Objections against God: Evil

[BrokenDandilion]

All of these are beautiful answers...if you're answering a Christian. Sadly for us, non-believers don't use "church-speak"....and tend to roll their eyes when they feel like Scripture is shoved down their throats. How would you answer a non-believer? I should have specified that the first time. Sorry :/

As a student at a secular university, I don't often have good vs. evil debates with other believers. It's easy to sit and validate your own beliefs to other people who believe as you do, but how do you do it to someone who simply thinks your God is just a big bully with a magnifying glass and we're His pile of ants?
(Please don't take this as being mean, it's really not meant to be. Just a challenge someone I care about presented to me that changed how I talk to people entirely.)  

[Garland-Green]

BrokenDandilion

All of these are beautiful answers...if you're answering a Christian. Sadly for us, non-believers don't use "church-speak"....and tend to roll their eyes when they feel like Scripture is shoved down their throats. How would you answer a non-believer? I should have specified that the first time. Sorry :/

As a student at a secular university, I don't often have good vs. evil debates with other believers. It's easy to sit and validate your own beliefs to other people who believe as you do, but how do you do it to someone who simply thinks your God is just a big bully with a magnifying glass and we're His pile of ants?
(Please don't take this as being mean, it's really not meant to be. Just a challenge someone I care about presented to me that changed how I talk to people entirely.)

Have you had any luck convincing anyone? It has been my experience that you can't talk someone into believing in God. Since it is not the quality of our conversation that makes people a Christian, but God. We do bully ourselves a lot over this. "If I had only phrased things differently, or given better answers then the person would believe." If we plant a seed it is God who makes it grow. If we use our own words, or the examples from science or the world are we using our own words then? Are they as powerful? Most people I know who are Christians are so because of events in the lives that have lead them to believe. Traumatic ones. That was how it was with me.

The problem is not that they think this about God. The problem is that they don't know God and that is why they think this way. They will think that way since it is comfortable to the way they view the world. Speaking as someone who was not always a Christian I can say I used to be hostile to hearing it since it conflicted with what I believed in. You could have explained things to the end of time with me and I wouldn't have believed. How do we change someone? Sometimes we have to live by example to let people see.
If the person knew us before we were Christian then they might see the change that is in us.

I am not saying we should stop talking to people about Jesus. That is something he himself commissioned us to do. Though I do think there is a great difference between talking about the gospel, and discussing it.

Romans 10:17
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.  

[Aquatic_blue]

The "church speak" thing can make it hard for new believers to understand. If we realize the person we are talking to is not a believer, or perhaps haven't been to church a lot in their lifetimes or around Christian groups then we need to phrase things in a way that everyone will understand. A few examples would be:

Instead of: Apostle
Use: one/all of Jesus' followers

Instead of: Tithe
Use: An amount of money that we give to a church or organization to help them accomplish expenses while doing God's work.

*There are some lists if you Google them and just write down some church speak you feel others don't understand and what you can use instead of the words we typically use. Sometimes it's hard not to use church speak if we are already accustomed to it and it can take practice to talk to someone who doesn't understand what that terminology means.  

[BrokenDandilion]

Garland-Green

BrokenDandilion

All of these are beautiful answers...if you're answering a Christian. Sadly for us, non-believers don't use "church-speak"....and tend to roll their eyes when they feel like Scripture is shoved down their throats. How would you answer a non-believer? I should have specified that the first time. Sorry :/

As a student at a secular university, I don't often have good vs. evil debates with other believers. It's easy to sit and validate your own beliefs to other people who believe as you do, but how do you do it to someone who simply thinks your God is just a big bully with a magnifying glass and we're His pile of ants?
(Please don't take this as being mean, it's really not meant to be. Just a challenge someone I care about presented to me that changed how I talk to people entirely.)

Have you had any luck convincing anyone? It has been my experience that you can't talk someone into believing in God. Since it is not the quality of our conversation that makes people a Christian, but God. We do bully ourselves a lot over this. "If I had only phrased things differently, or given better answers then the person would believe." If we plant a seed it is God who makes it grow. If we use our own words, or the examples from science or the world are we using our own words then? Are they as powerful? Most people I know who are Christians are so because of events in the lives that have lead them to believe. Traumatic ones. That was how it was with me.

The problem is not that they think this about God. The problem is that they don't know God and that is why they think this way. They will think that way since it is comfortable to the way they view the world. Speaking as someone who was not always a Christian I can say I used to be hostile to hearing it since it conflicted with what I believed in. You could have explained things to the end of time with me and I wouldn't have believed. How do we change someone? Sometimes we have to live by example to let people see.
If the person knew us before we were Christian then they might see the change that is in us.

I am not saying we should stop talking to people about Jesus. That is something he himself commissioned us to do. Though I do think there is a great difference between talking about the gospel, and discussing it.

