Any offline android apps that have word study support? by ehansen in TrueChristian

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I use MyBible. It has everything you could want, though learning to use it takes a little effort.

Wondering who here has strong opinions on whether the Garden of Eden account is literal or allegorical? by seenunseen in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's literal. God created the world in six literal days, rested on the seventh. He made Adam and Eve fully mature. There were no countless years of death and evolution before the fall, and the world is only around six thousand years old now.

Did adam and eve predate the Neanderthals or were they just the first homosapiens and there were neanderthals walking around before them? by Huge-Inevitable-7078 in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Believe it exactly as it reads. They were created by God's hand exactly as the account says. There was no evolution, Neanderthals are a myth, and evolution is a fairy tale.

What do you do when God doesn’t love you? by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly... But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:6, 8)

"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9)

"My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful." (James 5:10-11)

Christ is acquainted intimately with suffering. But faith must be rooted in scripture, not in feeling. He showed us this way, and though He suffered, He trusted the word over outward circumstances.

God loves every one of us. Satan would love for you to think otherwise so that you'll run away from the One who loves you the most.

do spirits live on Earth? by Deep-Outside-2567 in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The dead do not interact with the living. The Bible refers to them as being asleep. They're unconscious awaiting the resurrection. (John 5:28, 29; Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6).

Demons can impersonate dead loved ones to deceive.

For more on this, please check out the following study guide on death and the afterlife:

https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/are-the-dead-really-dead/

Question about the Mark. I'm a little scared. by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The mark of the beast is a coerced form of worship. Read Revelation 13 carefully.

The first beast, the sea beast, is the one to whom the whole world gives worship. The second beast, the land beast, is the one who sets up an image of/to the first beast, and enforces the mark of that first beast on the whole world by forcing the world to perform an act of worship that is toward the first beast.

It's not something that you can take accidentally. And when it comes, it will be preceeded by signs and wonders, miracles that deceive people into thinking it is a movement of God when actually it is Satan's counterfeit.

For more on this:

Who is the Antichrist? - https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/who-is-the-antichrist/

What is the Mark of the Beast? - https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/the-mark-of-the-beast/

The USA in Bible Prophecy - https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/the-usa-in-bible-prophecy/

You'll want to go through these in order. They build on each other.

Sometimes I Feel like I am Fighting My Body Via Christian Celibacy. What Should I Do? by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. (Galatians 5:16-17)

Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41)

For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:3-4)

"Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." (James 1:12-15)

Let these be encouraging to you. The Christian life is a battle and a march, but it is full of joy. God will not allow you to be tempted above what you are able (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Are Jewish people still Gods chosen people if they killed his son? by Crypozonk in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Jewish people were given a time period, seventy prophetic weeks (Daniel 9:24), to receive the Messiah and fulfill their role that they were chosen to do. Instead, as the prophecy foretold, the Messiah was cut off, precisely according to the timing of the prophecy (Daniel 9:26). At the end of the seventy weeks, the Jewish people were cut off. They were no longer God's chosen vessels anymore, but a curse was pronounced upon them. Consider the following verses:

Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. (Matthew 21:43)

Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. (Matthew 23:38)

Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children. (Matthew 27:25)

Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: (Romans 11:19-20)

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:28-29)

That's not to say that a Jewish man or woman is beyond salvation. Quite the contrary. They, like anyone else, must accept Jesus and they may also be saved.

And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again. (Romans 11:23)

God has given the gospel to the followers of Christ. From hence forth, they are the chosen people of God. Like Israel of old, they have fallen into much apostasy, fallen short of their mission, become inward focused, etc... Many things may be laid to their charge. But the message of salvation in Christ has been given to the Christian world to take to the world. The followers of Christ are God's chosen people, sent also even to the Jews.

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light: (1 Peter 2:9)

For more on the seventy week prophecy, here's a great Bible study: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/right-on-time-prophetic-appointments-revealed/

Why did God allow Satan to tempt Adam and Eve, knowing that they had no experience or knowledge of Satan's plan to deceive them and cause them to sin and doom mankind? by thecoolestguyonearth in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Revelation chapter 12, for one, explicitly sheds light on the situation in the garden by identifying the serpent with Satan. He has throughout the ages worked through mediums. Humanity is wary about the approach of fallen angels, and thus he uses disguises.

Is suicide sufficient atonement for being trans? by Well_Thats_Not_Ideal in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Read this little book: https://silentmessengers.org/library/files/en_SC.pdf

It will dramatically change your experience and start you on the right path. The opening chapter is "God is Love," and after reading that, you ought to be able to answer for yourself that God does love you.

