Unless you are the wrong kind of Christian, in which case you are a heathen and get burned at the stake.

>> ^shinyblurry:

To be born again isn't a cultural thing within the Christian community. This is what Jesus said:
"There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again"
So, to be born again is to be reborn in the spirit. This is total transformation:
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
Ezekiel 36:26
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
This is the basic truth of Christianity, that to know Christ is to be born again as a new person, receiving the Spirit of the living God, to mold you and guide you in the ways of righteousness. Some people on the very day it happens will give up worldly habits instantly that they have had for decades. It all depends on the work of the Holy Spirit, who is the One who convicts us of our sins and shapes hearts and minds.

To be born again isn't a cultural thing within the Christian community. This is what Jesus said:

"There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again"

So, to be born again is to be reborn in the spirit. This is total transformation:

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

Ezekiel 36:26

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

This is the basic truth of Christianity, that to know Christ is to be born again as a new person, receiving the Spirit of the living God, to mold you and guide you in the ways of righteousness. Some people on the very day it happens will give up worldly habits instantly that they have had for decades. It all depends on the work of the Holy Spirit, who is the One who convicts us of our sins and shapes hearts and minds.

God does change man, but He doesn't force man to change. When you become a Christian, you receive the Holy Spirit and become a new creation, reborn in the spirit. That is what it means to be born again. So, we start over with a nature to do good rather than evil.

1 Corinthians 15:54

When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory."

God prefers us to have the choice over eliminating evil by forcing us to obey Him. I think that if He did that in itself would be evil and immoral. I also believe this is because love is an act of will, and we will only obey God if we love Him. If He forced us to obey, it wouldn't be love.


>> ^gwiz665:
But God could change man, so there were no evil on earth - like there is in heaven. Why doesn't he make earth heaven too? If he's all powerful, he certainly could, but he chooses not to. That means he's letting us live in a world with evil, and evil he know about and that he could change if he wanted to - that makes him evil too.
>> ^shinyblurry:
Man is the cause of the evil so that doesn't follow
>> ^kir_mokum:
i would propose that if God exists and there is evil in the world then god is evil.

How do you know your god is the right one if you rely on faith?

Because He responds by direct revelation. He lets you know He exists, and who He is. It's not however like He is always standing in front of you..you have to faith day by day..a bit like a family member who went off to another country that has no lines of communication. You have no way of seeing them but you have faith that they're still alive and having fun on planet Earth.

Your analogy suggests that the evidence for god is all around us, what evidence, specifically, are you pointing to?

Romans 1:20 says this

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

Personally, I can attest to this truth. I had seen Gods attributes, His power and divine love namely, all my life..I had the puzzle pieces but not the picture. It's only when I found out God is real that they all fell into place.

How do you know you're pleasing god so that the evidence will be forthcoming as you suggest?

The main sign of living a life pleasing to God is the transformative power of the Holy Spirit. When you live without sinning, you are spiritually purified. In Christ, you are a new creation. You die to your carnal, worldly self and are reborn in the Spirit. The evidence is in your own behavior, internally and externally. Myself, I have been utterly transformed..still have a long way to go obviously, but I am quantifiably better than I was before, in every way. He lets you know in other ways but this is the main evidence.

How do you know what is the will of god if the very nature of god and his decisions is mysterious and beyond our understanding?

Because He stoops to our level and lets us know personally.

The bible is flawed horrendously before you go to that easy answer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cK3Ry_icJo&playnext=1&list=PL80294485C9139857

debunked: http://bible.org/article/gospel-according-bart

No, not everyone does that. Some people follow it to the letter. You decided you didn't want to do that, so you equivilcated. Yes, it does very much matter if He was God or not. There is no middle ground here..

If you think Jesus was just a man, then He was insane, or a liar, and His teachings were foolish. None of it was how to be a good person, He was showing us how to live a life pleasing to God. Which means dying to your worldly self and being reborn in the spirit. He said no one is good, not even one. He was talking about you, too.

>> ^Jinx:
People, on the whole, picknmix what they want to believe. I'd wager you chose to live your life according to the teachings of Jesus because those teachings made sense to you and not because you think he is the son of god. Perhaps I am wrong. Either way, my journy from being a Christian through Agnostic to Athiest was made because I realised I chose the things I wanted to believe in the bible based on my own life experience, and that these morals and teachings could have legitimacy for me without this divine attachment.
Either you believe everything in those holy texts in their entirity or you do not. Everybody repurposes holy scripture to fit the mould of their lives, and by calling themselves christian or muslim they only lend power and legitimacy to what I can only describe as a cult. Why can't you believe what you believe seperate of a church? Why do you need these teachings to come from the Son of God. If you believe they are right and true what does it matter whether it comes from God or mere Human?

