/christianity/ - Christian Theology & Philosophy

Personally i didn't get into Christianity because of the promise of heaven, it was more for the wisdom and spiritual aspect of it.

>>11518

Those things we cannot know, philosophy can give us only so much certainty, our consolation is the testimony of the saints, prophets and sages. The unilateral traditions of pre-modern mankind that teaches it is so, not to forget near death out of body experiences and personal mystical experience.

No eternal life means no Christianity in any meaningful sense. Paul explicitly says this in 1 Corinthians 15:12-19. Feeling as though you wouldn't have faith in God if He didn't love you enough to save you from death is in fact the Biblical position. It doesn't make you a bad Christian.

>>11563

>Feeling as though you wouldn't have faith in God if He didn't love you enough to save you from death is in fact the Biblical position.

I don't think that this follows from 1 Cor. 15:12-19. Ap. Paul says that if Christ has not been raised from the dead, then our faith would be in vain and we would be in our sins. But this doesn't mean it is ok to think you would have faith in God if He didn't love you.

Of course, it is pointless to even imagine situations when God doesn't love us. Because God is love and he loves everyone and he desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. Nevertheless, the proper relations between us and God is are somewhat analogous to the proper relations between a husband and wife. (Ephes. 5:24) And we, being imperfect and sinful people, can never have perfect relations between ourselves, at least not in this life. So if we project the statement that it would be ok to have no faith in God if God didn't love us to the case of a husband and a wife, we can conclude that a wife of a bad husband has no obligations to him and a husband of a bad wife has no obligations to her. But is this so? Well yes, according to the human law this is so. But not according to the God's law. (1 Cor. 7:10)

It is a useless question. Kind of like asking, "Would you believe in God if God weren't God?" Asking this kind of question invites atheistic thoughts – it begins at the assumption that Christianity is not the truth and must be advertised in order to win converts. Plenty of religious philosophies were and are believed without the promise of paradise. The existence of paradise in the one true religion is not suspect. It is logically derived from the existence of God and the universe. In other words, it is exactly what we should expect.

>>11574

>Plenty of religious philosophies were and are believed without the promise of paradise.

can anyone expend on that?

Your question is basically:

>If God wasn't omni-benevolent, could you still believe in Him?

Maybe we wouldn't love Him as much as we do, but provided He still provided us with divine revelation, we would still believe in Him if we loved truth.

>>11518

>If paradise was never a thing, would faith in God still be possible?

Yes, the situation the old testament era saints were in, going to a special place in hell as described in 1 peter 3:19-20 and Luke 16:22-26 Note how in Luke it is never stated the description of hell/prison is a parable or proverb until after Jesus' death on the cross due to a longer Bible study I can give if you care, still meant they could have faith because of the prerequisite to faith defined in romans 10:16-17

>But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?

>So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

The word of God is a prerequisite to faith, without it there is no faith as defined by the Bible as you won't hear and can't bear fruit. One of those fruits of the Spirit in galatians 5:22 being faith.

>I'm not sure I would be christian if there was no life after death.

Think of it this way, physical death is not true death, it is reversable see Jesus and Lazarus for proof. But spiritual death in revelation 20:10,13-14 is irreversable and no one ever gets out of eternal death.

>>11518

Faith is the act of trust. You drive over a bridge having faith it isn't going to collapse and kill you. You take it for granted.

So no special reward is required to have faith in something.

Faith in God is a connection to the unknown, a trust that there is something greater that cares directly about you. Religion provides a context for the faith, acting as a crutch for the intellect. But ultimately everything goes to the cross to die, in order for the new to be born.

>>11518

Immortality is niether neccessary nor sufficient for meaning, value, purpose, or significance. God is. A relationship with God is valuable even if I am annihilated at death.

This is kind of a pointless question though, as I don't think God would make beings like ourselves without also giving them the invitation for continued existence with Him.