Who do you really trust?

[Rahul]

"In verse 16 the word "believes" is an aorist participle referring to one who has believed at some time in the past. Also baptistries, translated "is baptized," is an aorist participle but in the passive voice. This form refers to an act of outward obedience, in this case, baptism. Therefore, the translation should be, "He who believed and who was baptized shall be saved." (Key Word Study Bible KJV. AMG Publishers, pg 1259)

So God first gave us the bible so we would know how to live and then passively allowed it to be garbled and mistranslated. Gotcha.

That would be true if the only verses in the Bible that deal with the issue of "belief" and "being saved" was Mark 16:16-18. For example John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotton Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life." Here the verb believeth is in the present participle which expresses continuous or repeated action, without implying anything about the time of the action (in this case the belief). So all who believe in the past, in the present, and in the future will be saved.

Yeah, I know John 3:16. I was raised Southern Baptist. That sect of Christianity believes in once saved, always saved. The impossibility of apostasy.

However, other sects of Christianity point out verses that speak of names being blotted out of the book of life. Thereby implying that apostasy is very real.

Because the bible isn't clear and contradicts itself you have different denominations with different beliefs, even when it comes to salvation.

This is one of the reasons I turned into an atheist later in life.

It does. Well not exactly as you've stated.

Tell that to the Kentucky preacher that died from the snake handling.

Obviously it's not clear enough. Guess god didn't have the ability to make it more clear.

That's a fallacy of composition/division. Furthermore the presumed failure would be on the translator not on the Bible. We have over 25,000 partial and complete manuscripts of the New Testament. If you have a question or concern over the proper "translation" of a given verse the resources are there for you to verify.

Hey, that's great. I'll just fire up the computer and use the internet. Or I'll drive in my 2007 Avalon to go to a major library for research. No problem.

Did a poor dirt farmer living in the Ozarks back in 1832 have these options? Nope. Too bad for them. They were stuck with versions of the bible that god allowed to be garbled beyond trustworthiness. Sucks.

Begging the question. God does not use trick questions/statements to determine whether a person suffers hell or is justified to glory in heaven. All who believe will be saved, those that don't will be damned.

Not according to some sects of Christianity. A lot of them believe that you can believe in Jesus Christ but still fall out of salvation because of sins.

It is written, "You shall not put the Lord your God to the test." It is also written, "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man."

The bible should have also put in a disclaimer that a lot of things it says are BS and to not attempt in real life.

Yes. Yes. Either-Or fallacy and begging the question. Not a logical conclusion.

Fallacy fallacy. You believe in an invisible, all powerful sky daddy and you're lecturing me about logical conclusions?

Grow up, son.