Well, I am not sure how else to describe it. My third eye chakra was opened and my energy system changed to a different voltage. It was a whole body thing, it wasn't in my mind.

I don't like to tell people about this because it leads to esoteric knowledge but..I can see through my third eye with my eyes closed. Not all the time, but occassionally. It wasn't me imagining things..it was me being transformed by the power of God. My eyes were opened. The bible talks about this here:

Matthew 6:22-23

"The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!"

In regards to your Christian experience..I'll tell you what I tell every other ex-Christian..

John 6:39

And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.

Your problem is you didn't actually do what God told you to do. You were a kid, you didn't understand, fine..Now you're old enough to know. Are you content to lean on the reasoning of a child? You say God reveal yourself to me! What amazing arrogance. Why don't you try doing what God told you to do first? Then ask God to show you He is real.


>> ^MaxWilder:
Well, that explains a lot. You must understand that from our perspective, you've simply flipped your lid. You had a "kundalini awakening" and you think that is rational and logical? Again we are back to differences of opinion in regards to the definitions of words.
Let me tell you, in brief, that I did not abandon God. He abandoned me. I was raised Christian. I believed when I was younger. But the older I got, the more I thought about God and religion, heaven and hell, scripture and prophets... the more I realized how much it was all crap. Piece by piece, the lies that had been the foundation of my spiritual life became evident. I went from believer, to questioner, to skeptic, to atheist of the course of many years and many prayers.
But you think you can convince people? Even, hypothetically, if your experience is completely and truly God entering your life and revealing Himself, what reason could he possibly have for withholding that revelation from the rest of us?
I will say right here and now, I welcome God to reveal himself to me!
But you know what? It won't happen. Because the truth is that even if God was real, for some reason he won't simply let everybody know. He has to remain behind the curtain, condemning souls to eternal damnation for having the audacity to be curious and skeptical and logical. That's repulsive.
I'll give you the only version of spirituality that makes ANY sense. Whatever happens to us after we die, it happens to all of us the same. Either we simply cease to exist, or we are reborn, or we all ascend to some other plane of existence. Because anything else, especially the Christian view of "salvation", is so repulsively unfair that it is gonna take waaaay more than a few ancient words to convince me that a loving God could ever allow a human being to be condemned in that way. For simply failing to believe? In a world with so many lies, so much deceit, so many charlatans that just want to use our money and obedience for their own selfishness... we're supposed to sift through thousands of possible religions and pick the ONE that gives us a Get Out Of Hell Free card? It's patently absurd.
So I say again. God, if you exist, you gave me a sharp mind. You made me logical. You made me skeptical. You put me in this world full of lies. If you want my faith and love, you have some explaining to do.
The God of the Bible is an invention by frightened and ignorant savages. Every other religion has a similar origin. If God wants me to believe different, He can tell me himself. I'm all ears.

Well, that explains a lot. You must understand that from our perspective, you've simply flipped your lid. You had a "kundalini awakening" and you think that is rational and logical? Again we are back to differences of opinion in regards to the definitions of words.

Let me tell you, in brief, that I did not abandon God. He abandoned me. I was raised Christian. I believed when I was younger. But the older I got, the more I thought about God and religion, heaven and hell, scripture and prophets... the more I realized how much it was all crap. Piece by piece, the lies that had been the foundation of my spiritual life became evident. I went from believer, to questioner, to skeptic, to atheist of the course of many years and many prayers.

But you think you can convince people? Even, hypothetically, if your experience is completely and truly God entering your life and revealing Himself, what reason could he possibly have for withholding that revelation from the rest of us?

I will say right here and now, I welcome God to reveal himself to me!

But you know what? It won't happen. Because the truth is that even if God was real, for some reason he won't simply let everybody know. He has to remain behind the curtain, condemning souls to eternal damnation for having the audacity to be curious and skeptical and logical. That's repulsive.

I'll give you the only version of spirituality that makes ANY sense. Whatever happens to us after we die, it happens to all of us the same. Either we simply cease to exist, or we are reborn, or we all ascend to some other plane of existence. Because anything else, especially the Christian view of "salvation", is so repulsively unfair that it is gonna take waaaay more than a few ancient words to convince me that a loving God could ever allow a human being to be condemned in that way. For simply failing to believe? In a world with so many lies, so much deceit, so many charlatans that just want to use our money and obedience for their own selfishness... we're supposed to sift through thousands of possible religions and pick the ONE that gives us a Get Out Of Hell Free card? It's patently absurd.

So I say again. God, if you exist, you gave me a sharp mind. You made me logical. You made me skeptical. You put me in this world full of lies. If you want my faith and love, you have some explaining to do.

