by Simon 35 Replies latest watchtower bible
what I glean from luke 17:5-10 is: Jesus was talking about forgiving your brother and the apostles asked Him to increase their faith. His answer basicly said...asking for increased faith to do that (forgive) is like expecting to be rewarded (increased faith) for something that you're supposed to do...a reward would make you an unprofitable servant.
Increased faith isn't needed to forgive.
My bigger problem with that scripture is what happened a few verses before where Jesus thought a demon was causing a boy's epilepsy!
The idea that having faith in something and using it as a motivator is nothing to scoff at, though. Having faith in the right thing, and directing your time and energy appropriately can figuratively move mountains.
The problem with this scripture is that it purports that if you have enough faith in God, you can cast a demon out of a little boy and cure his epilepsy. There is so much wrong with that, I don't where to begin. Having faith in something that doesn't exist (God) will accomplish nothing for you. Believing that demons exist and they cause illnesses and medical defects is another story!
I'm going to stick to putting faith in myself and those around me that deserve my devotion.
I'm not Christian, I believe they are wrong, I see em killed and hung and whatever, I believe this is justice. Why would I ever accept their faith in the face of such events? Yet people did, constantly
It may put you off but that doesn't mean it puts everyone off. For others it would be convincing ... for a small few possibly even appealing.
If persecution convinced people not to believe or join then why hasn't every group that has ever been persecuted died out? Why do we have terrorism? Why does persecuting them create more?
Belief often isn't a rational thing, it' is based on emotion and persecution can be a powerful driver for that.
This is a very good point. So I'll have to concede it's possible. Because you're right, the terrorism found in radicalized islam (which I just assume is the terrorism you referred to) is a perfect example of a group hated and hunted but people still join. Gave me something to think about, very interesting,
I'm not Christian, I believe they are wrong, I see em killed and hung and whatever, I believe this is justice. Why would I ever accept their faith in the face of such events? Yet people did, constantly. (Again see post above, the example is better explained I think.)
You would only join if you were somehow persuaded into believing it. People have been persuaded into believing falsehoods. The phenomenon is not unheard of. If people in this modern age with so much information available can be persuaded into becoming Mormons - with all the information available showing how it is false, what makes you think ancient people who were more superstitious and had less information available, couldn't likewise have been persuaded into believing false stories and becoming Christians?
I think you're banking on the assumption that someone cannot be persuaded into believing a falsehood. That assumption is simply not true.
