Posted on 07/09/2012 4:28:17 PM PDT by Gillibrand
New friend. :)
You’ve planted a wolf right in the middle of the flock!
God welcomes doubt? This is the oldest trick in the book (not the Bible).
Doubt is the opposite of faith.
Throughout the Bible we are encouraged to have faith.
Not doubt, which is the opposite of faith.
You are right about that.
Right. And if we entertain or celebrate doubt, this is the same as seeking ignorance.
There is a solid link through time from the bodily resurrection of Christ, to the eyewitnesses and the New Testament documentation.
The evidence does not produce doubt, it removes ignorance.
Thank you. That’s one less chance I’m going to hell.
So... if I refuse to accept the knowledge that Allah is God, and Mohammed his Prophet, then it’s because I’m an ignoramus ?
I disagree. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who went to the tomb and found it open. They went inside and thought Jesus was missing. Then two angels inside the tomb reminded Mary that he 'had arisen'.
Later, Mary takes the apostles (well, 11 of them anyway) to the tomb, and not only is the place not empty, but two angels and Jesus are in there. Pretty busy 'tomb' there.
Jesus was seen running around for 40 days at least. He even showed up to convince a 'doubting thomas'.
Who placed the body of Jesus in the tomb?
I don't think the disciples stole his body.
And if either the Jewish or Roman authorities had possession of the body of Jesus, they would certainly have put it on display in order to crush this new religion which was such a threat to their power.
That would seem the most logical.
Who were the two guys, in the tomb, with shining suits like lightning ?
How was Jesus 'resurrected' ?
My point is simply that doubt is not anything that God is afraid of. He says more than once, "Come and let us reason together, saith the LORD.". Obviously, He does not expect doubt to REMAIN but that any doubts we have He is more than able to address and dispel. There should be no more doubt since God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him and He WILL be found when we search with all our heart. We ARE human after all and prone to want "proof" for what we base our beliefs upon, but God wants there to be faith first - a step or leap of faith, so to speak - and THEN He will reveal Himself to us. What many people do not realize is that they exhibit faith all the time, in various ways, and that it is not anything with which to be ashamed. It does require that we let go of our pride a bit and open ourselves up to how our Creator chooses to relate to us. Without faith it is IMPOSSIBLE to please God and he that comes to God must believe that He is. So, rather than "planting a wolf in the middle of the flock", as you said, I really wanted to make it clear that doubt is a normal human emotion but not anything God cannot or will not address AND answer. Having doubt is NOT sin, only choosing to REMAIN in doubt after God has made himself known.
I never used that word, did I? I would hope that any SINCERE and DILIGENT search for knowledge would include distinguishing between what some say is the truth and what IS the truth. I have no doubts that Islam is false and following Jesus Christ is the truth, but I can't MAKE someone believe it - unlike Islamists who'll demand you do or kill you. I am more than happy to explain the process that I went through to come to this realization but it must still be something each person will have to experience on their path to the truth.
You posted the wrong photos with your comments.
Doubt is the opposite of faith.
Let’s not get confused about a simple chronology.
First Jesus died on the cross, then he was buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, then he rose on the third day. Then, Mary visited the empty tomb. To say the tomb was empty means there was no body inside the tomb.
Later, Mary saw Jesus outside the tomb, thinking at first he was the gardener. Then he spoke to her and she realized he was Jesus.
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