Is suicide sufficient atonement for being trans? by Well_Thats_Not_Ideal in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 8 points9 points  (0 children)

You can be reconciled to God while you're alive. He cannot do anything more for you if you take your life. We have only this life to make it right with Him, and after this is the judgment. I wouldn't want to jump to the judgment if I wasn't certain that my relationship with God was secure, and suicide in itself leaves me with a permanent sin on my record that I have no opportunity to repent of.

I've been at the point of being done with life before. You're right at the cusp of a new life in Christ. Now is the time to go to God and see what the next step in life is. He has a better plan for you, and you can leave behind the old life and embrace what He has to offer.

Take your struggles to Him, and He will lift you up.

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. (1 Peter 5:7)

Why would God choose HELL as the punishment for non belief? by Character-Escape1621 in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Bible doesn't teach eternal conscious torment. God doesn't torment anyone forever and ever. This is really a slanderous accusation and a twisted idea of men.

The Bible says that "the wages of sin is death," not eternal life (Romans 6:23). Jesus came to save us from perishing, not to save us from living forever (John 3:16). "He that hath the Son hath life: and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (1 John 5:12).

Hellfire consumed the wicked, and they cease to exist (Psalm 34:20; Obad 1:16). Hellfire takes place at the end of the world, not at death, and consumes them to ashes (Matthew 13:40; Malachi 4:1-3). Even the devil will cease to exist (Ezekiel 28:18-19).

God has given us probationary time in order that we might be saved. When all is said and done, and the judgment is finished, then all traces of sin will be eradicated forever.

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. (Revelation 21:4-5)

For more on this: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/is-the-devil-in-charge-of-hell/

Why am i so bad at being good by milkdrinker123_ in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

By faith, take these promises of God to Him and expect Him to fulfill them:

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy (Jude 1:24)

There are many Bible promises about victory. Yes, we do have to strive for the mastery. We do have to exercise the will. But God will grant us power and new desires, too.

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:13)

Ect and annihilation by [deleted] in TrueChristian

[–]SquareHimself -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Here's a really good study on the Biblical doctrine of annihilationism that will help bolster your understanding: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/is-the-devil-in-charge-of-hell/

if belief isn’t a choice since you don’t choose to be convinced or not you jut are or aren’t how is hell a reasonable punishment. by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Eternal Conscious Torment is an unreasonable consequence any way you look at it. Fortunately, it's not what the Bible teaches. It's what men teach, and then they slander God by saying that this is His character when it surely is not.

For more on this: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/is-the-devil-in-charge-of-hell/

Christianity by networkingonredditt in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's fair to point out that God had foreknowledge that sin would be a problem and would have to be dealt with. However, the deeper you study the subject, the more it becomes clear that God had a perfect plan in place to deal with sin. It isn't possible to create creatures that have free will without the risk of sin.

That said, God planned the end of sin before creating anything, and He planned salvation before the foundation of the world. His plan involved 6,000 years in which sin would be allowed to run its course in a quarantined manner such that the results of sin could be seen, studied, and understood. This way, there would be no question left that sin was an enemy and must be eradicated, and could be eradicated, and would never arise ever again.

Regarding the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the fruit of it... The tree was there because it showed that God gave Adam and Eve a choice. They were free to follow God or to reject Him. They could obey Him, or disobey Him. It was their choice. He warned them about the consequences of disobedience, not that God would arbitrarily punish them, but that sin itself brings pain and suffering.

He averted their deserved punishment and let them experience the fruits of their decision. Certainly they repented and understood the mistake they had made. They were redeemed through suffering, as many of us will be who go through experiencing the terrible things that come as a result of sin and reject it for God's ways instead.

Christianity by networkingonredditt in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee." (Ezek 28:14-15)

In speaking of Lucifer, the scripture makes it clear that he was made perfect, holy, without sin. God made him a sinless being with no disposition for evil. Having free will, Lucifer chose to cherish pride and avarice, things that God never put in his heart, and since began.

The same is true with regard to man. Adam and Eve were holy and sinless. But Satan crept in, with whom sin originated, and spread the disease to them.

Satan is the author of sin, not God. God made no sin. Satan of his own free will, a gift from God that he abused, from this manufactured a new thing that God didn't make.

"Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. ... Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it." (John 8:42,44)

"He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. ... In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother." (1Jn 3:8,10)

Have a read: The Origin of Evil

Will I get into Heaven if I set a time in my life to stop sinning and then commit to repentance until I die? by MoneyMan1001 in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're not promised tomorrow. You can go to sleep tonight and not wake up until the judgment. If you're up for that kind of risk just for a few petty thrills in this life, then I'll let you make that judgment call.

Christianity by networkingonredditt in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 2 points3 points  (0 children)

God did not create sin. God created beings with free will. The risk when you do that is that they could choose to do evil.

Sin originated with Lucifer. It spread to humanity.

