OK Blackeyed thanks for your insight! That totally clears up a lot of things that have been said to me then. But even though the Pagan religion has historical proven roots that it has been around since BEFORE Christianity, anything that is Pagan is now the devil? Even though it's been around since before the time of the devil?
The devil was around before the world was created. satan works through delusions, by twisting things to seem like something else. He will use 99% truth to float one percent lie. Now imagine yourself in a ship, and you're one degree off course. Doesn't seem very significant, does it? Until, of course, you travel 1000 miles. Then you find out that the smallest lie changes absolutely everything.
By worshipping false gods, you are worshipping demons. can you see why that is offensive to God? He didn't make you so you could live the life you want. He created you with much greater purpose than that. He created you to serve Him. Would your parents be upset if you dieowned them and called a stranger mother or father? You wouldn't dream of doing such a thing, even though your parents are not your creator. If you ride a horse, you expect the horse to obey you, even though you didn't create it or maybe even own it. So does God, who created you for His own purposes, not have a right to your submission? Think about who God is. Think about what we peanut human beings are. Who are we to tell Him we're doing what we want with the days He created for us to do His will? And His will always prevents our destruction. We choose our own way-and destruction. satan is a mighty cruel master. He doesn't give you any choice-he'd possess you if he could to force you to do his will. With God it is always by choice, But if you do not choose wisely, you will receive the due for your decision. God has a right to decide who He lets into his house, same as you choose. If you choose your froends, why shouldn't He? After all, He made you and all your friends put together.
In my eyes it's almost like Christianity saw someone else's product and slapped their own negative image on it because this "new religion" (at the start of Christianity) made God feel threatened (I guess).
Made God feel threatened? Do you have any idea who your talking about? Does a finite emperor feel threatened? What about the eternal, all powerful God? If you can go outside and create anything out of nothing, even a dead branch, I'm sure God will consider you a contender.
If God is so powerful, why does he demand that everyone worship Him?
Because that is His due. You'd be angry if you worked for a week and your boss gave your salary to another worker, just because he felt like it. Why? Because that money was your due. God as creator. Meditate on that. Aks God (respectfully, if you're wise) to show you who He is. Believe it, and He will.
Because they're his creations? Do parents demand that their children respect them? Yes, many do. But when their children (their creations) turn against them, do the parents kill their children or banish them? No way (unless the parents are troubled mentally). And why would God send his own beautiful creations; his children, into hell if they are merely confused and not sure what to believe?
Because He made His will known and they rejected it because they thought God should bow to their will, even though man is nothing but a vapor. And no one is His child unless they are under the blood of Jesus Christ. His creation, yes. His children? No. Same as if you disowned your parents and asked to be legally adopted by someone else, which is what you're doing when you refuse to come to the Lord.
The inportant thing is, we;ve sinned. We all deserve hell. We don't make the rules, but we have the gall to live as though we do. That is very worthy of hell. If unrepentant, we make the choice to abandon God, so we can't hold Him responsible for our rebellion. "If you can't do the time, don't do the crime."
It seems as if he is punishing those who are even confused.
God promises to be found by those who diligently seek Him. That puts the ball in our court.
28:9And thou, Solomon my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the LORD searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all the imaginations of the thoughts: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off for ever. To be honest, I know of some people that are not Christians because they hear too much hypocricy from Christians (i.e. some Christians think homosexuality is OK, others definitely don't. Some think you can pray without a bible, others say there's no way you can pray without a bible). These are only a few of the things I have heard. So until everyone decides who God really is, only then will we all be able to follow in His footsteps.
Love and light
It's dangerous to worry about this, although many people do, because each person is responsible for his/her own decision to seek the Lord. Many people use this as an excuse so they don't have to do what they know they have to do. But it's not wise to make your decision on what others who profess to be Christians do. And in fact, most people who accuse Christians of hypocrisy are far worse than those they condemn. As it is written:
Color=blue]Romans 14:4Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand. [/color]
Just learn to love the Lord. That's all that matters, and it will save you a bundle of griefs: aids, liver damage from drinking, premature death from all sorts of lifestyle habits, single parenthood, lots of things that can really ruin your life. But the bottom line is, this life is a flash in the pan. It's the next one that matters. God isn't mean-He took the beatings on His own back for sins He never committed. If anything is unfair, that is. But He didn't grumble. He did it willingly.
