Here's an interesting little interaction. My comments in red.
FROM FEMINISTGAL
I am an atheist, and the reason I'm an atheist is because I could never believe in such a cruel, sexist, homophobic god like the one presented in the bible. He is a hateful god, and for the most part the people who believe in him are hateful. The bible is full of hate for women and gays.
You'll have to be a little more specific. Could you cite from the Bible some of this hate for women and gays?
Well, the bible says to kill gays and that they're going to hell, doesn't it? Isn't that what anyone would consider hateful?
No...the Bible does not say to kill gays. When Moses gave God's law to the Jews, one of those laws stipulated death for any Jew engaging in homosexual relations. The law applied to the Jews at that time. It did not apply to Egyptians or Africans or anyone else - only to Jews who sought to worship and please Jehovah. But since the advent of Christ, things are considerably different. We no longer live under the law, but under the grace of God. Christ gives us forgiveness and mercy for our sins, if we will claim it.
The Bible DOES say that gays will go to hell if they will not repent of their sin. But I don't know what all the fuss is about that. It says the same thing to everyone. And there's certainly nothing hateful about it. "Please repent of your sins so you can live forever with Me in paradise." I can never understand how people see hate in that plea.
It's hateful because it's telling them to stop being who they are or else. It's like god's in the mafia or something. It's more like this: "Turn straight, or I'll throw you in hell." How can anyone see anything BUT hate in that?
I see...well, I think you're misunderstanding. Here's something I think might surprise you. God would never say "Turn straight, or I'll throw you in hell." Do you know why? Because it is an impossibility. On our own, we cannot turn away from our sins. Suppose I had an addiction. Do you suppose God would say "Stop drinking, or I'll throw you into hell" or "Stop gambling, or I'll throw you into hell"? Our hearts are always inclined toward sin, even if we can muster enough strength to stop physically committing a sin.
If you would read the Bible, you would find Jesus's main request of people was NOT that they stop sinning, but that they believe in Him. He wanted people to follow Him and make Him their Lord and Master. Why did He want that? The answer is throughout the Bible.
He wants us to live.
The Bible says the soul that sins will die, and that the wages of sin is death. It is a natural consequence of sin. Everyone of us has sinned. Everyone of us will die if we do not find a remedy to our sin. Jesus provided that remedy.
That's just fantasy.
That's the rub...either you believe what Christ says or you don't. If you don't, Christ says you will die in your sins and end up in hell. If you do, Christ says you will receive mercy and forgiveness for your sins and live eternally in heaven.
I just don't want some storybook character telling me who I can and cannot sleep with.
I don't really know of anyone who seriously thinks Jesus did not exist and was just a fictional character. There's a universe of evidence to the contrary, But it's your choice if you want to put your sexuality (which God gave you, by the way) above a relationship with God...and that choice has eternal consequences.
According to you.
No...according to Christ.
How do you know there's a god?
How do you know there isn't a God?
Your pathetic. You just can't face the realities of life, so you use this idea of an old guy in the sky as a crutch to help soothe your fears.
Pathetic? Crutch? lol, I'm afraid you think too highly of me and my abilities. I'm even less than pathetic, but Christ took pity on me. No, it's not a crutch; it's all-out life support. With Christ, I live. Without Him, I die.
Sad.
Oh, no...happy! Since I have Christ, I will live and not die. What's not happy about that?
I'll never understand how you christians can believe this crap.
Do you really want to know?
No.
I'd say that's a pretty strong reason why you'll never understand.
Goodbye, John.
So long. God bless.