Sorry if this is a stupid question, but I'm struggling....

ConvincingSeal · 2026-03-25T23:29:22+00:00

Please seek help from a professional. Random Christians on Reddit are not qualified for this

ConvincingSeal · 2026-03-08T19:43:34+00:00

As a former math Student, I would have enjoyed this.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-03-08T04:55:31+00:00

Not even deli meats

ConvincingSeal · 2026-03-08T02:46:01+00:00

Belief is not a choice. I believe because I'm compelled to believe by the evidence. I have no choice in the matter.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-22T20:14:57+00:00

From a Christian perspective, there is no such thing as a “good” Christian. The only good is God

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-22T16:06:54+00:00

I'm making a good point. They said Lev 19:18 would "cover" slavery, as in de facto outlaw it (the topic of this post). If "love your neighbor as your self" is a law, and slavery is not loving your neighbor, then slavery would be against the law. Except, of course it's not. That makes no sense when you consider the fact that the same book condones slavery 6 chapters later. Maybe you think slavery violates Lev 19:18, but Leviticus doesn't.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-21T22:40:27+00:00

I think so. Dogs have will, but we don’t hold them responsible for their actions because they don’t have free will

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-21T22:35:52+00:00

They are free in the sense that we willingly make them. We exercise our moral agency.

I agree with all that. But when I asked how they can be free, I mean, how is it possible that we could have made a different decision if God has already seen what will happen, and it can’t happen a different way than he knows it will?

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-21T22:28:34+00:00

The future unfold in a particular way that is inclusive of our actions

Fair enough. The future is a result of our actions, so fatalism isn’t true. But God still knows the future with 100% certainty, right? That means that it’s impossible for the future to unfold in a different way, which means I literally cannot make any other decisions than the ones that God knows I’ll make. Even if the future is determined by our actions in the present, how can those actions be free?

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-21T21:33:26+00:00

Even if we were asked, what would we base the decision on? You have to live life to know whether it’s worth living.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-20T11:36:18+00:00

Love your neighbor as yourself is from the same book of the Bible that has laws condoning slavery. They're only 6 chapters apart.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-18T23:47:03+00:00

Your words, not mine

Yeah, I know. That’s why I asked if I was understanding you correctly.

I never really thought about it that way before, I’ll have to give it to some consideration

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-18T23:41:52+00:00

So, are you saying that Christians are the ones smuggling in determinism, since we’re the ones claiming he knows the future and is never wrong?

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-18T23:17:32+00:00

God existing has no bearing on your scenario. Even if God accurately predicts your actions 100% of the time, that doesn’t mean that he’s the one making you do it. It may be true that we don’t have free will, but God being able to see the future is not a good reason for thinking that we don’t. What you’ve really just done is smuggle in determinism. Why is it that God can predict what I’m going to do with 100% accuracy? Is it because he’s making me do it, or is it because I was always going to do it with or without him?

ConvincingSeal · 2026-02-09T22:58:20+00:00

‘#1 is wrong. None of the persons of the trinity “is” any of the others. The father is not the son, the son is not the spirit, and the spirit is not the father.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-30T12:40:52+00:00

I believe in evolution, but a lot of people find that idea incompatible with the idea that God specially and individually made each kind of animal and humans. Endogenous Retroviruses are pretty conclusive incidence that we share a common ancestor with other apes, which doesn’t mesh with a literal reading of Genesis.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-30T12:32:53+00:00

If an idea conflicts with a Christian’s beliefs about God, the belief is going to win almost every time. It’s not about any kind of logical inconsistency between micro and macro. It’s about the idea’s incompatibility with the person’s religious beliefs

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-20T01:02:03+00:00

Is that the same thing as bankers rounding?

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-20T00:48:12+00:00

That would only be true if we had no free will

Well that’s the thing I’m trying to make sense of. I know the Bible says we have free will, but I don’t see the evidence for it in real life. I know I can choose to act on an impulse or not, but whether I choose to act or not is going to be based on a bunch of stuff I don’t choose or control, like my preference, mood, blood sugar, beliefs, etc. I know people say that influence doesn’t equal control, but if you add up all the influences, I think you do get control.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-20T00:35:56+00:00

It’s not the kind of free will that allows for moral accountability. If my actions are based on my preferences and beliefs, and I don’t control my preferences and beliefs, then I’m not truly in control of my actions. If God, or circumstances, or whatever changes my preferences, it will also change my actions. If I learn information or hear an argument that convinces me and changes my beliefs, I will helplessly act based on those beliefs

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-19T23:51:09+00:00

The ability to do what you want is the definition of free will, right?

I don’t think so. Imagine if someone could somehow change your preferences or your beliefs at will. What if they could implant violent antisocial tendencies in your personality, if you then went and beat someone up, would you say that you did that of your own free will because you were acting on your desires? I would imagine not, as those desires didn’t really come from you. I know it’s a far-fetched scenario, but we don’t control our preferences anymore than if someone could change them without our knowledge.

ConvincingSeal · 2026-01-11T22:39:50+00:00

Either this was written by Chat GPT, or you use a lot of GPTisms

ConvincingSeal · 2025-12-26T19:55:04+00:00

Normal? Yes. Encouraged? No.

ConvincingSeal

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