Romans 10:17
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

It's not up to me to do the convincing. Starting with quoting Scripture within these conversations has been the only sure-fire way to not finish the conversation, unless of course conversations were started about Scripture (usually taken very far out of context), but that's another issue entirely. Instead, I simply present what I believe and why and let people draw their own conclusions based on how I act and live. That has been quite effective.

Peace was a gift I was given when I became a believer. People notice things like that. I became a believer very young during a difficult time in my life, as my grandfather was dying. He and I were very close, so this was not taken lightly. My mother was an island of peace through the whole thing. Seeing as it was her father, that was completely unexpected. As a kid though, I noticed that and asked her about it. She explained that what she needed right then was peace because her life had almost none of it, and because that's what she needed, God had given it to her.
There was no Bible verse quoted, no scientific evidence, just a simple "because He provided", and the evidence through how my mother lived her life. Had I not become a believer then, I would have almost certainly committed suicide years ago. My home was not a nice place to grow up in, but I was given strength and peace that my other unbelieving friends and acquaintances have noticed and made comment to.

Yes, I do bring the Bible into discussions. I hesitate to only because of the general aversion to it's quotation, but situations do present themselves. I try to stay away from words like "sin, righteousness, anointed, salvation, redemption, etc." because no one speaks like that...except people IN church, Christians talking to other Christians, or pastors.

Does that answer your question? I feel like that was a lot of writing for something I could have easily said out loud in a couple seconds...

I was mainly curious what kinds of responses you guys had for those types of questions though.  

[BrokenDandilion]

On a side note, I've read a lot of the comments on the threads here, and you guys have amazing hearts for people. It's cool to see that people like you guys are still out there  

[Garland-Green]

BrokenDandilion

Garland-Green

BrokenDandilion

All of these are beautiful answers...if you're answering a Christian. Sadly for us, non-believers don't use "church-speak"....and tend to roll their eyes when they feel like Scripture is shoved down their throats. How would you answer a non-believer? I should have specified that the first time. Sorry :/

As a student at a secular university, I don't often have good vs. evil debates with other believers. It's easy to sit and validate your own beliefs to other people who believe as you do, but how do you do it to someone who simply thinks your God is just a big bully with a magnifying glass and we're His pile of ants?
(Please don't take this as being mean, it's really not meant to be. Just a challenge someone I care about presented to me that changed how I talk to people entirely.)

Have you had any luck convincing anyone? It has been my experience that you can't talk someone into believing in God. Since it is not the quality of our conversation that makes people a Christian, but God. We do bully ourselves a lot over this. "If I had only phrased things differently, or given better answers then the person would believe." If we plant a seed it is God who makes it grow. If we use our own words, or the examples from science or the world are we using our own words then? Are they as powerful? Most people I know who are Christians are so because of events in the lives that have lead them to believe. Traumatic ones. That was how it was with me.

The problem is not that they think this about God. The problem is that they don't know God and that is why they think this way. They will think that way since it is comfortable to the way they view the world. Speaking as someone who was not always a Christian I can say I used to be hostile to hearing it since it conflicted with what I believed in. You could have explained things to the end of time with me and I wouldn't have believed. How do we change someone? Sometimes we have to live by example to let people see.
If the person knew us before we were Christian then they might see the change that is in us.

I am not saying we should stop talking to people about Jesus. That is something he himself commissioned us to do. Though I do think there is a great difference between talking about the gospel, and discussing it.

Romans 10:17
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

It's not up to me to do the convincing. Starting with quoting Scripture within these conversations has been the only sure-fire way to not finish the conversation, unless of course conversations were started about Scripture (usually taken very far out of context), but that's another issue entirely. Instead, I simply present what I believe and why and let people draw their own conclusions based on how I act and live. That has been quite effective.

Peace was a gift I was given when I became a believer. People notice things like that. I became a believer very young during a difficult time in my life, as my grandfather was dying. He and I were very close, so this was not taken lightly. My mother was an island of peace through the whole thing. Seeing as it was her father, that was completely unexpected. As a kid though, I noticed that and asked her about it. She explained that what she needed right then was peace because her life had almost none of it, and because that's what she needed, God had given it to her.
There was no Bible verse quoted, no scientific evidence, just a simple "because He provided", and the evidence through how my mother lived her life. Had I not become a believer then, I would have almost certainly committed suicide years ago. My home was not a nice place to grow up in, but I was given strength and peace that my other unbelieving friends and acquaintances have noticed and made comment to.

Yes, I do bring the Bible into discussions. I hesitate to only because of the general aversion to it's quotation, but situations do present themselves. I try to stay away from words like "sin, righteousness, anointed, salvation, redemption, etc." because no one speaks like that...except people IN church, Christians talking to other Christians, or pastors.

