Dear Twitch, the following is in all sincerity and with the kindest of regards. It's difficult to project tone and expression without stopping and inserting something or putting smiley faces every so often...etc..
You are certainly free to ask any and as many questions as you wish. I did. When you finish with the questions and realize that NONE have been answered to your satisfaction, what then? Been there too. When nothing and no one in the entire world gives you adequate explanations for the questions you present, where can you go, who or what are you to believe? When you've reached the end of your rope, isolated in your distrust and disgust of religion and the many 'voices' it presents, what is left? When THERE IS NOTHING ELSE, not your own intellect, not philosophical 'depth' and discussion, and not the intellectual/philosophical logic and reasonings of anyone else, that will be the first indication that you're heading in the right direction.
When you realize that NOBODY on the face of this planet can give you what you seek, lift your eyes/heart heavenward and ask for truth. Let the self-defenses and barriers crumble. Come empty handed, naked and broken, in the innocence and acceptance of a child. If you can get to this place in the depths of your being, you will get your answers. Of course, the obstacle is always within man. We detest vulnerability. We build defenses just to deal with life. We create these barriers for our own protection and to hide who and what we truly are. To divest ourselves of.....our created persona (both inside and out)....the one we project in the physical world, is an impossible feat humanly speaking. But the spiritual realm is acutely aware of the happenings in the physical. And if our utmost desire is to be 'real', to be 'pure', to be 'innocent', before an infinitely pure and holy God, then who you REALLY are will be made manifest and that will lead you where you need to be. And yes, the fault lies with humanity. Sorry, but that is the truth.
A couple of things.......no, atheists sin is the same as anybody elses sin. There is inherent/intrinsic sin (the condition of human nature. This is the one we have no control over) and there is expressed sin, this is the one that we try oh so hard to control, thereby creating within and without ourselves 'self-rightousness.' Works-based religion capitalizes on this one, as does anyone who believes they can make themselves 'good' enough (by following a prescribed set of laws and regulations) to the extent that they believe God owes them something. The other thing....my testimony will never be proof of truth for you or for anyone else. My testimony is not about me, but is a living witness of Christ's reality. I can only declare what I've been given. I have my 'proof'. I can tell you He is real.....that He's alive even to this day.....and that He's active in the lives of His people. I can declare that He is the Son of God, that His Father is one and the same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I can tell you that He weeps because of the darkness saturating the JW's. And I can tell you that He is still sending people to be a witness for Him, up close and personal.
If you so chose to approach His Holiness, ask Him to prepare you....that is, if that's your desire...and if you truly want to know the answers to your questions. Or you can stay on websites like this and post questions that are never going to be answered to your satisfaction, and sit back in your complacency, philosophizing the non-existence of a god that you refuse to come to on His terms. In the end, it's your spiritual journey. Own it. ;)
