, he would have told Ezekiel about Alexander, and he would told Micah to write that the messiah would be the ruler of a heavenly kingdom instead of an earthly kingdom as Micah 5:2 suggests. God certainly would not have inspired a writer to write in 2 Samuel 7:10 that one day, Jews would have a homeland of their own where no one would bother them. That most certainly is not going to happen in this life, especially since the Bible says that there will always be wars and rumors of wars in this life, and that in the last days, nation will rise against nation.

Johnny Skeptic

Of course, and you know that that is what I meant.

What does begging the question mean, and which questions are you referring to?

How do you account for the fact that every year the percentage of women who accept the three dimensional being is a good deal higher than the percentage of men who accept him? A three dimensional being would not have any interest in a person's sex.

How do account for the facts that every year a much lower percentage of elderly skeptics accept the three dimensional being than the percentage of younger skeptics who accept him, and that every year the percentage of elderly Christians who reject him is much lower than percentage of younger Christians who reject him? A three dimensional being would not have any interest in a person's age.

A God who had strange ways would not frequently be predictable.

If the God of the Bible does not exist, the preceding evidence would not be strange at all, and in fact, would be expected. It would be counterproductive for a God who supposedly wanted people to believe that he exists to frequently mimic the ways that things would be if he did not exist, thereby undermining his attempts to try to convince people to believe that he exists.

It is a question of how probable it is that God wants people to believe that he exists, but often goes out of his way to try to convince them that he does not exist by frequently mimicking the ways that things would be if he did not exist, and by discriminating against men, elderly skeptics, and younger Christians. In my opinion, no rational man who was aware of my arguments before he chose his worldview would become a Christian.

What evidence do you have that religious beliefs are not determined exclusively by geography, family, race, ethnicity, gender, age, and time period.

If the God of the Bible does not exist, all tangible benefits would be indiscriminately distributed at random according to the laws of physics without any regard for a person's needs, worldview, or requests. The only benefits that anyone could ask God for and expect to receive would be subjective spiritual/emotional benefits. What evidence do you have that that is not the case today?

Have you ever asked God to heal you of a sickness? Do you know of any Christian amputees who have asked God to give them new limbs? In your opinion, would it make sense for a Christian amputee to ask God to heal him of a sickness, but no ask God for a new limb.

When God created Hurricane Katrina and sent it to New Orleans, as it approached New Orleans, some Christians asked God to protect them. Why do some Christians ask God to protect them from his own hurricanes?

arnoldo

I think the whole point of Ezekiel is that God was disgusted about what was happening in Israel and Nebby was going to come down and destroy the temple and take many people into captiivity. Many Jews laughed at Ezekiel when he prophesied this and instead believed "false prophets" who told the people "peace and safety."

makerowner

It was, but that's irrelevant. Are you physically capable of staying on topic? Remember when you promised to do that? Don't you know what happens to liars? "But as for [...] all liars, their lot shall be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death."

Johnny Skeptic

But what about God's refusal to inspire Old Testament prophets to write unmistakable prophecies about Jesus?

What about God's refusal to tell Jefferson Davis that slavery is wrong? Davis was President of the Southern Conderacy. He was a Christian. He believed that the Bible endorses slavery, which it does. Even if it didn't, if God had tangibly appeared to God in person, or in a dream, and had told Davis that slavery is wrong, Davis would have opposed slavery.

What about 2 Samuel 7:10? It says that one day, Jews will have a homeland of their own where no one will bother them. That is not going to happen in this life, and if you read all of chapter 7 you will see that it refers to this life, not to the next life. There is not any doubt whatsover that Old Testament Jews believed that eventually, Jews would have a homeland of there own where no one would bother them.

What about Micah 5:2. According to Christians, it says that a ruler (meaning Jesus) would come who would rule Israel. Obviously, Jesus did not rule Israel. There is not any doubt whatsoever that Old Testament Jews believed that the ruler would rule an earthly kingdom, not a heavenly kingdom.

It is no wonder that the vast majority of Jews have always rejected Jesus. Jesus did not fulfill one single messianic prophecy. Even if he did, it was God's fault that there was a lot of needless confusion regarding who Jesus was.

The claim that the Pharisees believed that Jesus healed people by the power of Beelzebub was a lie, or an innocent but inaccurate revelation. If a messiah was going to rule Israel, and was going to protect Jews from their enemies, he would have protected their health as well.

arnoldo

Most of the prophecies are about judgment about to fall on Israel. The Jews didn't believe them then just like you don't now.