Does that answer your question? I feel like that was a lot of writing for something I could have easily said out loud in a couple seconds...

I was mainly curious what kinds of responses you guys had for those types of questions though.

Your answer is a very good one! Thank you for sharing your story. I am perfectly satisfied with your answers. smile

Sorry about your grandfather. It is hard losing people you care about. Especially hard when you are young. You are blessed to have such a great mother. My father was saved when he almost died from a heart condition and was saved when he promised God he would turn his life around and believe in him if he could continue to live. This was years before I was saved. His heart that had become hard as a leather ball because of a syndrome is almost normal now which should be a medical impossibility. I guess we are all different and need different things to believe. I had to be scared by God into believing.  

[BrokenDandilion]

Garland-Green

BrokenDandilion

Garland-Green

BrokenDandilion

All of these are beautiful answers...if you're answering a Christian. Sadly for us, non-believers don't use "church-speak"....and tend to roll their eyes when they feel like Scripture is shoved down their throats. How would you answer a non-believer? I should have specified that the first time. Sorry :/

As a student at a secular university, I don't often have good vs. evil debates with other believers. It's easy to sit and validate your own beliefs to other people who believe as you do, but how do you do it to someone who simply thinks your God is just a big bully with a magnifying glass and we're His pile of ants?
(Please don't take this as being mean, it's really not meant to be. Just a challenge someone I care about presented to me that changed how I talk to people entirely.)

Have you had any luck convincing anyone? It has been my experience that you can't talk someone into believing in God. Since it is not the quality of our conversation that makes people a Christian, but God. We do bully ourselves a lot over this. "If I had only phrased things differently, or given better answers then the person would believe." If we plant a seed it is God who makes it grow. If we use our own words, or the examples from science or the world are we using our own words then? Are they as powerful? Most people I know who are Christians are so because of events in the lives that have lead them to believe. Traumatic ones. That was how it was with me.

The problem is not that they think this about God. The problem is that they don't know God and that is why they think this way. They will think that way since it is comfortable to the way they view the world. Speaking as someone who was not always a Christian I can say I used to be hostile to hearing it since it conflicted with what I believed in. You could have explained things to the end of time with me and I wouldn't have believed. How do we change someone? Sometimes we have to live by example to let people see.
If the person knew us before we were Christian then they might see the change that is in us.

I am not saying we should stop talking to people about Jesus. That is something he himself commissioned us to do. Though I do think there is a great difference between talking about the gospel, and discussing it.

Romans 10:17
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

It's not up to me to do the convincing. Starting with quoting Scripture within these conversations has been the only sure-fire way to not finish the conversation, unless of course conversations were started about Scripture (usually taken very far out of context), but that's another issue entirely. Instead, I simply present what I believe and why and let people draw their own conclusions based on how I act and live. That has been quite effective.

Peace was a gift I was given when I became a believer. People notice things like that. I became a believer very young during a difficult time in my life, as my grandfather was dying. He and I were very close, so this was not taken lightly. My mother was an island of peace through the whole thing. Seeing as it was her father, that was completely unexpected. As a kid though, I noticed that and asked her about it. She explained that what she needed right then was peace because her life had almost none of it, and because that's what she needed, God had given it to her.
There was no Bible verse quoted, no scientific evidence, just a simple "because He provided", and the evidence through how my mother lived her life. Had I not become a believer then, I would have almost certainly committed suicide years ago. My home was not a nice place to grow up in, but I was given strength and peace that my other unbelieving friends and acquaintances have noticed and made comment to.

Yes, I do bring the Bible into discussions. I hesitate to only because of the general aversion to it's quotation, but situations do present themselves. I try to stay away from words like "sin, righteousness, anointed, salvation, redemption, etc." because no one speaks like that...except people IN church, Christians talking to other Christians, or pastors.

Does that answer your question? I feel like that was a lot of writing for something I could have easily said out loud in a couple seconds...

I was mainly curious what kinds of responses you guys had for those types of questions though.

Your answer is a very good one! Thank you for sharing your story. I am perfectly satisfied with your answers. smile

Sorry about your grandfather. It is hard losing people you care about. Especially hard when you are young. You are blessed to have such a great mother. My father was saved when he almost died from a heart condition and was saved when he promised God he would turn his life around and believe in him if he could continue to live. This was years before I was saved. His heart that had become hard as a leather ball because of a syndrome is almost normal now which should be a medical impossibility. I guess we are all different and need different things to believe. I had to be scared by God into believing.

I know where my grandfather is, so there's absolutely nothing to be sorry for. If you really want to be sorry though, be sorry for those of us who didn't get to heaven as fast as he did!
As a pre-med student, I've gotten to see a few medical impossibilities (which should just be called miracles seeing as they are). I'm glad you were able to witness one