Hello i hope someone can help me i am a christian but im having loads of doubts about the existense of god all im thiinking is "is a brainwashing thing" "people came up with it because they couldnt explain science" "why would god ask adam and eve to populate the earth if he knew they were sinners? i feel like its all man made i dont understand the bible i pray for answers and others pray for me and when i do feel a little bit joyful i assume is some physocological thing. Ive read a tonne of pages on the internet of "proof god exists" and proof "god dosent exist" and they both have good points. Also if jews/chatholics/muslims all believe in the same god (ive been told) then why do we all live different and all so confused. Also does hell exist do we go there if we sin and not repent for it ? some christians say that is true others say no ? whats going on i keep switching from believing to non believing because of all the questions. Some people have good evidence i watched the testiomy about a girl who saw hevean and hell she was dead for 23 hours , others have visons that they can prove all i had was jesus hugging me in a dream but i think its because i really wanted that to happan. If god is real why dosent he show solid proof to christians who are struggling to keep belief it seems sad that some try so hard but would go to hell because of it dont you think? another thing who are jehovah witnesses? i have a bible from them that they sold to me as a child it says things like only 144,000 will go to hevean ? im so confused also apparently the bible has loads of errors , you know the profecies in the old testement how do we know they were written before they happaned? how do i know that what we feel has nothing to do with god and is just phycological stuff? im sorry if this is a lot and offends people but i am genuine i need some help thank you xx *sorry for bad spelling*
So many questions... I don't know how many of them I can address right now, but I'll give it a try. Just know this: doubting, in and of itself, is not a bad thing. When you question your faith is when you truly make it your own, personal faith, as opposed to just a hand-me-down kind of shallow belief. I've had the doubt stage and came out stronger than before.
1. Is Christianity brainwashing? It may very well have been used for brainwashing in points of time, but in and of itself, it is not brainwashing. Brainwashing basically means forcing people to believe something by systematically instilling it in them. May also be known as indoctrination. I think this accusation fails when you consider people who were not Christians yet later became ones, such as myself. I'm not brainwashed; I see both sides of the argument of God vs. atheism, and the existence of God is more logically sound.
2. Did people come up with it because they couldn't explain science? This refers to the "God of the gaps," where people say "God did it!" because they don't know how to explain it otherwise. Sure, people have used God in this manner, but it doesn't mean God's not real. How people handle the name God has no bearing on his existence. In fact, there are some things which, by observing known facts, make it look very likely God exists. Consider the resurrection of Jesus, or the question of why the universe began, or the fact that the way the universe exists the way it does, in a way to support life, is so incomprehensibly unlikely that it screams of a Creator.
3. Why would God ask Adam and Eve to populate the world if he knew they would sin? This is a question better answered by someone else. I haven't studied this well enough.
4. Are the feelings I get from prayer just psychological things? I would say that God simply designed us in a way that we feel better when we pray. The Bible says that God has instilled in us knowledge of him, and this may very well be one of those ways. If we are simply the results of evolution without a mind behind it, why would we feel good for praying to someone that doesn't exist? That does not help us survive, practically speaking. Same reason we often feel happier after an exciting worship session. We're designed to love God, and when we express our love for God, it feels good.
5. The Christians and atheists both bring good arguments? I would disagree there. I've yet to meet an atheistic argument that couldn't be refuted. The closest one I've seen are arguments from evil, yet even those are not waterproof. Also, consider this. If it were 50%/50%, if the atheists and Christians had equally good arguments, why not choose to follow God anyway? If you die and God is not real, then ultimately it didn't matter how you lived, but at least you had a good, happy, productive life. If God
is real, then you certainly lucked out!
6. Do Jews, Catholics, and Muslims worship the same God? The Jewish God is the Christian/Catholic God. Christianity is an offshoot of Judaism. Hence, God is called the "Judeo-Christian God" by scholars. But he is not the Muslim God. There are many differences. Jews live different from Christians/Catholics because they don't have Jesus; they live under the Jewish Law, which is outlined in the Old Testament. Catholics are notably more "ritualistic" than Protestants, because they are following practices handed down to them over many centuries. Muslims also have "rituals" as dictated by their holy book, the Qu'ran.
7. Does Hell exist? Do we go there if we don't repent? Yes, Hell exists - although it's not a place of fire and torture, but rather a place of dismal separation from God. If we do not turn from sin and accept Jesus, yes we will go there.
8. Why doesn't God show himself? I provide a decent answer this on my ministry blog. Please read it:
Why Won't God Show Himself?
9. Who are the Jehovah's Witnesses? The JW are an offshoot of Christianity who, although they call themselves Christian, I do not believe them to be so (in general). That is because they have teachings which I feel are inconsistent with the Bible. Their version of the Bible alters what the original texts say in order to fit their interpretation. This includes the 144,000 deal. I believe that to be a misinterpretation. Anyone who died saved will go to heaven, not just a select few. As a somewhat standard Christian, I would not advice following their doctrines.
10. Does the Bible have errors? I do not believe so. There are things people call "errors," such as Genesis. That's a debate all of its own, and I'm not able to answer that. Archaeologically, the Bible has not been shown wrong. People have looked into the errors and, if I'm not mistaken, have found them to not be errors at all.
11. How do we know the prophecies were written before their predicted events happen? Because for the Old Testament books, we have many, many copies of them - both before their prophesied events and after. And you know what? There are no changes to them after the predicted events unfold. The Jews considered their holy works to be sacred enough that they wouldn't change them so easily.
12. Is it all psychological? See my answer to #4. It's essentially the same. We may have psychological effects, but it doesn't mean God's not there. It's just our minds and bodies reacting to experiencing God.
Any more questions, don't hesitate to ask.
