Thread:Lowkey done with life/@comment-37869175-20181224194711/@comment-146.135.19.252-20190108015821

Grr, my comment didn't post, so i'm gonna post it again. (I wrote this in response to what Lowkey Done With Life said, but LOL I'm a bit late and this is...a bit super long hehe)

Same fandom user here. I hope I'm not butting in again.

When I'm asked that question, the best answer I can come up with is I believe in God because when I do, everything else makes sense. Everything falls into place for me. The bible says, like in those verses I posted, that God's handiwork can be seen in everything, all around us. And I believe that wholeheartedly- this world is did NOT happen by chance. Not only is it obvious when you look around, but when you do research, you begin to find that the chances of our world happening by chance are impossible. (If you want, I can find some research to link.) And that leads me to think, that if it couldn't have happened by chance, it must have been created.

Now, I grew up in a Christian home, so I always believed God existed. I always had the bible. But as I've grown older, I've discovered that it's so much more than just a book. To me, the bible is kind of like my glasses- I see the world by it, and it explains to me why things are the way they are. Perfectly. Clearly. I know that if I didn't have the bible...I would be lost, searching, but because I have God, I know why I am here.

The feeling of safety that I have comes from that I know...that I am loved. It sounds pretty cheesy, lol. But basically, what the bible teaches is that we are sinful. We've all done wrong, and I'm sure you can agree with that. Look at our world- it's messed up, broken. There is so much evil. And it's not God, it's us, because we are the ones who do the evil. It's who we are. But when we realize that, we realize that unless something comes to help us, there's no hope for us- we've already messed up, and we can never take that back. It's done. Except that God is all-powerful.. and that's where Jesus comes in. Jesus came to earth born as a little baby, in a STABLE. I mean, think about it. Think about the vastness of the universe, and how big God must be to have created it. And then he comes in human form, as a BABY. That's just amazing. And then he lives his life surounded by temptations, by evil, murder, war, stealing, lying, adultery, pride- and he never gives in. He was tempted just like we were, yet because he's God and he's perfect, he never gives in. He was human, and he did what we couldn't do, he resisted all the temptations. Because- and here's the kicker- he loves us. He didn't have to come save us. We '''turned our back on him. '''Refused to acknowledge him. Hated him. Disobeyed him. Think of all the evil we've done as a race. And he still came.

And then he died for us. You see, he was hated by the religious leaders because he loved people. They had a twisted view of what faith in God is- they thought it was law and rituals, but Jesus said it was love. He wasn't preaching peace above all things, no. He wasn't saying we should compromise what we believe for peace, or all that fluff. He simply said that love is the way. We need to tell the truth, even the hard truth, but always in love. And he forgave, like the link I posted earlier. He chose the lowest people to follow him (average fisherman, lying, stealing tax collectors, adulterers, people formerly possessed by demons) and they became known throughout history because of their changed lives.

Oh, and I even forgot, when he went around teaching, he would also perform miracles. He would heal the sick and feed the hungry. But he would be sad whenever they would only come for the physical healing, and move on to another town- because he wanted them to want him for his spiritual healing, not physical. Physical is temporary. Spiritual is eternal.

OH GOODNESS THIS IS LONG, so back on track. The religious leaders hated him because of his love and forgiveness. Little did they know they were plotting to kill the all powerful God. But when they accused him, Jesus stayed silent- or I could say, God stayed silent. He didn't defend himself. He let them torture him. And he died, hanging on a cross, like the worst of sinners. Willingly.

He was God. So why would he let them do that? He could have wiped them off the face of the earth with one thought. Because he loves us. See, when he died, he was perfect. He did what we could never do. It's hard to explain shortly without getting into history, but people had been offering sacrifices for sins for ages, of the most perfect animals they could find- the most valuable things. But an animal can't ever substitute for what we've done- from the littlest lie to the...worst wrong. Not completely. Because an animal isn't a person, and no person could ever be perfect. But God is perfect. And he knew the only way to save us was for him to live a perfect life and die- And so he did. Because he loves us, and it's so beautiful.

Anyway, when Jesus died, he made a new way for us to be saved. See, we've all sinned, right? And we are not even worthy to be in God's presence. When we sin, it is our choice. And when we sin, we choose to sin. It's like if I hit my sister, I choose to do that, and with it comes going to my room. We choose to sin, and so we choose to go to hell. Which was never the way God wanted the world to be. So when God sent Jesus, and he died for us, he reversed that curse. Something Christians say is that Jesus's blood washed us clean. We were dirty, and had no water, but he washed us. And like we chose to sin, all we have to do to be forgiven is to choose him and ask for forgiveness. We have to believe he exists and is all powerful, believe he can take away our sins and that Jesus died and rose again to do that. And we have to chose him. Chose to follow him. To repent of our sins and to try our best to do what he says. And we have to be baptized. (This is a controversial topic- I believe we are baptized as a representation of our choice, to show others that we decide to become Christians and aren't afraid to show it.)

And it's that simple. Seriously. That's the beauty of it. When Jesus died, he took all of our sins on himself to be the sacrifice. He died so that we could live. And now, because God is all powerful, when we choose him, all our sins are gone. GONE. And that is the reason why I can live freely. I don't have to worry about if I'm good enough. I know if I were not a Christian, I would be freaking out wondering what the meaning of life is and what I'm here for and what happens when I die...I would be so afraid. But I'm not, because now I know I can never mess up badly enough that Jesus can't forgive me.

I realized I forgot a few things. I think I touched on this a bit, but our sin makes us dirty, and because we are dirty, we go to hell. We choose to go there when we choose to sin. But when Jesus came, because he chose us and when we choose to follow him, we go to heaven. He takes away our dirtiness. And I know, with all of me, that I'm going to heaven when I die, and I don't have to fear.

Second, Jesus didn't stay dead. He died, was buried, and just like he said he would, he came back alive. Just like he said he would. It sounds really strange- you have to read it. But he went to his followers, and he appeared to people all over after he died. And then he went up to heaven. It's hard to explain without reading it.

Third, so this is kind of hard to ecplain- but as Christians, we believe in one God, but we believe he has three forms- God, Jesus, and the Spirit. It sounds weird, but they are all one. I've heard it explained as how a person can be a father, a son, and a brother. See, God isn't human, so he came to earth as a human, Jesus. He became human for us.

And so that is what I believe, and why I believe in God. Because all the signs are there. Because it fits- Not only what I see in people, and the world, but what I know based on evidence. If you'd like, I can find research for you on how historically accurate the bible is, how possible it is that creation could have happened, etc. But when it comes down to it, we have to accept it by faith. If something is proven to us, it loses it's value. We kind of lose our ability to chose. But honestly, God's existence could hardly be much clearer. I mean, look around. The fact that we can think like this is kind of a miracle. Or see. Or touch. Or EXIST.

(Btw, I'd like to say I really value this conversation. I love that we can discuss these topics without hate or judgment. That is rare these days! I wish I'd been part of this earlier.)