Christian "purpose" and "meaning" in life.

[Godscreated]

I say again would you want these children to be in hell because they were not fortunate enough to live a longer life.

What I would want for them depends on the particular reality I would subscribe to. If I was a Christian who believed that heaven was the greatest possible experience that we could have, I would want those children to die as soon as possible; they would enjoy eternal bliss without risking hellfire and suffering. Skipping life in this world and being transported to the bosom of the creator would be the best possible option.

That is not the reality I subscribe to, of course. So what I would want for those children is that they not die at a young age, that they get he chance to live out a longer life with the hope that it is one marked by achievement and happiness.

But think about it, if this life is just a test for getting into heaven with the very real risk of suffering eternal torment, the best option really is to die as soon as possible. Jesus said that the path to salvation was long and narrow and few would find it, so it is not easy to gain heaven and many Christians believe that many other Christians will not make it because they are not doing it right. So the guaranteed path to heaven is to die as young as possible.

This life is not a test to get into heaven and there is no risk of hell, it's chosen just like heaven is. I see that your thinking would end the human population in one generation, denying future people their choice for heaven or hell. Jesus did not say the path to heaven was long, and He did not say it was hard to find. Christians who say other Christians may not be saved comes from what we know scripture says about how Christians can be identified, that certain actions come from an unchanged heart. You can't do anything to gain salvation other than to accept the offered gift of grace from God.

GC

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I follow the teachings of Jesus. He was brought up as a Jew and was circumcised according to the Jewish law, but he never commanded that we be circumcised. In fact, the main reason that he was crucified was that he upset the Jewish establishment by teaching the people that they didn't have to follow the provisions of the old testament law. He broke the law at times such as healing on the Sabbath. I don't know if he ate pork, but he drank wine at the last supper, though there's no reports of him getting drunk at any time.

Jesus didn't command many things, because he came not to break the old scripture, but to fulfill it, as it is mentioned in Matthew 5:17 which says:

"Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets: I came not to destroy, but to fulfil."

Jesus relied on the fact that you knew the old scripture and you kept it! So he wasn't going to say it all over again. He wasn't going to tell you not to rob also! He came to upgrade the message, not say it all over again.

Imagine you're in standard 2, the math teacher starts his math lesson, he relies on the fact that you know standard 1! Simple common sense. Why would he say everything all over again. That you must be circumcised, that you must not have pork. It's in the old testament for Christ sake! In fact, Jesus says in Matthew 5:20:

"For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."

There is no Heaven for you, unless you're better than the Jew, and how on Earth can you be better if you're not even circumcised!? You tell me! How? Do you worship Jesus or do you worship Satan? Cause you aren't following Jesus. Following Jesus means doing exactly what the Jews do, TO THE LETTER, AND ALSO do what the Bible mentions, ON TOP OF IT. Funny guy thought he could toss the old testament because Jesus came to pay for his sins lol.

It's apparent you know nothing about Christ and why He came, John 3:16 says "for God so loved the world he gave His only begotten Son and that whosoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life. As for the Pharisees, Christ was saying that they had no righteousness, He said they know the law and they do the law without love and with arrogance and that doing the law will not get them into heaven. That's right these Jews you are bragging on, if they did not come to know Christ before they died will spend eternity in hell. Christ said many times that He is the only way into salvation and that no one comes to the Father except through Him. Since salvation belongs to Christ I would think that He speaks with the only authority need on salvation, you seem to believe you can twist and change scripture around to make it say whatever you want, guess what you can, still doesn't change what Christ's authority on salvation and how we receive it.

GC

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I'm not talking about inconsistencies. I'm talking about using different words to describe the same event or talking about different events or aspects to Jesus's ministry. When people are lying they get together and try to make sure that everyone says he same thing. If all the gospel writers wrote exactly the same, referring to exactly the same events, it would seem to be contrived.

You think the problems with the bible are simply using different words to describe the same event? It can't even get its chronology straight.

And I wonder, if the gospels all wrote the same and referred to the same events, would you then be admitting that the bible seems contrived, or would you be saying that the consistency validates it?

The books of the Bible were organized by man and they found reason to place them as they did, actually there are chronological Bibles I have one, so you have lost one of your arguments.
If the NT gospels were written exactly the same I was most would suspect they were contrived, just as witnesses for a criminal are suspect when there stories match to a tee.

GC