The God of the Bible is an invention by frightened and ignorant savages. Every other religion has a similar origin. If God wants me to believe different, He can tell me himself. I'm all ears.

pushin the big D..need a vote plz=)
http://videosift.com/video/V-for-Vendetta-evey-reborn-movie-scene

The joker reborn at 2:15, he appears briefly and waves to the camera

>> ^dag:

Maybe,
But I suspect that the rational wonder you describe is like decaf coffee. To get the jolt of physiological benefits- you need real faith- to let go and let God. It’s the relinquishing of personal control for the outcomes in your life that brings on the bliss.

I disagree with your opinion. I look at someone like Richard Feynman with that fervent passion for life which shows in all the videos here and you see someone that definitely wasn't drinking decaf. An argument could be made that people like him are the exception, but I don't think that is the case.

Of course it is different for everyone, right? I was raised in a very strong Roman Catholic house and my parents have become more and more fundamentalist as they have become older. It is disturbing to me as I fall into the rather large "non-practicing Roman Catholic" group, but they do have a large group of friends from the church. I can see how their faith and religion connects them. But it is just one string of connection. That string is thick for them because it is something that is so important to them. So passionate for them.

I'm passionate about compassion and fairness, among other things. I have atheist, catholics, christians, reborn christians (actually only one because most are fake), buddhist, shamanistic, etc... friends because of our shared passion for compassion and fairness. Religion is the race of passions - i.e. it is very easy to "see" and then involuntarily or voluntarily push those people into our predefined groups.

I admit that I think being in a religious group is a good ice breaker in bringing people together. In that regard, I do agree with you; however, it is just about finding those other passion connectors. This has been hard for me since I'm a budding recluse, but that avenue is still there and the friends that I have made haven't been from any religious connection. Now in society I can find other people with my passions in a large city or somewhere on the internet. There are more avenues to find like-minded people. It's hard to sift through, but they exist.

In closing - I live in a majestic area. Water and a couple of mountain ranges on the horizons. When I sit down looking at the water with the mountains beyond and the cumulus nimbus clouds racing across the sky, a warm wondrous feeling consumes me. I'm not thinking about God at all. And I can assure you that it isn't decaf.

>> ^fjules:

Nobody will upvote because girl is not pretty and videosifters only think with their dicks. I will not upvote for another reason - she reminds me of hippies.


Lots of people look like hippies nowadays, it's some kind of reborn fashion thing.

Anyway, to me the point is the music, not how she looks.

>> ^joedirt:

protip: the internet isn't like your library or your church or your grocery store.
Look at all the lemonparty and pr0n and trolls. THey were here before you so GTFO. The simple rule is don't feed the trolls. This post is soooo fucking awesome, it makes trolling worth it for thousands of people. This might be a mecca for trolls to come and read and make life worth living again.
Any troll on the internet who is getting bored should come and read this post and be reborn anew. Thank you danny m seriously tasty tasty tears.


No tears from me - troll away, just don't try to take the moral high ground by excusing it. Get some balls and take responsibility.

But i'm not sure you're qualified to take part in this conversation if you didn't understand that.

protip: the internet isn't like your library or your church or your grocery store.

Look at all the lemonparty and pr0n and trolls. THey were here before you so GTFO. The simple rule is don't feed the trolls. This post is soooo fucking awesome, it makes trolling worth it for thousands of people. This might be a mecca for trolls to come and read and make life worth living again.

Any troll on the internet who is getting bored should come and read this post and be reborn anew. Thank you danny m seriously tasty tasty tears.

An old woman hundred years ago born,
using her iPad felt completely reborn.
She had some good times,
and composed with it rhymes.
Now watches she very much porn.

http://lyrics.wikia.com/Damien_Rice:I_Remember

I remember it well, the first time that I saw
Your head 'round the door 'cause mine stopped working
I remember it well, there was wet in your hair
I was stood in the stair and time stopped moving

I want you here, tonight I want you here
'Cause I can't believe what I found
I want you here tonight, want you here
Nothing is taking me down, down, down

I remember it well, taxied out in the storm
To watch you perform and my ships were sailing
I remember it well, I was stood in your line
And your mouth, your mouth, your mind

Want you here tonight, want you here
'Cause I can't believe what I found
I want you here tonight, want you here
Nothing is taking me down, down, down
'Cept you my love
'Cept you my love

Come all ye lost
Dive into moss
And hope that my sanity covers the cost
To remove the stain of my love
Paper mache

Come all ye reborn
Blow off my horn
I'm driving real hard
This is love, this is porn
God would forgive me
But I, I whip myself scorn, scorn

And I wanna hear what you have to say about me
Hear if you're gonna live without me
I wanna hear what you want
I remember December

And I wanna hear what you have to say about me
Hear if you're gonna live without me
I wanna hear what you want
What the hell do you want?