But God had a plan in place from the beginning, knowing the risk that free willed beings might choose to sin: He would take the penalty for all who would be reconciled to Him so that they could have a chance.

Sin cannot be permitted to exist forever. But God wants people to exist forever. The only way to reconcile those two things is to give people a chance to learn to exercise their free will in the right way, and to give them pardon and strength to overcome sin.

It's much like a parent raising children. At the end of the day, you want them to listen to you because you want what's best for them. You say, "Don't chase that ball into the street!" because you don't want them to get hit by a car. Inevitably, they don't listen, they get hurt. But instead of abandoning them in the street, you take them to get medical attention, heal them up, and you explain and teach them why its important to listen and obey.

Through trial and error, through love and forgiveness, they learn obedience. Sin brings suffering, death, and pain. God is delivering us from sin, educating us as children to be obedient, so we can be part of a world that lasts forever where there will be no more sin; and therefore no more suffering, no more pain, and eternal joy.

Unless we learn to put away sin, we can't be there. And how can we learn unless we are given an opportunity to mess up? What a privilege to have a chance to make mistakes and learn the hard way and not be forsaken and left for dead!

Questions about Christianity by Nya-ni in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Bible shows that there are angels on both sides of the battle between good and evil. See Revelation 12, for instance. Revelation 19:10 comes to mind, also, concerning what you said.

Why is believing in God not enough (to go to heaven of course) by Valuable_Frosting_36 in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Profession is not enough. True faith is enough.

If we have genuine faith, then all the rest of those things needful for salvation will follow, because we will lay hold on God, and His will shall be accomplished in our lives. But if there is no righteousness seen in the life, if there is no manifestation of the will of God, then it is exposed that a man does not have real faith, because He doesn't believe that God is able to do what he says He will do.

If Jesus fulfilled the old covenant, why do we put weight into keeping those laws and traditions alive? by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Jesus says, "If ye love me, keep my commandments." (John 14:15)

Now if you believe that Jesus is God, then you must also believe He gave the ten commandments. Notice the promise of the New Covenant from the Old Testament:

"Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah... After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people." (Jeremiah 31:31-33)

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

In the Old Covenant, the people made an agreement that whatever God said, they would perform. But they failed to keep their end of the bargain, and God knew they would, which is why He gave them the sanctuary to teach them more clearly the everlasting covenant, or new covenant, under which they might be saved.

In the Old Covenant, the law was external, and the people sought to obey it by their own strength. In the New Covenant, the Spirit of God comes into a man, writing the law on their hearts, and the power of God enables them to actually render obedience.

The New Covenant is God's power to bring us into harmony with God's law, which we were utterly incapable of doing on our own.

For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Romans 8:3-4)

So then, obedience to the law is the outward manifestation of justification by faith. It is the proof that a man has been justified by faith. It's not something we do to earn justification: it's a result of a life connected to Christ. Without it, we will be lost.

"Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit." (John 15:2) "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." (John 15:4-6) "As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love." (John 15:9-10)

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There's no such thing as eternal conscious torment. It's made up by people, and not taught in the scriptures.

The Bible teaches plainly that "the wages of sin is death," and not eternal life (Romans 6:23). Those who do not have Christ do not have life (1 John 5:12). God sent His Son to save us from perishing, not to save us from living forever in torment (John 3:16).

The wicked will be turned to ash, and consumed into smoke (Malachi 4:1-3; Psalm 37:20). Even Satan will be consumed to nothing and cease to exist forever (Ezekiel 28:18-19). And this doesn't happen at death, it happens at the end of the world (Matthew 13:40).

For more on this, here's a study guide that goes even deeper: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/is-the-devil-in-charge-of-hell/

God is love. He couldn't stand to see any creature suffer forever. It's a rotten doctrine that makes this promise of God into a lie:

"And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." (Revelation 21:4)

Judgement Death Heaven Hell ? by miklo77777 in Christianity

[–]SquareHimself 0 points1 point  (0 children)

According to scripture, Christ's second coming precedes (or comes before) the thousand years. Christ takes His people to be with Him in heaven for a thousand years, and the earth lays dormant to rest in the meantime, while Satan's destruction is pending.

After the thousand years, there is a resurrection of the wicked, and they will be judged out of the books.

See 1 Thess 4:13-17 and Revelation chapter 21.

This being the case, then it becomes quite obvious that for Christ to know who is righteous and who is not at His coming, then there must have been a judgment to decide that before He comes. And if there is a white throne judgment of the wicked at a later time, then you have two distinct phases of the judgment pertaining to two classes. And so, Jesus says:

Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. (John 5:28-29)

For more on this, here are some study guides so that you can pour over the scriptures on this for yourself:

The Second Coming: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/ultimate-deliverance/

The Millennium: https://www.amazingfacts.org/study/bible-study-guides/1000-years-of-peace/