As a card carrying atheist for many years I feel that I should weigh in on this. But please read on; you might be surprised. First a bit of my background. My PhD, or as the Austrians name it DrPhil, is on “German and English Philology.” My studies, research, and teaching ware primarily on the evolution of German, from the first available writings through the Middle Ages. German and English are so closely related that one can't be studied without the other. In the 4th century AD, a bishop Ulphilas/Wulfila (Greek/Gothic name, half Greek half Gothic) translated the New Testament into Gothic. Other than this, we have very little in writing from any of the Gothic tribes. When, centuries later, the Germans tried to translate the Bible, it took time and great effort. We know nothing about time time and effort of the Goths. As one can imagine, to translate something complicated into a language that doesn't have the terminology is a real task. I could go on and on about this, but the point I'd like to make here is as follows. One of the posters above mentioned Carl Sagan,, who is indeed a good read. I might add two others, the anthropologist Joseph Campbell and a German Theologian who had to flee the Nazis: Paul Tillich Campbell's books “Myths to Live by,' and “Hero With a Thousand Faces” help to understand what religion really is, and Tillich's “The Eternal Now.” points out what one of the posters above mentioned, namely that rally believing is hard work. The latter is available online. If you bring it up go to ch. 14: “In Thinking be Mature.. Here you will find a message to both believers and non-believers. Be patient! I'm almost finished. I also taught a humanities elective course, Germanic Mythology. One of the questions I kept asking myself: die the Germanics and Greek/Romans really, really REALLY believe that an Odin and a Thor or a Zeus and an Apollo existed? I might ask my Judeau Christian friends a similar question, I'd be very happy to participate on further discussion.
I agree with the Creator , the Almighty, Who Knows and Who Created Everything. His Word Clearly Says So Also. Here is one lawyers 'explanation' : "The true God we read of in the Bible is a perfect judge. He knows the hearts and minds of men. Our God searches the hearts of men—that is, he knows our every thought (Romans 8:27). God tries our hearts and our minds (Psalm 7:9). “The Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought” (1 Chronicles 28:9). God can look past the external distractions that so often mislead, and He looks directly into our hearts (1 Samuel 16:7). Because of God’s ability to know our thoughts, our motives, and the intents of our hearts, He is a perfect judge who will exact perfect judgment." ....... "I am an attorney. I make a living studying the law, applying the law, and helping my clients navigate the murky waters of the legal profession. Over the years practicing as an attorney, I have come across cases, legal maxims, rules of law, statutes, and experiences that remind me of subtle lessons that God has long ago passed on to us through His holy Word. It simply reminds me of the great wisdom and superiority of God and His ways. ." ....... ---------------------- "Copyright © 2011 Apologetics Press, Inc. All rights reserved. "We are happy to grant permission for items in the "Existence of God" section to be reproduced in part or in their entirety, as long as the following stipulations are observed: (1) Apologetics Press must be designated as the original publisher; (2) the specific Apologetics Press Web site URL must be noted; (3) the author’s name must remain attached to the materials; (4) textual alterations of any kind are strictly forbidden; (5) Some illustrations (e.g., photographs, charts, graphics, etc.) are not the intellectual property of Apologetics Press and as such cannot be reproduced from our site without consent from the person or organization that maintains those intellectual rights; (6) serialization of written material (e.g., running an article in several parts) is permitted, as long as the whole of the material is made available, without editing, in a reasonable length of time; (7) articles, excepting brief quotations, may not be offered for sale or included in items offered for sale; and (8) articles may be reproduced in electronic form for posting on Web sites pending they are not edited or altered from their original content and that credit is given to Apologetics Press, including the web location from which the articles were taken." "For catalog, samples, or further information, contact: Apologetics Press 230 Landmark Drive Montgomery, Alabama 36117 U.S.A." http://www.apologeticspress.org
I wish I understood German, so I could understand the song this lovely child & her father are singing. I hope you meant "agnostic" (one who doubts God's existence) rather than a full-on "atheist" (one who is certain there is no God). To rationally become an atheist (certain that there is no God), a person would have to prove a universal negative. To do that, a person would need to be : 1- able to see & recognize God, no matter what shape or dimension He is in, at any & every location in the universe. AND 2- able to simultaneously be present at every location in the universe, in case God wants to hide from view. To qualify for #1 above, one would need to be omnipotent. To qualify for #2 above, one would need to be omnipresent. However, omnipotence & omnipresence are attributes of God, not homo sapiens.
Some people believe in 'god' - 'money'. A dollar bill, they work for . Others for an idol. It is very popular . They're churhces promote this every day. Others believe 'nature' is a god. They might not be so long before they realize God Created 'nature', eh? But there is another god on earth. The god that is the prince of the power of the air. He is active, and his subjects are all deceived. Only a few believe in One True Almighty, Everlasting Creator. He lets everyone make their own choice, and they usually perish eternally. But everyone has one or another god they serve, or believe in, or don't know they serve. Even if it is their stomach.
WHAT . If you were true Christian I do not think you would ask that question.. there is but ONE GOD according to scripture .
There is One God, yes. That much is truth. Lon and others might believe in other gods, as they have posted at different times they do . On topic of this thread, that's why I was asking Lon, the OP, whether it was/is/ God , or some other god, he was or is asking about.
See his question in the op > And from his other posts he states he is a humanist (I think), thus, by definition, not believing nor trusting the One True God. Thus, what god is he asking about , the One True God, or some other ? I think some other poster asked if google is able to read his mind "know his every thought" , and some other posters have asked or posted various questions about other gods or idolatry, so asking Lon to clarify for this , his thread, seems on topic.
God always was, is and will be. He exists outside of time and place and also within time and place. He walks with all life, and is with and within us all. God forgives our mere mortal being, imho. ...by the light shined upon us....