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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]
It sounds like you have trouble thinking that God would condemn good people of other faiths to hell, so you've found a way to rationalize a way they can be spared that fate.[/quote]
Jesus's disciples would sometimes say, after a tough lesson, "This is a hard saying. Who can accept it?" But something being difficult to accept doesn't make it not true. The PP correctly looks to Scripture to answer his question for a hard saying. And I don't want to put words in PP's mouth, but I read "to partially be able to live with this" to mean that this passage wasn't the totality of PP's basis for believing it, not that it's not believable. But even the hard things require some faith. God rewards those who believe Him, and this goes for the good, easy stuff and the good but harder stuff equally.

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The PP, and thank you, yes that is what I meant. Following Jesus does require swallowing some pills that can be hard to go down. As a minister once told me, we have to learn to not only live with, but to grow in, that "tension."  It is a fascinating process. [b]And yes, Mulisma, from several posts above, Jesus is the answer for you too. I pray that one day you will discover that[/b].[/quote]

And what happens to her if she doesn't discover that Jesus is the answer?[/quote]

But she will! Sorry if that sounds flip, but if Jesus' message is true -- and it is -- then it is true for everyone. You, Muslima, all of DCUM, etc. Now to be clear: this does not mean that one simply saying, Hey Jesus, if you're real, prove it to me, and waiting for the lightening bolt to wrap this up neatly in the next 2 hours. I believe that we must truly be seeking and get ourselves out of the way first, for God to work in our lives. Giving up that much-revered personal agenda can be hard and is a struggle in and of itself.[/quote]

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Are you saying that you think that even people who have lived their lives as devout practitioners of another religion will accept Jesus sometime before they die and thus receive the reward  of eternal life promised by Christianity?
[/quote]

No, not at all. I am saying that true seekers will inevitably be led to Christ, because He alone is the Truth and the Way to God. But many do reject this, for whatever reason, convinced that they will find some other happiness or salvation outside of him. God does give us free choice.[/quote]

So if people aren't inevitably led to Christ, it's because they were not true seekers?  Is a true seeker by default anyone who is led to Christ, and if someone is not led to Christ, does that mean they are doing something wrong, even if they tried to believe and it just didn't make sense to them?[/quote]

See, this is what is so hard to explain to non-believers (and I mean that with all respect); even our language is different! You don't discover God through Christ by "trying to believe." You don't just sit down one day and say, OK, I'm going to believe. Believe. Believe. Believe! As if you are trying to talk yourself into something that doesn't make sense. A true seeker is anyone who sincerely seeks the truth (like I am, and it sounds like you may be open to) and is -- this is important -- willing to put aside his/ her personal agenda/ biases/ political convictions, whatever -- to honestly look for God and to allow Him to work in our life. (Jesus did basically say, leave it all behind and follow me.) Yes, that is a tall order, and something that I for one fail at on a regular basis.

And at that point, what do you do? You do exactly what you are doing now. You start asking questions -- lots of them, preferably to learned people  who are theologically grounded in the word of God. You can read some great books -- I highly recommend C.S. Lewis, for example, and G.K. Chesterton. They are fantastic writers of the last century who not only understand this human struggle, but have a gift for putting it into words.  You pray -- sincerely, often, and more than once -- asking God to reveal himself to you. You find others to associate with, preferably at a church that teaches the Bible, as Jesus preaches over and over about the need to worship God in community. This is not a journey that is meant to be taken alone! And then you pay attention and listen and open yourself to seeing things in new ways. For me, one instance that I remember clearly was when I was studying cellular biology in college. I was simply overwhelmed by seeing up close the miracle of life that God has created. It led me to a whole career of study in science and I am continually awed by it.

Oh, and perhaps most important, you read the Bible. Start with the Gospels of the New Testament. Ask God to teach you something about yourself. I predict you will be amazed![/quote]
I would like to second this PP's thoughts. I hope he or she won't mind. Jesus in Mark 1:15 said, "Repent and [i]believe[/i] the Gospel." (My emphasis) Repenting is putting aside your previous ideas how to save yourself and believing God. Romans 1:18-20 says that God has revealed Himself through His creation, and many of us reject this revelation and instead "hold the truth in unrighteousness." Basically, it says we don't seek God because we want to define our own way. In Isaiah 1:18, God says, "Let us reason together, though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow." This means that God is willing to reason with you, and that you need to confess to God that you sin and you're unworthy of Him. And Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God. God requires that you believe Him, that He is who He says He is, that you're a sinner, and His son Jesus Christ died for you. If, as the PP says, you are truly seeking God and seeking truth, you will find Christ. But if you're just trying to be "spiritual" and do find whatever path you think leads to God, you probably won't.[/quote]

All this presumes thinking that the Bible is an authority.  If people don't think there's a reason to accept the Bible's authority, then directly them to bible verses is not very useful.[/quote]

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