OLAADEGBU:

He says that there is no such thing as an "atheist."

He didn't say so. The Bible also says that people who go about slandering others are fools - Proverbs 10:18. Play less on this silly game of branding people with terms that may more aptly be describing your own group. Behaviour like yours is what destroys communication - and that is one reason why you will never make any sense to anybody, most especially to atheists.

OP has been disappointed by her "tutors" and has decided to refuse to believe, at least in what was "forced" down her. However, something inside her still believes there's some sort of "God" which she finds difficult to define or understand.

This would suggest she's neither Atheist nor Agnostic since she cares - her presence here and desire to search further removes her from those two camps. What she is, is searching for her own reality. As WIRINET says

QUOTE
Every individuals assembles his universe like a jig-saw puzzle using different pieces from his background, exposure, personality, education, and interests, that is why no two people can have identical sets of beliefs
UNQUOTE

Lets allow her search rather than complicate it further

nuclearboy:

OP has been disappointed by her "tutors" and has decided to refuse to believe, at least in what was "forced" down her. However, something inside her still believes there's some sort of "God" which she finds difficult to define or understand.

You mean 'his, him, he'? Lol

Lets allow her search rather than complicate it further

My thoughts exactly.

@Chairman Viaro:

Don't know what happened o. I wonder if the "carbonated drinks" I've been taking all day have not intoxicated me

@OP:

My apologies for the mix-up concerning your sex if I got it wrong. Viaro breathed carbonated life into me

viaro:

He didn't say so.

Does this statement remind me of one subtle serpent in the Garden who said to the woman:

"You shall not surely die." -- Genesis 3:4

And this explains our suffering in the world today. Satan has been in this business of denying God's Word for the past 6,000 years. His tactics has barely changed it may have a little variation but it remains basically the same, he only needs to find willing agents to speak through. His tactics is to make us to doubt God's Word with our minds, to desire or lust with our flesh and to disobey God's Word with our wills. Here we see Satan showing up again in unsuspecting and willing minds just as he succeeded with Eve.

viaro:

The Bible also says that people who go about slandering others are fools - Proverbs 10:18.

Satan surely knows enough scriptures to confuse and deceive his unsuspecting preys. How I wish Eve had not argued with the subtle serpent. This is what Charles spurgeon said about this incident:

"He [Satan] will most thoroughly and carefully examine us, and if he shall find us to be, like Achilles, vulnerable nowhere else but in our heel, then he will shoot his arrows at our heel."

Don't underestimate Satan's knowledge of scriptures he even had the cheek to tempt the Lord Jesus using scriptures[i]:

"And he said to him, If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning you: and in their hands they shall bear you up, lest at any time you dash your foot against a stone."[/i] -- Matthew 4:6 (The Evidence Bible)

viaro:

Play less on this silly game of branding people with terms that may more aptly be describing your own group. Behaviour like yours is what destroys communication - and that is one reason why you will never make any sense to anybody, most especially to atheists.

Definitely, we don't belong to the same group. I know you are popular among atheists and agnostics whose ideology you share, but listen to what Jesus has to say to people like you.

"Woe to you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets." -- Luke 6:26 (The Evidence Bible)

Why would the world not speak well of you since I have not heard you preach the glorious gospel. All I read from you is your advocacy for atheism and their so called evolutionary thinking as well as your denials of the Word of God. No doubt you will have the smile of the world because your listeners have what is called itching ears and they are more than pleased to have them scratched with your liberal and worldly wisdom. Jesus gave a warning to those who fall into this subtle trap: "Woe to you, when all men shall speak well of you!"

The cross is the only God-given means of salvation from death, and we will bear reproach as long as we cling to its frame. It is only for a season, the cross will be exchanged for a crown. The praise of men is a volatile minefield of pleasant flowers that many here on nairaland have fallen into. In one moment it can swing from a fragrant "Hosanna!" to an explosive "Crucify Him!" So, no thank you, I don't seek the approval of man. God's approval is eternal and that is enough for me, for one with God is in the majority.

