symphony-the whole entrie matrix movie has underlying christian themes, there pretty hard to miss. death, resurrection, salvation, Trinity, those are just a few of the many examples. the egyptians obviously noticed all of the christian themes and it offended them. thats great that planet of the apes is one of your favorite movies. i didn't say anything bad about it, i was simply pointing out the fact that it deals with evolution, and that it doesn't offend me even though i don't believe in evolution. i was simply trying to point out that i think its rediculous that the matrix got banned. i thought that what i said was pretty self explanatory, i'm not sure what confused you exactly.

hey, i know exactly how you feel. i recently lost my dog, 'murphy'. i got her when i was about 8 years old, and she passed away a couple months ago. i know why dogs are called, 'man's best friend', because i can honestly say that murphy was my best friend. she lived to be twelve years old, almost to the exact day, and i was heart-broken when she died. so, i know exactly what you're going through.

now, as to your cat; well, i too have a little black kitten. actually i got him shortly after murphy passed away. i named him 'neo' after keanu reaves' character in the matrix, so i'm gonna go with the matrix theme, & take a wild guess, and since u said ur cat was a girl, i'll say 'Trinity'

krazeekkc-yes, i can realate to what you're saying, as i'm sure most believers can. there have certainly been times when i have 'felt' the presence of God. but, i think it is dangerous to trust in our feelings. feelings are just so unreliable; they come & go, and we really have no control over them whatsoever. one minute we feel a certain way, and the next minute we can feel totally different. i mean, i don't need to 'feel' God's presence in order to know He is there. i know He is in my life, because He has told me so in His word, so even though sometimes, i may not feel His presence at all, i still know that He is there. our faith should never be in feelings. there's nothing wrong with emotions as God created us with them, but our faith should be in God's word, not our feelings.

AMEN BROTHER

7-tides-oh, ok that makes sense. honestly, i don't know how old the earth is, and it really doesn't matter. i personally think it's older than 6,000 yrs, but i could be wrong, i don't know. in any case, this is not something to divide over. i've talked to you before on this forum, and i know that we agree on essentials, so i do consider you my brother in the Lord. weather the earth is old or young, this is defenitely something we could 'aree to disagree' on.

---BDoggy

so your saying that the earth is 6,000 yrs old then?

there is no way to make the statement from Scripture that the earth is 6,000 years old. this is simply untrue. there is nothing wrong with believing that the earth is 6,000 years old, but it is not a fact. first of all, when Genesis speaks of the 'first day', the 'second day' of creation, etc... it does not necesarrily have to be a literal 24 hour period. secondly, when the bible gives generational accounts, or geneologies, when it refers to someone being someone else's 'father' it does not necesarrily mean their literal biological father. it could just mean an ancestor. even in the new testament, Jews referred to Abraham as their 'father', so where in the bible do you get that the earth is 6,000 years old??

where does the bible say that the earth is 6,000 years old??

i have never read anything in the bible that makes this claim, nor do i make this claim.

kris-you do bring up a good point. our faith is not 'IN' evidence. i hope nobody misunderstands me because that's not what i'm saying. our faith is 'IN' God & His word. also, i'm not saying that evidence will 'make' anyone have faith. faith is not merely intellectual, nor is it emotional. faith is an act of the will. it is a choice. faith means being in complete submission to God's will, by your own choice. but evidence is a very good thing. it can help us more effectively defend our faith & can give us a renewed sense of confidence in the midst of the skepticism of the world.

 why is it that so many christians think that we must have blind faith? why are so many christians uncomfortable when it comes to evidence that supports the christian faith? somehow, people got the idea that when they come to Christ, they have to leave their intellect at the door. people think that evidence is worthless and that because they have faith, they don't want to even acknowledge that the evidence exists. the bible never tells us to have 'blind' faith. that's not what it means when it says to "walk by faith and not by sight". when John the baptist was in prison & he began to have doubts about Jesus being the Christ, Jesus did not say, "just stop thinking about it. you don't need a reason to beleive, just do it!" He did not say, "how dare you john! repent of your unbeleif and beleive in Me because I said so!"  what did He say? He said, "Go and report to john what you have seen and heard:the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who keeps from stumbling over Me." Jesus told the men to tell john about the 'evidence' that supported His claims to being the Christ. there is nothing wrong or sinful about studying the evidence. weather it be the scientific evidence for creation, or the historical evidence for the resurrection of Christ & the inspiration of Scripture. yes, true, faith is not merely intellectual, it is an act of the will. never the less, there is nothing wrong with evidence, and it can prove very effective when defending the faith in an unbeleiving and very skeptical age.  

bluelake-what in the world are you talking about?? and for that matter, who in the world are you talking to?? i'm familiar with the verses you quoted, but what point are you trying to make with them??

questions-i will agree that christianity can not be absolutely proven, but there is a great deal of strong evidence in favor of it. and yes, as i've said before, all the evidence in the world will not convince someone who really doesn't want to beleive. but, many people have made the decision to put their faith in Christ, because of the overwhelming evidence to support it. Hank Hanegraaff, the president of the Christian Research Institute, used to be a huge skeptic of the christian faith. after closely examining all of the scientific evidence for creation, and the historical evidence for the resurrection of Christ & the inspiration of Scripture, he then made the decision to become a christian. the point that i'm trying to get across is that christianity is not a blind leap into the dark, it is a step into the light. nobody, after becoming a christian has to 'turn off' there intellect. i challenge you; instead of asking what is 'possible', ask yourself what is 'probable'. then, with an open mind, examine for yourself the scientific evidence for creation, & the historical evidence for the christian faith. if you do this with an open mind, you will see that while other theories may be technically 'possible', the existence of God, the resurrection of Christ, & the divine inspiration of Scripture is the only 'probable' explanation.

questions-once again, where did i make the statement that faith in Christ is not a matter of faith? furthermore, how does me saying that the Christian faith is supported by evidence imply that it is not a matter of faith?? i stand by my words. Christianity is not, nor has it ever been, nor will it ever be a 'blind' faith. why do you think that evidence and faith are in opposition to one another? or am i misunderstanding what you're saying? i am beginning to think that you and i have a completely different defenition of the word 'faith'. so, let me ask you; what do you think faith is??

 i don't know how many of you heard, but the movie 'the matrix' has been officially banned in egypt due to it's christian-related themes. seems to be evidence that hostility towards Christ & His followers is on the rise. it is amazing to me that a movie would actually be completely banned for a reason such as this. i myself do not beleive in the theory of evolution, but i have no problem with 'planet of the apes' for a very simple reason; its a movie!!
anybody else have any thoughts on this issue?

questions-WOW!! you totally missed what i said. show me where i made the statement that beleiving in Christ is not a matter of faith. ya know, i'm trying to be polite, but i REALLY do not appreciate it when people put words into my mouth! all i said was that beleif in Christ is not a 'blind' faith. it is supported by evidence. and yes, when someone rejects or accepts Christ, it is a choice. i never once said that faith is not involved! faith itself is a choice.