P.S. If you are thinking of coming back with a rebuttal then you must be wasting your time it will be better for you to address the issue that the opening post has raised as I have done. Cheers.

@OLAADEGBU,

You should understand something as simple as abc - viaro is not on Nairaland to attack or oppose you in any form. Indeed we may not agree on so many things even though we are Christians; but that does not mean that our unity should be based on deliberate falsehood that is sustained by deriding other people who do not believe as we do. The type of Christianity that delights in castigating people when we do not even understand them is both wicked and illiterate - and that is why there are more problems today from fundamentalist Christianity than anything else in the world from religious outlook on life.

But let me humour you a bit more:

OLAADEGBU:

Does this statement remind me of one subtle serpent in the Garden who said to the woman:

"You shall not surely die." -- Genesis 3:4

And this explains our suffering in the world today. Satan has been in this business of denying God's Word for the past 6,000 years. His tactics has barely changed it may have a little variation but it remains basically the same, he only needs to find willing agents to speak through. His tactics is to make us to doubt God's Word with our minds, to desire or lust with our flesh and to disobey God's Word with our wills. Here we see Satan showing up again in unsuspecting and willing minds just as he succeeded with Eve.

Satan did not show up here until you came by doing his job of calling others fools for no reason at all. I wanted to ask: what has this thread got to do with an argument of whether or not the universe is 6,000 years old? Does that tell me that you're nursing some bruises from our discussion in other threads? Bro, lighten up - we're still in the Christmas season!   If you want to hold a dialogue/discussion on a Biblical cosmology for an older-than-6,000-year-old cosmos, we shall get there someday in the near future; but I don't think it is sensible for you to draw upon that into this thread that was not begging for such arguments.

Satan surely knows enough scriptures to confuse and deceive his unsuspecting preys. How I wish Eve had not argued with the subtle serpent. This is what Charles spurgeon said about this incident:

"He [Satan] will most thoroughly and carefully examine us, and if he shall find us to be, like Achilles, vulnerable nowhere else but in our heel, then he will shoot his arrows at our heel."

Don't underestimate Satan's knowledge of scriptures he even had the cheek to tempt the Lord Jesus using scriptures[i]:

"And he said to him, If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning you: and in their hands they shall bear you up, lest at any time you dash your foot against a stone."[/i] -- Matthew 4:6 (The Evidence Bible)

As far as I'm not pesenting Satan's arguments on this thread, we can let that be.

Definitely, we don't belong to the same group. I know you are popular among atheists and agnostics whose ideology you share, but listen to what Jesus has to say to people like you.

No, we don't belong to the same 'group' as far as denominations are concerned. If viaro says he's a Christian and you cannot endure that until you point a fundamentalist accusing finger at me, what is my worry? Indeed, atheists and agnostics find it easier to discuss with me - but they are no fools to imagine for one moment that I'm an atheist. No, they understand I'm not an atheist or agnostic- and the reason why my fellow Christian brethren sometimes can't endure me is because of my inability to endure their going about slandering people indiscriminately.

"Woe to you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets." -- Luke 6:26 (The Evidence Bible)

Luckily, not all men speak well of viaro - that is a fact, so I'm not bothered by your sweat. You should be more concerned that many more people ave spoken well of you OLAADEGBU than they have of me - and that is where the real danger is, because you stand the more chance of falling a victim to your own condemnation.

Why would the world not speak well of you since I have not heard you preach the glorious gospel.  All I read from you is your advocacy for atheism and their so called evolutionary thinking as well as your denials of the Word of God.

I have not advocated atheism anywhere. Please show me where I might have done so, and then we can talk like gentlemen about such a scenario. I just do not find it appealing for Christians to deliberately spread falsehood and slander about other people who are minding their own business. I have not been making noise about the Gospel; nor have I attacked that Gospel: I can only be thankful that there are more than enough Christians on this forum who have been preaching the same Gospel.

No doubt you will have the smile of the world because your listeners have what is called itching ears and they are more than pleased to have them scratched with your liberal and worldly wisdom.

Thank you for that compliment - I hope you feel better after reading it.

Jesus gave a warning to those who fall into this subtle trap: "Woe to you, when all men shall speak well of you!"

You should be more concerned about the fact that more people have spoken well of you than they have of me. . . a case of removing your own log before trying to help me with my own speck?

The cross is the only God-given means of salvation from death, and we will bear reproach as long as we cling to its frame.  It is only for a season, the cross will be exchanged for a crown.  The praise of men is a volatile minefield of pleasant flowers that many here on nairaland have fallen into.  In one moment it can swing from a fragrant "Hosanna!" to an explosive "Crucify Him!"  So, no thank you, I don't seek the approval of man.  God's approval is eternal and that is enough for me, for one with God is in the majority.

I do not despise the Cross. And it is well to seek God's approval - although that approval does not come by slandering people. Where has God promised to approve of Christians slandering anybody? Please tell me.

nuclearboy:

@Chairman Viaro:

Don't know what happened o. I wonder if the "carbonated drinks" I've been taking all day have not intoxicated me

I still have my hiccups. . what do you expect?!

OLAADEGBU, clap for yourself!

@ all

thank you all for taking the time to read my opening post, and responding. i took the time to read the posts, and i want to say i appreciate all that has said. a i can tell some responses were a bit biased, and there was a bit of digression, but i enjoyed reading what everyone had to say. i doubt that i will ever return back to christianity, but i value those who were explaining how one would become born again. am still confused about a few things, but i still want to thank you all again for responding.

iyapo_ny:

@ all

thank you all for taking the time to read my opening post, and responding. i took the time to read the posts, and i want to say i appreciate all that has said. a i can tell some responses were a bit biased, and there was a bit of digression, but i enjoyed reading what everyone had to say. i doubt that i will ever return back to christianity, but i value those who were explaining how one would become born again. am still confused about a few things, but i still want to thank you all again for responding.

good decision! whatever you decide, just make sure it makes sense to you.
welcome to nairaland bro!

@iyapo_ny,(and by extension other "atheists and agnostics in the house"

It was G.K. Chesterton who rightly stated:

"If there were no God, there would be no atheists."

A thinking person will tell you that it's impossible to prove that God doesn't exist. Before someone can say, "There is no God," he or she needs to have all knowledge — because somewhere in the universe there may be evidence that God does exist. And there is, right under our noses. A building is the evidence that there was a builder. A painting is the evidence that there was a painter, and creation is the absolute evidence that there was and is a Creator.

The question is, are you good enough to go to Heaven? Here's how to know: Have you ever lied (even once) or stolen (regardless of value)? Have you ever used God's name in vain, or had sexual thoughts about someone to whom you are not married? Have you ever hated someone?

If you said yes to those questions, on Judgment Day God will see you as a lying thief, a blasphemer, an adulterer, and even a murderer. Jesus said, "Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart," and Scripture also says that if you hate someone, you are a murderer. This is the Bible's warning — if God gives you justice on Judgment Day, you will end up in Hell. Forever. Not believing in something won't make it go away. You need to be forgiven before that day, and because God is rich in mercy He made a way for you to be clean in His sight:

"God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Jesus suffered and died on the cross, taking the punishment for your sins. He paid your fine in His life's blood, so that you could leave the courtroom. Then He rose from the dead and defeated death. Your death sentence can be commuted. Please, come to your senses— repent and trust in Jesus, and God will forgive you and grant you eternal life. Pray something like:

"Dear God, please forgive my sins (name them). I turn from them and trust Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour. In His name I pray. Amen." Then read the Bible daily and obey what you read (see John 14:21).

Now go to www.livingwaters.com and click on "Save Yourself Some Pain."

look and see